Roles, Responsibilities, Learning, Development and Assessment in the Life Long Learning Sector

My roles and responsibilities as a teacher include many factors, which I will be going through in this report. As my background is a hairdresser, I am looking to teach in the hairdressing sector. My learners would ideally be 16-19 year olds aspiring hairdressers, although there could be the exception of mature adult learners, so I would need to bare this in mind when teaching to ensure I cater to all individuals. The majority of my learners would also be girls with again maybe the exception of some boys. As my group sector is very narrow, which just a few exceptions, this could be a barrier for those individuals. For example if there is only 1 boy in a classroom full of girls, he could feel uncomfortable or intimidated. Initially I would need to assess the situation myself, and then ensure in my lesson plan I include methods of inclusive learning. There could be many other barriers that learners could face for example, the environment, confidence, bullying, basic skills, and home problems. So it would be my responsibility to tackle these barriers with solutions immediately, such as setting a clear contract at the start of the lesson, making the environment comfortable for the learners, making it fun and inclusive, and even sign posting. As I have already mentioned above some group sector issues that I may encounter, there could also be other issues such as pregnancy. In situations like this I would need to offer advice to learners and sign post them to people who could help. I would need to make sure I always safeguard myself and keep to my contract of employment rules. I would need to help where I can, and offer advice, and signpost where I cant. For this I would need to assess individual needs at an early stage so that I can help, and mentor them throughout their training course. The main aim as a hairdressing teacher is to be able to pass on knowledge through practical and theory learning. There are 3 main learning styles; visual (seeing and reading), auditory (listening and speaking), and kinaesthetic (touching and doing). I believe all 3 are very important in the hairdressing sector. I would need to include all 3 learning styles because we as hairdresser’s need to see exactly what we are dealing with for example, hair colour, hair style, hair conditions. We would also need to listen to our client needs, and offer advice. And finally our role is very practical, so we are always touching hair and doing things. Overall as I teacher I would need to be able to teach using all 3 styles so that learners can get used to this. However I would need to bare in mind that some learners may learn better using one learning style to another, for example, they might learn better by watching a demonstration rather than having a theory handout. In that case I would offer them more support on the theory side of things. But in general if I use all 3 learning styles I have a better chance to cater for all individuals. As well as learning styles we also have to look at different teaching methods or activities. These could be things like lectures, group work, presentations, fieldwork, work placements, Q&A and case studies. Within the hairdressing sector what we use quite heavily are work placement, and practical work. This gives the learner a chance to gain some crucial hands-on experience of the working world. In terms of the theory side of hairdressing, we use a lecture styled method where learners can gain information, write notes etc. While using all these methods it is important to have a fun, bubbly and relaxed attitude in which learners can feel comfortable, and it allows their personality to come through. Getting everyone involved in group activities, gathering everyone around in demonstrations, all this promotes inclusive learning. It is very important for me to promote this behaviour as it demonstrates a level of good characteristics that they would later on need in the hairdressing industry. I would also make the lesson interactive by using various resources; such as you tube clips, live demonstrations, flip charts, and power point, which would all be relevant in its own matter. For example, the use of power point when going through head and face shapes, or demonstrations when showing hair colouring. Another big responsibility of mine would be dealing with legislations. The Health and safety at work act 1974 and the COSHH act 1989, play a strong role in the hairdressing sector as well as many others. Some of the things that we have to deal with daily are, hazardous chemicals, infections, skin tests, loose objects and wiring hanging around, and hair waste. I would need to make sure risk avoidance procedures are in place such as wearing gloves when dealing with hazardous chemicals, having barbercide on the salon floor so tools can be cleaned after each client to stop the spreading of infections. As well as doing that, it is also my responsibility to have a risk assessment regularly. This could just be as simple as if I can see hair waste on the floor, I would need to make sure its swept up immediately, or If there is spillage of chemicals, or colour left out in a bowl, I would have to get that cleaned up straight away. We also have to be aware of The Data protection act 1984 as we have many records that we need to keep. As teachers we always have to keep records in order to keep ourselves backed up. We would need to be able to provide evidence to governing bodies and clients, for when we have audits and even for self-development. Things such as attendance records, progress reports, assessment records and client records are all record keeping and we need to ensure its all backed up and that they are stored away safely, in either something locked up, or password protected. As we are dealing with client records like name, address, hair history, this also needs to be kept confidential, and only authorised people should be allowed to see this information. The Equality act 2010 is also very important. Equality seems to imply that everyone will be treated the same way, however when dealing with learners with different needs, abilities, backgrounds and so on, from a teachers point of view its all about providing each learner equal opportunity to achieve the goal. An example of this would be if an individual is struggling with keeping up with a detailed power point presentation maybe because he is dyslexic or visually impaired, in this case as I teacher I would need to make it fair for him by giving out handouts. In order to make sure we are treating learners equally in accordance to their needs and abilities, it is vital to do interim assessments. Such assessments could be things like observation, 121’s, monitoring, and group work. This gives me a better understanding on what learners have achieved and what more they need to learn. Within my role I would probably use observation the most, as it is a quick and reliable method to use as we do quite a lot of practical work. For example when everyone is doing a practical such as setting the hair I can easily observe them and assess who is doing well, and what learners may need extra help etc. Or when doing an interim assessment on their theory work I could have 121’s and chat about what they have achieved and what more they need to do, I could get feedback from them if they are struggling with any work etc. gain this is a valid and reliable assessment method. Once I have assessed my learner I am then able to adapt to that and work on those areas. For example if I set a task for learners to weave highlights and I can see that they are struggling with sectioning, I might bring everyone around or see them individually and go through how to section accurately. When doing summative assessments in hairdressing, they are again split in two. We have the practical as sessments where we use methods such as observation or photographic evidence for their portfolio. And on the other hand for the theory we have methods such as multiple choice, project work, and problem scenarios. Before we even begin assessing we need to make the methods we use are; fair, valid, reliable, and current. That is why we have different kinds of assessments for practical and theory, because where a photographic evidence might be valid to show that a learner can change a clients hair colour, that may not be valid or reliable to show that the learner understands the colour wheel or mixing of colour. Between an observation and a photographic I would say an observation is better. The reason is because it ticks all the boxes in terms of it being fair, valid reliable and current, because you can see for yourself whether the learner completed the assessment within the timescale, whether they struggled, or even whether that was all there own work. However the only downside of the observation assessment would be it can be very time consuming, it might cause problems being able to visit salons to assess learners at a work placement. On the other hand photographic is valid however not very reliable but its advantage is that it is very quick, easy and simple. The other method of assessment we use a lot to understand whether a learner has understood knowledge of colour is by giving them a multiple choice test. This is a fair and valid method, however I wouldn’t say it is very reliable because learners could just take a guess. At the end of each lesson for me it is important to get feedback, evaluate and reflect on the session. I encourage learners to ask any questions, or we may even have a discussion. We also share good practice for example one learner may have found it easier to do a task a particular way, and by sharing this with others it could help others achieve the same goal. We always reflect on each lesson where I revisit the objectives set at the start of the lesson, this gives the learners and myself a sense of achievement. Some learners may even want to discuss other matters such as development, or other problems that they are facing, so I need to give them that time and advise them, or signpost them to other authorities. Feedback is also valued, so that I myself could perhaps change or improve things in future lessons.

