Peasants DBQ Essay

This revolt lasted from 1524 till 1526, it began in the German states, and the main reason for the revolt was new Lutheran ideas that were beginning to go against the traditional Catholicism ideas. Documents 1,4 and 5 give insight on the views those who were on the nobility side, Documents 2 and 3 give more specific details over the views of peasants and finally for Documents 7,8 and 12 explain how the mainly how the revolt didn’t have much meaning behind it. Documents 1, 4, and 5 explained the point of view of the nobility which mostly all of the nobility agreed it was negative. In Document 1the Chancellor of Bavaria wrote how he believed that the revolt was simply the belief of the time and that’s why so many peasants were following the same belief. Yet the chancellor doesn’t realize the side of the peasant who strive for a better life for themselves, they simply want to have more rights for the individuality. In document 4 it explains how they have not reach any religious achievements, so for their freedom they must give a large amount of money to buy their freedom. As for document 5 a pope explains how the peasants are more like salvages and act very ruthless during their revolt. All 3 of these documents are more than likely extremely biased since the nobility only wanted to better themselves and nobody else. Document 2 and 3 explained how the peasants felt during the revolt which they unlike the nobility believed their actions were going to a positive cause. In document 2 a local craftsperson explain how the lords been cruel to all peasants. He is stating the lords and nobles should offer payment for their services not simply force them to do task like slaves. This relates to Luther’s knowledge and ideas instead peasants apply it not only to the church but outside of the church. In document 3 they explain the wrong doing of the lord by controlling peasant, they continue into saying that the rulers set by god would be the only one peasants would follow, but that they should still be set free and not be under so many restrictions. Both sides will not be entirely correct since they both strive to better themselves,  which of course they would maintain bias to their sides. Documents 7, 8, and 12 explain the negative side of the revolt from a 3rd person point of view. Document 7 comes from Martin Luther saying how the revolt from the peasants contradicts what they said; he goes on explaining that their actions are under the devils order. Although the actions they may have taken wasn’t the best response they did fight for what they believed in and all throughout history this has occurred many times fighting for what you think is right. Document 8 explains how if they all are brothers then the rich should share their wealth with the peasants, yet many would have trouble with this, because the one person’s wealth is every wealthy person wealth. Document 12 explains how the peasants forgot their place in the revolt, how they do not have the power to de3ciede for themselves. It truly shows how the peasants have absolutely no word in their treatment.

Horror Essay

Schlenz 1 Jarid Schlenz Professor Fahey English 1A 13 October 2011 Horror Movies Scare Us So Why Do We Watch Them? Scary, creepy, and downright disturbing images have existed in film, art, and literature as long as we have had the ability to invent them, perceive them and construct them. Not only have they simply existed, but they permeate these mediums: â€Å"horror has become a staple across contemporary art forms, popular and otherwise, spawning vampires, trolls, gremlins, zombies, werewolves, demonically possessed children, space monsters of all sizes, ghosts, and other unnameable concoctions† (Carroll, 51).Horror is easily accessible to appease a growing appetite for scary in society. But why? Why would we want to put ourselves through the terror and agony of sitting on the edge of our seats, heart racing, sweaty palms, eyes squinted? It is one of the most frightening experiences to be at the mercy of someone or something else, yet we do it constantly and voluntarily. One of the reasons why we may feel the need to watch this genre of movie is to simply gain the excitement of living on the edge. Another may include the curiosity of the unknown, the unexpected, and the unseen, all of which are elements that that make a good horror movie good.While at the same time there is a need to watch others feel helpless, act under pressure and deal with the. Even the appeal of seeing a new creature or monster brings people to watch horror movies. But the unifying pull lies in the ability of experiencing something new without losing control. Schlenz 2 One reason often used to explain the desire and need to watch horror movies stems from physical reactions. There is the appeal of the adrenaline rush, which gives horror movies the same draw as a roller coaster at a theme park.The difference, however, is that horror movies lack the real danger of things that normally give humans an adrenaline rush. Even a roller coaster, which simulates deathly falls and flying at i ncredible speeds, contains the real danger of death if it malfunctions. But the act of watching a movie contains no danger. Still, â€Å"when people watch horrific images, their heartbeat increases as much as 15 beats per minute†¦ their palms sweat, their skin temperature drops several degrees, their muscles tense, and their blood pressure spikes† (Sine, 2). The affects of the scenes people watch are there, without any of the actual danger.This allows people to experience the thrill, high energy, and, perhaps, new sensations of being out of control, without ever relinquishing control of their surroundings and lives. More than just physical reactions, though, horror equally appeals to and disturbs the mind. One of the primary appeals, mentally, about horror is the unknown. The unknown, unexpected, and unseen disturb our sense of safety and comfort and our ideas of how the world should work. They take away the rules we use to deal with reality and make the familiar become unfamiliar. In the unknown anything could happen and anything could emerge from the darkness.The unknown takes away control, but it also excites curiosity. Our imaginations are so quick to run away with what is being presented to us that we are left clinging to our seats in desperation. Everything known comes from the unknown so it has an endless power to keep our attention. With our attention captive, and our minds guessing, the unknown allows movies to employ shock. Our stomach plummets when the killer rises again after being smashed in the head, shot, and pushed down the stairs. Unnatural creatures and occurrences make us feel uncomfortable and Schlenz 3 confused.This is sometimes referred to as the â€Å"shock horror,† or the â€Å"employment of graphic, visceral shock to access the historical substrate of traumatic experience† (Lowenstein, 37). Shock horror intensifies the adrenaline and physical reactions to horror by engaging the mind as well. Many movies also c ombine shock horror with a sense of surrealism. The surrealist movement in art and film takes the familiar and adds a sense of distortion or unknown. Surrealism â€Å"might be better understood as a violent, embodied assault on the social structures propping up modernity,† (Lowenstein, 37).Again, people are drawn in by curiosity, captivated by the unknown aspect of surrealist images, and horrified by the results. When you watch a horror movie, most of the time you start to feel compassion for the victim and start to wonder how you would handle the situation and what you would do differently. It is hard to watch a horror movie and not get emotional as you start to ponder these questions and then feel sorry for the victim for having to go through the traumatic ordeal. A feeling of helplessness is usually portrayed to the audience and nothing could possibly feel worse than the inability to affect your own fate.In horror movies there is a complete lack of power on the victim†™s part, they are going to die, the question is when. We can relate to the anguish of helplessness as we all have felt helpless at times. The victims in horror movies are typically helpless because they are under so much pressure. With the slow build of tension becomes the increasing need to do something. When we see a character buckle under the pressure we feel some king of affection for them and when we see the characters rise under pressure you feel yourself urging them on.Pressure combined with urgency can push a character to accomplish great feats. When we begin to sympathize with the victims or characters the movie can become quite intense. With danger comes a heightened awareness that enhances all emotions, positive Schlenz 4 and negative, drawing attention to every detail. The threat of death often drives people to celebrate life, so we see romance running hand and hand with horror at times. Intensity of emotion and sensation drowns out common sense and this overloading of the senses can appeal to those used to living calmer lives.Horror movies have the ability to scare you half to death and after watching a horror movie one know that there is no way that they am going to sleep for at least another few hours. A horror movie works by engaging a basic defense mechanism; if there’s something out there to get you, you don’t let your guard down, and you certainly don’t shut off your brain for a few hours. You know that it was just a movie, but some part of your brain, perhaps the part that has the fight or flight reflex, keeps telling you that you are not going to sleep yet, it isn’t safe and that there is something strange in the corner of your room.You know that it is just your coat but you can’t seem to convince yourself, it wasn’t there last night, you don’t even remember putting it there. Eventually you get up and turn the lights on, confirm that it was just your coat and put it away in the closet. How ever, you are still not safe because now your brain has fixated on something else. Don’t be embarrassed to feel this way. No matter how scared someone gets when they watch horror movies they are still compelled to watch another one. One enjoys pushing their limits and finding out just what they can stomach is an intense adrenaline rush.Being scared is fun but only as long as they know that in a few hours it will all be over and they will come out alive and unharmed. Schlenz 5 Works Cited Lowenstein, Adam. Films without a Face: Shock Horror in the Cinema of Georges Franju. University of Texas Press, 1998. Carroll, Noel. â€Å"The Nature of Horror† The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism. Blackwell Publishing, 1987 Briefel, Aviva. â€Å"Monster Pains† Film Quarterly. University of California Press. Spring 2005 Sine, Richard. â€Å"Why We love Scary Movies. † October 8, 2011.

