education Essay -- essays research papers

Rather than emphasizing on maintaining discipline in a classroom, classroom management would be more appropriate for an effective teacher. Discipline has two significant limitations such that discipline highlights the individual rather than the classroom and secondly it connotes negative behavior (352). Whereas classroom management is broadly defined as â€Å"all of those positive behaviors and decisions a teacher makes to facilitate the learning process of their students† also reiterating all of those â€Å"activities necessary to create and maintain an orderly learning environment† (352). The reason why creating an effective classroom management plan is essential is to create a positive and productive learning environment, be able to work and communicate with the students, â€Å"reduce the incidents of misbehavior† while maintaining student interest, motivation, and involvement.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Everyone classroom is diverse since not one person is the same. Keeping this concept in mind, it is important to understand that everyone, primarily the students, have different cultural beliefs, values and attitudes. Some students may also come from a single parent home or may have their family going through a divorce. By understanding each student and their various cultural diversities, it will help the effective teacher produce a stronger level of communication with their students and encourage a productive learning environment. It is important to acknowledge each students differences and not ignore their needs outside the academic setting.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  With the focus of creating an effective classroom management plan, it is essential to define rules and implement them so they may be clearly and easily understood. While establishing rules it is important to remember that the goal is â€Å"to establish and maintain an effective learning environment† (361). While developing rules for the classroom, it is best that the list of rules be few yet clear and concise. â€Å"It is also important to involve the students in the development of these rules; this not only facilitates their understanding and ownership but also cultivates their sense of power and self-esteem† (362). The effective teacher will realize that by including students into the decision making process of their own classroom management, they are encouraging a more productive learning environment. ... ...ively enthusiastic in a classroom is important to engage student motivation. This can be implemented by showing interest in the subject matter being discussed and the teacher’s enthusiasm should reflect onto the students’. Organization is important to be developed in the classroom so that the students may carry the organizational skills outside the classroom and through out the rest of their lives. This can be implemented by having the students organize their desks at the end of every week and having a binder/notebook of their work shown to the teacher periodically which is organized according to the rules the teacher has established. Following through the rules is also important for the children because it is necessary that they have a consistent environment. The rules may be positively reinforced but this must be consistently done. It is a teacher’s role to have patience and with that the students will benefit the most. Finally, rules shall be implemented w ith respect, courtesy and listening on both ends of the spectrum. By showing the student that you, the teacher, has these qualities, they will realize that these are crucial in the proper development of a well-rounded student.

Free Glass Menagerie Essays: You Can Run, but You Can’t Hide :: Glass Menagerie essays

You Can Run, but You Can’t Hide in The Glass Menagerie The Glass Menagerie, a play written by Tennessee Williams, takes place in a dingy apartment in St. Louis. The theme of the play could be summarized as â€Å"waiting for better times†. Across the street from the dingy apartment is a club called Paradise Dance Hall. The family’s apartment could be considered the the exact opposite of Paradise. The family who occupies the apartment is not wealthy, and the members of the family all want to be somewhere else. The main characters in the play are the elderly woman Amanda, and her grown-up children Tom and Laura. Amanda's husband, Mr. Wingfield, left his family many years ago. The family still got a picture of him hanging on the wall. Tom is working at a warehouse. He hates his job, but has to earn money to support his mother and sister. He's not happy with his life, and would rather do something completely different. Tom doesn't like to stay at home. He goes out every night, drinking, and going to the movies. Tom doesn't like the way Amanda always tells him what to do. All he wants is for his mother to leave him alone.He'd like to run away and leave his family behind, just like his father did, but he's not sure how to do it. Laura is a very shy young woman. She hardly ever talks to anyone besides her family. She's disabled, and because of that, she has no self- confidence. She can't see how any decent man would like to marry her. The most important things in Laura's life are some old records that belonged to her father, and her collection of glass figures. Amanda is not happy about the way her life turned out to be. When she was young, she had gentleman callers coming over every day. She loves to tell stories from her youth. Then she was a prosperous young woman who believed she'd live happily for the rest of her life. But fate wanted it different. The man she chose, left her, and she had to take care of the children all by herself. Now the only thing she wants, is for her daughter to get married. Amanda wants Laura to get married. But no gentleman caller seem to arrive. Amanda therefore talks Tom into inviting one of his colleagues home for dinner.

