Professional Development in the Early Reading First Essay

Professional Development in the Early Reading First - Essay Example In particular, the teachers in the treatment group gave a specific response to implementing, modifying and extending the PD program. Rochelle and McGee (2011, p. 167) revealed that the treatment group achieved a mean score of 93.8 compared to the control group mean score of 82.3. Further, 67% of students belonging to the treatment group met the Government Performance Reporting Act guidelines of achieving a language rating of at least 85 compared to only 40% for the control group (Dail and McGee, 2011, p. 167). Summarizing the results of their experience as project directors, Dial and McGee (2011, p. 168) concluded that a PD approach in reading is associated with success. Carlisle et al. (2011) compared three models of professional development (PD) in reading among first grades and concluded that supporting teacher through seminars, evaluation, and coaching work best in leading teachers towards effective instructions among first graders. In the process of sharing their results, the au thors pointed out that professional development in reading is the best means of improving teachers’ competence in content areas that result into an improvement of instructions (Carlisle et al., 2011, p. 13). According to the authors, effective professional development in reading is characterized by deep subject matter knowledge as well as knowledge on how students learn content, commitment, course coherence and integration, participation and active learning, and institutional and professional support (Carlisle et al., 2011, p. 214). The authors cited several cases that indicate that reading instructions are successful if a professional development approach is used. For instance, according to the authors, the PD initiative among 17 poverty and low-achieving schools in Washington and Houston as carried by B. Foorman and L. Moats has been considered by the authors as very successful. One important argument forwarded by Carlisle et al. (2011, p. 230) is that PD is successful beca use teachers respond well to the approach. In a commissioned study in 2005-06, one of the research questions which the U.S. Department of Education was to find out the effects of professional development on student reading achievement (NCEERA or National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, 2009, p. 1). The study employed an experimental design in testing the effectiveness of professional development interventions in over 90 schools in six districts involving 270 teachers and 5,500 students (p. 1). The schools were randomly and equally assigned to an institute group, institute plus coaching group, and a control which received the usual professional development implemented in the district (NCEERA, 2009, p. 1). Some of the key findings of the commissioned research are as follows. First, teachers who were randomly assigned to avail professional development form institutes scored significantly higher on teachers’ knowledge compared with those in the control gr oup.  

Kingdom of God Essay Example for Free

Kingdom of God Essay Describing what is meant by the Kingdom of God can be very complex, because so many people has set forth to describe this phrase to the best of their own knowledge, and generally each of these descriptions differs. Personally, besides the many verses in the Bible that are relative to the subject, it is best described by Donald B. Kraybill. In Kraybill’s novel â€Å"The Upside-down Kingdom† he writes; â€Å"The Kingdom of God is a collectivity—a network of persons who have yielded their hearts and relationships to the reign of God. † â€Å"He also notes that people must enter the kingdom because it is a state of affairs rather than a state of mind (p.19).† The Kingdom then, represents God’s power of ruling, his authority, and basically his government. â€Å"His disciples asked him what this parable meant. He said, the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables† (Luke 8:9, 10). Unless an individual is a born again Christian he will not understand the secrets of the Kingdom of God. The Jewish sects Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and Zealots are noted as being developed during the time of the second temple through the tenth century. This is the period that it seems that the Jewish sects were most generative. The Jewish people noted only three philosophical sects which are Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenes, of the three Essenes is noted as being the one with the most severe discipline. According to Josephus, [War of the Jews] 1 chapter 8.2 Pharisees, Essenes, Sadducees, Zealots were divided into three groups which were criminal, nationalist and Philosophical (religious). The Sadducees and the Pharisees really seem to be as religious as they were political. History tells us that in ancient societies political and religious laws were pretty much the same. Moreover, the Sadducees and the Pharisees did seem to have a bit more interest in that of political power than what was religiously correct. This we know was absolutely not pleasing to our God. â€Å"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever† (Hebrew 13:8). Regardless to the ways and or the thoughts of the Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes and the Zealots one thing that remains the same and will never change is the fact that our God does not change his mind or act indifferent towards his children regardless of the mishaps that we may allow ourselves to experience. â€Å"Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God† (Romans 13, 1). This verse pretty much says it all when referring to the political convictions discussed by Josephus, God is in control of all situations regardless to whether it is written in the Old or New Testament. According to Josephus, the Zealots were described as political and grouped as nationalists. However, it seemed that their religious beliefs were indivisible from their political convictions. Moreover, this is not an indication that all of the sects of the second temple were more political than religious, the truth of the matter is that there was not much partition between the two. The Essenes, Sadducees and the Pharisees stand out to more people than the rest of the sects because it is said that they were supposedly better known to people than the rest of the sects, and some people seem to think that the Pharisees were forefathers of the Rabbis. The Sadducees; were differ ent in their own way, they were not the Jewish people that simply did not believe in resurrection, nor did they believe that heaven exists. Strangely, the Sadducees were of the group that only accepted the Torah, as authoritative, this strange group of individuals were known to not be very popular with the rest of the Jewish population. â€Å"For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all† (Acts 23:8). During or around the time of 2nd century B.C there existed a monastic Jewish sect that was referred to as the Essenes. They were known to reside somewhere not far from the Dead Sea. They were pretty much isolated from the entire Jewish community. Notably, the Essenes seemed to have had closer relationships towards each other than any other sects, and were said to be Jewish by birth. The Essenes neglected matrimony but choose out of other families children to be of their family and transformed them according to their personal likings, and had a huge amount of respect and obedience for their elders. If at any time they complained against their elders or authorities they would be expelled from their community, more strangely than that if an elder was even touched by a younger person they were casted as being dirty. There is an overwhelming amount of information that openly describes how the Messianic expectation of the various sects, differs from the Messianic role that Jesus presented. Examples would be as follows; The Essenes was known as a Jewish religious sect and was in fact not mentioned in the Bible, but was indeed mentioned on the Dead Sea Scrolls. This particular group adapted to their life according to the law of the Jews, and they opposed Temple priesthood. The Pharisees were different because they were more of a prominent sect of Jewish people in the time of Christ. They were in disagreement with Jesus and his teachings. â€Å"But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus† (Mathew 12:14). The Pharisees had absolutely no love for Jesus and felt that the world would be a better place without him obviously. The Sadducees were additionally, another renowned Jewish religious sect. Their beliefs differed in another way because they only accepted more hideous things like the laws and rejections of the oral traditions; which included immortality of the soul; denial of body resurrection and existence of the spirit world. In addition, they supported families of Jewish patriots of the first and second centuries B.C. whom were totally active in the liberation of Judea from the Syrian rule. Lastly, we will discuss the difference in the Zealots concerning the Messianic expectations. The Zealots will take a total twist here from the above mentioned sects. The reason being is because according to the Bible Simon was a Zealot â€Å"Matthew, Thomas, James, son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot† (Luke 6:15). The Zealots preferred armed mutiny against Rome, in doing so they thought that God would deliver Israel with the sword. Faithfully, acknowledging the Spirit of Jesus, he {Jesus} is lead into the wilderness for the sole intention of being tempted by the devil. â€Å"He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him† (Mark 1:13). This place of wilderness was not fit for human life, water was accessible but it was an unpopulated region. â€Å"When tempted, no one should say, God is tempting me, for God cannot be tempted by the devil, nor does he tempt anyone† (James 1:13), but instead, Jesus is lead, into a situation by the devil that could possibly tempt him. Jesus teaches us to pray that we are not lead into temptations, but yet he is lead into temptations while on earth so this is what the devil set out to do, which was take Jesus through the test of temptations. References Kraybill, Donald B. The Upside Down Kingdom Revised Ed. Scottsdale, Pennsylvania: Herald Press, 1990. 275pg. May 20, 2006 Second Temple Sects The Complete Works Of Flavious Josephus The Pharisees and other sects edited with a preface by Jacob Neusne, Retrieved from http://Judaism.about.com/gi/dynamicof Josephus/.HTM on January 7, 2013

The Nature of Space in Kafkas The Castle :: Kafka Castle Essays

The Nature of Space in Kafka's The Castle    From the end of the nineteenth century to the outbreak of World War I, great developments in technology and knowledge brought about significant changes in the way man viewed time and space. The necessity of clear train schedules led to the development of World Standard Time and the plurality of private time. In regards to space, with which this paper deals, man moved into other subjective realms beyond the two and three dimensions described by Euclid. In fact, with Einstein's theory of relativity, the number of spaces inherent in life increased beyond calculation to equal the number of moving reference systems of all the matter in the universe. This theory echoes Nietzche's contemporary philosophical theory of perspectivism, where space only consists of points of view and interpretations, not objective facts. Thus, these two doctrines signaled a breakdown of the old notion that there is a single reality, a single, absolute space. Space became subjective and relative, man could not be sure of what it was that actually surrounded him and made up his physical world.    Creative artists, painters and novelists, attempted to deal with this new concept. Attacks were made on traditional notions that there is only one space and that a single point of view is equal to an understanding. Writers, specifically, responded with multiple perspectives depicting different views of the same objects in space in order to demonstrate that the world is always different as it is perceived by various observers at varying times. Man had to come to grips with the fact that with such a plurality of space, he cannot know, understand, or even see the physical world completely.    Thus, it is not surprising that Kafka's final work, The Castle, which emerged out of the pluralism and confusion of this age, deals with this new notion of space, this new relativity of the world surrounding man. While the book can be looked at on a spiritual level, with the castle symbolizing divinity or the ultimate spiritual meaning of man's existence, in regards to space, the castle could also symbolize the actual literal, physical world. Through the nature of K. and his quest, the different ways the Castle is perceived by K. from various viewpoints along his quest, and the inability of anyone to know the true nature of the castle officials, Kafka