Best Buy Culture

Question – 1 Describe the culture of Best Buy Answer – 1 Best Buy culture has changed tremendously. The company’s culture was once to embrace long hours and sacrifice, now the culture is more relaxed. The employees are now really able to run their own schedule as well as their own work progress. Before the ROWE program was introduces to the Best Buy employees would have to work until they found a solution. That means staying at work all night and day if the job or situation requires it. For example the book talks about one employee that was given a plaque for staying up and at work for three days to right a report that was due. He made a sacrifice for his job that made him end up in the hospital. The ROWE program which stands for Results-Only Work Environment program is a way that employees can still work whether in the office, at home, or coffee shop as long as they finish the job. This program has changed the culture of Best Buy as well as the performance. Question – 2 discuss the approach to Organizational change that the ROWE program illustrate Answer – 2 Instead of launching a work-life balance program, Best Buy rethought the very concept of work. Under the Results-Only Work Environment program or ROWE, employees can work when and where they like, as long as they get the job done. The ROWE program is based on 13 principles and rules. The key ones include: * There are no work schedules in the traditional sense. * Every meeting is optional with a few key exceptions. * There is no focus on â€Å"how many hours did you work† * Work is not a place you go, it’s something you do. * As long as work is done, employees do whatever they want whenever they want. In brief ROWE is all about results. No results, no job. The public relations team has papers to make sure someone is always available in an emergency. Many teams realized that they need only one regular weekly meeting, so they eliminated the unproductive ones. By ROWE culture the employees feel happier about their work. They feel more ownership of their work. They feel clearer about what they are doing for the company. Question – 3 discuss the resistance, both organization and individual that the ROWE program had to overcome. Answer – 3 the corporate team led by CEO Brad Anderson, was initially skeptical about the ROWE program and whether it should be expanded. The managers at the Best Buy put up the most resistance. The Best Buy’s legal department has resisted the new way of working, partly because the in-house attorneys are worried that it will reduce their pay. When Thompson proposed extending flexibility to hourly workers, the managers resisted, arguing that â€Å"there are certain people that need to be managed differently than other people. Because we believe that administrative assistants need to be at their desks to serve their bosses. One of the corporate strategists has struggled to figure out how to prove him in new environment. Without children, she had an advantage. She could be the first one in and the last one out. She said she had all this panic and everything she knew about the success was suddenly changing. One of the legal attorney felt that she checks the emails on her day off. She was afraid that the ROWE will push more work into her downtime. Question – 4 discuss the sources of stress that are apparent in the case Answer – 4 Best Buy introduced the ROWE program to reduce stress and overwork in their employees at their headquarters. The program basically allows you to work from anywhere, any hours you choose, as long as the job gets done. The employees at Best Buy’s headquarters generally worked long hours until the ROWE program was introduced. Employee burnout and turnover was high. After the ROWE program’s implementation, productivity has increased and voluntary turnover has decreased. The Culture of Best Buy Prior to the implementation of ROWE at Best Buy, employee morale was low; the turnover rate was high, employees worked very long hours. â€Å"The company’s culture used to embrace long hours and sacrifice†. Employees spent a lot of time in impromptu meetings called by management. Employees were called upon to complete reports with little or no notice. Some employees stated they spent little time with their families and worked even when they were not physically in the office. The system at Best Buy before ROWE was work, work, and more work. Employees seemed to be working 24hrs a day. Now, with more control of their time, employees are more productive. They are able to decide when and where they want to work. The change has also helped them to confront some biases in the workplace. Deciding whether or not to extend the same benefit to hourly employees exposed how some managers felt. They resisted because of their belief that it was not for everyone, some people needed to be held to the old system. Question – 5 discuss whether or not the organizational culture has helped with the change Answer- 5 the ROWE experiment started quietly. While the sample size was fewer than 300 employees, the early results were promising. Turnover in the first three month of employment fell from 14 percent to zero. Job satisfaction rose 10 percent and team –performance scores rose 13 percent. The results from and reactions to ROWE has been encouraging. Productivity increased an average of 35 percent within six to nine months in the units that implemented ROWE. The voluntary turnover has dropped between 52 percent and 90 percent in three Best Buy divisions that have implemented ROWE. As Thompson stated â€Å"the employees feel happier about the work. †They see Rowe as a benefit that’s almost more important than any other. They talk about it as if to say, someone else could offer me more money but I wouldn’t go because I now have control over my time. Ultimately for Best Buy, the new approach to work is about staying competitive, not just helping its employees. Reference- Integrating cases from the Organizational Behavior book [page no – 553]

Supply Chain Management Principles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Supply Chain Management Principles - Essay Example The process of conducting supply chain activities on a digital interface largely conducted by Apple Company reflects no physical activities pertaining to the procurement, stocking, transportation and other such conducts which are increasingly observed in regards to conservative warehousing practices. Apple through the help of online digital supply chain activities is found to conduct a billion transactions pertaining to media files in an annual period. The supply chain activities conducted over the digital sphere like the traditional warehousing activities also require the existences of products produced to be marketed to the final consumers. However unlike the traditional warehousing functions the supply chain management functions performed on a digital platform require only two parties i.e. the one providing or producing the content and the other the final consumer to whom the digital products would be transported. In turn the supply chain activities conducted by the company on the online sphere by Apple Incorporation is viewed as that which has helped in transforming the traditional supply chain concepts originally practiced by the company’s manufacturing and selling physical products. In evaluating the effectiveness of the supply chain activities conducted on a digital sphere it is found that Apple Corporation has a significant number of stock or inventory turnovers in comparison to other firms (Blanchard, 2010,p.71-72). The make-buy decision The make or buy decision is considered as a strategic decision in regards to supply chain management activities of companies. It is because the activities conducted in the realm of supply chain management activities contain large amount of outsourcing functions both in terms of procuring the materials from the supplier’s end rather than making such. Again the company can take help of distributors to help them distribute the products produced to the ultimate buyers. Thus in the former function it is found that materials are procured rather than producing such in the production units of the companies while the latter activity focus on gaining the supply chain support to sell the products produced by the firm. In the act of procurement of products from suppliers the firm focuses on enhancing the parameters of core competence. Similarly because of the lack of proper infrastructure the distributors support is gained to distribute the products to the consumers in an enhanced manner (Wisner, Tan and Leong, 2008, p.52-53; Chitale and Gupta, 2007, p.9). The firms also tend to produce their products for it helps to reduce the risks associated with procuring the products from the external environment and also saves time and money expended by the firm in the search for the right suppliers. Buying in addition to increasing the risks also makes the firm spend huge money and time while the function of making requires the firm to assimilate all its resources to produce the products and thus reducin g the level of core competencies (Berk, 2010, p.90-91). The making or buying decision process also requires the evaluation of the different risks associated with such. In regards to making the product specific risks arises relating to the

English Research Paper #3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

English Research Paper #3 - Essay Example The existing psychological studies seem not to cover the true extent of its possibility as a variety of criticisms and analysis of this nature focused on the psychological interpretation of the fiction mainly treating them as unconscious manifestation of the writer's own problems. However, it is possible to undertake a more detailed psychological reading of his fiction, reaching beyond the conventional psychological analyses, in order to identify the author's awareness of the unconscious processes and imaginative powers. Thus, a detailed psychological analysis of the fiction by Poe, especially the major short stories such as "The Cask of Amontillado," reveals that the author was unusually aware of the often incomprehensible mental unconscious processes and also that he possessed tremendous understanding and control of the mental make up as Poe was blessed with a conscious theory of the mind and in this paper we undertake such an analysis. It is the author's skill in developing the ch aracter along the psychological path, completely understanding the way a character should act in similar situations, what helps him in creating characters of great recognition. A profound analysis of the story "the Cask of Amontillado" proves this great mastery of Poe in characterization. To have a closer understanding of the biography and literary career of Edgar Allen Poe, before we proceed exploring the psychological analysis of "the Cask of Amontillado," we may state that the short career of the great American literary genius which came to a sudden tragic end due to drug abuse and consumption of alcohol was enough to carve an everlasting literary monument of prose and poetry that reminds the generations of the master craftsman. This great literary genius was born on January 19, 1809, in Boston as the son of David, Jr. (a lawyer-turned actor) and Elizabeth Poe (an English actress) and was blessed with a good literary background. He acquired fame as a novelist, critic, short story writer, and poet and worked in various literary magazines such as Burlington Gentleman's Magazine, Evening Mirror, and Graham's Lady's and Gentleman's Magazine. Significantly, Poe "was far ahead of his time in his vision of a special area of human experience--the "inner world" of dream, ha llucination, and imagination." (Edgar Allan Poe, Bibliographical Essay, 2004). Poe has numerous poetry collections such as Tamerlane and Other Poems: By a Bostonian (1827), Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane, and Minor Poems (1829), Poems (1831), The Raven and Other Poems (1845), and Eureka: A Prose Poem (1848), stories like Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque (1840), Prose Romances: The Murders in the Rue Morgue and The Man That Was Used Up (1843), and Tales (1845) etc to his credit. It is most significant that "Poe's stature as a major figure in world literature is primarily based on his ingenious and profound short stories, poems, and critical theories, which established a highly influential rationale for the short form in both poetry and fiction." (Edgar Allan Poe, Sidelights, 2004). Most remarkably, "there is a psychological intensity that is characteristic of Poe's writings, especially the tales of horror that comprise his best and best-known works. These stories--which

History of economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

History of economics - Essay Example Before the evolution, slave trade was the only trade that people knew and they considered it an economy. During the sixteenth century, people were uncivilized and war was known to be the main economic activity (Canterbery 18). Many economists have come up with many theories to explain the history of economics. The western history of economics is divided into four theories (Deane 1). 1. Classical Greek: This period is also referred to as the feudalism (survival for the fittest). This is a time when political philosophy focused on ethical problems of the Aristocratic slave based. This was a time when people stopped slave trade and there was no economy and people only produced the necessities like food, clothing, and shelter. 2. Mediaeval Scholastic: During this era, economics was a clerical monopoly and the mediaeval economic ideas were essential. Individual economy behavior was relevant in the market economy rather than exchange economy which actually worked. 4. Modern: During the eighteenth century, Adam Smith, a French physiocrat, came up with the study of economics as a distinctive discipline, a science and a technique of analysis, and it was a time when economics was introduced to the people and everyone understood the essence of the economy. The two economic ideologies (classical Greek and mediaeval) which came up were mainly historical. The Greek and Mediaeval was based on political and theological interest and the approaches had little to do with modern economics. The mercantilist theory was developed during the seventh century. Mercantilists described economics as the art of managing a state, and they had created the element of demand and supply. They developed theories of interest rate, which had factors like yield of investment in the capital stock and the supply of loanable funds (Deane 3). The main focus was on external trading relationship on nations,