Personal Assessment Interview Essay

1. What are your three most important reasons for wanting to be a teacher? I want to be a teacher because I value education. I apprehend the importance of education in leading a meaningful and successful life, and I plan to become a valuable vehicle in realizing the purpose and acceptance of learning. I would regard it as an honor to play a part in the learning process and find that the teaching instruction provides desirable holistic changes that unlocks potentials and makes room for personal growth and development in the learners. I want to be a teacher because I realize the importance of education in building a strong and stable foundation of society. Teachers are granted the capacity to mold the future of society by training learners to become responsible and productive citizens. A vision of a peaceful environment, where people work together harmoniously to build a prosperous, righteous and humane society, is nurtured through the teaching-learning process. I want to be a teacher because I also want to learn in the process. In the teaching-learning process, the teacher and the learners swap roles successively. It is not only the teacher who teaches, but also the learner. Learners have different cultural backgrounds, perspectives, worldviews, and opinions that a teacher should learn from in order to enhance understanding and widen the boundaries of the mind. 2. What characteristics do you possess that you believe will make you an effective teacher? I am passionate about learning and education. I believe that there is always something valuable to learn from everything and I know that love for learning completes who I am as a teacher. In everything I do, I always look for opportunities to learn and improve. This innate quality measures up to the attributes of an effective teacher because the growing passion for learning impels the teacher to influence learners to the same. Moreover, teachers who are highly motivated to learn are also highly motivated to teach. I deem education boundless. It is not limited within the confines of the classroom, nor is it limited to books, teacher-learner interaction alone, and other traditional means of teaching. I am open to changes in trends and developments. Open-mindedness allows me to become an efficient teacher because I am able to tolerate and acknowledge change in order to unlock new avenues for the teaching-learning process. I am adaptable to unfamiliar situations, because I am open to new frontiers, as long as I deem it has potential to improve the teaching-learning process. Adaptability and open-mindedness yields an efficient teacher, able to cope with global changes allowing real-time learning that assists learners to survive in the ever changing world. 3. Name three staff development topics you believe would be most beneficial to offer in schools. Staff development is highly significant in order to improve services that will be provided by educational institutions. It should be implemented in order to assure that the quality of educational services efficiently meets the requirements of learners and the obligations of the school as an academic institution fostering learning and development. I believe that the three most important topics that should be included in staff development are legal and ethical issues, team building, and professional growth. Legal and ethical issues guide the staff to act accordingly, putting the best interest of the learners, and stakeholders (families, the community, the state, etc.) first. Educational institutions must be able to abide by constitutional laws pertaining to education, and act accordingly to invite respect and integrity to the field of education. Team building is necessary in order to ensure that all members of the staff of the educational institution work together to meet the mission, vision, goals, and objectives of the school. Promoting professional growth is most important to teachers because it encourages improvements and developments in pedagogical processes as well as personality development. This may be attained by graduate program services related to teaching, made available to the teaching staff in order to assist them enhance their craft, apprenticeship, seminar, training programs, etc. Valuing professional growth means that educational institutions take necessary steps in ord er to enhance the quality of educational programs and services that they provide to learners. 4. Prior to planning a lesson, what do you need to consider? Planning a lesson is crucial in the teaching-learning process because it dictates the learning outcomes, especially changes in the learners’ behaviors as influenced by a particular lesson. There are various factors to consider when planning a lesson, all of which determine whether a lesson will effect to desirable learning outcomes or not. Prior to planning a lesson, there is a need to consider the existing skills and abilities of the learners. The depth of the lesson, teaching strategies and approaches, instructional materials and activities should be designed to suit the skills and abilities of the learners. This ensures that learners will be able to grasp the concepts that will be taught in each lesson. Instructional objectives should be set prior to planning a lesson because it reminds the teacher that the content of the lesson should be in line with the objectives. Instructional objectives form the framework of a lesson. Another thing to consider in planning a lesson is the variety of resources available that will go along with the learning objectives. Presenting a lesson through aids and materials is highly dependent on the availability of resources. Therefore, before planning activities for learning, available resources should be checked. Once these factors are met, the teacher is prepared to plan a lesson. 5. What ideas do you have to address diversity (e.g. culture, special needs, ESL, etc.) in your classroom? As a teacher, I should be able to promote equality within the classroom and recognize the rights of the learners as human beings. Although individual differences is considered in instructional planning, due to the learners’ varying skills and abilities, diversity in relation to other aspects including culture, disabilities or handicap, proficiency in the English language should be undervalued. Teachers should be able to determine when to acknowledge individual differences, and when to promote camaraderie and egalitarianism in the classroom. To address individual differences and diversity, the teacher should be able to design the program of instruction in such a way that it is discernible and achievable to all learners considering their talents, skills, abilities, and interests. Educational programs and activities in part should focus on diversity by including the need for learners to be aware of other cultures, non-native English speaking individuals, and special needs of other learners experiencing difficulties. An example of an educational program may be a cultural show where students share their culture through artistic forms (dancing, singing, dramatization, role-playing, etc.), or an activity wherein a non-native English speaker teaches the rest of the class some significant words in his native tongue. It is important to remember that the key is to promote learners’ awareness of differences. 6. What do you anticipate to be the greatest challenge in your teaching? Perhaps the greatest challenge in teaching is meeting its ultimate objective, and that is to affect desirable learning outcomes and behavioral changes to the learners. Accomplishing this objective requires a diverse set of knowledge, talent, and skills. Teaching is a long process, from diagnostic assessment, to lesson planning, classroom management, going about the teaching process itself, evaluation, etc. The greatest challenge is how to keep it together, despite the pressures and demands of the teaching-learning process, in order to complete the process and in the end prove that the ultimate objective of teaching was achieved. 7. What would you like to see as outcomes of your student teaching experience and your experience in the Teacher Education Program? I am expecting that my experiences in student teaching will affirm my aspiration to become a teacher. All knowledge obtained from classroom courses will equip me with necessary information in order to go about the student teaching experience knowledgeably and appositely (i.e. classroom management techniques, teaching strategies and approaches, laws protecting the rights of the learners, etc.). The student teaching experience becomes a playing field where all the information learned is applied and weathered and the skills and abilities as an aspiring teacher is tested. Through these experiences, I am able to determine my strengths and weaknesses as a teacher, and determine ways in order to improve and become a professional educator worthy of respect and learning inspiration. The Teacher Education Program provides the essential knowledge and skills that must be learned, required of every teacher. 8. Describe an ideal classroom situation. An ideal classroom situation is one where classroom management is consistently implemented (i.e. children are disciplined, routine activities are followed, lessons are completed on time, etc.). Learners are highly motivated to learn, allowing a harmonious and interactive classroom environment, guided by the teacher. The objectives of learning are attained at the end of each lesson, and the learners are able to apply what they have learned in real life situations. The teacher is able to play all the necessary roles of the teacher as a manager of classroom activities and discipline, a facilitator of learning, a guide and a role model, a good listener, and a nurturer of well-motivated learners. Learners are able to adjust to changes in the classroom environment, and although it is called an ideal classroom situation, they are allowed to make mistakes. Through these mistakes and the identification of their weaknesses, they are able to take it constructively and push themselves to improve and become independent learners.

