World War 2

Briana Rogers Mr. Carter Freshman Seminar H8 October 3, 2012 First Benedict Home Game Where I’m from we don’t have a football team or a marching band, which means there’s really no excitement for getting ready for the first game. The sports my high school was always prepared for was lacrosse and basketball. Knowing that I was finally coming to a school with a football team made me even more excited to in college.Though, I had heard the rumors about the team never winning games it didn’t bring me down because I knew for sure that no matter what I was going to enjoy every moment of the game. Walking to the stadium with friends put me into that mood knowing that the night was going to be very eventful, whether we were to win or lose the game. Personally I was just ready to hear the band, cheer my team on, and have a blast.I wanted to support BC to the point I had the school colors and had my face painted. After so many years of always going with someone to th eir football and not my own school, this was finally the time for me to live it up. I stayed until half time to hear the band. I can honestly say that for it to be my first college football game I enjoyed myself with the group of people I was and would do it again, plus with our football team to win the game

Capital Punishment and Sensitive Societal Issue

Punishment Punishment, Witness, and dehumanization are common in the world today illustrated in poems such as, â€Å"Punishment† by Seamus Heaney and â€Å"Capital Punishment† by Sherman Alexie. The poems give the world a different perspectives based on the authors viewpoint, yet both authors seem to favor punishment. Therefore everyone in their life deserves to be punished based on the authors work or even a witness for one reason or another to speak for something they have done or witness. These authors wanted to show a strong feeling towards punishment whether or not the crime was minor or major. In â€Å"Punishment† the speaker was a witness to dehumanizing punishment of the bog women. In â€Å"Capital Punishment† the cook was a witness to a cruel punishment. Even though both authors focused on different types of punishment they both expressed how witnessing and dehumanization have a vital role in different situations. Can punishment and race have factors that can change one another? Can the ethnicity of a criminal effect the severity of the punishment bestowed upon them? The ethnicity of a criminal or witness can determine how cruel and usual a punishment can be towards the criminal or witness. Witnessing is seeing an event, crime, or even an accident take place. In the poem the author talks about witnessing a horrible event. Punishment begins with a person possible the speaker or even the poet hanging with a noose around her neck and seems to be dead. The speaker seems like he could have witness the entire death. He describes the bog woman as, â€Å"she was a barked sapling that is dug out oak- bone, brain firkin: her shaved head like a stubble of black corn, her blindfold a soiled bandage, her noose a ring to store the memories of love† (Heaney, 1157). Even though he describes her as a scapegoat why does the speaker not speak up for this cruel dehumanizing punishment. The punishment was so outrages that the audience felt her pain. However, the speaker first says â€Å"my poor scapegoat† (Heaney, 1157), and we feel as if he feels the sorrow the readers do, shortly after he says, â€Å"I almost love you† (Heaney, 1157). With his participation of the punishment it leaves the audience believing that the woman deserves the punishment because of her past. â€Å"Capital Punishment† is told in first person, a cook is preparing a last meal for an Indian man. He says â€Å"I sit here in the dark kitchen when they do it, meaning when they kill him, kill and add another definition of the word to dictionary† (Alexie, 1164). The line â€Å"I am not a witness† is repeated throughout the poem, it is said after Alexie addresses a sensitive societal issue. Topics such as capital punishment are very difficult for the cook to explain. The speaker of the poem is sympathetic with the condemned man and knows that the reason he is on death row is due to the color of his skin. After the narrator describes and tells the reader what he is thinking and observing, he uses a line saying, â€Å"I am not a witness† symbolizing that the narrator can only imagine but relate to what the Native American is going through. He changes from â€Å"I am not a witness† to â€Å"I am a witness† (Alexie, 1162) when the narrator tells the reader a story about how the society can hang two people but throw both people in one grave. The line symbolizes that two wrongs do not equal one right. The cook sympathies with the criminal because he knows that his punishment is only that sever because of his ethnicity. I am a witness† is Alexie's way of saying this type of punishment is happening and is something that cannot be ignored or overlooked. The author asks the question, who are we to judge? Who decides someone's life is over? Alexie says at the end of the poem, † †¦ If any of us stood for days on top of a barren hill during an electrical stor m then lightning would eventually strike us and we'd have no idea for which of our sins were reduced to headlines and ash. † (Alexie 1165). Alexie was trying to say no matter what, a sin is a sin, the terms in which the sins were committed are meaningless, and the bottom line is that a sin was committed. However, if we were killed for our actions how would we know if the condemned would make up for that sin or turn out for the worst? Both poems prove that the author's point of view of each punishment in the poem shows significance in the writer's everyday life. Seamus Heaney's â€Å"Punishment† shows bitter love and can somewhat symbolize the relationship of the love of his life. Sherman Alexie's â€Å"Capital Punishment† symbolizes the punishment people experience especially through racial discrimination. In addition, by Alexie being Native American too, that proves he was making a statement about bitter punishment towards his culture. The ethnicity of a criminal or witness can determine how cruel and usual a punishment can be towards the criminal or witness. Work Cited Alexie, Sherman. â€Å"Capital Punishment. † Making Literature Matter: An Anthology for Readers and Writers. By John Schilb and John Clifford. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2000. N. page. Print. Heaney, Seamus. â€Å"Punishment. † Making Literature Matter: An Anthology for Readers and Writers. By John Schilb and John Clifford. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2000. 1156-157. Print.

Mustafa Kemal Atatrk Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Mustafa Kemal Atatrk - Research Paper Example Mustafa Kemal Atatà ¼rk  has shown the world that how effective leadership and dedicated services can make revolutionary changes in the life of people. The life of Atatà ¼rk is a lesson for the modern political leaders who are struggling to contribute something to their nations because of widespread corruption, partialities, biases, discriminations and prejudices.  Ataturk was born in Salonica in 1880 into a family which was Muslim, Turkish speaking and precariously middle class†(Mango, p. 25). Salonica is not part of Turkey at present; it is the part of Greece now. Even though, Ataturk had many brothers and sisters, only one of Atatà ¼rks siblings, a sister named Makbule survived childhood. Mustafa Kemal was the childhood name of Ataturk. Even though the origin of Ataturk is still controversial, it is widely accepted that his father was an Albanian whereas his mother was a Macedonian. Ali Raza, a civil servant, was the father of Ataturk who died at the age of 46 because of his crazy life styles (Mango, p. 30). The sudden and unexpected death of Ali Raza brought the entire responsibility of looking after the family, on the shoulders of his mother. His mother was a strong believer in God and religion and she encouraged Mustafa to attend childhood education at a religious school. Even though Atatruk was not much interested in religious education, he spent a brief period of his childhood in this religious school. However, he joined another secular school later because of the instructions of his father. His parents were interested in making Ataturk a business man and forced him to learn more about the trade activities. But his interests were different and unknown to even his parents. Atatà ¼rk continued in the President ship for 15 years until his death in 1938. He did everything possible to make Turkey capable of standing in its own legs with the help of comprehensive reformation processes in the political, social, legal, economic, and cultural spheres. Emerging nations now admire and imitate him as an idol. The visions of Atatà ¼rk were highly integrated and he believed in secular credentials and humanity. Renowned world lead ers like Churchill, Roosevelt, Nehru Nasser, Kennedy etc paid immense tribute to Atatà ¼rk for his contributions to the world. He never treated neighbouring countries as friends rather than enemies which helped Turkey to get more cooperation from the neighbouring countries for its economic growth.

Lifting the Veil of Incorporation Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Lifting the Veil of Incorporation - Case Study Example The doctrine of separate personality of a corporation engendered by the sheer act of incorporation is a well entrenched principle in English law. The doctrine simply states that once a company is formally incorporated in accordance with law, it starts to possess a personality of its own, one distinct from its members and stockholders. This distinct personality, by fiction of law, protects a corporation from the consequences of the individual acts of its members and stockholders. The principle had its beginnings in the Roman law and was officially adopted by English law in the early case of Salmon v The Hamborough Co (1671) 1 Ch Cas 2041. Unfortunately, this principle had been, time and again, employed as a vehicle to evade individual liabilities and responsibilities that the courts were compelled to 'lift the veil,' so to speak, that separates corporations from their stockholders. Recent developments in the corporate world, however, had made it difficult to anticipate when judicial i nterference will be exercised to lift or pierce the veil of incorporation as courts have exhibited equivocations in handling 'lifting-the-veil" cases in the past. The case of Adams, however, seemed to have narrowed down the principles when judicial interference may be exercised in such cases.In the early days before the advent of complex corporate structures, there was not much question about the application of the corporate separate personality or the "lifting of the" veil cases. ... The economy soon turned bad which affected Salomon Ltd's business, forcing it to seek loans from outside creditors among which was a Mr. Broderip. The company, however, failed to revive itself and paying the loans became difficult. Broderip sued to obtain payment for his secured loan and the company went into liquidation. 2 The liquidator, subsequently handling the company's winding up, argued that the corporation was a fraud and that therefore Salomon's debentures should be made to apply as payments to the company's creditors. The decision was debunked by the House of Lords which sustained the separate nature of the company's personality from that of Mr. Salomon. The HL held that, on its face, the incorporation was valid and in accordance with the formalities of law and therefore the court is precluded from reading meaning or inserting their own version of the law into its incorporation. There was nothing unlawful about Salomon holding ownership of more than half of the company's shares or of the fact that the subscribers or incorporators were all members of his family to which he wielded great influence upon. 3 Judicial Interference Although the Salomon principle had since been held the classic view, court decisions have swung from one side to another that it became difficult to anticipate whether they would adhere to the Salomon principle or not in every case. The basic presumption is that the court will lift the veil of incorporation in instances when "equity demands that justice be dispensed." Yet, court decisions have shown that there was no clear-cut rule as to what constitutes injustice that would merit court intervention and disregarding the principle held in the Salomon case. 4 This equivocation is illustrated in the

