Saturday, August 31, 2019

Marketing concept and role as marketer for ipt

Marketing is broad based activities involve the strategies surrounding the planning, designing, pricing, promotion, distribution of   goods to satisfy and meet the needs of customers. The centre focus of marketing activities is built around the customers. Thus, the marketing 4Ps (product, pricing, promotion, and place) are strategically enforced to bringing satisfaction to customers and at the same time make the organization or business maximize profits. Thus, the different marketing strategies; pricing strategy, distributive  strategy, promotional strategy, sales strategy, product creation and branding strategy, inter-alia, these are synchronize in meeting the marketing  objectives of the organization. Playing the role of marketer for IPT product, strategic marketing plays a significant aspect in the execution of my marketing functions. â€Å"Strategy is concerned with effectiveness rather than efficiency and is the process of analyzing the environment and designing the fit between the organization, its resources and objectives and the environment† (Proctor, 2000). The roles thus include engaging the aforementioned marketing strategies to creating maximum satisfaction to customers, at the same time maximizing profit for the organization. Firstly, a product should be design to meet and satisfy the need of customers. Here, adequate research need to be conducted to ensure that the product is adequate to satisfy customers want, also making sure the quality surpasses that of competitive products in line to the IPT product. The next step is to ensure, that the right price is set for the product in such a way that it would not be under priced, where the organization cannot break-even, or over priced where customers would prefer rival’s product to our company product. Market skimming enables the marketer to know the price of competitors’ products and the right price to set for its own product. This is done after the marketer has weighed its costs of production in line with the price it decide to set for the product. Another significant role the marketer plays promotional strategy. In this case, the creation of awareness of the product to the public will burst the sales volume to be derived. Thus, adequate promotional strategy is significant role the marketer plays to increase sales volume for the product. The promotional strategy may involve trade exhibition, personal selling, and customers’ orientation on how to utilize the product among others. The marketer has different media for product promotion. This can be done through engaging mass media such as the print media, television, radio broadcasts, or the internet. Constant communication and feedback to customers keep them informed and know more about the organization’s product and innovative trend introduced by the organization. The strategy for distribution of product (place) is done to ensure that the product is available to customers when, and where the need it at the right time. The marketer also seeks out ways to satisfy the different category of customers and their needs. Marketing segmentation is a tool that is utilized in influencing the development of an organization’s product base. Market segmentation has the goal to seek out consumers who have similar desires and behavior, and thus forming heterogeneous segments to satisfy the different customers’ needs. Thus, customers’ response to price is a significant factor that results in the implementation of market segmentation by an organization. This also affects the marketing mix (product, price, distribution, and promotion) of the organization. The marketer faces the challenge of how to make product of IPT be a product leader in the industry it operates. It is then a big task on how to always strategy in such a way to make the organization be a step ahead of its competitors through curving a niche for the organization.   Rivals from time to time bring out strategy to counter those of other organization. Thus, it is then a task of the marketer to know how to strategize in such a way that the strategies of other competitors do not affect the smooth operations of the organization. Reference Proctor, Tony (2000), Strategic Marketing: An Introduction London: Routledge   

Friday, August 30, 2019

Compare and Contrast Essay Between Beowulf and the Hobbit

I just this day finished reading A COMPANION TO BEOWULF by my friend and classmate Ruth Johnson. It was remarkably clear, well written, concise, and chock full of fascinating insights and observations. Let me in particular remark on her last chapter, which concerned Tolkien and Beowulf. I had not heretofore been aware of how large a figure JRR Tolkien loomed in the scholarship of the epic poem BEOWULF, nor what a great influence his seminal essay The Monster and the Critics, had in turning the attention of the academic world from the historical to the literary merits of the poem.Ruth Johnson makes the argument that Lord of the Rings is an updated version of BEOWULF. No, not the events, but the world, the worldview, the motif, the techniques, and especially the approach toward religion. It is to be noted that many critics faulted Tolkien for not including anywhere in Middle Earth any description or hint of rituals, rites, temples and cults with adorn the vivid backdrops of other works of fantasy.Except for a few indirect hints that there is a High God somewhere, and angelic powers the elves revere, Lord of the Rings is perhaps unique among fantasies in that there is no mention of the religious side of society or the spiritual side of man. But, of course, Tolkien is not unique: he is following BEOWULF. The poet of BEOWULF (so Tolkien interpreted the evidence) wished to depict his pre-Christian ancestors in the admirable light men are right to have for their ancestors, but without attributing to them a Christian faith they could not have had.In these modern times, when Christian and Postchristian struggle for the souls of men, and the popular picture of the Christian is of a book-burner rather than the preserver of pagan literature, it is often hard to recall the respect with which the Christian imagination held their pagan fore-bearers and preserved their works. One need only open any random page of Dante or Milton, for example, to see the thickly clustered refer ences to pagan myths reflected with considerably more reverence than more modern and sarcastic depictions of the gods of old.As with Roman Christian and the classical pagans, so with Old English and his Norse fathers, at least in this case. The way the poet of BEOWULF handled the delicate matter of showing the old days and the old ways as noble but, deprived of Christ, doomed, was to pass over the differences in a pregnant silence, and yet emphasizing those cardinal virtues that pagans and Christian alike admire, particularly fortitude and honor. So too here did Tolkien with his Middle Earth and their peoples: the foremost virtue emphasized again and again in Tolkien was the Beowulfian virtue of continuing a fight even after all hope is exhausted.The melancholy pronouncements of gloom and doom are scattered throughout the War of the Ring, yet also match the elegiac quality of Beowulf’s last battle against the dragon of the barrow, and much of the tone in side tales mentioned in Beowulf. The Beowulfian attitude toward fate or ‘Wyrd’ seems a blend of the pagan notion of inescapable fate woven by the Three Sisters, or the Christian notion of fate as the decree and will of God. A similar attitude might be detected in Middle Earth.Frodo nowhere lauds the fact that it is his free choice to carry the burden of the cursed One Ring, as, for example, Neo from THE MATRIX does in the climax of that trilogy. Instead, the wise Gandalf tells Frodo that Bilbo was â€Å"meant† to find the Ring, as if by some divine will above and beyond the will of any creature in Middle Earth, even Sauron the Dark Lord. Meant by whom? As in Beowulf, it is not said, but the silence implies something like ‘Wyrd’ or the will of heavenly powers.Tolkien borrowed so much from Beowulf and the Old English, that the description of Medusheld (Mead-Hall) in Rohan might be taken as the twin of Hereot. Unferth, who sits at the feet of Hrothgar and scorns Beowulf at his first appearing in the great hall, is somewhat parallel to Grima, who sits likewise and scorns Gandalf as a storm-crow and a meddler in others’ affairs. Many readers (include myself) have called Lord of the Rings a ‘medieval’ fantasy, but this is a gross misnomer. There is not a single Arthurian figure in Middle Earth, nor any such armor or arms or equipment as might a knight of the High Middle Ages have used.The men are in hauberks and iron caps, as in Beowulf, usually carrying spears. The fantasy is Old English in setting, Danish and Beowulfian, England of the time of Alfred the Great; but also the scenes in Gondor might be imagined as if some northern hero visited the great and ancient cities, cities builded of stone and gold, of Rome or great and once-invulnerable Constantinople. The Shire itself is redolent of a high medieval period, some idealized squirearchy, but Rohan is entirely in the mood and atmosphere of Beowulf.In Beowulf, the elves or ‘yl fas’ are listed along with ‘ettins’ and ‘orcs’ (elves, giants, demons) as being descendents of Cain, exiled by God for his kin-slaying (a crime the Norse held in particular horror) and therefore, even as lesser clans must feud and retaliate endlessly, so the Sons of Cain with the race of moral men, descended of Seth and Noah. While the orcs and other monsters in Tolkien are creatures innately evil, no more to be reasoned with nor spared than Grendel, the elves are not quite the Liosalfar of Norse myth, albeit they are more akin to this than to the diminutive sprites of MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM.In olden times, northern people found stone arrowheads, or saw evidence of heart attacks or madness that seemed without cause, and blamed the unseen people, the elves, who were not necessarily cruel and wicked, but they had no concern for the things of men, and went their ways invisibly. Something of this mood is present in Tolkien’s elves, albeit he makes them both more manlike, and something like a prelapsarian man still at one with nature, to suit his purposes. The dwarves of Tolkien, on the other hand, could have stepped out of central casting from a Wagner Opera, and the names are taken unchanged from the Eddas.It may be useful for a moment to contrast the free peoples of Middle Earth with the other fantasies from Tolkien’s generation and before, in order to emphasize a point easy to be lost in our modern Dungeons and Dragons generation: namely, that elves and trolls and dwarves are purely Norse and Beowulfish in origin. Tolkien took them from the world of Beowulf and made that world and no other the staple of fantasy worlds. Tolkien made the ylfas and orcs and ettins into the elves and dwarves and trolls we now tend to think of as trite stereotypes of an overly-plowed field.But you will in vain seek their like in THE WORM OUROBOROS by ER Eddison, nor in LUD-IN-THE-MIST by Hope Mirrlees, nor in anything written by James Branch Cabell nor William Morris nor Lord Dunsany nor Clarke Ashton Smith nor William Hope Hodgson nor William Beckford nor Arthur Machen nor the great Robert E. Howard in any writer in that genre that used to be called fantasy before the coming of Tolkien. These peoples and creatures entered the common imagination from the forgotten north of the world through the pen of JRR Tolkien.Turning for a moment to the Hobbit, we see the dragon Smaug circled on gold in his buried hold in much the same manner as the dragon of Beowulf. Both are stirred to outrage by the theft of a trifle from their greed-gathered horde, a gold cup. Both rise up in flame and wrath to burn nearby homesteads. It is an entirely Norse conception of a dragon. The dragon slain in myth by Saint George was no hoarder of gold; Nagas of the East and Liang of the Far East are different beasties entirely, albeit called dragons in our language.One artistic technique the poet of Beowulf used was to interpolate referen ces to even earlier events and sagas into the matter of the poem. Early critics of Beowulf thought this a structural weakness, or even evidence of two or three poets cobbling disjointed earlier material together. But a close attention to the matter perhaps shows the poet meaning to draw out parallels and contrasts between the ancient events and the struggle in Hereot, or the dark mere, or the barrow. It gives the poem, which was meant to be antiquarian at the time it was ritten, a richness of depth, by depicting a world of many layers of ever receding time. Behind every treasure sword and necklace, there is a tale, and weapons have names and histories even as great households and heroes and the lineages do. Tolkien is often complimented on the richness of the detail, the sense of many ages piled up behind the event in the current War of the Ring; but what he did was to copy Beowulf, and use the same technique, giving names to swords and remarking on the histories of towers and lands until the weight of history settles into the imagination of the reader.I contrast it with, for example, Homer’s ILIAD, where the technique is not used. Aside from the armor of Narses, I cannot recall the history of any weapon being recounted among the Greek. It is purely Norse touch. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings seems a real world because so often mention is made of former days and older ways, and the tale is of the passing away of things with deep roots who once stood long in their places.Finally, the world itself, the Middle Earth, is merely the Old English word for Midgard, the world suspended halfway between the dark of hell and the light of heaven. The melancholy of the passing away of the older world was also a theme in BEOWULF, in the ears of the listeners even if we cannot hear it today. The English poet set his tale amid Danish lands and centuries (even at that time) long gone by. The old ways were past, and the new had come. The poet says farewell to the worl d of Beowulf even as he writes his saga.In much the same way, JRR Tolkien says farewell to the world and worldview that passed away before and during the Great War in Europe, the death of the days when the world was alive and elves lurked unseen in the twilight, the death of faith and faithfulness, the passing away of kings and heroes and all things ancient and fine, and the final triumph of the smoggy mediocrity of Mordor. Part of the reason for the fame of his book is that many folk share the sentiment of elegy, and wish, with Professor Tolkien, to say farewell to a world nobler than our own.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Recognition Act