Analysis of music in the film Grease

I think the effectiveness of a musical film In comparison to a film score in a non- musical largely depends on the target audience of the film, genre of film, and plot of the film. In musical films Like Grease, Chicago, Less Miserable, West Side Story, and Mama Ml, the musical and choreographed aspects of film work with the plot In an effective manner. I feel Like [romantic] comedies (egg. Mama Ml and Grease) and dramas (egg. Less Miserable and Chicago) are the two genres that are best made in to musical films.Musicals are able to break down language barriers, telling the plot of he film through song which evokes plenty of emotion that is universally understood. West Side Story is a perfect example of a musical where choreography and music helps the audience to understand the story even though they might not understand every word of the lyrics. Musicals are able to effectively tell a story if the plot is more simplistic. Contrary to [romantic] comedies and dramas, turning an action o r science fiction film into a musical would be simply ridiculous.If we were to imagine an action film like The Dark Knight or Star Wars as a musical, I don't think these films would eve been nearly as successful as they have been today. One reason for this Is the target audience for films Like Star Wars and The Dark Knight have the potential to be vastly different from the type of people who enjoy watching musicals like Dream Girls and Rent. The plot for The Dark Knight and Star Wars largely benefit from the music being comprised of a film score that is not classified as a musical.It would also be difficult to convert these genres into a musical because the plots are often too complex to understand if everything is sung. The scores in non-musicals serves to implement the plot, not to tell the plot which can often be taken more seriously by the viewers. â€Å"Summer Nights† (0:14:04) Is the first song In the film, Grease, that gives us an introductory look Into what the charac ters are going to be like. Sandy Is seen as very Innocent and sweet from the way she recounts her and Dandy's summer romance from an emotional perspective- â€Å"he got friendly holding my hand†.Dandy's telling of his summer romance is a little more crude and revealing about the physical aspects of the romance -â€Å"she got friendly down in the sand†. The song establishes Danny as he cool leader of the greaser clan known as the â€Å"T-birds† and Sandy as the new girl who the schoolgirl clique, â€Å"The Pink Ladies†, have their eye on to recruit. This song also introduces the other eight main characters (the rest of the T-birds and The Pink Ladies), allowing each of them to ask questions that reveal their characters.The next song that helped to further develop some of the characters is â€Å"Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee† (0:27:30) which is a comedic song performed by Orzo and The Pink Ladies. A taunting, underlying tone In the music is heard right away. Razz's tough and arctic tone Is established through her lyrics In this song as she is mocking the Innocence of Sandy. When the characters are mocking Sandy inability to Inhale properly while smoking, we hear a clapper Instrument to compliment them coughing.The rest of The Pink Ladies: French, Marty, and Jan, seem to follow their leader, immature and highly compliant to what Orzo wants them to do or think. â€Å"Hopelessly Devoted To You† (0:32:00) is a ballad performed by Sandy which has a slower tempo than the other songs we have previously heard in the film. The song starts off by sing heavy strings to create an emotional feel then later we hear the piano. This is a character song which enables Sandy to express her romantic feelings for Danny, and reflect on their relationship.The chorus, â€Å"hopelessly devoted to you† is how Sandy feels towards Danny and these feelings are emphasized by the repetition through the song. â€Å"Greased Lightning† (0:37:2 0) is performed by Danny and the T-birds and serves to establish the major cultural influences of the sass's: cars and rock and roll. We hear 3 stingers using ascending notes played on brass at the beginning of the Eng to compliment Dandy's ideas of what the car could be (automatic, systematic, hydromantic).There is also a lot of call and response between the protagonist, Danny, singing the main course and the T-birds backing him up by providing musical responses to his lines. This song uses heavy percussion, piano, bass, and brass instruments to create a genuine rock and roll feel. The tempo stays consistent throughout the song except when it slows down at the ending chorus. The ending chorus is also where we hear drums and vocals being harmonize. â€Å"Sandy† (01:19:10) reformed by Danny is Dandy's counter song to â€Å"Sandy's Hopelessly Devoted To You†.This is also a ballad as it expresses the deep emotions Danny has for Sandy and shows how vulnerable he is without her. We see a different side of Danny here because he is not acting tough or cool; he is being raw and real. This song uses empathetic sound as we can hear Danny on the verge of crying at some points in the song which causes the viewer to empathetic with the sadness he feels. â€Å"Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee (Reprise)† (01 :31 :38) is a turning point for Sandy's character.The song tarts out as wholesome and pure, like she is, accompanied by the piano in a high key with a light tone (we hear consonance). Then the lyrics get more powerful along with the intensity of the music (crescendo and lower key on the piano) as she decides to say goodbye to her innocence. â€Å"You're the One That I Want† (01:36:47) performed by Danny, Sandy, Pink Ladies, and T-Birds shows how the characters have succumbed to their feelings. Danny has become the man that Sandy wanted him to be all along and vice versa.We hear a riff on the piano to introduce the new, sophisticated Sandy. The causa l harmony between Danny and Sandy is symbolic of the new found harmony in their relationship and the all black costumes they are wearing is symbolic of both their maturity. This is an example of a rhythm song because it is driven by energetic rhythm patterns. Personally, this is my favorite song of the film because I feel it has the catchiest underlying beat and I felt that the choreography and props were used really effectively to capture the viewers attention. We Go Together† is a production number which involves the full cast and expresses the major changes in the plot room the opening to closing act. This cheerful tune is expressive of the happiness found by the entire cast and all the main characters are happily coupled off. Grease does include a lot of dancing which I found to be quite effective. It is more visually appealing and helps with the flow of telling the story through song. If at some points in the film the characters were Just standing there rather than moving around and dancing, the audience is more likely to be disengaged. Dancing also provides the catchier.Dance is also an important part of detecting a characters emotion through odd language; in the song Mimi Are The One That I Want†, Sandy is seen to have a new gained confidence and attitude which reflective not only in her lyrics, but in her dancing as well. I find it effective that performers in musical films treat their song and dance numbers as if there is a live audience watching. It helps to engage the audience more because they feel as though they are more closely connected to the performers. It also helps the performers find the emotional energy to perform different songs and dance if they have an audience's energy to thrive off of.

