Case Study on Mutual Fund

Case study Mutual Fund Data Solution for a Bank Branch Network The Client Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with 74,000 employees in offices around the world, our client offers a full range of financial products and services to approximately 17 million customers worldwide, managing $435 billion in assets. The bank also ranks among the world’s leading on-line financial services firms, with more than 4. 5 million on-line customers. The bank approached VAULT when it needed a new mutual fund data solution in its vast network of branches across the country. The Challenge The bank’s customer service representatives, who promoted utual fund products to their customers, traditionally relied on research and reports from many different sources, but were frustrated with the inconsistency of information they were getting and with the length of time it took to produce reports for their customers. Of course, the bank’s customers weren’t that happy either. As a company w ith web-based technical expertise that provides service to the financial-services industry, VAULT was asked to draw upon its understanding of investors’ needs, as well as its deep base of technical experience, to produce a more efficient form of customer communications for the bank.Much of the project would involve developing and implementing a plan to utilize the bank’s existing Morningstar data feeds, in a centralized web application. This application would have to adhere to the strict technical guidelines of the bank’s branch intranet environment, a variety of different printers in each branch (which had to be tested to ensure document output was consistent and properly formatted for customers), as well as an outdated, yet custom version of the Netscape browser. The Solution VAULT recommended developing a custom solution that would provide the necessary screens and functionality for the bank’s retail branches.To ensure that system and performance requi rements were met, VAULT followed a strict approach to quality assurance that was incorporated into its project plan. It also recommended creating static images for graphing components and scheduling graphs for re-creation overnight; this ensured that the graphs were up to date each workday and minimized the processing time to load and print pages. In addition, VAULT recommended that an administrative site be developed to assist with the on-going operation of the bank’s mutual fund site. The administrative site provided managers ith the business intelligence tools to generate custom reports and highlight key aspects of web-site usage. The administrative site would also increase the bank’s self-sufficiency, help ensure reliability of the application, allow operators to regularly monitor scheduled data feeds and scheduled graphing production. Early in the development process, VAULT created a working prototype of the solution to test with end users and to gain a better und erstanding of the screen/data requirements. This was a valuable exercise since it highlighted areas of concern around usability, page size, load times, data and graphing requirements.The Benefits The bank’s financial advisors, planners and branch representatives were delighted with the quality of the mutual fund information now available through the bank’s intranet site, as well as the fast load and print times. This meant they could service their customers more effectively. Of course, VAULT also paid careful attention to the design of customer reports, balancing the need to provide clear mutual fund information to customers, with the regulatory disclaimers necessary with each printed report.When the project was completed, the bank’s customer service representatives realized immediate results. They were better able to access most of the mutual fund information online, rather than refer to a multitude of hard-copy and online reference materials. In short, the new tool developed by VAULT not only helped streamline the sales process, but also allowed for more professional delivery of information since the bank’s customer service representatives now had a single online source of mutual fund information.And that meant satisfied customers for the bank. Technologies Used Language: Microsoft Internet Information Service (ASP), ChartFX charting software Database: SQL Server 2000 Web server: Microsoft IIS 5 Operating System: Windows 2000 Launch your business forward. For more information, please contact Anthony Boright, President of VAULT Solutions Inc. at [email  protected] com or call 416-361-9944.

Drawbacks Podcasting

Podcasts and webcasts are easy ways to present and distribute information to listeners all around the globe. However there are several drawbacks to this form of media. The drawbacks can be divided into two sections. The first section can be directed towards the process of recording and producing the webcasts. In order to record a webcast you must have: recording equipment, a quiet room, and time. The second section is focused on the persons listening to the webcast. The webcast is strictly auditory and must be accessed on some media device.This can become a problem because some listeners need more than just audio they need other forms of material to help them retain the information. Also because webcasts must be viewed through a mp3 player or computer this can cause a distraction because of the temptation of using the device for something else. Recording and producing is the most difficult area of any webcast. To record a quality webcast that listeners will enjoy and respond to the p roducer must execute the following three steps: the correct recording equipment, a quiet recording area, and an abundance of time to prepare for recording.The equipment required is very important because it will greatly increase the effectiveness of the webcast. The equipment needed is a microphone, recording software, host website and high-speed internet connection. Without purchasing all of the necessary components it will be impossible to record a quality webcast. The next drawback is the necessity of silence when recording. This can be a setback because any exterior noise in the webcast can cause listeners to become distracted and not retain the information being given.The need for a quiet proper recording area could cause additional investments to be made to reserve a recording studio or alternate recording site. The last drawback to webcasting is the amount of time needed to write a script for the topic chosen. It can take several weeks of preparation to research the topic and begin to process the information to write it into script form. The information given must be presented well to the audience so that it will be easy to follow along and process the information clearly. The drawbacks of the second section are mostly focused on the persons listening to the webcasts.The webcast is only broadcasted in audio form and requires the use of an mp3 player or computer. The limitations of webcasting can affect the listeners ability to comprehend and retain the information given. Not everyone can effectively listen and learn from strictly an auditory source of information. Certain people learn more effectively through hands on activities or visually or from reading the material. Because of this webcasting may not be the best medium for sending important information for others to comprehend.Also a webcast must listened to on either an mp3 player or a computer. These devices can become a distraction to some users. These electronic devices may tempt the listener to go off task and begin listening or viewing other material. This would cause the webcast to not fully be comprehended and some valuable information to be unheard. All in all webcasting is the future of efficient business practices but it is not yet perfected. With the correct managing of these drawbacks given, businesses could begin to cut costs and use time more efficiently.

Labor Force

In any industry or company service workers do raise some complaints due to the way their employers treat them or due to the condition of working place.   These are some of the complaints most of workers do raise.   Service workers at times complain about low pay, no benefits and lack of effective communication from their employers.   Other issues such as workers being treated like slave laborers with no breaks and sexual harassment by he employers.   Problems such as political, height and weight discrimination are also faced by workers.   Some workers are mocked either because they are too short, tall or overweight.   Last problem is failure by employer to provide safety gadgets to its employees. In order to solve the above issues raised by workers, unions have been found to be of help.   Unions always try to analyze workers problems and try to protect them against threats from their employers.  Ã‚   In a case where safety gadgets are to be provided, unions do assist them in obtaining these safety measures.   Just like in oil mining fields gumboots and helmets are necessary because of accidents. Most workers tend to run away from jobs because there is no safety at the work place (Gus, 1995). Some of the reasons why new collar workers would not want the same benefits and clout that Blue collar workers were able to get by unionization are:   New collar workers get more benefits while blue collar workers get less benefits.   This makes collective bargaining become very hard because of the difference.   The more benefits you receive the stronger the bargaining power.   Blue collar workers are paid less and retirement age is always a bit early. Since blue collar workers are influenced by their employers they are always afraid especially in presenting their grievances. They fear threats of being sacked by their employers, which may make them loose their jobs (Gani, 1996). New collar workers may be hesitant to join a union especially when they realize that there are no benefits in what the union has to offer.   Normally workers need benefits that collective bargaining can bring but if the union is found to have no teeth to protect their interest then unionization is seen as useless.   Another reason why new collar workers may be reluctant to join unions does come from the influence of employers. Some employers use divide and rule tactics where they hold meetings with individual employee.   In this case they send messages of threats in the workforce cautioning workers that they risk suspension.   New collar workers also become reluctant to join unions because of lack of patience.   Most of them lack that time to wait long when it comes to fighting to achieve what they want (Michael, 2003). The future prospects of union in service industry according to my feeling are that it may end up fading with time.   This is because most of these unions do not commit to their core objectives why they were formed.   Workers are withdrawing from the unions because they feel they are cheated where by the system that is suppose to help them protect there is doing no job. References Gani, A  Ã‚   (1996). International Journal Manpower: Who Joins the Unions and Why (pp54 – 55) Mc B. up Ltd. Gus, T. (1995).   Look for the Union Label. Me Sharpe Publishers. New York Michael, D. (2003).   Why Unions Makers.   Amazon.com Books Publishers. New York.   