Why does the movie Blackfish address a Marketing problem Essay

Why does the movie Blackfish address a Marketing problem - Essay Example A critical look at the movie would suggest that it essentially inform its audience that SeaWorld, the organization which manages and runs this business, is not only hiding certain important aspects regarding the actual ethical impact of their business but it is also being engaged in activity which can be dangerous not only for the animals but for the humans also. It essentially outlines the need to balance the ethics with informing the target market regarding the overall impact of such activities. (CIEPLY, 2014) Considering the above situation, it is therefore clear that the movie actually highlights the important marketing problem of how the organizations actually fail to maintain effective public relations. The movie clearly outlines as to how the firms actually engage in actions which may attract the negative publicity and hurt the image of the organization. Consumers are increasingly becoming complex and more informed in nature and considering the increase in the overall emphasis on the role businesses can play in ensuring sustainability suggests that marketing requires more ethical orientation towards this. The overall impact of the organizational activities on the consumers and other stakeholders therefore necessitate that the organizations must focus on behaving and acting ethically. Considering the overall situation depicted in the movie, it is clear that the SeaWorld has failed to act ethically and highlights the important ethical issue. It highlights as to how the firm is actually marketing and selling a product which is essentially dangerous for the lives of the consumers and those who interact with them. The blackfish is based upon how the captive Tilikum Orca can actually endanger the lives of others and how the firm actually failed to reveal this and other related information to their target audience. What is critical to note however the fact is that both the firms seem not be acting in ethically and socially responsible behavior. The

Transformational Leadership According to Bennis and Nanus Research Paper

Transformational Leadership According to Bennis and Nanus - Research Paper Example In 1985, Bennis and Nanus conducted a research on transformational leadership. Their research resulted in fresh and significant findings on what transformational leadership is (McKee, Driscoll, Kelloway, & Kelley, 2011). This research paper gives a critical analysis and research-based discussion on what transformational leadership is in accordance to the postulates of the study by Bennis and Nanus. The paper will specifically focus on transformational leadership within health care systems and the management of health care professionals. Bennis and Nanus Research on Transformational Leadership Bennis and Nanus noticed that corporations used quantifiable criteria to judge and evaluate their leaders and executives. These criteria included the technical competence of an executive, conceptual skills, people skills, track record, character, judgment and taste. In accordance to Bennis and Nanus, leadership competencies cannot be quantified (Trofino, 2008). In this regard, they conducted a r esearch in large corporations and organizations that were undergoing significant transformation. This is due to the fact that positive transformation is equated to good leadership (Simola, Barling, & Turner, 2012). Through their research, Bennis and Nanus revealed that in addition to the aforementioned criteria of judging effectiveness in a leader, there were additional attributes among transformational leaders. These characteristics contributed to the effectiveness of transformational leaders in motivating change within the organizations which they led (Salter, Green, Duncan, Berre, & Torti, 2010). Four main leadership attributes were identified among leaders in transforming organizations as described below. According to the investigation of Bennis and Nanus, the first and major attribute of leaders within transforming organizations is vision (McKee, Driscoll, Kelloway, & Kelley, 2011). Transformational leaders are visionaries. This means that they have a clear and specific vision. These leaders, therefore, had a picture of the state of their organization at a specified future date. In this regard, transformational leaders are motivated by the need to drive the organization to the envisioned state (Nazari & Emami, 2012). These leaders realize that it is through their employees or followers that the vision can be achieved and, as a result, they communicate clearly what goals they must work to achieve (Thompson, 2012). In health care delivery systems, transformational leadership is, therefore, an approach or style to leadership which motivates healthcare professionals towards achievement of a specified vision. For example, transformational leaders within health care organizations would envision the growth of the health system that will entail the application of modern technologies in care. In this regard, the transformational leaders will ensure that the culture of care providers is changed so that they will accept the implemented technologies. This includes th eir willingness to attend training programs that will equip them with skills and knowledge of applying technology in care. More specifically,

Social media and elections Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Social media and elections - Term Paper Example In 1865 with express messages growing between businesses, financial and legal offices, and banks of major cities, it became necessary for faster methods to communicate by telegram and letter. The pneumatic post came about to help with the shortcomings of the telegraphic network in Paris. Small metal cartridges carried telegrams and letters by pneumatic pressure. Information could be transferred both faster and independently without outside interference (Adams, 2011). The telephone has been the single most influential form of social media to come about before the 20th century. There has been a continual debate over who actually invented the telephone, among those are Charles Bourseul, Antonio Meucci, Johann Philipp Reis, Alexander Graham Bell and Elisha Gray, and the debate goes on. In 1890 Bell and Edison were accredited to making it a commercial device. In 1891 Nikola Tesla developed the radio and obtained a US patent for the invention. This was another form of social media produced with radio frequencies. Email was introduced in 1966. The first email was actually sent in 1971 between two computers that were sitting side by side. The early systems of email required that each recipient be online at the same time in order to send and receive messages. What we have today is much more advanced in that it accepts, stores, forwards and delivers without having to be online at the same time (Adams, 2011). â€Å"Social media is the use of digital (and often mobile) technologies and Internet-based applications for exchanging or creating conversation.† (Adams, 2011). This has become the modern day definition of social media. However, history shows that social media can be include other forms of communication. Social interaction has become totally necessary in today’s culture and trade. The world has become a place where relationships are fragile and dealings can be difficult.

Write a summary of chapter 13 and 14 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Write a summary of chapter 13 and 14 - Essay Example This ensures its effectivity as it creates a sense of ownership and responsibility within the members of the committee and transferred to the entire organization. Committee management does not only mean chairing meetings but also following up on the action items that have been closed within meetings. Another aspect of aviation safety that is important in ensuring safety within the organization is inspection. Though pretty unpopular as it is viewed as fault-finding, inspection is crucial in order to determine if the organization is working towards the goal of the management, and that is to promote and guarantee safety within the organization. There are different types of inspection which leads to varying results. These are formal inspection, informal or daily inspections and spot inspections. Making sure that this is done regularly establishes the importance of meeting expectations and standards of safety. Also, this will enable the organization to gather additional information on how the organization is keeping its house. The inspection does not end in the inspection itself but in a follow up which focuses on areas that are needed to be improved. The FAA’s inspection program serves as part of an early warning system to identify possible hazardous incidents and to prevent these situations from happening. However, there are some loopholes in their program. It did not have adequate guidance in classifying problems and determining whether these problems have been addressed or resolved. The problem lies in the information management from the inspection program. Inspectors were not provided with adequate definitions of comment codes. And this results to a difficulty in classifying the recorded problems. Thus, it is suggested that a clear and distinctive definition of these codes must be provided in order to clearly identify the category it belongs to. This is important in forming resolutions