Civil Rights in the 1960’s Essay

Have you ever sat down and wondered to yourself, what it would be like if schools, restrooms, restaurants, and even public transportation were still segregated today? The majority of people who were born after the 1970’s take for granted how lucky we are as a country and nation to have overcome slavery and the steps against racism we have battled are way through. Slavery was ended when Abraham Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 and was later ratified in December of 1865. Though this law ordered the end to slavery it did very little if nothing to stop the racism that was given towards blacks or any other minority. Until the late 1950’s not many presidents or Congressman had tried to legislate civil rights laws. The Civil Rights struggle that heated up to its climax in the 1960’s was neither a simple nor wanted task by any means. Many Presidents tried taking on the civil rights movement starting with Harry S. Truman. Truman was not for racial equality among blacks and often said so, but he wanted fairness and equality before the law (Patterson 378-382). Once Truman got the ball rolling for the first time since Abraham Lincoln, Truman pushed for a Civil Rights bill and the movement quickly started to escalate and it became one of the main issues of American politics. The next man to take office was John F Kennedy; Kennedy acted as though he had plans to address civil rights issues and is known for saying â€Å"Ask not what your country can do for you†¦ask what you can do for your country† in his inaugural address( ). Kennedy’s plans were never met in his short time as president due to assignation in 1963. Kennedy dying meant Lyndon Johnson was the next president to take president and her went on to make the next big civil rights legislation when the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was established. It took the support of millions and the lives of thousands for our country to realize that people should not be segregated because of their ethnicity or color of their skin. One of the first and largest groups of civil rights movement supporters was young people and in particular college students. A college student in 1963 saw a very different daily landscape than a current college student sees today. Today kids grow up side by side with minority kids throughout their daily lives; back then they might have been the lucky few and grown up looking at blacks as equals, but more than likely they viewed them as inferiors, or even just plain animals. Then these young racists knew know better and went away to College and found themselves in one of the first places you could find support of the civil rights movement. There are many reasons to why the ball picked up speed so fast at universities. The first reason being the young people of the 60’s had not lived alongside slaves or indentured servants nor did they see the great depression or WW2 as had many of their parents and politicians of the times, so they had a different view on racism. The young people of the 60’s were viewed by the older generations specially those of the south, as being soft for not having to deal with the hardships they had to such as the great depression and the World Wars ( ). Instead of going to work before graduating high school like people in the1920’s and 1930’s people were graduating high school and even getting jobs. This caused for a more educated and affluent generation which usually runs along with having certain moral standings such as treating people of a different race equally to people of your own. With a generation bigger than ever before and more people going to college than ever before it caused for a huge explosion of self-freedom. There was many different ways students would show there want of freedom (Patterson 407-408). A very common practice in the 1960’s was for blacks and fellow college students to have sit-in’s at all white diners or transportation places. These sit-ins consisted of a group or single African American going in and taking a seat where only whites are allowed to sit and refuse to leave. Hundreds of sit-ins occurred around the nation and many taking place on university campuses run by students themselves. Several of these sit-ins are famed for the effectiveness they afterwards achieved and others for the violence that was caused upon the protestors (Patterson 382-386).The most famous case is the story of Rosa Parks. Rosa Parks was on a public bus in the racist Montgomery, Alabama when the bus driver asked her to give her colored seat to a white man, because the white section was full. Rosa refused to get out of her seat and it resulted in her getting arrested. Rosa was not the first African American to refuse leaving her seat for a white person but she was viewed by th e NAACP as the best case to fight in court.( ) In the famous words of Jesse Jackson, â€Å"In many ways, history is marked as ‘before’ and ‘after’ Rosa Parks. She sat down in order that we all might stand up, and the walls of segregation began to come down( ).The support of white students to follow fellow African American students to sit-ins was not always there. Local and national news stations started to air live footage of what was happening on the streets to protestors of segregation. The emotion put on a young college student when they see one of their peers that attend college to get an education just like them gets blasted with a fire hose from ten feet away or gets viciously attacked by police dogs. This picture caused thousands of other students to want to fight for change as well. Along with the new access to live feed news there were people such as Martin Luther King Jr. who were doing all they could to paint the realistic picture of the life of an American black man during segregation. Luther got his point across in multiple ways including his famous memoir, â€Å"Why We Can’t Wait†, in this memoir he explains how horrible the everyday life of an African American in America can be and how politicians for years have just looked over the horrific treatment of blacks and that it has been too long and the time is now(King Jr 11-13). Besides the sit-ins occurring across the nation African Americans and whites were also organizing marches to protest segregation as well. Along with the marches inspiring speeches such as Martin Luther King’s famous â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech were given. King’s 17 minute speech that was given in front of over 250,000 Americans on the steps of Lincoln Memorial, is one of the most well-known and moving speeches in American history(Patterson385-386). A large number of the people in the crowd were college students, due to the appeal Martin Luther King drew from young people. He gained this appeal by talking of equality of races and the chance for any man or woman to become whatever they pleased and not be held back due to race, religion or any other difference a person may have. While students saw the abuse blacks were taking simply for the color of their skin they started to join together on marches and attending civil rights rallies. The more the King, Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, and many others protested and spread the word of unfair treatment the more support of younger generation people began to support the civil rights movement. Another reason for the large involvement of college students within the civil rights movement of the 1960’s was due to the dramatically growing amount of student organized groups that were fighting for true democracy and equality to all. One of these organizations was the Students for Democratic Society (SDS). SDS was founded in 1960 but had roots dating to the early 1900’s; the goal of SDS was to mainly protest and voice the message that equality to all and peaceful means makes a successful country ( ). SDS was not the only organization that was taking big steps to get the civil rights movement moving, there were hundreds if not thousands of organizations that were meeting about and protesting the civil rights movement. These groups were known for telling young people what they wanted to hear and some even became militant groups. Membership in these organizations grew drastically once Lyndon Johnson started sending more and more troops into Vietnam. The Vietnam War itself had little impact on the civil rights movement of the United States, but it did however portray the world image that America was not going to let communistic governments take control of countries and deny their own people of civil rights. Many Americans did not agree with the war and saw it was neither the time nor the place to go and fight a war on foreign soil when the devastating effects of WW2 were still in the back of people’s minds. The largest critic of the war was overwhelming young people, they saw themselves as the ones being sent to die for a reason that was not worthy of American lives. Though segregation and a war in Asia seem to have little in common on the surface, during the reform of the 1960’s they found each other going hand in hand. Many African Americans of the United States believed that if we were fighting in a foreign country to reserve their people’s civil rights, then they would soon get their civil rights protected as well. They were mistaken and by this and the huge support of the anti-war movement and the animosity growing against the current segregation laws molded into one giant movement. This movement being carried by young people, who saw the possibility of change, carried throughout the nation and became the biggest civil rights movement in American history since abolishing slavery (Patterson 413-422). Now that we have an idea of what growing up with segregation looks like and how it can split a nation in two, I think I can say that joining the activist movement when it began in the 1960’s was almost a no brainer to many young people of that generation. They had a tremendous amount of pressure from their fellow black peers to be viewed as equals, they had an unwanted war fueling a large part of the country, and they were also a generation that believed in change and ending the horrible acts that were committed under segregation. With all the pressures from outside sources and the generation as a whole going through a freedom crisis, college students came together and became the perfect torch barrier’s for the civil rights movement.