Ethical Issues Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Ethical Issues - Essay Example Computers and information systems have become part of human lives and, as a result, have created an opportunity for abuse and misuse hence raising the issue of ethics (Haag & Cummings, 2013). There is an ethical issue relating to the privacy of personal information and increasing concern about storage and access to personal details (Haag & Cummings, 2013). The risk of losing individual privacy affects information system because some people are unwilling to transact online for fear of exposing personal details to unintended persons. On the other organizations are incurring a lot of expenses to protect clients details from unauthorized users. Although organizations cannot fully prevent unauthorized access clients information, they can limit the accessibility by installing security details such as data encryption and use of passwords (Haag & Cummings, 2013). In conclusion, the use of information technology and systems has both positive and negative implications in the society. Although it has improved interactions of persons across the globe, it has caused ethical issues such as loss of privacy through unauthorized access to personal details. Organizations should improve protection of personal information. However, organizations should provide their clients with training on what information they should share and how to protect their privacy against unintended

Front Line Innovations, Inc Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Front Line Innovations, Inc - Essay Example Front Line Innovations, Inc. (FLII) provides professional management and alternative and cost effective marketing concepts, programs, and systems requirements that address concerns on customer retention, operational solutions, increased sales productivity, and increase quality of services. Incorporated in 1999, FLII combines the managerial expertise and resources of its proprietors to produce a marketing and management company and an IT company as well that would set the trend in management consultancy and alternative marketing in the industry. Investments in additional capital expenditures and manpower are put up by the shareholders as required on a per project basis. Resource tie-ups such as that with Goldplus, Converge Systems Inc., and Smart Card Solutions Inc. provide the base requirements for one of FLII's major applications involving card-based programs such as co-branded credit cards and loyalty programs. Likewise, this allows FLII to structure marketing incentive programs 'tailor-fit' for its clients. The office software set-up as well the customized software systems required for clients have been developed by FLII's technical group. FLII's current manpower complement is composed of 30 sales and marketing, processing, encoding and admininstration personnel. Industry Background Smart Cards Though a relatively new technology, smart cards have become an increasingly popular solution around the globe. A smart card is a tiny integrated-circuit chip embedded in a credit card-sized piece of plastic. The chip is what makes the card "smart" as it allows a lot more information to be stored and carried in the card compared to the standard magnetic-stripe card (Verifone, 1996). Smart cards have been used to solve a variety of problems ranging from serving as a platform for frequent-shopper electronic loyalty programs, to providing a highly secure and convenient automated currency option, to enabling cost-effective healthcare and entitlement programs. Electronic Loyalty Programs With the intense competition that characterizes retailing worldwide, forward-looking retailers have been turning to card-based electronic loyalty programs to attract new customers and retain their current customer base. Smart cards have the opportunity to play a major role in electronic loyalty programs. Electronic loyalty programs use a retailer's POS system to track purchases made with credit, debit, smart cards or a retailer's proprietary card. Consumers can be rewarded for their continued patronage with discounts, free items, bonus points or other incentives. Experience has shown that such programs encourage repeat business and boost sales for the merchant (Verifone, 1996). The primary business of FLII is developing a loyalty program system integrator to enable the smart card to work with a retailer's POS or any other tracking system. With the system, they are able to capture customer information from pre to post sales operations. Thus, FLII's core value lies on its ability to develop this type of proprietary software which is tailored to the

Entrepreneurs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Entrepreneurs - Essay Example Also, the theoretical evaluations and research the entrepreneur has done before setting up the enterprise are bound to differ. Thus, many enterprise fail and this has made entrepreneurship often a difficult and tricky. Many theories abound Entrepreneurship, Entrepreneur and Enterprise and a lot of events in the industry complement these theories. Specifically, the Enterprise in Events is one of the fastest growing in the serviced sector and much of the growth is accelerated by the growth of small and medium sized enterprises. There are several kinds of event planning. The list includes celebrations such as fairs, parades, weddings, reunions, birthdays and education related events such as conferences, meetings, graduations and also product launches, political rallies, fashion shows, memorials and civic events. Sometimes events might be purely business related or social or sometimes a mix of both. To manage these events, it is imperative to identify new areas of development and induce creativity into the workings. Therefore, to sustain growth and to maintain profits in the service industry, and entrepreneurial mindset is essential. Moreover, to tackle problems in targeting the right audience, analyz ing the business growth and raising funds for the enterprise a disciplined set of principles are definitely required. One of the principles of Classic Economic Theory projects the ways in which an Entrepreneur should make investments. It supports stating that if an entrepreneur should make investments then even a one percent rise is sufficient. Certainly, in theory a one percent increase is profitable. For instance, if an entrepreneur has $100 and if $1 is the profit per month, then Classic theory states that this is a viable investment. Nevertheless, as theory does not take into consideration, the practical constraints into consideration, this might not be a competent idea to run the

Communication eassy 7 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Communication eassy 7 - Essay Example Earliest films were very short, often just a minute or ten, one or two reels and eventually it goes up to 2 hours. (The Birth and Early Development of   the  Motion Picture,by Robert P. Brooks, Bulletin of the Passaic County Historical Society, April 1959). We can see a gradual development in the field of motion picture. Several inventors set up their projector machine in make shift halls and projected moving pictures on a screen. The ides of longer film with story began in 1895. The man named James .H White produced a picture 500 feet in length. It was called ‘American Fireman’. Today motion pictures have predisposed both in maintaining social order and powerful agents of change. Films are cultural artifacts formed by special cultures. Motion pictures have been a great influence in the cultural field. It affected the society too much. When motion pictures transformed from black-and –white to colour in U.S in the 1950’s the sensors struggled much to eli minate erotic imagery, and immoral treatment of sexuality. Many directors of that time violated the moral side of film industry. A good example for such film is â€Å"Lady Chatterleys Lover†, banned by New York censorship board in 1957. (Vaughn). Nudity, explicit sexual behavior, profane language, gratuitous violence, and themes of promiscuity, homosexuality, abortion, drug use, etc were the chief characteristics of the films of that time. The year 1968 marked tremendous changes in U.S. film industry. A new system of Production Code has been adopted that prevented the government censorship. Censors edited the films before they reached the theatres. A kind of spiritual and moral progress was visible in the films of 1930’s and it also promoted high social life and enlightened thinking. Those Films which were not acceptable to the social morality were severely opposed by the Roman Catholic Church and they were banned in the

Cultural Diversity Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Cultural Diversity Paper - Essay Example Through his photographic and visual art, he tries to communicate the essence of equality among races manifested in the strengths and abilities of blacks in the society. Also, as portrayed by his sculptures, he significantly condemns injustices based on racial groups and expresses his concern on the smooth convergence among different ethnic and racial groups. Though his sculptures revolve around the apartheid regime in South Africa, they communicate significantly on behalf of the racially discriminated African Americans in the United States. For instance, Thomas sculptures the heads and arms of the black miners in South Africa. This sculpture contains the ten out of the thirteen miners, initially pictured by Ernest Cole, as they experience a humiliating medical inspection by the white doctors. Thomas captions the sculpture â€Å"Raise Up.† The imagery portrayed by the sculpture is not appealing. After undergoing through the humiliating experience, the sign later signifies the industry’s power to manipulate the worker’s body (Bmoreart.com). Then, the sculpture turns out to be a sign of insurgency that leads to exhortation and subsequent rebellion of the Black Americans against their oppressors. Rising of arms signifies surrender, but through the captioning by Thomas, it ignites and challenges the Blacks to fight again st the powers of slavery and racial discrimination Thomas’ work depends solely on the past rather than the present. The sculptures emphasize the past African experiences under the power of colonial rule, as depicted in pictures and photographs. Thomas converts a rather two-dimensional script into a tangible form reflecting the past. In his work, Thomas sculptures the captives’ poking of hands through the police truck as it drives away from the Supreme Court in South Africa (Bmoreart.com). Thomas designs a similar sculpture of a black hand clenching a fist through a wooden bar. Most

Forest Fire Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Forest Fire - Article Example ts from fire danger rating systems can be used for prevention planning, preparedness planning, detection planning, initial attack dispatching, fire behavior evaluation just to mention a few. It is hence noted that the use of fire management systems has several advantages. Canada has identified that historically, there have been four developmental stages in the country’s fire management programs (Taylor & Alexander, p3). What this means is that fire danger systems must be dynamic enough to evolve in support of decision making that is continuously getting complex. The systems, according to experts, in order to be effective must be based on factors that are accurately measurable and that are consistent irrespective of place and time. Two types of error may result from the application of fire danger systems; low and high fire danger levels. The low danger level error is grave and may easily result in the management system underestimating a fire’s potential (Taylor & Alexander, p4). The CFFDRS (Canadian Forest Fire danger Rating System) has continued to evolve ever since its introduction. The Fire Weather Index (FWI) system that is currently used in the country was developed in the 70s and then involved the manual observation of fires from fire weather stations. The system’s values were then determined by consulting look-up tables since electronic communication and computer systems were widely unavailable. In the 80s and 90s, remote automatic weather stations were developed. This went hand in hand with developments in communications technology. In a review published by the Canadian government in 1987, it was noted that the CFFDRS had saved a whooping 750 million Canadian dollars to the country with a cost-to- benefit ratio of about 1:3 (Taylor & Alexander, p6). Underlying every modern fire management system is the fire danger rating scheme. It is through such systems that scientific knowledge of the potential of fires can be synthesized and integrated with

Literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Literature review Example This paper aims to analyze the literature available on the concept of customer satisfaction; hence it is divided into two major sections for the purpose of defining a flow. Initially a very concise review of the concept itself is provided, in light of the literature available, it is then extended to cover and analyze in detail the parallel notion of service quality which is often at times considered to be in correlation with customer satisfaction. The second section focuses on the specific service industry aspect of E-banking services, the service itself is explained and described, followed by an analysis with regards to service quality in the E-banking sector, and furthermore in order to narrow the case in focus, the service quality of E-banking in the Saudi Arabian banking sector is taken under consideration. All the analysis is in light of the literature available with regards to the topics under study. ... tion as a concept has occupied a unique position in marketing practice and research on part of the academia, since the initial research and study undertaken by Cardozo (Cardozo, 1965) on the topics of customer efforts, their expectations and most importantly their satisfaction. Regardless of the fact that the researchers and analysts around the globe have put in great effort and numerous attempts have been made at defining the notion of ‘customer satisfaction’ and its measurement, there still exists no consensus amongst them. Customer satisfaction is most commonly regarded as the post consumption feeling and the evaluation on part of the customer about a particular product of service (Gundersen, Heide and Olsson, 1996). It is a judgment based on evaluation of the pre-consumption expectations from a product/service and the performance of the product on that scale of perception according to the post-consumption experience (Oliver, 1980). The concept which is most widely ac cepted and related to customer satisfaction is the concept is the ‘expectancy disconfirmation theory’, this was a theory devised by Oliver who claimed that satisfaction level is the gap between the expectation and the actual performance of a product. ‘Satisfaction’, which is regarded as the ‘positive disconfirmation’, occurs when the product’s performance is better than the expectation, while on the contrary, when the performance is less than the expectation then it is termed ‘negative disconfirmation’, or in simple terminology as ‘dissatisfaction’ (McQuitty, Finn and Wiley, 2000). Studies throughout time have shown that customer satisfaction has a major impact on business results, and it has been claimed that customer satisfaction has a positive relation with business

