Develop Systems Essay

Unit 501 – use and develop systems that promote communication Learning outcome 1. Be able to address the range of communication requirements in own role. 1.1 Review the range of groups and individuals whose communication needs must be addressed in own job role. Individuals who have communication problems need support to enable them to express themselves effectively. Therefore it is vitally important in a managerial or senior role to both be aware of the individuals preferred method of communication and also to support this method effectively. Communication is a basic human right highlighted in the human rights act 1998 where it states that all individuals have the right to ‘freedom of expression’ therefore it is each person’s right to communicate their needs and preferences using their chosen method. If an individual were unable to communicate effectively or were denied the support to do so then they would essentially be denied their freedom of expression and would be withholding a basic human need and right. In residential child care there are a number of groups of people which communication may present challenges. Although they are presented as groups for the purpose of this learning outcome, each person should be treated as an individual and their communication needs assessed and addressed accordingly. As communication is a reciprocal process around 80% of communication is non-verbal which includes facial expression, posture and eye contact as well as the spoken word. Read more:  Use and Develop Systems That Promote Communication Essay Autism Individuals with autism have communication disorders which can make it difficult to communicate and interact with their environment. For example echolalia, which is repeating words spoken to them without knowing or understanding them, using phrases out of context and misreading others non-verbal cues. Also, lack of eye contact and limited ability to initiate and sustain interactions due to a limited concentration span. Learning disabilities A vast percentage of individuals with a learning disability have some form of specific communication need and can be affected on a scale from mild to severe. Emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD) People who have EBD may not present with any noticeable communication difficulties per se but certain tones, volume or non-verbal actions may act as a barrier to communication and should be noted as a particular action could act as a trigger and potentially cause emotional distress. 1.2 Explain how to support effective communication within own job role In a managerial or senior role it is imperative to support and promote effective communication within the workplace both with the service users and the staff. This is established through firstly assessing the needs and then providing the appropriate support which would meet those needs and overcome any potential barriers to effective communication, thus promoting the individuals rights to freedom of expression. Before one can offer support an assessment would be made regarding their preference and choice and their baseline by observing the ways in which the individual communicates and the methods used. Everyone involved in the individuals care is made aware of the individual’s baseline and needs and preferences regarding communication and any changes are recognised during reviews and team meetings to ensure the individual’s needs are met. Key people involved with the individual may need to work using a joined up process to access information and support to ensure you get the best out of an individual’s communication abilities. These would include family, friends, therapists, school staff as well as the care and management staff. Effective communication improves the quality of life of people. It is essential that every effort is made to enhance communication, make time to listen and to understand empathically the individual’s perspective. To ensure this is adopted and promoted on an organisational level, adequate training and supervision must be undertaken. From an individual level, positive role modelling and an open culture are to be used to enable effective communication and minimise potential barriers. 1.3 Analyse the barriers and challenges to communication within own job role Communication is a fundamental relationship building skill in the workplace. If people don’t communicate well they limit their ability to connect on any meaningful level and therefore potentially cause conflict. Also with a senior or managerial role in the workplace people will have expectations of how they should communicate with others. The general social care council’s code of practice states that communications should be conducted in an appropriate, open, accurate and s traightforward way. By  communicating in this way others will have trust and confidence in you and your abilities. Workplace relationships become a lot stronger when people can clearly and effectively communicate what they need and allow others to do the same. There are many potential barriers to effective communication. Anything which blocks the meaning of a communication is a barrier and they are as follows: Language difference – this could be the choice of words used such as professional jargon or a report or explanation which is worded in a way in which the meaning is lost. Physical barriers – these are due to the physical environment such as noise level or distraction, inappropriate temperature, inappropriate lighting or also your positioning while communicating for example standing too close and invading personal space. Equally, positioned too far away would also act as a barrier. Psychological barriers – personal problems or issues can lead to a lack of concentration or engagement. Stereotyping – when on individual had a preconception about another individual, it makes it difficult for one to view the others communication without prejudice. 1.4 Implement a strategy to overcome communication barriers Regarding the young people I work with it was deemed appropriate to promote an effective communication platform for them to share their views and opinions on the running of the home, any changes they would like to make and to play an active role in planning the week ahead. This meeting agenda was a direct result of poor engagement from the young people and therefore not fully embracing their own personal preferences and choice in their lives. The new agenda format gives the young people the opportunity to have significant input via an informal platform as the formal approach was seen as a significant barrier to participation in the past. Also the opportunity to confidentially highlight concerns through their own personal agenda (placed in their draw each Monday morning) breaks down the physical barrier of having to raise it amongst their peers without feeling embarrassment or uncomfortable. While engaging in this meeting it is the responsibility of the staff to ensure the lighting is of an adequate level and the temperature is comfortable. More importantly it is their responsibility to ensure the young people have their say and open and honest communication is adopted and supported in an appropriate manor. 1.5 Use different means of communication  to meet different needs There are many different means of communication which may include one or more of the following: Verbal – communication is a two way process and it is important when communicating to listen as well as speak. In a senior or managerial role it is vitally important to adapt communications depending on who you are communicating with. For example you would communicate differently with a service user, a psychologist and a member of care staff. These would differ in the formality of the conversation and in the language or professional terminology used. Non – verbal – more than 90% of what we communicate is through non-verbal communication. This is demonstrated through our body language – our posture, how we stand, hand movements, facial expression and eye contact. Body language plays such an important role in communicating effectively as things like smiling and nodding seem like insignificant gestures but in reality they play such an important role in communicating by highlighting the interest in what is being said. Sign – this is commonly the use of sign and symbols. It requires training to effectively communicate with the intended audience. BSL is the use of signs and symbols as a communication aid to those with hearing loss. Makaton is used as an aid to support speech but not to replace it.

Online Marketing at Big Skinny Essay

After analyzing the case it is recommended that Big Skinny should revisit their online marketing options and prioritize what they should be concentrating on to make a good stand in online market and create a brand name. This would help them create a customer base whom they can introduce with new buying options later on. They should start with social media, interactive marketing and online distributors first. For making their online marketing campaign a success it is necessary that customers are confident of their product. Wallets are a kind of product which are best analyzed by touching and feeling the material. So the people who have already owned a big skinny wallet or have heard enough about the brand will be most confident to buy it online. So its possible that in initial days of their online market they will get large number of repeat purchases and lesser new purchases. For creating their brand value online, initially they should only use online distributors who are trusted by t he customers, like Amazon and ebay . This would also help avoid the glitches like wrong discount coupon distribution and many other losses associated with it. They should be selective when it comes to the reputation of the website which is distributing their product and make sure that customer revisits the site because of their product and not just to find some discounted deals. As they already have a huge and happy customer base they should inspire these customers to come online and promote other people to buy their product using social media. They can also introduce some kind of reward point system for regular customers to encourage them to visit their online resources and buy product form there and leave recommendations. Other ways to promote their product can be TV commercials, email promotion and online rebates etc. Now, coming to other promotion strategies which they should consider next when they have got a good online customer response. The Display advertisements only get clicked 0.1% of the time and also takes a lot of time for theirsite to be listed as top site, so they should save their money by not concentrating on this option. As far as sponsored search is considered, as indicated in their chart they are paying a high price for a phrase like â€Å"Leather wallet†, which is not even their priority and main product. I would suggest they should also use words like â€Å"best Gifts for him† â€Å"Christmas gift for dad† etc. because wallets are considered great gifts for festivities and birthda ys. Another long term suggestion to increase their customers would be to categorize items on various customer categories like, wallets for women and senior people etc. Moreover, they should also keep expanding their physical market and should contact more retail stores to sell and promote their product. They can also make a liaison with a well-established brand like Macy’s or Ralph Lauren to get a proper and famous outlet for their product.