Assessing Leadership Skills Essay

This paper will provide information about the theoretical approaches that I will use to enhance my leadership effectiveness, it will discuss my leadership style and the reason I choose the style. This paper will also explain the leadership skills and qualities I already possess, with the skills and qualities that need improvement, along with how to implement the leadership/follower interaction to improve the organization where I would like to work, and finally describe one point of action that I’ve learned from my Self Insight papers, that will include a description of how each point will be implemented. Let’s begin by defining leadership; leadership is the influence relationship among leaders and followers who intend real changes and outcomes that reflect their shared purposes. (Draft, 2011, p.5) Leadership is a people activity and is different from administrative paper work or planning activities. Leadership happens with people, it is not something done to people. (Dr aft, 2011, p.6) The theoretical approaches that I will use to enhance my leadership effectiveness will be to incorporate the democratic leadership style; along with the Fiedler’s Contingency Model. The democratic style of leadership delegate’s authority to others encourages participation, relies on subordinates’ knowledge for completion of tasks and depends on subordinates respect for others. (Draft, 2011, p.44) Democratic leadership style is similar to Theory Y Democratic leaders treat subordinates as fully capable of doing the work on their own. Democratic leaders work with subordinates they encourage, they treat each one fairly. They don’t put anyone down, they see themselves as guides. They give suggestions, rather than trying to change them. Democratic leaders provide information, in their evaluation they give objective praise and criticism. (Northouse, 2009) Although a Democratic leader will make the final decision, he/she encourage other members of the team to have a say in the decision making process. This not only boost job satisfaction by connecting employees or team members in what’s going on, but it also help to develop  people’s skills. Employees and team members feel in control of their own destiny, such as the promotion they deserve and so are motivated to work hard by more than just a financial reward. As participation takes time, this approach can lead to things happening more slowly but often the end result is better. The approach can be most suitable where team work is essential and quality is more important than speed to market productivity. (Bhatti, N, et, al.2012) The outcomes of democratic leaders are mostly positive, first it results in greater group member satisfaction, commitment, and cohesiveness. Second, there is more friendliness, mutual prates, and group mindedness. The teams members interact with each other in a positive manner, and the goal is has the group in mind with making we statements opposed to I statements. Lastly, democratic leaders result in stronger worker motivation and greater creativity, and under a democratic leader group members participate more and are more committed to group decisions Fiedler’s Contingency Model; this model was designed to enable leaders to diagnose both leadership style and organizational situation. (Draft, 2011, p.68) This model was also designed to diagnose whether or not the leader is task oriented or relationship oriented and match the leader style to the situation. The Tasks oriented people are goal oriented. They want to achieve. Their work in meaningful, they are doers. Then we have Relationship oriented people they find meaning in being rather than doing. Like the democratic style, relationship oriented people they want to be connected to people. There is also Task leadership and Relationship leadership. Task relationship behaviors facilitate goals accomplishments; they are behaviors that help group members to achieve their objectives, while re lationship leadership behavior help subordinates feel comfortable with themselves, with each other, and with the situation which they find themselves. The reason why I choose these models is because they best fit my leadership style, and I think it’s a productive way of leadership. In utilizing this skill I‘m ale to listen to other perspective, and welcome an assortment of resolutions. My best leadership qualities are in the category of a transformational leader. Transformational leaders are a leader that influences, inspire, move and literally transform followers to achieve organizational goals beyond their self-interests thus initiating about positive change. They also introduce new business models, products and services because of their ability to  create new organizational visions, strategies, cultures, and structures through committed followers. Transformational leaders positively change follower’s lives, lifting spirits and even the commitment to ethics and morality (Weiss, J. (2011) My preference would be a transformational leader because they deal more with the person rather than the task. They build relationships with their team members, they encourage and motivate, and I think that their followers will get more work done because of the rapport that is made with the team. Another quality that I posses is â€Å"Stewardship† stewardship involves the support and belief that leaders are deeply accountable to others as well as to the organization, without trying to control others, define meaning and purpose for others, or take care of others. I’m in favor of this type of leadership because it allows the people to do the work without being micro managed. There are four components to this style of leadership, reorient towards partnership assumptions, localize decisions and power to those closest to the work and the customer, recognize and reward the value of labor, and expect core work teams to build the organization. (Draft, 2011, p.176) By using these methods the leader is to lead the organization taking control of the follower. They are able to work together in harmony with team members. By using the stewardship method you are able to treat team members as partners, by sharing power, and maintaining control over their own work. This model also allows relationships to form between leaders and followers that will contribute to the organizations success. Independent thinking refers to thinking, questioning assumptions, and interpreting data and events, according to one’s own beliefs, ideas, not according to prestablished rules, routines or categories defined by others. (Draft, 2011, p.138) I’ve always been an independent thinker. I’m not the type of person that agrees with people for acceptance, or just to go along with the most popular answer. I’m very opinionated, and I’m able to get my views across without being rude or mean. In my current position, I have to always be alert, and able to think critically because systems are always changing Although I fell that I’m a good overall leader my weakest skills falls under administration skills, administration skills. Administrative skills are those competencies a leader needs to run an organization in order to carry out the organizations purpose and goals. Administrative skills are divided into three categories:  managing people, managing resources, and showing technical competence. (Northouse, 2009) I work well with people but dealing with administrative task has always been an