Change and Culture Case Study Essay Example for Free

Change and Culture Case Study Essay In tough economic times, companies are looking for ways to continue to provide services and products to the public without compromising quality and efficiency. When it comes to smaller businesses, or businesses that provide the same product or service, it is often wise to merge the companies together to form a stronger, more stable structure. This will take place when Frithsen Physical Therapy merges with Select Physical Therapy. Select Physical Therapy is a national corporation that provides physical therapy as well as aquatic therapy, occupational therapy, athletic training outreach and long-term care services. For the past decade Frithsen Physical Therapy has seen Select Physical Therapy as a fierce competitor that provides less than quality care to its patients. Frithsen Physical Therapy has been well known in the community for providing care in a professional and personal way. Many employees are afraid that merging with a large corporation will change the way they work, causing the quality of patient care to decrease. Middle managers will become essential before, during, and after the merge to ensure that every employee from each company understands the vision for the new corporation and is willing to compromise to make it a reality. The combining of two companies is no easy task and will change the shape and culture of both companies, until a new one is born. Processes such as communication, hiring, patient care and record keeping will change to accommodate the growing corporation, in hopes it will become more effective than either company was on its own. Merging two companies is a delicate procedure, requiring compromise and patience. Each company has built a certain culture over its existence, and each one believes that their culture is best. In reality, each company has certain services or tasks that they perform better than the other. In the instance of Select Physical Therapy merging with Frithsen Physical Therapy, the culture of the new, combined company will be similar to the cultures put in place by each company separately. However, it is important to create a new culture, differing from the previous ones, to promote a sense of teamwork and camaraderie. If this step does not occur, everyone will continue to work in his or her own culture, which becomes divisive, causing the company to be pulled in different directions (Sherrill, 2001). In the first phases of combining the companies, the culture may be fragmented, with each company holding on to what they know. Many of the employees will be wary of the changes occurring around them on a daily basis and may resist certain adjustments (Stanwick, 2000). A new atmosphere of open-mindedness and compromise needs to emerge for the blended company to be successful. When two companies are combined, there are bound to be differences of opinions between practitioners and administrators regarding polices and procedures. It is important to understand that each company brings something valuable to the table, and all ideas and opinions should be considered and discussed Avoiding a competitive stance will help employees from both sides see the positives of blending ideals and values, and ultimately encourage the birth of a stronger, more successful new culture (Stanwick, 2000). To successfully combine two companies involves cooperation from all levels of management. As a middle manager in a merging corporation, there are different strategies and skills that will be necessary to ensure a smooth transition. The most important strategy will be communication. Before the merger occurs, it is important for middle managers to understand the new beliefs and values that upper management desires (Bolton Lewis, 1998). Once middle managers understand the vision for the new company, they must pass it down to their employees. It is not enough to simply communicate the new vision; middle managers must begin practicing these changes immediately. Leading by example is the most effective way to produce results. The middle managers in most companies are more approachable than top management; therefore it is imperative that middle managers are on board with the new vision of the company and display this in a positive way. While the merger is occurring it is essential to build a team atmosphere, full of open communication, honesty, and teamwork. Each employee from both companies should feel as though their positions is important, and their cooperation is essential to the success of the forming company. Once the merger is complete, it is all about the new culture, staying visible, approachable, and communicating information early and often (Bolton Lewis, 1998). Aside from ensuring employees are blending well, it is important to focus on patient care. There will be changes implemented at every phase of the merger, but it is important not let misunderstandings, or issues within the staff affect the quality of care given to the patients. Once the merger has been finalized and integration is complete, middle managers need to assess their staff to be sure that each employee is doing his or her part to make the merge as successful as possible. If there are employees who are resisting the changes being made within the company, or not buying into the new culture and vision, it is necessary to evaluate the situation and decide what is best for the team and the company as a whole. Middle managers must not forget to consider the employees feelings when situation such as this arise. Often times, employees resist mergers because their identities are closely tied to their jobs, and they like to experience continuity of their identities. Giessner (as cited by Sidle, 2006) noted that mergers would challenge this continuity, leading to distress and anxiety from employees. When middle management can understand the feelings of their employees, they can be better equipped to handle issues that may arise by allaying fears or implementing strategies to make employees comfortable with their new roles. Even if all employees from both companies are comfortable with the combining of their two organizations, upper management has the daunting task of reworking its current systems and procedures to include the best strategies from each company. In the case of Frithsen Physical Therapy and Select Physical Therapy, the former’s employees will see the most changes. Frithsen Physical Therapy is a small corporation, covering New England, while Select Physical Therapy is a national corporation, encompassing more services and a variety of clinicians. Along with physical therapy services Select Physical Therapy offers occupational therapy, aquatic therapy, long-term care facilities, and a large athletic training outreach program. This will require managers from Frithsen Physical Therapy to be in charge of more people, and perhaps different clinicians than they are accustomed to working with. The shape and systems currently used in the company will have to shift in order to fit a larger scale of business and a more complicated hierarchy. The regional managers from Frithsen Physical Therapy reported directly to the President of the company, whereas the regional managers of Select Physical Therapy report to one of ten executive managers, who then report to the CEO of the company. The clinic managers of Frithsen Physical Therapy were able to see all of the employees they supervise on a daily basis, working side by side. With the inclusion of the vast athletic training program, they will now be responsible for knowing which athletic trainers report to their clinics, and what schools they are assigned to. There will also be a manager of athletic training services that they will need to communicate with about referrals and business relating to the relationship between the schools covered and the clinics in the area. Due to this more intricate hierarchy, the employees of Frithsen Physical Therapy will see a dramatic change in how they communicate with upper management. Under their old organization, there was a relatively straight path to the top, with only a few levels of management until they reached the President. Communication could be done easily by telephone or in person, and most employees had met each other face to face at one time or another. In the new organization, there will be a need for a more formal kind of communication. In organizations communication tends to be directional, moving upward, downward, diagonal or lateral (Leibler McConnell, 2008). Frithsen Physical Therapy was used to mostly lateral communication, discussing issues with other managers or sharing notes about a particular patient’s care. With the merger, the managers and employees will mostly be communicating upward, providing detailed reports to their supervisors, who will then provide reports to a higher supervisor, and so on. This will require attention to detail and more paperwork for the managers at every level, which will change the way the managers handle issues that arise within their department. With the inclusion of new services and a goal for comprehensive care, comes the call for new positions and alterations to old ones. A need for more middle management will arise, and more staff will be added to accommodate the growth of services while still maintaining exceptional patient care. In conclusion, there are many factors to consider when combining two organizations. It may make sense financially and logically to combine two entities that provide similar services. However, it is important to understand that not only will it be difficult to combine two cultures; it will also take time for employees to adjust to a new chain of command and new policies and procedures. Middle managers will play an important role in the blending of two corporations. They need to remain positive, lead by example, and possibly sever ties with employees who do not fall into line with new visions and ideas. An increase in communication will help make the transition successful, and ultimately all employees will reap the benefits from such a merger. References Bolton, J.M., Lewis, B. (1998, Jan/Feb). The challenge of merging and consolidating organizations. Journal of Management in Engineering, 14(1), 9-10. Academic Search Complete. Leibler, J.G., McConnell, C.R. (2008). Management principles for health professionals (5th ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database. Sherrill, T. (2001, May). Creating a can-do culture. New Zealand Management, 48(4), 17-21. MasterFILE Premier. Sidle, S.D. (2006, August). Resisting the urge to merge. Academy of Management Perspectives, 20(3), 115-118. Business Source Complete. Stanwick, P.A. (2000, Jan/Feb). How to successfully merge two corporate cultures. Journal of Corporate Accounting Finance, 11(2), 7-11. Business Source Complete.

Social historical background Essay Example for Free

Social historical background Essay Religious festivals were celebrated in Athens to pay homage to the God Dionysus, the patron of wine. He brought joy and fun but rage and thoughtlessness too. This is similar to the effects of wine on people; wine makes people either happy or thoughtless. Dionysus died in winter and was reborn in spring. The festival took place for five days in spring to worship the rebirth of Dionysus and grape vines. In the mind of an ancient Greek person, the theatre was a product of Dionysus. Therefore Sophocles, when writing the play, included a scene of thanks to Dionysus which the chorus perform. This would have been interpreted by the Athenians as a noble inclusion and made Sophocles popular. The festival evolved from the rural town of Dionysia. In the large cities dramatic performances took place. The dramatic element developed when competitions called for playwrights to design plays and showcase them at the festivals. Two popular forms of drama materialised from these competitions: Tragedy and comedy. Tragedies aimed to teach religious lessons. Sophocles was a tragic playwright and his play Antigone is an example of this. Comedies were seen as trivial and a waste of time to ancient Greeks. Comedies joked about the gods and intellectuals, albeit in a respectful manner. The theatre in ancient Athens had the ability to teach moral lessons, inform of contemporary issues or amuse. It was a powerful tool and was used by governments/polis to influence peoples opinions and keep their populations up to date with current affairs. For this reason the government encouraged all men to go to the theatre. Those who could not afford to go were even offered free grants. Antigone was aimed at an Athenian audience. The play showed the downfall of man and highlighted how bad Thebes was. Athens was a democracy whilst Thebes was under dictatorship. Men visiting the theatre would see how oppressive the life of a Theban was thus increasing support for democracy. This mattered to the local polis because if the people were against a partys ideas they would not be elected in further terms. Role of Women in Society A woman was meant to be obedient to the ruling man in her life. Once a girl reached thirteen years of age she was negotiable for marriage. Women in Athens were devoid of rights. They could not go out of the house unless it was to see another woman and could not vote or influence the government. Women were not allowed to go to the theatre. The reason women were treated with so much injustice is because they were viewed by men as uncontrollable and wild. However women did play an important part of everyday Athenian life as they ran the house. In some ways men were indebted to women. Although women were generally viewed in this light, the audience of Antigone were ambivialent as to which way they viewed her. Antigone articulates the fears of every Athenian male. She is uncontrollable, untrustworthy. In this way Antigone would have been received negatively in the eyes of an ancient Greek man. However she stands for issues which Athens support such as democracy and the importance of a proper burial. Athenians had deep rooted hate for dictatorship, therefore when Antigone goes against Creon she would have won support for her character. There is ambiguity into which way the audience would have sided, but this was planned. The ambiguity forces the audience to think about the issues and politics of the play. A society at war As Antigone was being created a war was unfolding in the Peloponnese area. This was occurring as a result of a long dispute between the alliances of Sparta and Athens. Thebes was one of Spartas allies, thus was against Athens. Sophocles might use Thebes as the setting of the play as Athenians were against the city thus building more support for the city of Athens. The issue of war was contemporary, therefore the Athenian government would have wished to have it discussed in Athens favour at the amphitheatre. Sophocles and fellow Athenian men would have no doubt been adversely affected by the war. Sophocles might be trying to show that there are undesirable affecs from a war. After all, the incidents did start off when Polynices attacked Athens. Therefore, Sophocles might be trying to show that the war affects not only a nation as a whole but individual circumstances such as families and relationships. In an Athenian audience, Creon might have been viewed negatively given the fact that he was against everything that Athens stood for; Athens was a democracy whilst Thebes was an Oligarchy. An Oligarchy is a government ruled by a few influential members and is the opposite to a democracy. When Creon goes against the rules of the gods, the audience would have interpreted this negatviely. Although he punished Antigone for going against his word, which might have won him support, the crime he is punishing her for is not a crime but an action of respect for the dead. The Influence of the Gods Zeus was the final son of Cronus and Rhea. The other children, upon birth, were swallowed by their father, Cronus, as he was afraid they would overcome him. However, when Zeus was born he was hidden by his mother inside a cave, and Cronus was given a rock, disguised as a baby, to swallow. When Zeus grew up, he ordered his father to regurgitate the stone and his siblings. The male children overcame Cronus and divided up the world. Zeus became the God of Gods for doing what was right, and received the skies and the heavens. Poseidon and Hades received the sea and the underworld respectively. As Zeus was the king of Gods he was worshipped by all. Zeus was revered and respected for if he was not, he was known out of anger to throw bolts of lightning to the ground. Just the mention of going against Zeus would have caused outcry. Antigone shows reverance to Hades, god of the underworld. Hades role was to ensure entry to the underworld occurred rightfully. It was believed when a Greek person died they crossed the river of Acheron, river of life, from the baks of life to the banks of death by boat. In order to traverse the river they had to be given their rites, buried and have a coin under their tongue to pay the boats captain, Charon. This job was carried out by women and is the reason why Antigone feels so passionately about burying her brother. If a person was left unburied or lacked the coin under their mouth, they would roam the banks of life and could not cross to the banks of death. Therefore when Polynices is not buried he is left to roam the lands, so Antigone goes to give him the burial he deserves. The Playwright Sophocles was one of Ancient Greeces greatest playwrights. The reason that Sophocles was such a good playwright is because he had an ability to rebel conventional drama and produce plays that provoke debate. In Antigone, he gives the genuine thoughts and feelings of women in ancient Greece, which must have been difficult seeing as men and women were so detached. Apart from being a playwright, Sophocles was a politician and an Athenian General. He played an active part against the allies of Sparta in the Peloponnesian war and was a hero for Athens. Antigones base is war, the war fought between two brothers, between family members or father and son. As Sophocles had so much experience in war this story would have greatly appealed to him. The Oedipus Curse Oedipus is cursed to wed his mother and kill his father. The curse is a result of Oedipus father raping a young boy. Oedipus fulfills the curse and impregnates his mother with four children. When Oedipus finds out what he has done he blinds himself and his wife/mother commits suicide. Oedipus then abdicates his role as king to his two sons, Etocles and Polynices. Prior to the play, the curse is inherited by the sons as a manifestation of jealousy; both wish to be king but cannot. They decide that every year they will alternate who is monarch. Etocles is first to rule for one year but will not hand over power when Polynices turn arrives. A fight ensues and the brothers kill eachother. An audience, upon learning the characters were descendants of the incestuous Oedipus, would have perceived Antigone and her sister as filthy, cursed individuals. The audience would expect the characters to commit grave and shocking crimes. The audiences expectations come true when Antigone disobeys Creon. However, Creon might have also been expected to fail as he was Oedipus brother. When Sophocles makes the characters do what the audience expect, the audience would have interpreted this as curses never die and are inherited by ones family. The audience would have evoked a response of fear. The Life and Times of a greek citizen Men were either politicians, farmers or fighters whilst women brought up the family and helped religious festivals. This extraneous work and the lack of medicinal resources meant that people had a short life span. Even healthy people could die prematurely by an illness or disease. To combat this citizens ate healthy and exorcised. A meal was simple but full of vitamins, vegetables and oil. The family of an Athenian was very important and was built on love. Therefore, when the Athenian audience saw the fueds in Antigones Theban family, the royal family, they would have been disgusted to think people were being led by such a bad example. Thebes was located inland whilst Athens was located near the sea. This made Athens naval fleet useless when it came to attacking Thebes, whilst Thebes naval fleet caused havoc on Athens. Argos is located south of both Thebes and Athens, near the sea and was a neutral territory. Greek at this time would have been a nation under war. Greeks people would have been proud of their territory yet scared of invasion. Athens, Argos and Thebes were in the Peloponnese area.