Social Responsibility, Consumerism, and the Marketing Concept

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, CONSUMERISM, AND THE MARKETING CONCEPT Robert D. Winsor, Loyola Marymount University ABSTRACT This paper compares the often-criticized â€Å"selling orientation† or â€Å"selling concept† with the commonly-praised â€Å"societal marketing concept â€Å"from the perspectives of consumer rationality and persuasibility. It is suggested that both orientations view consumers as relatively irrational and as easily prone to manipulation by marketers. The implications of this similarity are explored from the perspectives of consumerism and social responsibility. INTRODUCTIONCritics of marketing have consistently attacked the discipline for discounting consumers' intelligence and capacity for rational choice and for deliberately confounding consumers in their efforts to make rational, informed, unbiased, and free economic choices. At the same time, societal trends have pushed U. S. businesses in the direction of increasing concern for social issues and a ttention to long-run consumer welfare. The aforementioned criticisms and pressures for increasing social responsibility are largely driven by the same social paradigms and constituents.Yet, it is noteworthy that the ultimate result of an expanded social responsibility of business is the concomitant diminishment of free consumer choice. Moreover, this obstruction of consumer discretion is the inevitable consequence of presumptions of consumer irrationality. Thus, while groups such as consumerists have often criticized marketers explicitly for rejecting notions of consumer rationality, these same groups and sentiments have forcefully promoted the social responsibility of business and the societal marketing concept as advancements in business thought and practice.As a result, contradictions can be seen to exist within the consumerist agenda, and are apparent (but unacknowledged) in the â€Å"societal marketing concept† and calls for increasing the responsibility of business towa rd social issues and concerns. The goal of this paper is to expose these contradictions and to elaborate upon their implications for business and society in general. THE EVOLUTION OF THE MARKETING CONCEPT In January of 1960, the marketing discipline entered a new age.In this year, we were presented with no ground-breaking theory, no pioneering methodology, no brilliant adaptation of another discipline's construct, and no monumental grant. We were, however, given something we would come to treasure much more highly than any of these. We were provided a raison d'etre and a philosophical foundation. It was on this date that the Journal of Marketing published an article by Robert Keith (1960) entitled â€Å"The Marketing Revolution. And, since its publication, marketers have been able to feel justified in believing that their efforts were not only indispensable, but that they have been instrumental in bringing about sweeping improvements in the evolution of business practice. Although the revolution described by Keith has been tamed to become the â€Å"evolution† of the marketing concept, and the generalizablity of the evolution it described has been questioned by some (e. g. Fullerton, 1988), the transformation in American business described by Keith's model has nonetheless served as a source of explanation and justification for marketing academicians.The â€Å"post-evolution† marketers have been lent a degree of dignity and a sense of purpose which was conspicuously lacking before. Prior to this date, marketers were perceived to be at best superfluous, and at worst dishonest or unscrupulous. Not that the average citizen considers marketing in any different light today, but the belief in an evolution of the marketing concept has allowed the academic marketing community a certain degree of self-respect. In his article, Keith described four â€Å"eras† or periods of thought and practice through which his organization, The Pillsbury Company, pr ogressed.Keith believed that these eras were characteristic of most businesses which were contemporaries of Pillsbury, and thus speculated that an overall movement was in evidence. Since the publication of Keith's article, other writers have modified, refined, and extended the basic thesis advancing this evolutionary process: The most noteworthy and well-known of these descriptions is that of Philip Kotler. Kotler describes five alternative concepts or philosophies through which most businesses have evolved.Although any given business can operate under any of the philosophies, the underlying precept of the evolution thesis is that these philosophies form a hierarchy, with later philosophies being superior to those of earlier eras (Keith, 1960; Kotler, 1994). The implication is that to move from a lower level (earlier) philosophy to that on a higher level (later) is not only insightful, but also good business. The first eras or business philosophies are termed the â€Å"product† and the â€Å"production† concepts.The product concept emphasizes product quality and/or performance, and assumes that at least some consumers are knowledgeable enough to recognize and respect superior attributes in these areas. The production concept focuses upon systems for producing large volumes of products in an effort to drive down costs by exploiting economies of scale. This philosophy is based upon the assumption that most consumers not only recognize, but prefer high value (benefits – price) offerings and are knowledgeable and rational in selecting among alternative products.A later era is known as the selling concept, and is based upon the premise that consumers are relatively uninformed regarding product attributes, or base their selection upon fashion or other â€Å"non-rational† criteria. Moreover, this orientation assumes that consumers are easily influenced. As a result, organizations employing the selling concept typically resort to aggressive selling and promotional efforts, with the goal of seducing or coercing customers into purchasing the product. A considerably higher plane of enlightenment is represented by the marketing concept era.The marketing concept is considered to be a quantum leap up the evolutionary hierarchy, and continues to be embraced by a great number of marketing scholars and businesses. The marketing concept â€Å"holds that the key to achieving organizational goals consists in determining the needs and wants of target markets and delivering the desired satisfactions more effectively and efficiently than competitors† (Kotler, 1994, p. 18; 1977a). The motto of the marketing concept is â€Å"find a need and fill it,† and its credo is â€Å"The Customer is King. Like the product and production concepts, but unlike the selling concept, the marketing concept is founded upon the assumption that consumers are knowledgeable, intelligent, and rational, and base their product purchases upon a c areful consideration of the relationship between their own needs and product attributes. As a result, the fundamental premise of the marketing concept becomes a focus on the consumer as the pivotal point for all business activity (Barksdale and Darden, 1971).The thinking underlying the marketing concept was espoused as early as the 1940's and 1950's (Samli, Palda, and Barker, 1987; Bell and Emory, 1971). In 1958 the term â€Å"marketing concept† was coined to describe the philosophy behind this approach (see McKitterick, 1958), and â€Å"by 1965 practically all introductory marketing texts included some discussion of the ‘new' marketing concept† (Bell & Emory, 197 1). The reason that the marketing concept was considered a major breakthrough in business philosophy is that it represented the antithesis of the product, production, and selling concepts.Rather than taking an existing product and endeavoring to modify demand for it by adding features, reducing price, o r varying promotional technique, the marketing concept holds that businesses should first determine the existing needs in the marketplace and then design and produce a product to satisfy this need. In this sense the marketing concept is driven by the needs of the marketplace, rather than the existing abilities of the firm.The fifth, and supposedly highest stage of evolution in marketing philosophies is what Kotler terms the societal marketing concept. In each of his writings referencing the marketing concept, Kotler (1972, 1977b, 1994) clearly states his belief that the societal marketing concept embodies a higher and more enlightened plane of marketing thought and practice, and suggests that this new concept represents an attempt to harmonize the goals of business to the occasionally conflicting goals of society.As such, it postulates that the â€Å"the organization's task is to determine the needs, wants, and interests of target markets and to deliver the desired satisfactions mo re effectively and efficiently than competitors in a way that preserves or enhances the consumer's and society's well-being (Kotler, 1994, p. 29). It should be noted that the societal marketing concept is founded upon one dominant and critical proposition.This is the assumption that â€Å"consumers' wants do not always coincide with their long-run interests or society's long-run interests,† and that, given this, marketers should place the â€Å"emphasis on ‘long-run consumer and societal well being† (Kotler, 1977b). As a result, the societal marketing concept represents an endorsement and justification for the social responsibility of business in contemporary society, and a refutation of Milton Friedman's infamous assertion that â€Å"the social responsibility of business is to make a profit† (Friedman, 1962). THE CONSUMERISM MOVEMENT AS THE CATALYST FOR THESOCIETAL MARKETING CONCEPT The latest consumerism movement is a cause that has been accumulating mom entum for over 30 years in the U. S. , and its disciples assert that all consumers have an inherent right to products which are: safe in use (and even misuse), effective for the use designed, economical, reliable, honestly labeled and advertised, and benign in their impacts upon the environment. Moreover, consumerists have been very proactive in seeing that these â€Å"rights† are guaranteed to individual consumers, either by the firms selling the products, or by the government of this country.Adherents of consumerism tend to believe that businesses are so overwhelmingly motivated by the desire to make a profit that they commonly compromise the quality of the product offerings, thereby jeopardizing the safety of consumers. Consumerists cite examples of this â€Å"greed,† such as the Beech-Nut case involving the sale over 10 years of millions of cases of â€Å"apple juice† which was in reality only sweetened, flavored water (Business Week, 1988).The fact that suc h a large number and variety of these cases exist and continue to be exposed on a regular basis lends a great deal of credibility to the consumerism movement and its underlying assumptions. In explaining the rise of consumerism, Peter Drucker blamed the marketers for failing their consumers and publics in using the marketing concept: We have asked ourselves where in the marketing concept consumerism fits or belongs. I have come to the conclusion that, so far, the only way one can really define it within the total marketing concept is as the shame of the total marketing concept.It is essentially a mark of failure of the concept†¦ (Drucker, 1969) This quote is now famous to marketing practitioners, scholars, and critics alike, and the legitimacy of Drucker's view is generally conceded. In the same year that Drucker made this accusation, Business Week (1969) also asserted that â€Å"In the very broadest sense, consumerism can be defined as the bankruptcy of what the business scho ols have been calling the ‘marketing concept. â€Å"‘ These condemnations of the marketing concept reflected a general assumption within both the business and academic spheres regarding the implications of consumerism's growing popularity.A substantial portion of scholars and managers surveyed in 1971, for example, believed that the rise in consumerism was a direct reflection of the inadequacy of the marketing concept (Barksdale and Darden, 1971). As the presumed response to the failure of the marketing concept, then, the consumerist movement became the foundation for â€Å"a revised marketing concept† which Kotler (1972) proposed as the successor to the â€Å"failed† marketing concept. As in earlier stages of the marketing philosophy evolution, the â€Å"societal marketing concept† was ostensibly constructed upon the ruins of its immediate predecessor.Since the most recent consumerist movement in the U. S. served as the catalyst for today's concept ualization and implementation of the societal marketing concept, it would seem important to understand the modern origins of this movement. ORIGINS OF THE MODERN CONSUMERISM MOVEMENT Writing in 1987, the Auto Editors of Consumer Guide described one car as â€Å"perhaps the most sophisticated (certainly one of the most ambitious) cars ever to come from Detroit† (Langworth and Robson, 1987, p. 51). These authors went on to proclaim that these were â€Å"the kind of cars we should have had in the 1970's, and didn't. The car was the Chevrolet Corvair of the 1960's, and its conspicuous absence in the 1970's was the direct result of what many consider to be both consumerism's explosive postwar debut and also its finest hour. Indeed, the tomb of the Corvair became the foundation of consumerism as we know it today. While business historian's (e. g. , Halberstam, 1986) are eager to criticize Detroit's apparent indifference and ineptitude regarding the 1970's invasion of small, econom ical automobiles from foreign countries and the oil crisis which precipitated this invasion, this blame has been clearly misplaced and undeserved.In 1959, General Motors, acknowledging an existing need in the marketplace for a small, inexpensive, sporty, and fuel-efficient automobile, designed and marketed a vehicle to fill this need. This automobile, the Corvair, was indeed revolutionary in many respects, having four-wheel independent suspension, a rear-mounted air-cooled six-cylinder engine, the option of turbo-charging (a first), and an exhaust system design which would be used on a majority of automobiles for years to come.Both the Corvair and its functional, but considerably more primitive predecessor, the Volkswagen Beetle, were designed, built, and marketed with the highest regard for the marketing concept–offering lower-income consumers the opportunity to own an economical, reliable, and fun-todrive automobile. Both cars were strong sellers, and appeared to satisfy a number of preexisting needs in the marketplace. In 1960, Consumer Reports praised the Volkswagen for its good workmanship, and handling and roadability which were â€Å"well ahead of the U.S. average†. Additionally, about the worst thing that Consumer Reports could find to say about the Corvair was a remark about its â€Å"unimpressive trim quality† (cf. Abernathy, Clark, and Kantrow, 1983). Unfortunately for many consumers, Ralph Nader would use these cars as a catapult for his career, and in so doing, would become synonymous with the consumerism movement. In 1965 he wrote a book entitled Unsafe at Any Speed, in which he criticized General Motors as being irresponsible, greedy, and unconcerned for the public's safety.Nader used the Corvair as the book's primary example, developing an elaborate, scathing, but also relatively misplaced criticism of the Corvair. Due to the negative publicity which the book generated, the book dealt a death blow to the Corvair, which imme diately began a downward sales spiral toward its eventual extinction in 1969. Inspired by the â€Å"success† of Unsafe at Any Speed, an equivalently brutal and faulty criticism of the Volkswagen Beetle was written in 1971 by a colleague and ally of Nader, and was entitled