issue for me. I’m not the best typist, nor am I well organized. Since becoming a student at AU I’ve become more organized. Another quality in need of improvement deals with system thinking, System thinking means the ability to see the synergy of the whole rather than just the separate elements of a system and learn to reinforce or change whole system patterns. (Dra ft, 2011, p.142) The leadership/follower interaction that I would implement to improve the organization where I would like to work is leader follower collaboration. In the leader follower collaboration leaders and followers have more in common than they think. In my ideal work place I would use this model as the blueprint for my company. Beginning stages of a project or assignment. The leader and follower roles differ significantly in the initial stages of a project. The leader should provide direction in the form of scope, objective, expectations, limitations and guidelines while the follower should ask questions to ensure understanding and should contribute to the project or assignment definition as appropriate. Middle stages of a project or assignment. The leader and follower roles exhibit greater similarities during the middle stages of a project. This is where the bulk of work occurs. Leadership should shift, based upon who possesses the appropriate knowledge or expertise. With egos in check, leaders should permit, and even encourage, followers to initiate ideas and opinions. With cowardice in check, followers should exert leadership by offering ideas and opinions. If leader and follower can fulfill these new roles, a high degree of collaboration will occur and project success will increase. Final stages of a project or assignment In this stage, leader and follower roles again differ. It is up to the leader to define the end of one project and the beginning of the next. For optimal learning, leader and follower might collaboratively engage in a â€Å"lessons learned† dialogue. (Don Grayson & Ryan Speckhart) What I’ve learned from my Self Insight Papers is that I  might be a bit timid in my leadership ability. I thought that I was a good leader but it seems as though that I still have some work to do. Prior to taking this course I thought that I was a very good leader, but it seems as though I have a lot to work to do to improve my leadership skills. In doing an assessment of my strengths and weaknesses, I realized that in order to become a more effective leader I will have to become much more confident in certain areas. The areas that improvement is needed is in my motivation techniques, I thought that I encouraged my team in a positive manner, but what I realized is that I’m doing the bulk of the work while encouraging, what sense does that make? I have to set outlines and allow my team members to make mistakes, and learn from them. Because we get paid by performance is probably why I do that. As a leader, you can develop backbone to accept personal responsibility for achieving the desired outcomes, going against the status quo, and standing up for what you believe. You can learn to push beyond your comfort zone and break through the fears that limit you. (Draft, 2011, p.182) That statement sums it up for me. If a leader can live by that statement everyone will benefit in the end. In conclusion this paper has defined leadership, identified the skills and qualities I possess, in addition to the qualities that need improvement, as well as how to implement the leadership/follower interaction to improve the organization where I would like to work, and finally describe one point of action that I’ve learned from my Self Insight papers, that will include a description of how each point will be implemented. References Bhatti, N., Maitlo, G. M., Shaikh, N., Hashmi, M. A., & Shaikh, F. M. (2012). The impact of autocratic and democratic leadership style on job satisfaction. International Business Research, 5(2), 192-201. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/963357720?accountid=32521 Daft, R. L. (2011, 2008). The leadership experience (5/e). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning. Northouse, P.G. (2009). Introduction to Leadership: Concepts and Practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications Weiss, J. (2011) An Introduction to Leadership. Bridgepoint Education, Inc. www.regent.edu/acad/global/publications/†¦/grayson_speckhar

The Piercer

S w 908M57 The Piercer Colleen Sharen and Nicole Nolan wrote this case solely to provide material for class discussion. The authors do not intend to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a managerial situation. The authors may have disguised certain names and other identifying information to protect confidentiality. Ivey Management Services prohibits any form of reproduction, storage or transmittal without its written permission. Reproduction of this material is not covered under authorization by any reproduction rights organization.To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, contact Ivey Publishing, Ivey Management Services, c/o Richard Ivey School of Business, The University o f Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada, N6A 3K7; phone (519) 661-3208; fax (519) 661-3882; e-mail [email  protected] uwo. ca. Copyright  © 2008, Ivey Management Services Version: (A) 2008-08-22 â€Å"Don’t forget, your business idea pitch is due in two weeks, † said Professor Sharen at the end of class. Jessica Pierce turned to look at her project team mate, Ashley Mound.Jessica and Ashley were fourth-year management and organizational studies students at Brescia University College, taking an introduction to entrepreneurship course. Ashley and Jessica had developed an idea for the assignment: a personal safety alarm that both shrieked and flashed lights when the person carrying it set off the alarm function. Given the concern that many people had over personal safety, it seemed like a great business idea. In order to present their idea, they needed to show that there was a market for this product and that they had a way to sell it to consumers.The problem was that they did not really know how or where to start to get the information that they needed. They had a lot of work to do to be ready to present their project in the next two weeks. THE ASSIGNMENT The business pitch assignment was challenging. Sharen had asked students to deve lop an interesting business idea and present it to a panel of potential investors. These investors included a successful serial entrepreneur, a business consultant who practised in the area of small- and medium-size enterprises, an owner of a marketing and advertising services business and a business professor.The students were asked to present an innovative idea, show why it would be successful in the market place, demonstrate potential markets, show the business model and sell themselves to the investors as entrepreneurs. The investors were instructed to view their investments as seed money to enable the students to further develop business plans and prototypes of their ideas. The students weren’t required to complete a financial analysis for this assignment. Purchased by Gaia Cuccarini (gaia. [email  protected] it) on March 21, 2013 Page 2 9B08M057The investors were asked to assess project ideas on the basis of the feasibility of the idea and whether they believed that t he entrepreneurs would be able to deliver. They could consider the appeal of the idea