Critical Debates in Planning Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Critical Debates in Planning - Article Example 361). This a precise resolution to the ideology of devolution, and by so doing, the Scottish government shall be working to perfect their administrative goals in the field of devolution. Clifford and Morphet 2014: Devolution is different from the federation since devolved leadership of the sub-national authorities may be ultimate or temporarily reside in the central federation of a state. Therefore, a certain state may remain â€Å"de jure unitary† due to devolution. It is true that the past predictions on UK devolution, which leads to widespread policy in planning remains not materialized. The fact that there are similar themes handled in planning reforms of all UK and Ireland territories suggests that devolution has resulted in the creation of new space for policy mobility and experimentation. This is because political parties formed in each devolved nation has highly changed since their establishment, and new powers granted to them after implementation of devolution Acts (Clifford and Morphet 2014, p. 1). Arguably, the dynamic changes are contributing factors to the modern day democracies. There are related themes in planning reforms of all territories of Scotland and UK, and the form in which the particular concepts about a new approach can be found in a particular territory and appearance in another territory afterwards. The adaption towards consumption of renewable energy, for example solar and wind started in UK and was later on adapted by Scotland. This suggests that devolution in these nations has come up with a new space of policy mobility and experimentation (Tomaney and Colomb 2013, p. 8). The transfer has a higher probability to occur when there are proximate lessons (transferred from ideologically, geographically, or culturally proximate jurisdiction). This can definitely be witnessed with the devolved UK

The romaticicm in Framkistein Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The romaticicm in Framkistein - Essay Example Significantly, a profound exploration of the overriding themes, the plot, the characters, etc of Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus confirms that many of the main ideas behind the literary movement of Romanticism can be seen in the novel. Thus, the themes such as the significance of nature, childhood, beautiful vs. sublime, revolt, etc reveal the basic Romantic ideals of the period. As Anneli Elsa?er purports, â€Å"In Frankenstein Mary Shelley contrasts beauty and serenity of nature to the destroying powers that can be released when meddling with scientific progress. Her themes fit well into the ideas of the Romantic poets; she understands the state of childhood and also focuses on nature as counterpart to the progress and destruction of Industrialism and progress.† (Elsa?er, 2) Although the dark motifs of Frankenstein may not seem to conform to the brighter tones and subjects of the poems of the romantic poets such as Percy Bysshe Shelley, William Wordsworth, and Samuel Tay lor Coleridge, Mary Shelley was deeply influenced by the romantics. Therefore, this paper makes a comprehensive analysis of Shelley’s Frankenstein, novel by highlighting the Romantic elements in the work, in order to establish that this novel is a prime example of a Romantic novel. In a comprehensive appraisal of the major themes of Shelley’s Frankenstein, it becomes evident that the focal point of the novel is nature, which is a favorite theme of every Romantic poet. Whereas nature offers comfort and assistance to characters such as Walton and Victor in the novel, the theme of nature is closely connected to the underlying message of the novel: one should not attempt to conquer nature, but should try to embrace and harmonize with it. In fact, the novelist presents nature as a source of solace to almost all the characters in the novel, most markedly to Victor and his monster. Thus, the novelist presents the monster as a lover of nature, and he has various connections to Romanticism. However, the monster is mocked by the nature when he is transformed into an anti-romantic, and it is evident from this character’s own words: â€Å"Nature decayed around me, and the sun became heatless; rain and snow poured around me; mighty rivers were frozen; the surface of the earth was hard and chill and bare, and I found no shelter. Oh, earth! how often did I imprecate currents on the cause of my being! The mildness of my nature had fled, and all within me turned to gall and bitterness.† (Shelley, 110) Significantly, every Romantic poet focused on the soothing spirit of nature in their poems and Shelley’s Frankenstein reveals the soothing spirit of the nature through the characters such as Walton, Victor and his monster. Victor Franklin is a character who has experienced the soothing influence of the natural beauty tremendously in the novel, and it is evident that nature has shown the power to lift his spits again, whenever he feels the dark m ood within himself. â€Å"When happy, inanimate nature had the power of bestowing on me the most delightful sensations. A serene sky and verdant fields filled me with ecstasy.† (Shelley, 55) It is important to recognize that Mary Shelley frequently uses images of nature all

Stereotype Logic and Programming Paper Assignment

Stereotype Logic and Programming Paper - Assignment Example The current paper critically discusses three stereotypes encountered in life and the effects they can have on others. The common stereotype about bullying is that the perpetrator is always a big, dumb and violent boy, while the victim is smaller and weaker. This notion is embedded in traditional views among schoolchildren that bullying is a rite of passage. From a social perspective, prejudice bullying is viewed as a social crisis deeply rooted in the wider social discourse with individuals justifying the use of negative behavior towards an out-group (Boyle, 2005). Traditionally, bullies were seen as having high self-esteem and those who did not do it were viewed as weak. The bullying stereotypes are largely based on the traditional perception that circumstances of imbalance of power must exist for bullying to occur. Other arguments include the perception that bullies struggle with academics and are socially detached. However, a critical analysis suggests that these arguments are mis taken. With the increased use of social networking sites, the nature of bullying has changed dramatically. Information and communication technology enables people to harm others using text messages via cell phones, emails or via social sites. Girls have become cyber-bullies and the traditional view that the perpetrator is stronger and bigger is becoming more obscure. Bullying is now not limited to schools or to people we know. Any one with a harmful intent can bully. The bully must not have any physical advantage in terms of body size or any other form of leverage. A common gender stereotype is that women are not good in competitive sports. Gender stereotypes are biased generalizations about the roles of individuals based on gender attributes. A predominant view about women is that they are generally poor in competitive sports. The main argument for this stereotype is based on traditional perceptions and beliefs about gender roles and sexuality. Other arguments are based on the fact that different performance measures and fitness levels are administered for female athletes. On the contrary, women are as good as men in competitive sports. While women and girls comprise a large part of the population, popular media do not cover women sports as equally as they cover men’s sports (Center for Gender Equality, 2006). Gender stereotyping is common in televised sports, hence, cementing the notion that women are sex objects and humorous fans, but not athletes. The Center for Gender Equality (2006) asserts that gender stereotypes and socialization contribute to the traditional gender roles of women and men, with the media playing a critical role in perpetuating this perception. One of the common stereotypes about old people and aging is that they are lonely and conservative homebodies, who live with relatives. This stereotype is perpetuated via the traditional patterns of behavior associated with Christianity, a predominant religion in our area. The arguments are based on the perception that terminally old people are heavily incapacitated by diseases and depend on other before death. Such generalizations affect the behavior and experiences of old people. People can be persuaded to believe they are elderly, even when they are still healthy and capable of taking care of themselves. More importantly, stereotypes about aging are constructed many years before individuals actually become old. On the contrary, there is a strong association between health and wellbeing. A critical analysis suggests the ‘lonely’ stereotype emanates from the fact that many old people live in houses with relatives. However, old people have a diverse social networking established throughout the years. This

Frederic Chopin And Polonaises Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Frederic Chopin And Polonaises - Essay Example The Polonaise first appeared in Poland around the sixteenth century as a court dance that is sort of a procession where all the company passes in a stream and then defiles in pairs with movements. He left eighteen works in the genre with sixteen piano Polonaises, one for piano and cello and one for piano and orchestra. Their style changed over time evolving from conventional salon miniatures to some expansive dance poems. Chopin started a new chapter in the history of the genre with the Polonaises, Op. 26. Henceforth, he abandoned conventional stylizations. Each of the seven works has its own distinctive shape, pianistic expression, and style. The features of an authentic polonaise are 3/4 time, typical rhythmic formulas, a moderate tempo and a distinguished character (Ted, 22). He completed 2 Polonaises in 1835, Op. 26, in C sharp minor and Polonaise in E flat minor, marked by strong dramatic elements. In 1838-1839 he composed 2 Polonaises, Op. 40in A major and C minor. The A major has features of the heroic polonaise while the C minor is elegiac and tragic in expression. The other three polonaises are grand dance poems which are removed from earlier conventions of the genre and form. In1841 he composed Polonaise in F sharp minor, Op. 44. It is close in its epic-dramatic gesture as to the idea of Romantic fantasy as well as it is unusual in the appearance of a mazurka in its middle section which is a contrasting lyrical passage. In 1842-1843 he composed Polonaise in A flat major, Op. 53.

Average education on workers and opening business time in Tel aviv Essay

Average education on workers and opening business time in Tel aviv - Essay Example Investors should also register their companies with tax authority where all the necessary details of the company should be provided by filling form number 4436. A corporate tax should be paid to the Israel tax authority. Moreover, investors should also be aware of the social security contribution for their employees. The law requires employers to withhold some part of their employee’s income and submit it to the National Insurance Institute for purpose of providing employees with a medical cover. Finally, investors should be aware of the two types of incentives provided by the Israel government to encourage investors namely; declining corporate tax and investment incentives (Ministry of Economy State In Israel, pp.1-3) The average education on workers is 83 percent among men and women between the age of 25 and 64 years who have attained an equivalent of high school degree. Research indicates that having a good education is an important factor of getting a good job in Israel. Research further indicates that the quality of education score stood at an average of four hundred and ninety seven whereby average boys perform less than girls by eleven points (Publishing and OECD,