Zara Supply Chain China

Case Study and Exercises Exercise #1 We were given the formula of distance , where D – Distance from location L (distribution center) to location I (consumption point); – X coordinate of the warehouse l (distribution); – X coordinate of the store i (consumption); – Y coordinate of the warehouse l (distribution); – Y coordinate of the store i (consumption). Consequently, applying these formula in the Excel we receive the following result: Then, multiplying the distance by the amount of demand and summing up for each relevant location, we get: Thus, the answer is LOCAY, because it has the minimal score. Exercise #2 Using provided formulas , where – X coordinate of the optimal location for warehouse; – Y coordinate of the optimal location; – X coordinate of store i; – Y coordinate of store i; – Load (or Demand) of the store i, we get And finally The answer is (8;11). Zara's Case Study Company Profile Zara is one of the largest international fashion companies with 1671 stores around the globe. It is a part of Inditex holding. Inditex is one of the world's largest fashion retailers, welcoming shoppers at its eight store formats -Zara, Pull & Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho, Zara Home and Uterque – boasting 5. 93 stores in 85 markets [www. inditex. com], [www. zara. com]. In 1975 the first Zara shop was founded in Spain. In 1976-1984 In-Spain expansion takes place. In 1988 it enters Portuguese market. Followed by US and France, it quickly becomes world-brand and until 2006 it had 52 countries which held retail operations of the company. Za ra concentrates on the three principles to satisfy the customer [http://ru. scribd. com/doc/27372254/Supply-Chain-Practices-of-Zara#]: Short lead Time which results in â€Å"more† fashionable clothes Lower quantities – scarce supply More styles, which create a greater possibility of attracting needed customers. ) Zara's designing process organized in a way such that the stores, which actually interact with the customers, communicate to the head office in Spain the needs of the customers and the trends in fashion clothes. Thus, making it possible for the company to react to market changes within 30 days [http://thirdeyesight. in/articles/ImagesFashion_Zara_Part_I. pdf], which makes Zara unreachable for the same-size competitors. 2) Reducing the number of clothes manufactured in each style creates the â€Å"scarcity† which is applicable to fashion clothes. The less it is available, the more desirable it becomes. As a result, Zara discounts only approx. 0% of its products. 3) The stores are supplied with new merchandise twice a week, thus making them seem â€Å"new† every 3-4 days. On average, Zara creates around 11,500 styles per year [http://thirdeyesight. in/articles/ImagesFashion_Zara_Part_I. pdf; http://www. slideshare. net/koffman/zara-case-study-2780928#btnNext]. Moreover, m ost of the production facilities are located in Spain, near the headquarters, so that the company has more control over the operations, producing and distributing. Zara's characteristics of vertical supply chain Zara is a vertically integrated retailer. Unlike similar apparel retailers, Zara controls most of  the steps on the supply-chain: It designs, produces, and distributes itself. The business system that had resulted was particularly distinctive in that Zara manufactured its most fashion-sensitive products internally. Zara did not produce â€Å"classics†, clothes that would always be in-style. In fact, the company intended its clothes to have fairly short life spans, both within-stores and in customers' closets. Retailers like the American chain ‘Gap’ and the Swedish retailer  Ã¢â‚¬ËœHennes ; Mauritz’   completely outsource their production to factories around the world and mostly to low cost Asian countries. In contrast, it is estimated that 76 percent of Zara's production is carried out in Europe which is within the small radius of its headquarters in Spain. In fact, almost half of its production is in owned or closely-controlled facilities. Another 24% are produced in Asian region [http://www. slideshare. net/anusaj/zara-ppt#btnNext] While this gives a tremendous amount of flexibility, it does contend with higher people costs – that of up to 19 times as much as Asian ones. The group also owns capital intensive facilities in Spain, which can do dyeing and processing of the fabric as well as cutting and garment finishing. Provided that, Inditex has an ability to adjust to the new trend or demand in a very short time. Overall Supply Chain is can be described as follows: Collect the information from retailing points. At least two times per week the sailing points should somehow conduct the information to the headquarters in Spain, providing information for the groups in charge to develop and decide on the range of clothes which will be demanded by the customers in the observed future. This work is done by approx. 200 people, which develop up to 1,000 styles per month [http://ru. scribd. om/doc/27372254/Supply-Chain-Practices-of-Zara#] The information is also received via sales reports from retail points. Thus it can be claimed, that Zara has invested a lot into IT, to make the up-to-date information flow possible. Decide on the needed clothes, distinguish trends. After depicting and sketching appropriate merchandise for the stores, they send the order to facilities, which are located near the head offic e. Moreover, it should be said that Zara somehow lowers its risks by purchasing uncolored fabric or even raw materials, thus making enhancing flexibility. The process organized in such way, that final product may be even painted on demand. However, only cutting of material is done within the company. Actual sewing is done by workshops, which are mostly located in Spain or Portugal. None of the workshops belongs to Zara. The company provides them with instructions how to do the work for its own needs. Zara being vertically integrated has its own distribution network, which allows the company to further control physical flow. Since the time has a great value for Zara, the newly produced merchandise arrives to the stores within 48 hours. [http://ru. cribd. com/doc/27372254/Supply-Chain-Practices-of-Zara#] An esteem of time, needed to pass from development of the product to actual shipping is around 7-10 days. [http://thirdeyesight. in/articles/ImagesFashion_Zara_Part_I. pdf] Zara's development in China First Zara's store was opened in Shanghai, in February 2006, and during the first day store has managed to generate 800,000 RMB of revenue . Within a year Zara opened 12 new stores across China, and accorfding to the latest data (31st of July) its chain had 114 stores within China (out of 355 operating in Asian region) [http://en. wikipedia. rg/wiki/Zara_%28retailer%29#Stores] in over 40 cities, including Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenyang and other. [http://www. chinadaily. com. cn/business/2012-09/06/content_15737684. htm] During 2011 Beijing Consumer Association was checking the quality of Zara's product. The result was that they accused company of selling lower quality products on chineese market. [http://www. chinadaily. com. cn/business/2011-04/26/content_12396211. htm]. However, the company doesn't seem to be damaged: no apologizes nor compensations followed. .On 5th of September, 2012 Zara opened its on-line shop in China.

The Uk Has a Multi Party System Rather Than a Two Party System

The UK has a multi- party system rather than a two party system. Discuss. A political two party system is one where two parties have complete dominance over voting, in terms of seats and the general vote. The multi- party system however describes a system where more than two parties have the ability to win role as government. In this essay I will give a balanced argument on whether Britain is a two party, or multi- party system.Throughout a significant period in history, 1945-79, a two party system was obviously predominant; the Labour and Conservative parties being the only two with the possibility of achieving majority vote and therefore forming a government. People voted for the party which represented their social class e. g. Conservative for middle class and Labour for working class. The clear distinction between which social classes would benefit from the two parties rule kept these two parties as a high percentage of the vote. In the elections leading up to 2005 Labour and Con servative seats were a significantly high number compared to other parties e. . in 1992 Conservatives had 336 seats, labour-271 and other parties 44, meaning no other party had a real chance of winning, no matter what the vote favoured, which incidentally also supported the two dominant parties with 41. 8% Conservative votes, 34. 2% Labour votes and only 19% of votes for other parties. The structure of the House of Commons also supports this idea because the two main parties sit on opposite benches in parliament, creating a government vs. opposition system, where the two main parties move between these two seats, currently with Labour as the opposition.The first-past-the-post voting system also supports this idea because it doesn’t allow smaller powers a chance for a place in power, as they don’t have enough MPs in comparison to stronger parties. Although, the Liberal Democrat’s seats in parliament have increased significantly, if it weren’t for the votin g system, their numbers are likely to have doubled. Although people have started to look towards more minor parties such as the Green Party who want to deal with important current issues such as war, as well as their main focus-the environment, these parties are still not gaining enough votes or seats to make them significantly prominent.This leaves the continuation of two ruling parties. It could be argued, however, that the two party system which was once in place is declining, meaning more parties have a realistic chance to achieve role as government. In the last thirty years the support for the Conservative and Labour parties has been gradually decreasing, leaving them with only 67% of the vote at the 2005 general election, which was the smallest percentage they’d gained since 1918.This is an example of partisan dealignment because the working class started to transfer their party support to Conservative instead of Labour. The Liberal Democrats support was significantly i ncreasing, leaving them with 22% of the vote in the 2005 election as well as 62 seats. Their seat numbers had been increasing since 1974 when they only had 14 seats in parliament, suggesting a change in the dominance of only two parties. Today, the Liberal Democrats, who haven’t been considered a main party since, are currently the weaker part of a coalition government, with Labour in opposition.This shows a clear end to the two party system, with three parties in significant places of power. Despite the two party voting system which has been practiced in different regions since 1997, a multi-party system still exists in the House of Commons because three parties currently have the majority of party power, meaning that it is the main structure of the UK party system. The current coalition government includes the Liberal Democrats who have not recently been considered as one of the two major parties.This shows that the two party system is no longer in place; which suggests tha t in the future more coalition governments could completely eliminate the two party system for good. Although it can be argued that the UK has a multi- party system at government level, a two party system seems to exist in different regions. For example, the two dominant parties in London are Conservative and Labour, whereas in the rural South it’s Conservative and Liberal Democrats.Therefore as a country the UK does not represent the two party system or multi- party system, examples of both can be seen in different political areas. To conclude, a balanced argument can be drawn in response to this statement but I personally believe, although in the past a continuing trend of a two party system has existed, today this system is declining, with Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrats as the primary parties.