itself, the logistics and operations required to run the business, the effectiveness of the business plan, the longterm viability of the business or the size of the market. The assignment would be graded 50 per cent based on how much money the teams received from the investors and 50 per cent on the quality of their presentation by the professor. THE IDEA The Piercer was a small device that hung on a chain worn around the neck.When activated, The Piercer emitted a piercing sound that traveled for approximately 500 meters, as well as a bright flashing light. To deactivate The Piercer, the wearer had to push two buttons simultaneously. This was to prevent an attacker from being able to deactivate the device. The piercing noise and the bright flashing light were designed to scare away attackers and attract those who might assist the person being attacked. In the situation of imminent attack, a person would not have to rely on their voice or bring a whistle to their mouth to signal for help.Ashley and Jessica had researched costs and thought that by manufacturing in China, they could make The Piercer for $2 and sell it for $7. 50 wholesale, with a retail price of $14. 95. The idea made sense to Ashley and Jessica. It fit with recent social and demographic trends as aging baby boomers began to need assistance with injuries and falls, and with increased general concerns about health, safety and violence. WHAT NEXT? Jessica and Ashley thought that they had a good idea. Now they had to prove it. What were the target markets for this product? How big were they?Which ones should they choose? How should they sell to them? What proportion of the target market should they expect to capture? Where should they look for information to help them make these decisions? A SIMPLE GUIDE TO INFORMATION RESOURCES AND EVALUATION Ashley and Jessica must do secondary research to be able to evaluate and implement their idea. They will need to consider 1) how to evaluate resources, 2) how to develop effective search strategies and 3) how to identify proprietary resources that support the case for this business. 1. How to Evaluate ResourcesInformation is available everywhere, and for this reason, Jessica and Ashley need to be able to discriminate between good and poor quality information. Appropriate information usage for an academic project includes evaluating and assessing resources for reliability and credibility. Purchased by Gaia Cuccarini (gaia. [email  protected] it) on March 21, 2013 Page 3 9B08M057 Goals ? ? ? ? ? Ashley and Jessica should be able to locate and differentiate free versus proprietary web resources. They should be able to identify a quality website. They should be able to evaluate books and other print resources for quality and reliability.They should understand the difference between scholarly and non-scholarly articles and resources. They should be able to cite information properly. Free Versus Proprietary Web Resources Many students think that the World Wide Web has the answers for everything. While the web can have valuable information, students pay (through their tuition) to have access to quality proprietary information resources. Ashley and Jessica could examine some free web sites to help them. For example, associations, company information and government information can be very helpful, as long as the user knows how to determine the quality of a website.Quality Web Sites Anyone anywhere can make a website. Just because it is on the web, does not mean it is good quality or reliable. When Ashley and Jessica are evaluating websites, they need to consider: Who is providing the information? ? Is it a government institution, a university or a company? ? Does the url make sense (e. g. .org, . edu, . on. ca)? ? Does the owner of the website have anything to gain by providing the information? ? Does the owner of the website have good c redentials? ? Has anyone updated the website recently? Note that Wikipedia is not necessarily a reliable resource.Anyone anywhere can modify these pages. While it might be a place to find some resources or links, students should not cite Wikipedia as a reliable resource in an academic paper. The University of Alberta put together a good web evaluation checklist: http://www. library. ualberta. ca/instruction/science/evalweb. pdf For a more comprehensive list on evaluating web resources, see the bibliography on the topic: http://www. lib. vt. edu/help/instruct/evaluate/evalbiblio. html Purchased by Gaia Cuccarini (gaia. [email  protected] it) on March 21, 2013 Page 4 9B08M057Evaluating Other Resources Ashley and Jessica need to be critical of all the resources they use, not just websites. Ideally, they should be able to discriminate between proprietary and non-proprietary websites, scholarly and non-scholarly resources and evaluate the quality of any book used. Things for Ashley and Jessica to consider include: ? Who published the book or made the information available? ? How old is the information? ? Has the information been updated recently? ? Is the information peer reviewed? Does this matter? ? Did the library buy and recommend the resource? Is the author credible? Scholarly Versus Non-Scholarly Resources An academic library will provide access to both scholarly and non-scholarly resources. Scholarly work generally refers to published work that has been through a peer review process. Especially in the field of business, there are many practitioner resources. Therefore, Jessica and Ashley need to be aware of the type of information they are gathering. For example, industry trends, say from Standard and Poors NetAdvantage, is not a scholarly resource, yet the information within them could be valuable.Alternatively, ProQuest ABI Inform Global provides access to scholarly articles. Ashley and Jessica may also consider the relative value of evidence or fact ver sus opinion. Students should not read things and trust that what they are reading is accurate. Students should think about the rigor with which the argument is made and the evidence presented. ? Is there evidence to back up a claim? ? Has the evidence been collected in a reliable way? ? Is the author stating an opinion without backing up his or her ideas? Citing Work It is important that Ashley and Jessica cited their work properly, to avoid accidental plagiarism.Some of the more confusing things to cite include Statistics Canada data or online information. Statistics Canada has a website that describes systematically how to cite its tables, publications or other datasets: http://www. statcan. ca/english/freepub/12-591-XIE/12-591-XIE2006001. htm In addition, most academic libraries will have information about citation procedures, or will have copies of publication manuals available for borrowing. Any librarian can be asked about citation procedures. Purchased by Gaia Cuccarini (gaia . [email  protected] it) on March 21, 2013 Page 5 9B08M057 2. How to Develop Search StrategiesGoals ? ? ? ? Ashley and Jessica should know the difference between searching in different search fields, such as the abstract field and title field They should be able to use this technology to search the unique fields They should be able to use the â€Å"AND,† â€Å"OR,† or â€Å"NOT† features of a search engine to help narrow their search. They should understand what truncation and proximity search strategies are, and how that influences a search. Most search engines that index information have