Small—On Safety (Dodge, 197 1).Since, by the time of this book's publication, millions of Volkswagens were on the road and were well-regarded as providing reliable, economical, and serviceable transportation, the book failed to achieve any credibility, and did little harm to Volkswagen's sales. What should have been evident to readers of either book and to consumers in general, but was perhaps not appreciated until much later, was that it was physically impossible to construct a small economy car which was as safe as the leviathan Cadillacs, Lincolns, and Chryslers of the same period.Had a well-designed car such as the Honda Civic (or any other contemporary compact automobile) been introduced into the market in the 1960's, it too would have certainly been labeled as unsafe, and forced off the market. THE SOCIETAL MARKETING CONCEPT AND THEORY X The societal marketing concept is largely congruent with the â€Å"multiple constituency model of organizations† (Kimery and Rinehart, 1998), and general notions of the responsibility or obligation of businesses to social and environmental stakeholders.Contrasted to the marketing concept or orientation, which posits the direct and simple relationship between organizational profitability and responsiveness to customer needs and concerns, the societal marketing concept or multiple constituency model suggests that success is highly dependent upon an organization's attentiveness to all constituencies simultaneously (Kimery and Rinehart, 1998). Yet due to the common opposition between immediate consumer needs and long-term societal and individual needs, the simultaneous â€Å"satisfaction† of all of these demands is frequently dif ficult if not impossible.Moreover, the focus upon â€Å"un-stated† or long-term customer needs and a concomitant discounting of stated consumer desires have distinct overtones of corporate or governmental paternalism and the assumptions of producer or governmental sovereignty, which this perspective necessarily implies. In short, where the marketing concept is the economic equivalent of the democratic process, the societal marketing concept is antithetical to the tenets of democratic equality and more comparable to economic fascism.In an eloquent paper outlining the conceptual foundations of his societal marketing concept, Kotler adapted Douglas McGregor's managerial â€Å"Theory X / Theory Y† to illustrate alternative perspectives of customers (Kotler, 1977b). According to McGregor, Theory X managers view their employees as being lazy, ignorant, gullible, suspicious, and disloyal. In contrast, Theory Y managers view their employees as informed, intelligent, motivated, unique, and rational (McGregor, 1957, 1985).In his adaptation, Kotler makes the assertion that businesses subscribing to the philosophy embodied within the societal marketing concept make assumptions about their customers which are consistent with Theory Y (as opposed to Theory X). In other words, Kotler believes that the societal marketing concept is philosophically consonant with a perspective of the consumer as informed, intelligent, and rational, suggesting the higher plane of enlightenment shared by adopters of this concept and alluding to the concept's supposed capacity for consumer empowerment.Although Kotler makes a valuable contribution in adapting this managerial framework to the marketing discipline, he grossly errs in his interpretation. A far more plausible observation is that the societal marketing concept is solidly built upon Theory X assumptions about consumers on the part of the marketer. According to Kotler (1977b), â€Å"societal marketers are more attuned to t he buyers' unexpressed needs than overexpressed wants,† and place an emphasis upon â€Å"long-run consumer and societal well being. Because of this, the societal marketing concept clearly forces or compels marketers to make judgments about what is â€Å"best† for consumers, and what needs are valid (as opposed to those that are spurious or unwholesome). It is in this way that the societal marketing concept becomes the ultimate subscriber and underwriter to the Theory X mentality. The conceptual foundation of the societal marketing concept (as well as of the consumerism movement) rests eavily upon the belief that the individual consumer is unable to â€Å"look out for him/herself,† is gullible, ignorant, easily misled, does not know what is actually in his/her own best interest, and thus needs to be protected from powerful and unscrupulous marketers. In this way, the belief that the role of the marketer is to interpret what is â€Å"best† for society and i ndividuals necessitates the assumption that individuals do not and cannot know what is best for themselves. Nor is this an overstatement of the societal marketing concept's goals and assumptions.Bell and Emory (1971, p. 40), proponents of this concept, assert that â€Å"The typical consumer is at such a disadvantage that he cannot assure his own effectiveness. Business has the responsibility to help him, and if business fails then the government or other parties must act on the consumer's behalf. † In addition, in circumstances â€Å"where the buyer is unwilling or unable to make rational decisions,† Bell and Emory believe that â€Å"It is the duty of business to promote proper consumption values† (Bell & Emory, 197 1, p. 40, emphasis added).Yet these are precisely the â€Å"paternalistic† attitudes which characterize the Theory X â€Å"manager† according to McGregor. The fact that some consumers may choose to buy a subcompact automobile because th ey prefer economy over a certain degree of safety, or that some choose to subsist on McDonald's hamburgers, fries and milkshakes despite their â€Å"unhealthfullness† does not imply that these individuals are stupid, or gullible, or that they need to be â€Å"enlightened† by consumerism or societal marketing techniques, This is in fact the precise point at which the â€Å"evolution† of the marketing concept breaks down.The marketing concept holds that marketers should strive to supply products for every consumer need, provided these needs are not grossly threatening to society, and that â€Å"any decision the customer makes to serve his own perceived selfinterest is rational† (Bauer & Greyser, 1967). It is thus impossible to interpret the societal marketing concept as anything but a move backward into the period where the selling concept ruled–where consumers were â€Å"ignorant,† â€Å"irrational,† and easily anipulated by more insig htful marketers. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS While consumerists and other critics of the selling concept regularly and loudly chastise business organizations for employing marketing strategies and campaigns which are ostensibly based upon assumptions of consumer ignorance and irrationality, these same guardians of consumer interest are typically synonymous with those pushing organizations most forcefully into programs of social responsibility and the societal marketing concept.Yet, as noted above, the agenda of social responsibility in business is clearly based upon assumptions of equal (or even greater) degrees of consumer ignorance and irrationality. Disciples of the societal marketing concept appear to be largely oblivious to the relatively absurd levels that businesses have been pushed by forces in concert with their agenda. (Witness the warning on McDonald's coffee cups: â€Å"Caution: HOT! . . . CAUTION: CONTENTS HOT! †¦ Caution: HOT! . . . Caution: HOT! . . . WARNING: HOT! †¦ /! .. † which are combined with a corollary reduction in the temperature of the liquid itself — actions which were necessitated by the infamous multimillion dollar legal claim against the company — a lawsuit which was applauded by numerous consumerist groups. ) But, as Levitt noted in 1958, â€Å"self-conscious dedication to social responsibility may have started as a purely defensive maneuver against strident attacks on big corporations and on the moral efficacy of the profit system. But defense alone no longer explains the motive. The motive for corporate social responsibility and the overwhelming push for social responsibility in the pursuit of sales now arises out of the industrial sector's near-total dependence on social trends and the sentiment of a minority of consumers. Corporations that have been beaten into submission by frivolous lawsuits and that are afraid to arouse consumerist accusations of indifference have been forced to pander to t he lowest common denominator of consumer passivity, ignorance, and laziness.As predicted by McGregor, these Theory X attitudes and actions have subsequently bred and reinforced the very passivity, ignorance, and laziness in consumers they were designed to anticipate and amend. Ironically, the similarities between the selling concept and the societal marketing concept regarding their shared assumption of consumer ignorance can be seen as forming the perfect foundation for either societal altruism or, alternatively, opportunistic exploitation.In many cases, these efforts can be difficult to distinguish from one another, and apparent acts of altruism or social responsibility can provide the perfect camouflage for exploitation. Because organizations are rapidly becoming aware of the power of â€Å"greenconsumers,† for example, there is a significant temptation to advance this agenda through the marketing program as a powerful device for cultivating customer loyalty and anesthetiz ing consumer prudence and vigilance.As Kotler (1994, p. 30) notes, â€Å"a number of companies have achieved notable sales and profit gains through adopting and practicing the societal marketing concept. † One of the two shining examples Kotler cites is The Body Shop, started by Anita Roddick in 1976. This organization has experienced phenomenal sales growth by actively promoting its products as all-natural, environmentally friendly, and non-animal-tested, and its business practices as sociallyconcerned.Moreover, Roddick has frequently and publicly ridiculed other cosmetics companies, noting that they are â€Å"run by men who create needs that don't exist† (Zinn, 1991). Indeed, The Body Shop became in the 1980's the prototype that all â€Å"earth-friendly† businesses would seek to emulate. As the vanguard of social responsibility, The Body Shop and its founder became the beneficiary of huge volumes of positive publicity, international acclaim, and consumer goodw ill.Yet recent explorations into The Body Shop's products and business practices have found elements which yield a stark contrast to the public images and perceptions noted above. Products of the company have been found to be largely petrochemical-based and of relatively poor-quality, and a large proportion of them have been tested on animals. In addition, the â€Å"socially-enlightened† business practices of this company have been exposed as creative public relations efforts, and the FTC has nvestigated the firm for fraudulent business dealings (Entine, 1993; Buszka, 1997). Clearly, it must inevitably be those organizations which are encouraged to view their consumers as ignorant or irrational that can and will most easily extend that notion to discover opportunities for exploiting that ignorance and irrationality. It is for this reason that those espousing the societal marketing concept and the social responsibility of business can be seen as the greatest danger to consumer sovereignty and consumer welfare.As Lord Acton observed, power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Yet it is a corollary rule that in reducing one individual's power, all others with whom that person deals have their relative power increased. By forcing consumers into the roles of ignorant, helpless, and mindless children in need of protection and corporate welfare, advocates of the societal marketing concept have liberated consumers from both responsibility and power, and have concomitantly made business more powerful. REFERENCES Abernathy, W. Clark, and Kantrow (1983), Industrial Renaissance; Producing a Competitive Future for America, New York: Basic Books. Bauer, R. and S. Greyser (1967), â€Å"The Dialogue That Never Happens,† Harvard Business Review, (November-December), 186-190. Barksdale, Hiram C. and Bill Darden (1971), â€Å"Marketers' Attitudes Toward the Marketing Concept,† Journal of Marketing, 35 (October), 28-36. Bell, M. and W. Emory (197 1), â€Å"The Faltering Marketing Concept,† Journal of Marketing 35, (October), (37-42). Business Week (1969), â€Å"Business Responds to Consumerism,† September 6, 95.Business Week (1988), â€Å"What Led Beech-Nut Down the Road to Disgrace,† February 2, 124-127. Buszka, Sharlene (1997), â€Å"A Case of Greewashing: The Body Shop,† in Proceedings of the Association of Management and the International Association of Management l5th Annual International Conference, Organizational Management Division, Volume 15, Number 1, 199-294. Dodge, Lowell (1972), Small–On Safety: The Designed-In Dangers of the Volkswagen, New York: Grossman. Drucker, P. (1958), â€Å"Marketing and Economic Development,† Journal of Marketing, (January), (252-259). _________(1969), Consumerism: The Opportunity of Marketing,† address before the National Association of Manufacturers, New York, April 10, later printed as â€Å"The Shame of Marketing,† Marketing Co mmunications, August, 1969, 60. Entine, Jon (1994), â€Å"Shattered Image: Is the Body Shop Too Good to Be True? † Business Ethics, (September/October). Friedman, Milton (1962), Capitalism and Freedom, Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Fullerton, Ronald A. (1988), â€Å"How Modern is Modern Marketing? Marketing's Evolution and the Myth of the ‘Production Era,'† Journal of Marketing, 52 (January), 108-125.Halberstam, David (1986), The Reckoning, New York: Avon Books. Keith, R. (1960), â€Å"The Marketing Revolution,† Journal of Marketing, 24(January), 35-3 8. Klein, T. (1979), â€Å"Contemporary Problems, Marketing Theory, and Futures Research,† in Conceptual and Theoretical Developments in Marketing: AMA Proceedings, 258-263. Kimery, Kathryn M. and Shelley M. Rinehart (1998), â€Å"Markets and Constituencies: An Alternative View of the Marketing Concept,† Journal of Business Research, 43, 117-124. Kotler, P. (1977a), â€Å"From Sales Obs ession to Marketing Effectiveness,† Harvard Business Review (November-December), 67-75. _______(1972), â€Å"What Consumerism Means for Marketers,† Harvard Business Review, (May-June), 48-57. ________(1977b), â€Å"Considerations In a Theory of Humanistic Marketing,† Working Paper, Graduate School Of Management, Northwestern University. ________(1994), Marketing Management: Analysis, Planning, and Control, eighth edition, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc. ________, and S. Levy, (1969), â€Å"Broadening the Concept of Marketing,† Journal of Marketing, (January), 10-15. Langworth, Richard M. nd Graham Robson (1987), The Complete Book of Collectible Cars, 1930-1980, New York: Beekman House. Levitt, T. (1958), â€Å"The Dangers of Social Responsibility,† Harvard Business Review, 36, 5(September-October), 41-50. _______(1960), â€Å"Marketing Myopia,† Harvard Business Review, (July-August). _______(1977), â€Å"Marketing When Thin gs Change,† Journal of Marketing, (NovemberDecember), 107-113. McGregor, D. (1957), â€Å"The Human Side of Enterprise,† Management Review (November), 22-28. McGregor, D. (1985), The Human Side of Enterprise, New York: McGraw-Hill.McKitterick, J. (1958), â€Å"What is the Marketing Management Concept? † in The Frontiers of Marketing Thought and Science, Chicago: American Marketing Association, 71-82. Nader, Ralph (1965), Unsafe At Any Speed: The Designed In Dangers of the American Automobile, New York: Grossman. Samli, A. , K. Palda, and A. Barker (1987), â€Å"Toward a Mature Marketing Concept,† Sloan Management Review (Winter), 45-5 1. Zinn, Laura (1991), â€Å"Whales, Human Rights, Rain Forests — And the Heady Smell of Profits,† Business Week, July 15, 114-115.

