Macbeth Witches Essays (1393 words) - Characters In Macbeth

Macbeth Witches In Macbeth, the witches seem to be confusing figures, they are portrayed as dark, eccentric, and strangely amusing creatures. It doesn't seem that they have that much of an importance early on, but after finishing the story and truly comprehending, we see that the witches have done a lot. Through certain examples, and subtle clues displayed in the story, we can safely deduce that the"weird sisters" were specifically designed to implant ideas in Macbeth's brain, which later influence him by giving him all types of information that eventually affect his manner of handling greed, guilt, and other emotions that put him virtually on the edge of sanity. We see that the witches display a keen interest in Macbeth, reasons for the interest aren't exactly given, but illustrations of interest can be shown. As Berryman suggests, the witches have ulterior motives for Macbeth. We see this through Berryman's example, which states that at first, Macbeth is hailed as a great hero, but in his coming, he is hailed by the pricking of a witch's thumb. Which basically means that he is brought on a sort of omen, not portrayed as something that could be of some good. Berryman brings up the fact that the witches know that Macbeth shall be bad, it is not stated at this point of the story why, but it is just instilled that he is (321). This example illustrates the fact that the witches do not have the role of Macbeth's aids, but rather as Macbeth's bad influences. Which is also supported by Shwister in his line "Their appetite for mischief is infinite"(Shwister 60). Which tells us that the natural intent of the witches is to do evil, of which they can never be satisfied, which is displayed by the word "infinite" in the quote, and by then being naturally prone to evil, they act upon Macbeth in a negative type of influence. Influence is again illustrated when we see that the Macbeth meets the witches for the first time. The witches wish to receive complete attention from Macbeth, we see that they use sly ways of going about it. As Shwister states "When the Witches tell him that he will be Thane of Cawdor, and then King, they feed the secret dream he had shared only with his Lady"(59). This quote displays the fact that the witches know what is Macbeth's dark desire. By them knowing this we see the fact that don't just have some insight into Macbeth's inner knowing, but we also get the fact that they have an interest in Macbeth that can be shown by them giving Macbeth information that would excite his fancy. We can look at the above statement that Macbeth, after hearing this, begins to take on a transformation that Bloom marvelously compares to the story of Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde. "Visitors as we may (or may not) be, we fear that Macbeth, out Mr. Hyde, has the power to realize our own potential for active evil, poor Jeckyll eventually turns into Mr. Hyde and cannot get back; Shakespeare's art is to suggest we could have such a fate"(523). What this quote means is that Macbeth, after hearing what the witches have told him, has transformed from the innocent and kind Dr. Jeckyll, into the evil Mr. Hyde. Also, the last part of the quote states that Macbeth more than likely would not be able to turn back and change his way of thinking. Macbeth has changed, change in a manner that has left him in the realm between innocence and evil. De Quincey helps illustrate what Macbeth has turned into because of the ideas implanted by the witches, in his passage that states "With Macbeth and Lady Macbeth we are made to feel, by dialogue and soliloquy, that their human nature, the nature of love and mercy, has vanished, and the fiendish nature has taken it's place"(167). In this quote De Quincey brings into light the idea that Macbeth has changed, and put aside compassion and love, and replaced it with evil. Berryman also agrees on this fact, by his state "This is variously glossed by the commentators as "Superhuman," "subhuman," "devilish"; but the meaning is clear, that there is a possibility that the human Macbeth-the demonic"(321). In his quote Berryman states that Macbeth has changed into the most evil; demonic. By using the word demonic, we get the idea of utter and pure evil, evil without compassion, and evil without contest. Evil that cannot by denied. Evil is again illustrated