Puritanism And The Native People Example

Puritanism And The Native People Example Puritanism And The Native People – Coursework Example Puritanism and the Native People William Bradford sees Indians as noble savages who should be punished for treating other people in bad ways. Though William Bradford is portrayed as a very pious man, his Christian values are not portrayed in his behavior towards the Indians and less fortunate people. On one hand he praises God for His care during the journey while on the other hand, he comments that it pleased God to smite a young man with a terrible illness, which seems to imply that he had a revengeful heart contrary to his Christian belief where we should not rejoice during other peoples misery, though they have wronged us. The man in the story had been offending and speaking in an evil manner to the people on the ship but this did not mean he died for revenge.Mary Rowlandson sees native Indians as bad Indians and this is because they burnt her home, killed her friends and family and took her into captivity, and this could have been a cause for her to create bitterness in her hear t towards them. She does not seem to have been treated with the cruelty that her other prisoners are given probably due to the fact that she complies with what she is told to do. She acknowledges that it is God who has made every positive thing to happen. She notes that the Indians had been preserved by God to facilitate the punishment of her backslidden members of her family and people due to the evil things they have done. She acknowledges that God is ready to save always and gives an example of her spiritual reawakening after such a harrowing experience in the hands of the Indians. She also portrays anti Christian attitude by asserting that her race was superior to the Indians. She does not show Christian character when she does not empathize with the death of an Indian woman’s child. John Smith attitude towards the Indians had a mixture of negative and positive aspects. He liked the Indians because they fed him and because they were gifted in the expansion of trade with Europe and especially King Powhatan who wanted to expand His Kingdom. He had a internal dislike for the Indians because he considered them to be smarter than he was and depended on their help to survive in an era that was full of violence. His attitude towards the native people expresses the truest description because it expresses their negative and positive sides, which is right because people cannot be perfect and they have their good and bad sides.Work CitedRowlandson, Mary. Puritanism, Indians and Witchcraft, 2011. A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson

The Battle of Atlanta in the American Civil War

The Battle of Atlanta in the American Civil War The Battle of Atlanta was fought July 22, 1864, during the  American Civil War  (1861-1865) and saw Union forces under Major General William T. Sherman win a near-run victory. The second in a series of battles around the city, the fighting centered on a Confederate attempt to defeat Major General James B. McPhersons Army of the Tennessee east of Atlanta. While the attack did achieve some success, including killing McPherson, it was ultimately repulsed by Union forces. Following the battle, Sherman shifted his efforts to the western side of the city. Strategic Background Late July 1864 found Major General William T. Shermans forces approaching Atlanta. Nearing the city, he pushed  Major General George H. Thomas Army of the Cumberland toward Atlanta from the north, while  Major General John Schofields Army of the Ohio neared from the northeast. His final command, Major General James B. McPhersons Army of the Tennessee, moved towards the city from Decatur in the east. Opposing the Union forces was the Confederate Army of Tennessee which was badly outnumbered and undergoing a change in command. Major General William T. Sherman. Photograph Courtesy of the National Archives Records Administration Throughout the campaign, General Joseph E. Johnston had pursued a defensive approach as his sought to slow Sherman with his smaller army. Though he had been repeatedly flanked out of several positions by Shermans armies, he had also forced his counterpart of fight bloody battles at Resaca and Kennesaw Mountain. Increasingly frustrated by Johnstons passive approach, President Jefferson Davis relieved him on July 17 and gave command of the army to Lieutenant General John Bell Hood. An offensive-minded commander, Hood had served in General Robert E. Lees Army of Northern Virginia and had seen action in many of its campaigns including the fighting at Antietam and Gettysburg. At the time of the change in command, Johnston had been planning an attack against Thomas Army of the Cumberland. Due to the imminent nature of the strike, Hood and several other Confederate generals requested that the command change be delayed until after the battle but they were denied by Davis. Lieutenant General John B. Hood. Photograph Courtesy of the National Archives Records Administration Assuming command, Hood elected to move forward with the operation and he struck at Thomas men at the  Battle of Peachtree Creek  on July 20. In heavy fighting, the Union troops mounted a determined defense and turned back Hoods assaults. Though unhappy with the result, it did not deter Hood from remaining on the offensive. Fast Facts: Battle of Atlanta Conflict: Civil War (1861-1865)Dates: July 22, 1863Armies Commanders:United StatesMajor General William T. ShermanMajor General James B. McPhersonapprox. 35,000 menConfederacyGeneral John Bell Hoodapprox. 40,000 menCasualties:United States: 3,641Confederacy: 5,500 A New Plan Receiving reports that McPhersons left flank was exposed, Hood commenced planning an ambitious strike against the Army of the Tennessee. Pulling two of his corps back into Atlantas inner defenses, he ordered Lieutenant General William Hardees corps and  Major General Joseph Wheelers cavalry to move out on the evening of July 21. Hoods attack plan called for the Confederate troops to swing around the Union flank to reach Decatur on July 22. Once in the Union rear, Hardee was to advance west and take McPherson from the rear while Wheeler attacked the Army of the Tennessees wagon trains. This would be supported by a frontal assault on McPhersons army by  Major General Benjamin Cheathams corps. As the Confederate troops began their march, McPhersons men had entrenched along a north-south line east of the city. Union Plans On the morning of July 22, Sherman initially received reports that the Confederates had abandoned the city as Hardees men had been seen on the march. These quickly proved to be false and he resolved to begin cutting the rail links into Atlanta. To accomplish this, he sent orders to McPherson instructing him to send Major General Grenville Dodges XVI Corps back to Decatur to tear up the Georgia Railroad. Having received reports of Confederate activity to the south, McPherson was reluctant to obey these orders and questioned Sherman. Though he believed his subordinate was being overly cautious, Sherman agreed to postpone the mission until 1:00 p.m. Major General James B. McPherson. Photograph Courtesy of the Library of Congress McPherson Killed Around noon, with no enemy attack having materialized, Sherman directed McPherson to send Brigadier General John Fullers division to Decatur while Brigadier General Thomas Sweenys division would be allowed to remain in position on the flank. McPherson drafted the necessary orders for Dodge, but before they were received the sound of firing was heard to the southeast. To the southeast, Hardees men were badly behind schedule due to a late start, poor road conditions, and a lack of guidance from Wheelers cavalrymen. Due to this, Hardee turned north too soon and his lead divisions, under Major Generals William Walker and William Bate, encountered Dodges two divisions which were deployed on an east-west line to cover the Union flank. While Bates advance on the right was hampered by swampy terrain, Walker was killed by a Union sharpshooter as he formed his men. As a result, the Confederate assault in this area lacked cohesion and was turned back by Dodges men. On the Confederate left, Major General Patrick Cleburnes division quickly found a large gap between Dodges right and the left of Major General Francis P. Blairs XVII Corps. Riding south to the sound of the guns, McPherson also entered this gap and encountered the advancing Confederates. Ordered to halt, he was shot and killed while trying to escape (Map). Major General Patrick Cleburne. Photograph Courtesy of the Library of Congress The Union Holds Driving on, Cleburne was able to attack the flank and rear of XVII Corps. These efforts were supported by Brigadier General George Maneys division (Cheathams Division) which assaulted the Union front. These Confederate attacks were not coordinated which allowed the Union troops to repel them in turn by rushing from one side of their entrenchments to the other. After two hours of fighting, Maney and Cleburne finally attacked in conjunction forcing Union forces to fall back. Swinging his left back in an L-shape, Blair centered his defense on Bald Hill which dominated the battlefield. In an effort to aid Confederate efforts against XVI Corps, Hood ordered Cheatham to attack Major General John Logans XV Corps to the north. Sitting astride the Georgia Railroad, XV Corps front was briefly penetrated through an undefended railroad cut. Personally leading the counterattack, Logan soon restored his lines with the aid of artillery fire directed by Sherman. For the remainder of the day, Hardee continued to assault the bald hill with little success. The position soon became known as Leggetts Hill for Brigadier General Mortimer Leggett whose troops held it. Fighting died off after dark though both armies remained in place. To the east, Wheeler succeeded in occupying Decatur but was prevented from getting at McPhersons wagon trains by a skillful delaying action conducted by Colonel John W. Sprague and his brigade. For his actions in saving the wagon trains of the XV, XVI, XVII, and XX Corps, Sprague received the Medal of Honor. With the failure of Hardees assault, Wheelers position in Decatur became untenable and he withdrew to Atlanta that night.   Aftermath The Battle of Atlanta cost Union forces 3,641 casualties while Confederate losses totaled around 5,500. For the second time in two days, Hood had failed to destroy a wing of Shermans command. Though a problem earlier in the campaign, McPhersons cautious nature proved fortuitous as Shermans initial orders would have left the Union flank completely exposed. In the wake of the fighting, Sherman gave command of the Army of the Tennessee to Major General Oliver O. Howard. This greatly angered XX Corps commander Major General Joseph Hooker who felt entitled to the post and blamed Howard for his defeat at the Battle of Chancellorsville. On July 27, Sherman resumed operations against the city by shifting to the west side to cut the Macon Western Railroad. Several additional battles occurred outside of the city before Atlantas fall on September 2.