In determining who the Act is for, the definition of ATSI people must be considered. As this Act does not provide a definition, a review of prior Australian legislative and common law definitions is therefore required. The definition of ATSI people has a long and contentious history in Australia. Even today, two very different definitions are concurrently in use. One, commonly found in Australian legislation, defines Aboriginals as a person who is a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia. The second definition, a three-part test proposed in the early 1980’s by the Commonwealth Department of Aboriginal Affairs, identifies ATSI peoples as being ‘of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent who identify as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders and are accepted as such by the community in which they live. ’ The first definition becomes problematic as it fails to establish the sort of evidence required to satisfy it. Advances in the field of human genetics have concluded that there is no meaningful genetic or biological basis for the concept of ‘race’. The second definition presents its own problems, which arise when the Aboriginality of the community doing the accepting is thrown into question. Subsequent case law has further developed the definition of ATSI people, for example in Gibbs v Capewell (1995), Justice Drummond stated that ‘the less the degree of Aboriginal descent, the more important cultural circumstances become in determining whether a person is Aboriginal’. In Eatock v Bolt [2011], Bromberg J considered the extent to which each criteria in the three-part test needed to be deployed, stating that: â€Å"For some legislative purposes and in the understanding of some people, compliance with one or two of the attributes of the three-part test may be regarded as sufficient. † The currently favoured three-part definition may be considered an advancement over earlier colonial definitions of ATSI people, which comprised of derogatory terms such as â€Å"nobel savage† or â€Å"prehistoric beast†. The fact remains however within in Australia, only ATSI people are required to prove their identity. Furthermore, it is Australia’s legislature, comprising of mainly non-ATSI representatives, who are tasked with defining ATSI people, rather than ATSI peoples themselves. Who will benefit The question as to who this Act will benefit requires an examination of what the Act aims to achieve prior to the conclusion of its two year ‘sunset provision’, as well as the longer term aims to which the Act is directed. Parliament has acknowledged that the Act is only an interim step towards recognition of ATSI peoples in the Constitution, and that the Act is not intended to be a substitute for constitutional recognition itself. The Act provides for the recognition of ATSI people as Australia’s first occupants, acknowledges their continuing relationship with their traditional land and waters, and acknowledges ATSI people’s culture, language and heritage. The Act does not create any material or economic benefits for ATSI people. Rather, it aims at building political support for Constitutional reform. As the Australian Founding Fathers paid no attention at all to the position of the Australian aboriginal race, the Act may be of some benefit to the emotional wellbeing of ATSI people as it formally acknowledges their cultural heritage. However, due to the section 5 of the Act, which causes these to cease two years after its commencement, any such benefit will be temporary. Furthermore, as Parliament must hold a successful referendum to effect any Constitutional change, there remains a possibility that Parliament could fail to generate enough support for the amendments it proposes. In that case the Act would have been little, if any, lasting benefit. As Parliament is yet to propose any amendments to the Constitution, it remains unclear who will benefit in the longer term. PART B: Provisions to Bind Future Parliaments The Act provides a process for progressing constitutional recognition of ATSI people into the future. Section 4 (1) of the Act provides that the relevant minister must conduct a review of support for a referendum to recognize ATSI people in the Constitution within 12 months of the commencement of the Act. As the Act commenced in February 2012, and a Federal election is due for the same year, it is likely that this provision will take effect after the election. The question of whether this provision is binding on future Parliaments requires an examination of whether the Parliament has the power do so, and if it does, under what circumstances. Parliamentary Sovereignty Parliamentary sovereignty represents one of the twin pillars of British constitutional law, along with the rule of law, identified by the influential nineteenth century jurist, Alfred Venn Dicey (1835-1922). Dicey defined Parliamentary Sovereignty as essentially being â€Å"the power of lawmaking unrestricted by any legal limit† which gives Parliament â€Å"the right to make or unmake any law; whatever†. However, unlike the United Kingdom, the Australian Parliament is constrained by the Commonwealth Constitution and is therefore not absolutely sovereign In theory, there is a necessary limit to sovereignty. If Parliament were absolutely sovereign to pass any law whatsoever, it could pass laws limiting the power of its successors, and parliamentary sovereignty would be short-lived. In Australia, the general rule is that Parliament is not bound by a previous Parliament. This was supported by the majority in Kartinyeri, who concluded, as Brennan CJ and McHugh J put it, that â€Å"the power to make laws includes the power to unmake them†. Each new Parliament is therefore free to create new laws afresh. The notion that Parliament is not bound by prior legislation is further supported by the doctrines of express repeal and implied repeal. The doctrine of express repeal works on the proposition that a later act of Parliament can be enacted which expressly and clearly repeals an earlier act in its totality. The doctrine of implied repeal states that certain sections of an earlier act maybe accidently or impliedly repealed where the provisions of an earlier act are inconsistent with a later act. The Act in question is not binding of successor Parliaments, and may therefore be amended or repealed as Parliament sees fit. Manner and Form Provisions Australian Parliaments have on occasions sought to affect the power of their successors by imposing special requirements for the passing of some laws. These requirements, known as ‘manner and form’ provisions, are restrictive procedures. They restrict the legislative powers of the Parliament by requiring that laws on certain topics may only be enacted by a special and more difficult procedure. Probably the most common manner and form provision is the referendum requirement whereby, before royal assent is given to the bill, it must be approved by a majority of the electorate. Such a provision reconstitutes Parliament by adding an additional chamber, the electorate. This would provide a difficult hurdle for any future Parliament as only 8 of 44 referendums have been successful in Australia’s history. Although Parliament has not drafted this Act in a way which restricts its amendment or repeal, Parliament could do so by inserting manner and form provisions for this purpose. PART C: The Expert Panel Prior to drafting the Bill, the Federal Labor Government established an Expert Panel on constitutional recognition for ATSI people. Throughout 2011, the Panel engaged with thousands of Australians through submissions, consultations and meetings, to hear the views of a wide cross-section of the Australian community. In January 2012, the Panel published its report where it provided recommendations on the possible forms of constitutional recognition, along with constitutional amendments relating to racial non-discrimination. Constitutional background to this legislation The Australian ‘founding fathers’ paid no attention at all to the position of the ATSI peoples. The Constitution as originally framed in 1901 provided for the exclusion and the discriminatory treatment of the ‘aboriginal race’. There were only two references to ATSI people in the body of the original Australian Constitution: (a) Federal Parliament was denied power to make laws with respect to people of â€Å"the aboriginal race in any State†; and (b) Section 127 provided: â€Å"In reckoning the numbers of the people of the Commonwealth, or of a State or other part of the Commonwealth, aboriginal natives shall not be counted. † The 1967 referendum, which did away with the discriminatory references in s 127 and amended s 51 (xxvi) to allow Parliament to make laws for ATSI people, was intended to be in the best interests of the Aboriginal people. However, in the case of Kartinyeri v Commonwealth (1998), which was the legal climax of a long political controversy, the majority of justices said that ‘for’ does not require the Parliament to legislate beneficially. The outcome meant that the Australian Parliament were empowered to enact laws that would not only benefit ATSI people, but also discriminate against them. And so, while the 1967 referendum made well-intentioned symbolic changes, the overall legal effect was that the discriminatory attitudes of the Constitution’s founders were retained. One of the principles agreed to by the Panel for its assessment of proposals for constitutional was that a proposal must be of benefit to and accord with the wishes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It could therefore be argued that an Expert Panel, comprised not only of lawyers but prominent ATSI community members, carefully scrutinising the legal ramifications of any proposed constitutional amendments, will make it less likely that constitutional recognition would have unintended outcomes for ATSI people (as in Kartinyeri). Furthermore, Megan Davis, a member of the expert panel, stated that constitutional recognition – whether amendment of a race power or a non-discrimination clause – does not foreclose on the question of sovereignty. The above findings by the Panel, along with its widespread consultation with ASTI people, will undoubtedly play a significant role in addressing the concerns the Australia people may have in relation to the proposed referendum. [ 1 ]. Dr John Gardiner-Garden, Defining Aboriginality in Australia (3 February 2003) Social Policy Group . [ 2 ]. Ibid. [ 3 ]. See, eg, Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act 1986 (Cth). [ 4 ]. Department of Aboriginal Affairs, Report on a Review of the Administration of the Working Definition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders (1981), Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra, cited in J Gardiner-Garden, The Definition of Aboriginality: Research Note 18, 2000–01 (2000) Parliament of Australia, 2. [ 5 ]. See above n 1. [ 6 ]. J Graves, The Emperor’s New Clothes: Biological Theories of Race at the Millennium (2001) Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick. [ 7 ]. See above n 1. [ 8 ]. 54 FCR 503. [ 9 ]. FCA 1103 (28 September 2011). 10 ]. Michael Dodson ‘The End in the Beginning: Re(de)finding Aboriginality’ (Speech delivered at the Wentworth Lecture, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, 1994). [ 11 ]. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Recognition Act 2013 (Cth) s 5. [ 12 ]. Explanatory Memorandum, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Recognition Bill 2012 (Cth). [ 13 ]. Above n 11, s 3. [ 14 ]. Geoffrey Sawer, ‘The Australian Constitution and the Australian Aborigine’ (1966) 2 Federal Law Review 17. [ 15 ]. Australia Constitution s 128. [ 16 ]. Ibid. [ 17 ]. Above n 12. [ 18 ]. Sarah Joseph and Melissa Castan, Federal Constitutional Law: A Contemporary View (Thomson Reuters, 3rd ed, 2010) 3. [ 19 ]. A V Dicey, The Introduction to The Study of the Constitution (Macmillan and Co, first published 1885, 1889 ed). [ 20 ]. Ibid. [ 21 ]. Above n 21. [ 22 ]. A Reilly, G Appleby, L Grenfell and W Lacey, Australian Public Law (Oxford University Press, 2011). [ 23 ]. Ibid. [ 24 ]. 152 ALR at [13]. [ 25 ]. See, eg, Vauxhall Estates, Ltd. v. Liverpool Corporation [1932] 1 KB 733. See also Ellen Street Estates Ltd. v. Minister of Health [1934] 1 KB 590 at 597. [ 26 ]. Ibid. [ 27 ]. Above n 24. [ 28 ]. Tony Blackshield and George Williams, Australian Constitutional Law and Theory: Commentary and Materials (The Federation Press, 5th ed, 2010) 440. [ 29 ]. Ibid. [ 30 ]. Gerard Carney, ‘An Overview of Manner and Form in Australia’ (1989) 5 QUT Law Review 1. [ 31 ]. Ibid. [ 32 ]. Above n 32, 1340. [ 33 ]. Expert Panel on Constitutional Recognition of Indigenous Australians, Canberra, Recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples in the Constitution: Report of the Expert Panel (2012) . [ 34 ]. Geoffrey Sawer, ‘The Australian Constitution and the Australian Aborigine’ (1966) 2 Federal Law Review 17. 35 ]. Asmi Wood, ‘Constitutional Reform 2013: What are we trying to achieve? ’ (2012) 37 (3) Alternative Law Journal 156-160. [ 36 ]. Law Council of Australia, Constitutional Recognition of Indigenous Australians, Discussion Paper (2011) 19. [ 37 ]. Australian Constitution s 51 (xxvi). [ 38 ]. Above n 18, 484. [ 39 ]. 195 CLR 337. [ 40 ]. Pet er Hanks Deborah Cass, Australian Constitution Law: Materials and Commentary (Butterworths, 6th ed, 1999). [ 41 ]. Commonwealth v Tasmania (1983) 158 CLR 1, 110 (Gibbs CJ). [ 42 ]. Above n 35, 158. [ 43 ]. Above n 33.