Manufacturing Industry Protection and Liberalisation Essay Example for Free

Manufacturing Industry Protection and Liberalisation Essay For a long period in history, the Australian manufacturing sector has enjoyed protection with the government aiming at establishing a stable manufacturing sector to ensure self-sufficiency as well as provide job variety to its citizens. Successive governments over the past decades have introduced several structural changes. Australia now has a regime which is said to have the lowest protection for manufacturing industries. The argument is that protection is only given for a limited amount of time to allow the industry to establish itself. It is not only the manufacturing industry that has undergone reforms but the whole economy as a whole. Liberalisation of trade is becoming a norm in Australia with the government withdrawing from participating in trade matters and issuing fewer restrictions to businesses. The idea is to give them the freedom to make decisions without the government influence and this according to economic analysts is bound to improve the economy as competition increases (Productivity Commission, 2009). Conservatives and the labor party are against deregulation citing that sooner or later it could have serious negative impacts on the citizens through commodity price increases and rise in unemployment levels. This paper seeks to analyze the reasons for the reduction in the Australian manufacturing sector protection as well as the consequences this reduction is likely to have on the economy. Further, a discussion on liberalisation of the economy is introduced showing the reasons as to why liberalisation is a good idea for Australia. Decline in protection in the Australian Manufacturing Sector There has been a significant decline in the trade protection for the Australian manufacturing sector over the years. The tariff provisions reduced from 25 percent in 1983 to 6 percent in 1997 (Chemlink, 2001). Import duties on foreign manufactured goods have also fallen significantly from as high as 60 percent to 5% in 1997 (Chemlink, 2001)). The government following the advice of the productivity commission now plans to abolish tariffs on all manufacturers. The arguments behind the reduction in protection include the ability of the Australian industries to compete in the world market (Wilson, 1998). When the foreign produced goods are allowed into the Australian market, the competition caused should be a wake up call for local industries to be innovative in order to counter this competition. According to Anderman (2001); Productivity Commission (2009), tariffs offer little incentives for competition are likely to cause industries to be less innovative due to reliance on the government for protection. Protection is being reduced because it has led in the decrease of innovation which is a direct result of lack of competition. Protection creates monopolies within the country hence the high costs of goods. This is one of the arguments of protectionism and it maintains that due to protection from competition, industries tend to take advantage of this to charge high prices on the goods (Anderman, 2001). By allowing foreign goods into the market, monopolies are abolished by the competitive mood that results. The consumers can therefore get the same goods at a more favourable price (Landek, 2003). The Australian government through the AusAID wanted to help Least Developed Countries (LDC) to develop their export industry. The strategy used by AusAID was to remove tariffs on goods from LDCs. While benefiting these countries, Australia can easily import goods from these countries and have little effect on the productivity of Australian manufacturing industry and employment (Leigh, 2002). Effects on the Australian Economy As a result of the reduction in protection of the manufacturing sector, the domestic industry is highly likely to go into a slump and consequently slow down economic development in Australia. According to Anderman (2001), state protection ensures that domestic industries are saved from competition brought by foreign manufactured goods so that they can effectively establish and develop themselves. Reduction in protection just goes on to encourage the entry of foreign goods into the country. Since most of these goods are likely to have lower prices than Australian goods they will capture the market originally being served by Australian manufacturing sector pushing Australian industries out of business (Wilson, 1998). A situation where foreign goods are sold at a lower price than the price in the importing country is known as dumping which is quite harmful to the local goods market (Anderman, 2001). As the level of competition from foreign goods increases, high levels of unemployment are likely to be witnessed. This results from the fact that foreign goods flood the market and if they are cheaper than local goods they are likely to attract more customers (Anderman, 2001). The consequence of this will be that the Australian goods will have little of no market such that the industry owners will have no option but to close down. In return, workers will lose their jobs leading to economic suffering and high income inequality (Wilson, 1998). Current statistics as at the end of 2008 indicate that unemployment is at 5. 2 percent. According to Sterle (2009), the manufacturing sector provided more than one million jobs in 1996 but this had so far reduced by 300,000 at the end of 2008. Kelmax for example has already closed its Adelaide operations leading to a loss of 80 jobs. Other examples of companies which have laid down workers include Westpac, Manildra Group and Silcraft. Innovation in the country will be discouraged as cheaper goods enter the Australian market. Innovation is encouraged by the presence of a prospective market (Landek, 2003). However, if the market is not assured then investors may not be willing to take the risk. Stiff competition from foreign goods also reduces industry productivity such that profits are reduced. Since innovation requires large amounts of finances, the local industries cannot afford to innovate. The government will lose out on income with reduced protectionism. This stems from the keep money at home argument which maintains that when countries import, they get the benefits of the goods while the foreign country goes with the money (Anderman, 2001). This means that the importing country is benefiting the other by increasing its earnings on foreign exchange. By protecting its domestic industries, a country would have both the goods as well as the money. Likelihood of trade imbalance is increased when protection of domestic industries is abolished. An unfavourable balance of trade is dangerous to a country and it occurs when a country starts importing more than it is exporting (Anderman, 2001). Reduction in exports would come as a result of lack of incentive to innovate and closure of domestic firms. Liberalisation  One of the latest Australian government reforms is the liberalization of the Australian economy. Government reforms to liberalisation have been a topic of controversy as economists insist that free trade is in essence the key to economic welfare for Australia. Conservatives and the labor party are not for liberalisation. Labor party maintains that it will lead to harmful negative results in future (Sterle, 2009). According to them, liberalisation will give firms too much freedom which they may use to exploit customers, engage in unethical business practices and cause the decline in employment levels. I personally do not agree with these views and in this regard I totally support the government in the liberalisation reforms because I believe that it is going to work in favour of the Australian economy. Deregulation ensures steadfast commitment to competition which is a fuelling factor for development (Coonan, 2007). Competition is useful in two major ways: promotion of innovation and reduction in prices of goods. Trade liberalisation fosters competition leading to better quality goods and more affordable prices (Leigh, 2002). Competition promotes innovation so that as firms try to outdo each other they come up with better products to win customers. The direct results of innovation are better quality goods, development in technology and more competition so that development is a continuous process (Leigh, 2002). Free trade enhances competition among firms producing similar products and as we know it, competition has a significant influence on the reduction in prices as companies try to secure more customers and a gain large market share (Leign, 2002). We can therefore collectively say that competition leads to better quality goods for customers and variety at affordable prices. Free trade or liberalisation will create jobs for Australian citizens (Coonan, 2007). Arguments have been put forward by the conservatives that liberalisation it is likely to lead to a rise in unemployment levels. However, the gains obtained in free trade override the losses (Smith, 2007; Productivity Commission, 2009). There could be some sense in that firms in their efforts to increase their profits may lay down some workers (Smith, 2007). The number of new firms and expansion of existing firms however is likely to take on board more workers than those who have been left jobless (Landek, 2003). Increase in innovation and profits will definitely lead to the expansion of the existing industries which are going to need workers. This way, employment is enhanced as opposed to where government regulations limit the business operations. As an illustration of the advantages that liberalisation can bring, I take a case of the telecommunications industry in Australia. The liberalisation in the telecommunications industry has earned Australia an extra $15. 2 billion since 1997 following a decision by the Howard government to liberalise the sector (Coonan, 2007). In a report issued by the Communications, Information Technology and the Arts minister Hon Helen Coonan in November 2006, more than 17,550 jobs were created in the year 2005. Apart from these, use in Information Technology has risen with an average of 5. 9 million having subscribed for internet services and 80 percent of Australians have mobile phones. This should indeed serve as an illustration to the conservatives that liberalisation has positive economic effects and this is the way to go for Australia. Conclusion Tariffs and trade restrictions protect domestic industries from competition caused by free import of foreign goods. This ensures that new industries can establish themselves without having to bear competition pressures. With globalisation however, countries use of tariffs are going down and the reasons for this is to encourage competition so that the local industries can become more innovative and consumers can obtain quality goods at reasonable prices. This together with trade liberalisation have embraced the spirit of free trade that ensures minimal government intervention in trade activities. Just like in reduction in protectionism, deregulation or liberalisation ensures that consumers can get better goods due to increased innovation and quality goods as a result of increased competition among firms. In conclusion, trade liberalisation is an effective instrument in increasing the productivity of a countrys economy.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Merges and Acquisitions

