Be My Brother

Belonging and alienation is the process of being either excluded or accepted by the society in which you live. Belong is a human conception,mostly considered a fundamental human need and a source of survival, safety, protection and happiness. To belong is usually considered positive and essential for a successful existence:however a negative sense of belonging:found among the displaced, marginalised and uncared for can lead to many social, filial and personal problems that can be almost insurmountable for the individual.The short trop fest film â€Å"Be My Brother† by Genevieve Clay 2009, represents these ideas through the films central characters. The film deals with society and people with disabilities feeling displaced within society due to prejudices. It also displays the notions of disconnection and isolation within the family home of the main character and his brother. The viewer here develops a strong connection to the idea of alienation and not belonging. The short fil m â€Å"Be My Brother† explores the concept of isolation through disabilities.Richard the protagonist is born with a disability and is isolated from society. Richard feels as though he doesn’t exist around his brother Damien. As the film progresses, Richard the protagonist meets a girl names Amanda and she neglects him at first, though she discovers another side to him, and so form a relationship with him. Social acceptance is the process of affiliation with society, but within the film â€Å"Be My Brother† it begins with the exclusion of the main character that has a disability. This is evident when Richard meets Amanda for the first time.As she see’s Richard approaching, she immediately moves towards the edge of the seat. The wide shot used in this scene indicates Amanda’s discomfort, where it demonstrates her fear towards people who are physically different. Furthermore, as Richard offers his hand to Amanda for a handshake, she quickly touches h is hand, and faces the other way. The close up shot within this scene reveals Amanda’s disgust towards Richard through hand gestures, where it emphasies her cruelty and superiority towards him.Clothing in this segment plays a crucial role. Amanda is wearing black clothing, which portrays her social standing, which represents class, elegance, and wealth, whereas Richard is wearing brown clothing, expressing dull, inferior and being less important. The full shot used demonstrates the relationships between characters, and where they stand in society. In addition, social acceptance can be displayed within the family. Richard feels displaced around his brother Damien.This is exemplified in the scene where Damien wearing a black hoodie with his hood up, incorporated with the wide shot depicts resentment and exclusion, where Damien feels embarrassed about his brother because he has a disability. The black hoodie symbolises something evil and depressed which contributes to the isolat ion Richard is experiencing. As Richard passes his hand with the audio recorder to Damien, Damien promptly tries to avoid Richard by moving his head. The close up shot allows the audience to see Damien’s facial expression conveying Damiens arrogance towards Richard.Social acceptance is the key concept within the film â€Å"Be My Brother†, where cameral angles and clothing play a crucial role in revealing the idea of feeling accepted and to belong within society. Disconnection and isolation is portrayed throughout the film between Richard and his brother. The negative sense of belonging, where someone feels isolated; found among the marginalised and uncared for can lead to anger and disappointment. The ideas of isolation can be seen at the beginning of the film. The extreme long shot at the beginning of the film reflects the setting, as Richard is disconnected from society.The blur of the background enhances Richards loneliness and societies prejudice against people wit h disabilities. Furthermore, the aspect of displacement can be manifested in the segment where Damien is sitting by himself at the bus stop and Richard is standing up, expressing his point. The major quote Richard plays in his audio recording â€Å"I am what I am, I can’t change that, my brother doesn’t seem to understand, he seems like he doesn’t want to be near me, I seem to always embarrass him and I don’t like to be ignored! shows evidence of self-expression where Richard seeks to be accepted by his brother and society. Anger and disappointment emerges within the audio recording which shows Richards frustration towards his brother, creating tension and indicating family breakdown.However, Damien experiences a change of heart when he is unable to pay his bus fare. Richard steps in and pays the driver. The long shot used in this scene culminates Damien’s feelings towards his brother, creating a journey as he walks down the narrow bus path toward s his brother and he is thinking and taking into account what his brother did for im and how he has treated his brother. The notions of anger, resentment and embarrassment slowly fade away as he takes off his hoodie and Richard hugs him. This important factor leads to acceptance with his brother and the formation of a positive family relationship. Disconnection and isolation is portrayed throughout the film between Richard and his brother, although it diminishes when Damien comes to the realisation that he is taking his brother for granted and thus the film shapes our understanding of belong and alienation.Ultimately the short film â€Å"Be My Brother† has further developed the understanding of belonging and alienation. Details of the social acceptance, disconnection and isolation portrayed throughout the film between Richard and his Brother, all expose â€Å"belonging and alienation† as a human conception whereby to belong is usually considered positive and to not bel ong leads to marginalisation. The feeling of belonging means acceptance however if someone is under the threat of not belonging the feelings of isolation, anger and disappointment emerge.