Influence of Types of Play on Children

Influence of Types of Play on Children It is important to understand the different types of play and how they help childrens development in order to plan activities for children. This will help them to develop holistically. The Early Years Foundation Strategy says that play underpins all development and learning for young children (The Early Years Foundation Stage Practice Guidance p1.17 Crown 2008). Learning through play is a very important principle of Early Years education, staff must provide opportunities for all the types of play:- Imaginative Play Construction Play Home corner Lego blocks Dressing up Building towers Small worlds Physical Play Creative Play Examples: tricycles, Sensory Play Drawing and skipping ropes Water and sand play painting, crafts Children may play in different ways to what you expect, this doesnt matter, it shows their creativity. They may be running round outside in a superhero costume waving a sword they made out of a cardboard tube (physical + imaginative + creative), this helps them to develop holistically. Types of play for children ages 2 to 8 Physical This is any play with a focus which is physical. Children can be playing indoors or outside with balls, ride on toys. They can be climbing, running about or throwing and catching a ball. Physical play helps with motor skills, this gives more confidence. The children interact with each other when they are playing games outside, they learn the rules, how to negotiate, take turns, solve arguments, this helps with social skills. Resources needed To help with motor skills and co-ordination you would provide balls of various sizes, ride on toys and trikes, and skipping ropes, hula hoops. Space to play games like hopscotch, tag or football. For 6-8 year olds you could have a basketball hoop, inline skates and bikes. Example from nursery In my nursery setting the children play outdoors and there is equipment accessible for them at all times such as scooters. There are only two scooters which gives the opportunity for children to learn how to share and take it in turns to use the scooter. They must communicate with each other in order to ask if they can have a go on the scooter and have to wait their turn to use it, this improves their social skills and language. The scooters help to improve the childrens physical development greatly as the children have to be able to balance and use their legs to be able to move around the area on the scooter. They enhance the childrens gross motor skills. When the children are riding the scooters they can make their own decisions on where they want to go and think for themselves improving their cognitive development. Development through physical play may be affected if there arent enough resources available so children have to wait a long time for a go on a tricycle for example. This can be helped by sending children out in small groups so you have enough things for them to play on. Imaginative Children enjoy pretending, it helps them with their speech language and communication skills, their social skills, their identity. There are lots of different types of imaginative play:- Pretend play children make an object into something else, a ruler can be a wand for a magician. Role play using props, the children play act different roles they are familiar with such as Mummy Daddy, brothers and sisters, going shopping. Socio dramatic play a group of children play out scenes from real life such as taking their dog to the vet. This type of play is better for children with good language skills, children with English not their first language will not get as much out of this, they will need support from staff to help improve language skills. Superhero children dress up to act out their heroes from films they have seen like Toy Story, Shrek, Spiderman and Frozen. Small world using small animals, cars, toy soldiers children enjoy making up situations and manipulating the objects. They could act out a battle or be a farmer looking after the animals. Resources Plenty of dressing up costumes in different sizes Everyday items for baking, shopping at supermarket, Farm and zoo animals, miniature cars, toy soldiers Play house Example from nursery In the home corner we have used containers of real products that have been filled with coloured liquid or a substance that isnt dangerous for the children, such as a used Vimto bottle filled with water which has been coloured with purple food colouring to look like actually Vimto. There is also a washing up powder box filled with table salt as well as more everyday objects that the children will watch their parents handling. These resources give the children a real-life experience enabling them to use their imagination and creativity. They can also improve their fine motor skills as they pretend to poor drinks and serve food. Children can improve their communications skills as they talk to the other children and role play situations they have witnessed at home. These resources also help the children to enhance their social skills as they interact with the other children. Good language skills are needed for imaginative play so children will find it harder to join in if they have delays in language. Practitioners need to be aware of this so they can support the children with a different type of play which helps their holistic development. Sensory Experiencing how water, sand, play dough, gloop feel and what you can do with them helps with fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination. At the same time children are learning about texture and properties of materials, maths concepts of volume and shape. Resources Sand and water Play dough bought or home made Food mashed potato, pasta Example from nursery In my nursery, they have a sand tray which they have access to all the time. There are different objects in the sand such as stones, buckets, spades and miniature animals. The sand can be made into different consistencies, it can be completely dry with no water this allows the children to feel the sand between their hands and put it into containers and pour it out. When water is added to the sand it makes it malleable so the children can build sandcastles and other things with it. It promotes the child imagination and creativity. This type of sensory play is very relaxing for the children and is very good for children with disabilities, they can enjoy the feel of the sand on their hands. Sand play can advance a childs physical development, they use their upper bodies to handle the sand and play with the objects. They can dig, poor, scoop and grab the sand which also improves the childrens hand eye coordination. When children play in the sand they usually play alongside other children therefore this encourages their social skills. They must learn how to share the objects and get a space around the sand tray for themselves. Sand play also promotes cognitive development as the children are learning about the conservation of matter as they play with the sand, pouring it into different size and shape containers. Creative Creative play is when children make or create something, they use the resources you provide but it is important they choose what they want to do. This helps with fine motor skills, eye-hand coordination, expressing and releasing emotions. They learn to manage frustration and how practising something helps you improve. When the child succeeds after they keep trying, they feel a lot of satisfaction. An example of this is making a necklace from beads. This requires good eye-hand coordination to thread the beads and patience if they keep falling off the elastic. The child learns to persevere and not give up. Also, they can help each other which develops their social skills. It is important for staff to not jump in to help, to encourage the child to keep trying. Resources Drawing and painting paper, card, paints, crayons, brushes Musical instruments mouth organ, kazoo, recorder, drums, small keyboard Collage materials glitter, textiles, glue, beads, feathers, string Junk for modelling boxes, tubes Modelling kits for 6-8 year olds Example from nursery In the nursery, there is a box with lots of recycled containers and materials such as, milk cartons, cardboard boxes, straws and lots more. The chldren can make whatever they want with the materials and they are given the freedom to do so. All the materials help develop the childrens creativity, they can experiment with the resources and use their imagination to think up ideas of what they want to make. When children handle the materials they are improving their fine motor skills as they are using their muscles in their hands to cut with scissors, and use their fingers to stick things together. Construction Children enjoy putting things together such as jigsaws, wood blocks and constructing things for example lego/duplo. They can make dens from sheets over chairs or out of large boxes. This helps with hand-eye coordination, spatial awareness, how things work. Building a tall tower gives a sense of achievement this helps self-esteem. Resources Jigsaws, bricks, model aircraft and trains Different sizes of cardboard boxes Example from nursery In the outdoor space of my nursery they have a construction area with large coloured plastic bricks. The children can build towers and walls and knock them over and rebuild them. Playing with the bricks gives the children a good opportunity to advance their social skills and communication as they cooperate to build a tall tower. They must be able to share the bricks with the other children and take it in turns to build what they want to. They use their gross motor skills to place the bricks on top of each other and as the tower gets taller they have to reach up to place the bricks on top. If another child knocks down their tower, they have to learn how to express their emotions of anger, frustration, upset and assert themselves to tell the child not to do it again. Case Study 2-8 year olds In The Secret Life of 5 year Olds TV programme Jude struggles with being on the losing team when they are doing an obstacle course challenge. The winners get some chocolate and he wants some as well. He thinks it isnt fair that only the winners get the chocolate, he gets very upset and angry and cries. He asks his friends to get it for him. At first they try but it annoys the other children so they stop playing with him. Jude isnt able to control his emotions and accept he lost. He cant put himself in their shoes to see their point of view. The teacher sees that Jude needs her help and support to manage his emotions. In the next episode she takes him to one side and quietly supports him, she explains a better way to react. This enables Jude to behave differently the next time, he has developed his social and emotional areas of development. In the next task he shows that he has learned how to manage his feelings when he loses because he says Well done to the winning team (episodes 1 a nd 2 