Advantages and Disadvantages of Merges and Acquisitions Acquisitions and Mergers sounds like it is a never ending story, the markets are global and the competition is already impossible. Lots of research have already found that nearly 50 percent of mergers and acquisitions are not effective economically ; so what is the main reason that MAs are still on progress. The possibility of being unsuccessful is increasing. The reason is that these companies are basically large and they are based on complex systems, after merger process, if the activity still shows low performance, the lost might be more than expected. Also this negative situation brings another research process which costs extra to the business while requirement to be successful is getting less for the firms. The process which should insist more details and have a better illustrative level of the business. The aim of my proposal is to examine advantages, disadvantages and motives of mergers and acquisitions. To find out if they show difference through the Merger process and there is any change along last decennium. To find solutions to these problems sometimes quantitive financial analyses will be used and sometimes management performance data. The data will be gained from different industrial organisations. My work is to evaluate the previous researches and theories to mention advantages and disadvantages of this process. INTRODUCTION This dissertation examines the firms mergers and take-over situations to make informative illustrations about company amalgamations. Some chances may be necessary for companies in order to improve their adaptability towards changing and developing markets all over the world. These changes take some forms such as mergers of the companies to increase their power or take – over of a firm by another one. Recent days, there is a tough competition between firms which produce exactly identical or similar products. The companies which keep doing business in the market by keeping their existing size stay behind some firms that merge their powers with others. In addition to these companies that have merger, the co-operations could be made with firms which provide production and logistic needs without any problems ; therefore, all work forces could be used effectively in appropriate profession. Furthermore, the companies which believe in adversity of the development by having a single product or service might try to reduce risk level by having a merger with a corporation which produces different product or service. Th is may cause the company mergers. The possibly important point in the merger of a company is the tax benefits . The company which makes a merger decisions should make some analyses for the purpose of inspecting the propriety of the decision. The reasons of the merger should be investigated very well and the results ‘ benefits should be presented beforehand. I will mention these points in my dissertation First of my dissertation will explain the meaning of the company mergers and the merger types and the reasons will be defined. In the process of the merger, the responsibilities of the companies will be presented and costing process will be explained. Secondly, historical development of the company mergers will be defined and the main company mergers in Turkey will be specified. Nevertheless, two examples of merger process will be explained with advantages and disadvantages respectively. LITERATURE REVIEW There are several motives that may be inside a MAs process. The common one is clear that the buyer company sees the MAs as a profit returnable business. Generally, researchers who have worked about MAs shows it as a different type of investment. Companies will work on acquisitions when they are the most profitable means of improving the business, gaining new techniques, producing different products or working on new countries, or creating new ideas and innovations. So, lots of the same reasons that influence an investment decisions would also influence merger activity ( Weston, Chung Hoag, Mergers, Restructuring Corporate Control 1990). According to Pitts (1977); internal growth and growth through acquisitions were equally attractive alternatives. Moreover Porter (1987) examined 33 larger firms and found that these firms had diversified their operations more through acquisitive growth than through alternative means. However, Porter (1987) discovered that acquisitions often resulted in unsatisfactory performance that in turn led to a large number of post-acquisition divestitures. Roll suggested that gains achieved through acquisitions or takeovers may have been overestimated if they exist at all (1986:198). Although there is some evidence to contrary, the most neutral and sometimes negative results achieved by the acquiring firm indicate that mergers and acquisitions involve trade-offs. For example, Fowler and Schmidt (1989) found that performance declined after a tender offer acquisition (using both accounting and stock market measures ) However, this general decline could be improved by previous acquisition experie nce and affected by percentage of ownership and firm age. Hopkins (1987) found that acquisitions often led to a decline market position. Mueller (1985) reported that companies acquired in conglomerate and horizontal acquisitions experienced substantial losses in market share. Another trade off is demonstrated by Pitts (1977) results showing that firms following an acquisitive strategy invested less in RD than did internal growth firms. Harding Rovit (2004) Mastering The Merger, briefly defined the four critical decisions that make merger successful or simple break the deal. This book is generally talks about the complicated, fast moving and sometimes high rewarded side of corporate deal making. By the help of this book I will have opportunity to learn how to deal in ways that will be useful for my dissertation. Basically, Mastering the Merger is insist of numerous ideas that a manager faces on the top of the dealing process. Moreover, by focusing on the four decisions that is important most, it will help me to clear and simplify complex ideas about merger process. However this book is not a technical book where I can find techniques or it will not give one by one control list. According to Harding and Rovit, most senior executives think that they are pretty good decision makers because of having a strong track record. But when it is time to make decisions sometimes standards changes. The point what I will use from this book is to learn practical ways to manage a deal. Grundy Slack (2005) gives information about mergers and acquisitions clearly. Generally the book talks about the adding value of mergers and acquisitions to companies. In contrast by arguing about adding and destroying value of mergers and acquisitions, it gives chance to me to inspect both sides of the problem. Moreover it includes about historical overview, case studies, examples from EU and ASIA and alternative perspectives of mergers and acquisition activity that I will mention in my dissertation. Also this book is more technical and consist of theories more than Mastering the Merger. By reading this book I am planning to define success of MAs and measure the impact of acquisitions on shareholders returns with examples from history. Watson Head (2007) suggested that the fundamental problem that faces financial managers is how to secure the greatest possible return in exchange for accepting the smallest amount of risk. Obviously this book will help me to write about merger activity more about accounting side. Also it mentions the trends about take over activities and gives real life examples from different companies. It also briefly mentioned about divestment point that the other books didnt. Furthermore it clearly shows the financing of acquisitions. Also there is one more point, which I couldnt find in any other reference books, about empirical research on acquisitions. Lumby Jones (2007) describes the merger process and technical terms such as synergy, revenue strategy, cost synergy, tax synergy, financial synergy, valuing synergy e.g. This book takes merger process and defines it simply by explaining technical terms to the reader. Furthermore it shows the potential complications that surround an acquisition decision. Previously, financing acquisition took place in Watson Head (2007) and also this book gives wide information about this process. Also take over defence is the other point what I will use information from this book. According to Lumby and Jones, takeover defence works if a company is subject to takeover bid that is unwelcome to the management team. Therefore they defined early warning system, city code and three stage defence strategy. Arnold (2005) examines the reasons for mergers ranging from the gaining of economies of scale to managerial empire building. It tries to find answer to this question if shareholders of acquiring firms gain from mergers or not. According to him less than one half of corporate mergers do the shareholders of acquiring firm benefit. Moreover it examines the merger decision process clearly and giving the definitions of merger, acquisition and takeover by mentioning the differences between them. He also mentions UK merger activity statics from 1970 to 2002. As the other books show, this books mentions what drives firm to merger widely. On the other hand he mentions the tactics that a company have take before and after the merger. In other words he gives clues to make merger process as successful as it can be. Copeland, Weston Shastri (2005) clearly defines the merger activity with theories and alternative growth strategies. Furthermore, it carries out a systematic research about mergers from past till today and study on the current merger models. Also it lists merger activity data from different countries together with MAs adjustment process. It also briefly mentions the ways to be more successful on MAs process. Brigham Ehrhardt (2007) mentions the merger process as the other book does. However, it point out the track record for acquiring firms in large deals has not always been good. In other word Brigham Ehrhardt mentions the negative ways of merger process with unsuccessful examples from different companies and merger mistakes. Moreover it explains the process with mini case studies . METHODOLOGY This dissertation will be semi qualitative and semi quantitative. There are varieties of data that I need to collect either qualitative and quantitative. The reason is that I will examine the managers behaviours and decisions at the same time I want to clear the MAs process as theory covers. Also I would like to show statics and use real business examples about management faults. Generally, I am planning to use case studies to explain the process widely with examples and simplify the theory. First of all I want to examine the automotive industry and I will use a case study to show the process from this industry. I will try to define the process with statics analyses and I will examine the results of this merger process. Also I will use online secondary data from websites of these companies and various related websites that will help me to make richer my dissertation. Moreover, I am planning to collect online secondary data from consultant companies about MAs and chosen company. I will also use the accounts of the companies which I will examine as case studies in my dissertation. They will be useful for me to make decisions about the previous and present economical performance. At the same time it will be useful and easier to explain the strategic decisions of the company. Also I will have chance to compare the success of MAs process by looking at the accounts of the companies. Moreover, I am planning to use the journals and economy news to add complementary ideas to my dissertation as secondary data. So by the help of authors and writers point of views, I will hold the control of my research easily. Basically, there are some limitations on MAs process to collect data about companies. it will be useful to use up to date information. So the data ,which I will be collected, will not be affected by the changes . Furthermore, I will request information from the companies which I will use in my dissertation as case studies. If it will be possible to gain information, I will have valuable information for my project and at the same time it will be primary data . I will try to use sources as many as I can to make my research richer to explain the MAs process effectively and answer the questions that I asked in the beginning of my proposal. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY Mergers and acquisitions are becoming more popular year by year .But this process is very hard and the world is getting one economically. This situation brings more research prerequisite at the same time being successful is becoming harder for companies. Most of the researchers think that mergers and acquisitions coming to its end but in my point of view it is opposite. In contrast there is an issue about mergers as they cannot be successful anymore. Lots of researches have found that 50 percent half of mergers are not successful economically. Black and Carnes (2001) briefly defined that for 5 years period the profit were negative for MAs through 1985-95. Moreover Thomas Hogarty mentioned mergers as risk takers in 1970. So there must be a reason about why MA s are still being done. According to Jay B. Barney; if cost of MAs process is higher than the returns gained from by buying the company then it is not possible to expect a high economic performance. Assumption to this sentence, if there was a market to trade companies which guarantees to work rivalry then no one expects extraordinary profits. Basically, capital is the only driver behind MAs. But this process is not so simple although managers make decisions rationally, there are lots of facts that affects making decisions. There is an experiment which was made to a Turkish company that used outsource for its back office on integration. The results satisfied the management and showed that they reached an optimum growth rate by outsourcing .Cost saving is a way of increasing the financial performance after merger process. Managers of a company have to exploit situations such as overvaluation and opposite when firms over value or manager make syste matic faults then they have to turn back and correct these mistakes. Moreover, they are optimistic about outcomes which they fell like it is under their management. All these above shows the importance of corporate governance and managers must behave carefully not harm the company. If there will be a failure, it damages the company either the manager. I will use this theory to undertake merger process in my dissertation. The data of MAs performance process will be taken from dissimilar industrial companies. I will examine different companies from different parts of the world so we can say that this research will be general and global. Also different merger and acquisitions show differ from each other. Moreover, it affects the motives for MAs. To conclude my sentences above I will use the behavioural power of people and theories to find out peoples reactions and movements. Theoretically this research will fill the lack of misunderstanding of the merger process. Past acquisition and merger performance will analysed between companies with motives .

Gloria Naylors Mama Day Essay -- Gloria Naylor Mama Day

Gloria Naylor's Mama Day In 1988 Gloria Naylor wrote the novel Mama Day in hopes to show the world that one can either accept the hand they are dealt and make it come out to the advantage of themselves and others, or one can hide from their pain and live a life scared of what may come in the future. Mama Day is set on an island off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia that is inhabited by the descendants of a slave population. The main characters in the novel; Ophelia, Abigail and Miranda, also called Mama Day, all experienced a lot of pain in their lives; it is how they chose to deal with their experiences that sets them apart from each other. Abigail Day is an older member of the Willow Springs' community, sister to Miranda, and grandmother to Cocoa. Instead of embracing the pain Abigail experienced through out her life and turning it into something positive for herself and others, she tried to change the past, and that only left her with more pain. Abigail was the middle child of three sisters. When Peace her younger sister fell in a well, their father and mother became distant with each other and in the end her mother threw herself off a cliff because she could not deal with the pain. When talking about her mother Miranda says, â€Å"Mother hardly cooked at all. And later she didn’t eat much. Later she didn’t do nothing but sit in that rocker†¦ Too much sorrow†¦much too much. And I was too young to give [her] peace. Even Abigail tried and failed†(243). When Abigail was younger her father carved wood and â€Å"Abigail, [tried] to form with flesh what her daddy couldn’t form from wood†(262). Her whole childhood was spent trying to make up for her sister’s death. After her mother’s death, Abigail still tried to giv... ...nted it to. Mama Day tells Bernice, â€Å"Folks say I can do things that most can’t do. Whether that’s true or not, I am willing to help you†(87). Mama Day devised a plan to help Bernice keep her body busy and her mind off of getting pregnant. All the people of Willow Springs admired the weight that Bernice put on and the strength she was developing. When these tactics did not work Mama Day promised to go to the Other Place and help Bernice in a way that Bernice would have to keep a secret forever. Mama Day was the wisest of the three women. She realized that there had been a lot of pain in her life and her family’s history, but she took the pain and turned it into something positive for herself and those around her. She didn’t try to change it like Abigail or ignore it like Cocoa. She embraced it, and helped to change the lives of many people because of it.