Timeline for Applying to Law School

Timeline for Applying to Law School As most people are aware, preparing to pursue a career in law involves a total of eight years of education, starting with a bachelors degree in a similar field. Therefore, it is advised that hopeful applicants to law school should begin preparing to apply at least a year ahead of time, during the junior and senior year of their bachelors program.   Discover the timeline below to find out the best methods for applying for and completing your law school degree, the first step into an exciting career in the field.   Junior Year First things first: do you want to go to law school? Around the beginning of the junior year of your bachelor degree, you should determine if a path into law is right for you. If so, you can begin researching law schools to apply to on the LSAC site  and schedule your  LSAT  for either February or June of the following semester.   During the following months, its best to begin preparation for this all-important test. If you are taking the LSAT in February, immerse yourself in studying. Consider taking a preparation course or hiring a tutor. Review test prep books and take as many exams as you have access to. Registration for each exam must be completed at least  30 days before the tests - remember that seats do fill up at testing locations, so booking early is advised. Developing relationships with professors in the field would also be advisable at this time. You will need them to write  recommendation letters  for your application. Cultivate relationships with these faculty, and they will have a positive response (and good things to say) when it is time for you to ask. You should also meet with a pre-law advisor or another faculty member who can provide you with information and feedback on your progress toward gaining admission into law school.   In the spring (or summer, depending on when you schedule it), you will take your LSAT. Your score will be available three weeks after the exam. If your LSAT score  is high enough for a good chance of admission, you dont have to worry with this again. However, if you feel you might do better, there are two more opportunities to retake the LSAT: once in June and again in October.   Summer Between Junior and Senior Year If you need to retake the LSAT, remember to register more than 30 days in advance for the June test. If you still dont believe the score is good enough to get you into your chosen  law schools, you may retake it in October. In that case, spend the summer studying up and meeting with other professionals in the field to get insight on how best to take the test.   At this time, it is essential that you register with the LSDAS and begin your Credential Assembly Service application, complete with having your higher education  transcripts sent to LSDAS. You should also start finalizing your list of top choices of schools youd like to apply for. Narrowing down your selection will prevent wasting money on applications to schools you dont want and help in understanding what you should be sending out in your resumes (each school is slightly different).   Spend the summer gathering each schools application materials, downloading applications and requesting additional information and materials as needed. Draft your  personal statement and review it with your advisor, other professors, friends and family and anyone else who will read it and give feedback. Edit this and draft your resume, again seeking feedback for both.   Fall, Senior Year As you enter your senior year, it is time to  request recommendation letters from faculty  who you have developed relationships with throughout your schooling. Youll typically want to send three of these letters along with each application. You will then need to provide the letter writer with  a copy of your resume, transcript and a summary of aspects of your academic, professional and personal life accomplishments for them to consider. If needed, continue updating your resume and take the October LSAT for your final chance to garner the highest score.   If you require financial aid, complete the  Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which makes you eligible to apply for it. Triple-check your law school applications before finalizing them with the Credential Application Service. Then prepare and submit  law school application forms to each school. It is important now to confirm that each application was received and is complete. Typically you will receive an email or postcard. If you dont, make contact with the admissions office. During this time, also do not forget to submit completed financial aid applications. Acceptance, Rejection or Wait-Listed It is important to keep your LSAC profile up to date, so submit your updated transcript to the LSAC upon entering the final semester of your senior year. As soon as January,  acceptance, rejection and wait-list letters begin to roll in. You will now need to evaluate acceptances and wait-list letters to determine which ones you will pursue further. If your application was rejected, evaluate your application and consider  reasons why  and  how to improve, if you decide to reapply. It is recommended that you visit law schools youve been accepted to, if possible. This way you can get a feel for not only the academic environment of the schools curriculum but also a feel for the community, landscape, location and campus of your preferred schools. If youve been accepted to multiple institutions, these could be the determining factors that help you choose which law school youll ultimately go to.   In any case, you should send thank you notes to faculty who have helped you. Let them know the outcome of your application and thank them for their help. Once you graduate college, send your final transcript to the school that you will attend.   Then, enjoy your last summer before law school and good luck in your next higher institution of learning.

Post Modern Paradoxs Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Post Modern Paradoxs - Research Proposal Example esultant concepts such as the social movement based on the modern policies are also undertaken to be able to achieve the aim of determining the issues and concepts that are related to the migration. The post modern paradox presented by Douglas Massey is used to describe the migration status in the international community. Basically, he described the history of immigration mainly on the economic aspect by looking to the motivation of people in relation to migration. These periods of immigration are driven by the different forces in the society, most specially the economic aspects. It has evolved from the trend wherein established nations such as those in the Western Europe sending people and immigrants to explore and conquer less developed nations toward the present condition wherein the less developed nations are the ones who have more people migrating on the basis of the need to work in capital-rich nations considered as receiving regions in terms of migration. In addition to such trends, there are other observations such as the movement of people in the modern era is distributed to different parts of the world. In relation the movements of the people, the movements of the different economic components such as the goods, capital and different forms of technology and information are also included in significant characteristics (Massey 2-6). The South Africa and the movement of the population can be attributed to two main reasons. One is the local migration within the region on the basis of job in certain areas of the continent that had been more developed. The more significant force of migration is related to people that are coming from other countries on the basis of the motivation to further develop the region. In fact, different international organization of economic perspectives and objectives are continuously making the region a site of migration receiving area (Massey 6). The situation in South Africa can be compared to that of the United States

Essay on social work's theory Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

On social work's theory - Essay Example roviding services (e) with most of these services located within the context of the welfare state and (f) social work is a composite of knowledge, skill and values (Ife, 1997). This has been the traditional framework within which social work has been existing, but this is becoming â€Å"increasingly out of step with the reality of the contemporary practice context†.(Ike, 1997: 12). The hitherto existing system has produced an increase in individual worker case loads, with less levels of control over one’s work while also faced with ethical dilemmas. The disparity between the traditional role that has been ascribed to social work and the reality of actual practice has resulted in critical reviews being instituted of the existing theories that drive social work and how they can be improved. This essay will examine and critique two specific social work theories (a) crisis intervention theory and (b) feminism. A crisis occurs when there is a source of stress that arises in the environment. There are three interrelated factors that are responsible for the generation of a crisis (a) a hazardous event which poses a threat (b) the threat is posed to the person’s instinctual needs, which may also be linked to earlier threats that may have occurred, thus making a person vulnerable to the threat and (c) the inability to respond appropriately to the crisis with an adequate level of coping mechanisms.(Rapoport, 1965:25-26). Dealing with crises is an integral part of social work, because it is a time when people need help. Situations presenting danger or opportunity call for effective decision making by social workers. The crisis theory states that in a developmental or situational crisis, the habitual ways of coping do not work, either because the situation is too new and has not been anticipated or because the events in question are too overwhelming for individuals to deal with. The underlying assumption of the crisis theory is that there are a number of needs, such as

Applied buyer behaviour in global context Essay

Applied buyer behaviour in global context - Essay Example Currently there are six main releases of iOS. These include; iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4G, iPhone 4GS and the latest iPhone 5 (Beavis 2012). The Apple Company launched four TV advertisements. One advertisement focused on the new ear pods while the three showing off the device’s new features. ‘Thumb’ is one of the four ads that explain why despite the phone’s taller display users will still be able to reach the whole touch screen with their thumb. The ‘Cheese’ advertisement shows the iPhone’s camera application capturing a panoramic photo of a group of children in fancy dress. The adverts were narrated by Jeff Daniels the star of â€Å"Dumb and dumber and Newsroom†. ‘Physics’ shows off the design, size and weight of the iPhone 5. The advert shows the larger 4 inch display and the thinner profile of the device. The ‘Ear’ explains why apple chose the new design of the headphones. IPhone 5 TV adve rtisements Cheese Thumb Ear Turkey According to the Apple website (Beavis, 2012; pg. 01), the new iPhone 5 is eighteen percent thinner than iPhone 4S (7.6mm), it is lighter by 20% at 112grams. The bigger screen is 4-inch screen with 16:9 aspect ratios and an 1136 x 640 resolution and a retina display of 336ppi. The new iPhone is sold in two colors, black and white with different storage capacities. In comparison to the previous advert, the iPhone 5 advertisement concentrated on the awesome features of the iPhone. Labeled the ‘Genius ads’ the previous advertisement campaign consisted of three Television advertisements that were broadcasted during the Olympics Opening Ceremony and depicted an Apple worker (Genius) assisting several Mac owners in unlikely situations. The first Advert showed the Apple Genius on a plane helping a Mac owner make an anniversary film for his wife after forgetting the occasion. In second advert, the Apple Genius answers the door in his uniform a t four in the morning to an expectant father who wants to make cards to send the family to announce the birth of the baby, during this time the wife is in labor. The last one depicts the Apple Genius that bought a PC that is a Mac (Trenholm, 2012). The main focus of the Genius advertisement was to show potential customers that Apple has a team of experts available to attend to them should they encounter problems while using the unfamiliar operating system. It ended up offending the public who thought that it lacked creativity. IPhone 5 target market Demographically, iPhone targets consumers aged between 18 and 35. These are mainly the youth population composed of students and young professionals. They must be from a working class and mainly urban dwellers. Features of iPhone that are psychologically appealing to the consumers include stylish appearance, countless applications, multimedia, sensitive touch and user friendly technology. However, the main driving force towards the purch ase of an iPhone is the brand name. Image conscious individuals attach feelings of privilege when using iPhone. Such people are also fashionable, and in order to stay abreast with the current technological trends, they are likely to purchase every new release of iPhone. IPhone also appeals to tech-savvy individuals, attention seekers and extroverts (Piercy & Nicouloud, 2012). Furthermore, study shows that the majority of iPhone users posses similar character traits. For instance, they are lavish spenders who mainly buy branded products and are socially