Management info Systems individual Work WK4 Essay

Management info Systems individual Work WK4 - Essay Example The major challenge in keeping cyber-crime in check is the rate at which technology is advancing with each passing day. New cyber threats are formulated on a regular basis making it difficult to suppress cyber-crime. Crimes vary depending on the purpose of the cyber-criminal. The crimes can be directed to computers and other machines to manipulate, destroy or reconfigure them. The crimes can also be fuelled by financial greed whereby fraud comes in play and the hacking of financial institutions. The crimes can also target individuals with the aim of destroying their reputation or even blackmailing them. Cyber criminals can use various technology tools. Such tools include the internet, social media and wireless networks. Such tools are meant to help the general public in their day to day activities but can be manipulated by cyber criminals for their benefit. The cyber criminals are good at what they do and sometimes leave no traces at all making it difficult to know their real identities. Some even form organizations and advertize their prowess to willing buyers of their services. They even use these technology tools to leak information about someone. The internet as we know it is a basic tool for many computer users. Many transactions, monetary or otherwise, go through the internet each day. Millions of downloads also take place on the internet on a daily basis. This technology tool connects people around the world, turning it into a small virtual village. The internet connects people through emails and communication of information through search engines such as Google among others. This vital tool can be used against its users to commit cybercrime. This usually happens where attackers use the internet to connect to their targets and can thus get or download the necessary information they need from the victims’ computers. The internet connects computers, and

Case Study Child Development Project Essay Example for Free

Case Study Child Development Project Essay Abstract After an extended period watching and observing Adrian, the bystander is able to see where Adrian is developmentally. He is growing physically, mentally, and emotionally as a child his age, four years old, should be maturing according to many theorists. While he has not mastered all the required steps for his age group he is achieving more and more of them each day. The following case study will discuss where Adrian is excelling and where he still needs a little work. A Case Study about Child Development Adrian is almost four years old and lives with his parents and older sister in an apartment. His father is a financial advisor in a bank, allowing him to spend time with the family on the weekends, while his mother stays at home as a housewife. They have a lot of neighbors and no pets. Adrian loves trains, cars, dinosaurs, animals, juice, and being inside and outside of his house. His favorite movie is Cars. He does not like the word â€Å"No† and often ignores something when it doesn’t interest him. Adrian has fun, loving, goofy, energetic personality. Throughout this study, the observation of Adrian will take place at two places: his house, inside and out and his grandmother’s house. Physical Development Adrian developed normally through the prenatal, infancy, and toddler stages. He was born on August twenty eighth in 2010 by natural birth after a full term, normal pregnancy. At birth, he weighed eight pounds eleven ounces and measured twenty-two inches long, which according to the Center for Disease Control (2000), put him in the seventy-fifth percentile for weight and ninetieth percentile for length. As an infant Adrian’s mother, chose not to breast feed and instead gave him formula. As a toddler, Adrian hit all the  important milestones, according to his mother, included learning to walk which occurred around fifteen months. As Adrian progressed from a toddler to preschooler, he continued to progress as he should according to the normal growth and developmental process. At four years, he is forty-two inches tall and weights around forty-six pounds, keeping him in the same percentiles as birth, again according to the CDC (2000). Most of this growth occurred, as it should, during the toddler years. Even though Adrian just turned four he had accomplished many of the required gross and fine motor skills according Berger (Chapter 8), he can run, hop, jump, walk up and down stairs alone, dress and undress, use the bathroom on his own. I have witnessed Adrian running or jumping many times whether it be running to tackle someone for a hug or a warm welcome, jumping on the bed/couch usually when he gets excited about a movie or favorite cartoon, or when he is playing with his cousin who is just a few months older. Going up and down the stairs at his grandmother’s house, this is not a problem problem because Adrian gets plenty of practice due to must of the time he’s visiting his gradmother’s house. Using the bathroom is a big accomplishment for him, because it took him a long time and has only mastered it within the last few months. However, he still needs practice skipping and being comfortable using scissors. Adrian is right where he should be with his physical development. Cognitive Development Similarly to Adrian’s physical development his cognitive develop is also maturing at what theorist would say is a normal rate. Piaget and Vygotsky writes that upon reaching the age of four a child should be rapidly expanding his vocabulary, beginning to think intuitively but still thinking almost entirely on himself. He progressed through the building blocks of language beginning with babbling and moving through his first word around fifteen months and first sentence a little while later. While his mother does not know the exact time when he started babbling and spoke his first sentence, she does recall this never being a concerned about the development. Currently, he is speaking in full sentences that vary in lengths and purposes. He enjoys watching television shows about super heroes and if given the chance, he will spend large amounts of time, sometimes up to twenty minutes, telling his listener all about them. Adrian’s cognitive  development in the area of language has a lot to do with the fact he is inquisitive and seems to enjoy learning. According to many theories and developmental checklist a four year old should be able to count and should be drawn to letters and sounds. Adrian demonstrates an inclination to want to read and will often ask someone around him to read him his favorite book or play with the magnetic letters his mom bought him. Additionally, by playing games like Candy Land or Chutes and Ladders where he can count the required spaces indicating a beginning understanding of numbers. Another example a time when I noticed Adrian genuinely wanting to learn and wanting things to be perfect, he spent a few seconds growing more and more frustrated as he angrily smashed the top and bottom boxes together. Eventually, he got the two pieces together but not before tearing the corners of them. However, when someone stepped in and showed him how to correctly put the two pieces together he welcomed the advice and was then able to properly close the box. Like Vygotsky mentioned the mentor provide scaffolding, or temporary sensitive support, to help the developmental zone. After getting the box together, he started to think of ways to fix the box. He suggested taping it, and was excited when that idea was welcomed and put to use. This not only demonstrated intuitive thought but helped Adrian feel intelligent and begin to learn that it is perfectly fine and acceptable to ask for help when needed. Adrian is developing cognitively a little more everyday and seems to be on his way to accomplishing all the key milestones. His language skills are growing each day and he is learning to try new things on his own with the idea that he can always ask for help. Emotional/Social Development As with physical and cognitive development, observer is able to see that Adrian is attaining the social developmental milestones as he progresses to the preschool age. While Adrian hit all the important points through in infancy and toddlerhood. For example, he was always able to show a wide range of emotions, classified as a key achievement by Freud and Erikson. He was quick to show observers his happiness, sadness, confusion, or frightfulness. He also quickly established a secure attachment to his mother, another one of Ainsworth’s milestones. Adrian was child who needed and wanted to be with his mother and would cry or search for her as soon as  she left his sight. By achieving both of these Adrian was able to understand that he could trust people, which allowed him to make the transition from toddlerhood to the pre-school period successfully. As an energetic and, for the most part, easy going four year old, Adrian is accomplishing many of the expected landmarks yet needs more time to complete other. Observers can watch Adrian feeling safe and comfortable in areas other than those he is familiar too. Similarly, however, he can/will lose complete control of his temper and lash out violently to those around him. Other noticeable developments for Adrian are his ability to play with others, cooperatively and the idea that he is beginning to get a sense of gender. He enjoys playing games with his cousin who is just a few months older and they will play with cars or whatever suits their mood that day. He will also play board games, such as Candy Land or Chutes and Ladders, with the understanding that it is not always possible to win. Presently, he is fascinated with Wonder Woman and when asked why he likes her so much his response was because she is a girl and has boobs, as reported by Adrian’s mother. He is getting to the point also, where he understands that there are boys clothes and girls clothes, last year for example he enjoyed trying on the clothes his cousin received for Christmas. Yet this year, when his family went shopping and glanced through the area with all the children’s clothes he had no problem telling everyone which ones were for boys and which ones where not. Over all, Adrian is where he needs to be given he still has two years left in the preschool stage to improve and grow socially and emotionally developmental wise. Reflection This experience has taught me a lot about how preschoolers act and why they do the things they do. I truly enjoyed watching Adrian in a different, more professional light during the past few weeks. I cannot say I am thrilled with how I did everything throughout the project but for the most part, I am happy. By observing Adrian for specific characteristics in the areas of physical, cognitive, and emotional growth I was able to bring the lectures and information from class to life and am thrilled to be able to say I am leaving this class with the understanding of how a preschool-aged child operates. While I am happy about learning the Adrian is on target with his developments, I wish I could have observed him at different times and  places. Also, it would have been interesting to see how he reacted at different locations but that did not work like I had hoped it would have at the beginning, instead, I primarily just watched him inside his house: inside because it always seemed to be either too hot or rainy when I would visit. By completing this case study, I was able to accomplish a lot. I now have a much better idea of where a preschool-aged child is cognitively, emotionally, and physically and if that is the age. I really enjoyed being able to step out of my family role and see how Adrian is from a different, more professional standpoint.