Channel 4 Nov 29th and Dec 6th 2016). The other children want to play with him more because he isnt having a tantrum. Sometimes you have to get involved to help a child develop to the next level. If the teacher had just left Jude to carry on getting angry, he would have lost his friends and not learnt a better way to lose. Types of play for children ages 0 2 Play is different for babies, they learn through their senses. Also, they need a lot more interaction and supervision from adults. Treasure basket Elinor Goldschmied had the idea for Treasure Baskets. This is an activity for babies who can sit on the floor unsupported and grasp objects. Lots of natural objects are put in a low basket that a baby can reach into. The adult is nearby to supervise in case the baby tries to put things in her mouth. Kathy Brodie says No plastic! (KathyBrodie.com) She means that you should provide natural resources with lots of different shapes and textures. Toys are smooth and plastic so the baby wont learn much from picking one up, they are too young to do much more than touch, smell and taste at this age. It is important to let the baby choose what to explore, the role of the adult is to supervise so the child is safe and to reassure them by being nearby. The objects can include things which are light or heavy, rigid or squishy, warm or cold. Lots of variety stimulates the babys senses, this helps development in the brain, new neural connections are made. Using the treasure basket helps develop hand-eye coordination, it also helps the baby get stronger muscles. The activity could last as long as 45 minutes depending on the childs interest and concentration. If they put things in their mouths you need to clean them before another child gets the basket. Review the contents regularly and change the objects to keep the babies interested. Example of resources Low sided basket with about 30 objects in Natural fir cones, pebbles, shells Wood spoons, pegs, wooden curtain rings Metal bells, whisk, small pan, teaspoon Others pot pourri bag, soap, fabrics, hairbrush, mirror, lemon Heuristic Play This is for older babies and toddlers, they want to find out what they can do with objects, not just touch them like the babies. As well as the objects from a treasure basket, you can add man-made things so the toddler can widen their exploring. Bigger objects can be used as the children can stand up, they have more control over their movements. This is a child-directed activity like for the treasure baskets, adults just supervise, they dont get involved unless there is a danger or the child invites them. In communityplaythings.co.uk Helen Huleatt says When toddlers make an enjoyable discovery for instance when one item fits into another, or an interesting sound is produced they often repeat the action several times to test the result, which strengthens cognitive development as well as fine muscle control and hand/eye coordination. Heuristic play needs a clear space for the objects and children, objects are grouped into types for example, all the tins in one group, the fabrics in another. The role of the practitioner is to set out the area then sit quietly nearby. At the end of the session the children can help to clear away, they can develop cognitive ability by sorting types of objects or colours into boxes they came out of. It is important to choose the right time for this activity, if the children are tired, they cant concentrate very well. Observing what the children interact with and how they use the objects will mean you can develop these interests in other types of play. For example, if you notice a child who enjoys sorting things by colour, you could help them to learn the names of the colours in a construction activity with different coloured bricks. Supervision is important to ensure the children dont put things is their mouths or break things causing sharp edges. Staff need to be near enough to intervene but not distract their concentration. If a child doesnt seem to be interested, they may be tired or hungry, there may not be enough objects to attract them. Example of resources Objects from the treasure baskets can be used Cotton reels, buttons, fabrics Containers of different shapes and size, made of different materials Tubes for pushing things through, cardboard boxes Peek a Boo and Hide and Seek Babies enjoy games like Peek a boo. As well as being fun it helps them to learn about object permanence. At first when something is out of sight a very young baby will think it no longer exists, they are surprised when you peek out. By about 4 or 5 months old babies know an object still exists even if they cant see it, they start to anticipate seeing you. Older babies and toddlers like playing Hide and Seek, especially when the adult pretends they cant see them. The game encourages children to develop problem-solving skills by finding a place to hide or looking for everyone. They improve physical ability by running about looking for a hiding place to squeeze into. They develop social skills by taking turns Resources Provide small spaces where children can hide Roll a ball Roll a ball helps a young childs holistic development. They develop hand-eye coordination and balance by rolling the ball, they learn about taking turns which develops social skills; their communication skills develop by listening to an adult talk about the activity. Resources Different sized balls Case study 11 months old The baby I have been observing plays Peek a Boo with her Mum. Her Mum said at first she got upset when she hid behind her hands but slowly she realised her Mum was still there. When I watched, the baby was laughing and smiling. She wanted her Mum to keep doing it. This game helped the baby to understand that when her Mum leaves the room she will come back so she doesnt get upset and cry for her. A strong attachment is very important for young babies to develop so they need to learn this as soon as possible. Resources to support play and learning A good variety and amount of resources are needed to support children If they are good quality they will last longer, there is less chance of the children being injured. All resources need to be safe for children to use, they have to have the safety marks to show they have been tested and are safe. These are the CE mark, the Lion mark and the Kite Mark. Each age group and ability/stage of development will need its own resources. Too many toys limits creative and imaginative play so provide lots of blocks, shells and containers instead of actual toys. You need somewhere to store them all so if you put them in boxes the children can play with the boxes as well. Older children might have particular interests for example dinosaurs so you could provide a set of different types of dinosaurs, books about them, and clay for them to make models. The 6-8 year olds could make a video using their models this would help their ICT skills as well as language skills. They would improve their fine motor skills by modelling and work together to make the video, improving social skills. Another thing is about different cultures and religions. If you have children from another country, like asylum seekers, they will do things differently so you must provide resources that they recognise. This could be dressing up clothes from other countries or different play foods for the home corner. Dolls should be of different colours so a black or asian child can identify with them. Books should show children from different races and cultures being heroes, not just white children, this helps them to have a positive sense of identity. As the children grow and develop the way they play changes, it depends on the individual child. Play is more social for 4 year olds than 2 year olds because their communication skills are better, they play cooperatively, they are more imaginative. 2 year olds need supervision to ensure safety and help them engage in play but 5- 8 years olds are very independent compared to 2 year olds, they dont want adults getting involved except to sort out problems. Older children like board games, they understand rules and taking turns whereas toddlers dont have the cognitive abilities. They are not good at sharing, they think if they want something they should have it. Research on successful outcomes of Early Years provision both in the short term and for later success in school and as adults has pointed to some general guidelines. The best outcomes for childrens learning occur where most of the activity within a childs day is a mixture of: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ child-initiated play, actively supported by adults à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ focused learning, with adults guiding the learning through playful, rich experiential activities. (Learning, Playing and Interacting 2009) If children only do free play then some areas of development and skills can get missed out. They may keep repeating the same activities so they dont learn anything new. If adults direct all their play it is less fun and prevents them gaining independence, it is better to plan a range of activities and opportunities during each day or week, this ensures their needs are met. Children aged 0-2 benefit more from adult-initiated play than 2-8 year olds. This is because the older children have developed a lot further, they need less help. Older children like to make up their own games and decide what to do. If they are offered the same resources, the younger and older children will use them differently. Babies and toddlers enjoy water play because it feels good, they can splash about, it is relaxing. They develop fine motor skills using buckets and spades. However, older children play with water in a different way. They like to measure out different amounts, see what sinks and floats. They will do experiments to test out ideas or use water in role play. Conclusion Supporting childrens learning and development through play and activities is the best way to develop the child holistically. Children are unique, they develop at different rates, practitioners must observe all the time so they have a good understanding of each child and their interests. They can plan a range of opportunities to help them develop more and provide resources the child will enjoy, also to provide a challenge so they develop. References The Early Years Foundation Stage Practice Guidance 2008 p1.17 Crown Learning, Playing and Interacting: Good Practice in the Early Years Foundation Stage 2009 p5 Department for Children Schools and Families Crown 2009 http://www.kathybrodie.com/articles/treasure-baskets/ accessed 11/12/2016 www.communityplaythings.co.uk/learning-library/articles/heuristic-play accessed 11/12/2016 Bibliography http://www.ebay.co.uk/gds/8-Reasons-Why-Playing-in-the-Sand-Is-Good-for-Kids-/10000000177634049/g.html Tassoni, P. A parents guide to treasure basket and heuristic play (2015) Nursery World p30-32 Tassoni et al 2014 Pearson Education Limited, Harlow