Mechanical testing of metals and polymers Assignment - 2

Mechanical testing of metals and polymers - Assignment Example L/Lo where Lo is the initial gage length and ?L is the change in the gage length (L-Lo). Procedure: Hydraulic testing machine, steel, mm/min, force and strain. Results Nr Rm N 0.2% ?break (%) E N/mm3 G Nmm2 1 8303.90 0.1 1903 64.77 24.91 2 13853.22 0.4 1903 141.15 54.29 3 17948.63 0.8 1903 208.40 80.15 4 11098.39 1.15 901 410.65 157.94 Procedure: Hydraulic testing machine, carbon steel, mm/min, stress and strain. Nr Rm 0.2% ?break (%) E N/mm3 G( N/mm2) dL (mm) 1 153 0.1 1.37 100 38.46 2 2 170 0.2 -2.41 -50 -19.23 -4 3 217 0.4 1.91 50 19.23 4 4 251 0.85 1.57 50 19.23 4 Procedure: electromechanical machine, acetal, mm/min, stress and strain. Nr Rm (kJ/m2) 0.2% ?break (%) E G (N/mm2) 1 14.43 0.2 9.39 10.71 4.28 2 11.96 0.2 7.65 13.16 5.20 3 10.63 0.2 6.93 14.42 5.77 4 10.11 0.2 6.67 15.00 6.00 5 12.60 0.2 8.27 12.10 4.84 6 15.94 0.2 10.40 9.62 3.85 Procedure: electromechanical machine, HDPE, mm/min, stress and strain. Nr Rm (kJ/m2) 0.2% ?break (%) E G (N/mm2) 1 53.16 0.2 33.79 2.90 1.16 2 55.55 0.2 36.72 2.73 1.09 3 43.34 0.2 28.49 3.50 1.40 4 45.05 0.2 29.29 3.41 1.36 5 51.60 0.2 32.86 3.05 1.22 6 25.93 0.2 16.64 6.00 2.4 Procedure: electromechanical machine, NYLON 66, mm/min, stress and strain. ... .14 1.26 3 46.49 0.2 32.55 3.07 1.23 4 49.52 0.2 29.69 3.36 1.34 5 46.88 0.2 30.40 3.29 1.32 6 50.60 0.2 32.96 3.04 1.22 Procedure: electromechanical machine, PVC, mm/min, stress and strain. Nr Rm (kJ/m2) 0.2% ?break (%) E G (N/mm2) 1 6.29 0.2 3.96 25.00 10.00 2 7.14 0.2 4.41 22.73 9.09 3 10.09 0.2 6.54 15.31 6.12 4 6.78 0.2 4.30 23.44 9.38 5 32.98 0.2 20.62 4.84 1.94 6 9.86 0.2 6.03 16.67 6.67 Discussion................................... B2. Vickers hardness measurement of various engineering alloys Procedure: ZHV 30 micro and macro machine, Acetal. Nr Load S.A VHN 1 7.5 48.81 0.15 2 7.5 47.95 0.16 3 7.5 48.87 0.15 4 7.5 49.49 0.15 5 7.5 49.22 0.15 6 7.5 48.94 0.15 Procedure: ZHV30 micro and macro machine, 4ET002 Tehrmoplastics, Nr Load S.A VHN 1 3.32 30.5 0.11 2 3.14 31 0.10 3 1.16 29.88 0.04 4 1.83 30.25 0.06 5 1.94 29.62 0.65 6 1.79 29.38 0.06 7 2.21 30.19 0.07 8 4.33 32.66 0.13 9 4.71 32.93 0.14 10 4.37 31.67 0.14 11 6.69 29.65 0.23 12 7.10 30.3 0.23 13 9.52 32.98 0.30 14 151.6 9 32.22 4.71 15 113.90 32.29 3.53 16 85.14 31.91 2.67 17 - 31.91 - 18 4.43 41.25 0.11 19 7.90 41.75 0.19 Procedure: ZHV 30 micro and macro machine, HDPE. Nr Load S.A VHN 1 7.5 47.67 0.16 2 7.5 49.57 0.15 3 7.5 49.3 0.15 4 7.5 48.76 0.15 5 7.5 47.76 0.16 6 7.5 48.13 0.16 Procedure: ZHV 30 micro and macro machine, NYLON 66. Nr Load S.A VHN 1 7.5 48.97 0.15 2 7.5 51.36 0.15 3 7.5 51.68 0.15 4 7.5 51.52 0.15 5 7.5 50.88 0.15 6 7.5 51.14 0.15 The key objective in this study was to relate the mechanical properties with the microstructure that was given out by a specific treatment of heat. In measuring the mechanical properties, two methods were used. These were nanoindentation and compression tests. Compression test is a fast and simple method of identifying the elastic limit and material

Past Terrorist Use of Weapons of Mass Destruction Research Paper

Past Terrorist Use of Weapons of Mass Destruction - Research Paper Example Terrorism is a multi-causal phenomenon (Sommer, 2010) and involves a combination of varied factors including psychological, social, cultural, political, economic, as well as religious. Hence explaining the action in a concise and restricted definition would be highly erroneous and disillusioning. For the purpose of this study the term WMD would be defined to include any act of terrorism by an individual or an organization carried out on a large scale using chemical, biological or other weapons intended to cause irreparable damage to the property and lives of human beings; and disrupt the economic and social structure of the targeted region. Researchers have suggested various factors as key causes behind such acts of aggression, in a bid to understand the psyche of the terrorists. These factors range from local ethnic clashes to public outrage and dissent against international forces mainly arising due to differences in religious and cultural ideologies (Cordesman, 1989; DiGiovanni, 1999). Most of the researchers are of the opinion that most of such acts are carried out by individuals or groups belonging to terrorist organizations with a view to achieving their organizational missions (Gambetta, 2006). The use of WMD by terrorists has been in existence for several decades now and continues to remain as a potential threat to the United States as well as rest of the world. This paper aims to assess and analyze the use of weapons of mass destruction by terrorists by way of various case studies.

Valuation and Investment Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Valuation and Investment - Term Paper Example More than 60 percent of the potential customers come from US alone. Carnival is a 23.78 billion company by market capitalization. It has 100 ships in its possession and runs 15 hotels comprising of 3420 guest rooms. The company also possesses 395 motor coaches. The company markets its vacation tours through travel agents and operators. The company gets competition from several smaller cruise liners but due to scale of operations the company is in better position to weather them. (Carnival Corporation 2011) Compared to Cruise Lines, Royal Caribbean (RCL) is a smaller company with market capitalization of only $5 billion; however, RCL claims to have the newest fleet in the industry that provides a lot more open space in their fleets. Operationally, they are smaller than Carnival Cruise but hope to pick them fast. Royal Caribbean manages 40 ships and handles traffic of almost 4 million passengers. The Celebrity Cruises segment is meant for premium customers. This segment comprises 9 shi ps and offers some of the premium services. (Royal Caribbean 2011) Financials It will be appropriate to go through the financials of both the company. The following table shows side by side some of the important key parameters. Some Key Financials Cruise Corporation (CCL) Royal Caribbean (RCL) Market Cap (intraday) 23.78bn 5.06bn Current Ratio (mrq) 0.23 0.40 Total Debt/Equity (mrq) 41.26 103.7 Operating Cash Flow (ttm) 3.82billion 1.42billion Qtrly Earnings Growth (yoy) -18.30% 74.0% Trailing P/E (ttm) 12.53 8.71 200-Day Moving Average 38.41 38.41 52-Week High 48.14 49.99 52-Week Low 29.36 23.03 Beta 1.53 3.19 Source: http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/q/ks?s=CCL http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/q/ks?s=RCL Liquidity The above table displays some of the important liquidity ratios for both the company. On liquidity ground the Cruise Corporation stands better than Royal Caribbean as debt-equity and current ratio both are higher in the case of Royal Caribbean; however, the reason for this lies in the recent addition of some of the luxury ships in its fleet increasing its long term debt. Obviously, this has also reflected in its earnings growth too. Earnings Growth As per the quarterly earnings growth, Royal has displayed an impressive 74 % year to year growth against the negative earnings shown by Cruise Corporation. This indicates that though Cruise has larger fleet to cater to the vacation needs, the segment to which it serves is price sensitive and the Cruise is unable to raise its effective rates due to recessionary conditions. The situation for the CCL may improve with the change in economic conditions as being envisaged after nine months and then higher vacation charges may improve the earnings. Nevertheless, robust growth of the economy is not envisaged in near future so the advantage of booming economy that CCL may have because of its larger fleet and capacity to handle larger traffic is several years away. Risk Perception by Market CCL commands higher P/E compared t o RCL as can be seen from the above table. Risk perception (Beta) by market for RCL is much higher than CCL as later commands smaller Beta of 1.53 against 3.19 of RCL. High Beta indicates high volatility in the market price of the stock. In case of some adverse market conditions or due to some other eventuality the price of RCL may see the vertical fall; however, that also indicates that substantial rise in stock price is possible with

Past Terrorist Use of Weapons of Mass Destruction Research Paper

Past Terrorist Use of Weapons of Mass Destruction - Research Paper Example Terrorism is a multi-causal phenomenon (Sommer, 2010) and involves a combination of varied factors including psychological, social, cultural, political, economic, as well as religious. Hence explaining the action in a concise and restricted definition would be highly erroneous and disillusioning. For the purpose of this study the term WMD would be defined to include any act of terrorism by an individual or an organization carried out on a large scale using chemical, biological or other weapons intended to cause irreparable damage to the property and lives of human beings; and disrupt the economic and social structure of the targeted region. Researchers have suggested various factors as key causes behind such acts of aggression, in a bid to understand the psyche of the terrorists. These factors range from local ethnic clashes to public outrage and dissent against international forces mainly arising due to differences in religious and cultural ideologies (Cordesman, 1989; DiGiovanni, 1999). Most of the researchers are of the opinion that most of such acts are carried out by individuals or groups belonging to terrorist organizations with a view to achieving their organizational missions (Gambetta, 2006). The use of WMD by terrorists has been in existence for several decades now and continues to remain as a potential threat to the United States as well as rest of the world. This paper aims to assess and analyze the use of weapons of mass destruction by terrorists by way of various case studies.