similar features. If Ashley and Jessica understand the concepts in searching, they can apply them to any search engine.Take Advantage of Search Fields For example, records in an index have many different fields such as keywords, title, author, publication title, document title, abstract, full document, date, author, etc. It is often possible to specify what part of the recor d to search in, which helps to be more specific with the search. Searching an entire text document may retrieve less meaningful records than a search of just abstracts. Use Boolean Search Strategies Using â€Å"AND† and â€Å"OR† can be helpful in expanding or narrowing a search. AND narrows a search and OR expands it. Using the term â€Å"NOT† can also be helpful, but should be limited.For example, searching for beer companies will retrieve companies on diamonds (DeBeers). Excluding the term â€Å"diamond† from a search on beer companies could be helpful in narrowing one’s search. Truncation and Proximity Many search engines allow for truncation and proximity searching. In ProQuest, an asterisk symbol will truncate. For example, if one types â€Å"leader*† into a search box, records with leader, leaders and leadership will be retrieved. This helps capture all variations of a word. Proximity searching refers to how close two words are togeth er in a document.Presumably, if two words are close together in a document, they are more likely to have something to do with each other. In ProQuest, a â€Å"w/1† or â€Å"w/2† (â€Å"w/3,† etc. ) facilitates proximity searching. For example, if Ashley or Jessica typed â€Å"organizational w/3 learning† in the search box, they will retrieve documents where the word â€Å"organizational† is within three words of â€Å"learning. † Find Creative Ways In There are many different ways to find information. Knowing a company name or a competitor’s name is convenient. Taking advantage of key words (or subject terms) also is a good way to search.Purchased by Gaia Cuccarini (gaia. [email  protected] it) on March 21, 2013 Page 6 9B08M057 It is also a good idea to brainstorm for synonyms prior to beginning a search. Being d eliberate about a search strategy and deciding on what concepts to combine can really help make the search go easier. Sea rching is iterative as well. One is advised to read some articles to learn the jargon of the topic, then go back and do the search again using the subject jargon. Most librarians will help on developing a search strategy! 3. How to Identify Proprietary Resources GoalsAshley and Jessica should be able to identify library resources and understand what type of information they can find in various types of resources. The following databases are some of the library databases that Ashley and Jessica could consider. They could also go to the library (or call or e-mail) and ask for assistance. Library staff will know what resources the library has, if there are any other resources that may be of use and how to access and use the resources. Finding Background Scholarly Articles ProQuest ABI Inform Global is a database that indexes business and management journal articles.Most of the articles are available in full text, and both scholarly and non-scholarly articles are available. The search b ox in ProQuest has a drop-down menu on the right that allows users to search in specific fields. For example, users can search the title, abstract, author, company or publication fields. Scopus is a database that indexes articles on the social sciences, life sciences, physical sciences and health sciences. For the purposes of a business or entrepreneurship project, searching only the social sciences category would be appropriate. This resource indexed scholarly articles.Google Scholar is a free resource that indexes scholarly information from the World Wide Web. There is an advanced search engine feature to help specify a search. Many academic institutions integrate access to full text articles with Google Scholar. This means that any article the student has access to via the library, is also available to them via Google Scholar. Because Google Scholar is integrated with library resources, the student will likely need to either be on campus, or logged into the off-campus proxy serve r to take advantage of these services.If they are off campus or not logged into the proxy server the student can still search Google Scholar, but access to full text resources may be limited. Finding News and Magazine Articles Factiva is a database that indexes newspapers and magazines. While this resource does not index scholarly articles, it is a broad resource that captures current global news and events. LexisNexis has a comprehensive database that indexes newspapers and magazines. significant Canadian content indexed there. Purchased by Gaia Cuccarini (gaia. [email  protected] it) on March 21, 2013 There is alsoPage 7 9B08M057 Finding Industry Trends Several databases including Standard & Poors NetAdvantage, Mintel and Marketline provide reports on industry trends. These databases provide regularly updated reports on broad industries. Each database tends to report on different industries, so students would have to do some trial and error research to find relevant reports. Stu dents may find their topic is too narrow for these reports. The Financial Post Investor Suite is a database that provides industry information from a Canadian perspective. Finding Company InformationCompany information may be important for a project such as The Piercer, especially for researching competitors. MarketLine provides company information, including financial information, company descriptions and a list of competitors. Similarly, Hoovers provides comprehensive company descriptions. Not all companies are in both resources, therefore checking both resources is recommended for company research. Marketing and Advertising The World Advertising Research Center (WARC) is a resource that provides access to information about marketing and advertising, as well as to case studies of winning ad campaigns.Such a resource could be helpful in this context to see if other, similar products have been marketed, and if so, how they have been marketed. There is scholarly and non-scholarly inf ormation in this resource. Technology Information Both eMarketer and Forrester have information about technology trends. There may be information about the Internet, emerging technologies or electronic marketing. Statistics and Demographics Statistics Canada provides access to demographic data. Many secondary educational institutions participate in the Data Liberation Initiative.This means that information a member of the public would have to pay for, can be retrieved for free by a student. Students, through the academic library website, can use data for research. For more information about accessing statistics, students can talk to their subject librarian. Some resources that Statistics Canada has that might be useful to find demographics include the Market Research Handbook, Canadian Business Patterns, CANSIM data, Census data, and Canadian Social Trends, among others. There are other resources available via www. statcan. ca such as Community Profiles.Data are available down to gr oupings of the population of about 2,000 to 7,000 people, meaning students can find demographic data for each 2,000- to 7,000-person neighbourhood across the country. Purchased by Gaia Cuccarini (gaia. [email  protected] it) on March 21, 2013 Page 8 9B08M057 Global Information Although global research may not be as important for a product such as The Piercer, other entrepreneurial projects may require researching the global market. Economic Intelligence Unit, Global Market Information Database and Business Monitor Online are three resources that provide global market and industry information.Other Helpful Resources Students are encouraged to use the World Wide Web to help them find good information. For example, city homepages often have information about setting up a business. Association websites also can have helpful information. Also, banks have entrepreneurial information on their websites. In addition, many books in the library explain how to develop small business plans or provide information on entrepreneurship. Purchased by Gaia Cuccarini (gaia. [email  protected] it) on March 21, 2013