Practicum in Educational Leadership

‘As for the best leaders, the people do non detect their being ; the following best, the people honour and praise ; the following, people fear ; the following, the people hate†¦ when the best leader ‘s work is done, the people say, â€Å" We did it ourselves. † ‘ Lao-tsu ( circa 500 BC ) . The Council of Chief State School Officers has adopted the undermentioned as the organisation ‘s mission statement: CCSSO, through leading, protagonism, and service, assists main province school officers and their organisations in accomplishing the vision of an American instruction system that enables all kids to win in school, work, and life. Introduction During old ages as a instructor, leading manner has been collaborative, enthusiastically seeking sense engagement. Always take part in determination devising and seeking an chance. I believe that instructors learn a great trade from their experience, and besides â€Å" I see failure as an chance for alteration † . I will seek to stand for the features of effectual leaders in schools. Research workers say that pupils gain important accomplishment in schools in which principals province a clear school mission, present in schoolrooms and hallways, hold high outlooks for instructors and pupils, spend a major part of the twenty-four hours working with instructors to better tuition, are actively involved in naming instructional jobs and make a positive school clime. A twenty-four hours in the life of a principal can be spent seeking to maintain little unpleasant incidents from going an unattractive chief catastrophe. Good principals in some manner find clip to develop a vision of what that school should be and to portion that vision with all members of the educational community. Successful principals can show a specific school mission, and they strain invention and betterment. A Clear School mission could be ‘providing instruction of first-class quality to all students irrespective of spiritual economic, cultural and societal background ‘ and a Clear School Vision could be ‘to aid upgrading the educational degree of Cyprus youth set uping Cyprus as an one good educated state with a really valuable human resource plus. In less effectual schools, instructors do non hold a common apprehension of the school ‘s mission, and they seem as persons be aftering their ain separate classs. The demand for the principal to portion his or her vision expands non merely to instructors but to parents as good. When instructors work as a group and parents are connected with the school ‘s mission, the kids are more likely to carry through academic success. The cardinal function for a caput instructor is that of authorization, making a civilization in which the ability and endowment of the staff is non merely valued, but to the full applied. If caput instructors do non do it clear that all staff ( learning and support staff ) have the authorization to do determinations, to be advanced and originative, so they will presume that they do non. If that happens, the immense assets of cognition and experience that exists in all schools will remain undeveloped. ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL School context We consider a High School which functioning about 960 pupils. A large chance starts at a school which its edifice appears to be non to the full constructed and the school premises are 25-year-old. It is a challenge of first principal. It is really a comprehensive school, with approximately 85 % of bulk cultural pupils. The school enjoys a really good repute, locally and nationally, as a successful, advanced school and has done for many old ages. On entry to the school, pupil public presentation is loosely in line with national outlooks. More than 70 % of pupils systematically achieve nucleus topics. 58 % of pupils achieved five or more A* to C classs ( 2005 ) . 95 % of pupils achieved A-E classs at GCE A degree, with about all pupils deriving their first pick higher instruction topographic point. Consequences across the school have been systematically good for many old ages, although betterment is a current focal point for us. The aim is to make a unagitated professional environment in which pupils move about in smaller, calmer groups. Some schools have managed to accomplish a state of affairs where staff takes their categories down to interrupt or tiffin during an drawn-out lesson, and return to go on the lesson.A These relationships between staff and students are implicative of extremely effectual acquisition environments.Prosecuting instructorsAll of the developments discussed here rely on holding the right staff making the right occupations. Teachers should be involved in advancing the positive values of the school and the school civilization, planning and implementing the most effectual and motivational lessons possible. Teachers will be back uping all pupils to guarantee that they are larning every bit good as possible and supervising the advancement of all students so that they can move where advancement is unequal. That is a immense occupation. School leaders should non let instructors to go delayed in inordinate study authorship, look intoing behavioral issues, executing societal attention ( beyond that which we would anticipate from any caring instructor in that it could be provided in the schoolroom ) , school responsibilities, screen for absent co-workers ( unless there is a clear educational ground for making so ) . Workforce development has moved us on well with this. It is non that we should non make these things in school ; it is merely that we should use the right people to make them, and they are non teachers.A Many of these activities are so of import that we need professional staff to see them as their chief function in school. We should non go forth them in the custodies of instructors who may be able to suit them in between lessons, at interruption or at lunchtime, while seeking to concentrate on their instruction activities. Future programs We are committed to the thought that every pupil should win and accomplish, although they may show this in many ways.A The Government has set a considerable challenge for us through its docket, which opens up the course of study to present a scope of vocational and academic paths. It has besides