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Cross Culture Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Cross Culture Management - Essay Example The proposition under discussion states that 'national culture' is of no significance in the communication skills needed by him. Communication between individuals is carried out through the medium of speech and/or writing, and both are once the inherent constituents and the inevitable outcomes of the culture of a people. An effective managerial quality that we would expect of our 'international manager' is great communication skills. In the light of these facts, we examine the extent of the validity of the statement under discussion. In a discussion of national culture, it is both useful and relevant to consider Hofstede's concept of national culture in the context of the milieu in which the present-day global manager functions. However, before a discussion of the constituent elements in Hofstede's concept of national culture, the qualities expected of an international manager, and his communication skills, it is necessary to clarify the nature of the environment in which he functions and how he has come to be where he is at present. The simple answer to this question is that he has come to be where he is at present because of globalisation. Globalisation 'Globalisation' has been a 'buzz-word' for quite some years now. Many scholars have used the term to describe the changing economic, political, cultural, and environmental scenarios that have occurred in the world during the last couple of decades or so. Different scholars have analysed globalisation through application of the tools and insights of various disciplines. In economics and business, globalisation has to do with the 'opening up of the frontiers', and the practice of "deregulation", in the Western world between 1980 and 1988 and the domination of the 'free market economy model'. Globalisation of the economy has implied free international trade, free international capital flows, and more rapid and widespread diffusion of technology, and greater integration of financial markets. It has heralded greater interdependence of national economies, and been instrumental in bringing about the hegemony of the US in the world economy. International cultural movement that has followed g lobalisation, according to Hoodasthian, is 'westernisation'.1 Hoodasthian asserts that "westernization is responsible for the domination of English language in the world"2. This is an important statement in the context of the topic of our discussion. For, if in a 'globalised' world, the vehicle of communication is the English language, and when that language is part of the 'global culture', would it not follow that a 'local' or 'native' 'national culture' is indeed "of virtually no significance in relation to the communication skills needed by the modern" global manager, when that manager may happen to be an American or a British This aspect of the argument will be considered in a subsequent paragraph. In the next section, the discussion is about the concept of national culture in the context of

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Leadership in Healthcare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Leadership in Healthcare - Essay Example By applying this method to my beliefs and values, and leadership experience in various situations both in working and social environments I have concluded that I exhibit mostly the Adair’s Action-Centred leadership (Adair, 1988), Situational leadership (Hersey, Blanchard and Johnson, 1966), and Charismatic leadership (Bass, 1990). The Action Centered leadership model (Adair, 1988) is based on three overlapping circles: task, individual and group. Thus, the leader, applying this approach is enabled to make the task to be performed and goals to be achieved through fostering the work group and being attentive and reactive to the individual’s needs (Remme, Jones, Heiden, and Bono, 2008). Situational leadership style, developed by Paul and Ken Blanchard (1966) implies that leader’s behavior depends mainly on the readiness of the followers to perform certain task or achieve a goal (McShane and Glinow, 2000). While this leadership style is different from the previous one, I do apply both in my working and social environment. The third leadership style that I have discovered through my behavior is the Charismatic leadership. According to Bass (1990), charismatic leaders exude confidence, inspiration, a sense of purpose, and dominance (Chizoba, 2010). These features can be often observed in my behavior when I am excited about my future plans. While working as a Senior Support Worker I was responsible for providing direct supervision to support staff. Once I was given a task to conduct a marketing research survey on the preferences and needs of current and newly referred individuals. In our research study we had to analyze whether all the needs were satisfied and whether people got enough support. For performing this task I decided to form a group of 5 people in order to conduct a primary research on a given topic. The next day I have circulated by e-mail

Monday, August 26, 2019

Macro essay question Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Macro essay question - Assignment Example The theories of Economic Growth are used to formulate functional relationships in separate economic models. Money, balance of payment, goods and credit functions are made through these theories. According to the theory, demand=supply, when an economy will be in equilibrium producing the optimal level of output. When the economy produces potential output, with the given state of labor, capital and technology resource, then it generates full employment. However, it should be noted that even in the full employment level, an economy can experience a natural unemployment rate of utmost 4.2%. Any changes in the equilibrium are automatically rectified through price and quantity adjustments. Business Cycle and Economic Growth Theories are important because it helps to forecast the AD and potential production level of an economy. The direction of prices and employment opportunities are determined by AD. On the other hand, the long run economic prosperity of a nation is analyzed through its potential production level. However, AD and potential output of an economy experiences a directly proportional relationship with each other. This is because when AD increases, the economic agents of a market invests more in capital, labor and technology and hence reaches the potential production level. During an economic recession, the AD is less than AS of a market. If the interest rates are lowered then the cost of borrowing money will fall. This will enhance the investment opportunities in the market and expand the scopes of foreign trade. The gross employment opportunities will rise with increase in investment expenditure. With devaluation of exchange rates, the exports of the country will become cheaper than the imports. Finally it will generate a higher demand for domestically manufactured relatively inexpensive goods of the economy and hence increase the AD. The market will be out of recession with rise in AD. The consumers’ loyalty towards a