Advice to a Friend on Choosing a Mistress Essay Example for Free

Advice to a Friend on Choosing a Mistress Essay ? In his message, Franklin advises his friend that marriage is the best solution not for only sexual desires but also the undisputable source of solid happiness. Having suspicions that his friend would not follow his guidance, Franklin recommends him to choose older mistresses instead of younger ones and lists eight valuables reasons to better support his argument. Franklin commences his essay by presenting advantages of the marriage. He says I know of no medicine fit to diminish the violent inclinations you mention†¦ Marriage is the proper remedy. It is most natural state of man and therefore the state in which you can are most likely to find solid happiness†. Through those sentences, Franklin seems to estimate that from a masculine’ view, one of the main advantages of the marriage is to bring pacification toward requirements of the flesh. The recipient of the letter who was the friend of the author seemed to be looking for a situation in which he could find sexual partner and happiness without commitment. Based on the previous quotes, the author claims that the best situation in which he could find hat he was looking for was a marriage. In his letter, Franklin advices his friend to settle because ‘ It is the man and woman together that make the complete human being†. If Franklin thinks that the marriage is so positive, this is relied to both psychological and socio-economical reasons. First all he is convinced that the married life is more balancing that the single lifetime. Franklin believes that a man who did not find the soul mate is in other words incomplete, unaccomplished by saying that A single man has not nearly the value he would have in that sate of union, He is an ncomplete animal. He resembles the odd half of a pair of scissors†. Based on this judgement, Franklin means that family life calms people; it is the natural arrangement in which they can organize their production’ strength with the most possible benefit. While Franklin affirms that together there are more likely to succeed in the world† there is no doubt that he is referring to the material success. Concerning the woman, it is only in a marriage that she can show up her real values. Through the letter, Franklin continues to give worthy reasons in order to convince the ecipient about getting married. Franklin having doubts that his friend would not consider his advice followed his representation of the marriage by an alternative solution to satisfy his needs. If his friend his not ready to commit and wants to continue a commerce with Sex inevitable†, he suggested that ‘ you should prefer old woman to young ones†. The first raison that Franklin used to support his case is that they nave more knowledge ot the world, and their minds are better stored witn observations, their conversation is more improving and more lastingly agreeable†. By affirming this, Franklin makes an allusion to the intelligence of older woman. He illustrates that people gain knowledge as they get older. They have, in principle knew more love stories or adventures than youngest ones, thus they better know men, know how to take care of them and also how to satisfy them. Franklin defends the idea that a debate with an old woman is rich and interesting, because they had been through many involvements from witch they had retains acquaintance. They have lived longer and have things to communicate to you. Franklin also supports his reference for older woman by saying that To maintain their influence over men, they supply the diminution of beauty by an augmentation of utility’. This is to illustrate that older woman, with the time spend less time worrying about their appearance, which they use to do more important stuff. To him, when beauty disappears, women improve their service. At their age, they assume their femininity and do so without any complex. Franklin, who was a man of science and also know as Lady Man’ also gave bodily motivation for choosing an older woman. He implies that ? because in every animal that walks upright the deficiency of the fluids that fill the muscles appears first in the highest part. The face first grows lank and wrinkled; then the neck; then the breast and arms; the lower parts continuing to the last as plump as ever: so that covering all above with a basket, and regarding only what is below the girdle, it is impossible of two women to tell an old one from a young one†. His purpose here is to assure his friend that there are no doubts or fear to have on the corporal pleasure of an old woman. According to him as in the dark all cats are rey, the pleasure of corporal enjoyment with an old woman is at least equal, and frequently superior†. This is to support that woman are woman regardless of age, an old woman can perform the same way as a young one concerning sexual experience. Sometimes, they are even considered superior. Through the note, Franklin by saying because there is no hazard of children, which irregularly produced may be attended with much inconvenience† refers to the fact that woman at a certain age can’t get pregnant. Thus while dating them the chance of being relied to them by omeone or something is null. This also makes the separation easier and leaves out others inconvenient that children can bring in a relationship. Across the letter, Franklin continues to encourage his friend to choose an old female if this last one persist in thinking a Commerce with the ser. He establishes a formal and highly analytical tone with his receiver about the discretion an old mistress can have in their relationship. He supports his suggestion by affirming that because through more experience they are more prudent and discreet in conducting an intrigue to revent suspicion. The commerce with them is therefore safer with regard to your reputation. From the following sentence, the author suggests that with an old woman, it is less probable that the relationship get revealed consequently with her you reputation will be at the shelter because they are more responsible in managing a relationship and they now what they want. Finally, Franklin ends up with his letter by saying † they are so grateful†™. Even though Franklin, in his letter gave an approved receipt to find the best mistress, it is obvious that considering as the ounding father his interest for marriage respond to others concern more important than the promotion ot the psych-to-emotional blooming. Advice to a Friend on Choosing a Mistress. (2018, Nov 09).