Pollution Essay: Don’t Blame Me for Global Warming -- Environment, Clim

More than 17,000 scientists have signed a petition saying human activities do not threaten to disrupt the climate. This overwhelming amount of people has been told to be wrong by one body of people. This body is our government, for many years now they have spoke of the horrendous situations stemming from global warming. This makes no sense; with the facts and information that we have received over the years they still support this preposterous idea. Humans do nothing to contribute to global warming; the irregular climate events are just natural occurrences. These occurrences are no stranger to our history either. (â€Å"Global Warm Up†)(â€Å"An Inconvenient Truth†) The most recent case of significant warming was between the years 1850 and 1940. Most scientists say this rise in warmth was not caused by greenhouse gasses. If this was not caused by greenhouse gasses, it proves that there are times of irregular warming of the world. There have been other occurrences of irregular warmth. The biggest and most influential occurrence is called the MWP. (â€Å"The Real 'Inconvenient Truth'†) (â€Å"Medieval Warm Period†) The MWP, or Medieval Warm Period, occurred between AD 950 and AD 1250. It was a period of warmth, exceeding the temperatures of the late 20th century. People for global warming have said that human activities contribute to causing global warming. Using the MWP as proof, we know that we humans were not contributing to greenhouse gasses. Supporters of global warming say that we contribute to greenhouse gasses which in turn affect the temperature. If this is true, why would the temperature rise 1000 years ago if we didn’t even create greenhouse gasses? It’s because what is happening right now, is just a natural event. To counteract this sta... ...eenhouse effect. I know that people have their opinions, some educated and some not, my opinion is that we do not cause the greenhouse effect which in turn means we don’t cause global warming. Works Cited Barry Wigmore â€Å"Global warming? It’s natural say experts† DailyMail. 13 September 2007. Web. 22, 2010. Gore, Albert. An Inconvenient Truth: the Crisis of Global Warming. New York: Viking, 2007. Print. Gore, Albert. Our Choice: a Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis. Emmaus, PA: Rodale, 2009. Print. Manav, Tanneeru â€Å"Global warming: A natural cycle or human result?† CNN. 11 June, 2007. Web. 22 Nov, 2010. Morgan, Sally. Global Warming. Chicago, IL: Heinemann Library, 2003. Print. â€Å"Global Warm Up† A Round Table. N.d.Web. 22 Nov, 2010. â€Å"The Real 'Inconvenient Truth'† Junk Science. N.d. Web. 22 Nov, 2010. â€Å"Medieval Warm Period† Wikipedia. N.d. Web. 22 Nov, 2010.

An American Jew :: essays papers

An American Jew In this large city of ours situated on big spinning ball, inside a vast galaxy, and even larger universe. We sometimes tend to leap out into the unkown embracing and fearing life on other planets, when we can not embrace life or learn not to fear life on our own planet. We as a society have formed our own barriers when those placed upon us have been removed. We rarely see mixed neighborhoods outside of large cities. Even in our own borough we can see this; for example Borough Park is mostly Religious Jews, the area surrounding Brooklyn College is mostly black, and Gerritsen Beach is mostly Italian. When someone who doesn't belong in a community invades that community, that community then will fear and reject the invaders. The community is like the indiginous people of an island, when the island recieves its first visiter from the outside, the indiginous people fear the visiter and fear the change they may bring. My family was the first Russian family to move to an all Italian neighborhood, I was told to go back to where i cam from "damn rooskies", the children used to yell and taunt my sisters and myself. They would scream go back to Russia eventhough we had never been there. But soon I made freinds with a local girl who accepted me for me, not for being Russian, but for being Diana. My parent's didn't want me to get involved with the wrong kids and they also feared my friendship with people of different backgrounds. But our families began to talk and then we went over to each others houses for dinner and pretty soon, we were having block parties and backyard BBQ's. We weren;t Russian anymore, and they weren't Italian we had met somewhere in the middle. My mom now makes an amazing lasagna and the Laura's mom (the girl I befriended) makes a great Chicken Kiev. We didn't belong to any one class, our neighborhood was no longer Italian and it didn't become Russian it just was. It was just a neighborhood, no classification, just a middle class neighborhood, it was gray. Gray is that color inbetween black and white, its not black, and its not white, its just in the middle. If you think about there are a lot of colors like that; take pink for example its a mix between red and white, its not red and its not ehite, its just in the middle its just pink.

Hawthorne Effect

History and definition of Hawthorne EffectThe Hawthorne Effect is a psychological phenomenon that refers to the effect on a person’s or group behavior when they know they are being observed (Last, 2002). The Hawthorne Effect is commonly beneficial, as the person or group tend to improve behaviors or increase productivity when under observation (Last, 2002). The Hawthorne Effect was first recorded at the General Electric manufacturing plant in Hawthorne, Illinois, where a set of studies was being conducted (Last, 2002).These studies were conducted during the 1920’s, seeking to answer if better lighting enhanced workers productivity (List & Levitt, 2011). As a result, they observed that regardless of the conditions, rest periods or work days the women working there worked harder and more efficiently while the research was conducted, concluding with the emergence of the concept that is now known as The Hawthorne Effect (List & Levitt 2011). Example of Hawthorne EffectWhy i s it important for researchers to know about this?Many types of research use human research subjects, and the Hawthorne Effect is unavoidable bias that the researcher must try to take into account when they analyze the results. Subjects are always liable to modify behavior when they are aware they are part of an experiment, and this is extremely difficult to quantify. The researcher needs to know about the effect; where it can be factored into the design. If a group is isolated from their work colleagues, for the purpose of research, the individual attention and the normal human instinct to feel â€Å"chosen†, will skew the results.Researchers  argue that the Hawthorne Effect does not exist or is, at best, the placebo effect under another name. Others postulate that it is the demand effect, where subjects subconsciously change their behavior to fit the expected results of an experiment.â€Å"http://explorable.com/hawthorne-effect†

Poetry Analysis- A Litany In The Time Of Plague Essay

Context Nashe is most famous as a pamphleteer. an odd career that now would see him working for some Chinese restaurant or another. In Elizabethan times a pamphleteer was a bit more prominent as pamphlets were one of the most effective ways to spread ideas or news across the country. Nashe’s pamphlets were apparently pretty controversial in theme and his poetry also caused a bit of a stir, see if you can work out why!: And make me happie, stealing by degrees. First bare hir legs, then creepe up to her knees †¦ â€Å"Unhappyie me,† quoth she, â€Å"and wilt not stand? Com, let me rubb and chafe it with my hand!† Do you really need to know this? No, but has it made you smile? No? Well, on with the relevant stuff then! So, we’ve established he was a naughty boy and in no way deserving of salvation, now let’s talk about the Black Death. It was a plague that swept around Europe for hundreds of years and is estimated to have killed 200 million people. At the time people were particularly put out by it because they had no idea what was causing it and there was seemingly no cure and people from all reaches of life were effected equally: Queen Elizabeth I was really scared of the plague and devised various quarantine measures to protect herself. You can imagine how an unexplained fatal disease killing everyone around you would make you a little terrified for your own life, feeling like the sword of Damocles is hanging over you head and making you seriously contemplate what happens next. Themes The big one here is obviously mortality, but it closely associated with salvations and therefore religious faith could be considered here too. Content Right, it’s six stanzas and it’ll take forever to do if I go through in too much detail so you’re going to have to be satisfied with an overview. Let’s start with the title. The word litany is now quite commonly used, but at the time was derived from and focused on a service in a church. We can take a litany to be a series of prayers or the whole service, which aims to convey a message to a congregation listening to the priest or preacher delivering it. The first stanza gives us an overview of what’s on Nashe’s mind; he’s a bit fixated on what he sees as the certainty of his approaching death. He mentions how much fun and joy there is in the world, but sees them as being overshadowed and made to seem inconsequential by the shadow of death (‘Death proves them [our joys] all but toys’) and our mortality. He tells us that ‘none from his darts can fly’ indicating the inevitability of death; we all know we’ll die, but he seems to be implying that none can escape from death from the plague as he says ‘I am sick, I must die’ as one inevitably leads to the other. The following four stanzas effectively say the same thing: no one is safe from the plague and nothing will protect you. He starts off by addressing the wealthy and assures them ‘Gold cannot buy your health’. He’s a little bit wrong here as wealth probably would ensure a bit of distance from the plague and the wealthy wouldn’t live in the crowded, filthy and rat infested confines of the cities, so would probably be less likely. However, this is besides the point, he’s telling them their money won’t keep them safe. Stanza 3 next addresses the beautiful and warns them that ‘wrinkles will devour’ them and their looks and that even beautiful Queens have died young. He uses a classical allusion in Helen (the face that launched a thousand ships†¦ because she was so pretty the Greeks went to rescue her from her Trojan captors) as well to convey the idea of beauties dying young and thus telling the young that even they are not safe from the plague. Strength and intelligence (‘wit’) are the next two subjects. Even the most powerful will eventually ‘feed’ for the worms, or rotting in the grave, again demonstrated with a classical allusion, this time to Hector (the Trojan hero). The intelligent are unable to argue their way out of their fate as ‘Hell’s executioner’, or the plague, has ‘no ears’ for them to appeal to. So basically he’s saying that everyone is screwed and there is nothing you can do to avoid the plague. That should give you an impression of people felt at the time; this plague was almost like a sign of judgement day as they didn’t know what caused it, it punished everyone equally and it a particularly unpleasant way to die. But hang on! There is one way we can be saved†¦ unfortunately it still requires us to die. Our only salvation is in heaven and Nashe is telling us to embrace our death, but make sure we have lived our lives in a way that will mean we can ‘mount†¦ unto the sky’ and head off to heaven. Lovely†¦ Hmm†¦ Language and techniques Hundreds of things to talk about, so don’t feel confined to the few examples I’ve chosen to zoom in on. First of all I’d analyse the language used to describe the plague. We are told that ‘none’ can escape its ‘darts’ making our death seem like a certainty; it travels ‘full swift by’ as if it is an unstoppable wind; and once we’re sick, we die confirming that once affected there is no hope. These associations suggest that humanity has no chance of survival against this mysterious and unexplained disease. Then we have the really disturbing imagery about how people die. There is certainly no glory in death as we might believe as ‘wrinkles devour’ beauty or consumed and distort it, while the strong are reduced to pathetic  weaknesses as ‘worms feed’ upon their flesh with them unable to fight back. These images both have a literal association with the plague as huge blisters often formed on victims making them quite repulsive, while victims were reduced to extremely frail conditions thanks to fever and sickness (also suggested by the fact the strong ‘stoop to the grave’, almost unable to stand). However, these images are meant to shock us and make us scared of the disease and for our mortality. I’d also mention how fatalistic the poet is. The plague did not effect everyone and yet we have an almost apocalyptic expression of the certainty of death that recurs throughout the poem again and again and again. Each stanza repeats the final two lines that link sickness absolutely with death and then beg for divine mercy, but we also get a unique element of the certainty of demise in each stanza: 1st – ‘None from his darts can fly’ – no one can escape from death/the plague. 2nd – ‘All things to end are made’ – everything dies! 3rd – ‘wrinkles will devour’ – no uncertainty about decay. 4th – ‘Swords may not fight with fate’ – you cannot fight fate, death is inevitable. 5th – the first two lines†¦ less convincing here – intelligence certain to be overcome by the bitterness of death. Then you’ve got that last stanza and the last line of each stanza. ‘Lord, have mercy on us!’ is a desperate plea to a higher power to make things better the next place they go, a plea for salvation and against being damned to hell. The whole of this stanza seems to indicate the importance of faith as we’re told ‘To welcome destiny’ presumably by being morally good to please the lord, and that earth is just ‘a player’s stage’ meaning that it is sort of a rehearsal or an audition for the real deal of life in either heaven ‘our heritage’ or hell. Structure Well, the first thing to say is that this is a litany. It is set out as a prayer and deliberately sounds like one of those religious fables telling us how to live our lives – ultimately with God and faith at the centre. We get the opening stanza setting the scene for the devastating impact of the  plague as if it is actually destroying the whole world, as if it is beckoning judgement day. The middle stanzas show us things that people rely on while on earth, but proves how useless these things are against death/the plague. Finally, we are given the message about how we can defeat this certain death†¦ by dying as good Christians and going to heaven. I’ve already mentioned it above, but you could also discuss why the last two lines repeat in each stanza. Yes, it makes it like a prayer, but also it emphasises the certainty of death and the poet cannot escape this preoccupation with the end being nigh! Tone Pretty sombre as at every turn this guy wants to remind us and himself that he is certain to die†¦ and in a pretty gruesome and debilitating way. However, there is also an element on preaching here as he is trying to tell us what we have to do – be good and die horrible, but live on in heaven.