Literature Review

Literature Review Henri Fayol is a prominent theorist in the realms of management and other related fields. He proposed a conceptual model widely applied in organizational and business management.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Literature Review Henri Fayol specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In his book of â€Å"Administration Industrielle et Generale,† Fayol described an array of management principles that have immensely contributed in the organizational management (Brunsson 2008, p. 35). Precisely, despite various criticisms that have been elicited from different theorists and scholars, Fayol models are still widely used. Established and well-performing businesses and organizations have attributed their effective performance and success to the Fayol principles. In his theory, Fayol outlined five basic functions inherent to management. The basic management functions described by Fayol in his theory include planning, organizing , and commanding. Additionally, Fayol identifies coordinating and controlling as other basic management principles. According to Fayol, outlined functions remain universal to all organizations. He stipulated that all managers have to carry out these described functions in every day working environment. In addition to these, Fayol outlined other fourteen overall management principles. Indicatively, the 14 principles provide normative guidance regarding the manner in which manager may implement the basic five managerial roles in an effective manner (Sapru 2008, p. 33).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More There is great importance in outlining these basic principles identified by Fayol regarding managerial roles. Particularly, this examination is important during this era of globalization, which has led to a remarkable increase in organizational and business competitivene ss. Fayol describes the basic principles of management. Planning is one of the highlighted roles of management. As Fayol outlines, managers have to conduct basic planning roles. This is applicable for the future conditions. The development of strategic objectives is objectively important for proper organizational performance. This is particularly in order for organizations to secure the accomplishment for the future organizational objectives. Therefore, as Fayol indicates, it is important for all the managers and other organizational leaders to evaluate their potential for future achievements. Future contingencies likely to influence organizations and consequently transform their operational and strategic orientations are important. Consequently, these must be well planned for. Organizing is another critical management role as described by the Fayol’s theory (McLean 2011, p. 32). The organizational leaders have to organize its personnel in an effective way. The streamlining o f organizational activities and other work processes is important for effective performance.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Literature Review Henri Fayol specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Generally, as evidently described by Fayol, a well planned and organized organization leads to adequate and successful performance. Proper organization remains vital even during recruitment processes. For effective performance, the managers have to recruit the right personnel for specific duties. Securing the highly skilled and learned human resource is a vital organization role that must be conducted by the managers. Commanding is another critical management role proposed by the Fayol’s theory. Ideally, current organizations face stiff competition and high employee demand. In order to remain within the competitive organizational and business mainstream, the outlined Fayol’s theories remain largely applicable. Effect ive supervision and motivation of workers is crucial within organizations (Wren Bedeian 2009, p. 56). Evidently, most successful organizations have attributed motivation to their innovation and novelty. Effectively supervised and motivated workforces remains dedicated and compete constructively to accomplish outlined goals and delegated duties. Subordinates must be adequately supervised in their daily work processes. This should be accompanied with their motivation to achieve the organizational goals. Motivation enhances innovation as well as novelty. Adequate communication and feedback mechanisms are vital within an organization. These processes are basically oriented in the command system. They help in the articulation of company goals and policies to all members. This also includes the subordinate staff.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The commanding structure and system utilized by the managers must be in compliance with the inherent company policies. This is important to avoid the instances of confusion or conflict of interest emerging from different factions within the organization (Parker Ritson 2005, p. 188). As notable within the present day organizational management, there must be an outlined command system within all cadres. This management role outlined by Fayol is crucial because it supports the work processes within an organization. Another important management role is coordination. The organizational leaders and managers have to streamline the processes and procedures undertaken within the organization. Basically, the implication is that all the organizational units must be complementary and enriching to the work f one another. The last management role outlined by the Fayol’s principles is the act of control. Various managers must observe control in order to succeed in their respective organiza tional activities (McLean 2011, p. 33). Generally, the organization’s processes and operations must be controlled. This initiative ensures that these processes remain in accordance to the general organizational policies as well as strategic objectives. Various organizational control mechanisms have been presently adopted by various managers in organizations. For instance, monitoring and evaluation remain as critical component of the controlling function of management within all organizational processes. Fayol indicates that it is the obligation of all the relevant managers and leaders to note and report all the cases of deviations. Therefore, this management role requires a keen observation of the plans, objectives and basic missions. Developing corrective initiatives for these deviations include another critical undertaking within the controlling role of management. The application of Fayol’s principles in management practices still remains eminent. The Fayol’s principles are presently applied in various learning institutions to explain the basis of management and organizational administration (Wren 2001, p. 479). In addition, its practice within various successful corporations and organizations is eminent. Observably, these outlined five functions within the theory assume the normative as well as functional approach to management. There have been reiterations that this theory might not comprehensively cover the evident managerial intricacies that most managers are presently encountering in an alarming rate. The failure of these theories to outline or elucidate on how the leaders are supposed to impart motivation as well as innovative performance of their subordinates are important. Observably, although these outlined management roles might be widely applicable, they also have their inherent limitations (Wren 2001, p. 480). For instance, the principles might not comprehensively represent the overall intricacies that managers encounter dur ing their duties. This is, particularly, within the presently globalized and highly competitive organizational environment. However, it is vital to note that these outlined roles described by Fayol’s theory provide a general structure for the diverse functions. These functions are specifically for the managers. The present organizations are in pursuit of more strategic approaches to management and general organizational administration. It is evident that the increasing organizational competitiveness has also imparted significant pressure on employees’ engagement and welfares. Therefore, the available HR has become competitive to hire and maintain. For these reasons, organizations are more skewed towards the utilization of comprehensive approaches to management and practice. In this demand, the Fayol’s principles have increasingly become pertinent and applicable in both management practice and teaching (Wren Bedeian 2009, p. 43). However, due to more complicated management situations, most organizations also apply this principle in combination and synergy with other effective management theories. The interaction of the management with the other staff including the subordinate workers in an effective manner as stated by Fayol is a critical component in organizational success. This is because presently, the employees are regarded as the first fundamental stakeholders within all organizations. This is because they are the sole implementers of organizational policies and objectives. Therefore, their welfare has remained largely profitable and advantageous for organizational performance. Apart from these management roles described by Fayol, it is vital to discuss the basic 14 management principles. Fayol recognized the need for division of labor. He argued on the importance of dividing roles among personalities as well as teams. In the present day, division of labor is widely practiced. This is largely due to its advantages related to the effic iency within organizations. In his arguments, Fayol potentiated the importance of specialization (Sapru 2008, p. 54). The theory presents specialization as the most preferable method of utilizing the workforce within an organization. The proposition has been widely applicable in increasing the responsibility and accountability of individuals to basic roles. Fayol observed the close association between authority as well as responsibility. In his argument, Fayol indicates authority as the competency to provide directives and exact obedience from the followers or subordinates. On the other hand, responsibility entails the act of being accountable. According to Fayol, these two elements closely relate to each other. Any manager with authority has to exercise certain levels of responsibility (Wood Fields 2007, p. 269). The Fayol principles of management also indicate the importance of discipline. Indeed (even presently), it is notable that most successful organizations have to exercise a lot of discipline in order to attain good results. With the era of increasing organizational competiveness, discipline must be given a priority within all organizations. The entire workforce must have a collective focus and determination. Fayol also reiterated on the need for rational discipline of deviant workers within organizations. These concepts are widely applicable within most highly performing organizations presently. Unity in command as well as direction is other important management considerations as indicated by Fayol. There must be a properly defined and communicated protocol of receiving orders. Generally, employees are preferably ordered from one point to another by a specific manager (Parker Ritson 2005, p. 187). In addition, the whole corporation must move to a collective aim and in one direction. These observations help to keep the organization’s activities in the right track. Additionally, they have been applied to prevent the high cases of internal or ex ternal conflicts that have been presently incurred by organizations. The principles examine the conflict of personal and the general organizational interests. Generally, there is an indication that individual interest must never assume priority over other important general interests of the entire organization. The importance of consideration of underlying factors during the remuneration processes is eminent. According to Fayol, diverse factors like the life standards, presence skilled human resource as well as the business environment must be considered. Presently, the increasing life standards and globalization have affected employees’ welfares considerably. As a result, organizations endeavor to apply concerned directives under Fayol’s remuneration principles to enhance their employees’ welfare (Parker Ritson 2005, p. 189). Concurrently, the importance of centralization is discussed in the principles of Fayol. He referred to centralization as the process of l owering the significance of subordinate functions. He observed the importance of decentralization and the performance of the subordinate. Perhaps, this illustration explains the reason behind formation of various line manager units within present organizations. Fayol also noted the importance of scalar chain and its consequent observation within all organizations. In his principle, he denoted that the line or ground managers should be reporting to their immediate supervisors or bosses. This flow of protocol helps in enhancing the communication as well as feedback mechanisms within organizations. Equal treatment of all persons (employees) in an organization is critical. This sentiment has been outlined clearly within the Fayol’s concepts of management. Present organizations have drawn the necessary guiding policies on material use and handling. This directly indicates the critical observation of Fayol’s principles (Pryor Taneja 2010, p. 500). Fayol’s equity prin ciple of management has been widely applicable within present organizations to overt discriminations based on gender, age or race. Managements have presently endeavored to obtain and competitively retain the adequately performing human resources. This reiterates the Fayol’s principle regarding the stability of tenure of the human resource. Work initiative must be motivated by the management in order to enhance organizational performance. ESPIRIT DE CORPS is the last management principle eminent within the Fayol’s concept (Wood Fields 2007, p. 270). According to this principle, the management must motivate peace and inspire workers to stay in a state of good feeling. Generally, it is notable that the Fayol principles on management have been widely applied within present organizations. List of References Brunsson, K 2008, ‘Some Effects of Fayolism’, Int. Studies of Mgt. Org, vol. 38 no. 1, pp. 30-47. McLean, J 2011, ‘Fayol – standing the test of time’, Manager: British Journal of Administrative Management, vol. 74 no. 1, pp. 32-33. Parker, L Ritson, P 2005, ‘Revisiting Fayol: Anticipating Contemporary Management’, British Journal of Management, vol. 16 no. 1, pp. 175-194. Pryor, M Taneja, S 2010, ‘Henri Fayol, practitioner and theoretician revered and reviled’, Journal of Management History, vol. 16 no. 4, pp. 489 – 503. Sapru, R 2008, Administrative theories and management thought, PHI Learning, New Delhi. Wood, S Fields, D 2007, ‘Exploring the impact of shared leadership on management team member job outcomes’, Baltic Journal of Management, vol. 2 no. 3, pp. 251-272. Wren, D Bedeian, G 2009, The evolution of management thought, Wiley Publishing, Hoboken, NJ. Wren, D 2001, ‘Henri Fayol as strategist: a nineteenth century corporate turnaround’, Management Decision, vol. 39 no. 6, pp. 475 – 487.