challenged us to put a new outlook that most pupils will go on instruction in a coherent and planned manner to the age of 19, with GCSE, IGCE and tantamount makings merely a marker along the way.A To run into the challenge of this immense course of study entitlement, we must join forces with other schools and colleges in a manner we have non seen earlier. Schools and colleges will necessitate to better their footings to run into the demands of all pupils, instead than convert students that the footings we have traditionally offered is what they want.A To make this, the collaborative spirit will hold to replace the competitory spirit. The hereafter is non so much about being an effectual school as it is about being in an effectual teamwork to supply broad-ranging individualized acquisition. Plan OF ACTIVITIESSurviving the first twelvemonthPlan your clip. Decide what issues you are traveling to work on during the hebdomad. If you assign clip to work on fixing points required for regulating organic structure meetings, so seek to maintain to this timetable. It is impractical to believe that you will be able to maintain stiffly to the timetable you have made. Trust others and larn to depute. As a new caput instructor, deputation is sometimes a small hard to take clasp of. Schools are full of professional and really capable people. Let people cognize your outlooks and enable them to acquire on with the undertaking in manus. Get to cognize your leading squad. However large or little your school is, your senior leading squad is important and their support, committedness and finding to take the school with you are critical. Allocate quality clip to speak, work and reflect with this group of persons and listen to what they have to state. Stay focused and productive. Try non to do instant determinations and dramatic alterations that affect the work of other staff and kids, where they have had no engagement or make non understand the principle behind the determination made.Detecting effectual schoolsAn effectual school is a school in which pupils achieve high criterions that they can utilize in their future instruction or the workplace, a school where pupils experience safe and happy. It promotes those values that will assist pupils to go good and responsible citizens, enable them to go involved in their community and go good household members. We all write these kinds of things in our school mission statements and school paperss, but we are all excessively frequently distracted from them in daily planning.A High criterions are non the preserve of a few socially advantaged persons and we should ne'er take down our outlooks on the footing of societal background. For that ground, contextual informations can go forth us excessively easy satisfied with hapless performance.A I am privileged to hold worked in some effectual schools with staff that have developed extremely effectual schemes. There are many extremely effectual schools across the state. Visiting them with an unfastened head makes you come off with a firing desire to develop something of what you have seen for your ain school. I would urge this as a scheme for caput instructors every bit good as for instructors, support staff and pupils from across the school.A Establishing precedences in your ain school will needfully come from a audience with school stakeholders.A I have sometimes found it utile to keep visioning yearss, where stakeholders are invited to place future precedences for the school and these are so used to assist the senior squad set precedences within the school betterment program. When making this it is of import to affect all stakeholders: instructors, support staff, pupils, parents, governors, spouse schools and many other groups that work with the school.Bettering behaviorThe get downing point in any school has to be behaviour. We all know how to cover with the Acts of the Apostless of terrible verbal or physical aggression that sometimes take topographic point in our schools. They are upsetting but they are, in general, occasional and are non the major break from assisting pupils to learn.A The behavior jobs that cause a existent job in schools are by and large low degree, but can render everything else we attempt to make virtually useless. Lack of attending from pupils, speaking out of bend and small argues in the schoolroom are far more likely to damage effectual instruction than anything else.A It is this type of behavior that instructors seldom deal with efficaciously or mention to other school leaders. While it is of import that we continually back up instructors to make a schoolroom environment in which they are in charge and which encourages good behavior, we besides have a responsibility as school leaders to pull off the effects of hapless behaviors centrally.ADevelop Behaviour for larning programme.The attack is simple: no student is allowed to interrupt another pupil ‘s acquisition or to do anyone feel uncomfortable, threatened or unhappy. Students are made cognizant of the effects of making these things and all grownups in the school are empowered to enter the fact that a student has disobeyed this codification. A cardinal squad of staff, including senior staff and support staff, ensures that the effects are ever carried out.A Students and parents regard the programme as just and consistent. It empowers all staff ; given all staff do precisely the same thing when a pupil misbehaves. It besides ensures that instructors carry on making their occupation, learning the well behaved pupils who are all excessively frequently left waiting while they watch instructors seeking to cover with uncooperative students.A Wagess for larning are every bit of import and can be administered in accurately the same manner. The thought that pupils can derive wagess that have financial value and can be spent in a school wagess house is peculiarly effectual. Behaviour for larning schemes can hold dramatic effects on a school in footings of drawing the whole school community together around a common focal point.Making right larning environmentWe are seeking to develop a school that is professional larning environment, where pupils feel that they are in school to larn and will be supported from the minute they walk in through the door.A Create this through good thought