Narsapur vs. America :: Feminism Feminist Essays

Narsapur vs. America This Women’s Studies Senior Seminar class has provided the opportunity to read about many cross-cultural issues pertaining to women. In the article, â€Å"Women Workers and Capitalist Scripts: Ideologies of Domination, Common Interests, and the Politics of Solidarity† by Chandra Talpade Mohanty, issues of â€Å"poor women worker in the global capitalist arena† (3) are addressed. Mohanty focuses on the plight of exploited, poor Third-World women. She illuminates specific issues that relate to the transformation of developing countries to capitalism. Mohanty’s article is split up into sections, the section that I want to focus on in order to compare key issues between Narsapur and America is called â€Å"Housewives and Homework: The Lacemakers of Narsapur." In this specific article Mohanty illuminates the effects that capitalism has on areas that are being developed, she portrays its effects on women as well as men. In Narsapur the lace making industry skyrocketed between the years 1970 and 1978. As a result of the increased demand, the process of making lace and the final product, which is lace, has been feminized while the trade or exportation of the lace is viewed as business, as a masculinize activity. Women working outside the home in this culture are defined as housewives, hence the job of being a lacemaker is defined as housework. Mohanty argues that the â€Å"definition of women as housewives also suggests the heterosexualization of women’s work - women are always defined in relation to men and conjugal marriage† (12). As a result of the heterosexualization of women’s work plus the feminization of the process and product and the masculinization of the trade â€Å"men sell women’s products and live on profits from women’s labor† (12). I think there are similarities between the hegemony in Narsapur and in the United States. Our society’s practices and treatment towards women’s work and the treatment of women’s work in Naraspur can be compared. One comparison in the U.S. is the treatment of women’s work outside of the job force. By sheer lack of acknowledgement, women’s work inside the home is overlooked and hence not considered to be work at all. Work that receives no recognition is invisible and invisibility of work carries with it no economic power. American women are still perceived as primarily being housewives first, then they are doctors or lawyers or you can fill in the blank.

East Of Eden :: essays research papers

East of Eden   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Some of the most aspiring and influential authors show to be American novelists. American novelists brought about a new style of writing, which became very popular. John Steinbeck shows this style of writing in his novel, East of Eden. This makes Steinbeck one of the most significant American novelists in the twentieth century. East of Eden contains many parts, which add detail and interest to the novel. Many of Steinbeck’s novels and other works remain and continue to be nationally acclaimed. Many elements exist in East of Eden that bring about the meaning and concept of the novel. The study of John Steinbeck and his book, East of Eden, will help the reader better understand the element of fiction and interpret the meaning of the work.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  John Steinbeck was born on February 27, 1902 in Salinas, California. Between 1919 and 1925 Steinbeck was acknowledged as a special student at Stanford University. According to Peter Lisac, â€Å"Variously employed as a had-carrier, fruit-picker, apprentice printer, laboratory assistant, caretaker, surveyor, reporter, writer, and foreign correspondent let him acquire knowledge in many areas.† (1) Even in his youth, Steinbeck developed a love of the natural world and diverse cultures. Steinbeck produced two children from his second wife, Elaine Scott. The early 1930’s became a struggle for Steinbeck, both in his Long 2 attempts to improve his writing and his day-to-day existence. Yet, in the 1940’s he turned his main interest from sociology and biology to individual ethics. Steinbeck was honored in 1962 with the Nobel Prize in Literature. He regarded East of Eden as the accumulation of his career. Steinbeck died of heart disease in New York on November 20, 1968.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In addition to East of Eden, Steinbeck produced many other novels and several volumes of short fiction in his early career. Most of Steinbeck’s novels and stories are set in the Salinas Valley in California where he spent most of his life. Steinbeck won the Pulitzer Prize for his novel, Grapes of Wrath which makes him best known. According to John Timmerman, †Grapes of Wrath studies the problems migrant workers encountered while traveling from Oklahoma to California.† (1) Steinbeck wrote eighteen books through his life span. Some of his novels included Of Mice and Men, Cannery Row, Tortilla Flat, The Moon is Down, The Red Pony, and many others. Of Mice and Men gained Steinbeck national recognition. Saint Katy the Virgin, Nothing So Monstrous, The Long Valley, How Edith McGillcuddy, and The Crapshooter are Steinbeck’s volumes of short stories. East Of Eden :: essays research papers East of Eden   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Some of the most aspiring and influential authors show to be American novelists. American novelists brought about a new style of writing, which became very popular. John Steinbeck shows this style of writing in his novel, East of Eden. This makes Steinbeck one of the most significant American novelists in the twentieth century. East of Eden contains many parts, which add detail and interest to the novel. Many of Steinbeck’s novels and other works remain and continue to be nationally acclaimed. Many elements exist in East of Eden that bring about the meaning and concept of the novel. The study of John Steinbeck and his book, East of Eden, will help the reader better understand the element of fiction and interpret the meaning of the work.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  John Steinbeck was born on February 27, 1902 in Salinas, California. Between 1919 and 1925 Steinbeck was acknowledged as a special student at Stanford University. According to Peter Lisac, â€Å"Variously employed as a had-carrier, fruit-picker, apprentice printer, laboratory assistant, caretaker, surveyor, reporter, writer, and foreign correspondent let him acquire knowledge in many areas.† (1) Even in his youth, Steinbeck developed a love of the natural world and diverse cultures. Steinbeck produced two children from his second wife, Elaine Scott. The early 1930’s became a struggle for Steinbeck, both in his Long 2 attempts to improve his writing and his day-to-day existence. Yet, in the 1940’s he turned his main interest from sociology and biology to individual ethics. Steinbeck was honored in 1962 with the Nobel Prize in Literature. He regarded East of Eden as the accumulation of his career. Steinbeck died of heart disease in New York on November 20, 1968.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In addition to East of Eden, Steinbeck produced many other novels and several volumes of short fiction in his early career. Most of Steinbeck’s novels and stories are set in the Salinas Valley in California where he spent most of his life. Steinbeck won the Pulitzer Prize for his novel, Grapes of Wrath which makes him best known. According to John Timmerman, †Grapes of Wrath studies the problems migrant workers encountered while traveling from Oklahoma to California.† (1) Steinbeck wrote eighteen books through his life span. Some of his novels included Of Mice and Men, Cannery Row, Tortilla Flat, The Moon is Down, The Red Pony, and many others. Of Mice and Men gained Steinbeck national recognition. Saint Katy the Virgin, Nothing So Monstrous, The Long Valley, How Edith McGillcuddy, and The Crapshooter are Steinbeck’s volumes of short stories.

Comparing how the poets Levertov and Brathwaite use poetic techniques E

Comparing how the poets Levertov and Brathwaite use poetic techniques to convey ideas about belonging to a particular culture Both poets Brathwaite and Levertov describe how people belonging to a culture are changed by a more powerful culture. This is done in both poems by an amount of force. There are symbols and powerful techniques to bring you into this. In the poem ‘Limbo’, unable to protect and defend themselves, the West Africans find themselves exploited by the Europeans. Clearly, poetic techniques and structure are used to convey and influence the meaning of the poems. In the poems ‘Limbo’ and ‘What were they like?’, the poets create powerful symbols which can convey a range of key ideas. Levertov focuses on how the people of this particular culture live before an...