Corporation Rules and Regulations Essay

The group had been liable for 70% of Australian asbestos consumption. However, in February 2007, ASIC had started to impose civil proceedings against James Hardie, the directors and the officers, as ASIC alleged that JHIL and both executive and non-executive had breached their statutory duty. This short research report had outlined the role of ASIC and various penalty that ASIC can impose under Corporation Act 2001. Besides that, we will also discuss the position that ASIC had held from 2004 until current date in relation to the directors of Hardie group. At last, I had provided a summary of the ASIC’s media release that had been established on 13 May 2011, and indentified the element that ASIC is hoping the High Court to uphold. The Role of ASIC: The Australian Security and Investment Commission (ASIC) is a commonwealth statutory corporation that set up by Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act, and it is a regulator which in charge of monitoring the Australia’s Corporation, products, markets and financial services (Lipton, Herzberg and Welsh 2012, p. 736). On the other hand, ASIC is also a commonwealth authority that is responsible for governing the Corporation Act. ASIC Act provided that ASIC owned such powers and function that endowed by the corporation legislation to ASIC. Thus, what exactly is the corporation legislation means? Under Section 5(1), they had interpreted the term ‘corporation legislation’ to mean the ASIC Act and the Corporation Act (Baxt, Finnane and Harris 2012). Besides that, ASIC also owned the power to initiate prosecution for criminal offences or apply for civil penalty orders if they believed that there’s a contravention of the law. ASIC is also able to ban a director from managing a company for a certain period if they contravened their general duties. For instance, in the case of ASIC v Stephen William Vizard [2005], the court held that as a director of Telstra, Mr. Vizard has contravened the Corporation Act: Section 183, the duty of director to use the information in an improper purpose, and gain advantage for himself, thus, the court order pecuniary penalties and a disqualification order against Mr. Vizard (Price Waterhouse Coopers 2012). As a result of that, ASIC actually played a significant role in relation to initiate prosecution against companies directors for misconduct in order to ensure corporation and those related parties are complied with the corporation legislation. Now, let us look at the duties of a corporation’s directors under Corporation Act and what penalty can ASIC can imposed if the directors do not comply with the Corporation Act. The duties of a company’s director: The term ‘director’ is a person who is appointed to manage control or govern the affairs of a corporation. Under Section 9 definitions, the term directors extend to a person who is not formally appointed as a director, but they act as a director or whose instruction or whishes are followed customarily (Baxt, Finnane and Harris 2012). In chapter 2D. 1 of the Corporation Act, from Section 180 until Section 184, it dedicated that the principle duties of a director. They can be listed as followed: †¢Section 180 stated that a director or other officer of a corporation must exercise their power and discharge the duties in a manner with care and diligence (Mclnnes Wilson Lawyers 2011). Section 181 declared that, a director should exercise their power and discharge their duties in good faith where it’s in the best interest of the corporation and for a proper purpose (Mclnnes Wilson Lawyers 2011). †¢Section 182 stated that, a director must not improperly use their position to obtain an advantage for themselves or other or cause lesion to the company. (Armstrong Lawyers 2007). Having understood the general duties of a company’s director, we can now look at the penalties that ASIC could impose if the directors had breach their duty or do not comply with the Corporation Act 2001. The penalties: As we mentioned before, the Australian Securities and Investment (ASIC) is a national body that’s responsible to govern the corporation legislation and securities regulation in Australia. ASIC obtained the power to investigate potential contravention of the corporation law and significant penalties can be imposed on the directors who had failed to perform their duties. The section of the Corporation Act attracting civil penalties under Section 1317J (1), ASIC can apply to the court for a: †¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœDeclaration of contravention’ †¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœPecuniary penalties ‘ †¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœCompensation order’ (Baxt, Finnane and Harris 2012) 1)Pecuniary penalty order: The court may order a pecuniary penalty of up to $200,000 to a director who breaches his duty under Corporation Act. Once the declaration of a contravention by the person had been made (Section 1317E), and the contravention is a corporation penalty (Price Waterhouse Coopers 2012). (2)Compensation order: Under Section 1317H, the court may order a person to compensate the company where loss is suffered because the person had contravened a corporation civil penalty provision (Price Waterhouse Coopers 2012). (3)Disqualification from managing a company: The Corporation Act Section 206C conferred ASIC the power to disqualify the directors from managing a company for a certain periods of time due to the contravention of their general duties (Price Waterhouse Coopers 2012). This concept can be illustrated by the following case: ASIC v Vines [2006], it had been found that Mr. Vines had breached his duty of care and diligence by misleading and an inadequate disclosure of material information to the board of directors and failure to ensure the statement was incorrect. The board was relying on Mr. Vines to make complete disclosure to all material matters. The court held that, as the director had breach their duties of care and diligence b providing fault statement, thus, he had breach civil penalty provisions. The court decided that, Mr. Vines will have to receive a 3 years disqualification, pay a pecuniary penalty of $100,000 and 22% of the ASIC cost (Price Waterhouse Coopers 2012). ASIC’s position that held from 2004-2012: The position of ASIC held from 2004-2012 in relation to the directors of James Hardie case had not altered. Why would I say that? Below is the details of ASIC’s position in relation to the directors of James Hardie: On he 27th February 2004, the NSW government had authorized Mr. David Jackson to conduct a special commission of Inquiry into James Hardie newly founded foundation-Medical Research and Compensation Foundation (Australian Council of Trade Union 2007). At first instance, it had been found out that, the foundation was in fact had a nearly 1. 5 billion of shortfall, and a media release saying that the MRCF is ‘fully founded’ to meet all the current and future asbestos claims to the Australia Securities Exchange through the approval of the board directors during the directors meeting. Thus, ASIC had alleged that JHIL had made a misleading and deceptive statement. As a result of that, it had raised a principle issue for the board of directors of JHIL, whether or not they had knowingly voted in favor of releasing the ‘misleading’ announcement to ASX (Alcorn 2011). In addition, the sub issues that had been raised are under Section 180(1), was a general counsel can be treated as an officer? The Original Decision: In April 2009, ASIC held that all of the executive, non-executive and company officer had breached their duty of care by approving the media statement to be made in ASX. In particularly, ASIC had alleged that, the company chief executive officer and company secretary or general counsel, Mr. Macdonald and Mr. Shafron had breached the director’s duty of care and diligence under Section 180(1) as they had failed to advice the board to disclose the DOCI information to ASX (Hargovan 2009). Thus the court had imposed penalties on both of them: †¢Mr. Macdonald was disqualified from managing a company for 15 years and a pecuniary penalty of $350,000. According to the Corporation Act 2001, Section 180(1), an officer obtain the power in decision making which affected the whole or substantial part of a business, thus, Mr, Shafron had a positive obligation to advise the board of the disclosure of DOCI. In relation, he was given a disqualification order for 7 years and a pecuniary penalty of $75,000 (Baxt, Finnane and Harris 2012). †¢Mr. Morley had been banned from the management for 5 years and paid a pecuniary penalty of $35,000. †¢However, all of the seven former non-executives directors were disqualified from management for 5 years each and a pecuniary penalty of $30,000. The Appeal: In December 2010, the NSW court of Appeal overturned the finding in relation to liabilities and penalties of the non-executives directors, the CFO and secretary general counsel of James Hardie Industries Ltd as ASIC had failed to prove that the ASX media statement was approved by the board, and as the appellate court had established that some of the directors had acted honestly without any intention to gain benefit from themselves, which is under Section 1317 of the Corporation Act 2001 (Hargovan 2011). Thus, amendment had been made in relation to lessen the liabilities and penalty of the directors and officer can be found in later section (summary of media release). Nevertheless, it’s worth noting that Mr. Shafron, Mr. Morley and ASIC had filled application for special leave to appeal the decision of the Court of Appeal. In May 2011, ASIC had issued media release that stated that they had granted a special leave to appeal the James Hardie decision. ASIC didn’t change their position in relation to the directors of James Hardie and they are still seeking to uphold the finding that the directors of James Hardie had breached their duty by approving the ASX announcement made by the company (ASIC 2011). Media Release’s Summary: This article talk about the ASIC had granted a special leave from the High Court to appeal the decision of the New South Wales Court of Appeal in the James Hardie matter in relation to the former non-executive directors and the former company secretary and general counsel of James Hardie Industries Limited. The ASIC has actually filled his application in the High Court on 14 January 2011. The purpose of ASIC to strive for a special leave is they are seeking clarification about the nature, content and scope of ASIC’s obligation, while the Court of Appeal had concluded that ASIC had breached their duty of fairness, as they failed to call the witness Mr. Rob in the trial judge of James Hardie case (ASIC 2011). The failure to call the witness, Mr.Rob had make a tremendous impact on the decision of the court, as they cannot attest the non-executive directors had voted in favor of the ASX announcement’s draft (Thomas 2011). As a result of that, ASIC is hoping the High Court to uphold the finding if the trial judge that the directors had acted in favor in regards of the ASX announcement made by the company (ASIC 2011). Decision: As a result of that, in August 2009, the NSW Supreme Court had imposed pecuniary penalties on JHIL and all the non-executive officers and executive officers, plus a disqualification order on them for an extensive period.