Features and Consequences of Globalization Essay

Features and Consequences of Globalization - Essay Example Globalization has rapidly changed the lifestyles of many people without their even being unaware. To take an example, most people had not even heard of the Internet in 1990. Also, few people had an e-mail address then. But today the Internet, cell phones and e-mail have become essential tools that many people just cannot live without, in both developed and developing countries. But globalization does have its opponents. This essay examines the fundamental aspects of globalization such as meaning and definition, features, aims and organized and un-organized globalization. Globalization is commonly understood as the process by which physical, political, economic, cultural barriers separating different regions of the world are reduced or removed, thereby paving the way for exchanges of goods and knowledge. Globalization facilitates freedom of movement without political and geographical hazards and this seems to be the attraction of globalization to most people. Globalization also promotes mutual reliance. As the number of exchanges of goods and of information increase, the result is a growing interdependence between countries as they come to rely on various imported products, services, and cultural input. Thus, from economic point of view globalization is the integration of world economies into a single economy. Definitions Globalization means and includes increased closeness among countries most notably in the areas of economics, politics, and culture. The term 'globalization' has been defined by various authors in different ways. In fact, it has as many definitions as there are authors. The most commonly used definitions include the following: 1. Globalization is "a complex set of distinct but related processes-economic, social and also political and military-through which social relations have developed towards a global scale and with global reach, over a long historic period" (Rajaee Farhang, 2000, p.44) 2. The prominent Islamic scholar, Muhmoud Ayoub, defined globalization in the following way: "It is said that we now live in global village. To extent that it is true, it is a negative process. Globalization is a latest manifestation of Western Imperialism" (Rajaee Farhang, 2000, p.30) 3. In its most concise definition, globalization "simply refers to the complex of forces that trend toward a single world society. Among these forces are mass communications, commerce, increased ease of travel, the internet, popular culture, and increasingly widespread use of English as an international language." (Lautier Frannie, 2006, p.34) Features of Globalization Globalization means the integration of an economy with the rest of the world so as to ensure free flow of goods and services without any legal political and geographical boundaries. Globalization is different to different countries. The way in which one country approaches globalization phenomenon is different from that of another country. It depends upon the nature of economy, the political scenario and many other similar factors. However, the common features of globalization remain the same to all countries. They include: (OECD Handbook. 2005. p. 18) 1. Reduction of barriers to trade 2. The high interaction of financial markets is increasingly impacting on the conduct and performance of

Organization, people and performance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Organization, people and performance - Essay Example The rest of 24% employees are actively disengaged. Thus, employee engagement is very low in most companies worldwide according to the research. For instance, in places like China where staff turnover mostly happens in epidemic proportions, knowing how to build loyalty and engage employees is crucial to the success of Tesco. In light of this, employee engagement is significant to Tesco mainly because it improves employee satisfaction, productivity, retention and recruitment, innovation, and company profitability. First, employee engagement leads to employee satisfaction. According to Beardwell, I., Holden, L., & Claydon, T. (2001), employee’s job satisfaction tends to increase considerably if they are engaged by the company. Subsequently, satisfied employees develop a positive attitude towards the success and performance of the company. Tesco would gain by having satisfied employees since they are committed to the success of the firm. Additionally, their loyalty increases. On a broader perspective, satisfied employees act as ambassadors of the firm. Thus, they support and promote the firm’s brand, mission and strategy. Next, Tesco’s productivity would increase as a result of employee engagement. Robinson, D., Perryman, S., & Hayday, S. (2004) implied that since engaged employees go the extra mile, they lead to increased productivity. Thus, for employees to be top performers, they have to be engaged with the company. As they become more engaged, employee absenteeism reduces while motivation levels tend to increase resulting in increased productivity. In simple terms, the more a firm’s employee is engaged, the more efficient the employee becomes. Lockwood, N. (2007) argued that firms with engaged employees often have their productivity levels increase by more than 43%. Moreover, employee engagement will lead to a low employee

Gun control Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Gun control - Research Paper Example Even the women also bear license for guns and uses them2. Guns maybe either shot-guns or hand guns. Generally people use the hand gun more as it is easy to carry and becomes handier. In recent times the issue of gun control has turned out to be very controversial, especially in US, as a lot of crimes and accidents are taking place due to licenses which are being given away to commoners. Crimes Guns are a potential threat to a person’s life security. Crimes are more likely to take place in the presence of guns. All people who bear license for keeping guns are not potential threats to the society. People who own only handguns typi ­cally own the guns for protection against crime. There is a two-step linkage between gun control and crime rates: (1) the impact of gun control on the availability and accessibility of firearms, particularly handguns, and (2) the effect of the prevalence of guns on the commission of crimes. The course of the outcome moves from gun control to crime r ates3. In fact, high crime rates generate political support for the implementation of more severe gun controls4. The rates of crime are bound to increase as people are freely permitted to use guns. Sometimes thieves can also burgle the gun from the house or even kill a person. Gun control proponents often point out those countries such as Britain and Canada, which have strong gun control laws have lower rates of violent crimes5. Gun violence has unevenly impacted the African American society. While overall crime rates, including gun-related crime, have come down among the general population during the past decade, gun violence has increased among African Americans. African Americans youths, especially young males, have been particularly affected by gun violence. In addition to higher rates of violent crime, suicide rates among the African American have also increased. This has compelled community leaders to decry the self-destruction of younger generations and call for increased gun control measures6. According to the Department of Justice, nearly 58 percent of gun crimes took place in large cities over the past 30 years, and disproportionately by black males between the ages of 14 and 24. Despite composing only 1 percent of the population, these young African-American males represent 16 percent of homicide victims and 27 percent of all homicide offenders7. But, certainly one cause that so many Americans are concerned about guns is that guns signify and indicate individualism and self-reliance, two characteristics in which Americans outdo the rest of the industrial world8. People sometimes may not be criminals and do not have intentions of killing someone. Those who want to show their vengeance towards someone can show it through other methods also, but it is a natural thing that when a person has better options in front of him, he will definitely make use of it. So gun is always a better option than knife or any other sharp weapon. For instance, â€Å"Adam L anza, an honors student with no criminal record, murdered his mother, stole four of her guns, and—for reasons we may never know—decided to rob the world of the lives of 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School. It was a murder of unarmed innocents on a scale with few precedents in American history, the second deadliest school shooting in history, and the worst massacre in an elementary school since the 1927 bombings at the Bath School in