Market Report on Australia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Market Report on Australia - Essay Example Vast resource endowment and strong export sector allows the economy to be one of the influential participants in international trade. After the occurrence of the global financial crisis, all financial activities within the economy are strictly supervised that eliminates any chance of unscrupulous financial transaction. However, there are risks associated with this economy due to the easy monetary and fiscal policy implementations. This paper presents a study on the economic prospects of Australia and their effects on the country’s financial market. 2. Economic prospects 2.1 Recent developments and the present situation Australia is the 13th largest economies in the world in terms of GDP measure. In the Asia Pacific region the country ranks third in terms of GDP after China and Japan. Australia boasts of having one of the most robust national political frameworks among the developed countries in the world. Over the last five decades, the country has developed strong economic in stitutions in the world and has a very competitive business sector operating internationally. Recently Australia has been recognised as a continent with a wide reserve of natural resources and it is currently enjoying the position of one of the largest supplier of natural resources and raw materials in the world, such as, coal and iron ore. Steady economic growth in the continent has been aided by this resource boom. Trade in such abundant resource sector accounts for approximately 9.6 per cent of the total economy of Australia. The remainder of the economy is comprised of the construction sector (7.7%), manufacturing sector (9.1%), and financial services sector (11.0%). This distribution depicts that the major sectors in the equity market in Australia are financial services sector with 32% share and natural resources sector with 31% share (Treasury, 2012). At present Australia enjoys a concrete positive international standing. The largest trade partners of the continent are the Uni ted States, Japan and China. Although China is still a developing economy, it is one of the fastest growing economies of the world and competes strongly with the other developed nations. The countries that make the largest amount of investment in Australia are the United Kingdom and the United States. These two countries are also the leading capital markets in the world. The financial services industry in Australian is well developed and highly-regarded due to its innovativeness. This stems from the fact that the country has one of the world’s most developed capital market. According to the data published by the World Economic Forum, Australia ranks 5th among the countries having most modern financial systems and advanced capital markets in the world. Currently Australia’s equity market has A$1.2 trillion market capitalization (on the basis of free-float market capitalization). On a daily basis, the average secondary trading extends upto A$5 billion in a normal day. Th e Australian dollar is one of the most traded currencies in the international market. This shows that the country’s foreign exchange market is quite strong and has high global turnover in this market. 2.2 Economic growth prospects The economy of Australia has experienced high and uninterrupted rate of economic growth over the period of the past ten years. This growth rate has been facilitated by a number of factors, such as, low level of inflation, low unemployment rate, significantly low public debt and most importantly stability in the

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Impact of calorie labeling on menus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Impact of calorie labeling on menus - Essay Example It is unlikely that posting the amount of calories that are in food while have a strong impact on diet or they health decisions for the majority of consumers. Some people may have been genuinely unaware of how unhealthy some of the food they were eating was, and as a consequence make a choice towards better eating. However, it is likely that people who do this will be in the minority.There are many different factors which control why consumers purchase different products, with price being only one of these. Other factors include the convenience, the price and the taste. Much of the food that is bought from chain restaurants such as McDonalds and Burger King is bought because consumers desire food that is fast and inexpensive. A study on the effect of showing the calories on menus at McDonalds showed that there was no significant difference in the calorie content of the meals that were brought before and after the changes to the menu were made (Harnack et al. 2008). Another study showed that the inclusion of calorie information on fast food menus in Seattle had no effect on consumption (Consumer Affairs 2011). Often at chain restaurants, the price of the food is directly related to the health, with food that is lower in calories generally being more expensive. Because of this, it is unlikely that making consumers more aware will change their eating habits, as the factors of price and convenience are likely to be more relevant than health.

Saturday, August 24, 2019

With reference to research findings, consider whether an Essay

With reference to research findings, consider whether an organisation's external environment has a direct causal influence on its internal structure or whether - Essay Example At the same time, the management of the organisation can fight against the pressures coming from the external forces and this process acts as a mediating influence. This can be shown to be true with practical examples of various companies as well as the research done by business analysts. The simplest example of the external forces which can influence the internal structure is the culture of the country where the business operates. For instance, a multi-national company can have a very different structure amongst its various branch offices depending on the cultural requirements of various locations where it operates. As discussed by Bartlett & Ghoshal (1998), the differences between national and corporate cultures can even lead to conflicts between the way things are structured at a local office and the management directives coming from the home office. The home office often wishes to recreate the corporate structure followed at their location in a country where the national culture can be significantly at odds with the way the corporation is structured. One such example is the case of GE’s position in Hungary where the local culture had structured the company based on the amount of time a person had served with the company. Since seniority became the basic premise of promotions, the Hungarian operation soon became bloated and could not match the expectations of GE’s head office in America (Welch, 2005). The external environment had affected the internal structure to the extent that operations managers from the home office had to step in and make changes to the present system in order to save the company’s base in Western Europe. GE’s culture is reportedly based on individuals and intrinsic motivation which helps its employees seek benefits for the company while they seek benefits for themselves. As outlined by Jack Welch in Winning (2005), GE rewards those employees who are instrumental in helping GE grow and achieve the corporate vision and

Friday, August 23, 2019

Consulting in Business Analysis Personal Statement

Consulting in Business Analysis - Personal Statement Example I need to understand how businesses work around the globe and how environmental changes have their ever increasing impact on them. Recent financial turmoil introduced me to concepts like coupling of economies, of which I could only make out that it’s the way performance of one economy is linked with the performance of other economies, and how did this overall series of events in America actually influence job scenario for people working in India or China was beyond my perspective. But that did intrigue me to explore further on how this would have influenced my business and my life, so in future when I will plan for my business I should be able to understand that what all such events would portend for me. But apart from quenching this curiosity, the overarching objective was to set up my own business after 5-6 years of corporate experience within my preferred industry. So the obvious choice where all these issues seemed to converge was an MBA degree from a reputed university bu t as most of such universities look for some experience so job eligibility before MBA became the midterm objective and for that, I would have needed a graduate degree in business management. The foundation course figured as a short run objective for that. If I were to spell out my exact expectations from the course then I must admit that I did not have much idea about it. I knew only one thing that it would act as a bridge to my future studies and as a student, my objective from this course was more or less passing with good grades. But the objective did not remain just what it was before joining the course, as exposure to seminars, book reading, assignments, portfolio all changed my thoughts. My preoccupation with just marks waned and other important aspects of attending the course started surfacing.

Thursday, August 22, 2019

My Grandparents and me Essay Example for Free

My Grandparents and me Essay My parents are both busy that is why I grew up with my grandparents and because of this, I know my grandparents very well and most of all I love them so much. Unfortunately, my grandfather passed away two years ago and that time I went to Cambodia for community service. Before I left for Cambodia, he even promised me that he would fight his illness for him to be still alive until I come back. Then one day, as I was working hard to assist poor Cambodians, I got a phone call about his death. Right away, I booked a flight to be able to attend to his funeral. When I arrived there, I cannot help but be in pain as I saw my grandfather lying dead. For this assignment, I called my grandmother to ask a few questions. She was honest enough that she has some differences with my generation. First, since Korea was conquered by Japan for 36 years, she still speaks Japanese with her friends. In significantly, she has some Japanese culture mind such as Japanese are usually more conservative and traditional than most of Koreans. Second, my generation is more used to high technology and adventure. My grandmother has her cell phone, which is twice bigger than what I have and she still does not know how to use computer. My growing society and my grandparent’s society are totally different. I am earning the world’s best education in United States. But my grandparents were learning education while Korea was conquered by Japan. After independence from Japan, she also experienced difficulty from Korean War. She probably had the most difficult life than anyone else. He grew up in the poorest politics, society and economy. Her life is totally different than the life that I have. If I grew up in her generation, I will be really depressed and my life will always be in danger. As I compare my life with my grandmother, I can say that I more happy than her, and I am more blessed because I have not experienced such difficulties that she had especially during the times when Japan conquered Korea and the Korean War.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