International financial services Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

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Strategic Assessment of Raleigh Cycle Ltd Case Study

Strategic Assessment of Raleigh Cycle Ltd - Case Study Example Business Environment The cycling industry in the United States of America (USA) had generated revenue of 6 billion dollars in 2005 (Wales 2009b). There are countless bicycle manufacturers around the world that compete for sales. A recent report dated 28th October 2009 listed 172 primary bicycle manufacturers (Wikipedia 2009). However the market is huge as stated by a 2009 report by Business Exchange which indicates a growth in the industry with 3.8 million people in the USA riding bicycle daily to work (Rickman 2009). This statistic is also supported by another statistic that indicates there are currently 450 million bicycles in China (Johnson 2007) and 16 million bicycles in Netherlands (Cycling in the Netherlands 2009). Hence capturing a customer would plausibly not be difficult. This notion is also supported by the fact that fuel prices constantly fluctuate (Shanghai Daily 2009) thus cycling offers an alternative mean of transportation. But some manufacturers reported losses. Shimano's net income fel t 58% in 2009 (Le 2009) and Dorel's revenue drop 8% in that same year (Reed Business 2006). These 2 contrasting statistics indicate that the business environment of the cycling industry is mixed. Assessment of Raleigh 2 Past and Current Strategies of Raleigh Cycle Ltd. In 2001 Raleigh's parent company went bankrupt (Teather 2007). But by the year 2004 the company's sales were increasing due to the reintroduction of the 'Chopper' (Teather 2007) but their market shares were decreasing and it was predicted to decrease until the year 2010 (Teather 2007). Different strategies were employed during the 122 years life span of Raleigh. From the period 1887 till 1943, the company employed the strategy of expansion and diversity. This is evidently shown as... This essay assessed the strategy employed by Raleigh Cycle Limited. Not only that the business environment of the company were also analyzed. The researcher of this paper thoroughly dissected the company and mentioned the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of the company. Several key factors that affect the growth and profit of the company were outlined. This paper ended with comments upon the sustainability of the current strategy and obstacles and hindrances faced by the company. Raleigh’s current aim is to increase sales and regain the share of the market. Mark Gouldthorp, the Managing Director of Raleigh, in his statement stated that focusing too much upon competitors would make Raleigh’s products similar to the competitor’s products. Thus Raleigh is currently employing a strategy of improving the quality of their products, while not concentrating too much upon their competitors. The researcher stated that in certain cities, there are few or no dedicate lanes for cyclists to commute. This can be denoted as a governmental issue since the government has the authority and initiative to appoint or construct such lanes. This situation exists throughout the world and companies have to be prepared to face these consequences. Even encouragements from companies like Raleigh are insufficient if higher authorities have contrasting policies. According to Kotler, this is a typical company-government relationship that one should take into account before venturing into business

Chinese Economic Reform Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 8000 words

Chinese Economic Reform - Coursework Example The introduction of the reforms in 1978 allowed China to be a part of the few countries who were quickly heading towards the economies which were growing rapidly. It is also ahead in the field of exporting as well as importing of goods. According to statistics, the rate of poverty has fallen down since 1981 till 2005 from a 40 percent to 29 percent (The World Bank, 2008) and that is due to their industrialization sector. But now today, there seems to be a major problem with the ever growing population and inflation. The income of the rural-urban sectors seems to be dwindling and that indeed is a problem which needs to be dealt with. So, my motivation behind selecting this topic is to prepare a report about the inflation crisis in China and also how the monetary bank with their policy is going to control it. Therefore, that is my research question also, My objective in writing this report is to present with a discussion concerning inflation and what it is. Specifically, inflation in China will be considered and also the policies that the Chinese officials have undertaken in order to control it. I would also like to introduce the term inflation briefly and then further in chapter 2 I will explain it in detail. In February since the last 11 years the rate at which China's inflation grew was tremendous but not in a good way. Due to this everything turned upside down; it added immense pressure on the Chinese government to come up with plans to hold or slow down the economy and for the central bank to make an increase in their interest rates. One can say that China has sealed its own economic doom but I am hopeful that with these policies the inflation will be under control. In the coming chapters I will be discussing in length about the 1979 economic reform background, the government policies, inflation situations, economic theory, bank of China, central bank monetary policies, literature reviews of China's rapid growth and at the end an analysis of the

Why Finland Education Model will not work for the United States Essay

Why Finland Education Model will not work for the United States Education System - Essay Example These include; institutional design, funding, and Teacher training- teacher retention. Critical analysis of these factors and their application between the two countries explains the variation in their education performance ranking. Unless united States initiate reforms on its institutional designs, it will lag behind Finland in terms of its overall education system performance. The Finland government has centralized education policy decisions under the ministry of education. This means that the curriculum structure is uniform and tests are homogeneous across the whole country. Such institutional design means that diverse teaching skills are applicable in different settings and learners abilities. This offers better opportunities for the children and teachers with unique differences to work towards a common goal. This explains the outstanding performance of the education system in Finland as seen from its high global ranking over United States. In-depth assessment of the institutional design of United States exposes significant flaws that make its education system relatively poor (Tiina and Markku, 2007). The curriculum development and implementation has been decentralized to individual states. This has placed significant accountability pressure on the teachers and placed much emphasis on passing tests. This design means that the socio-economic diversity in terms of learning ability, teaching skills among teachers and students is disregarded. This has been in force since the passing of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act (2002) by President George Bush administration. This has seen teachers concentrate on tests which fail to capture other important aspects of learning among students’ hence poor math and language skills mastery progress. It is therefore evident that while Education in Finland is managed from national platform, the United States has left education management in the