Police Discretion

Discretion is defined as the authority to make a decision between two or more choices (Pollock, 2010). More specifically, it is defined as â€Å"the capacity to identify and to document criminal and noncriminal events† (Boivin &ump; Cordeau, 2011). Every police officer has a great deal of discretion concerning when to use their authority, power, persuasion, or force. Depending on how an officer sees their duty to society will determine an officer’s discretion. Discretion leads to selective enforcement practices and may result in discrimination against certain groups of people or select individuals (Young, 2011).Most police officer discretion is exercised in situational situations with individuals (Sherman, 1984). Discrimination can lead to legal problems for an officer of the law. If discrimination due to an officer’s use of discretion results in a violation of due process it is a violation of the law (Young, 2010). Due process is the constitutionally mandated pr ocedural steps designed to eliminate error in any governmental deprivation of liberty, life, or property (Pollock, 2010). One of the main concerns with using discretion is the possibility of it leading to a violation of due process by racial profiling.Types of Negative Police Discretion Racial profiling occurs when a police officer uses a â€Å"profile† as reasonable suspicion to stop a person with the intent to obtain consent to search their belongings (Pollock, 2010). These stops are usually traffic stops and the officer is looking to obtain consent to search the individual’s automobile. The â€Å"profile† used is based on race. In these cases, an officer is using their discretion to target minority groups because they believe they are involved in criminal activities.The concern with using this profile is that racial stereotyping of minority groups will lead police to crack down on minorities more than on other groups. While police see the action of racial pro filing as a normal police tactic, minority groups see the actions as racist (Young, 2011). Although most studies on police officer discretion is focused on racial profiling, it has also been shown that officers patrol hot spots. Hot spots are areas known to have a high rate of criminal activity. Focusing on hot spots is an officer’s discretion, because they are ignoring other areas that could potential produce criminal activities.All surveillance and enforcement efforts are focused on the â€Å"hot† area. Not only are officers ignoring other areas, but they have determined those areas are not as important as the hot spot. Hot spots can prove to be problematic if the criminal activity located in the hot spot before it was being patrolled is moved to a new location. The new location is prone to no police surveillance because all resources are focused on the old hot spot (Mastrofski, 2011). Discretion and the Use of Force Police have the uncontested right to use force whe n necessary to apprehend a suspect.If the force exceeds that which is necessary it is defined as excessive force and is illegal. An officer’s discretion on use of force is a based on judgment. They do not know if a judge will later rule an instance of use of force as excessive or not. There is a fine line between what is considered acceptable force and what is considered excessive force. All an officer can do is use their training to determine what is and what is not excessive force for the given circumstances (Pollock, 2010). The use of force is highly resistant to change, even after the Rodney King incident.Rodney King was a subject of police brutality. He was repeatedly beat with a baton by Los Angeles police officers, while other officers stood by watching without attempting to stop the excessive force. The pattern of excessive force may be so ingrained in some police department cultures that it remains unaffected by other high profile excess force cases, such as the Rodn ey King case. This pattern is termed the â€Å"culture of force. † The culture of force is also subject to an officer’s discretion. The culture of force is detrimental to a department.The Los Angeles Police Department in the 1980s and 1990s would act on a tip and destroy homes by breaking toilets, ripping sofas, and spray painting â€Å"LAPD Rules! † on the walls. These acts by the Los Angeles Police Department prove the culture of the department will have an influence on the individual officer (Pollock, 2010). Police departments have use-of-force policies that specify when force may be used and the proper level of force to be used under given circumstances. Most departments use a continuum-of-force approach that allows proportional force to the suspect’s resistance.The level of force by an officer increases in direct response to escalating resistance of the suspect. Policies such as this one have been put into place following many humiliating acts of exc essive force. The policies are in place in an attempt to prevent future acts of excessive force (Pollock, 2010). Studies on Police Discretion National studies on police behavior have failed to adequately address the issue of police discretion. Due to the lack of important research data, analysts have developed suggestions on how to improve an individual officer’s discretion by educating the entire department on proper use of discretion.The current suggestions are focused on officers in higher ranks developing an educational program for their department addressing areas of needs they have observed. They are the eyes of the department, and it is there job to know what their officers needs entail. Each department will have different needs based on the ethical viewpoints of their individual officers (Mastrofski, 2011). A study on police discretion conducted in Canada was implemented to try to eliminate negative police discretion. The study first mandated that all reported violati ons of the law be recorded.The results of the study had effective but temporary results. There were more records of assaults, robberies, thefts, and mischief. However, the study had no effects on reports of burglaries and car thefts. It is estimated that during the one year study police recorded 13,000 extra crimes. Although there was an increase in records, detection and reporting rates remained the same. The extra recordings were determined to be ineffective because the community reported that they did not notice a difference in the policing styles (Boivin &ump; Cordeau, 2011). Ethical Dilemmas in Police DiscretionEthical dilemmas are â€Å"situations in which it is difficult to make a decision, either because the right course of action is not clear or the right course of action carries some negative consequences. † Ethical dilemmas entail the individual struggling with personal decision making, and sometimes results in a personal dilemma. Departmental policy can lead to pe rsonal dilemmas as well if it means going against an individual officer’s ethical system beliefs. This can lead to the officer seeking a change in law to match their own person views on the issue (Pollock, 2010).Utilitarianism is â€Å"the ethical system that claims the greatest good is that which results in the greatest happiness for the greatest number. † Utilitarianism therefore argues racial profiling is ethical because the â€Å"end† of drug interdictions justifies the â€Å"means† of harassing and inconveniencing the group. An argument against this justification is that when an officer uses racial profiling in decision making, the officer’s motives obscured. They do not concentrate on what is important for investigations. Behavior is what is important, not demographics (Pollock, 2010).Ethical formalism states that â€Å"the only thing truly good is a good will. † This ethical system does not agree with the idea of racial profiling. Acc ording to Pollock, it would mean that everyone should be stopped in the same way, so everyone would have to agree to be stopped numerous times every week. Since society most likely will not all agree that everyone should be stopped the same, racial profiling would not be an accepted practice in the ethical formalism system (Pollock, 2010). It is difficult to apply ethical systems to the use of deadly force and tasers. This is because each situation involving the use of force is different.At times an officer may benefit from the use of a taser, but other times the use, or threat of use, of a deadly weapon is more effective. Officers may argue that tasers do not always benefit the suspect because tasers do not always stop people. Departmental policies usually overrule ethics in the use of force. This is because officers have a duty of protection, so if they can accomplish their task without hurting the individual their duty would require the lesser use of force. Every officer has a du ty to prevent crime. If they feel an individual is a criminal based on race, then formal policies are going to conflict with their ethics.In other words, if an officer believes racial profiling is an effective method of policing their ethics are going to conflict with formal policies. An effective method to correct this conflict has been to educate officers on evidence that proves stopping minorities based on their race are less likely to result in criminal activity than stops based on behavioral-based criteria. Even with education, an officer’s ethics can still prevail over evidence learned in training. This is because the officer’s ethical standards still tell them racial profiling is more effective (Pollock, 2010).Training to Eliminate Unethical Police Discretion Practices Efforts to eliminate racial discrimination in the police culture are in the form of new officer recruitment and training and taught through patrol work. These measures are taken to eliminate negat ive discretion, such as racial profiling, by developing better relationships with the community regardless of the racial composition. The goal is to make police-citizen interactions more frequent, varied, and dispersed throughout the community (Mastrofski, 2011). A suggestion was made on how to police hot spots by Mastrofski.He suggested that instead of having officers stationed in hot spots with full personal discretion on how they police the area, they should be told how long to patrol the area or told what tactics to use in the area. This will eliminate complete personal discretion by the officers patrolling the hot spot areas. The time limit of policing the hot spot is to reduce the amount of neglect other areas in the community experience due to the policing of hot spot areas. The goal of this plan is to continue with the crack downs in hot spot zones without neglecting other areas in the community (Mastrofski, 2011).Conclusion Although this research paper focused on the negati ve effects of police discretion, there can also be positive effects. Things such as giving offenders of minor traffic violations less of a punishment or giving first time youth offenders less of a punishment to let them learn from their mistakes are examples of what can be termed positive police discretion. However, what is considered positive discretion to one person could be negative discretion to another. Every person has their own opinions about how police discretion should be handled.Some may think police should not be entitled to use discretion and every department should have policies the officers should follow instead. Other people may like that police have the use of discretion which could lead to a warning for a minor traffic violation instead of a fine. The topic of police discretion in relation to ethical dilemmas is also a heated debate. Since people have different ethics; every police officer will patrol a little different. It has been suggested that police departments educate their officers to be more uniform in their policing.Not only would this eliminate some of the negative discretion practices officers may have developed, it would also put all the officers on the same page with the way the department would like to have the community policed (Mastrofski, 2011). The concept of police discretion is a large topic of conversation among researchers. The problem I see with the topic of conversation is there is not a lot of research done on the actual affects of the individual discretion of each officer compared to a department that has been educated in following policies more than personal discretion.In fact, from what I saw there is not much research on the effects of discretion at all. It seems like it is a topic that is overlooked when researching the effectiveness of a department. I feel like before more solutions are found on how to correct the problem of discretion, more research needs to be done on how discretion plays a role in every day po licing. Until this research is conducted, all the articles published are on theories of discretion causing problems, and all of the solutions mentioned are methods to correct a problem that has not even been proven to be an issue yet. Police Discretion Discretion is defined as the authority to make a decision between two or more choices (Pollock, 2010). More specifically, it is defined as â€Å"the capacity to identify and to document criminal and noncriminal events† (Boivin &ump; Cordeau, 2011). Every police officer has a great deal of discretion concerning when to use their authority, power, persuasion, or force. Depending on how an officer sees their duty to society will determine an officer’s discretion. Discretion leads to selective enforcement practices and may result in discrimination against certain groups of people or select individuals (Young, 2011).Most police officer discretion is exercised in situational situations with individuals (Sherman, 1984). Discrimination can lead to legal problems for an officer of the law. If discrimination due to an officer’s use of discretion results in a violation of due process it is a violation of the law (Young, 2010). Due process is the constitutionally mandated pr ocedural steps designed to eliminate error in any governmental deprivation of liberty, life, or property (Pollock, 2010). One of the main concerns with using discretion is the possibility of it leading to a violation of due process by racial profiling.Types of Negative Police Discretion Racial profiling occurs when a police officer uses a â€Å"profile† as reasonable suspicion to stop a person with the intent to obtain consent to search their belongings (Pollock, 2010). These stops are usually traffic stops and the officer is looking to obtain consent to search the individual’s automobile. The â€Å"profile† used is based on race. In these cases, an officer is using their discretion to target minority groups because they believe they are involved in criminal activities.The concern with using this profile is that racial stereotyping of minority groups will lead police to crack down on minorities more than on other groups. While police see the action of racial pro filing as a normal police tactic, minority groups see the actions as racist (Young, 2011). Although most studies on police officer discretion is focused on racial profiling, it has also been shown that officers patrol hot spots. Hot spots are areas known to have a high rate of criminal activity. Focusing on hot spots is an officer’s discretion, because they are ignoring other areas that could potential produce criminal activities.All surveillance and enforcement efforts are focused on the â€Å"hot† area. Not only are officers ignoring other areas, but they have determined those areas are not as important as the hot spot. Hot spots can prove to be problematic if the criminal activity located in the hot spot before it was being patrolled is moved to a new location. The new location is prone to no police surveillance because all resources are focused on the old hot spot (Mastrofski, 2011). Discretion and the Use of Force Police have the uncontested right to use force whe n necessary to apprehend a suspect.If the force exceeds that which is necessary it is defined as excessive force and is illegal. An officer’s discretion on use of force is a based on judgment. They do not know if a judge will later rule an instance of use of force as excessive or not. There is a fine line between what is considered acceptable force and what is considered excessive force. All an officer can do is use their training to determine what is and what is not excessive force for the given circumstances (Pollock, 2010). The use of force is highly resistant to change, even after the Rodney King incident.Rodney King was a subject of police brutality. He was repeatedly beat with a baton by Los Angeles police officers, while other officers stood by watching without attempting to stop the excessive force. The pattern of excessive force may be so ingrained in some police department cultures that it remains unaffected by other high profile excess force cases, such as the Rodn ey King case. This pattern is termed the â€Å"culture of force. † The culture of force is also subject to an officer’s discretion. The culture of force is detrimental to a department.The Los Angeles Police Department in the 1980s and 1990s would act on a tip and destroy homes by breaking toilets, ripping sofas, and spray painting â€Å"LAPD Rules! † on the walls. These acts by the Los Angeles Police Department prove the culture of the department will have an influence on the individual officer (Pollock, 2010). Police departments have use-of-force policies that specify when force may be used and the proper level of force to be used under given circumstances. Most departments use a continuum-of-force approach that allows proportional force to the suspect’s resistance.The level of force by an officer increases in direct response to escalating resistance of the suspect. Policies such as this one have been put into place following many humiliating acts of exc essive force. The policies are in place in an attempt to prevent future acts of excessive force (Pollock, 2010). Studies on Police Discretion National studies on police behavior have failed to adequately address the issue of police discretion. Due to the lack of important research data, analysts have developed suggestions on how to improve an individual officer’s discretion by educating the entire department on proper use of discretion.The current suggestions are focused on officers in higher ranks developing an educational program for their department addressing areas of needs they have observed. They are the eyes of the department, and it is there job to know what their officers needs entail. Each department will have different needs based on the ethical viewpoints of their individual officers (Mastrofski, 2011). A study on police discretion conducted in Canada was implemented to try to eliminate negative police discretion. The study first mandated that all reported violati ons of the law be recorded.The results of the study had effective but temporary results. There were more records of assaults, robberies, thefts, and mischief. However, the study had no effects on reports of burglaries and car thefts. It is estimated that during the one year study police recorded 13,000 extra crimes. Although there was an increase in records, detection and reporting rates remained the same. The extra recordings were determined to be ineffective because the community reported that they did not notice a difference in the policing styles (Boivin &ump; Cordeau, 2011). Ethical Dilemmas in Police DiscretionEthical dilemmas are â€Å"situations in which it is difficult to make a decision, either because the right course of action is not clear or the right course of action carries some negative consequences. † Ethical dilemmas entail the individual struggling with personal decision making, and sometimes results in a personal dilemma. Departmental policy can lead to pe rsonal dilemmas as well if it means going against an individual officer’s ethical system beliefs. This can lead to the officer seeking a change in law to match their own person views on the issue (Pollock, 2010).Utilitarianism is â€Å"the ethical system that claims the greatest good is that which results in the greatest happiness for the greatest number. † Utilitarianism therefore argues racial profiling is ethical because the â€Å"end† of drug interdictions justifies the â€Å"means† of harassing and inconveniencing the group. An argument against this justification is that when an officer uses racial profiling in decision making, the officer’s motives obscured. They do not concentrate on what is important for investigations. Behavior is what is important, not demographics (Pollock, 2010).Ethical formalism states that â€Å"the only thing truly good is a good will. † This ethical system does not agree with the idea of racial profiling. Acc ording to Pollock, it would mean that everyone should be stopped in the same way, so everyone would have to agree to be stopped numerous times every week. Since society most likely will not all agree that everyone should be stopped the same, racial profiling would not be an accepted practice in the ethical formalism system (Pollock, 2010). It is difficult to apply ethical systems to the use of deadly force and tasers. This is because each situation involving the use of force is different.At times an officer may benefit from the use of a taser, but other times the use, or threat of use, of a deadly weapon is more effective. Officers may argue that tasers do not always benefit the suspect because tasers do not always stop people. Departmental policies usually overrule ethics in the use of force. This is because officers have a duty of protection, so if they can accomplish their task without hurting the individual their duty would require the lesser use of force. Every officer has a du ty to prevent crime. If they feel an individual is a criminal based on race, then formal policies are going to conflict with their ethics.In other words, if an officer believes racial profiling is an effective method of policing their ethics are going to conflict with formal policies. An effective method to correct this conflict has been to educate officers on evidence that proves stopping minorities based on their race are less likely to result in criminal activity than stops based on behavioral-based criteria. Even with education, an officer’s ethics can still prevail over evidence learned in training. This is because the officer’s ethical standards still tell them racial profiling is more effective (Pollock, 2010).Training to Eliminate Unethical Police Discretion Practices Efforts to eliminate racial discrimination in the police culture are in the form of new officer recruitment and training and taught through patrol work. These measures are taken to eliminate negat ive discretion, such as racial profiling, by developing better relationships with the community regardless of the racial composition. The goal is to make police-citizen interactions more frequent, varied, and dispersed throughout the community (Mastrofski, 2011). A suggestion was made on how to police hot spots by Mastrofski.He suggested that instead of having officers stationed in hot spots with full personal discretion on how they police the area, they should be told how long to patrol the area or told what tactics to use in the area. This will eliminate complete personal discretion by the officers patrolling the hot spot areas. The time limit of policing the hot spot is to reduce the amount of neglect other areas in the community experience due to the policing of hot spot areas. The goal of this plan is to continue with the crack downs in hot spot zones without neglecting other areas in the community (Mastrofski, 2011).Conclusion Although this research paper focused on the negati ve effects of police discretion, there can also be positive effects. Things such as giving offenders of minor traffic violations less of a punishment or giving first time youth offenders less of a punishment to let them learn from their mistakes are examples of what can be termed positive police discretion. However, what is considered positive discretion to one person could be negative discretion to another. Every person has their own opinions about how police discretion should be handled.Some may think police should not be entitled to use discretion and every department should have policies the officers should follow instead. Other people may like that police have the use of discretion which could lead to a warning for a minor traffic violation instead of a fine. The topic of police discretion in relation to ethical dilemmas is also a heated debate. Since people have different ethics; every police officer will patrol a little different. It has been suggested that police departments educate their officers to be more uniform in their policing.Not only would this eliminate some of the negative discretion practices officers may have developed, it would also put all the officers on the same page with the way the department would like to have the community policed (Mastrofski, 2011). The concept of police discretion is a large topic of conversation among researchers. The problem I see with the topic of conversation is there is not a lot of research done on the actual affects of the individual discretion of each officer compared to a department that has been educated in following policies more than personal discretion.In fact, from what I saw there is not much research on the effects of discretion at all. It seems like it is a topic that is overlooked when researching the effectiveness of a department. I feel like before more solutions are found on how to correct the problem of discretion, more research needs to be done on how discretion plays a role in every day po licing. Until this research is conducted, all the articles published are on theories of discretion causing problems, and all of the solutions mentioned are methods to correct a problem that has not even been proven to be an issue yet.