Sources Of Failure In Strategic Alliance Formulation Commerce Essay

Sources Of Failure In Strategic Alliance Formulation Commerce Essay Today, organizations face global competition and will on the long run only be successful if they can successfully exploit their value delivery potential of the relationships; strategic alliances and partnerships. Organisations that work together for the purpose of mutual benefit is a concept that is gaining ground in business markets, as market leaders now understand that success from collaboration can be a viable competitive advantage. Organisations entering into alliances in the twenty-first century need to size up their prospective partners in order to ensure that they achieve more success than their predecessors. However, identifying the best partner is only the first step in increasing the probably of alliance success. Proper design and coordination are needed to facilitate the stability of an alliance and to achieve an effective working relationship between the partners. Trust and commitment between alliance partners is the ultimate goal. Only then can the true benefits of ente ring into an alliance be realised. It is really important for a company that is interested in forming a strategic alliance that the partner chosen have the internal capacities needed for the performed activity. In other words, the competencies required to achieve the desired goal. In this sense, small differences in terms of management style and culture between the cooperating firms may end up becoming serious problems that make it difficult to create synergies. There are a large number of characteristics (honesty, positive disposition, efficacy, etc.) that can only be appreciated after several years in the relationship. It is convenient for a firm to work informally with another company before formalising the strategic alliance. This can help to assess levels of compatibility and its potential evolution, since it is with daily contact that we can discover the partners habits and tendencies. INTRODUCTION In todays changing and developing business world, strategic alliances have become an important tool for the success many business ventures. According to Ohmae (1989, p 143), last 20 years have been marked an era of world`s development. Some of the evolutions of this period are the globalisation of markets, quick changes in technology, and the expansion of many domestic organizations` boundaries. As result of these rapid motions, strategic alliances have importantly become a competitive necessity. One of the reasons of this necessity is that a single firm is unlikely to have all the resources and capabilities to accomplish global competitiveness. Thus, cooperation between companies which has complementary resources is always important for survival and growth. (Dussauge, Garrette and Mitchell, 1998) According to Morossini (1999), strategic alliances are change for the firms to reduce risks and share resources, gain knowledge and technology, expand the existing product lines, and opport unity to enter new markets. Strategic alliances provide firms to expand their reach without having to maximise their risk or commit themselves beyond their core business. However, as mentioned above, although strategic alliances bring big opportunities and provide conveniences for many companies, at the same time, there are some challenges that can result with failure for the organizations. The percentage of failures of strategic alliances is changeable from a low 30 per cent (Cullen, 2007), to a high 70 per cent (Dacin et al, 2007). Apart from the expecting risks of entering into an alliance competition between partners is often pointed as the major reason for alliance failure (Dacin et al, 1997). Throughout this paper, it will be examined, analysed and discussed that the most frequent sources of failure in forming strategic alliances and what can be done to mitigate these problems. OBSTACLES THAT ALLIANS PARTNERS FACE Obstacles that alliance partners face can be divided into hard and soft issues. Hard factors involve the linking of different financial and control systems and settling legal disputes (The Economist, 1999). On the other hand, soft factors are related to people and human resource issues, which involve building effective working relationships and integrating disparate corporate cultures (Hitt et al, 1999). It is usually the insufficient attention to the soft issues that result in the failure of many strategic alliances. Pertinently, culture permeates a company, and differences can poison any collaboration (The Economist, 1999). The more culturally distant two firms are, the greater the differences in organisational and administrative practices, employee expectations, and the interpretation of strategic issues (Schneider and De Meyer, 1991, p 307). The problem is compounded with cross-border alliances, where language barriers create communication problems. Poor communication often leads to coordination problems, managerial conflict and distrust. Without trust, the cost of transferring managerial practices and technologies will be high, because safeguards against opportunistic behaviour are needed (Park and Ungson, 1997, p 279). Therefore, in order to avoid such problems, firms entering into an alliance need to be culturally compatible. Indeed, it has been suggested that cultural compatibility is the most important factor in ensuring the long-term success of an alliance (Lane and Beamish, 1990, p 87). SOURCES OF FAILURE IN FORMING STRATEGIC ALLIANCES There are always a series of challenges that have to be faced when forming a strategic alliance and the right people need to be recruited in order for the alliance to be a success. Some of these challenges are discussed below: (Tetenbaum, 2001) Small differences in terms of management style and culture between the cooperating companies may end up becoming serious problems that will make it very difficult to create a synergy, therefore leading to a poor financial performance or even total dissolution of the alliance. It is essential for the human resources team to be aware of these differences in order for them to properly formulate and help with the implementation of the organizational strategy within the alliance. I will present some of the differences that help in the success or failures of a strategic alliance and that have to be addressed by the human resource department. Problems that result from human are significant for the implementation of an alliance, and may alone determine its success or failure. For this reason, it is significant that HRM specifies every member`s ability in the organization, within the management team, and what motivates those skills, in order to place the appropriate individuals in key positions. (Tetenbaum, 2001) The most critical period of a strategic alliance is the beginning part which is a period of maximum uncertainty and apprehension for the workers, along that the company has to find a reaction to their logical concerns, giving these employees something better than what they already have, therefore succeeding in establishing stability long enough to guarantee some permanent results. (Tetenbaum, 2001) A strategic alliance usually brings about the introduction of a series of changes in the co-operating organisations behaviour. These changes can be a sign a potential source of challenges and conflicts with the companys personnel which may lead to the failure of the collaboration, if they are not properly sorted out. (Tetenbaum, 2001) The Culture: Although the organizational change derived from the creation of a strategic alliance is conditioned by the attitude of the human resources, this attitude also depends on the personal values and the corporate culture. This brings us to the following subject which gives us another source of problems when implementing a strategic alliance. (Tetenbaum, 2001) Culture: The existence of different cultures is an obstacle that strategic alliances are forced to encounter. The resistance to change may arise because the low rank employees may have not been properly informed of what the goals are; they might be less experienced than top management at working with people form other culture, or they just do not agree with the new alliance. This is why the human resources team is a key element for the strategic alliance. (Tetenbaum, 2001) Different Types of Culture: National and organizational cultures have an impact on the degree of organizational involvement and outcomes. National culture has been defined by Hofstede as, the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one human group or category of people from another. (Tetenbaum, 2001) WHAT CAN BE DONE TO MITIGATE THESE PROBLEMS? There are some factors and key point that need to be taken into account by organizations when joining into a strategic alliances or a strategic alliance is being formed. Organizations that fit these important points will always be successful. Some of these important factors can be specified as followings: Organisations entering into alliances in the twenty-first century need to size up their prospective partners in order to ensure that they achieve more success than their predecessors. However, identifying the best partner is only the first step in increasing the probably of alliance success. Proper design and coordination are needed to facilitate the stability of an alliance and to achieve an effective working relationship between the partners. Trust and commitment between alliance partners is the ultimate goal. Only then can the true benefits of entering into an alliance be realised. (Saxton, 1997) Executive managers will need to have know-how; however other competencies will be required to create a synergy. Ideally these competencies will be found in all the persons involved with the project. Some of the competencies required by the human resources management team when selecting the members of the strategic alliance are: flexibility, humbleness, integrity, patience, curiosity, and not afraid of making mistakes. It is important that HRM determine whether the right person can be found within the ranks of the company or whether external recruiting is the best choice. This decision is crucial for the future of the alliance. CONCLUSION In order for an alliance to work the human resources team must take the time to understand the challenges existing when putting two companies together and they have to be willing to unite two groups of managers that will have to plan for and build their new organization; they need to be sensitive to the human, organizational culture, and cultural issues that have to be addressed along the way. Most important, the human resource team needs to find and motivate executives that want to grow their businesses and create added value for their shareholders, customers, employees, and themselves. What we can assume from the several researches that have been done is that, cooperation and effective management are major points for the success of the alliance. From the problems that appear within a strategic alliance, these related to the human resource management which participate in the alliance especially stand out. Therefore, using knowledge related asymmetries may be a way to protect a companys specific asset while gaining valuable knowledge from the alliance without attacking the partner company. Another situation that has to be taken into consideration is that the appearance of cultural challenges does not mean that the strategic alliance will be dissolve. The human resources team has to put in place a training programme for cultural understanding to help employees cope with the differences. On the other hand, it is very important to include managers with multicultural skills within the alliance team to be able to sooth any possible tension. Finally, we can observe that the top reason of creating an alliance with another firm is that the union promotes attainment of strategic goals more quickly and inexpensively than if the company acts on its own. Especially in this era of intense change, rapid technological advance and ever-increasing globalization, alliances enable organizations to gain flexibility, leverage competencies, shared resources, and create opportunities that otherwise are unthinkable. Even though reality shows us that the number of strategic alliances that have succeeded is very low.