Homework Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Homework - Coursework Example 1964). Understanding of electrical stress and electrical strength help avoid discharges in electrical appliances which cause insulation failure. The discharges result from high working voltage and can be reduced by reducing the working voltages. For optimum design of electrical appliances, knowledge on the tendency to increase voltage stress is necessary. Proper selection of insulation material for reliability and economic purposes is done in relation to corona discharges and dielectric strength. High voltage engineers must know the field intensities in different media that are under electric stress. This helps in economical and efficient choosing of insulators to ensure reliable operation of the equipment and the correct electrode configurations. Thickness of the insulating material. A material’s electric strength increases at a rate less than that of a linear increase in its thickness. This means the electric strength for a thicker sample is lower than for a thin sample. Therefore increasing the thickness will greatly affect the electric strength of the insulating material (Malik et al 1998). Duration of voltage transients and operation frequency. When operating frequency increases, the electric strength is reduced. The electric strength of a solid material increases fast and nearly reaches its intrinsic breakdown strength if voltages are applied for short periods, in the order of 10 nS. Humidity. Humidity can reduce the electrical strength of an insulating material. The failures are accelerated if there is a difference in the humidity of the testing environment and that of the environment of operation. Temperature. dielectric constant property of an insulating material can be greatly affected by temperature changes. This will in turn interfere with the signal integrity and result to unstable performance For insulators, for example, polyimide, their electrical

How the Black Death Transformed the Role of States Essay

How the Black Death Transformed the Role of States - Essay Example This paper discusses the impact of the Black Death on the role of states. The Response of the State to the Black Death From the 16th century, the state had persuaded the city government, the London Corporation, to take steps to stop the pestilence and other maladies. The frequently recommended solution was a kind of quarantine, where the afflicted were prohibited to leave their homes.ii Theodore de Mayerne, the king’s physician, produced a statement in the 1630s indicating a stricter regulation for food distribution, removal of beggars, and widespread cleansing. Furthermore, he suggested that a public health centre be formed, with power over issues of beggars, cleanliness and sanitation, and health assistance.iii Even though the physician received due respect from the king’s counsellors, his recommendations were immediately overlooked after the plague had stopped. In the period after the 1640s deaths from pestilence were unusual, and the ‘pesthouses’ where the afflicted were confined had been renovated for other functions. A lot of physicians, by 1665, had never observed the typical indications of the epidemic, and London stayed defenceless.iv The Royal College of Physicians, the certifying association for physicians, had been licensed by Henry VIII and had been an esteemed organisation. However, by 1665, its power was greatly diminished due to its historical connection with the state, oppositions from other associations, like the Society of Chemical Physicians, and the reality that only a few Royal College physicians were working in the city, and several doctors could simply be identified as frauds whose certification had been coerced by King Charles on the Royal College.v Yet, when the Black Death stormed, the Royal College suggested medications and public health actions to mitigate the predicament. The Royal College also financially supported medications for the infected people who could not pay for them. Additional pesthouses were hurriedly constructed, and alleged ‘plague nurses’ were assigned to look after the afflicted, even though many thought that their major interest was to speed up their demise so they could steal from them.vi As usual, the state attempted to fight the pestilence by removing beggars and wandering merchants from the streets, shutting down courts, schools, and other establishments, and implementing quarantine on the afflicted and their families. London’s economic being was plunged into pandemonium, and countless animals were exterminated due to suspicions that they carry the virus.vii State-supported exterminators were hired to eradicate cats and dogs and received two pence for each animal as wage. This was a big pay at that time, and Daniel Defoe, who presented a description of the pestilence, assessed that 200,000 cats and 40,000 dogs were killed, and usually the remains were left to rot in the streets, hence worsening the already revolting reek in the city.viii Th ese actions only made the rat population bigger, because nobody knew in during this time that these pests were the main virus-carriers. In September, the state ordered the kindling of flares to expel the epidemic from the air. Countless were dying successively that burying the deceased became a serious hygiene problem. Digging of mass graves was the initial response of the state, but there were very few gravediggers.ix At last, when the October weather chilled, the number of deaths dropped and

Db3 managing high performance Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Db3 managing high performance - Research Paper Example Managers must correct any mistakes made or solve disagreements dutifully to avoid creating disharmony. Japanese remove their shoes whenever they enter a house with a tatami reed mat laid on the wall. Westerners visiting officers or restaurants with tatami should be aware of this custom and remove their shoes before entering these offices. Mc Farlin & Sweeney (2014) explain that Japanese managers allocates more time and concerted efforts to ensure that work groups operate efficiently. Japanese managers encourage equal participation with harmonious working conditions. Japanese managers recognize and award exemplary group performance as opposed to individual performance. This is as opposed to among US companies that emphasize on individual achievement. American corporations discourage extreme group harmony. They argue that extreme group harmony causes groupthink, which may lead to ineffective decision making. Another Japanese social custom pertains the giving or receiving of business cards. The Japanese receive and give business cards in a courteous manner. They receive business cards with both hands and read them before keeping them. Giving cards with one hand is a sign of disrespect. The Japanese approach of allowing a free organizational structure is likely to improve employee satisfaction (Primecz, Romani & Sackmann, 2011). The US companies of fostering both individual and teamwork performance is likely to enhance company performance by setting both individual and team

Similar Themes in Different Stories Essay Example for Free

Similar Themes in Different Stories Essay Literature is universal. Literature speaks of universal human experience that readers and authors alike can relate to. Because of its universality, themes and messages in literature can be common in various texts. In fact, two different pieces of literature may exhibit similar qualities even if they were written by different authors. Such is the case for â€Å"Oedipus the King† by Sophocles and â€Å"Othello† by William Shakespeare. Both plays share the concept of uncertain vision. Othello also shares a similar concept with Henrik Ibsen’s play â€Å"A Doll’s House;† in both plays, a malevolent character is responsible for the destruction of a marriage. Literature is indeed universal, as the messages it conveys are shared by different texts. Sophocles’ â€Å"Oedipus the King† and Shakespeare’s â€Å"Othello† carry a similar theme. Both plays share the theme of sight and blindness (NovelGuide). The texts illustrate how people who are blessed with the gift of sight can still be blind to what is really happening around them. Within this theme, there exists the concept of uncertain vision: the impairment of one’s perception. This impairment can result in the failure to differentiate between what appears to be and what really is. In both plays, the lead character is characterized with uncertain vision. It is their uncertain vision that drives the play forward, and leads the character into his demise. On one hand, the uncertain vision as exhibited by Oedipus was brought upon him by fate. From the moment his fate was revealed, people tried to prevent its fulfillment by changing the course of events. According to the oracle, Oedipus was destined to kill his own father and marry his own mother (Sophocles). Despite attempts to alter fate, Oedipus still lived his life as the oracle revealed. When a plague fell upon Thebes, Oedipus sought out a way to end it. Creon returned with word from the oracle, stating that the only way to end the plague is to punish the man who killed King Laius. According to Creon, â€Å"In this land, said the god; ‘who seeks shall find; /Who sits with folded hands or sleeps is blind† (Sophocles). This started Oedipus’ quest for the truth, which eventually led to the discovery of his destiny. When Oedipus mocked the blind seer Teiresias, this is what the latter said: â€Å"thou hast eyes, /Yet see’st not in what misery thou art fallen, / Nor where thou dwellest nor with whom for mate† (Sophocles). The passage states that while a blind man like Teiresias knows the truth, Oedipus is completely blind from it. On the other hand, the uncertain vision in Othello’s case was presented in different way. If Oedipus’ uncertain vision was brought about by fate, Othello’s uncertain vision was initiated by man. Just like Oedipus the King, the theme of Othello is also sight and blindness. The character of Othello is the most blind, as he was convinced by Iago that his wife Desdemona was cheating without seeing firsthand any evidence of her infidelity (Shakespeare). Rather, Othello was persuaded by Iago’s words and planted scenarios. The latter’s efforts impaired the former’s judgment, disabling him to distinguish between his wife’s truth and his colleague’s lies. In Act V Scene II, Lodovico said to Iago: â€Å"This is thy work: the object poisons sight† (Shakespeare). This passage states that it was Iago’s actions that altered Othello’s perception and poisoned his mind. Thus, Iago was responsible for Othello’s uncertain vision. Shakespeare’s â€Å"Othello† is also similar to yet another play, â€Å"A Doll’s House† by Henrik Ibsen. In both plays, a character seeks to ruin a marriage. In Othello, it was Iago who ruined the marriage of Othello and Desdemona. In A Doll’s House, it was Nils Krogstad who sought to break up Nora and Torvald Helmer. However, the difference lies in the motive of each character. Iago wanted to ruin Othello’s marriage as revenge. In Act I Scene 3, Iago directly expresses his feelings for Othello: â€Å"I hate the Moor† (Shakespeare). Iago has two main reasons to hate Othello: first, he married Desdemona whom Iago loved, and second, he chose Cassioto be the lieutenant instead of him. He wanted to punish Othello by making him accuse his wife of infidelity. In Act 2 Scene 1, Iago states: â€Å"Or failing so, yet that I put the Moor/ At least into a jealousy so strong/ That judgment cannot cure† (Shakespeare). In Act I Scene 3, Iago, he makes his intentions clear: â€Å"After some time, to abuse Othello’s ear/ That he is too familiar with his wife. / He hath a person and a smooth dispose/ To be suspected, framed to make woman false† (Shakespeare). Because he made Othello suspicious of Desdemona, Iago was indeed responsible for the failure of Othello’s marriage. On the other hand, Krogstad never planned to ruin the marriage of the Helmers. He was working at the same bank where Torvald Helmer works, and his employment was terminated because he was accused of forgery (Ibsen). He was desperate to keep his job; when Nora refused to help him, he was forced to reveal to Torvald the debt that Nora owed him. He never intended to destroy the marriage; he was simply trying to remain employed. In Act I, Krogstad said to Nora: â€Å"My sons are growing up; for their sake I must try and win back as much respect as I can in the town. This post in the Bank was like the first step up for me—and now your husband is going to kick me downstairs again into the mud† (Ibsen). Krogstad thought that blackmail was the only means through which he could keep his job. In Act II, he said: â€Å"I want to get on, I tell you. I want to get into the Bank again, in a higher position. Your husband must make a place for me† (Ibsen). Unlike Iago, Krogstad was not responsible for the demise of the Helmers’ marriage. What really ended the marriage was Nora’s realization that she was merely a doll in the house. In the words of Nora to Torvald, â€Å"You have never loved me. You have only thought it pleasant to be in love with me† (Ibsen). â€Å"Oedipus the King† by Sophocles, â€Å"Othello† by William Shakespeare and â€Å"A Doll’s House† by Henrik Ibsen are three distinct plays by three different authors. Despite the apparent difference, all three works are connected because of inherent similarities. The first two plays are similar in relation to its theme, while the last two plays are alike because of the role of a character which is instrumental in the destruction of a marriage. Indeed, literature proves its universality through the unintended similarities embedded in different texts. Works Cited Ibsen, Henrik. â€Å"A Doll’s House. † Project Gutenberg. 22 Feb. 2004. 3 Sept. 2008 http://www. gutenberg. org/dirs/etext01/dlshs11h. htm. â€Å"Novel Analysis: Oedipus the King. † NovelGuide. 2008. 3 Sept. 2008 http://www. novelguide. com/oedipustheking/themeanalysis. html. Shakespeare, William. â€Å"Othello. † The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. 2000 Nov. 13. 3 Sept. 2008 http://shakespeare. mit. edu/othello/full. html. Sophocles. â€Å"Oedipus the King. † Trans. F. Storr. Project Gutenberg. 1912. 3 Sept. 2008 http://www. gutenberg. org/files/31/31-h/31-h. htm.