Review Assignment 5 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Review 5 - Assignment Example t’s check and analyze whether the bluefin Tuna is another tragedy of commons, as low degree of radioactive cesium has been traced in fish caught in California in 2011 after Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident. Latest research has revealed that the bluefin migrating from Japan’s coastal region to the Pacific Ocean after a relapse of five months of the tragedy of nuclear accident was tested for byproducts cesium-134 and cesium-137; radiation levels were nearly 3 percent higher than routine presence of the harmful matter, but still bluefin was fit for consumption (Smith par. 1-2). According to Madigan, the key author of a paper on Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, potassium-40 levels are found naturally with a near average 350 bq/kg. As per the Japanese government, the approximated cesium levels found in the fish off the Japanese coast was in the range of 61 and 168 bq/kg. The latest figures from the plant owner, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, have heightened the released quantity of harmful material during the initial weeks of the tragedy to 900,000 terabecquerels, which is two and a half times increased quantity than what was approximated in April 2011 (Smith par. 13-17). Milk is another major item of human consumption. Sample of milk gathered at Spokane, Washington and in San Luis Obispo County, California have revealed the presence of radioactive iodine, or iodine-131. The good and relieving part of the research is that the levels of radioactive iodine were 5,000 counts lesser relatively to the parameter fixed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (CNN Wire Staff par. 4). It needs to be focused that the sample findings are least critical while considering the day-to-day experiences of the people in the matter of eating highly polluted items of food (CNN Wire Staff par. 9). It creates an environment of unnecessary tension among the people that due to the tragedies of the commons happening recurrently in different parts of the

IT Governance Project in Geneva Industrial Services Essay

IT Governance Project in Geneva Industrial Services - Essay Example This case study of The Geneva Industrial Services (Services Industriels de Genà ¨ve, SIG) gives a good example of the IT Governance project. SIG is a state-owned organisation that renders services in electricity, gas, heating, energy and drinking water supplying; as well as in used water and waste processing and improvement, and telecommunications. This IT Governance case study is focused on the innovative electricity Distribution Management System (DMS), introduced in the organisation. The case study is based upon the project presentation of Glassey at the e-CASE International Conference in Singapore (Glassey 2009) and on the report describing the SEAM method, which is laid at the heart of the SIG’s DMS (Wegmann et al. 2008). IT Governance is ‘a framework for the leadership, organisational structures and business processes, standards and compliance to these standards, which ensure that the organisation’s IT supports and enables the achievement of its strategies and objectives’. As it was mentioned above, this IT Governance project in SIG was mostly aimed at the reorganisation of processes and systems in order to separate distribution and commercialisation activities in the company’s electricity distribution management system (DMS). This in its turn would enable the company to comply with the new Swiss law (Glassey 2009). In the area of electrical and electronic technologies the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is the leading organization for international standards.