Professional learning community Essay

The role of a principal has changed dramatically over the past couple of decades (Levine, 2005). It wasn’t too long ago that a principal’s primary tasks were limited to making sure that the buses ran on time, ordering supplies, and addressing personnel issues (Usdan, McCloud and Podmostko 2000). Now an affective principal’s main responsibility is student learning (The Wallace Foundation 2012, Usdan, McCloud and Podmostko 2000). The typical principal now puts in over 10 hours a day in order to get everything done. (Usdan, McCloud and Podmostko 2000). The key elements of effective leadership: principal as an instructional leader, winning by developing relationships, safe and caring learning environment, hiring of staff, always put students first, vision should be shared and focused, communication in the building, excellence in teaching and learning, principals build/reinforce professional development, principals share leadership, and time management. Principal as an Instructional Leader The principal is an instructional leader, a teacher of all teachers. Instructional leadership can be broken into two categories: direct and indirect instructional leadership. Examples of direct instructional leadership that a principal should provide are staff development, teacher observations/evaluations, and supervision. Also providing subordinate’s instructions about their tasks and including what is expected of each staff member. (Northouse, 2013). As the descriptor â€Å"direct instructional leadership† implies, this is instruction that the principal is providing directly to an individual or a group. Direct instructional leadership is focused on the quality of teacher practice, including the quality of the curriculum, teaching and assessments, and the quality of teacher inquiry and teacher learning. Indirect instructional leadership requires the principal to play more of a supportive role to teachers. The indirect leadership is focused on creating the conditions for an optimal teaching and learning environment. Indirect instructional leadership creates the conditions for good teaching and teacher learning by ensuring that school policies, routines, resourcing and other management decisions support and require high-quality learning, teaching and teacher learning (Bendikson, Hattie, and Robinson, 2012). Examples of indirect instructional leadership might include instructional facilitation, hiring qualified staff, resource acquisition, building maintenance and student problem resolution. Both direct and indirect instructional leadership are key roles of a principal. If principals practice instructional leadership daily, then they are successful in coaching and empowering teachers/staff members to improve student achievement. For many years, school principals were viewed as managers who ordered materials, handled discipline, and focused on keeping things in the school running smoothly so teachers could do the job of educating. Now, however, as principal’s most significant role is that of a learning leader. Current research shows that school leaders are a critical component to improving learning in schools (Educational Leadership Policy Standard: ISLLC, 2008,p. 9). As the learning leader in a school, the principal can influence learning through the formal process of planned observations, supervision and mentoring of staff. However, the principal can have even more influence in many other ways. Luneberg(2010) says there are five key tasks a principal must do as a learning leader: have a focus on learning, encourage collaboration, use data to improve learning, provide support, and align curriculum, instruction, and assessment (p. 1). Winning by developing relationships School leadership often involves difficult decisions and uncertainty. As schools are constantly changing to meet the new mandates: APPR, Common Core State Standards, RTTT, and DASA laws, student learning is still in jeopardy. Students are experiencing more problems, having a leader who can navigate through these difficult times is essential. No matter how outstanding the leader is he/she cannot navigate alone. It is critical that an effective principal immediately and consistently works on developing and maintaining relationships with students, staff, and the community. Building positive relationships with all stakeholders in the school is a time-consuming task, but the effort will pay great dividends. An educational building leader makes an effort to talk with and listen to all members of the school community. Kelly Sajnog, a successful middle school principal, notes the importance of relationships (personal communication, February 4, 2013). She says the time she spent cultivating relationships and building trust during her first year as principal was her most important job. Since then she has been able to bring new initiatives to the school, work with the community members, and rely on teacher-leaders to help improve the teaching and learning in her building. Building relationships will enhance a positive school culture, thereby making it easier to work together toward common goals. â€Å"Schools cannot sustain excellence in the absence of trust† (Uebbing & Ford, 2011). A leader who spends time on these relationships is in a much stronger position to help improve student achievement in a school. Many students come to school with various needs and circumstances. Establishing relationships with families and community services will allow a principal to provide the best possible learning environment for all students. Some ways in which a principal may accomplish this are: holding parent coffee hours once a month, reaching out to local social workers and psychologists, participating in an established parent group, and spending time at community events held in places other than the school. Alvy and Robbins (2005) cited building strong relationships as being one of the most important things that new principals do. The people who make up a school – students, teachers, classified staff, families, and the greater community – will either unite around a common cause or function as independent components going in different directions. Principals who build trusting relationships go a long way toward establishing a healthy school culture in which everyone works together. Principals do not gain trust because of the title on their office door. They must earn trust. And to earn trust, they must give it – that is, they must demonstrate faith in the independent skills and decisions of other (p. 52). The trust that principals need is a two-way street that comes from building relationships and treating every person with respect, every day. Another aspect of building positive relationships is communication. School leaders must consistently communicate with all members of the school and community. When people know and understand what work is being done in our schools, they are more likely to support our school and students. A focus of this communication should focus on student success. Students in schools accomplish amazing things each day, school leaders must ensure the success is shared consistently and celebrated regularly in order to maintain a positive school culture. Communication, in the form of newsletters, websites, phone calls, and meetings further enhances the trusting relationships the principal has taken the time to build. Although written communication is important, person contact is equally vital. Effective principals must be visible, accessible, approachable and responsive to the needs of students, staff, and community members. It is critical that a leader follows through on any conversation he/she has so others know he/she is committed, interested and dependable. A leader, who builds relationships, treats others with respect and acts ethically in all situations will be able to lead a school to a higher level of achievement. Safe and Caring Learning Environment An important part of leadership is the creation and maintenance of a safe and caring learning environment. Effective principals involve others, including students, to set high standards for student behavior. The principal can communicate high expectations for behavior, and these apply rules consistently from day to day and from student to student. They expect teachers to handle most disciplinary matters and they provide in-school suspension with support for seriously disruptive students. A principal should foster a sense of responsibility in students for appropriate behavior and work to create an environment that encourages such behavior. A successful principal should take on the responsibility of encouraging an orderly learning environment by organizing strategies to assist in minimizing distractions. Immersing the entire school community in the use of behavior prevention strategy plans can aid in preventing discipline referrals, as stated in one article we read on student management. This calls for the entire school community to take responsibility in sending a consistent message to students regarding expectations for behavior. An example of a preventive measure might include teachers integrating character education into their daily lessons and interactions with students. Although the intent of character education is to prevent disciplinary issues from occurring, a principal needs to be prepared if unacceptable behavior does  occur. Effective principals should center their ideas, days, and job on enhancing student learning by providing a safe and orderly learning environment with minimal distractions. Successful principals create this environment by sending clear and consistent messages regarding expectations of students and staff, hiring quality teachers, and presenting an encouraging demeanor, a principal sets a motivating tone for his/her school. Successful principals set a positive tone for their school with an unwavering focus on student learning. They do not tolerate distractions and act in the best interests of their students and the learning environment. Hiring of Staff Another important factor that a principal has control over is hiring. A principal’s single most precious commodity is an opening in the teaching staff (Whitaker, 2012). The quickest way to improve your school is to hire great teachers at every opportunity. Just as the only way to improve your average grade is to turn in a better-than-your average assignment each time, the most significant way to rapidly improve a school is to add teachers who are better than the ones who leave. Great principals know this and work diligently to hire the best possible teachers. Not only is it important to hire great teachers but also to support them. This is reinforced by the idea that successful principals focus on students-by focusing on teachers (Whitaker, 2012). Great principals celebrate the successes of their students and staff, instilling a sense of value in their achievements. If the principal is successful in creating a positive school culture and climate and praises student and staff performance at all levels, self-esteem is enhanced, and people feel that their time and work is valued and appreciated (p.41). Always put students first If schools are about teaching and learning, then students are the customers. Educators are responsible for meeting our customers’ needs and ensuring that each student is given a high-quality experience in school. Therefore, an effective leader keeps students at the heart of every decision. Alvy & Robbins (2005) say school leaders mush â€Å"get in the habit of asking themselves student-centered questions whenever they make decisions or take actions concerning school policy, district initiatives, or the everyday activities of schools† (p. 50). In order to create a culture and climate where students fell valued, Harris & Lowery (2002) identified three things effective principals always focus on: respecting students, communicating with students, and supporting students. Students want to be treated fairly and equally. An effective principal knows this and makes sure students are always respected. For example, dealing with discipline issues privately rather than in from of others and making sure consequences are equitable makes students feel respected (Harris & Lowery, 2002, p. 64). Students notice when a principal is interacting with students in the halls of the school each day. The communication lets students know the principal is there to help each student reach their goals and dreams. Lastly, supporting students means the principal â€Å"can be accessible to students; reward them, be an advocate for them, and provide them with a safe, secure learning environment† (Harris & Lowery, 2002). An effective principal, who respects, communicates with and supports students creates a safe learning environment where individual students can flourish. Vision should be shared and focused The successful principal has a vision of what education should be. He or she shares their vision with others by articulating it; however, an effective principal also models his/her vision through daily actions. A successful principal is committed to implementing and developing his/her vision. Consequently, in addition to articulating their vision, visionaries have an action plan that lists the key players and steps needed in executing their vision (Reeves, 2002). Implementing a vision, which oftentimes means implementing a change, can be risky. Leadership, however, entails risk taking and standing for beliefs, even when the odds are not in the leader’s favor. As our guest speakers have stated in one sense or another, â€Å"Communicating with clarity and direction should be the district’s vision. When making a decision, an effective principal asks himself/herself how the decision will impact student learning and proceeds with that thought as his/her focus. If the principal is clear in articulating and sharing his/her vision then the school community understands where he/she stands and where the school is headed. Communication in the building. Communication is critical in a principal’s job. Clear, consistent communication with students, staff members, parents, and the community is imperative to the role