Investigation to determine the viscosity of glycerol Essay Example for Free

Investigation to determine the viscosity of glycerol Essay This document reports on an experiment that examined the relationship between temperature and viscosity. The terminal velocity and up-thrust experienced by a sphere of fixed weight and radius was calculated by dropping it into a measuring cylinder filled with glycerol heated to different temperatures. Using Stokes Law viscosity corresponding to each temperature level was worked out. This generated a range of data points with viscosity corresponding to each temperature level. These data points were statistically analysed. The results corresponded to those indicated by theory i. e. temperature and viscosity are inversely related; as temperature increased viscosity decreased. This report is in five sections. The first details the plan and the science on which the experiment is based. The second describes implementation while the third analyses the results. The fourth section evaluates the both the experiment and its results. The fifth concludes. 1 Plan 1. 1 The Question Is viscosity affected by temperature? When temperature increases does viscosity decrease or increase and if it does are the changes systematic or random? These are the questions I investigate in this experiment. 1. 2 Key Concepts Archimedes principle A body immersed in a fluid (totally or partially) experiences an upthrust (i. e. an apparent loss of weight) which is equal to the weight of fluid displaced. 1Ships dont sink in water because of upthrust. Upthrust is also the cause for weight loss when a body is partially or wholly immersed in a fluid. Viscosity Viscosity is the virtue by which a fluid offers a resistance to the motion through it of any solid body. 2 The theory of viscosity is almost identical to the theory of friction between two solids, just that viscosity is the term used for fluids. Viscosity is basically the resistance between the particles within a fluid. In a solid molecules are tightly packed i. e. there is a strong intermolecular force. Therefore when you move a solid, it moves as a whole as all the particles move together. In a fluid this is not the case. This is because due to lower intermolecular force the particles move at different velocities in relation to each other. This feature can be understood by discussing what happens when pouring a jug of water into a glass. In liquids the molecules flow in layers. See the right water flowing from a jug, it looks simple, but in reality it is quite complex. Actually only the top layer of water is flowing, the bottom layer is still. This is explained with the help of the diagram on the left. The red line is the upper layer of water in the jug which flows in the glass, when this layer has flown into the glass the maroon layer starts flowing and the finally the black layer. This is because the black layer is closest to the solid (which in this case is the jug); the resistance offered by the solid is greater than the resistance offered by the layers of the liquid. This is because the number of molecules that make contact between the solid and the liquid layer are more than those that make contact between the liquid and liquid layer. The number of molecules that have contact between the liquid layer and air is the least. Hydrogen Bonding Unusually strong dipole-dipole attractions that occur among molecules in which hydrogen is bonded to a highly electronegative atom. 3 Hydrogen bonding is a much stronger variant of Van Der Waals Forces. This strong bonding causes great friction between the layers of liquid and therefore gives glycerol its property of high viscosity. Glycerol has a high viscosity as opposed to other alcohols because, it has three -OH functional groups attached to it. Therefore more hydrogen bonds are formed, thus increasing the attraction between two neighbouring molecules (greater bond strength). Thus unlike alcohols that are volatile, glycerol is not only non-volatile, but is also very thick and viscous. Stokes Law Stokes Law plays an important part in understanding the motion of a solid (in his experiment he used a sphere) through liquids. Stokes law states that when a body is under free fall in a tube containing a liquid of infinite length there is a point when there is no more acceleration in the body and the body reaches terminal velocity. Stoke further went on to say that this was due to the viscous forces acting within the liquid. The layers of the liquid in contact with the solid start moving with the velocity of the solid particle whereas the layers far away from the body remain at rest. The viscous forces being frictional forces act against the acceleration of the body and therefore there is a point when the viscous forces equal the resultant force driving the body. This is when the body reaches its terminal velocity.