Gifted Students In The Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia Education Essay

Gifted Students In The Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia Education Essay Introduction Making proper stipulation for gifted students is significant for the development and growth of ones society. They are considered as valuable future resources. In the year 1998, the interest in supporting gifted children in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia grew. They have established programmes in which they were able to identify gifted children. The General Administration for Gifted Students (GAGS) was established in Saudi Arabias Ministry of Education in the year 2000. (Bondagjy, 2000). There has been not enough research and development in the field of introduction of gifted children in Saudi Arabia. According to Al-Ghamdi, 2007, there are very few programmes for gifted students in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that was run by the Ministry of Education. The programmes that do exist are new and in need of evaluation and further development in order to provide maximum benefit for gifted students. The Saudi Arabian government believe that the gifts and talents of the young people in the country are nurtured. At the present time, in Saudi Arabia, gifted students who have special characteristics or abilities qualify for provision at the highest levels of services. Since 1999, the Ministry of Education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has demonstrated a strong interest in its gifted students by putting in place programmes that are developed specifically for these students; however, these programmes are rare and new. Therefore I feel it is necessary to carry out an in-depth study of the present state of gifted education, find out what is available and identify the strengths and weaknesses of what is being offered. Objectives of the study From the outset, it is acknowledged that the concept of giftedness and its identification is highly complex. As Gubbins (2002) points out, people all over the world are still asking questions about how we assess and nurture peoples abilities. Whilst there are centres around the world focusing on research and development on gifted education, there are also experts (Borland, 2005) who question the whole concept of identification of gifted students and recommend that what is needed is gifted education without labelling a group as gifted. Borland, however, states that there is agreement amongst experts that high achieving or high-ability students are among those who are the most ill-served when curriculum and instruction are not differentiated.This study aims to make a contribution to the on-going debate in aspects of gifted education. It also hopes to add to the research literature by studying the nature of gifted education in Saudi Arabia, which has a different cultural social and educ ational background to many other countries where gifted programmes exist. More specifically, the aims of this study are: to explore the effectiveness and any possible weaknesses of gifted programmes in Saudi Arabia, by seeking the perspectives of all parties involved; to draw conclusions about the Saudi programmes and make recommendations based on the data collected; to make suggestions based on what is known about gifted programmes in other countries. As previously stated, the study also aims to provide an overview of international literature on gifted education by reviewing gifted education programmes and the range of methods used in other countries. The research questions Based on the aims articulated in the previous section, the following specific research questions have been formulated: How does the Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia define gifted students? How does the Ministry identify and support gifted students? What is the nature of programmes for gifted students in the Ministry of Education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia? How effective are these programmes in terms of making provision in terms of the educational methods and resources for gifted students? In 1969 the Saudi cabinet first recognized the necessity of identifying gifted students -Nafea et all (1992), but no actual steps had been taken for action. Between the years 1990 and 1996, King Abdul Azizs City of Science and Technology, with collaboration from the Ministry of Education and the General Presidency for Girls Education, produced a project for extensive national research. The project titled: identification and care for Gifted Students (Bondagjy, 2000) and consisted of three main aims: To design a programme for identification of gifted students. To design enrichment programme models for mathematics and science curriculum. To enlighten Saudi society about the importance of the identification of gifted pupils and provision for their educational needs. Regarding identification of gifted students, the project employs seven methods, which are: Teachers nomination High academic achievement High achievement in science High achievement in mathematics. IQ test Torrance test for creativity thinking Wechsler IQ test. In 1998, a project (identify and car programme for gifted students) designed for identifying gifted students in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia was implemented by the Ministry of Education (Alwasruh, 2005). This programme consists of four units: Identification of gifted students. Care and enrichment programmes for gifted students. Training, planning and organization. Finance and administration services. This project was a very significant one in that it would serve the purpose of identifying and supporting gifted children of the kingdom. Therefore, it represents a landmark in the history of gifted education in Saudi Arabia. It provided the Ministry of Education with the opportunity to start special programmes for gifted students. Gifted Students Care Centres in Saudi Arabia: The gifted students Care Centres are establishments charged with the task of offering educational, social and psychological care for gifted students. Such centres are supervised by the General Administration for Gifted Students. The administration body which controls each of these centres includes a Centre Director, assistants, teachers, behavioural specialists, laboratory technicians, learning sources specialists and general support technicians. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, at the time of writing this thesis, has 31 Care Centres for boys and 20 for girls (MOE, web, 2007). Care Programmes for Gifted Students in the Schools of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia The General Administration for Gifted Students emphasises that all students should be provided with equal opportunities, so that their abilities may be identified and their gifts and talents developed. In order to achieve this goal, the General Administration for Gifted Students provides a programme to train teachers so as to achieve this purpose. The teachers duties include the introduction of a complete gifted programme prepared by the General Administration for Gifted Students. These programmes start at the beginning of every school term. Among the responsibilities of the teacher is the use of modern methods which help to improve students skills of leadership, social and scientific research skills, as well as improving the parents knowledge about the importance of provision for gifted students. The duties of teachers also include the liaison between the various Care Centres of Gifted Students. The number of schools that have had benefited from this programme, between the years 2002 and 2004 was 264 boys schools and 97 girls schools (Alwasruh, 2005). Support for Gifted Education The Foundation provides funds and support to students in the six main centres for gifted education of the Ministry of Education of Saudi Arabia. These centres are located in Riyadh, Jeddah, Taif, Madinah, Dammam, and Al-Hassa. They work on identifying gifted children and providing them with enriched educational activity. They also assist in the teaching of the whole community about the nature of giftedness and about the role that talents and talented people will play in the future of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Additionally, the Foundation is committed to providing training for all those who interact with the gifted children (KACFG, web, 2007). The KACFG is the first and the biggest foundation to support the education of the gifted and talented in the Saudi Arabia, as it supplies programmes and support with substantial funding. Literature Review This chapter provides a pervasive review of literature relevant to the identification of and provision for gifted students. The contents of this review constitute the basis for the empirical work and the subsequent analysis. It starts with an examination of a range of definitions and conceptions of giftedness. Theories and research relating to various aspects of gifted education are reviewed, accompanied by a critical analysis of various points of view on the complex and contested conceptions of giftedness which provide a theoretical framework for this study. In this section literature on methods of identification of gifted students is reviewed, which will be followed by a review literature on aspects of provision of educational opportunities that will extend and/or enrich the learning of the gifted students. It could be argued that using accurate methods of identification is critical in determining the nature of provision. For example, Gubbins (1995) believes that identifying gifted and talented students is not just about answering the question, who are they? but it must also address the question, how do we find them? and what do we do when we find them? The process of identification may differ from one programme to another. In some programmes, the only means used for identification is the use of standardized tests. In others, the standardized test is only one of the factors in the identification process and in addition to test scores, nominations and recommendations of teachers, parents, staff, and even self-nomination are used (Blackshear 1979; Denton and Postlehwaite, 1984; LPS 1995). ( check spelling of of Post..) Bondagjy (2000) believes that a single test to determine general ability may not be sufficient and that subject specific tests may need to be used: Standardized tests of intelligence offer a good base for staff to identify potential capability, including that of some pupils whose performance is otherwise undistinguished as poor. In a