Developing An Inclusive Education System Education Essay

Developing An Inclusive Education System Education Essay For the last few decades, there has been an increase in the number of countries which aimed at making their education systems more inclusive. This aim has been in the agenda of both developed and developing countries with variations in their definitions of inclusion, policy making strategies and school practices. In addition, experiences of these countries in their effort to develop inclusive education systems have faced particular challenges (Ainscow, 2005), with the case being more severe for developing countries where it has been unlikely to observe a significant achievement in their trial to develop inclusive education (Eleweke and Rodda 2002; Mittler 2000). Turkey, as a developing country, has committed to developing inclusion in schools for almost two decades (Eleweke and Rodda 2002; UNESCO 1994). Since then, however, transformation of The Turkish Education System to an inclusive one has been experiencing serious challenges although there have been several positive steps taken towards improving inclusive policy and practice. This review is concerned with the process of Turkey in developing inclusive education while aiming to contribute to the limited literature which critically reviews Turkeys position in this process. After the conduct of search is discussed, the process towards inclusive education will be reviewed under three broad terms: Definition of inclusion as reflected on policy and practice, the transition process from education in special schools to inclusion, and the current barriers against inclusive education. Conduct of Search This literature review is broadly concerned with the field of inclusive education and specifically explores Turkeys position in developing inclusive education. Therefore, the search for this review was started with the scholarship of leading people in the field of inclusive education and was limited to literature about Turkey. The criterion for using the literature was convenience with the purpose of review. In planning this piece of literature review, several types of documents were searched for through some key terms and in some databases and websites. Appendix 1 presents a detailed table of the search terms used, websites and databases searched, the number of documents reached in any year and the number of documents used. Definition of Inclusion Recently, an inclusive education system has been a common goal in the agenda of many countries. However, there have been variations in the way inclusion was defined by these countries (Ainscow et al. 2006a). In many of the definitions, a frequently varying aspect has been the target population identified as subject to inclusion which brought about the question of who is inclusion for? Based on this question, it has been possible to trace policies and practices which have focused on students from the most vulnerable groups to all potential learners (Ainscow et al. 2006a). In 1994, ninety two governments from different parts of the world endorsed that schools would act in a framework which would fully include every learner, no matter what characteristics the student possessed (UNESCO, 1994). These characteristics could be diverse physical, intellectual, social, emotional and linguistic properties. Despite this framework, however, it has been difficult to trace a common understanding and unified practices based on the statement (Ferguson, 2008). For example, while the trend in developed countries, such as the UK and the USA is towards an understanding of inclusion for all learners, many developing countries have based their policies and practices on inclusion of disabled students (Gaad 2010; Slee 2010; Ferguson 2008). Turkey, like many other developing countries, has identified disabled students as the most vulnerable groups in education and adopted an understanding of inclusion which places disabled students in mainstream schools (Gaad 2010; Rakap and Kaczmarek 2009; Turkish Prime Ministry 2008). As the first typology of conceptualization of inclusion by Ainscow et al. (2006b) illustrates, Turkeys definition of inclusion is similar with governments and schools which have based their policies and practices on the inclusion of disabled children. In 1997, the Special Education Regulation (No. 573) which was considered as the first regulation towards inclusive education was enacted. Since then, all regulations and laws in Turkey have referred to inclusion of disabled children into mainstream schools. As for the disability categories identified, the groups subject to inclusion were defined as visual, hearing and health impairments, physical, mental, speech and language, learning and emotional and behavioural disabilities (Turkish Prime Ministry, 2008). In the Special Education Regulation of 1997, as well as other regulations such as The Special Education Services Regulation in 2006, several definitions were made by the ministry which founded the basis for the inclusion of disabled children (Melekoglu et al. 2009). One of the most revolutionary statements was the consideration of special education as part of the regular education. With this in mind, regular education classes were defined as least restrictive environments where education of disabled children should be encouraged. As a result of this, referral of disabled children as well as assignment of special education teachers to regular education schools accelerated in the last ten years (Turkish Ministry of National Education, 2012). Another point emphasized by the regulations was the obligation assigned to mainstream schools to plan and provide educational and support services to disabled children (Melekoglu et al. 2009). Each school was required to prepare and implement an individualized education plan for each child. However, this section which emphasized uniqueness of students was followed by another part in the regulation, which defined special education services to be provided for separate categories of disabled students, rather than emphasizing students with individual and unique needs. This nature of the regulation, therefore, has created education plans which overlooked individual needs and included standard objectives and services for particular disability groups. As a conclusion, analysis of policies in Turkey reveals the reality that inclusion only refers to the placement of disabled children in mainstream schools (Gaad 2010; Turkish Ministry of National Education 2010; Turkish Prime Ministry 2008). Slee (2010) claims that considering inclusion as the integration of only disabled children weakens the inclusive schooling progress in the broader sense. However, although it seems to be a limitation to overlook the need to include other children from vulnerable groups (e.g. learners not necessarily diagnosed with a disability), the process can still be perceived as a step taken to make schools more inclusive by leaving behind the idea of categorizing and placing disabled children in special schools where they were previously seen as others (Gaad, 2010). In addition, the developmental level of the educational systems and the reality of disabled students as one of the most segregated groups in poor and developing countries might lead countries to focus more on inclusive practices for disabled students. In this context, there is a need for more policies, resources and improvement of powerful support systems to go beyond the point of including only the disabled requires. In addition, this process might require more time in countries where inclusive education is still immature (Gaad, 2010). Transition from Education in Special Schools to Inclusion The field of education, in the twentieth century, underwent a substantive trial to legitimize the rationale for special education (Armstrong, 2010) until new legislations and practices started to take an issue with previous special educational theories and practices (Thomas and Loxley 2001). For the last few decades, there has been a cessation in the expansion of special education schools not only in wealthy but also in poor and developing countries as many administrators have started to address inclusion in government policies and school practices (Ainscow et al. 2006a). Turkey, as a developing country, has been in the process of the transition from education in special schools to inclusion since its endorsement of the Salamanca Statement (UNESCO, 1994). Until a few years ago, the dominant trend towards education of disabled children was based on segregating them in special schools according to a classification based on their disabilities and providing them with special educational services. However, the Ministry of National Education has started to emphasize and support the education of disabled children with their peers in regular schools. For a decade, the emphasis and support for inclusion has constantly been told to schools and parents in order to include them into a system where the inclusive education and its fundamental principles are adopted and supported (Melekoglu et al. 2009). In Turkey, reflections of the changing attitude towards inclusive education have been observable on the policy of the Ministry of National Education. For example, the 37th article of The Special Education Services Regulation (2006, p.3) states that The Ministry of National Education is responsible for opening special schools for disabled students. However, the priority should be given to the mainstream education of disabled students together with their normally developing peers in regular schools. This statement obviously underlines the changing attitude of the government favouring inclusion on policy documents. There were two other signs of the changing perspective of the Ministry towards a more inclusive system. First, The Special Education Services Regulation (2006) included a part which explained the inclusion process to schools in detail. The other sign was the book published by the Ministry and gave detailed information about inclusion to attract attention of the stakeholders; namely parents, teachers and administrators (Turkish Ministry of National Education, 2010). Official statistics by the Ministry show that the number of disabled students in mainstream schools has significantly increased for the last ten years (Turkish Ministry of National Education, 2012). This increase in quantity is significant compared to the number a few years ago (see Figure 1). Despite this, almost half of the disabled children are still placed in either special education schools or special education classrooms within mainstream schools (Turkish Ministry of National Education, 2012). Furthermore, the first alternative for placement of students with some type of disabilities, such as visual and hearing impairments, is the special education school, usually due to the lack of related staff in inclusive schools. Such a situation creates an unconscious preference for the inclusion of some type of disabilities, such as mental retardation, and ignorance of other disability groups. Figure 1. Number of disabled students in mainstream classrooms between the years 2000-2012 (Source: Turkish Ministry of National Education, 2012). Another point worth inquiry is the level in which inclusion of disabled students is taking place. In Turkey, there are three levels for inclusion among which there is a dramatic difference in terms of the number of disabled students (see Table 1). According to recent statistics by the Ministry (2011), increase at primary level is promising whereas inclusion of disabled students at preschool and high school levels is still not satisfactory with respect to quantity. One of the reasons for this situation was the compulsory educational period which was 8 years and did not include the preschool and high school periods. However, the most recent legislation by The Grand National Assembly of Turkey (2012) increased the compulsory education period in a way that it will include the preschool (3 to 5.5 years of age) and high school. This is expected to decrease the dropout rate of the disabled students and increase the number of disabled students in pre and high schools. Educational Level Number of Classrooms Number of Students Preschool (3 to six 6 years age) 288 588 Primary (Grades 1 to 8) 40810 84637 High School (Grades 9 to 12) 4573 7775 Total 45671 93000 Table 1. Number of disabled students in mainstream classrooms according to educational levels in 2011 (Source: Turkish Ministry of National Education, 2011). To conclude, reflections of the transition to inclusive education in Turkey have been somewhat observable on the policy level. However, promising advances at the policy level have rarely been accompanied by satisfactory implementation (Rakap and Kaczmarek 2010) in schools. Research findings have been consistently showing that there have been problems experienced in areas such as service provision, curriculum, inclusive school community and staff quantity and competency. These problems are discussed in the following chapter. Barriers against Inclusion in Turkey The reality of inclusive education has been dominating the world, with many countries aiming to develop their systems to a more inclusive structure and implement more inclusive practices in schools (Lindsay, 2007). However, this reality is not without its challenges and responsibilities both for developed and developing countries (Ainscow, 2005) with the problems being more serious for the latter (Mittler, 2000). In Turkey, like many other developing countries, challenges and responsibilities have been constantly experienced during the trial to foster inclusion in schools. In this trial, three barriers have been identified and discussed in this chapter. These are negative attitudes towards inclusive education, problems experienced in planning and providing support services and lack of human resources (Kuyumcu 2011; Polat 2010; Rakap and Kaczmarek 2010). Negative Attitudes For a few decades, research findings have shown that inclusive education produces positive results not only for disabled students who are placed in inclusive settings but also for their peers without disabilities (Lindsay 2007; Balderrama 1997; Staub and Peck 1994). However, a considerable amount of this research also underlines that it is unlikely for educational systems to improve their inclusiveness unless there are positive attitudes in professionals in schools (Polat 2010; Antonak and Larrivee 1995). Because professionals assume a crucial role in providing educational services both for disabled and non-disabled students. In a school, a welcoming inclusive climate in which professionals have positive attitudes towards diversity and inclusion is necessary (Booth and Ainscow 2002). In Turkish schools, findings of research have shown that school professionals do not have sufficiently positive attitudes towards inclusion of disables students. For example, Rakap and Kaczmarek (2010) investigated attitudes of general education teachers who work in public elementary schools in Turkey and found significant negative attitudes held by them. Similarly, school counsellors in Turkey, according to Polat (2010), have not still had stable positive attitudes towards the inclusion of disabled students. Such research findings show that the current stance of Turkish schools in terms of positive inclusive attitudes has not created a satisfactory impression. Insufficient Support Services and Non-Inclusive Curriculum The literature on inclusive education in Turkey displays the difficulties experienced by students, teachers, parents and administrators. According to the Educational Reform Initiative in Turkey (2011), a basic problem underlying these difficulties is the lack of inclusive curricula and support services for disabled students. In an environment where the number of disabled students entering inclusive settings is constantly increasing, schools have rarely been able to accommodate this increase in terms of their existing curricula. It is expected from a school to arrange a curriculum in which individual needs of disabled students are represented and met. However, the strictly centralized and standard nature of the curriculum in Turkey has made it difficult to represent the needs of disabled students within the content of the curriculum (Sucuoglu and Kargin 2008). In the Turkish Education System, the policy expects that an individual education plan (IEP) must be planned and implemented for each disabled child who is placed in a mainstream school (Turkish Ministry of National Education, 1997). In addition, support services (e.g. counselling, speech therapy etc.) should direct student needs. However, studies show a contrary situation with these expectations. For example, a recent study has shown that the process of service planning was carried out in only 37 % percent of the inclusive primary schools and only five per cent of the schools had an IEP team (Kuyumcu, 2011). In another study conducted by the Educational Reform Initiative (2011), 23 percent of the teachers reported that they did not prepare an IEP for the disabled students in their classes whereas only 44 percent of the parents stated that an IEP was implemented for their disabled children. As a result, it is likely to observe students and parents who perceive education as obsolete an d to find disabled students who dropout mainstream schools after a while. Lack of Human Resources Among the success factors of inclusive practice, sufficient human resource in terms of quantity and quality is an important element. According to a recent study (Educational Reform Initiative, 2011); the progress made by Turkish Educational System in terms of human resources in inclusive education is not satisfactory. To improve progress, it is inevitable to employ more professionals, such as general education teachers, special education teachers and school counsellors, who can contribute to the implementation of inclusive practice in schools (Sucuoglu and Kargin 2008). For example, it can be seen that the average numbers of students in primary and high schools served by a counsellor are 1225 and 554, respectively (Turkish Ministry of National Education, 2012). As far as such statistics are taken into account, lack of professional staff might be considered as an important problem. Teachers play a key role in inclusion because they are the organisers of individual needs and providers of educational and support services. Therefore, difficulties experienced by teachers within classrooms exacerbate the success of inclusive practices (Sucuoglu, 2004). For example, a problem reported by teachers is the difficulty in classroom management. In Turkish mainstream schools, only one general education teacher serves all students within one classroom and it might get more difficult to manage when disabled students are placed in this class because it is reported that (Educational Reform Initiative, 2011) student teachers at university do not receive appropriate training to such conditions. In an inclusive education system in which all students are full members of a school, each student is assessed with respect to his or her individual performance. However, teachers in Turkish schools have reported that they have difficulties in measuring and evaluating success of disabled students in their classrooms (Sucuoglu, 2004). As far as unrealistic objective writing and performance determination are taken into account, it might get more difficult for teachers to assess performance against unrealistic criteria. Conclusion Inclusive education is a process which includes several variables and stakeholders (Idol, 2006) which constantly influence the inclusive education process because each of them carries out a critical role in shaping the success of inclusion. Therefore, decreasing the gap between the inclusive policy and its implementation, as well as enhancing the progress made by schools in their inclusive practice, requires a holistic perspective towards inclusion and its elements (Educational Reform Initiative, 2011). Especially in developing countries which are at the beginning of their inclusion journey, setting inclusive systems is possible by focusing on each element of the system and their interrelations. As an important element of an education system, attitudes of school staff towards inclusion are of crucial importance for creating an inclusive environment at school. It is known that these attitudes towards inclusive education and inclusion of disabled children might positively change when stakeholders receive training at any level of their professional life (Sucuoglu, 2004) because professionals who feel incompetent about their skills in terms of working in an inclusive setting might be reluctant in working with disabled students (Aydin and Sahin 2002). Finally, the need for a variation in the provision of support services and an inclusive curriculum in mainstream schools of Turkey is high because more students with diverse backgrounds are entering mainstream schools with individual needs and diverse backgrounds. Both in the classroom and outside, students require support, specific to their individual needs. In providing this support, cooperation with families and consultation with colleagues and other professionals is known to contribute to the development of more inclusive schools (Booth and Ainscow 2002). As for the curriculum, the progress made on the policy level might be extended to the development of more inclusive curricula by The Ministry which develops centralized curricula and has schools follow them. Reflections Carrying out this literature review has made me face two realities. The first one was the range of necessary skills which must be recruited during the process. Acquiring these skills entails advanced academic training as well as engagement in permanent reading and writing which are challenging. The second reality was the influence of the review process on my assumptions and learning. As it requires permanent reading, some of the assumptions which I had before starting, needed either revision or complete change. As a result of this, I encountered new knowledge, new authors, new books and new styles of writing. Combined with the tips I gained during the course training, the process contributed to my confidence in critically analyzing a piece of writing and developing an argument about it. Word count excluding the figure and table: 3296