The Killers Essay Example for Free

The Killers Essay Hemingway is a great figure of the  « lost generation  », like Fitzgerald, S. Anderson, G. Stein, S. Lewis†¦ F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote â€Å"all gods dead, all wars fought, all faiths in man shaken† to describe the feeling the young intellectuals had in this years. The writers of the â€Å"lost generation† added their own feelings of loss and failure to the previous tradition of realism. The short story The killers by Hemingway is representative of this realism and those feelings of loss and failure, because it seems that Summit (the town where the action takes place) and its inhabitants are part of a sterile and destructive world without any god or powers above. How and why is this short story representative of this â€Å"lost generation† ? I)Realism : †¢The setting the atmosphere : the setting seems to be a commonplace : comparison with Ed. Hoppers’s painting Nighthawks, representing a similar place a very common lunch counter, in an American town, Summit artificial atmosphere with â€Å"streetlight†, â€Å"arc light† in the street ; the colours seem to be absent of the scene : this is a sort of black white scene, with the darkness of the night and the artificial white light, the â€Å"black overcoat† and â€Å"the face was small and white†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦) the town seems to be a dead town, with a great impression of loneliness †¢The mundanity: everything is prosaic : for instance, the menu :  « a roast pork tenderloin with applesauce and mashed potatoes  » or  « ham and eggs, bacon and eggs, liver rand bacon, or a steak† the language is contaminated by this mundanity, it reflects the disenchantment of the world †¢The time : -the time is passing minute after minute without real action : â€Å" it’s five o’clock †, â€Å" it was a quarter past six †, â€Å" it was twenty past six †, â€Å"at six fifty-five†, â€Å"the hands of the clock marked seven o’clock and then five inutes past seven† -the rhythm of the story could be comparated with the rhythm of blues music : it is very slow, without any real action, filled by a pointless conversation †¢ The violence in the contact between the characters : -violence is omnipresent, subjacent even in the dialogs between the characters:â€Å"what the hell do you put it on the card for†, â€Å"oh, to hell with the clock†, â€Å"you’re a pretty bright boy, aren’t you ? † and then â€Å"well, you’re not†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ -the cook and Nick are tied up : â€Å"I got them tied up like a couple of girl friends in the convent†, the â€Å"killers† use arms â€Å"Al [.. with the muzzle of a sawed-off shotgun resting on the ledge†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ II)An everyday tragedy : †¢An imposed behaviour : -every action is imposed by a sort of automatic reflex, for instance Ole Andreson is always on the run â€Å"I’m through with all that running around†, the inhabitants of the city â€Å"all come here and eat the big dinner† everyday, Ole Andreson â€Å"comes here to eat every night [†¦] at six o’clock†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ -the characters are locked in the routine †¢The passivity of the characters : the characters are all passive : they do not react when the killers come in the restaurant, they accept to be tied up without any form of rebellion, at the end of the story, the cook says â€Å"I don’t even listen to it† when Nick is telling George about his visit to Ole, George says â€Å"you better not think about it†, Nick wants to â€Å"get out of this town† -Ole stay lying on his bed looking at the wall while he is sure to be killed, he does not react and just says â€Å"after a while I’ll make up my mind to go out†, when going out means to be killed The characters are failures : -the killers are described only by there garments : â€Å"a derby hat and a black overcoat buttoned across the chest†, â€Å"they were dressed like twins†, â€Å"both wear overcoats too tight for them†, they are â€Å"about the same size†; it is as f all their nature could be locked in their appearance -Al is described with only two features : â€Å"his face was small and white and he had tight lips†, max is not described -They are seen as a â€Å"vaudeville team†, a sort of comic pair (like laurel Hardy for instance), which is far away from the representation of killers, they are too much real that they seem unreal -Ole, who was a boxer, is now seen as â€Å" an awfully nice man†, â€Å"he’s just as gentle† says Mrs Bell : all the characters seems to be failures III)Adversity of the world : The loneliness : the town, Summit, is a sort of symbol of loneliness despair the death is omnipres ent, even in a subjacent form : for the killers, the death of a man is just a simple action (detachment) : â€Å"what are you going to kill him for, then ? † and the answer â€Å"we’re killing him for a friend. Just to oblige a friend†, â€Å"he never even seen us† for ole, life seems to be worse than death : he has no passion, he keeps looking the wall when Nick says he is going to be killed by two men (total failure to act) The characters seem to be interchangeable : -as seen before, the characters seem to be interchangeable : they are devoid of personality, there is a play on resemblance / dissemblance (the 2 killers look alike even if they are different) -Ole does not look at Nick, but is always looking to the wall (it is as if Nick as lost his humanity for Ole) -Mrs Bell is confused with Mrs Hirsch†¦ †¢A refuge in the language ? in that story, it seems that language is only used as a refuge for the characters : they speak only to fill the time passing by (inanity of conversation), to forget the loneliness of the place.. -when Al says â€Å"shut up ! you talk to goddam much†, Max answers â€Å"well, I got to keep bright boy amused† or â€Å"we have to keep amused, haven’t we ? † : it is as if language was used only to fill a gap -the words are used two or three times : for instance, â€Å"well, good night†, â€Å"I guess† or â€Å"it’s a hell of a thing† and â€Å"it’s an awful thing† (it is like a dialog of the deaf) A disenchanted world : the story stop short : there is no suspense, the killers have told George they were about to kill Ole, but they do not the title â€Å"the killers† announced a story of gangsters, of killers, but there is finally no murder, therefore the end of the story is quite â€Å"flat† It is as if nothing could move the characters (Ole resolved to death, immutability of the characters†¦) Summit and its inhabitants seem to be a sterile and destructive world deserted by God, accomplishing a destiny without any form of rebellion Conclusion : The short story The killers is quite representative of the writing of the â€Å"lost generation†; here, it seems that human beings have been abandoned by God, in an hostile world, where action is doomed to failure. Men are resolved to death, since they cannot do anything to change life. Ole Anderson, destined to death, keeps lying on his bed, unable of any action, saying â€Å"there ain’t anything to do†, and will surrender to his enemies : it is as if life were worse than death for him. Hemingway uses the realism to show how much life is insipid and bland for those men, and describes the â€Å"everyday tragedy† they live in and the adversity of the world.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Mauritius Economy Overview

Mauritius Economy Overview Introduction Some of the Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries have managed to establish a higher standard of living over the past twenty years. It is good to note that Mauritius has been an exception to the rule, thereby showing an outperformance among the African countries. Without any natural resources, a small domestic market and open to trade economy, Mauritius exhibited several characteristics very typical compared to the African Economies namely a monocrop economy, development in the manufacturing sector and diversification towards the services sector. Contradicting the predictions of Nobel Prize recipient James Meade, who famously predicted that Mauritius would be bounded by poor development in 1961 due to its weaknesses pertaining to both weather and price instabilities and a high concentration of the labour force in the sugar sector, Mauritius has transformed itself from a poor sugar-based economy into a country with one of the highest per capita incomes among African countries. Today, th e small island nation is one of Africa’s most prosperous and stable economies and is considered as The Mauritian Miracle. According to Larry W. Bowman, experts in Mauritius, there have been four development aims of the economy into the 1990s, namely: modernising the sugar sector, expanding and diversifying manufacturing infrastructure, diversifying agriculture, and developing tourism. Arguably, between 1977 and 2009, real GDP in Mauritius grew on average by 5.1 percent annually, compared with 3.2 percent for SSA countries. Overview of the Mauritian Economy Since its independence on 12th March 1968, Mauritius has been through several phenomenal evolutions. The Mauritian economy has now moved from a primary sector characterised by unemployment and faced because exportation has been only for sugar which has contributed to a reasonably flourishing economy. In 1975, the Sugar Protocol has come to an end with the price for raw sugar being at its highest ever recorded price of  £648 and this price was thrice as that proposed by the European Commission. Consequently, as nearly all concerned economies favour to diminish its quantity it employs to supply to the UK in accordance to the Commonwealth Sugar Agreement, the economy of Mauritius, on the other hand determines in augmenting 100,000 tones of its supply of raw sugar. This has been a planned policy decision for Mauritius to gain on longer-term expected and steady export earnings whilst sacrificing shorter-term decidedly vulnerable world market conditions. Apart from the sugar boom, other poles of development such as the manufacturing and tourism sectors have been the next target for the continuous growth of the nation. However, in the late 1970s, worsening of the economic conditions began. Petroleum charges escalated, the sugar boom took its end and the balance of payments deficit progressively climbed as imports outpaced exports. By 1979, the BOP shortage totaled to a shocking US$111 million. Accordingly, Mauritius came up to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank for financial aids whereby the state furthermore arranged for some measures, like cutting food subsidies, devaluing the currency, and limiting government wage augmentations, thus causing a big break in the Mauritian trade. During the 1970s, the government passes the Export Processing Zone (EPZ) Act whereby it grants incentive and concessions to businesses sending abroad their commodities. The EPZ has been a successful one, proving better than the sugar sector as being the most important export-earning sector. The employment rate rises due to the fact of more people being employed that in the sugar sector. Mauritius experiences its first trade surplus in 1986. There has been a parallel increase in the number of hotel beds and air flights as tourism expands. There was this feel of optimism in the atmosphere at the same time the nations economic success encouraged comparisons with other Asian economies which were vigorous too, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and the Republic of Korea (South Korea). While Mauritius loses sugar preferences in 2004, the Multi fibre agreement ends in 2005 while African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) preferences phases out in 2012. The Mauritian economy has been somewhat victorious in expanding its economic activities by shifting from its dependence on mainly sugar and textiles into a nation supplying financial intermediation, management consultancy and Information Communication Technology (ICT) services. Agriculture may be imperative to the Mauritian economy but it no longer governs around. Its share in real GDP has fallen from around 12% in 1990 to approximately 4% at present. On the other hand, the service sector is heavily composed of tourism along with financial services which is now the most important pillars in the economy of around 74% of real GDP. Another area of concentration is the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which refers to eight international development goals that have been launched following the Millennium Summit of the United Nations. On the 8th September 2000, Mauritiusalong with other 188 Member States of the United Nations, agree upon the United Nations Millennium Declaration, which exemplifies eight precise goals as well as eighteen targets to develop civilisation for a better future.These objectives are to be accomplished by the year 2015, using year 1990 as a baseline. During the Financial crisis impacting in the middle of 2007 and into 2008 in the US, Ramlall (2009) finds that the main index of the Mauritius stock market has been affected whereby SEMDEX happens to be more vulnerable to changes in international stock markets. He additionally explains on the retreat by foreigners done throughout the crisis on the back of undermined international portfolio diversification. Nonetheless, risks deepen as the crisis persistently lead to an economic instability. Consequently, the banking sector remains susceptible to drop in income and debt servicing capacities in addition to difficulties faced by the sectors which are pillars to the economy. Mauritius being a member of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) has joined in through August 2005 along with several other African nations whereby the latter has approved to macroeconomic convergence criteria and goals for nations in the region. It has been noted that convergence goals have been positio ned for 2008, 2012, 2015 and 2018, with demanding goals set for the other periods whereby the Ministers of Finance being member of the SADC have approved of this. For 2008, SADC forecasts its members to have single-digit inflation rates, budget deficit being less than 5% of GDP, nominal value of public and publicly guaranteed debt as a ratio of GDP should not go beyond 60%, foreign reserves equating to three months’ imports and central bank credit to the state being less than 10% of the preceding year’s tax income –Mboweni (2003). Next, Mauritius is as well a member of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) along with other 18 African countries. It is known that the COMESA Treaty, setting the agenda for COMESA, envelops a great figure of sectors and activities. Nonetheless, the realisation of the whole COMESA mandate is seen as being a long-term objective. Adding more, for the latter to be greatly effective as an organisation, it has characterised its main concerns within its mandate such that the Promotion of Regional Integration through Trade and Investment. The aims and objectives of COMESA are, consequently, to aid in the elimination of the structural and institutional flaws of member States to permit them to accomplish collective and continued development. Mauritius has held up well against the unrelenting global economic crisis, even though its growth momentum has alleviated where the real GDP growth rate projected at 3.3% in 2012 down from 3.8% in 2011. Anticipations for 2013 and 201 4 show a slow but sure improvement with growth rates mounting to 3.8% and 4.2% respectively. Public Finance Management (PFM) systems and institutions are normally strong however more reforms are required to deal with emerging challenges associated to public sector competence and recent transparency concerns. Social and human capital progress is elevated and supported by healthy economic freedoms and a strong social welfare system. Nonetheless, further developments in education superiority and importance are looked for to boost the nation`s competitiveness. Trade Openness Strategy Mauritius has been subject to numerous developments be it on economic or infrastructural grounds among others. The award goes to the level of openness to international horizon as well as to FDI that comes in and goes out of the country. As a matter of fact, this boost the competitiveness of Mauritius as a trading partner within each and every association that it belongs to. We measure trade openness by the ratio of exports plus imported divided by GDP ((X+M)/GDP) throughout our study. In the mid-1980s, the volume of imports grew at a rate of 8.7% as compared to that of exports which grew at a rate of only 5.4%, thus illustrating that Mauritius is an economy which heavily depends on the imports of goods. It is good to note that Mauritius is also known as a Net Food Importing Developing country. Figure 3.1: Computed Trade Openness Ratio, 1980-2012 Mauritius has been an economy protected by tariffs and quotas in the 1970’s and the early 1980’s. On average, the rate of protection has been high and pretty much dispersed. This is inferred from the rather poor openness ratio of 0.9325 in 1983 as is shown in Figure 3.1 above. Following an openness strategy towards the world, an overall improvement in the openness ratio has been noted. However, fluctuations still exist. A rise in import for petroleum products results in the period 2004-2005 which contributes to a deficit in the trade balance. High oil prices in the world market and the depreciation of the rupee vis-à  -vis the US dollar contributed massively towards the trade deficit. Today, our small island is actively participating in the multilateral trading system and is a member of various economic groupings and trade agreements. Participation in regional agreements is crucial for Mauritius because such an act allows exploitation of comparative advantages and economies of scale, improves Mauritian’s competitive edge, allows diversification of exports and finally facilitates easy integration into the world economy. Trade Performance Mauritius is known to have been running deficit in the visible trade balance which has been offset at  times by surpluses on invisible trade account. Bulk exports of Mauritian goods (namely  70% of the total value) comprise of manufacturing products. Though decreasing in share,  clothing remains the main manufactured export (from 57% in 2001 to 36% in recent years). Sugar has remained the main agricultural export, contributing around 16% to total merchandise  trade. Imports as well continued to be dominated by manufactured goods. Leading imports include  machinery and transport equipment, radio/television transmission apparatus, textile and  chemicals. The share of textiles has decreased from 20% in 2001 to 7% in recent years. Nevertheless, textiles remain an important import item. The EU is the major destination for most of the Mauritian export. The bulk of Mauritian sugar   and a large share of its textiles and clothing are destined to the EU. The UK remains the major  single destination followed by France and the US. On import grounds, the EU supplies around  one third of the total value of Mauritius’ merchandise imports. Other major suppliers include  China, South Africa, France, India and Germany. The share of Middle East countries (Bahrain,  Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates) has considerably increased, reflecting mainly the  increase of oil prices. Economic Performance Figure 3.2: GDP (in million US$) for Mauritius, 1980-2012 Figure 3.3: Inflation Rate (%), 1980-2012 Figure 3.4: Unemployment Rate (%) in Mauritius, 1983-2012 Figure 3.5: Computed FDI to GDP Ratio, 1980-2012