You can choose the topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

You can choose the topic - Essay Example These are some important points that are critically evaluated in the work at hand. Han people, based on Confucian belief had special perspective about undeveloped land as something unproductive and should be deserted rather than to be improved (Williams 66). After all, â€Å"Cultural realities – including attitudes, values, preferences, perceptions and identities – can be just as important in shaping land use decisions as the material realities of political economy† (Williams 61). The underdeveloped lands were the most important places where nomads and the minority used to stay to earn a living and ensure their economic subsistence. â€Å"The nomads themselves had no written records until much later, and accordingly no old accounts are available from any source† (Lattimore 62). This means that the prevailing claim concerning the nomad lifestyles may at some point quite limited and should be taken into account further. Although this may sound quite a limitation, some findings suggest essential lifestyles linked to Nomads. As investigated, finding for new pastures was the primary intention of the Nomads like Kazaks after the Chinese Revolution of 1911 (Svanberg 113). As an addition to this, certain evidence suggests that there were some minority livelihoods that were said to flourish like in the case of Nuosu. â€Å"Nuosu subsistence economy has traditionally combined agriculture, pastoralism, and foraging activities including fishing, hunting, and fore stry. This kind of a mixed economy emphasizes diversification and insurance against disaster in several ways† (Harrell and Warren). This in other words suggests that even the minority population and livelihoods can still have the chance to flourish or grow and ensure economic sustainability. Han people believed that there should be peasants in the land in order to ensure land development, as a substantial point of action that will ensure the continuous link between the economy and politics. That is

Teachers Are Leaders Essay Example for Free

Teachers Are Leaders Essay Touching more lives, affecting the outcome of so many futures a teacher is the epitome of a leader. Just as a leader has his or her own style, their way of motivating their students, also plays an important part in a students success. Spending more time with our children then most parents do, a teacher is fundamental in shaping our children. If they are poor leaders our children suffer. When they shine as leaders our children blossom and the universe is wide open to them. As a teacher it is of utmost importance that you tune your leadership skills and find the best style of teaching for the students you are teaching. In finding resources for this paper it was interesting to note that all the information fell under the category of leadership and not teacher qualities. It was also interesting to note that the principle the US Army teaches on leadership are included in an overwhelming number of corporations as well taught mostly by retired military themselves. The intrinsic characteristics of a teacher can be categorized into a few main teaching styles or leadership styles. Directing, Participating, Delegating, and Combined styles are the main forms of teaching and leading. The qualities associated with these styles are imperative to any teacher. The purpose as teachers is fundamentally the same as leaders, to provide purpose, direction and motivation while operating to accomplish the mission in this case to educate. All four of these actions must be present in order for a student to benefit. A leader or teacher is not born but cultivated through his/her upbringing and environment. In my experience as a leader, teaching in Educational Psychology, being a parent, I have learned that what you as a leader or teacher bring to your students or audience is imperative to their development and learning. A teachers personal characteristics are also crucial factor in students development and motivation. The first principle is purpose, which has to be conveyed to the student. Why do I need to learn Math? How will studying History benefit me? Without the whys we as students are lost. A teacher must give the purpose. It is important to you because? If this question is left unanswered the student will not consider the value of the topic being discussed. To move from purely acceptance to questioning and understanding denotes a higher level of learning. This is the main objective of teaching. Moving the students from regurgitation to higher realization is the ultimate goal. Teachers need to take the time to explain the whys and in the long run it will benefit both the teacher and student. Direction is tied to purpose. Direction is the steps we are going to take to get to that important purpose. Without steps or direction, we lack the framework in which to learn. By prioritizing small tasks (you must teach numbers before adding them) your lessons will be more effective. By conveying the direction or path to your students you are setting up the checklist for them to follow on to higher learning. Purpose and direction are essential aspects to convey to your students. Without motivation however these factors will not be effective. The motivation will give your students the will and desire to do things. You can tell a student the purpose of a task and the direction in which to go but without the internal motivation of that student, sparked by your personality and learned tactics in dealing with students, these will be meaningless. Motivation is the drive and will to do what needs to be done to accomplish the mission. To instill motivation a teacher has to know his/her students and their capabilities. A teacher must know what the students can relate to, what tasks the student are capable of, and what method of teaching will relate to the students. If a student can handle not being supervised on a task, then the teacher doesnt baby-sit them. Some students need a teacher looking over their shoulder at all times; its important to know which student you have. To instill positive motivation when they succeed praise them; when they fail show them how to succeed next time. If this is done properly it will be a teachers strongest tool! Motivation is not just the words you say to your students, it is the actions that you do and the example you set for them. I have found that no matter what I tell my subordinates, or my son, the best way to teach them is by setting the example for them to follow. We all have someone watching and emulating our actions. If you want to convey hard work, proficiency, and the desire for learning to your students, then you must first emulate those qualities. The best teachers and leaders in my life have made me want to take some of their personality traits and copy them. In front of the classroom, who is looked at more than a teacher is! All of these factors combine to make a somewhat effective teacher or leader, but without the right combination of teaching the leadership will be ineffective. Effective leaders are flexible enough to adjust their leadership styles and techniques to the people they lead. Some students will respond best to coaxing, suggestions, or prodding while others may need a chewing out. If you treat all students the same you are probably being unfair because all students are not the same. You must use the directive, participating, delegating, and combined approaches to teaching. Obviously every situation dictates common sense and some adjusting, but you would not want to use a purely free and laid back approach with a group in a juvenile prison. The directive style of teaching is purely lecture which puts most students and myself to sleep. This is teacher centered with detailed instructions and no input from the class. Now this can be done effectively with students who have an innate interest in the subject but for the majority of those who have no choice but to take this class this becomes boring. Without the lecture or instruction part of teaching, however, most students would not be given the instruction for proficiency and understanding that the subjects may require. When students dont have the expertise in a subject, a crucial aspect of the subject is the introduction itself. In certain subjects like math it is imperative that formal instruction takes place. The do this to get this approach must exist. However too purely drown your students with facts and tedious instructions will turn off the students motivation. On the opposite extreme of teaching, the delegating style would be employed. The delegating style involves giving students the power to solve problems and make decisions themselves, without checking with the teacher in most circumstances. This can be effective with very mature students in whom a teacher wants to create independence and expand their thinking. This simply stated is the teacher giving a problem, minimal instructions, and expecting the student to find the solution. In some aspects this can be effective only if the students have a basic understanding and the fore knowledge of how to solve the problem. With too little amount of instruction this will be a disaster! The participating style centers on both the students and the teacher. The teacher gives the students a problem, gives instruction and possible solutions, and asks the students for input. The teacher, although dependent on recommendations from the students, makes the final solution however. This is most effective for teachers who have time as their advantage, which many do not. When this style is used, the students feel as though they are at least a part of the discovery process and it gives them a sense of ownership of the final plan. Again the factor here is time, so this can be ineffective when there are strict time constraints and many lessons to accomplish. The most effective teaching style is the combined approach. Just as the name implies it uses all of the benefits of the delegating, participating, and directive approaches. It is a flexible and transformational tool for any given situation. To become an effective teacher you must learn when, to what degree, and how to use this approach. This approach is best used when you have students with a conglomeration of experiences, knowledge, motivations, and maturity. This may sound like common sense, but too often do when have those pure lecture teachers, or those who are on the other extreme and let the students learn on their own. With all the styles of teaching and leading, who the teacher is plays a significannot role in what the student learns. As I sat in the first day of Educational Psychology I noted how many times the teacher looked at the clock. She noted when there was one minute until the class was to start and has promptly kept the same attention to time since that first day. This shows two of the characteristics awareness and perception that a teacher needs to bring to the classroom. Other characteristics include: listening receptively to what others have to say, accepting others and having empathy for them, foresight and intuition, awareness and perception, highly developed powers of persuasion, an ability to conceptualize and to communicate concepts as well as establish goals, empowering people, using multiple options thinking, and being passionate about what they are teaching. These are forged by our personal beliefs, and just as important our life experiences. Having these combined with the right approach; purpose, direction, and motivation are the key to effective teaching and leading. Leaders cant be trained, but they can be developed. Development needs to be ongoing and highly personalized in its nature. Teachers, true leaders, are so strategically important that schools cannot afford not to provide them with the support and developmental resources they need to grow. But not everybody is capable of being an outstanding leader. However, it is going to be the key to better education in a world of change, complexity and uncertainty. As I look back on the semester, I remember how it started. Never have I been in a class where the classroom students taught the instruction. What a weird, bizarre, and radical way of teaching. I have to admit, I hate to work in-groups and I didnt like this idea at all. In light of my stubbornness and repulsion I see why this had to happen. To me the process was not really about learning the material but bluntly seeing how you can be inspired put to sleep, or appalled at other students, or yourself. The fundamental concept is not really about what you are teaching, but how. The with-it-ness of the teacher makes the student learn or care about the subject. The lack of enthusiasm in an instructors voice, the laziness as they slouch on the podium or smack their gum, or the sheer brilliance of their presentation is what inspires and motivates a student to learn. The Army is the same way with winning wars and making heroes. Many civilian corporations have emulated the leadership principles applied in the Army doctrine and regulations. This is what I have applied this course to. As a supervisor in the Army in charge of those many years younger than me or twice as old as me this course has shown me in a less obvious way to adapt and be flexible to the situation. Also I feel that beyond the regular courses that teachers take they should be shown how to develop their leadership skills. They need to be shown which style to teach which students and how to be flexible. Teachers also need to have and develop some personal qualities that will make them successful. Without the characteristics mentioned they will not be successful teachers. The leaders of the most powerful army of the future need to be shown how to lead. They need to know how to give to their students meaning by showing the purpose, providing the direction and the motivation while they accomplish their mission, to educate. Teachers need to use different approaches to teaching based on the students and they need to be flexible in their approach. Sometimes it is okay to think (teach) in the box and sometimes we need to think (teach) out of the box but I believe we can think both ways at the same time. Sources Blanchard, Kenneth, Patricia Zigarmi, and Drea Zigarmi. Leadership and the One Minute Manager: Increasing Effectiveness Through Situational Leadership. William Morrow Company. 1985. Hesselbein, Frances, Goldsmith, M. , Beckhard, R. , Eds. The Leader of the Future: New Visions, Strategies, and Practices for the Next Era. Jossey-Bass Publication. 1996. Covey, Stephen J. The Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change. Reprint Edition. Fireside. 1990. Covey Leadership Center US Army Field Manual FM 22-100 Army Leadership. U. S. Government Printing Office: 1999.