SIM 9 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

SIM 9 - Essay Example They made a passage from the roof and lowered the bed on which the paralytic man lay; Jesus saw faith and healed and forgave the man’s sins. He said, â€Å"Son, your sins are forgiven†.1 This passage continues to narrate the deeds of Christ. The importance and significance of this passage is that it encourages people to have faith and teaches as that Jesus as the son of God forgives sins. It also tells that they some who believed in preaching and others who were there just to criticize what he taught. The teachers of the law thought that what Jesus did was blaspheming. They said the only one who had the authority to forgive sin was God alone.2 This passage emphasizes on the importance of faith in our lives. In a personal context, this Mark chapter 2 in the bible teaches me that faith without action is dead. In the passage, I am reminded that it is important to act on my faith as the men carrying the paralyzed man. Their faith healed the paralyzed man.3 So if I act on my faith and believe in Jesus, my sins will be forgiven. Lastly, it states that the son of god (Jesus) can forgive sins. Therefore, I must believe and trust in him. In my church, I can remind my fellow worshippers of the importance of believing in Jesus miracles and trusting in him. I can urge them not to be like the teachers of the law who criticized Jesus, but, live according to his rules and footsteps so as they their souls can be healed as well as their sins to be

John Dewey Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

John Dewey - Essay Example The community as a whole, through formal laws and customs, codifies behavior that ultimately commits individuals to a specific course of action. Such predictable actions are required for community life. The schools function as socializing agencies, internalizing the child's recognition of social duties and the will to carry them out. Dewey insisted that social ties, like the parent-child relationship, are natural. The mutual responsibilities corresponding to these specific stations are therefore intrinsic and binding. By nurturing the social spirit of the child, an habitual disposition to act out of social service and for the common good will becomes manifest. Pursuit of self-advantage and infidelity to one's social responsibilities is a primary evil according to Dewey. Freedom and social responsibility are not incompatible. Social authority is natural and inevitable, not a necessary limitation on personal freedom. Throughout his writings, Dewey retained the Hegelian insight that man achieves human qualities and fulfillment by participating in the enhancement of community life. Individuals should identify the social good as their own true good by perceiving the values and common interests that bind people together. Their freedom and happiness ultimately depend upon it. Individuals should obey the la... However, in advocating policy changes, they must persuade others voluntarily. The burden of proof is upon them to demonstrate how a specific law or practice fails to serve the common good. Dewey's theory of democracy was designed to reconcile freedom with authority, social stability with the need for reform, and universal standards with specific circumstances. He substantively refined Lockean individualism, which is popularly associated with the modern liberal tradition. Dewey comprehensively applied these insights to the reform of education. Once again, many critics mistakenly identify him with the radical, subjectivist approach of progressive education. Dewey denounced the progressive educator's romantic fetish for the "natural child." The child-centered school provided no standards at all; logically it culminated in anarchy. Proper teacher authority and a well-structured curriculum were indispensable. Dewey argued that, "to fail to assure them guidance and direction is not merely a permit to operate in a blind and spasmodic fashion, but it promotes the formation of habits of immature, undeveloped, and egoistic activity." (Dewey, 1930) Indulging a child's selfish whims would lead to an arrest of growth and the disintegration of personality. The development of mental powers follows certain laws of growth. The fact that a child might desire something does not mean that it is in fact desirable. That judgment can be determined only after critical reflection. (Dewey, 1929) The glorification of the spontaneous and immediately enjoyable also stunted the child's capacity to understand contemporary social life. These students were not socially responsible or cognizant of the forces of industrial civilization. While

Israel and Philistine Debate Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Israel and Philistine Debate - Research Paper Example Fact 3inspite of the UN decision, Israeli public would be able not to recognize an independent state of Palestine (Hazony). Palestinian Question: Why did so many Palestinians sell their lands to the Israelis around 1948 if they really did not want Israelis to occupy lands in the area? Fact 1 A massive flow of refugees from Palestinian land to Israel resulted in the creation of a unilateral state of Israel that managed to shelter thousands of refugees from Arab nations and Palestinians (Palestinian Land). Fact 2 Hostile moods of Palestinians in 60s resulted in an unfavorable atmosphere in Israel (Whose Land?). Fact 3 Arabs did not believe in Israelis’ victory in the war and sold their lands to them having a hope to return to their homeland, which, actually was sold by their own hands. Israeli Question discussion The first fact that implies a more flexible policy conduct by Israeli is effective for putting up a conflict in Palestinians’ war for independence only in case P alestine would be ready to negotiate all core issues of their separation from Israeli. The majority of supporters of unilateral existence of Israeli and Palestinian states confirm the fact that the independence of the latter would result in a numerous chain of military conflicts or may even lead to war. Moreover, Israeli public claims that it will be able not to recognize the independence of Palestine. This fact can be justified, because this nation has sold its own land to Israeli and did not want to live as an independent nation, but now it appeals for the international community and has a clear intention to fight for its independence (Benari). With regards to the previous facts of hostile moods of Palestinians, it is hard to believe that the independent state would show tolerance to refugees, development of social programs etc (Palestinian Land). Moreover, an intention to establish an independent government could disturb Israeli’s territory. Palestinian Question discussion In the end of 40s, Israel managed to give a shelter to thousands of refugees from Palestine. In 10 years, Palestinians were not pleased by the fact that their land has already been gone, though it was their own fault and they sold their land themselves. Palestinians have deeply rooted historical bounds with Israel. This land is their motherland. The core of the conflict should not be found in the pieces of land that historically belonged to Palestinian public, but it is better to work in favor of the country, Israel, that saved this nation. Currently, Palestinians appeal for the UN and insist on â€Å"the promise it made to them six decades ago, ensuring that a just resolution for Palestinian refugees is put into effect† (The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict). Conclusion A life-long conflict between Israel and Palestine is rather challenging and represents an interesting topic for discussion. It has deep historical roots, but in order to solve it, it is desirable to look at the historical essence of the conflict. Therefore, in one way or another, but Israel has a dominance over Palestine, because it owns the land that was sold to them by Palestinians. It would be better for Palestinians to confirm the fact of their existence in terms of the state that sheltered

The Determinants of FDI in Nigeria and its Effects on the Growth of Research Proposal

The Determinants of FDI in Nigeria and its Effects on the Growth of SMEs - Research Proposal Example In this particular area, there are two approaches that are commonly applied namely the macro approach and the micro approach. Macro approach encompasses empirical examination of effects of FDI on the general economic growth in areas related to the creation of employment, business and industry as well as international relationships (Ip, 2010, p.90). On the other hand, the microeconomic approach focuses on the impacts of FDI on the grass root economy in various sectors like skills development, employment generation specifically the establishment of small businesses being highly emphasized on. Foreign direct investment refers to the direct investments made to businesses or production process in a given country by companies or individuals from other countries. This exercise is achieved by either buying the targeted business entity or by expanding corporates operations. In Rivers State Nigeria, FDI involves the movement of both financial and human resources (capital) from abroad. Some of these resources are owned by individuals, governments while others are owned by leading multinational corporates (Great Britain, 2009, p.102). There exists the number of factors that make Rivers State a favorable destination for many investors. Therefore, it is essential to have a brief understanding of the state that has become a target of many foreign investors. Rivers State is among the 36 states that Nigeria made up of (Mitee, 2010, p.85). The state contributes a lot to the Nigerian economy because of the presence of oil-rich fields, the presence of refineries and seaports among other various industries that spread out across the state. As a result, the state has become one of the most targeted areas by foreign investors who in this case comprises of both leading multinational corporations as well as individuals who travel to the state to seek employment.  