Monday, August 19, 2019

Melba Pattillo Beals, Warriors Dont Cry Essay -- Warriors Dont Cry

Melba Pattillo Beals', Warriors Don't Cry In the book Warriors Don't Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals, the author describes what her reactions and feelings are to the racial hatred and discrimination she and eight other African-American teenagers received in Little Rock, Arkansas during the desegregation period in 1957. She tells the story of the nine students from the time she turned sixteen years old and began keeping a diary until her final days at Central High School in Little Rock. The story begins by Melba talking about the anger, hatred, and sadness that is brought up upon her first return to Central High for a reunion with her eight other classmates. As she walks through the halls and rooms of the old school, she recalls the horrible acts of violence that were committed by the white students against her and her friends. In 1954, the Supreme Court ruled in the case of Brown vs. The Board of Education that schools needed to integrate and provide equal education for all people and it was unconstitutional for the state to deny certain citizens this opportunity. Although this decision was a landmark case and meant the schools could no longer deny admission to a child based solely on the color of their skin. By 1957, most schools had began to slowly integrate their students, but those in the deep south were still trying to fight the decision. One of the most widely known instances of this happening was at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. It took the school district three years to work out an integration plan. The board members and faculty didn't like the fact that they were going to have to teach a group of students that were looked down upon and seen as "inferior" to white students. However, after much opposition, a plan was finally proposed. The plan called for the integration to hap pen in three phases. First, during the 1957-1958 school year, the senior high school would be integrated, then after completion at the senior high level, the junior high would be integrated, and the elementary levels would follow in due time. Seventeen students were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be the first black teenagers to begin the integration process. The town went into an uproar. Many acts of violence were committed toward the African-Americans in the city. Racism and segregation seemed to be on the rise. Most black students decid... ...f and eventually led to complete integration of all ethnic groups in America. The definition of a warrior is "one who is engaged in or experienced in battle, or in the military life; a soldier; a champion". Melba Beals proved to be a warrior throughout all of the events that surrounded the integration of Central High School. Although she eventually had to leave town, she and the other eight students showed true bravery and courage when they decided to scale the walls of segregation and end the oppression of the white people in Little Rock. Beals was truly woman who fought hard and kept her faith in route to becoming a "warrior" and eventually a "champion" in the fight for civil rights. Sources: Beals, Melba Patillo. "Warriors Don't Cry." Pocket Books. (February 1995). Cozzens, Lisa. "The Civil Rights Movement 1955-1965." African American History. http://fledge.watson.org/~lisa/blackhistory/civilrights-55-65 (25 May 1998). Beals, Melba Patillo. "Warriors Don't Cry." Pocket Books. (February 1995). Cozzens, Lisa. "The Civil Rights Movement 1955-1965." African American History. http://fledge.watson.org/~lisa/blackhistory/civilrights-55-65 (25 May 1998).

All Quiet on the Western Front Essays: Two Years :: All Quiet on the Western Front Essays

All Quiet on the Western Front   Two Years      The book I chose to read was All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque. The story told in All Quiet on the Western Front occurs during the two years just before the Armistice ended World War I in November 1918. By 1916 when the story begins, World War I had already been underway for two years. From the beginning, World War I was fought in two areas, named for their geographical relationship to Germany. The Eastern Front extended into Russia, and the Western Front extended through Belgium into Northern France. The main character is a young man named Paul Baumer who is a 19 year-old private in the German army. It follows Paul trough the horrors of World War I. Paul joins the army after a recruiter named Kantorek pumps him and his friends full of glory and honor. Glory and honor they can get by joining up. Paul is excited that he is going off to war.   Once he arrives at the front he begins to understand the â€Å"terrible thing called war.† He realizes that war isn’t all glory, there is death and destruction. Paul learns to deal with the deaths of all his friends and how to keep his mind clear without turning into an animal. One of the big issues in the book was Kemmerich’s leather boots. At his death everybody was squabbling over who would get them. Remarque, in my opinion, shows you the pettiness between good friends because of war. Remarque kind of slips in these themes, some others are how terrible war really is, friendship is a must to stay alive on the battlefield, and World War I destroyed a generation.   During the time period of All Quiet on the Western Front the Russian were rebelling against Czar Nicholas II. Eventually him and his entire family were killed, and so began communist Russia. Also during this time European countries were colonizing Asia and Africa which was one of the causes of World War I. The Ottoman Empire collapses and the introduction of Henry Ford’s Model T.   If there was one thing that I learned from this book it is that war is not pretty. Despite what the recruiters and military personnel say, if there is a war you can die.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice Essay -- Jane Austen Pride Prejudice

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife" Jane Austen used this quote to open her second book, 'Pride and Prejudice', which was first published in 1813. This is a story of the attitudes towards love and marriage in the nineteenth century, through the eyes of a number of people in different family situations and levels of society. It explores what was socially acceptable and disgraceful at the time, as well as the author, Jane Austen's, personal opinion on the matter. This is shown mainly through the character of Elizabeth Bennet, the second of five daughters of Mr and Mrs Bennet, inhabitants of the Longbourn estate. At this time, it was very important that young girls of around sixteen and above should aim to marry as soon as possible to avoid becoming destitute and unable to support themselves after the inevitable death of their father, whose estate would usually be inherited by the next male heir in the family. In the case of the Bennets, this is a distant cousin with whom they had not been in contact with for some time. His name is Mr. Collins... Another worry for young women at the beginning of the nineteenth century was how high a reputation they had. It was unorthodox for a female to admit, like Lydia does when in Meryton, that she had come into town to find a man, because she would seem very eager and this may result in people looking down on her. On the other hand, if a lady acted as though she didn't like a man so that he wouldn't think she was chasing him, the man might think that she really disliked him and decide to admire another woman instead. Life could be very complicated... ... You know that it is not sound, and that you would never act in this way yourself." This makes it perfectly clear that Lizzy thinks that it would be impossible for anyone, no matter how set-against romance they are,to marry someone for a reason other than love. This proves that she is a romantic, and once set in her ways cannot see how anybody could think differently to her. In conclusion, I would say that Jane Austen looks down upon marrying for material success or gain, and superficial attraction and mismatch because at least one person in the relationship will end up being unhappy. She does, however, believe in marrying for love because you will be able to live the rest of your life happily with a partner you are devoted to. I also think that if you choose to marry, you should only do it for this reason because I believe that all you need is love.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Gender and body image – Looking at women and men through the life course