few schools the tests are used in isolation without reference to individual aptitudes in specific areas of the curriculum, either as a short cut for selecting pupils for special enrichment courses, or for determining the composition of teaching groups of. This is less useful than if combined with a subject-specific test. (Bondagjy, 2000, p.20) Standardised tests are used widely by the supporters of the theories of a one-dimensional view of ability, which go back to the first theories of intelligence, such as Spearmans theory ( date) mentioned in the previous section, which has been received with enthusiasm and also with scepticism and rejection. The arguments against this single-dimension view of ability (based on general intelligence that consists of areas that are highly correlated with each other and that are mainly intellectual and tested using IQ tests) led to the creation of multi-dimensional theories of ability, such as that of Renzulli, (1978) Gardner (1983,1993), Sternberg (2000) and others. The multi-faceted theories of giftedness are viewed by many to be more appropriate to define and identify high ability. These authors along with Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, ( date ) and Benjamin Bloom (1985) have all made compelling arguments for a much broader conception of giftedness. Chongde Tsingan, (2003) describes the cont ribution to the more liberal conceptions of giftedness as: Many western theories of intelligence focus on its physiological or cognitive components. However, Howard Gardners theory of multiple intelligences (1983, 1993), Robert Sternbergs triarchic theory of intelligence (1985) and Stephen Cecis bioecological theory of intelligence (1996) are much broader in scope. They combine and extend aspects of the biological, hierarchical and contextual views of intelligence which include interactions between mental processes, contextual influences and multiple abilities. (p.) The following section provides greater detail of the specific models of identification of giftedness and associated views on high ability, which have informed the nature of data collection in the present study. Saudi Arabia has conducted research to find out the best approach to gifted education, but of course for females who are severely restricted in the subjects they are allowed to study, these moves are somewhat academic. An interesting survey of computer use in Arabic countries was made by a Jordanian, Subhi (1997). He recommended that gifted pupils records should be computerised for easier monitoring of their progress, and he has designed a programme to help this. The problem, he found though, is that although there are computers in Jordanian schools, there are very few of them and the teachers do not generally know how to use them. It looks as though most, if not all, Arab countries are willing to recognise and help the gifted, and several have made forays into out-of-school activities, but the overall outcome is still difficult to define. Some authors (such as Sternberg et al., 1986, Ziegler and Heller, 2000) believe that a consensus is yet to be reached on what is meant by the term (gifted), and yet multiple efforts have been made to establish criteria for this, which include components such as motivation, creativity, task commitment, and problem solving. However, personal talent is described by Renzulli (1999a, p.4) as exceptional ability to select and achieve difficult goals that fit ones interests, abilities and social contexts. In his view, personal talent is a capability developed in the field of self-management that is concentrated by the individual in the direction of selected outcomes that contain well-being, happiness, personal relationships, hobbies as well as career achievements. He proposes that personal talent can be referred to as a range where those in the centre of this continuum can be explained as personally competent, while those at the high end of the range can be categorized as personally talente d. On the other hand, Masten et al. (2002) argue that resilient individuals learn how to overcome obstacles in order to achieve their anticipated goals, and that this can be described as personal talent. Also, Bland et al. (1994) refer to specific characteristics of resilience as an indicator of exceptional abilities and talent regarding children from poor backgrounds. In this regard, Marker et al. (1996) propose that numerous of the principles of distinguishing curriculum for gifted and talented learners support the development of personal talent. They refer to learning environments that foster independence, flexibility and high mobility as being potentially more promising for fostering personal talents than the more traditional teacher-centred classrooms that concentrate on lectures with academic content. However, some researchers regret the fact that research on giftedness has been somewhat biased, having mainly concentrated on IQ-related abilities that address academic skills, and b y-passing or simply ignoring other basic skills such as vocational skills (Bals, 1999), practical intelligence in everyday life (Sternberg, 2000), and, most importantly, social skills (Persson, 1997). Motivation is another issue that has been the focus of research with regard to gifted children. According to Sternberg (2000), some theories depict motivation as an assisting internal factor in the expansion of giftedness. One of these theories is Gages dynamic theory of giftedness which depicts motivation, volition and self-management as interpersonal catalysts that help convert gifts into talents. However, these theories have failed to provide guidance in assisting youths of high ability to develop motivation. For this reason, some researchers (for example, Colangelo et al. 2000; Alrasheed, 2001) believe that talented students should be identified and given tasks at a higher level than the normal school curriculum. Renzulli (1999b) is of the opinion that gifted students should be pro ducers of knowledge rather than mere consumers of existing information. He believes that specific programmes and services for the talented and gifted are the only solution to allow them to live up to their potential. This idea is further supported by Reis et al (1995) who argues that it is not fair to make a gifted child sit in a classroom where learning something new will not happen until the second half of the year. Historical review of school counselling in the KSA Initially, in 1981, the Ministry of Education established the General Directorate of Guidance and Counselling. Since that time, guidance and counselling has become formalized and recognized as a profession, and counsellors have been appointed to deal with psychological, social, educational, and vocational problems and deliver protective counselling (Ministry of Education KSA, 1999). It should be mentioned here that the model for and practice of guidance and counselling in SaudiArabian schools was derived from western sources, mainly the United States. More than two decades have passed since the guidance and counselling programme was established in Saudi schools. Its development has progressed at a slow rate and, currently, it faces various problems. The major difficulty relates to the definition of the role and function of the school counsellor (Al-Gamdi, 1999) which is unclear to principals, teachers, parents, students and school counsellors themselves. Due to this problem, counsell ors have found themselves overly involved in paperwork and administrative tasks and duties not related to school counselling. Additionally, counsellors often complain about lack of support and cooperation from others involved in the counselling service, especially parents (Al-rebdi, 2000). In this situation, if school counsellors in Saudi Arabia are to provide better services for students, their role must be clearly defined. It is also necessary for those involved in counselling to have a clear view of what counsellors should and should not do. Added to this, counsellors must choose carefully how they spend their time and energy. As the role and functions of the school counsellors become clearer, they should be able to respond better to the needs of their students. Furthermore, in 1981, following decree number 216/k issued by the Ministry of Education, the Social Educational Administration was replaced by the Student Guidance and Counselling Service, and guidance and counselling in Saudi schools became formalised. That same year, the name was changed again to the General Administration for Guidance and Counselling (Ministry of Education, 1999). The responsibilities of this administration are as follows: 1- To plan, prepare and develop the programme and services of guidance and counselling. 2- To provide professional staff who are capable of delivering such services to all students at various stages of education. 3- To provide students with the appropriate care applicable to their ages and their psychological, educational and social needs. 4- To assist students to develop their capabilities, potentialities and talents, to allow them to face their problems and to help them feel comfortable with themselves and with the community in which they live. 5- To attain a high standard of mental health in a way that reflects the targets and goals sought by educational guidance in general (Ministry of Education, 1999). Saleh (1987) pointed out that, due to the immediate need for professionals to monitor and guide the counselling service in schools, the Ministry of Education sought personnel from among the existing social education supervisors to act as the supervisors; counselling and guidance programmes in addition to carrying out their normal duties. The Ministry of Education also sought personnel from within the existing teaching force, provided they had the relevant experience, to work temporarily as counsellors in schools. To meet the need for school counsellors in all schools, the General Administration for Guidance and Counselling allowed those with a Bachelors degree in psychology, social work or sociology to perform the role of the school counsellor until enough trained professional counsellors could be provided. In order to meet the need for trained full-time counsellors to work in schools, universities in Saudi Arabia were requested to offer guidance and counselling programmes at masters level. Statistical information for the year 2000 shows that there were 229 counselling supervisors and 3381 school counsellors overall (Ministry of Education, 2000). By 2003, the number of counsellors had increased rapidly toabout 4000(Al-Rebdi, 2004). The