Summarize Strategic Management in a Healthcare Organization Research Paper

Summarize Strategic Management in a Healthcare Organization - Research Paper Example Additionally, Strategic management has a combination of elements that are correlated and are crucial to achieving the predetermined objectives. Strategic management is important in healthcare organizations because it plays a fundamental role in correctly predicting the future and establishing mechanisms for dealing with emerging issues (Hunger & Wheelen 2010). Ideally, strategic management assist healthcare organizations in identifying potential opportunities as well as challenges and establishes mechanisms for dealing with the inherent situations (Hunger & Wheelen 2010). Strategic management is essential for healthcare organizations because it aids in planning for various activities and operations effectively discarding frustrations. Healthcare organizations are constantly faced with external threats, and strategic management provides a solution to this challenging event. Ideally, strategic management aid in determining external pressure by coming up with effective solutions to deal with the issues (Hunger & Wheelen 2010). Strategic management is important in a healthcare organization because it is growth oriented. Essentially, the role of strategic management is to constantly seek for opportunities that are effective for success (Hill et al., 2012). Healthcare organizations require strategic management plans as a consequence of remaining relevant in a dynamic environment. The tool can aid healthcare organizations in planning, monitoring development programs and the implementation of processes. Consequently, healthcare organizations are capable of predicting the future and responding to the inherent challenges and

Letter to relative requesting financial assistance to start a retail Article

Letter to relative requesting financial assistance to start a retail store - Article Example We intend to separate ourselves from the competition by utilizing both a brick and mortar storefront at the mall as well as a web presence. Therefore, our customer base will not be limited to local clients, but we will deal with a potential worldwide clientele. Our market research has indicated that there is a high level of dissatisfaction among gift recipients as a result of the lack of high- quality customized gifts that are also affordable. Our intention is to fill the gap between the high-end customized gifts and the lackluster generic gift market. The Gift Basket Company offers these people an alternative, providing them memorable and magical gift baskets. For example, we use highly detailed surveys to prepare our baskets, in which the customer gives details about such things as favorite colors, foods, hobbies, interests and other items of interest that help us build the most appropriate gift basket. Daily employee relations create an enormous opportunity for corporate gift baskets. Companies are experiencing more and more needs for gifts: congratulatory gifts for new births or marriages, sympathy gifts for bereaved family members and even smaller items to welcome a new employee or give thanks to a longstanding employee. In addition, the clientele for corporate gifts is wide open.

Backward Design Essay Example for Free

Backward Design Essay Deliberate and focused instructional design requires us as teachers and curriculum writers to make an important shift in our thinking about the nature of our job. The shift involves thinking a great deal, first, about the specific learnings sought, and the evidence of such learnings, before thinking about what we, as the teacher, will do or provide in teaching and learning activities. Though considerations about what to teach and how to teach it may dominate our thinking as a matter of habit, the challenge is to focus first on the desired learnings from which appropriate teaching will logically follow. Our lessons, units, and courses should be logically inferred from the results sought, not derived from the methods, books, and activities with which we are most comfortable. Curriculum should lay out the most effective ways of achieving specific results. It is analogous to travel planning. Our frameworks should provide a set of itineraries deliberately designed to meet cultural goals rather than a purposeless tour of all the major sites in a foreign country. In short, the best designs derive backward from the learnings sought. The appropriateness of this approach becomes clearer when we consider the educational purpose that is the focus of this book: understanding. We cannot say how to teach for understanding or which material and activities to use until we are quite clear about which specific understandings we are after and what such understandings look like in practice. We can best decide, as guides, what â€Å"sites† to have our student â€Å"tourists† visit and what specific â€Å"culture† they should experience in their brief time there only if we are clear about the particular understandings about the culture we want them to take home. Only by having specified the desired results can we focus on the content, methods, and activities most likely to achieve those results. But many teachers begin with and remain focused on textbooks, favored lessons, and time-honored activities—the inputs—rather than deriving those means from what is implied in the desired resultsâ€⠀the output. To put it in an odd way, too many teachers focus on the teaching and not the learning. They spend most of their time thinking, first, about what they will do, what materials they will use, and what they will ask students to do rather than first considering what the learner will need in order to accomplish the learning goals. Consider a typical episode of what might be called content-focused design instead of results-focused design. The teacher might base a lesson on a particular topic (e.g., racial prejudice), select a resource (e.g., To Kill a Mockingbird), choose specific instructional methods based on the resource and topic (e.g., Socratic seminar to discuss the book and cooperative groups to analyze stereotypical images in films and on television), and hope thereby to cause learning (and meet a few English/language arts standards). Finally, the teacher might think up a few essay questions and quizzes for assessing student understanding of the book. This approach is so common that we may well be tempted to reply, What could be wrong with such an approach? The short answer lies in the basic questions of purpose: Why are we asking students to read this particular novel—in other words, what learnings will we seek from their having read it? Do the students grasp why and how the purpose should influence their studying? What should students be expected to understand and do upon reading the book, related to our goals beyond the book? Unless we begin our design work with a clear insight into larger purposes—whereby the book is properly thought of as a means to an educational end, not an end unto itself—it is unlikely that all students will understand the book (and their performance obligations). Without being self-conscious of the specific understandings about prejudice we seek, and how reading and discussing the book will help develop such insights, the goal is far too vague: The approach is more â€Å"by hope† than â€Å"by design.† Such an approach ends up unwittingly being one that could be described like this: Throw some content and activities against the wall and hope some of it sticks. Answering the â€Å"why?† and â€Å"so what?† questions that older students always ask (or want to), and doing so in concrete terms as the focus of curriculum planning, is thus the essence of understanding by design. What is difficult for many teachers to see (but easier for students to feel!) is that, without such explicit and transparent priorities, many students find day-to-day work confusing and frustrating. The twin sins of traditional design More generally, weak educational design involves two kinds of purposelessness, visible throughout the educational world from kindergarten through graduate school. We call these the â€Å"twin sins† of traditional design. The error of activity-oriented design might be called â€Å"hands-on without being minds-on†Ã¢â‚¬â€engaging experiences that lead only accidentally, if at all, to insight or achievement. The activities, though fun and interesting, do not lead anywhere intellectually. Such activity-oriented curricula lack an explicit focus on important ideas and appropriate evidence of learning, especially in the minds of the learners. A second form of aimlessness goes by the name of â€Å"coverage,† an approach in which students march through a textbook, page by page (or teachers through lecture notes) in a valiant attempt to traverse all the factual material within a prescribed time. Coverage is thus like a whirlwind tour of Europe, perfectly summarized by the old movie title If Its Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium, which properly suggests that no overarching goals inform the tour. As a broad generalization, the activity focus is more typical at the elementary and lower middle school levels, whereas coverage is a prevalent secondary school and college problem. No guiding intellectual purpose or clear priorities frame the learning experience. In neither case can students see and answer such questions as these: Whats the point? Whats the big idea here? What does this help us understand or be able to do? To what does this relate? Why should we learn this? Hence, the students try to engage and follow as best they can, hoping that meaning will emerge. The three stages of backward design Stage 1: Identify desired results What should students know, understand, and be able to do? What content is worthy of understanding? What enduring understandings are desired? In Stage 1 we consider our goals, examine established content standards (national, state, district), and review curriculum expectations. Because typically we have more content than we can reasonably address within the available time, we must make choices. This first stage in the design process calls for clarity about priorities. Stage 2: Determine acceptable evidence How will we know if students have achieved the desired results? What will we accept as evidence of student understanding and proficiency? The backward design orientation suggests that we think about a unit or course in terms of the collected assessment evidence needed to document and validate that the desired learning has been achieved, not simply as content to be covered or as a series of learning activities. This approach encourages teachers and curriculum planners to first â€Å"think like an assessor† before designing specific units and lessons, and thus to consider up front how they will determine if students have attained the desired understandings. Stage 3: Plan learning experiences and instruction With clearly identified results and appropriate evidence of understanding in mind, it is now the time to fully think through the most appropriate instructional activities. Several key questions must be considered at this stage of backward design: What enabling knowledge (facts, concepts, principles) and skills (processes, procedures, strategies) will students need in order to perform effectively and achieve desired results? What activities will equip students with the needed knowledge and skills? What will need to be taught and coached, and how should it best be taught, in light of performance goals? What materials and resources are best suited to accomplish these goals? Note that the specifics of instructional planning—choices about teaching methods, sequence of lessons, and resource materials—can be successfully completed only after we identify desired results and assessments and consider what they imply. Teaching is a means to an end. Having a clear goal helps to foc us our planning and guide purposeful action toward the intended results. Conclusion Backward design may be thought of, in other words, as purposeful task analysis: Given a worthy task to be accomplished, how do we best get everyone equipped? Or we might think of it as building a wise itinerary, using a map: Given a destination, whats the most effective and efficient route? Or we might think of it as planning for coaching: What must learners master if they are to effectively perform? What will count as evidence on the field, not merely in drills, that they really get it and are ready to perform with understanding, knowledge, and skill on their own? How will the learning be designed so that learners capacities are developed through use and feedback? This is all quite logical when you come to understand it, but â€Å"backward† from the perspective of much habit and tradition in our field. A major change from common practice occurs as designers must begin to think about assessment before deciding what and how they will teach. Rather than creating assessments near the conclusion of a unit of study (or relying on the tests provided by textbook publishers, which may not completely or appropriately assess our standards and goals), backward design calls for us to make our goals or standards specific and concrete, in terms of assessment evidence, as we begin to plan a unit or course. The rubber meets the road with assessment. Three different teachers may all be working toward the same content standards, but if their assessments vary considerably, how are we to know which students have achieved what? Agreement on needed evidence of learning leads to greater curricular coherence and more reliable evaluation by teachers. Equally important is the long-term gain in teacher, student, and parent insight about what does and does not count as evidence of meeting complex standards.