Throughout our lives we are governed by how we look and act according to society. One of the main leaders throughout history has been which sex a person belongs to. This governs our every aspect in life from a baby, through to adulthood. Opinion changes constantly to whether children should live a certain way and especially act certain ways at different ages and stages throughout life. We are socially constructed from the start of our lives, if a baby wears blue or pink determines societys view of how to treat the child and most importantly whether it is male of female. We are judged in our abilities and skills just by from which sex we belong to. It is one of the most influential factors in life, being male or female. I will be looking at the perceived differences between males and female body image and actions throughout the life cycle, from birth through to old age. One of the first things we notice about a person is which sex they belong to. Today due to changes in societies impressions and opinions on sex and sex orientation, it is generally possible to immediately determine the sex of a person that gives out first impressions and places stereotypes. Every culture distinguishes between male and females and this accompanied by beliefs and psychological and physical behaviours belonging to each sex. It is not a recent act to distinguish differences between the sexes. In pre-industrial Britain children were sent off to work at an early age between 6-7. They were kept apart and designated a job. At this age physicality's of gender differences would not be differentiated because of no puberty growth in the children causing no differences in physical ability and strength yet girls would be sent to become servants while boys would be trained to be apprentices. In the sixteenth century boys were increasingly sent to boarding school, while girls were mainly kept at home, any small amount of girls who were sent to boarding school were trained for domesticity. Their father or their masters controlled any girls in a family, like an ownership. The males possessed them. Any money that was made was not their own to keep but passed on to their masters or their family for their parents personal use or placed back into the family for food and supplies. Both boys and girls were used for their bodies yet in completely different ways. In the early nineteenth century working class children would be used in working class factories for cheap labour. Boys would follow the men with physical work while girls were sold for prostitution. Girls where not seen to have many uses apart from their bodies or domesticity uses. This treatment of girls continued through the years in society. Towards the First World War girls were not sold for such explicit reasons but used in different ways (Humphries 1977). Families became dependent on the wages of their siblings. With men called to war the children would work to help the families upkeep. Girls would be expected to help their mothers with domestic tasks and to take the role of second mother for their younger siblings. While boys and young men where used for their physical abilities. By the twentieth century psychologists identified that childhood was a vital part of a persons identity. Freud dedicated his life to the study of people and the affect of childhood on their adult lives. Children could be scared for life because of their childhoods. This could explain judgements of people on sex opinions later in lives because of their upbringings, which had forced the stereo types into society. Post war brought the decline of infant mortality and the decline in birth rate. Children where not therefore depended upon for their help with the families income. Adults began to see children as pleasurable company. Children soon became the main focus of life. The division of home from the workplace resulted in an isolation of women and children. The home in middle-class households represented a haven from the competition of the market place and from the public world. Men would stay in the workplace and women and children were kept ‘confined' and ‘protected' in the home. This soon broadens from the middle-class household to the working class home. This image of the western family soon became the model norm of the western societies, which influenced many people throughout their lives. Female and male children are segregated and classed as different, which has continued up to the present day. From birth they are given different clothes and toys and are subjected to socialisation. Children were even segregated at school, boys may have been sent to a different school than girls and be taught different curricula. Children now share schooling and have moved closer together in the curricula but in many other ways they are treated differently. Although today boys and girls may study the same curriculum, some subjects are still labelled as being male or female subjects. Increasing anxieties about sexual threat in contemporary society, because of sexual abuse cases, has become increasingly popular; causing boys and girls to be treated differently. Girls are surveyed and controlled more than boys of the same age. Girls and boys are sheltered differently. Girls are protected from the real dangers of society but also the ones, which are possibly fictional, or of an adult's exaggeration. Girls in particular are sheltered from the real adult world. The sexualisation of adults' contact with children means girls are seldom allowed to walk alone, or spend much time on their own. This treatment causes girls today to be segregated from society from the start of their lives. This influences the way they live their life and attitudes they have towards their influencing adult guides. When children are allowed out ‘to play', boys seem to be allowed out later than girls or more trust and leniency. Although childhood is seen as psychologically influencing on a persons' life adolescence is both psychologically and physically changing. Adolescence is a time for psychological adjustments to the physical changes in the child's body. For young girls and women it is normally related with developments of secondary sexual qualities such as breasts, and body hair. When we become adolescence's we gain legal responsibilities. At the age of 16 a young woman can give consent to sexual intercourse with a man. Before this age a young woman will in the eyes of the law be seen as irresponsible and unable to give responsible consent. Also at the age of 16 a young man and woman may get married however although legally responsible to have a sexual relationship and possibly bare children, the young adults must have parental permission. Their responsibilities are too high to be married from their own choice at this age. The legal view on heterosexual relationships seems a reasonably understandable law, compared to the opinions on homosexual relationships. Homosexual relationships between men are not legal unless both parties are 18, however same sex relationships between two women are legal at any age. It is evident from these figures that young men and women have a different statues in law reflecting different assumptions about masculinity and femininity. Young people become legally responsible for their actions from their age of 10. This makes youth today so much longer than it was many years ago. This extended period in the youth phase causes extensive protection from the parents. One explanation for this could be the increasing choice by children to stay in education for a longer period of time. The number of young people choosing to go into higher education increases because of more opportunities, larger choices in courses and the range of training schemes increases. It is apparent that young people especially women seem to be spending longer being trained and educated, and then having greater uncertain futures because finding full-time work is increasing remote. This is especially apparent for young people because they are most affected by unemployment. Young women have come through time from not being educated to spending more time in education than young men. Government reports have stated that young women do considerably better in school than young men due to a stronger ambition to be successful and ability to concentrate their efforts into studying. It is generally stated that adolescence is a period of stressful experience. However an anthropologist Margaret Mead challenged this. She studied adolescent women in eastern Samoa (1943) and found no evidence of role confusion, conflict or revolt. Suggesting that adolescence was not world-wide and biologically determined but ethnically variable, and that the stresses of this time could be socially determined, and because of confusing status to which, young people find themselves consigned by particular communal forms. It is a wide-ranging protest from adults to complain of adolescent deviant behaviour however this suggests that it is the western societal norms which push adolescents to be seen as irresponsible and problematic to society. Adolescence is a particular distressing time for young women. Trying to conform to societies views of how to behave and to trying to keep their reputation with friends and partners at the same time makes life very traumatic. The behaviour of teenage women is partly the result of being treated differently from boys through their life. As was stated earlier women are seen as more in need of care and protection. Parents ‘police' their daughters more strictly than their sons. This then is linked to the ideological definition of ‘appropriate behaviour of women'. Sue Lees (1986) has shown how boys control young women in the public eye through threat of labelling them sexually promiscuous. It is expected of young men to copulate but for a young women to continue with the same behaviour would result in such labels as ‘slag' or ‘slut' and ‘scrubber' or an ‘easy lay'. This labelling is less to do with the actual sexual action rather than to the extent to which young women's behaviour deviates from the normal ideas of femininity. For example a female should not be seen using foul language or rough behaviour as they could be classed as a ‘tom boy'. Sexuality is classed in very different ways. Both sexes are concerned with reputation; the basis on which it rests is very distinct. For boys sexual reputation is enhanced by varied experience boasting to their friends for all the girls they have ‘made', for a girl reputation is to be guarded. It is to be under threat not merely if she is known to have sex with anyone other than with her steady boyfriend but also if she goes out with several different boys, or dresses in a certain way. To remain a ‘nice' girl a young woman must suppress any sexual desire, and instead conform to the dream image of romantic love and complete monogamy. This double standard serves to constrain the public and private lives of young women to ensure conformity based on a model of sexuality, which ultimately takes its form from the ideology of the nuclear family. Feminist sociologists' arguments showed that post ideas that suggestions of femininity and masculinity classed as natural were actually of a social origin. Young people apparently learn roles. Mc Robbie and Garber stated that young women didn't ‘rebel in the same way which young men did but instead used the ideal romantic fantasy as a form of escapism. Sue Lees (1986), Christine Griffin (1985) and Clair Wallace (1987) have looked into the theory of the role that romantic love fantasies have in young women's lives. They are apparently not deceived by characters lives portrayed in women's literature, but actually have realistic ideas of married life. It was also believed that young women have tactics of resistance for example ‘tom boys' or pregnancy, which are not in the ‘nice' girl stereotype. They state that an important aspect in young girls lives is their status and independence inside and out of the family that could be achieved by them acquiring a job by themselves. Sharpe (1995) study contrast to an earlier study found that young women interviewed no longer saw marriage and parenthood as their only goal in life. These studies show a change in young women's views and opinions; however, it causes views of people to think young girls are rebelling against the norms of society because family life is not their first objective in life. The media is one of the most influential aspects to people's lives. It is used to inform, sell, advise, and help the readers and many other uses. Young women are important customers of media resources. There are magazines, which particularly target young women and influence their lives. The magazines give advise on romance, hygiene and behaviour according to societies rules at the time. 80% of magazines are articles about fashion and appearance pushing young women into a proposed look. They steer young women to see romance as standard and as an ultimate goal in life to have a ‘normal' steady monogamous relationship leading to marriage and all as typecasts with a male companion. According to these magazines the main interest of their teenage years is in getting a man'. The young women become immersed into the ideology of romance and of ‘falling in love'. Adulthood is associated with taking up full status in society, having sexual relationships, getting married, having children, having a full time stable job, and living in an independent household. When we become an adult we associate it with citizenship status -the right to vote, to take loans, or to enter legal contract we are given responsibility and trusted. This legal responsibility is associated with the turning of age to 18. There are many physical body aspects, which are also associated with adulthood. Such as first menstruation, and first sex. This today is more associated with the teenage years because of younger people having sex earlier and young girls developing into women earlier so the legal opinion of an adult may not be the same as a physical adult. The transition of adolescence to adulthood can be more meaningful for women than young men generally because young women marry earlier, have sex earlier and many other things earlier than men. It is often said than young girls mature earlier than young boys. It is a stressful time for women when the beginning of sexual activity occurs. It is a time of pride and manhood for males while traumatic and cautious for women. Not to be seen on the one side as ‘frigid' or a promiscuous ‘slag' on the other (Cowie and Lees 1985; Halson 1991). Marriage, childbirth and parenthood are also parts of adulthood that are given different meanings from men than women. This seems to be because although attitudes are changing in society today women in the main have the foremost responsibilities and usually end up interrupting their careers to care for children. Today it is increasingly popular for single parent families which again is mostly women taking the responsibilities, the majority of about 90% of single parent families are headed by women. Baring children is also seen as hindering a women's working career and leisure life. The process of pregnancy changes a women's body, and although both men and women's bodies change in the life course this can be seen as the biggest change a women can experience. Increased hormones and the gradual growth of the baby stretches and changes the women's normal body shape. This change, during pregnancy and after can affect a woman greatly because of opinions of what a woman should look like. It is looked upon badly if the bulge during pregnancy is on show when in the public eye. It is a nature event that is seen as part of a women's' meaning on earth. However, it cannot be looked upon, only in disgrace. Is it a disgusting view to see a woman pregnant? Or is it disgusting to see a woman out of shape, from societies view of what a woman should look like, as I suspect it could be. Women's careers are perceived as more intimately tied to their biology and reproductive cycles than are men's. Men's bodies are defined by their performance and action in the labour market and public life. Their reproductive functions and their bodies are seldom referred to and are seen as unproblematic. Women's body shape and reproductive functions are constantly studied and are sometimes referred to as determining their lives (Ussher 1989). In the media it is women's bodies that are used to sell their products. A car advert will usually at some point show a young stereotype of a woman draped over their product in order to sell it. It is unusual to see a man or even a larger woman used in the same way. Women's lives are constantly referred to by their menstruation. They are frequently seen as ‘victims' of ‘ragging hormones' either because of ‘pre-menstrual tension' or because of menopause. Each case supposedly causes women to ‘suffer' from temporary indisposition that can sometimes become ‘insanity'! This then could be the reason why it is used for reasons of moodiness, road accidents and even cases of murder. On account of these biological ‘problems' women's lives are intervened with medical attention and even seen as a kind of disease. Women can be recommended hormone replacements therapy and hysterectomies as a solution to menopausal problems and are given special diets or hormone treatment for pre-menstrual tension. Unlike male bodies women's are somewhat controlled by medical science from the moment of first problems with menstruation or with the need for birth control through to menopausal problems. Some women may never need medical assistance, but most do at some point in their lives. â€Å"Imagine what might have happened in a world with different cultural and moral attitudes towards gender and responsibilities for family planning and children. It is not beyond imagination that we would have ended up with a male contraceptive pill, a medical treatment for male menopause and a classification system of multiple sexes (Oudshoor 1994). One of the most traumatic times in a person's life is the process of ageing. No person wants to loose his or her looks, shape or mind. For men it is loosing their hair or gaining that ‘beer belly'. For women physical attractiveness is the most important feature and loosing this is a major source of anxiety. Women spend thousands of pounds on creams, potions, dieting, exercise and even plastic surgery. Men today are also increasingly purchasing these types of items but it is generally women that advertising is focused on (Arber and Ginn 1991). It has been questioned what is persona purpose in life? One of the proposed reasons is to reproduce, to keep the population. Men are seen to do this throughout their lives, so women who have therefore passed the menopause could be seen as having no use anymore for their reproductive functions and therefore are uninterested in sex. Doctors are more likely to recommend hysterectomies to women than men. In medical textbooks women's ovaries are described as ‘shrivelled' or ‘senile' metaphors, which, imply they are ‘useless', or ‘past it'. Women are classified by their biological position in and throughout their lives. Pre-menstrual' in their youth, ‘pre-menopausal' in their thirties, ‘menopausal' in their forties and ‘post-menopausal' in their fifties, its as though their reproductive organs control women's lives. Women who have children find themselves defined in terms of their roles as mothers and carers. On the other hand childless women are seen as frustrated mothers and somehow incomplete. It is as if a woman's ultimate goal is to bare children. A childless woman is classed as having psychological inadequacies or a lack of feminine qualities. Today many more women are pursuing careers rather than starting a family, this is seen as selfish whereas men are not exposed to such punishments. It is seen as acceptable for a man to never be a part of a family. Women's lives are seen as shaped by their biological bodies and the changes these bodies undergo. Men's lives by contrast are seen as shaped by their achievements. Throughout our lives we are governed by our sex and opinions made by society which label us according to our sex. These labels are started through opinions made from birth, which stay with us until death.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Cell phones Essay