Ministry of Education (1999) defined the term counselling as the interactive process though which the counsellor assists the student to understand himself and recognise his capabilities and potentialities and gives him a more enlightened approach to his problems and how to face them. Counsellors also help students to enhance their responsible behaviour and to show conformity with their community. Counselling gifted students Landau (1990) noted that gifted students might become isolated and alienated. Moreover, Rogers (1983) pointed out that in an egalitarian system children not only lack the opportunity for confirmation and social acceptance, but they also often lack the freedom to learn. The need for confirmation and emotional support is well known in the literature which focuses on giftedness and talent (Csikszentmilalyi et al., 1993; Kelley, 1999; Stednitz, 1995). Donna (1999) suggests that teachers and counsellors need to encourage minority students to consider a teaching career in general and gifted student education in particular. Ford (1995) however, believes that from an historical point of view, the counselling of gifted students has not been an important part of educational and counselling discourse. He points out that misconceptions and stereotypes of gifted students as being immune to social, emotional, and academic problems have contributed to the lack of counselling for these students, and in cases where counselling is available it is only limited to academic, assessment and placement issues. According to Ford, the fact that more children are entering school with serious personal and academic problems should entail an expansion in the responsibilities and roles of counsellors to meet the needs of all children who seek guidance and assistance. But nonetheless according to Alrasheed, (2001) the limited availability of counselling services has failed to meet the enormous need for counselling services and research regarding gifted individuals. In this respect he endeavoured to provide counsellors, classroom teachers and educationalists as well as parents with advice regarding the understanding of the academic and social needs of gifted and talented students. Persson (2005) considers mentorship as a possible solution to aid the immediate psychological and intellectual needs of gifted individuals, particularly received mentorship. According to Person, mentorship could be direct or indirect by cooperating with the student to find a mentor of his choice, given the fact that not a ll gifted students would be likely to choose their counsellors to be their mentors. Person expresses the conviction that mentorship is the only viable counselling solution in an egalitarian context, which lacks recognition and particular provision for gifted individuals. Ford (1995) outlines the goal of counselling as that of promoting healthy self-concepts and ensuring psychological growth. Bearing that in mind, counsellors must have an awareness and understanding of the many issues that hinder gifted students and affect their psychological, social and emotional well-being. He recognises the role of counsellors in ensuring that such students remain in gifted programmes once identified and placed. Finally the concept of counselling needs to be defined within a context where it is not a task assigned merely to a particular group. Instead, as Brown et al. (1992) suggest the task has expanded from an initial concern with educational and vocational guidance to the remediation and prevention of personal, interpersonal, vocational and educational concerns. Consequently, according to Persson (2005), the aim of the intervention is for the individual to gain an understanding of self and context, in which case individual differences become a sensitive and even problematic issue, particularly in cases where gifted individuals are involved. Research Problem There have been few programmes for gifted students offered in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Even though there has been programmes existing, it is new and is for further evaluation to be able to develop it more for the students. It has been believed that if there has been more developed programmes for gifted children then they will be more enhanced and so, benefiting the country. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have put up programmes for gifted students but is new and rare. There has been studies regarding the support of the authorities in the schools on how to support gifted students. The research questions Based on the aims articulated in the previous section, the following specific research questions have been formulated: How does the Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia support gifted students? Does the authorities in the schools help in the development of the programmes? How do we determine the effectiveness of the programmes with the school counsellor, principal, and teachers help? Sub-questions Two sub-questions will also be explored: Do the teacher, student counsellor and principal who work with gifted students have special qualifications? What is the level and nature of the response of gifted students to these programmes? Research Design The design of the study is intended to determine: first, the relationship of the roles of student counsellor, teachers, and principals to the performance of the gifted students; second, the effectiveness of the programmes in developing the capacity of the gifted students. Instrumentation and Data Collection The researchers visited the [Insert name of University Library or City Library] for journals, articles and studies needed for the research paper. The researchers gathered time-series data from different physical training institutions to assure of its validity and consistency. The primary data will be gathered using quantitative method, as this is best useful with questionnaires. The use of quantitative method will be appropriate for the research because the results in the questionnaires consist of numerical information, mostly based from the ratings included in the questions. Quantitative methods are used to provide reference to numeric calculations and are often used with questionnaires that have a specific goal and a target to achieve. This is helpful in the research, and its instigation in the process needs to be further culminated so that the problem is solved with efficiency and precision. In gathering data, the researcher would like to clear certain ethical issues that might hinder the processing of data. First, confidentiality will be kept at all costs. As the main reason why questionnaires will be used in the research is for the respondents to feel secure and to be assured that their answers will not be related to who they are. There may be instances wherein the respondent will divulge information that will be detrimental to the company, or to its competitors, depending on the case. Hence, there is a better chance at more responsive respondents if they can be assured of their confidentiality. Second, the Data Protection Act will be followed at all costs. The compliance with the act will be transparently said to the respondents so that they are further assured that anything they say in response to the questions asked them will only be used for the benefit of the research and not in any other practices. It should also be clear to the researcher that any information regarding the respondents cannot be released to anyone who is not immediately connected with the research unless permission from the subject respondent has been secured beforehand. Third, the research must always bear in mind the objectives of the study and never stray away from them. A researcher who has no definite purpose in doing the research is going nowhere and is exerting effort in a research that is not delimited properly and punctually. The purpose of the research is explicitly stated at the beginning of the research and is implied in every step of the realization of the research so as to not delineate the researcher from his goals. Lastly, the researcher must opt to practice objectivity. As the researcher, he is expected to keep an open-minded approach to the topic, keeping from his mind and personal bias in the subject matter or on the people involved. The reason for doing research is to test existing information, validate, prove or disprove existing ideas, or to test the limits of a certain prospect. Given this simple definition, it is clearly seen that in no form is the personal opinions of the researcher expected to hinder in the subject. Any act that might be biased or subjective will hint of the researchs failure to achieve its goals. Planned Method of Analysis The researchers plan to analyze the different test conducted through constant evaluation of the gifted students and how they perform. There will be a weekly evaluation in terms of how the programmes and the role of the authorities, and the effect of it to their performance. The performance in the field will be evaluated by the gifted students progress and development. Conclusion This study adds to a growing body of literature that reinforces the importance of examining the programmes for gifted students adopted by the Ministry of Education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for further development. There is no, to the researchers knowledge, research that investigates such programmes. This study is identified as being the first study at the level of a doctorate research project which evaluates the gifted programmes in the Ministry of Education from the point of view of the students, the schools and the workers in such programmes. The study further attempts to use the most effective methods of collecting information, which the researcher obtained data in the form of questionnaires, interviews, observation and documentation. The mixed methods employed in the research made it possible to triangulate both qualitative and quantitative research. Further to these methods, the study used the most popular electronic program (SPSS) to gather and analyse the data as well as to design the tables and diagrams. The study focuses on the research questions at every stage of the research, either theoretically or practically. The researcher also oversaw the validity and procedural aspects of the questionnaire through sitting with students and workers when they answered the questions in order to clarify any ambiguity and confusion on their behalf. In general, the results of the study agree with many of the theoretical studies mentioned in chapter two. Finally, this is a serious explorative study, which has