Emergence of Critical and Cultural Theories Essay

Culture : the learned behavior of members of a given social group. Cultural studies: Focus use of media to create forms of culture that structure everyday life. Political economy theories: Focus on social elites’ use of economic power to exploit media institutions. 2 There are microscopic interpretive theories that focus on how individuals and social groups use media to create and foster forms of culture that structure everyday life. These theories are referred to as cultural studies theories. There are macroscopic structural theories that focus on how social elites use their economic power to gain ontrol over and 3 Cultural Theory: Theories openly espousing certain values and using these values to evaluate and criticize the status quo providing alternate ways of interpreting the social role of mass media. Those who develop critical theories seek to initiate social change that will implement their values. Political economy theories are inherently critical but some cultural studies 4 Critical theories often provides complex explanations for this tendency of media to consistently do so. E. g: some critical theorists identify constraints on media practitioners that limit their ability to challenge established authority. They charge that few incentives exist to encourage media professionals to overcome these constraints and that media 5 Critical theory often analyzes specific social institutions, probing the extent to which valued objects are sought and achieved. Mass Media and the mass culture have been linked to a variety of social problems, they are criticized for aggravating or preventing problems from being identified or addressed. A common theme in critical theories of media is that content production is so constrained 6 Consider for example, the last time you read news about members of a social ovement that strongly challenged the status quo? Why were the college students who protested against the Communist Chinese government in Tiananmen Square â€Å"heroes of democracy’ and those in American anti-war â€Å"hippies† and â€Å"radicals? † Stories about movements imply problems with 7 – controntation. Movement leaders demand coverage ot their complaints and they stage demonstrations designed to draw public attention to their concerns. Elites seek to minimize coverage or to exercise â€Å"spin control† so that the coverage favors their position. How do Journalists handle this? How should they handle it? Existing research indicates that this coverage almost always degenerates movements and supports elites. 8 Critical theory: Strengths: 1. Is politically based, actionoriented. 2. Uses theory and research to plan change in the real world. 3. Asks big, important questions about media control and ownership. 9 Weaknesses: 3. When subjected to scientific verification, often employs innovative but controversial research methods. 0 Rise of Cultural Theories in Europe: Despite its long life in American Social Science, the Limited Effects Paradigm never enjoyed great popularity in europe. European social research has instead been characterized by what U. S. Observers regard as grand social theories. Grand Social Theory: Highly ambitious, 1 1 In Europe, the development of grand social theory remained a central concern i n the social sciences and humanities. Mass society theory gave way to a succession of alternate ideas. Some were limited to specific nations and others spread across many countries. Some of the most widely accepted have been based on the writings of Karl Marx. Marxist theory influenced even the theories that were created in reaction against it. Marxist ideas formed a foundation or touch stone for most postworld War II european social theory and research. 12 Cold War politics colored much of the U. S. Response to it. Ironically, in the 1970s and 1980s, at the very time that Marxist failed as a practical guide for politics and economics in Eastern Europe, grand social theories based on Marxist thought were gaining increasing acceptance in Western Europe. 3 MARXIST THEORY: Marxist Theory: Theory arguing that the hierarchical class system is at the root of all social problems and must be ended by a revolution of the proletariat. Karl Marx developed this theory in the latter part of the nineteenth century during one of the most volatile periods of social change in Europe. In some respects, his theory is yet another version ot mass society theory- – but witn se veral very important alterations and additions. 14 He identified industrialization and urbanization as problems but argued that these changes were not inherently bad. Instead, he blamed ruthless robber baron capitalists for exacerbating social problems because they maximized personal profits by exploiting workers. Marx argued that the hierarchical class system was the root of ll social problems and must be ended by a revolution of the workers or proletariat. He believed that elites dominated society primarily through their direct control over the means of production (i. e. , labor, factories, land) which he referred to as the base of society. 15 But elites also maintained themselves in power through their control over culture, or the superstructure of society. He saw culture as something that elites freely manipulated to mislead average people and encourage them to act against their own interest. He used the term ideology to refer to these forms of culture. To him, ideology operated much like a drug. Those who were under its influence fail to see how they are being exploited. In worst cases, they are so deceived, that they actually 16 – undermine their own interests and do things that increase the power of elites while making their own lives even worse. Marx concluded that the only hope for social change was a revolution in which the masses seized control of the base the means of production. Control over the superstructure -over ideology would naturally follow. He saw little possibility that reforms in the super structure could ead to social evolution, or if it could, that -that transformation would be very slow in coming. Elites would never willingly surrender POWER. Power must be taken from them. Little purpose would be served by making minor changes in ideology 17 – without first dominating the means of production. Neomarxist Theory: Contemporary incarnation of Marxist theory focusing attention on the super structure. The importance that Neomarxists attach to the super structure has created a fundamental division within Marxism. Many neomaxists assume that useful change can begin with peaceful, ideological reform rather than violent revolution in which he working class seizes control of the means of production. 18 Some neomarxists have developed critiques that call for radically transforming the superstructure while others call for modest reforms. Tensions have arisen among scholars who base their work on Marx’s ideas over the value of the work being done by 19 the various neomarxist schools. Textual Analysis and Literary Criticism: Modern european cultural studies theories have a second, very different source a tradition of humanist criticism of religious and literary texts that is referred to hermeneutics. Hermeneutics: the interpretation f texts to identify their actual or real meaning. 20 -humanists who worked to identify and preserve what came to be known as the â€Å"literary canon† a body of the great literature. The literary canon was part of what was referred to as high culture, a set of cultural artifacts including music, art, literature, and poetry that humanists Judged to have the highest value. 1 – the level of culture to enable even more people to become humane and civilized. Over the years, many different methods for analyzing written texts have emerged from hermeneutics. They share a common purpose: to criticize old and new cultural ractices so that those most deserving of attention can be identified and explained and the less deserving can b e dismissed. This task can be compared with that of movie critics who tell us which films are good or bad and assist us in appreciating or avoiding them. The primary difference is that movie critics are typically not committed to promoting higher 22 – cultural values; they only want to explain which movies we are likely to find entertaining. THE FRANKFURT SCHOOL One early prominent school of neo-marxist theory developed during the 1930s at the University of Frankfurt and became known as the Frankfurt School. 3 Two of the most prominent individuals associated with the school were Max Horkheimer, its long time head, and Theodor Adorno, a prolific and cogent theorist. Horheimer and Adorno were openly skeptical that high culture could or should be communicated through mass media. Adorno argued that radio broadcasts or records couldn’t begin to adequately reproduce the sound of a live symphony orchestra. He ridiculed the reproduction of great art in 24 – magazines or the reprinting of great novels in condensed, serialized form. He claimed that mass media reproductions of high culture were inferior and diverted eople from seeking out (and paying for) the â€Å"real thing† if bad substitutes for high culture were readily available, he believed too many people would settle for them and fail to support better forms of culture. The Frankfurt School has been criticized along with other forms of traditional humanism for being too elitist and paternalistic. By rejecting the possibility of using media to disseminate 25 – high culture, most ot the population was ettectively denied access to it Many ot the school’s criticisms of media paralleled those of mass society theory and had the same limitations. The Frankfurt School eventually had a direct impact on American social research because the rise of the Nazis forced its Jewish members into exile. 26 During the period of exile, however, Frankfurt School Theorists remained prodductive. They devoted considerable effort, for example, to the critical analysis of Nazi culture and the way it undermined and perverted high culture. In their view, Nazism grounded on a phony, artificially constructed folk culture that had been cynically created and manipulated by Hitler and his propagandists. 27 Nazism helped them envision the Germany they longed to see – a unified, proud ation with a long history of achievement and a glorious future. As they rose to power, the Nazis replaced high culture with their pseudofolk culture and discredited important forms of high culture, especially those created by Jews. 8 DEVELOPMENT OF NEOMARXIST THEORY IN BRITAIN: Dunng the 1960s and 1970s , two important schools of neomarxist theory emerged in Great Britain. British Cultural studies and political economy theory. British cultural studies combines neomarxist theory with ideas and research methods derived from diverse sources including literary criticism, linguistics, anthropology, and h istory. This theory has attempted to trace historic elite domination over culture, to criticize the 29 – social consequence of this domination and to demonstrate how it continues to be exercised over specific minority groups or subcultures. British cultural studies criticizes and contrasts elite notions of culture, including high culture, with popular, every day forms practiced by minorities. The superiority of all forms of elite culture including high culture is challenged and compared with useful, valuable forms of popular culture. Hermeneutic attention is shifted from the study of elite cultural rtifacts to the study of minority grouped â€Å"Lived culture. † 30 Graham Murdock(1989) traced the rise of British cultural studies during the 1950s and 1960s. Most important theorists came from the lower social classes that were the focus of the movies. The British cultural studies critique of high culture and ideology was an explicit rejection of what its proponents saw as alien forms of culture imposed on minorities. They defended indigenous forms of popular culture as legitimate expressions of minority groups/ A dominant early theorist was Raymond Williams, a literary scholar who achieved 31 Notoriety with his reappraisals of cultural development in England. William’s ideas were viewd with suspicion and skepticism by many of his colleagues at Cambridge University. Toward the end of 1960s and into the 1970s, Williams turned his attention to mass media. He was more broadly concerned with issues of cultural change and development as well as elite domination ot culture. 3 – repackaged as popular, mass media content. If there were to be genuine progress, he felt, it would have to come through significant reform of social institutions. The first important school of cultural studies theorists was formed at the University of Birmingham, during the 1960s and was led by Stuart Hall. Hall (1982) was especially influential in directing several analyses of mass media that directly challenge limited effects notions and in introducing innovative alternatives. Building on ideas developed by Jurgen Habermas(1971 , 1989) and Williams, Hall argued that mass media liberal -democracies can be best understood as a pluralistic public forum in which various forces struggle to shape popular notions about social reality. Pluralistic Public Forum: In critical theory, the idea that media provide a place where the power of dominant lite can be challenged. British Cultural Studies: Strengths: 1 . Asserts value of popular culture 2. Empowers â€Å"Common Man† 34 3. Empowers minorities and values their culture. 4. Stresses cultural pluralism and egalitarianism. Weaknesses: 1. Is too political; call to action is to subjective 2. Typically lacks scientific verification; is based on subjective observation. 3. When subjected to scientific verification, often employs innovative but controversial research methods. 35 Unlike traditional Marxists, Hall did not argue that elites can maintain complete control over this forum. In his view, elites don’t need that power to advance their interests. The culture expressed in this forum is not a mere superficial reflection of the superstructure but is instead a dynamic creation of opposing groups.