of a principal. Similar to the teaching and reinforcement of math and reading skills, policies, procedures, and expectations need to be taught, practiced, and reinforced to students and staff members. Successful principals indicate taking the time to teach the students, talk with them, and show them their expectations. Successful principals review over the student handbook and code of conduct to ensure that both student and parent have understood these policies. These discussions regarding their purpose also help in communicating expectations with students. When communicating with staff members, technology provides principals with the tools and ease to communicate with the staff members on a daily basis. DeBarbieri and Williams believe that communication is a critical feature of any endeavor in which people work in close proximity for a common purpose (personal commications, February, 2013). As stated by DeBarbieri, communication is crucial at faculty meetings, in emails to staff members, and on the parent webpage. He also stated that his belief is the theory of communication is moving in the direction of technology and the use of Facebook and Twitter software. Williams, she stated that communication is just as important. A principal should know themselves first and then get to know their staff members. (personal communication, March, 2013). However, these notes or quick emails do not take the place of friendly conversations, nor do they decrease the value of faculty meetings. Communication with parents and community is also imperative to a principal’s position. Communication via monthly newsletters or individual teacher webpage’s, help to disseminate â€Å"need-to-know† information to parents. Principals build/reinforce Professional Development Effective principals are knowledgeable about best practices and share these practices during faculty meetings, professional learning communities and conversations with individual and teams of teachers. A successful leader is often seen in the classroom and in discussions with teachers about the instruction being used. He/she also shares the success he/she sees happening in the school. A successful educational leader stays current with readings to ensure that best instructional practices are being employed for all students. For example, if ELA scores are a concern for a school, it is the leader’s responsibility to research best practices on reading and writing instruction and then share best practices with staff. Also, an effective leader uses data to hold him/her and the staff members accountable. By collecting data often, a leader is able to make informed decisions about teaching and learning to ensure all teachers strive for continual student achievement. The principal knows what professional development his/her staff needs and participates in the trainings. This unwavering focus on learning reminds everyone in the school community that academic success for all students is the purpose of schools. An effective principal can impact the culture of learning in his/her school when he/she makes decisions about scheduling. For example, teachers need to be given time to collaborate regularly. Scheduling common planning time for teachers sends the message that collaboration to improve student learning is important. During these times of collaboration, principals can provide support by attending meetings and participating in the professional learning community. Teachers need to know the principal does not have all the answers but is willing to work with the teachers to find the keys to helping each student achieve his/her best. Finding the keys to help each students may not lie within the school building; a principal may need to work with other districts, a regional BOCES, local colleges or other institutions to find what each student needs to achieve his/her potential. Collaborating with others allows a principal to maximize all his/her resources in a quest to do what is best for students. If schools are about learning, then the curriculum, instruction and assessments are the most important tools schools use on a daily basis. An effective principal is a part of the ongoing, cyclical nature of curriculum development. He/she ensures that assessment are rigorous and aligned to the curriculum, common core state standards, that data-driven instruction is used regularly, and that the curriculum is detailed enough so teachers know exactly what needs to be taught. However, the principal does not just oversee these processes; he/she is an active participant in all aspects of teaching and learning. The principal should be running faculty meeting where he/she will introduce common formative assessments, professional learning communities, common online areas for staff resources, and units to cover new Common Core State Standards. A principal may have teacher leaders to host mini lessons in the morning, where teachers could collaborate on 21st century learning skills, and to compare student data. An effective principal acting as a learning leader develops a school where excitement about learning and celebration of achievement is evident on a daily basis. â€Å"When learning becomes the preoccupation of the school, when all the school’s educators examine their efforts and initiatives of the school through the lens of their impact on learning, the structure and culture of the school begin to change in substantive ways† (DuFour,2002). As the principal shifts a culture to a focus on learning, he/she can then begin to recognize and grow teacher-leaders. These teacher-leaders act as ambassadors for the principal’s vision and assist in the learning culture for all teachers and students. Michael Fullan(2010) gives a clear view of what a principal as a learning leader looks like. Powerful principals are obsessed with the instructional core of personalized learning and getting results for each and every student. They make instruction a priority. They deal effectively with distracters. They create a culture of job-embedded learning. They help the school focus on a small number of core priorities they resolutely pursue while avoiding innovation overload (p. 14). This is an exciting time for exceptional teachers who love the classroom to use their expertise about teaching and learning in the role of building leader. When summarizing the area of professional development for instructional leadership, good principals: †¢ Hold frequent discussions about curriculum and instruction (ASCD, 1999); †¢ Encourage collaboration among teachers (ASCD, 1999); †¢ Provide opportunities for professional development both outside the school and within the school between colleagues (ASCD, 1999); and, †¢ Actively participate in staff development (Cotton, 2003). Principals share leadership Although the principal is ultimately responsible for building decisions, successful principals delegate, consult, and collaborate with staff members. With an overabundance of duties to manage, it is imperative for principals to trust their employees (assistant principals, teachers, paraprofessionals, clerical staff, and custodians) and to create committees to take on responsibilities for some of these tasks. In addition to making the principal’s job more manageable, shared decision making also helps in empowering teachers and creating a â€Å"buy in† for implementing change. Effective principals not only collaborate with staff members on decision making, but also encourage staff members to work together on instruction and curriculum best practices. If principals can be effective in creating a collaborative school with professional learning communities, then risk taking and learning takes place at all levels, thereby improving instructional practices. (DuFour, 2010) Time Management Considering the demands of the job of principal and the various roles that the principal is expected to play, it seems that prioritizing, time management, and organization skills are critical in helping the principal find a balance. The principal who prioritizes does not get buried by the demands of paperwork but instead uses the time when school is in session to visit with the students in school. The principal that continues to spend his/her time management skills might multitask by returning phone calls while driving between buildings and/or to the district office for meetings. The principal who is organized leaves his/her office with a clean desk every day. In addition to juggling duties during the school day, balancing the many hours needed to attend school and community functions with a family can be a challenge as well. To manage well, a principal must actively prepare, plan, organize, direct, model, evaluate, and improve (Speck, 1998, p. 20). Management duties of a principal include ensuring a safe and orderly school environment, having a working knowledge of the law, shaping a schedule and prioritizing a budget in a way that will help communicate his/her vision and goals, and managing the daily activities in the building (ASCD, 1999). A principal must have a hand in all of these duties, but the degree to which he/she is involved in each depends on a perception of the job (Mawhinney, n. d. ). The principal who enlists more help, and thus creates more personal choice in the area of management, will enjoy more opportunities in the critical area of educational leadership (Mawhinney, n. d. ). A principal’s job is not a 9 a. m. to 5 p. m. job. Consequently, a principal needs to be passionate about his/her work but also needs to find a balance between work and home. The role of the principal requires one to be active and think on his/her feet. This requires a fit mind and body. Reflecting on daily actions, keeping abreast with professional development, reading and engaging in a stress relieving activity, such as exercise, are all activities that can help the principal manage his/her workload (personal communication March,2013). It is important to remember that the principalship should not define the person but rather the person defines the principalship role. If the principal reflects often, then he/she will learn to find a healthy balance by prioritizing and managing his/her time. Conclusion: Effective Principals Make a True Difference â€Å"School leaders are critical to helping improve student performance. Research now shows that leadership is second only to classroom instruction among school-related factors that influence student outcomes† (Educational Leadership Policy Standards: ISLLC, 2008, p. 9). Principalship requires flexibility in juggling the many roles that requires the principal to play. In reflecting on the information retrieved from guest speakers, class presentations, interviews, books, journal articles and observations, the following conclusion can be drawn: If the principal is able to balance being an instructional leader, a manager, the creator of a positive climate and culture, a visionary, an ambassador, a communicator, a collaborator, and a real person, then I he/she is likely to be a successful principal. When a principal learns to build good relationships, becomes a good listener, learns to plan his/her actions before reacting, has good mentors and trustworthy friends in his/her corner, and continues to have a solid plan of action, students will learn! References Alvy, H. , & Robbins, P. (2005, May). Growing Into leadership. Educational Leadership, 62, 50-54. Bergman, D. and Jorgensen, M (2013, February 4). [EAD610 class article share presentation]. Blankstein, A. M. (2004). Failure is not an option: Six principles that guide student achievement in high-performing schools. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin. Cavino, D. and Nower, C. (2013, March 11). [EAD610 class article share presentation]. DeBarbieri, J. (2013, February 25). [Personal interview]. Determining/confirming eligibility for McKinney Vento [Fact sheet]. (2012). Retrieved March 13, 2013, from National Center for Homeless Education website: http://center. serve. org/nche/ibt/sc_eligibility. php Dolson, K. and Regan, K. (2013, February 11). [EAD610 class article share presentation]. DuFour, R., DuFour, R. , Eaker, R. , & Karhanek, G. (2006, 2010). Learning by Doing: A Handbook for Professional Communities at Work. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree. Harris, S. L. , & Lowery, S. (2002, May). A View from the Classroom. Educational Leadership, 59, 64-69 Keim, J. and Nephew, J (2013, February 25). [EAD610 class article share presentation]. Lunenburg, F. C. (2010, Summer). The Principal as Instructional Leader. National Forum of Educational and Supervision Journal, 27,1-6. Luthouser, E. (2012, May). [Personal interview]. Marzano, R. J. , Waters, T. , & McNulty, B. A. (2005). School leadership that works: From research to results. Alexandria, VA: Association of Supervision & Curriculum Development. Mawhinney, H. B. (n. d. ). A Framework for Reflection on the Principal’s Domain: Choices, Constraints and Demands. EAD 610 School Principalship Reading Packet. Reeves, D. R. (2007). The daily disciplines of leadership: How to improve student achievement, staff motivation, and personal organization. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Renfrew, E. (2013, March 4). [Personal interview]. Salopek, J. J. (2011). Make parents you partners. Education Update, 52(2). Sajnog, K. (2013, February 11). [Personal interview]. Silvia, H. and Pawlewicz, D. (2013, March 4). [EAD610 class article share presentation]. The principal perspective: full report. (April 2012). Retrieved March 12, 2013, from The Center for Public Education is an initiative of the National School Boards Association. website: http://www. centerforpubliceducation. org/principal-perspective Wallace Foundation. (2013, January). The School Principal as Leader: Guiding Schools to Better Teaching and Learning. The Wallace foundation, 1, 1-18. Retrieved May 5, 2013, from http://www. wallacefoundation. org/knowledge-center/school-leadership/effective-principal-leadership/Pages/The-School-Principal-as-Leader-Guiding-Schools-to-Better-Teaching-and-Learning. aspx Whitaker, T. (2012). What Great Principals Do Differently: Eighteen Things That Matter Most. Larchmont, NY: Eye on.