How Do You Define Advice :: Defintion Essays

How Do You Define "Advice" Advice, in my mind, is a form of one person helping another person out; whether it is in words or actions. About 90% of the time, I believe advice comes in the form of words. Advice can be verbally spoken to somebody, or typed/written and given to somebody. In either example, it's advice that's being given to help somebody out. The other way I mentioned was advice given by actions. In my own life, I'm trying to quit smoking cigarettes and finding it hard; especially when I look around and see others doing it. However, the advice I receive when I look around are from those not smoking and those hacking and spitting because they smoke. It's sort of subliminal for me in the sense that I'll be hacking and spitting if I don't quit. So they're giving advice to me in the form of their actions. In mentioning what advice is and how it's given, I ask myself how it works. This happens to be a rough question seeing how advice isn't this little piece of gum on the bottom of my shoe that I can just pick off and toss away. So know I find help in the example of John Sweat and his mechanic friend to help explain how advice works. John was stuck in a pickle jar and wasn't sure what to do. But his friend knew where he was in the jar (because he had been there himself), and decided to offer some advice. John was able to get unstuck because he listened to his friend and took his advice, believing that his friend knew what he was speaking about, and sensing his sincerity. By looking at this example, I have come to the conclusion that advice works when one person takes a conscious (or in my smoking example - an unconscious) effort, to give somebody an honest, experienced point-of-view about a situation in order to give that person help. From there, the advice will only work if the person receiving the advice takes it to heart and uses it. OK, so if this is how it works, what are some ways that it doesn't work? Well, it doesn't work when the advice giver is trying to use his advice given for his own personal gain. I believe the dark forces are at work here and therefore, they cannot succeed! Another way advice given doesn't work is when the person receiving the advice doesn't take it, like in my example of getting advice from my Dad.

Isolation in The Metamorphosis Essay

Franz Kafka’s short story â€Å"The Metamorphosis† centers on the theme of isolation. In the lead character’s transformation he experiences a deep isolation towards society now. What this isolation leads to is to a series of events, that cause Gregor’s isolation to grow. Eventually isolation leads to Gregor’s death. Isolation and its after effects are the central themes involved in the â€Å"The Metamorphosis. † Isolation is the state of an individual being separated from other individuals. Isolation involves both the mental state of an individual and the physical state of the individual. Further isolation also involves the individual’s belief versus societies’ believes. This paper will argue that Gregor’s transformation into a bug is a symbolic representation of one’s difficulty in accepting the isolation reality. The notion of the isolation is first realized in the author’s work in section . The reader can see that Gregor’s isolation started before the transformation occurred when Gregor mentions â€Å"That’s all I’d have to try with my boss; I’d be fired on the spot. Anyway, who knows if that wouldn’t be a very good thing for me. If I didn’t hold back for my parents’ sake, I would have quit long ago. † It is at this point that the reader realizes that Samsa was mentally isolated from the society he lived in before the transformation occurred. Gregor had wished to be free from work long before his transformation occurred, but society expected Gregor to work and to provide food for his family, something that Gregor didn’t want. Gregor’s isolation before the metamorphosis occurred was that he wanted freedom and society wanted him to work. By Gregor showing different believes than the rest of the society the reader realizes that Gregor was somehow already a loner even before the transformation occurred. The notion isolation also affects Gregor in section III. Some readers believe that Gregor Samsa’s experience is centered on Morality and Ethics. These people believe that Gregor is treated different because he is no longer a human in a physical state. However this notion limits the whole picture of why Gregor is treated differently. Gregor’s isolation towards society is true picture why he is treated differently. If the other notion of morality and ethics were to be chosen many aspects of â€Å"the Metamorphosis† would be lost. These lost would be would be the ability of the reader to see how isolation has both affected Gregor inside and outside. My notion of â€Å"the Metamorphosis† portrays events in the past that show Gregor’s isolation were morality and ethics notion lacks of. Many notions in the past have been presented to try to present what Kafka’s â€Å"The Metamorphosis really portrayed.

Biography of Bill Gates essays

Biography of Bill Gates essays Bill Gates, a young hacker with dreams to develop a software for computers. Computers for companies and computers for home users. He was not alone in this dream. He had a fellow friend to help him out, Paul Allen. His full name is William H. Gates. He is the chairman and chief executive of Microsoft. He was born on the 28th of October in 1955. Having more than fifty billion dollars, he is said to be the richest man alive today. He married a product manager at Microsoft, her name is Melinda French. Now that the intro is over lets see how it all began. In 1968 a company called Computer Center Corporation opened in Seattle. They were offering computing time at good rates. Gates who was at Lakeside Prep school got computing time because CCC made a deal with the school. Gates and his friends started exploring the new machine. It wasn't long that they started causing trouble. They caused the computers to crash many times and they seemed to find how to break the computers security system. They got caught by CCC when they were altering the files that recorded the amount of computer time they were using. CCC banned them from the computers for several weeks. Him and Paul Allen and two other hackers started the Lakeside Programmer Group in 1968. The group wanted to find a way to apply their computer skills in the world. Their first opportunity to do this was a direct result of their activity with the schools computer time. The CCC business was beginning to suffer because the systems weak security and the frequency that it crashed. The CCC was impressed with Gates and the other Lakeside Computer hackers. The CCC decided to hire the students to find bugs and expose weaknesses in the computer system. In return the CCC gave them unlimited time on the computers. They could not refuse. Although the group was hired just to find bugs, they also read any computer related material. They would pick new employees for new info. ...