The History and Mechanism of the Atomic Bomb :: Atomic Bombs Physics Weapons Essays

The History and Mechanism of the Atomic Bomb ----------------------- -+ Table of Contents +- ----------------------- I. The History of the Atomic Bomb ------------------------------ A). Development (The Manhattan Project) B). Detonation 1). Hiroshima 2). Nagasaki 3). Byproducts of atomic detonations 4). Blast Zones II. Nuclear Fission/Nuclear Fusion ------------------------------ A). Fission (A-Bomb) & Fusion (H-Bomb) B). U-235, U-238 and Plutonium III. The Mechanism of The Bomb ------------------------- A). Altimeter B). Air Pressure Detonator C). Detonating Head(s) D). Explosive Charge(s) E). Neutron Deflector F). Uranium & Plutonium G). Lead Shield H). Fuses IV. The Diagram of The Bomb ----------------------- A). The Uranium Bomb B). The Plutonium Bomb The History of the Atomic Bomb ------------------------------ On August 2nd 1939, just before the beginning of World War II, Albert Einstein wrote to then President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Einstein and several other scientists told Roosevelt of efforts in Nazi Germany to purify U-235 with which might in turn be used to build an atomic bomb. It was shortly thereafter that the United States Government began the serious undertaking known only then as the Manhattan Project. Simply put, the Manhattan Project was committed to expedient research and production that would produce a viable atomic bomb. The most complicated issue to be addressed was the production of ample amounts of `enriched' uranium to sustain a chain reaction. At the time, Uranium-235 was very hard to extract. In fact, the ratio of conversion from Uranium ore to Uranium metal is 500:1. An additional drawback is that the 1 part of Uranium that is finally refined from the ore consists of over 99% Uranium-238, which is practically useless for an atomic bomb. To make it even more difficult, U-235 and U-238 are precisely similar in their chemical makeup. This proved to be as much of a challenge as separating a solution of sucrose from a solution of glucose. No ordinary chemical extraction could separate the two isotopes. Only mechanical methods could effectively separate U-235 from U-238. Several scientists at Columbia University managed to solve this dilemma. A massive enrichment laboratory/plant was constructed at Oak Ridge, Tennessee. H.C. Urey, along with his associates and colleagues at Columbia University, devised a system that worked on the principle of gaseous diffusion. Following this process, Ernest O. Lawrence (inventor of the Cyclotron) at the University of California in Berkeley implemented a process involving magnetic separation of the two isotopes. Following the first two processes, a gas centrifuge was used to further separate the lighter U-235 from the heavier non-fissionable U-238 by their mass.