Human and Aquinas Theories on God

Human and Aquinas Theories on God Can anything of God be known from our knowledge of the world? Answer with reference to Aquinas and/or Hume. Hume concludes in his writings that Gods existence cannot be proved, however he does not explicitly say that God does not exist he merely draws into question the reasons as to why people believe it so. He shows that we can know only discrete facts but not universal necessities. He linked causation to assurance based on the discovery of that relationship between cause and effect but adding that even if two events show a relatively contiguity and succession (Hume, 1739) that is not in itself enough for a causal connection. Therefore by denying that a fundamental feature of reality can be described by the causality principle he rejects a key element purported for the existence of God. Due to the lack of empirical evidence Hume shows his disdain for the cosmological argument. With regard to the creation of the universe he states that there is no direct evidence although in the Bible it states for the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made (Rom 1:20, KJV). Hume felt that it was impossible to prove the existence of something that was unknowable. We can look at the vastness of the universe with its billions of stars and galaxies or peer through a microscope into the minute world of atoms and cells and in both cases we see order, yet the fact that order is seen within the universe is also not enough for Hume to prove Gods existence. There are of course many who claim that such order must have a source in line with the order that we ourselves set in place, and therefore conclude that God must possess similar yet far superior properties. Hume counters that order must come directly from design if this argument is true; and even if there is such design, how can we know the designer?  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   In addition Hume feels that design alone does not explain an omniscient, omnipotent and benevolent God due to the evil we see around us in the world. Though theologians would explain that evil is only temporary due to mans fall and the influence of the Devil whose time is limited. The Bible states; for every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God (Hebrews 3:4, KJV) leading many to understandable feel that if a house needs a designer and a builder then surely something as small but vastly more complex such as a human cell also needs a designer and a builder for the alternative would be that a cell came about due to the blind operation of forces bequeathed from some unintelligent, inanimate matter. Yet no scientist has been able to make something from nothing. The laws of physics state that existing materials can only be transformed giving rise to the conclusion of the Bible writer Isaiah; when using an analogy of a potter and his clay he said, for shall the work say of him that made it, He made me not? (Isaiah 29:16, KJV). We see a beautiful painting hanging in an art gallery and inwardly marvel at the artists skill; we read a book and recognise that it had an author. When we stop at a red traffic light we understand that a law has be en set forth. We may not understand why certain laws are there, we may not understand what the artist or author was trying to portray in their works yet we do not use that lack of understanding to doubt that they exist. Hume considers that same Bible text in Hebrews 3:4 when he has Philo tell Cleanthes, If we see a house, Cleanthes, we conclude, with the greatest certainty, that it had an architect or builder (D 2.8), yet for Hume the analogy fails arguing that we would need experience in the creation of a material world to justify an a posteriori claim as to the cause of any particular material world. Lacking such experience we therefore lack the needed justification for claiming that the material universe must have an intelligent cause. His argument fails however as we do not need to see a house being built to know that it was constructed by builders following a blueprint given to them by the architect. He further argues that even if the inference is justified between the similarities of the universe and say, a house, it would not therefore follow that there is a perfect God that created it. It may well have been a number of gods for likewise a house takes a number of people to build (D 5.8), nor would the inference justify the conclusion that this God would need to be perfectly intelligent or good. Hume held that the existence of God and other such metaphysical issues should stand up to the same examination as any investigation involving physical sciences. That one cannot assume the existence of God based only the existence of the universe. In his dialogues Hume uses the character of Cleanthes to posit an illustration of a machine that is divided into lesser and lesser machines to prove the existence of a deity yet Demea believes that rather than attesting to a creator the analogy in fact gives rein to the atheists by departing in the least, from the similarity of the cases is so doing he said you diminish proportionably the evidence (D 2.7). Hume feels that the cases of the universe and a house are too dissimilar to support such an inference citing the example of steps on a staircase and human legs that can climb as a certain and infallible inference. Then why not make the house and universe or to a greater extent the Earth itself more comparable as the similarities go way bey ond the fact that both needed a designer and builder. When puzzling over the purpose of the Earth one need look no further than the purpose of a house; somewhere to live that provides light, heat, protection with a source of food and water. Our houses have a plumbing system the earth has the water cycle. Or look no further than a birds nest; these intricate complex structures we see high in trees do not get there by the random collection of twigs that are blown about by the wind. Yet if the nest didnt come about by chance then what of the bird that built it. Can anything of God be known from our knowledge of the world? If were left with any doubt at all then one need look no further than life itself. The principle of uniformity is in effect the same as the analogy criterion. Therefore the past theories that have been postulated invoke similar causes to those we now have, in line with what Hume called uniform experience. Looking at the origins of life what is our uniform experience? It is that information in all its forms is generated by an intelligent agent. Where in the body is a plethora of information stored? In ones DNA. Therefore it is reasonable to conclude that there must have been an intelligent cause for the first, the original DNA code. Whether we are looking at written language as in the example of the book earlier, or at a DNA strand, both exhibit the property and quality of specified complexity. We know of course that there is an intelligent cause for written language subsequently engendering a legitimate reason to posit an intelligent cause as the source of DNA and by extension life itself. David Hume, A Treatise of Human Nature (1896 ed.) [1739]