Britain And Us A Comparative

Britain And Us A Comparative For my comparative essay of political systems in the contemporary context I have chosen the US republican system and the British constitutional Westminster system. Throughout the essay I will compare and contrast the different political systems, how they interact with one another and how the systems are significant in the modern day context of world politics. America, a former colony of Great Britain, won its war of independence in the year of 1776 and therefore was independent from Britain in terms of internal politics and overseas polices initiated into America republic, with the famous quote no tax without representation. From then on America became a republican state and now is arguably the most powerful state in the world in terms of military power, economic power and political power. It is necessary now to give a brief description of the American political system before we relate it to that of Britain and contemporary world politics. America is a federal democratic system made up of three bodies known as the pillars of American politics. The three branches present in the American political sphere are the executive branch, the legislative branch and the judicial branch. The executive branch is responsible for issues such as proposing legislation, formatting a cabinet and developing internal and foreign policies. The legislative is re sponsible mainly for finalizing many of the propositions coming out of the executive branch, and therefore wields much of the power within American politics. The judicial branch is responsible for legislative issues with the power to review legislation passed and acts as a guardian over the civil rights of citizens. As similar within the Westminster system, there is a lower and upper house but this is notably where there is a large contrast between the two systems, as the American upper house holds much more significance in terms of power within the political system. As previously mentioned the political system consists of a lower and upper house, the lower house being the House of Representatives and the upper being the senate. The house of representatives is largely responsible for internal issues of legislation, budgetary issues such as allocation and foreign policy, where as the upper house, known as the senate initiates and regulates much of the what is proposed by the lower ho use, therefore acts as a balance of power within the American political sphere. The American electoral system should be mentioned in order to compare and contrast to that of Britain, although not into too much detail. Ultimately, party delegates are elected by citizens by popular vote using the voting system of proportional representation, where delegates need a majority vote to become a party delegate. The party delegates are then responsible for the procedure of presidential elections where the delegates vote for who will be the party leader to be legitimate for a presidential candidate. Through this system, it is regarded that an indirect electoral process is used in terms of the presidential elections as the average citizen is not directly responsible in terms of the determining the outcome. Once the presidential candidate is initiated it is ultimately down to the Electoral College system, a system where the people contained within it are representatives of individual states and have the final vote of determining the winner, a system not used within Britain. As for the parties themselves, there are two main predominant ones, that of the Democrats and that of the Republicans, one being left centrist (Democrats) and one being right centrist (Republicans), both arguably contrast slightly and lean in a similar direction in terms of policy implementation leading to a stable system of consistent politics within America. A final note on America contains that the fact there is a post independence written constitution as to determine how the country should be run internally, as with most established republics, also an element of American politics not present within the British system. A brief description of the British system will now be confronted in order to begin the process of comparing and contrasting the two systems as a whole. Within Britain there are three branches upon which consist of the executive branch, the legislative branch and the judiciary branch which is very similar to that of America. Within the Westminster system the executive branch is made up of ministers who run the country and are responsible for proposing legislation, developing foreign and internal policies and is headed by the Prime Minister, who chooses which ministers compose the cabinet. The legislative branch is the elected body upon which passes laws that are proposed from the executive branch, it should be mentioned that all government ministers are members of the legislative branch. Finally there is the judiciary branch upon which ensures that laws that are passed, are obeyed and has the power to review laws and works independently of the government and headed by a senior ministe r. The Supreme Court is the highest court within the political system of Great Britain. The British parliamentary system is bicameral meaning, there two chambers present, that being the lower house or the House of Commons and the upper house which is the House of Lords. The house of commons consists of 650 seats which are occupied MPs who meet daily for about half the weeks of the year, where opposition parties have a opportunity to challenge the current governments policies and general governing of the nation and the political nature is based around transparency and the public sphere. Those who make up the executive branch are those who attend the House of Commons meetings where, the majority of the time the PM and his cabinet and members of parliament will attend the proceedings, which is chaired by a speaker who monitors the meeting s and keeps order. The House of Commons is the house with the most authority within British politics. The House of Lords is the more exclusive house but does not possess the ultimate political authority and largely is based on noble tradi tion and status. It acts as a check on the governments activities and has the ability to revise legislation that has been passed through the House of Commons but essentially cannot block the will of the House of Commons. Like mentioned before, membership is exclusively reserved by the elite class or the nobles who are appointed by the queen, with advice from the government, which contrast from that of house of commons where MPs are elected into the house. Like America there two parties which have dominated politics within Britain, one being the labor party, which is traditional working class party leaning to the left and the other being the conservative party which leans towards the right, both mainly centrist with slightly differing views mostly, that of public spending reforms. The Liberal Democrats have always been influential with their presence but failed to be an overall competing power within parliament until the recent coalition with the conservatives, who are now in power. Within the electoral process itself, first past the post is the system used through most of England and Wales at the regional and local levels, where a candidate representing a certain constituent is voted on the basis that one person equals one vote, with the majority winning. The political party with the most constituents will form the government, who will take the majority of the seats within the House of Commons. The runners up form her majestys royal opposition, who will take the remaining seats within parliament. Within Scotland and Northern Ireland however, the voting system used differs from England and Wales. Scotland uses a mixed system called the additional member system, where voters usually get two votes, one for an individual candidate and one for the overall party. With Britain being a constitutional Monarchy, the queen is officially the head of state but does not wield much political power and rarely interferes within the political activity. The House of Lords would be the main involvement within her political activities through tradition, as historically the monarch would appoint House of Lord members, but as previously mentioned the House of Lords holds less authority over the House of Commons. To finish a description of the British political system it should be mentioned that, unlike America, Britain does not have a written constitution but rather a build up of traditional folk laws with modern additions to previous concepts of how the country should function in terms of the monarchy, politics and civil society in the modern contemporary era. Now to compare the two political systems which have been described, being that of the American federal republic system and Britains parliamentary system within a constitutional monarchy. Similarities are easily distinguishable whilst looking into the formation and functioning of the political systems with respect to those who function inside and out of the overall system. At first it should be noticed that the political structures contain all the same elements of an executive body, a legislative body and judiciary body, where the framework embodies that the executive branch is responsible for the proposal and development of legislation and the initiation of policy formation. The executive branches are within the lower house where in both systems, wield much political power. However it is quite clear that within the contrasting systems, the power of the lower house differs with respect to the balance of power between the upper house and lower houses. With Britain, the House of Commons is ultimately the most influential body and is not, in theory, open to checks and balances of a higher authority, as the legislative branch consists of government ministers, whom of whic h initiate legislation and policies. Within the American system although the lower house is responsible and has the power to propose such issues, the Upper house or the Senate, has the ability to initiate the proposed legislation, which is largely through the legislator finding sponsors within the Senate, which is not the case within Britain. With these checks and balances present within the US, it ensures power is spread across the political arena and power is not subjected to one body. This leaves many implications as the reasons for why these differences occur between the powers of the upper house. It could be argued in the case of Britain that the House of lords is not elected by the people or in fact, by anyone with political significance and the members themselves may lack the political experience to wield such power with interfering within politics and would act as a hindrance due their own conservative biases. With Britains political culture, represented as a stable democrac y under a hereditary power, emphasizes the irrelevance of the nobles to enter into modern day politics, with a feudal upper house system. America political culture of strong democracy and liberty is found within the context of the Senate and the House of Representatives, as both are elected in for a predetermined term in office, if all members of the upper and lower house are elected, the need for a balance of power is necessary for full representation, which is brought through the culture of democracy. This leads me to now consider the voting systems and electoral processes with respect to the nations under consideration. Very clearly both the US and the UK have constituted democracy as their political system, but there are some clear cut differences that need to be examined. First would be that of the process of electing the prime minister or in Americas case the president. Within both systems the party leadership is not determined by the civilian population but party delegates; however it could be argued that within Britain, through the first past the post system, a PM is directly elected by the people once the gene ral elections come underway, as apposed to the American Electoral College system, which determines the presidency. This has implications as to why the PM has unwieldy power of choosing their own cabinet members and has the ability to determine when elections shall be held as long as it is within five years. As they have been democratically elected by the people without hindrance within the first past the post system to represent the nation as a unitary state, it leaves no question to the conditions determined within the political process. Within the US, the Electoral College system creates the idea of an indirect process of a presidential election within civil society, where there have been cases where the winner has not even won the majority of the vote, but key state votes. With this voting system in place, it is key that the balance of power is established within the system so state representatives still have the ability t o protect the rights and interests of the civilian popula tion, who ultimately will not be completely subjected to the rule of a president, who does not represent their interests. This is prevalent in the idea of state arguably, being able to hold a form of autonomy from the central government and are able to initiate independent state laws and policies, which helps uphold the democratic political structure within the US. England does not face this problem as a unitary state due to size and devolution of the nations which constitute Great Britain, as they share similar political freedoms to that of states within America. Although there are similarities and contrasts within each system discussed, one thing is concrete, that both countries hold democratic values as political culture which goes hand in hand with the liberalist approach to world politics, which is evident how the two countries discussed throughout the essay have interacted in the contemporary age as strong allies. With the idea of international peace, the installation of democracy and strong trade orientations America and Britain have supported each other in several conquests, such as that of the Middle East where the two allies have fought with the idea of crushing terrorism and installing democracy. The two nations have never vetoed one another within issues brought forth within the UN security council and have managed to uphold good relations arguably, through the favoring political cultures upheld by political stability installed though democratic principles within both nations. Although there have been criticisms by many that Britai n is the 51st state of America, it reflects how the two countries function with respect to one another.

On Tanabes Logic of Species :: Philosophy Japan Papers

On Tanabe's Logic of Species Tanabe Hajime (1885-1962), another pole of the so-called Kyoto-School of Philosophy of modern Japan, attempts to construct a dialectical, triadic logic of genus, species and individual as a creative synthesis between Eastern and Western philosophy. Although the formal pattern of his method is influenced by the Hegelian dialectic, the way of his thinking is rather prevailed by Kantian dualism. This makes a sharp contrast to his mentor Nishida Kitaro, whose logic of Topos or Place qua Absolute Nothingness is criticized as all-embracing and static in character by him. The difference between them might be parallel to that of Greek and Latin theology concerning the Trinity. Tanabe never presupposes any preexistent entity as the primordial One in the eternal dimension, but rather maintains the individuality as the free subjective agent in the field of history. The dichotomy between the universal and the individual is overcome in and through the mediation of the third term — the spec ies — as the negatively self-realized, specific form of the genus. The species, however, turns out to be the self-estrangement, when it loses the perpetually negative mediation of the free subjective activity of the individual. The species-like substrative being, in its function of negative mediation, is necessary for an individual subject to arise in accordance with the universal genus. The substratum retains its self-identity in the form of continuum, though it contains the negatively opposed moment within itself. The self-identity is no other than the balance between the continuum and the moment of negative opposition. That is, the substratum as matter is the self-negating mediation to a spiritual subject. Spirit cannot manifest itself without the negativity matter has. The substrative continuity of matter is the mediator to the subjective action of the individual person, and functions as the expedient being or means for it. The universal genus is to be actualized only through the mediation of the individual practical subject, and the individual must negatively mediate its own egoity, i. e. , radical evil hidden in the bottom of itself, tending to cling to its self-identity, to be purified through repent ance. This is the self-realization of the principle of the mutual identification of Pathos and Nous. The Pathos corresponds to the species-like substratum, and the sin and evil involved in that substratum is to be purified through its active subjectification. The individual does not disappear into the universality, but rather the universality is to be realized in the individual through the mediation of a particular species as the material substrative being.