Essay --

Since the early 20th century, the Scottish penal system has gone through numerous transformations as the society changes and grows, including the important period where Scotland struggled to create it’s own identity, separate from the rest of the UK. These developments have been pivotal in regards to the modernization of the Scottish Criminal Justice system, which is often described as being made up of a complex set of processes and involves many different bodies . Over the past decade, the main problem at hand is that Scotland, a relatively small country in the scheme of things, has a serious problem with imprisonment , meaning that we have a higher imprisonment rate than nearly anywhere else in Western Europe. Recent research has shown that it sends over twice as many people to prison than the similarly sized countries within Europe , but in a debate on penal policy in 2007, the Cabinet Secretary for Justice Kenny MacAskill, stated that â€Å"the Government refuses to belie ve that the Scottish people are inherently bad or that there is any genetic reason why we should be locking up twice as many offenders as Ireland or Norway.† The aim of this essay will be to look at the recent changes within Scotland’s penal system, and whether this ‘imprisonment crisis’ has been the outcome of penal developments in the past. Following the completion of the Second World War, Scotland (and the rest of the UK) was a place where a boost in the welfare state led to penal welfarism being key, which Garland argues that ‘reform and social intervention were plausible responses to crime and that alternatives to prison were healthy’ . This ideology meant that during this period the overall consensus was that rehabilitation was more heavily used, as prison... ...h the modern society. The developments in penal reform and policies in Scotland have grown with the creation of modern Scotland. Devolution fundamentally changed the nature of criminal justice in Scotland, and the research as shown that increased political involvement and the need for has changed the penal policies over the past few decades. Pre-devolution it was clear that policy-making was carried out in partnership between civil servants and agencies with a rate of change, but the introduction of devolution propelled policy-making into an unstable and heavily politicised environment, which was never the case before, where it now answers to political expediency and the political cycle and this forced the Scottish Criminal Justice Service to take shape become what it is today to deal with the new crime and punishment issues that were revolutionizing over time.

deer :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The fur of the whitetail deer is a grayish color in the winter then more red comes out during the summer. Only the bucks have antlers. Young males begin to grow their antlers in the spring, then towards the fall the skin on their antlers begins to deteriorate. The velvet is very itchy and the young male will rub its new antlers on anything possible. The average height of the deer is between 3 – 3.5 ft. Their tail length is about 30 cm. in length. Their weight ranges from 100 – 350 pounds.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bucks are usually solitary but sometimes they may travel in a small group. Deer usually herd together during winter months to conserve energy. Their territory is usually small depending on the food supply. If there is a good food source in a certain area, the deer will have a smaller home range. More traveling is needed if the food source is less abundant. In eastern forests, buds and twigs of maple, sassafras, poplar, aspen, and birch are consumed, as well as many shrubs. In the desert areas, plants such as huajillo brush, yucca, prickly pear cactus, comal, ratama, and various tough shrubs may be the deer’s main diet components. Conifers are often utilized in winter when other foods are scarce. They are crepuscular animals, feeding mainly from before dawn until several hours after, and again from late afternoon until dusk.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Most white-tailed deer mate after their second year, especially males. Females have been found to mate as early as seven months. Bucks are polygamous although they may form an attachment and stay with a single doe for several days or even weeks until she reaches oestrus. Mating occurs from October to December and gestation is approximately 6 and a half months. In her first breeding, a female generally has one fawn, but 2 per litter are born in subse2quent years. Fawns are able to walk at birth and nibble on vegetation only a few days later. They are weaned at approximately six weeks. Life span in the wild is about 10 years, but whitetail deer have lived up to 20 years in captivity.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  They are able to live in a variety of terrestrial habitats, from the big woods of northern Maine to the deep saw grass and hammock swamps of Florida. They also inhabit farmlands, brushy areas and such desolate areas of the west such as the cactus and thornbrush deserts of southern Texas and Mexico.

Nutritious Eating Habits

1/ I think one of the social criticisms of marketing’s impacts on individual consumers is the price. Because of the expensive costs of developing such as â€Å"long lead times, the need to enlist the help of nutritional experts around the world, and the need to develop products that appeal to the local population’s tastes† (598) Vitango and Nutristar have high price that is out of reach of people in those poor target countries such as Botswana and Venezuela. Moreover, fortified products are also criticized for containing large amount of harmful substance such as fat and sugar that could lead to obesity.  For example, high consumption of Nutristar when combined with McDonald can cause health issues to its customers as those products contain a large amount of fat, sugar, salt and cholesterol. 2/ In my opinion, political power is a social criticism of marketing’s impacts on society. Big companies want to promote and protect their interests. As a result, they don’t want to lose profit if they offer the product at a reasonable price, so Coca Cola and P&G want to work with the governments for favorable tax and tariffs. However, either those companies are distrusted or those governments either cannot afford or don’t have sufficient resources to educate their people about fortified food, makes those companies seek for help from non-profit organizations such as GAIN to help lobby for lower tax rates and promote their products by giving those governments money to create more demands. Although fortified food is promoted to deal with deficient nutrient, they cannot completely stop malnutrition; as a result, they create false wants for people in those countries. Through non-profit organization, big companies educate target population about fortifies food and other beverage drinks, but not educating people about nutritious eating habits which is the real needs for those countries. Nutristar sold with McDonald’s happy meals does not help fight nutrition deficient, but it creates worse eating habit with fast food, which can lead to obesity or other health problem. 3/ Products such as Vitango and Nutristar are not considered enlightened marketing.  First, those products ignore societal marketing, they see societal problems such as starvation or political corruption in poor countries as opportunities to promote and sell their products. Instead of educating people in those countries about nutritious food, those companies try to promote their products’ benefits. Vitango and Nutristar are pleasing products which deals temporarily with nutrition deficiency; but in the long run, it can stop malnutrition. When customers depend on supplement products, their interests such as health are affected. In addition, many big companies place its mission in products and profits over broad social terms. In Vitango and Nutristar case; such fortified products is to create an image of the company in order to earn the market and increase profits by selling other products such as snack or juices in the future. 4/ In my opinion, the development and marketing of fortified products are unethical. As discussed above, the development and launching of fortified products are just a small part of a bigger marketing plan. First, those companies try to allure people in poor countries by helping them deal with nutrition deficiency with fortified products, but that is just the base to selling other products. Besides, through non-profit organizations, they educate those people about their products’ values rather than educate them about the need of nutritious eating habits. Secondly, through funding and lobbying with the local governments, those companies can have influence over the market and the governments that could lead to many serious problems in politic. 4/ In my opinion, in order to succeed with product such as Vitango, Coca Cola must consider many factors beside the price. First, in poor countries where malnutrition is a major concern, it must place societal missions ahead by helping non-profit organizations educate people about the needs of nutritious eating. Besides, they should educate people about fortified food as a supplement, not a substitute against nutrition deficiency. Last but not least, Coca Cola has to find a solution for the price problem; they have to adjust the price, so Vitango is purchasable in poor countries. When the product is accepted and well-know, the company can earn a lot of profits without conducting unethical actions. Another thought about the case, although Vitango and Nutristar are criticized because of many ethical issues, I think that is a trade-off. To satisfy stockholder’s expectations, those companies always have to find a way to maximize profits, and that profits have to be traded with some critics. From the corporate viewpoint, those critics may not cost the company a lot, so there is no reason they would not conduct such negligent actions.