Mental Health And Young People Social Work Essay

Mental Health And Young People Social Work Essay What is mental health with young people? Mental health can present itself in many different way such as; anxiety, depression, and substance abuse. Mental disorders as suggested above may not only occur at times that could be a predictable reaction to a life changing event such as bereavement (Colman, 2006). A mental disorder is a pattern of psychological symptoms that may show a common foundation or recognisable pattern, that will negatively affect important areas of functioning or significantly increase the risk of death (Colman, 2006). Many different reports have been researched for this essay and they suggest different ages for a young person therefore, this essay will suggest that a young person is aged between 12 and 18. This essay will concentrate on the aspect of self-harm in young people. Self-harm is an act which consists of deliberate injury or pain being inflicted to ones own body. Most commonly this takes the form of cutting however, some other forms include; burning, scratching, picking, scraping, biting and sometimes pulling hair or eyelashes out. Self-harm is often used as a release of emotions that cannot be spoken and can offer the individual the means to attempt to deal with distress (Babiker et al, 2001). Historical context of social work within the service/field Twenty years ago there was an emphasis on joint working however, this is not easy to achieve due to organisational cultures and professional language barriers but research does show this to have better outcomes for young people and their families, this concept of joint work has continued through the last two decades (Southall, 2005).Government policy in recent years had supported joint work and also occasionally placed statutory duty upon agencies to achieve it. These difficulties can be overcome by the Professional Capabilities Framework (PCF) 8 states the need to adapt to changing contexts and to operate effectively with in multi-agency settings. Within the Standards of Proficiency (SoP) standard 9 depicts the abilities to work with others, including those in a different role. PCF 9 should be look at as to why these professionals found it difficult to make this transition as they should be responsible for their own learning and development which could have broken down the barriers between the different professionals. Is there continuity or has the social work field changed over time, and if so how and over what period? For social workers, procedures changed to this difficult multi agency joint work, this placed higher demands upon the social workers who were not as highly trained as other agencies in mental health issues. Changes were made to the Mental Health Act 1983 in 2007 including Professional roles: it is broadening the group of practitioners who can take on the functions currently performed by the approved social worker and responsible medical officer. Consider the ethos of the social work field or service you are presenting The ideas or ethos of mental health has changed immensely over the past two decades. Mental health is more open to the public as an illness that affects many people and does not make these people a definite threat to those around them. Social work has a significant role to play in coordinating efforts to support individuals and groups who may often have negative experiences and perceptions of mental health services. Social workers need to maintain a broader social view of mental health problems especially in regard to concerns about discriminatory practices, civil rights and social justice this aspect is included in the PCF 2,3 and 4. In accordance to the PCF 5 social workers have the knowledge, training and education that allows them to develop understanding and awareness of issues such as oppression, power and social exclusion and it has made social workers aware of their own abilities for oppression towards others. What is the service user/carers view about the service you have chosen? What is the role of the social worker in providing the service? What is the role of the social worker in providing the service? Social workers have had a key role of providing an independent view in assessments. Providing critical perspective drawn from a range of social sciences has been paramount to the training of social workers in the mental health services this complies with the PCF of knowledge and SoP 13 which also relates to knowledge and its use. Additional responsibilities will be likely for social workers employed in a mental health trust such as care management and representation of social circumstances in mental health tribunals. Social work practise is underpinned to promote social justice and challenge oppression, therefore social workers are in theory well placed to aid other mental health professionals working with service users and to collaborate on ways of recovery. These roles include the use of all of the PCF along with SoP 9, 11 and 13. How does current policy about the service (adults or children and young people) impact on service delivery? The Childrens Act 1989, suggest that a child is considered to be at harm if there is impairment of health which includes mental health. The definition of a child in need is one that is unlikely to achieve a reasonable standard of health (mental) without the provision of services. The Health Act 1999 contains a extensive section on partnership with other authorities which suggests that the NHS will exercise their functions along with other authority bodies and they will co-operate with one another to secure and advance the health and welfare of people in England and Wales. The white paper Modernising Social Services (1998) suggests the launch of the Quality Protects programme will transform the whole of the childrens social services. Improving protection with eight regional Commissions for Care Standards and working to national standards. The white paper Modernising Health and Social Services-National Priorities Guidance (1998) commits to reducing waiting times for services along with contributing to the development of outreach teams. This paper also wants to increase and improve services for children and adolescents including early intervention and prevention programmes for children. What do you consider might be the future of the service/field? Modern practise

Producing Carbon Dioxide from a Metal Carbonate :: Science Thermal Decomposition Essays

Producing Carbon Dioxide from a Metal Carbonate Metal Carbonate Metal Oxide + Carbon Dioxide Thermal decomposition ‘is when a substance breaks down into simpler substances when heated, often with the help of a catalyst. It’s different from a reaction because there’s only one substance to start with’. I came across this information in the EDEXCEL Modular Science revision guidebook 1. Thermal decomposition is the breakdown of a substance using thermal energy, this is not a reaction. Preliminary experiment Limewater and copper carbonate were used to see if a metal carbonate beaks down to produce carbon dioxide. This is what the experiment looked like: The equation for this: CaCo3(s) CuO(s) + Co2 (g) This experiment was to see if carbon dioxide was produced from a metal carbonate. In this case copper carbonate was used. Two test tubes were linked together by a rubber tube, which had a glass pipe coming out of the cork that prevented any of the carbon dioxide or any other gas from escaping. As you can see from the diagram in one tube there was limewater that was to test for the carbon dioxide, and in the other was copper carbonate. If there were carbon dioxide present, the limewater would turn cloudy (white in colour). When I was observing what happened I could see that there was carbon dioxide present because the limewater turned cloudy. Secondary Experiment This experiment was to compare the rates of decomposition of several metal carbonates. Several metal carbonates were placed in a test tube and linked to a syringe that measured the amount of carbon dioxide gas when the metal carbonates were heated. This experiment is to see how fast metal carbonates will break down to produce carbon dioxide. The reason they break don’t break down at the same time is because more reactive ones don’t want to break up. So the longer it holds onto its carbonate the more reactive the metal is. In this experiment there are a few factors that can affect the results of the experiment. These factors can make the results of the experiment be incorrect. The factors that can affect the experiment are: 1 Water 2 Amounts of powder 3 Distance the flame is away from the metal carbonate Water can affect the results because it can get into the powder, which can speed up a reaction. If different amounts of the substance are used, then the results can be affected because the more amount of powder there is, the more carbon dioxide will be produced. Plan In this experiment I plan to use 1/500 of a mole. This is because if anything greater is used then the amount is too great and the results

Women of the Medieval Period

Women during Medieval Times: Imagine living your life as a women during the Medieval times. No personal or legal freedom, you can not do anything with out having permission from a male in your family. In this paper I am going to talk about what life was like for the women who lived through the medieval period compared to women living today in the 20th century. Living life during the medieval period was much different than the life we live today for many reasons, but especially being a women. Women during the medieval period were below men, they were ruled by the males in their families, or once married by their husbands. They were to obey and serve the male family members. Girls that did not respect and do what the men said, were beaten, and not obeying the men was considered a religious crime. But women with a lot of land were considered equal to men and had the same rights a men. If the wives husband dies, the wife would be responsible for taking care of the large estate. At this time it was believed that the purpose for women was the be servants for the males, do as they say, take care of the house, and have to children and take care of them. Marriage at this time was much different than what we think of marriage today. During this time, you did not mary because you were in love with someone. The reasoning for marriage during medieval period was just the opposite. Most of the time you did not get to choose who you were going to be marrying, it was arranged by the families, depending on wealth. The law said that the males had full rights over his wife, once you were married, your husband owned you. The wife was the husbands property. Duties of wives during this time were to take care of the house and have children. A married women would usually have anywhere from four to eight children, and normally one will die. Women on average would live to about fourty years of age. Marie de France, a noble French women, was the first female writer from France. She wrote the story, Laustic which is a story of two knights and their wives and the love scandal they have going on between their homes. In this story, the wife of one of the knights is in love with a knight that lives in the house next to her and her husbands. This knight is also in love with her. Every night the women gets out of bed with her husband and goes to her bedroom window which looks at the knights house, and they look at each other and talk. The women's husband begins to notice her out of bed and at the window ever night. He asked her the reasoning for this and she says that she is listening to a bird, because it brings her much joy. Her husband gets angry at this and tell his servants to kill the bird. They do so and bring it to him, where he kills it with his bare hands. He then throws the dead bird at his wife. She is very upset that he would do such a thing, but the woman can not do anything about this. She can not disobey her husband, or let him know that she is in love with another man. She has no choice but to stay with him and do as he says. In todays world, sadly if you are married and are not happy, or are in love with someone else you get a divorce, and its over, you move on. During the medieval time never would you ever hear of a women not happy with her husband so she left him. Today women have every right that men do. You can say and do pretty much anything you want. Women today can get the same education that men can, but during medieval times, most women did not get any education.