First, cell phones are impersonal and rather anti-social. If a kid were using their phone to text during class all the time, they would not need to be as good at actually talking to others, which would degenerate social skills, which are very important in life for jobs, creating good family relationships, and making and keeping friends. It is not just about safety or reassurance. Yes, I want my kids to call each morning when they arrive at school and each afternoon when they leave, and there are so few pay phones anymore on which to do that. However, my children’s lives are also enriched by the freedom to travel to a variety of extracurricular activities or social engagements without an adult chaperone. That is only possible because an adult is just a phone call away. If children are not allowed to keep their cell phones during the school day—off and in their backpacks or lockers—the school system is governing my parenting and my children’s behavior during non-school time. The affecting school has no such right. Besides, teachers should be teaching, not spending precious time tagging and bagging confiscated electronics. Secondly, the mobile phones can be a distraction to the students if the school allows them to bring. For instance, during lesson time, it is known that students cannot use it when the teacher is teaching. Some students may just use it underneath their desks or behind their textbook and ultimately this will affect their grades. Lastly, bringing mobile phones to school will only increase the temptations of other students to steal the phones. As some students have the newest, latest phones like the ‘iPhone 4s’ and ‘Samsung Galaxy S2†², some bad students may keep a look out and might steal from them. Not only will the victim be disheartened, the thief will think that he or she will be able to get away from it every time. However, there are some reasons why mobile phones should not be banned in schools. For example, if there is a family emergency like the student’s grandma is in the hospital, or his or her house caught fire, their parents will be able to contact them. In addition, it would certainly be distracting for the teacher trying to talk over student’s who are talking when they are. One of the best ways to get in trouble during class is to talk when the teacher is talking, for it district’s the teacher, the student, and their classmate’s; if cell phone  were allowed in school, they would increase the amount of time students are talking when they don’t need to, making the class more difficult to teach, take longer, and be less educational. Cell phones could also provide a means of cheating on tests. Almost all cell phones have texting, and kids have become good at texting without being caught. It would be easy for kids to text each other the answer’s to test’s during testing session’s if everyone is allowed to use their phone during class. If teachers ask what students are doing, they can just say that they are texting their mom. These days, mobile phones are everywhere on the streets. Mobile phones are not what they used to be for only calling or texting. Now, there are games, music and camera functions available in a mobile phone. Hence, I agree that mobile phones should be banned in schools, as there are disadvantages of students bringing their phones to school. Firstly, bringing their mobile phones to school is troubling matter. As students might misplace their mobile phones in the school canteen or their classrooms and forget them. There may be dishonest students who will take the mobile phone and not report it to the discipline head. This is one of the reasons why mobile phones should be banned. In a society where almost everyone over the impressive age of thirteen carries a cell phone, pager, or both, many school systems have banned these items from school grounds. Why? Many say it is due to the powerful ‘potential problems’, such as texting during classes. Others say it is because they interrupt the learning environment. Whatever the reason the powerful school boards give, should cell phones really be banned from school premise? In a day and age where everyone relies heavily upon modern technology for communication, cell phones are a good thing to have, especially for high school students. Many students have after-school activities, such as a sport or a club that they participate in after school hours, when most people, including the office staff, have already gone home for the day. The students need a way to contact their parents during and after these activities, and vice versa. If cell phones were banned from school grounds, even just during school hours, how would the kids contact their parents afterwards? With only one or two phones in the spectacular office or on a coach, having thirty or more students per activity coming in to use the phone one after the affecting other is just ridiculous. It would take hours, something that would take minutes overall if the kids each had their own cell phone. The board, principals, and teachers alike are concerned that if cell phones are allowed in school, there will be problems with texting in class. The solution to this is to make a rule that says cell phones have to be off and put away during school hours. If a student is caught texting in class, have the teacher take up the phone for the spectacular day, or maybe even until the next day. This seems like a reasonable compromise, because that way the kids are still able to contact whomever they need to after school, but are free from distractions during the day. So that they can call and let their parent’s know to come pick them up after a sport is over. So if they are sick or they are not felling so well so that their parents could come and pick them up if they do not feel so good. Cell phones, while they might seem like nothing but a distraction and a safety hazard for school across the country, are in actuality quite the opposite. Banning cell phones from the school premises will only ever have detrimental effects. As long as there is a sensible rule in place, such as †Students are required to leave cell phones off and out of sight during school hours†, there is no chance of distraction’s or of safety hazards because of them. After all, there is probably more of a chance a kid will trip and fall than the chance of a cell phone being a distraction when it is turned off, is not there. However, cell phones can also be used for less important reason’s, such as excessive amounts of texting. One big issue concerning cell phones and teenagers is the use of cell phones in school. Many teenagers believe that cell phone’s should be allowed in school, during class. However, cell phones should not be allowed during school, because they would provide distractions for students and teachers, allow for cheating on tests, and for other social reasons. If a student’s cell phone rang during class, it would obviously distract him from the class and whatever the teacher is teaching. If this continued, it could prove detrimental to that student’s education. In conclusion, considering all the reasons, I strongly stand with that mobile phones should be banned as it is a distraction to the students and their phones might be stolen. Should there be an emergency, the parents can call up the school and the school can immediately inform the student. Thus, mobile phones should be banned in schools. It would be quite distracting for those student’s, and for their classmate’s. Cell phones also can cause social â€Å"problem’s†, which would only increase if cell phones were allowed in school.