The link between Social Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties

The link between Social Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties There is a continuous interest in the emerging body of literature to investigating the link between social, emotional and behaviour difficulties (SEBD) and speech, language and communication difficulties (SLCN). SEBD in children with SLCN is determined as a concern area of enquiry in recent years. The literature covers Education, Health and Social Disadvantage as its three major perspectives. This essay centers on primary school children with SEBD and SLCN, from an education perspective and it covers certain facts, co morbidities, and the causes from the literature in understanding the link between SEBD and SLCN. Finally, it highlights the need for further study (on this topic) by diverse professionals. history The word Social has been introduced to Emotional, Behavioural difficulties (EBD) in the year 1998. Nevertheless, children experiencing SEBD are considered with Special Educational Needs (SEN) by the Code of Practice, (2001). Social, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties (SEBD): refers to the three potential areas of developmental difficulty of a child: to understand, express, engage and acknowledge in a given context. Speech Language and Communication Needs (SLCN): refer mainly to Expressive (use of words and sentences, vocabulary and grammar broadly), Receptive (understanding the language and processing the information) and Pragmatic ( usage of language in a social context) language difficulties. Population study of children with SEBD and Communication Difficulties Nearly 71% of the children with SEBD are identified of having communication difficulties (Benner et al 2002). These studies were based on 26 papers on the link between SEBD and communication difficulties. In one of their studies, the overall mean of prevalence rate was found to be 63% in children with speech problems previously diagnosed in speech clinics and 46 % in children served in a variety of settings in general population. The research indicates the current estimation of prevalence in children with communication difficulties in  England and Wales is nearly 10% and also children with SEBD are inclined towards having communication difficulties (Law et al 2000). Children with receptive language impairments are at greater risk for developing SEBD (Beitchman et al., 1996). Approximately 3% of school children are having severe form of Attention Deficit Hyperacctive Disorder (ADHD) and are at high risk of anti-social behaviour as well as poor conduct. At least 10% of school age children are affected by motor or vocal tics, or a combination of both. Recent population studies estimate that  at least 1% of general population  of school age children are affected by a clinically handicapping Touretts syndrome. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder affects (1%) of school age children. They display obsessions and compulsions, which are considered as a neuropsychiatric disorder states Gillberg (2005). The study from the literature strongly indicates that the language impairment and social, emotional and behavioural difficulties are interlinked. (Cross, 2004). Co- morbidity of language impairment and SEBD Studies show that children  with SEBD have been studied for the co-occurrence of language difficulties where Benner (2002) finds 71% of the children being experiencing language difficulties significantly and other authors argue if it is due to a core neurological deficit. Botting and Conti-Ramsden (2000), has identified 40% of children with combined expressive and receptive language problems are most likely to experience behavioural problems and antisocial problems. Also Ripley and Yuill (2005) reported that expressive difficulties were linked to high level of emotional symptoms and tend to increase with the age of the child. Psychiatric Comorbidity: It is noticed that 42% of children who had speech or language difficulties at the age 5 had psychiatric disorder when diagnosed (Beitchman et al 1996). 30% of seven to eight year olds were determined as having difficulties of specific language impairments, on the total scale of the teacher completed Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire from both the special and mainstream schools (Lindsay and Dockrell, 2000). The ascertained percentage of children referring child psychiatric services for behavioural and emotional problems having unsuspected language impairment is 33% (Cohen et al, 1993). The prevalence from other studies also suggests that learning difficulties can account for high percentage of language problems in children with SEBD (Cross 2004). Estimation of concomitant prevalence of language deficits in children who exhibit anti-social behaviour is 10 times that of the general population (Donahue et al, 1994), also the strengths of relationship between language disorders and anti-social behaviour may increase throughout the life (Cantwell 1991).Henceforth, it is an established fact that a child with language difficulties is bound to have emotional and behavioural difficulties which further on have a tendency to rise. Characteristics: Children identified with SLCN may encounter and experience problems such as usage of vocabulary, understanding and recalling information, processing information, maintaining attention, following instructions by listening, taking part actively in various activities or joining in group discussions, relating to peers , memorizing specific vocabulary (SENCo Newsletter, 2010). Children with SEBD are more likely to be disruptive and disturbing, (they could be hyperactive, lack concentration, poor or immature social skills or personality disorders and quite a few exhibit challenging behaviours, mainly due to other complex special needs). This could be temporary or permanent which can become as a barrier towards their ability to learn as they experience restlessness, social withdrawal, poor attention and isolation according to Teacher Training Agencys National SEN Specialist Standards in 1999. Also these children are subjected towards low levels of self esteem, they lack in Regulating their emotions emotion regulation is a form of mental control states Parrot (2001). Developing social cognition which can lead on to failure in learning at school, as a result of emotional damage (Saarni, 1999). The fact is neither are they very different from their peers, nor do they fall particularly under a homogenous group; rather they can be considered on a continuum. In general, the disorders are based on DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, American Psychiatric Association, 1994). These disorders can be broadly divided as behavioural, emotional and developmental disorders. Other disorders include Developmental Disorders (like Autism seen as a Pervasive Developmental Disorder) and Reactive Attachment Disorder, Schizophrenia, eating disorder and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (Cross 2004). Heneker, (2005) postulates an interesting way when making a distinction of these disorders. First, the less-obvious disorders such as anxiety, school phobia, prolonged stress (due to various reasons such as transitions, communication difficulties, depression). Secondly, the well-known disorders such as, conduct disorders, hyperkinetic disorders. However, it is also possible that these disorders cover a wide range of abilities, including SLCN and some of the learning difficulties. Some of the causes and risk factors: Earlier, children experiencing difficulties with social interactions, bad conduct disorders, children exhibiting high levels of frustrations due to peer- rejections/maladjusted, aggressive behaviour or inappropriate behaviour in adjusting to school environment were regarded as abnormal and immature social cognition (Happe and Frith 1996). It is not what we think or feel but what we do that makes us maladjusted†¦.continued severity anxiety may get the better of people and induce them to take desperate ill-considered action which is against their interest but it is the action and not the anxiety which ranks as maladjusted. (Scott, 1982). Fortin and Bigras (1994)  claims that any of these below mentioned risk factors occur in isolation, addressing the complex interaction of the  factors  associated with  SEBD. The main factors being predisposing factor, child-based factors, contextual risk factors and also family-centered risk factors. They concluded that the accumulation of these factors increases the probability  that a child may develop SEBD. Interventions: Within primary schools, there has been a growing emphasis on interventions that can enable to bring difference in children identified with SEBD and also SLCN, with the aim of promoting the childs learning and development and level of school achievement. By introducing the storytelling intervention program called The Big Book of Storysharing by Peacey (2009), has demonstrated in bringing up a positive change while prioritizing on communication and sharing personal stories amongst primary school children from both mainstream and special schools. The purpose of this project is to develop social skills, language and communication skills. It has promoted positive attitudes and narrative skills. Children from special school were able to use words or signs, gaze eye contact while speaking, joining in narration by listening and telling stories, whereas the children from mainstream perceived to be more confident and gained pleasure in narrating stories which shows the effectiveness of the project. PALS a program to develop Social Skills for children. It emphasis and aims towards building confidence in children and participate actively in social contexts. The main purpose of this program is to teach social skills such as listening, sharing, taking turns, dealing with feelings of fear,  coping up with frustration, dealing with emotions effectively, etc. It is accepted by early childhood psychologists and NSW (New South Wales, Australia) that it reduces the problem behaviour and increases social skills significantly in children. It also indicates that children with internal behavioural difficulties (withdrawn, shyness, anxiousness, passivity) lack in communication skills which again has a significant effect in developing their social skills at schools and finally has an impact of low level of school achievement (Cooper, 2002). Henker (2005) proposed an individualized intervention for the children at a pre referral unit (PRU) who are identified for a specific communication need to ameliorate their skills such as: vocabulary, social skills and speech, grammar. It has been noticed that children were able to show improvement in one or more area, where they were attending this speech and language therapy weekly or twice a week. Evaluating staff questionnaires suggests that improvement has been obtained by the children with communication needs. Explanations of Intervention Programs: Peacey (2009) conceives that this project can demonstrate well if a named person from each school takes in charge to mediate with other members of the staff to motivate and repeat or retell the stories for the children. The second factor is to assure the age group of children has to be well chosen. Also this project did not demonstrate to be an effective one in measuring childrens specific difference in their usage of language on the standardized assessments for the children who were at the early stage of language development and have showed only minor improvements as they were experiencing learning difficulties. However, it consists of certain drawbacks. When the children were assessed in the areas such as, attention, impulse control and flexibility; it fails to identify and explain the gain of attention at both mainstream as well as special schools and it could not control impulses of all the children. It is time consuming (for the preparation of the project towards discussing obje ctives with the members for their participation and affirmation). Overall, the project has been identified for a positive outcome of making progress with the story telling skills where children enjoyed and valued their experiences and also it has established the concept of inclusion in both of the school cultures. The graph of the success rate indicates that PALS effectiveness is more on the age group ranging preschool children when compared to primary school aged group of children. Cooper (2002), states that social skills interventions work less effective for primary school aged children and on the other hand it works more effectively for preschoolers. Explanation from literature: Today in United Kingdom the government is providing the opportunity to the primary school teachers in various ways to provide better services to the children. For example, a SENCO training enables a class room teacher in understanding the different areas of difficulties experiencing by a child can play a vital role with the support of specific frameworks. There are other professionals from the local authorities to liaise with in supporting children with special needs including children with social, emotional behavioural difficulties as well as speech, language and communication needs. A large portion of children (with 50 % or more) are entering primary schools with low language levels and 5-7% of children from general population are identified with SLCN. Limited usage of language can oppose making relationships with peers at school and which can also lead to behavioural problems in the future (SENCo Newsletter, 2010). Evaluations and limitations: There are certain limitations to study the link between SEBD and SLCN. It is not always possible to identify language difficulties in children with other learning difficulties as research suggests that children with language difficulties may have underlying cognitive processing delays (Beitchman et al 1998; Torgeson, 1998). Instruments currently available for measuring underlying cognitive process are less technically adequate than instruments designed to assess language development or academic achievement (Beitchman, et al 1998). Often a communication difficulty can be interpreted differently as a behavioural difficulty in some cases (for example, a child who is unable to convey a message to his friend while playing can behave in a noncompliant and aggressive way). In contrast a behavioural difficulty can be interpreted differently when the other person is aware of the communication difficulty or need of that particular child. Language difficulties lead on to substantially high risk of anti-social behaviour. Receptive language difficulties not only go undetected but have adverse negative behaviour and have a profound affect on vital relationships throughout ones life span. Benner (2000). These children  tend to face a significant or high  risk  in attaining school achievement. On the other hand, most of the parents are unwilling to accept the fact that they are in need of help with regards to their childrens behavioural problems and look for help when they find and realize the situation, at a high risk. It is true that the response towards intervention programs is less when the behavioural problems are at an advanced stage. Parow (2009). Previous reviews of literature examined that relation between on wide range of antisocial behaviour and communication difficulties but very little of previous study or reviews focused specifically on Language skills of children identified with emotional, behavioural difficulties. This suggest the need for investigation in understanding the link between SEBD and SLCN by diverse participants. Conclusion: The Special Educational Needs (SEN) graph in England indicates the percentage level of children with SEBD inclines gradually with their age from primary school, whereas the SLCN tends to decline as the child grows. (Cross, 2009). There are substantial amounts of documented associations between behavioural difficulties and language and a large ratio of children with BESD have an underlying language problem. Expressive language difficulties are very apparent, but other language impairments can be harder to detect; a receptive language difficulty could easily be missed as it most often gets considered as a learning difficulty. Nevertheless the relationship is unclear in identifying the primary difficulty in decision making clinically and it is not appropriate for the population of children where language difficulties are unidentified / unsuspected previously. The need to find how language structure emerges through varied time frames is crucial for the current researchers. Therefore, the research indicates the need to encourage diverse participants for further research. In addition to public sectors of educational, health and social service or charity organizations rather include clinical psychologists, community developers, epidemiologists, medics, etc. should be involved. Note: This essay consist of 2,519 words only excluding references.

The Ramifications of Green Political Thought :: essays research papers

The Ramifications of Green Political Thought According to Andrew Dobson The fundamental concept Andrew Dobson brings out in his novel Green Political Thought, is the revolutionary im-plications of ecologism. Dobson describes ecology as â€Å"deep green thinking.† He asserts that ecologism is a distinctive political ideology, which is separate from environmentalism, just as liberal-ism, conservatism, and socialism are kept separate from one another. He further maintains that what sets ecologism apart from other ideologies is "its focus on the relation-ship between human beings and the non-human natural world." Dobson further states that the purpose of green con-sumerism is to distinguish â€Å"need from want.† The laborious role of a true green society becomes the ability to formu-late strategies that define and reestablish the relation-ships between production and consumption. Without limits to our consumption, catastrophic consequences are inevita-ble for the environment and those who inhabit it. Such af-ter-affects of technological misuse include global warming, deforestation, pesticide poisoning, ozone depletion, acid rain, and species loss. Hence, solutions to remedy these by-products of limited consumption are the basis for con-troversy among people in present day society. Moreover, if the theories of modern ecology and sus-tainability (or lack there of) hold true, the ramifications of this ideology become global. Dobson creatively illus-trates in his book that there are not any simple solutions to correcting the shadowy future that industrialism is be-stowing upon us. The author further emphasizes two criti-cal features in relation to ecology and sustainability. The first is that technological solutions will not bring fourth infinite materials in a finite system. Secondly, the exponential growth of industrialism promises that Earth’s resources are unsustainable in lieu of the growing population. With that having been said, the challenge of the ecological movement is to convince the consensus that change is prudent. The heart of the debate of limited con-sumption involves the tradeoffs required to achieve sus-tainable development. For now, the majority of society would rather leave the grievances of repoliticalization and social change for the f uture generations to deal with, rather than conserving today, in order to plan for tomor-row. Here, I mean conserving in the sense of not merely â€Å"cutting back,† but actually re-thinking the technological processes utilized to achieve the luxuries that we as a so-ciety have become so accustomed to. However, if society resolved to save the world today, the most valued promise of achieving sustainable develop-ment would lie in the following grass-roots efforts which involve: satisfying basic needs, optimum use and protection of the environment, and empowerment of groups and communi-ties.