Rise of Totalitarianism

At the end of World War I, totalitarianism began to rise. To keep the countries at peace they created The League Of Nations. It did not execute its duties well, and failed to enforce treaties, and prevent invasions. At the end of the war France designed the Treaty of Versailles to punish Germany, and it caused many problems in Germany. The rise of totalitarianism could have been stopped if, the Treaty of Versailles was not as severe, the League of Nations was more effective, and had their not been an economic downfall.The Treaty of Versailles had some harsh regulations. This treaty stated Germany had to pay high reparations, take the blame for the war, have land taken from them, have their military reduced, and League of Nations taking over seas colonies. If it was not for this treaty Germany would not have had the rise of Nazism. The main goal of Nazism was to reunite the German speaking people and they could not do that if all the German speaking countries were spilt up. Alsace Lor raine was taken from Germany and given back to France.Other countries were stripped from Germany and were given to Poland, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, and some made independent countries showing self-determination. All this did was anger the German people, because they blame the signing of the treaty on the people known as the â€Å"November Criminals†. The Weimar Republic did not know who to blame for the defeat and faced many problems similar to that. Revolts let out and so did street gangs. Horrible inflation happened due to the high reparations in the 1920s. This caused many German citizens to have very little hope in the government.Hitler came into power by gaining control of the Nazi Party and got support for finding blame for the war. Hitler blamed the Jews for Germany’s loss in World War I and the economic downfall. In the 1930s Hitler started to use communism uprising as a threat to gain power. He went against the other political parties and set up a fas cist totalitarian state in Germany based on the ideas of Stalin and Mussolini. Each regulation of this treaty led to each event in Germany causing the rise of Hitler and the Nazi party. The League of Nations came along after World War I.The point of the League  was to make sure a war was never to break out again, and keep world peace stabilized. All the countries counted on the League to bring stability into the world. They did not want another disaster to happen, and to avoid this they created an international body whose sole purpose was to maintain world peace. One major problem was this was created when the United States was in isolationism; this meant that the US was not a part of the League. As America was the one of the world’s most powerful country this was a major weakness in the League of Nations. Germany was also not in the League due to the Treaty of Versailles.One of their punishments was not being considered a part of the international community. In 1917 Russia was not allowed to join the League also. Mainly due to the communist government in Russia. This league was lacking powerful countries and that was a big deal if they wanted international peace. The League of Nations did not have an army, therefore, how are they supposed to reinforce the Treaty of Versailles and the peace between countries. The League of Nations would have worked if it was more organized. It also could have prevented the rise of Hitler when everything went bad in Germany.Hitler refused to pay the reparations when he came into power and the League of Nations could not have done anything about it because they had no army. If the League was more organized it could have stop the rise of totalitarianism. Germany was unable to pay was reparations. They had terrible inflation, and their currency became worthless. France was aware of the high reparation costs putting Germany into a great depression. Things got better in Germany for a little until the stock market crashes in 1929 known as Black Tuesday and put Germany back into an economic crisis.This all lead to the overthrow of the government starting with the Freikorps. In 1920 the Freikorps attempted to overthrow the Weimar Republic and tried to blame the communist for it. Germany was in horrible shape with its economy and they would try anything to get out of it. Hitler actually had his reason for this economic crisis it was blaming the Jews. Any sort of way out the German people went along with because they were desperate for help. Hitler banned strikes, placed strict controls on wages and prices to end unemployment and try to improve the economy.He violated the treaty by increasing the military to help unemployment. The League had nothing to stop this so had to let it go by. Germany going into the great depression due to these high reparations is what caused the German people to become desperate and look toward anyone for help. They choose Hitler to listen to and he turns Germany into a fascist totalitarian state. Some countries in Europe during the 1920s were falling apart, and need help desperately. Totalitarian leaders are what these countries came to with Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini, and Mao.The League of Nations was created to stabilize the world and bring peace. But the League had nothing to back it up except for their own word. These European countries economies were crashing, and Germany was in an economic crisis. The German people had to turn to a totalitarian leader to get out of it. Hitler got those jobs and helped the unemployment rate. Totalitarianism could have been stop if the Treaty of Versailles was not as harsh, the League of Nations was put together better, and if the economy had not turn terribly.

Listening Piece Commentary, English Language and Literature Essay

My listening audience piece was inspired by the old man in Poe’s Tell Tale Heart, thought evil by the protagonist, but given no voice to express himself. My protagonist is an elderly character with a dark side, similar to Angela Carter’s in The Werewolf. To subtly reveal this hidden personality I adopted the style of Alan Bennett’s monologue Playing Sandwiches where he gradually builds suspicion of the speaker, ultimately revealing the horrible truth. I created a radio monologue told from the viewpoint of an elderly lady, intended to make the listeners think about the secrets that lie hidden behind closed doors in regular people’s lives, typical of the Gothic. The exposition of my piece introduces the lady as a kind soul: ‘I’m sorry; Miss Hawking doesn’t live here anymore’. I used apologetic politeness ‘I’m sorry’ to encourage listeners to like the character. The nonstandard auxiliary verb ‘was’ m akes her speech sound natural ‘Had herself a nice feller too; they was having a baby together’, as does the colloquial lexis ‘feller’. The visitor is a dramatic device to allow the lady to speak her thoughts. When she talks of romance, the protagonist’s language is more like a written story than spontaneous speech, ‘Then he held her that night, under the moon, with the stars all shinin’ from above.’ She uses discourse markers, lexis like a romance novel, and conventional romantic imagery of the moon and stars, suggesting that she has played it over and over in her head. Because this is a monologue, the visitor’s presence is only implied by the protagonist’s speech. Instead of stage directions my protagonist says everything needed to imply the action ‘No, no, you needn’t take your shoes off ‘. The repetition of the negative ‘No, no’ and the lack of back-channeling begin to reveal her unusual side, sounding a bit too firm with her requests while covering it with a polite tone. Cumulative word count: 317 From here I slowly reveal her darker side making listeners question her knowledge of the couple, and her mental health: ‘the milk’s been in there a little too long I’m afraid.’ To construct her mental breakdown in the line, ‘I, I, Sorry, I don’t know what’s come over me’ I used a false start to show her nervousness and fear, and the adjective ‘sorry’ to echo her opening line. Her identity is revealed when she changes from second to first person in mid-sentence ‘She loved you †¦ and you turned me into this’. I implied that she has been tracking him since he left in a series of photographs in a locked room personifying her feelings: ‘The room won’t forget’. Her change in register, ‘She was pretty, for a whore†¦ You Bastard’ with taboo lexis unnerves the audience because it subverts expectations of how an old lady should speak. Writing this piece has crystalised the difference between spoken and written language for me; in creating it I felt the need to say it out loud to ensure the voice accurately reflected the speech of an old lady. Overall I believe I did so effectively as the register change at the end is quite striking.

Abacus Distribution plc Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Abacus Distribution plc - Research Paper Example With these acquisitions, it is believed that there would be a major thrust in the financial markets. This has also resulted in the consolidation of the product markets by Abacus and it is now positioned as the 5th largest distributor of electronic components in the industrial markets in Europe. (Annual Report and Accounts. 2006).The changes from GAAP to IFRS have brought about a major transformation in the treatment of Goodwill in accounting records. In the earlier accounting periods, goodwill was amortized through the profit and loss account, along with other intangible assets, but under IFRS, good will valuation is reviewed through a yearly goodwill impairment evaluation method. (Amortisation of Acquired Intangibles andCapital: On 30/9/2006, the Net Bank debt was to the tune of 61.4 Million due to the amounts of 12.1 million and also 1.8 million acquired from Deltron and Axees Technologies. A sum of 6.9 million was also paid towards purchase consideration for the acquisition of Axe es Tech. (Cash flow and working capital. 2006).These factors have increased the operating capital requirements for the Company. During earlier years, the Deltron business had reduced working capital to such an extent that the needs of the customers were not being met, with the integration of these companies into the Abacus fold, the situation would improve considerably in future years. Since Abacus enjoys invoice discounting facilities with the banks, there are reduced pressures for the minimizing the debtors levels. However, there is further need for exercising greater control over the working capital needs, and to bring it down to lower levels once the integration is totally carried out. The financial policy of the company has been to make sure that adequate financial resources are made available in a cost-effective manner. At Abacus, no speculative transactions are carried out and all foreign currency transactions are recorded at their projected levels. Dividends: Dividends: the dividends declared by the Company are as follows: 1. In the year 2002 - 9.7 Pence 2. In the year 2003 -10.2 Pence 3. In the year 2004 - 10.5 Pence 4. In the year 2005 - 7.2 Pence 5. In the year 2002 - 7.2 Pence (Annual Review and Accounts. 2006). The fall in the dividend rate is a major matter of concern for the shareholders. it is found that the dividend rate has remained unaltered in 2005 - 2006. The management feels that with increased operational performance, in future years the rate of dividend could be improved in future years. Question 2 Market Value Added The Market value added could be seen as the difference between the market value of Abacus stock - the equity capital of shareholders. In this case, the market capitalization value is 53. 32M on 13.11.2007. (Abacus Group PLC; Holding(s) in Companies.( 2007). The equity capital available to shareholders is 80.2M Therefore the MVA = 80.2-53.32 = 26.88 (In the absence of market cap. figures for 2005 and 2006 the figures could not be provided) Market Book Values During 2004, EPS stood at 5.4 p (Abacus Group) (Abacus Group plc. 2004). and the Book value of the share price=0.5p, therefore, the Market Book Value would be 5.4 X 0.5 =2.7 During 2005, the EPS stood at 14.1p (Financial review: earnings per share 2005). and the Book value of the share price=0.5p, therefore, the Market Book Value would be 14.1x 0.5 = 7.05 (Note: In the absence of Market Value of Abacus share as on 30.11.2004 & 2005, the calculation has been based on EPS valuation) Again the Market book value could be Market Price per share/ Book value per share In this case it is seen Market