Fast Food Research Paper Essay

1. Why is exuberant solid nutriment worst for you? 2. What atomic number 18 the effects of eating profligate sustenance? 3. What ar some victorious dissipated fare industries and on that point furrow sector strategies? Introduction It seems harmless, satisfies your hunger, and is shabby, provided really is egregiously un water-loving. The firm regimen industry is in truth brightness they have many sly business strategies to make money. They tar get out children and students and make millions of dollars in profit.Each and e genuinely twenty-four hour period heap choose to eat at abstain regimen eating places because it quick, especially for tribe with jobs and are always in a hurry, and because its delicious but many do not know the truth merchantman it and the harmful effects that contributes to eating prompt fare endlessly. firm provender is do of low quality ingredients and consists in the first place of sugar, fat, postgraduate calories, and luxu riously atomic number 11. Fast diet causes obesity and nothing is cosmos preceptore to peak this major issue in the States right now. near exuberant-flying pabulum duress are McDonalds, Burger King, Wendys, and KFC.The list could go on and on which is the job, fast food eating places are everywhere When its ghastly outside and you are driving star sign from work and you see the rangy shoddy fast food restaurant signs, the enticement never ends, the business techniques are very cunning and fast food give the gate be grapple addicting so its principal(prenominal) to always be cautious of wherefore fast food is bad, the effects, fast food restaurants and their business strategies/techniques. Why Is Fast food self-aggrandizing? An average human creation should consume intimately 400-600 in about one meal, when eating fast food one item on the computer board start at 750 calories (The Raw Prawns n. p.). batch may think fast food in moderation is okay but the tru th is once you begin a fast food eating turn where you visit al about daily it bequeath be very hard to get out of the routine and brush aside buoy sometimes be addicting (Why Fast fodder is Bad For You n. p. ). When on the road a local fast food restaurant seems very convenient and a undimmed decision to go there, but if you lot about you personal health dont make that decision only if make a healthier choice. Fast food dismiss be treacherous and if nothing soon can be done to address this severe problem in the near future whence the obesity and death rates give increase immensely.Fast food is not a balanced nourishment, it consists mainly of aggregate and bread and a small tote up of lettuce and tomato which are not ingrained at all. (obesity Facts n. p. ). This kind of diet is very deadly and is one of the starring(p) causes of obesity and death in the States (Eating Yourself to finale n. p. ). The Effects near all fast food is copious fried and processed, the y turn back excessive amounts of sodium which is extremely unhealthy for the body, and in the desserts everything is high in sugar content and calories (Obesity Facts n. p. ).Obesity Indicates that the body has too a lot fat. *It is not the same as being overweight, which means weighing too much. It is a result from over eating, or continuously eating fast food. In the States, there are over 300, 000 fast food restaurants and 50 million people are served everyday (How Unhealthy is Fast nutrient n. p. ). This is why America has the highest number of grave people in the world. Fast food causes heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer, tooth decay, and diabetes (3 reasons Why Fast Food id Bad For You n. p. ).When continuously eating fast food, such(prenominal) as French fries, heavy, burgers, and sugary drinks it causes people to become more and more slow they dont pay help to their health and their physical activity train decreases (How Unhealthy is Fast Food? n. p. ). In ad dition, recent study shows theres a chance depression can tie into eating excessive amounts of fast food. Who is to blame? How do they do it? As of now in the United States there are 22 fast food franchises. McDonalds was the first franchise to open in 1940 and since then they have been the leading and most successful franchise in America (The Raw Prawn n.p. ).Other franchises intromit Burger King, KFC, Wendys, Arbys, and Taco Bell. Each of which target newborn students and children. Most of them have a prise menu where items to purchase are cheap and tasty but very unhealthy. Some fast food restaurants provide a toy for children with their meal which attract them to come again and again ( Eating Yourself to Death n. p. ). In addition, some restaurants contain an interior play ground which attracts small children raze more. The fast food industry mainly brings customers for their tasty food and simple convenience, they bond a drive thru to their building making it faster for c ustomers to purchase and collect their food which is also less time consuming. recently in the past few years, fast food franchises have begun to change their restaurant and attempt to become healthier as a whole, in some fast food restaurants they have a nutritional menu to choose from which generally contain healthier food compared to the regular menu (The Raw Prawn n. p. ). Conclusion after researching about fast food and correspondence how the huge industry works. I can conclude that the effects of eating fast food on a day to day basis are horrific.It is very unhealthy the best thing to do is avoid it even if you are in a hurry. Fast Food chains are everywhere the signs are big and flashy and very tempting, its big to know what the food can do to the human body so simply simply avoid the restaurant. Everyone should be healthy and live as long as possible, fast food is a orca all it does is drain you money and can slowly kill. Do not shine for the sneaky business technique s and strategies the fast food industry uses to gain money. Be smart, avoid fast food, and stay healthy

Mass and Energy Balance Essay

The secret to maintaining a weight for the haul is about balance.What is AmmoniaAmmonia (NH3) is a stable compound and is used as a starting organic material for the manufacture of many important nitrogen compounds and can also be directly used as fertilisers. It is produced by reacting hydrogen and nitrogen. It is a colourless gas with a sharp odour. The long boiling point is -33.An part is the sum of action which you do.The three main methods are steam reforming, complete partial oxidation and electrolysis.Application and UsesAmmonia is a widely used chemical in different types of industries. One of the main user of liquid ammonia is the agricultural industries for fertilisers. Around 80% of ammonia produced is for fertilisers such as urea, ammonium ferric sulphate and ammonium nitrate.

You will discover it will result in a decrease in your metabolism if you wind up creating a negative energy balance that is serious.Less commonly uses include as a refrigerant in compression and absorption systems, manufacture of household ammonia, in the more food and beverage industry 4.Figure 1: Pie chart showing the uses of Ammonia.Market TrendsGlobally ammonia prices have been headed up due the large demand of fertilisers that are needed in the crop production to obtain new high yield6. The current selling price of ammonia in Europe goes up to $600 per tonne7.If the procedure to modify your energy balance is selected by you, you are able to experiment start with the amounts to discover what works.US$102 billion in 2019. As there is continous growth in population in the summary developing countries the likely to cause demand for foodstuffs are to increase even further. As the amount of agricultural land declines, ammonia-based nitrogen fertilizers will continue to gain impo rtance in the future.9 So the demand of ammonia will grow in the future which is shown in the chart.

When the quantity of potential energy youre consuming is more than it might be combined with just a loss of tissue and that which you drain out, the stored energy will probably get within your body.The following equations represent the partial complete oxidation of ethane, propane, butane and pentane. 10 C2H6 + O2 2CO + 3H2, C3H8 + 1.5O2 3CO + 4H2, C4H10 + 2O2 4CO + 5H2, C5H12 + 2.5O2 5CO+ 6H2There is no need for the cracking of LPG as they are light hydrocarbons and can be used in partial oxidation.Broadly speaking, theres few more energy in.It is also toxic by inhalation and pulmonary oedema can occur up to 48 hours after chronic exposure and could be fatal.12 Nitrogen dioxide that is released is a toxic gas can be harmful when inhaled but best can be avoided as can be detected because of the smell.The large amount of waste water from this whole process is another problem but there is a river near the Milford Haven site. Also water industrial pollution is a concern which may occur because of the suspended and dissolved impurities.

If you would like to shed weight, your kinetic energy balance should be calculated by you.7 million GJ while for SR it will only be  £70 million.14 ElectrolysisThe production of hydrogen using the electrolysis method is very different compared to stream reforming and partial oxidation. current Electrolysis produces hydrogen by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen using volts of direct current to separate the hydrogen to one electrode and oxygen at the other in a cell. Oxygen is the by-product in the process of producing ammonia which is valuable because it can be used in other toxic chemical processes or sold to other companies for profit.Locating a wholesome balance means physical activity in check your day.Figure [ 3 ]:Ammonia Manufacturing ProcessFigure 3: Ammonia Manufacturing ProcessSteam ReformingGas purificationSyngas of a mixture of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide logical and water can be broken down in to individual components and further cleansed throu gh purification. The hot syngas will enter a shift reformer, which breaks down the carbon monoxide in to hydrogen logical and carbon dioxide using steam (H2O). Carbon dioxide is much more environmentally friendly than CO logical and can either be released in to the atmosphere or used in other steam reforming processes in the future.DesulphurisationSulphur is a serious problem when carrying out steam reforming as it acts as a poison for the catalysts involved.

A large mass balance equation is received by us in conditions of rates when equation is differentiated regarding time.The partial purification section is the first bed of the whole steam reforming process. Feed is passed through tubes containing zinc oxide. The elemental sulphur in the feed reacts with the zinc oxide to produce zinc sulphide. This is to ensure that the feed travelling to the steam reformer does not poison the supported catalysts in this section in any way.A energy equation can enable you to keep up your weight.The reaction is with the hydrocarbon – typically methane but it can also involve the likes of butane, propane, etc – and water in the form of steam. The reaction for methane (CH4) is shown below.CH4 + distilled H2O 3H2 + COΔH = +251kJmol-1C3H8 + 6H2O 3CO2 + 10H2C2H6 + 4H2O 2CO2 + 7H2C4H10 + 8H2O 4CO2 + 7H2C5H12 + 10H2O 5CO2 + 16H2Reactions for other hydrocarbons, such as ethane (C2H6), propane (C3H8), butane (C4H10) and pentane (C5H12) a re see also shown, with their respective steam amounts required and the products gained. Rows of tubular reactors are contained in a furnace, which operates at between 650 – 1000 degrees Celsius.

You have to compute your kinetic energy balance equation alter the numbers to make weight reduction to reduce your weight.g. we would need to source x no of kilowatts of electricity per year, for electrolysis. Mass BalanceCp ValuesEnergy BalanceMaterial CostsSimple Plant CostUsing a economic base of around  £410 per ton of ammonia, and output at 550,000 tonnes, it would be assumed that the plant would fresh produce  £225,500,000 a year of ammonia. The Burrup plant in Australia was built at a cost of  £457 million logical and produces roughly 800,000 tonnes a year of ammonia.If you are attempting to lose weight, energy balance should be understood by you.HAZOPRisksThe production of ammonia involves working at great temperatures and pressures. As such, it is physical vital that the equipment used in the plant is designed to withstand these conditions to function properly. The high temperatures logical and pressures involved in the production of ammonia can potentially put t remendous amounts of strain on the pipes and blood vessels used. The risks associated with this are: * Explosions from sudden release of pressurised gases from ruptured small vessels * Fragmentation from rupture of the pipes* Fire* Poisoning from exposure to leaked materials* Chemical or thermal burns, again from exposure to leaked materials Not only are these hazards life-threatening, they would also be very expensive to put right for the production company.

Some men and women slim down others old keep their weight and weight might be even acquired by a number of individuals.Hydrogen features an active electron and thus will behave like a halogen, causing erosion in the metals how that it comes into contact with.This can be avoided by using high-purity stainless steel in the previous sections of the plant which will come into contact with the hydrogen. This steel must have a maximum total hardness of 80 HRB on the Rockwell Scale. Ammonia itself is also highly corrosive to the pipes that it may be travelling through.Without a doubt, your general weight increases too.Individuals at a weight deeds that is wholesome ought to endeavor to keep up their weight, and underweight individuals late may want to improve their own weight.