A Sunday Night Tradition Essay -- Essays Papers

A Sunday Night Tradition Sunday nights are a special time around my house back at home in Wheaton, Illinois. They are a time when my family all gets together and has dinner as a group. It is a time when we all get to talk and share our stories of how our weeks went, what is to come in the following week, and other various topics. This whole Sunday night ritual always takes place in our dining room. The dining room is attached to our kitchen; it is a small room, just large enough to fit our large oak dining room table. Around the table sits six large, old, creaky chairs. Week after week, year after year, we are always in the same formation around that table. My father sits at the head of the table, it is a position that illustrates respect and is furthest away from the kitchen, perhaps saying he wants nothing to do with the cooking and cleaning up duties. He is always first to sit down and the last to leave the table, because he enjoys his time with the family so much he wants to make it as long as possible. My mother sits on the opposite end of the table, the closest seat to the kitchen, which makes perfect sense because she is always the last person to be seated and is constantly getting up to get something from the kitchen. On the other side of the table sits my little nine-year old brother, he sits next to my dad because he is always in his shadow, he looks up to him and imitates nearly everything he does. He sits next to the furthest from the kitchen bec...

Internship in Public Relations Department of an Advertising Agency Essay

Section I Introduction 1.1 Background Internship is one of the essential parts required for the completion of MBA program. It is to provide first hand exposure to the students about the real work scenarios in business organizations. It allows students to imply their theoretical knowledge in the real workplace by enhancing their ability and confidence level in the dynamic business world. Besides, one of the objectives of this program is to enhance student’s interpersonal, communication, report writing skills as well as presentation skills and to understand different viewpoint of the staff and the customer of the organization. 1.2 Objective of the internship The objectives of my internship at Prisma Advertising agency are: To fulfill the requirement of MBA program of Pokhara University. To understand importance Public Relations in corporate world. To understand how public relations enhances brand image. To comprehend successful events. 1.3 Placement For the purpose of internship, the trainee was allowed to perform internship in the organization where she was actively working for past two years. The organization is an advertising agency named Prisma Advertising located in Kalikastha, Kathmandu. The internee had been working in Public Relations Department (PR) as an Executive. 1.4 Expected Learning Experiencing the real life working environment Expand the boundaries of theoretical learning Develop better public relation skills with media as well as in corporate sector Section II Industry and Organization Profile 2.1 Industry Profile There are no records of any kind that tell us about the origin and history of Nepali advertisements. The earliest form of advertising may thus be taken as the trumpet blowing tradition of kings and maharajas to disperse royal messages. The advent of Mass Communication in Nepal can be said to have been through such official proclamations, which were usually accompanied by the use of musical instruments like drums or trumpets. The age-old oral tradition of promotion by vendors selling their wares in the market can also be taken as another early form of advertising. With the national daily  Gorkhapatra churning out advertisements on a regular basis, the advertising sector caught momentum, and the next major development came in the form of an advertising agency, Laxman Upadhaya’s Nepal Advertisers. The main objective of the agency was to publish flashy and attractive advertisements in the print media. Three years later, following in the footsteps of Upadhaya, Keshav Lamichane started Nepal Printing and Advertising Agency owned by Keshav Lamichane. This agency held the accounts of prime clients like Janakpur Cigarette Factory, Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation and Nepal Bank Limited. 2.2 Prisma Advertising Profile Prisma Advertising is the franchisee of Mathew and Ogilvy in Nepal. It is one of the most creative agencies which established in 1991. It is a full service office with team of 47 people which has been growing as creative leader and 360 degree brand stewardship. It provides wide range of services from media, branding, and sales promotion to advertisement. They continuously thrive to provide creative products by giving a consumer touch to what they deliver, also offer fully integrated marketing communication solutions as well as focus on building brand relationship with the consumers. It has been awarded as The Best Agency of the Year 2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07 & 2007-2008 (four years in a row). In addition to it also has won the only international advertising award for Nepal – â€Å"Bell Ringer 2000† from Johnson &Johnson, USA. Prisma approach to communication: These activities are part of the prisma advertisement agency which is provided to the clients according to the promotion they required for their products and services. 2.3 Importance of Public Relation Department Why does Brand or an Organization need a Public Relation Department? Unless one is a celebrity, good public relation just does not happen on its own. It takes lots of skill and consistent hard work, over a period of time. It’s part art, part science and when practiced correctly the results can be very rewarding. Here are few reasons why Public Relations is important: Media coverage increases credibility Paid advertising increases name recognition; media relations increases credibility. When people read a story about the excellence of a particular organization in a newspaper or see a story praising the company on television, they are much more likely to have a favorable opinion of that particular organization. Media coverage helps to attract â€Å"quality† prospects  Because a public relations increases credibility, it helps to attract those who want the best. When people have heard of the organization or brand and have a favorable impression of it, it is easier to attract and hold their attention while the organization or the brand tell their story. Media coverage makes you a player  Coverage in important publications or on TV can make the organization or brand look much larger than it is. Public relations help to avoid price competition  If people believe that the particular brand is the best, they will understand why it is worth paying the price. A public relations program stretches the marketing budget  Because the media does not charge for news coverage, the relative cost of a good program is a lot less than for paid media or a direct mail campaign. Best way to launch a brand  Public relations are also considered by many as the best way to launch a brand or new product. When something is new the media often will write about it because of its news value. Section III Critical Analysis of Job Performed 3.1 Function of Public Relation Department PR Department functions to maintain and enhance mutual understanding/relationship between its clients and public. The core responsibility of the PR Department is to build and protect the brand. PR communicates client’s views, objectives and purposes to the general mass and at the same time monitors feedback and correcting the public attitudes/ reactions. For this, department focuses on major areas: Crisis Management: To avoid any crisis and its adverse effects to its clients, the PR Department prepares press releases and makes them public through media vehicle. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): Also known as corporate responsibility, corporate citizenship, responsible business and corporate social performance that forms of corporate self-regulation integrated into a business model. To fulfill these responsibilities the company’s want to conduct events, and any such social events are organized for the client by this department. For example: charity program. Further, they also create social awareness for NGOs and INGOs and other organizations working for the welfare of the society at discount rates. Event Management: Various events such as press conference, product launching events etc. are organized either to provide new information or introduce a new product. In such events, various media houses, guests are invited and are provide with the press release which gives details about the event. Monitoring and tracking current scenario: Either it be country’s current happenings or competitor’s activities, PR Department tracks the entire essential data with the help of media and reports to the internal staff members as well as the client in daily basis as well as a monthly reports. 3.2 Activities Performed The internee was part of a PR Team and there were five members in this team. Public Relation Head, Senior Public Relation Supervisor, Copy Writer and PR Executives are the designations of this team. The internee was working under direct assistance of Senior Public Relation Supervisor. Each team members  had their specific task that they were assigned to and those were mentioned in their job description. Following were the job assigned to the intern. 1. Everyday internee had to make a daily update on country’s news update regarding political, business and social happenings and send it to the clients. 2. Track on competitor’s activities like press ad, news and send it to respective clients. 3. Make Share of Expense (SOE) respective to the competitor’s and send it to clients on monthly basis. 4. Make regular interactions with media as well as clients to enhance better public relation. 5. Make press releases, news articles on client’s activities and send it to media for the coverage. 6. Organized events like Press Conferences, Formal meetings with government bodies, and Cocktail parties as per the clients need. 7. Crisis management of the clients. Bajaj Pulsar 200 NS Launch, Coca-Cola Inter-School National Football Tournament, Coca-Cola ‘Live Positively ‘and Western Union’s collaboration with Mercy Corps to empower 1200 women to be financially literate were some of the major events organized as an internee under PR Department. The major task of the PR Department during these events was to highlight the program as much as possible with the help of media as well as word of mouth publicity. Few of the coverage of these events are attached below. Coverage of the Events Bajaj Pulsar 200 NS launch Coca-Cola Inter-School National Football Tournament Coca-Cola ‘Live Positively’ Western Union’s collaboration with Mercy Corps Activities Performed Working as an intern in PR Department, internee had to face several crisis situations where various brand reputation damaging news were covered by  newspapers and television. To tackle with those situations, crisis management was done. Few examples of Crisis Management are as follows: Nepal Samachar Patra and Sagarmatha Television were continuously showcasing various news regarding faulty products of Bottler’s Nepal Limited. To surpass those negative news, internee with the PR team had undergone the crisis management by flowing the positive news of the company in The Kathmandu Post. This is a technique where PR people do not counter the negative news directly but highlights the positive aspect of the company, person or the brand to put the positive news in the top of the publics mind. Negative News covered by Nepal Samachar Patra Positive News published in The Kathmandu Post 3.3 Public Relation Department Analysis As an internee under PR Department of an advertising agency, 3.4 Problem Identification and Solution Alternatives As every best effort does have a loop hole, PR Department also has to face certain problems at times.