Dorthea Lange and the Essense of Subject †Art Essay

Dorthea Lange and the Essense of Subject – Art Essay Free Online Research Papers Dorthea Lange and the Essense of Subject Art Essay Symbols, generalisations are the language of politics, so it is not surprising to read of Dorothea Lange approaching her subject not as a human being but as â€Å"an essence†. Her actions show a political philosophy which espouses helping ‘the people’ as an idea over ‘the person’ as a physical reality, and the photo Migrant Mother could be seen as a good example of what Sontag calls the violence of the photo, the action that â€Å"turns people into objects that can be symbolically possessed.† While Lange tries to avoid these ideas of violence or exploitation by talking of how â€Å"There was a sort of equality about it†, the resolute indifference she shows to the personal aspects of her subject indicate more an awareness of her own agenda of finding â€Å"the precise expression on the subject’s face that supported their own notions about poverty, light, dignity, texture, exploitation, and geometry.† (Sontag) rather than any give and take between the subject and herself. Of course it may be that thousands became better off because of the sympathy generated by that photo, even if the subject herself did not. However it is somewhat disquieting that La nge’s romantic outlook of the circumstances behind the taking of the photograph has not been tempered with hindsight, and she does not examine or acknowledge the problematic aspects of her actions or the resulting picture. Research Papers on Dorthea Lange and the Essense of Subject - Art EssayEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenTrailblazing by Eric AndersonCapital PunishmentQuebec and CanadaComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoUnreasonable Searches and SeizuresRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andPETSTEL analysis of IndiaHip-Hop is ArtAnalysis Of A Cosmetics Advertisement

Strategic Public Relations Plan for Tesco Assignment

Strategic Public Relations Plan for Tesco - Assignment Example An application of SOSTAC is applied here to Tesco. SOSTAC is a strategic marketing process introduced by Paul R. Smith (1990). This is being made a model in marketing throughout the business world. It has many features that involve SWOT, 5Ps, Marketing Mix, and other marketing tools. TESCO sees to it that it helps British shopping public. Tesco aims to make shopping simpler, more convenient and affordable for the customers. If these issues are directly addressed, customers reward the company with their loyalty. The company aims to communicate to the customers through its many subsidiaries, benefiting customers wherever they shop. Consumers have an easy way of switching between stores, that is, they choose to shop in a different store from one month to the next. They have a wide range of retailers to choose from including Wall Mart/Asda, Saisbury, Morrison, Waitrose, M&S, Somerfield, Aldi, Lidl and Netto, other smaller supermarkets, Costco and Makro, the Co-Ops, Symbol groups, and thousands of independent retailers. (Talking Tesco) TESCO then is in a very stiff competition. The management has to apply an effective PR strategy to cope with the challenges. Everyday too, the organization has to apply innovations to its various marketing infrastructures to be able to satisfy customers. Application of SOSTAC starts w... situation, the question that needs to be asked is "Where are we now" This means analyzing the entire organization, on how it has gone through after years of operation. Situation After its founding in 1919 by Jack Cohen, then the first Tesco store opened in 1929 in Burnt Oak, Edgware, North London, the organisation has grown into a large business venturing not only on food but also on electrical goods, clothes and other services such as insurance, banking, etc. It has 30 distribution centres, of which six are dedicated to non-food and clothing. It is now the largest online grocery shopping service in the world. Fourth biggest online retailer in the UK, behind Amazon, Dell and Argos. Its revenues grew by 29.2% in 2007. Tesco.com, the online shopping alternative accounts for 66.2% of all UK online food and grocery shoppers. (Datamonitor.com) The 3,262 stores wordwide go through multiple formats including: Extra, Superstore, Metro, Express, and Fresh and Easy. Tesco is now the leading retailer in the UK with about 30% of the total UK grocery market, and the largest food retailers in the world employing about 318,300 people. Tesco 2007 profits exceeded 2.55 billion. (Datamonitor.com) Marketing Mix applied on Tesco The Marketing Mix model (also known as the 4 P's) is used by marketers as a tool to assist in defining the marketing strategy. Marketing managers use this method to attempt to generate the optimal response in the target market by blending 4 (or 5, or 7) variables in an optimal way. It is important to understand that the Marketing Mix principles are controllable variables. The Marketing Mix can be adjusted on a frequent basis to meet the changing needs of the target group and the other dynamics of the marketing environment. (12 Manage website) PRODUCT The

Movie Girl Interrupted Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Girl Interrupted - Movie Review Example Girl Interrupted is a story told by Suzanna Kay son who has been on a locked psyche unit for females for almost two years. She is a bright teenager of 18 when she signs herself in on the suggestion of a family friend and psychiatrist. The story is set in the 60's when it was truly an embarrassment to have this kind of illness and Suzanna goes to the hospital alone, in the back of a cab. Suzanna has already had many problems in her life. She does not get along with her parents, she has had an affair with a high school teacher and contrary to what was alright for a girl in that day and age, she has decided to "write". The ward she is on seems almost to be a dorm. There are several other young women there, some are silly and some are angry but is this not the same elsewhere The truth of the situation occurs when any small thing changes to set off these women and then chaos erupts and everyone seems different than they did just a few minutes before. The head nurse is Whoopie Goldberg and she has previously worked for a State institution and believes this job is a "piece of cake" in comparison. She, however, has a great deal of compassion for these women though she also runs the unit with a needed strong hand. Treatment for misbehaving is an ice bath and many of the nurses use the "there is not going to be any trouble is there" to be sure the patients take their medications etc. There is also, of course, four point restraints. Not to many of these kinds of treatments are used today but seclusion rooms are still prominent on most lock ups. These rooms are padded on all four walls, the ceiling and the floor and you are placed there to do away with you hostility. Suzanna is diagnosed by her psychiatrist as a borderline personality disorder In today's DSM IV her symptoms would seem to match this disorder which is Borderlin epersonality disorder, 301.83. It actually is difficult to see Suzanna as having any psychiatric disorder and she is the kind of patient that is difficult to miss when admitted with problems to the medical surgical floor. Suzanna took a bottle of aspirin and drank an bottle of alcohol but for most of the movies states it was an accident and she did not mean to kill herself, "she had a headache." DSMIV lists the main symptoms of personality disorder as revolving around unstable relationships, a poor negative sense of self, inconsistent moods, and significant impulsivity. They have an intense fear of abandonment and usually push people away so they cannot be abandoned. They become overly involved and very attached to various people (DSM IV) Suzanna does meet all of these symptoms and like she says it is a wavy line because she seems normal. We would not admit her to a locked psyche unit today but we might regularly run into her in clinics and other healthcare facilities and as nurses, have a need to understand that this can be a problem personality and may be why these people are alone. The prognosis here is good if they attend treatment and begin to understand that they are not "crazy" but need to understand their disease. Suzanna does end up being able to go home and has gained a great insight not only into her own illness but into the illnesses of so many of the other patients on the unit. Lisa, on the other hand is what in the days the movie was placed would have