out be aftering when the school was built. Whatever type of edifice we have, it will normally be possible to make the infinite to observe pupil accomplishment and guarantee that everyone who visits the school and every pupil who enters the school knows how well pupils achieve and how good they, as persons, will accomplish in the future.A The issue of corridor behavior and overcrowding may look unimportant but it is an facet of school life that pupils do non like and sometimes fright. Surely, overcrowded corridors and the hapless behavior that frequently accompanies them sabotage our efforts to make professional acquisition environments. We need to undertake the ‘school mill ‘ environment through originative timetabling and school administration. One manner we have gone about this is to make an uninterrupted twenty-four hours.Achieving personalised acquisition in patternMaking the right civilization, environment and ethos in a school, where pupils know they have come to larn, hold high self-pride and swear the school to present, are critical innovators to good instruction and learning.A No sum of attempt to better criterions of instruction will hold much impact unless they are in topographic point. However, holding established the right civilization, the schoolroom experience must present and run into the single demands of every student. This requires each instructor to cognize the demands of each single student, and for constructions to be where pupils can be assigned to the right instruction groups to run into those needs.A The personalizing acquisition docket presents us with many challenges. First of wholly, it is now indispensable that every instructor has instant entree to student informations in the schoolroom in an utile signifier. This means that either every schoolroom needs a computing machine or every instructor needs a laptop that will entree the school network.A Right construction If head instructors create level leading structures that inquire all staff to lend to problem-solving, that do non get down out with defined solutions that everybody else is supposed to think, so that corporate cognition and experience will be used to travel the school forward.A Structures need to reenforce the construct that every member of staff can do determination. This is non to state that staffs are non accountable for their determinations ; it is of import that they are. It is non to state that a caput instructor or other senior leader should non set forward their ain positions or solutions ; they should. It is non to state that we should non sometimes justice that, on this juncture, this is a affair that the caput instructor needs to make up one's mind. However, it is of import to listen to all members of staff ( and parents and pupils for that affair ) , to be clear about which determinations you are doing and which 1s they are able to do and to swear them to do many more determinations than has been the instance traditionally in schools. Trusting on coaction Making an effectual school is believing about coaction, sharing thoughts and networking. I am thankful to those who have shared their thought with me and look frontward to future duologue, which I trust will assist us all to develop first-class schools for all immature people. Choosing the appropriate webs to work with is a affair of personal pick and school context. It is deserving developing relationships through national webs excessively. The advantage to working in webs outside your ain vicinity is twofold. On the one manus the scope of schemes to which you become exposed is greater and will affect schools that have developed otherwise and under different restraints. It is frequently easier to look objectively at a school when you do non hold a preset image of the school and when you are non in competition with it for students.A Safe and organized ClimateSurely before pupils can larn or instructors can learn, schools must be safe. An insecure school is considered uneffective and besides the public see it as deficiency of subject to be among the most serious jobs confronting schools. Schools must supply safe acquisition environments. Safe schools focus on academic accomplishment, the school mission, affecting households and communities in school activit ies, and making an environment where instructors, pupils and staff are treated with regard. Student jobs are identified early, before they get worse into force. School psychologists, particular educationA plans, household societal workers, and school broad plans increase communicating and cut down school emphasis.Monitoring Student ProgressWe could observe attractive shows of pupil work on bulletin boards and walls. Besides, posted few pupil documents and charting of advancement towards academic ends. Students could hold a clear sense of how they were making in their surveies ; they kept advancement charts in their notebooks and think of ways to better their academic public presentation. Teachers referred to student booklets that contained thorough records of pupil tonss onA standardised trials, every bit good as samples of category work, prep, and public presentation on hebdomadal trials. It is really of import that school carefully proctors pupil advancement and communicates this information to pupils and parents. Effective schools carefully monitor and assess pupil advancement in a assortment of ways. Using trials such as Norm-referenced testsA and Objective-referenced testsA to compare single pupils with others in a nationwide mean group and step whether a pupil has a ‘chosen ‘ organic structure of cognition ( assessment trials ) . Furthermore, some instructors ask pupils to follow their ain advancement in acquiring class aims as a manner of assisting them presume more duty for their ain acquisition. Homework is another scheme to supervise pupils. Homework additions student achievement tonss and accomplishment is increased when prep is ranked and commented on. Even though ranked prep is an of import ingredient in pupil accomplishment.High ExpectationsStudents could have extraordinary tonss on a trial than predicted and kids could achieve outstanding academic additions. An effectual school ever depend on the power of instructor outlooks in determining pupil accomplishment. A termA of self-fulfilling prophecyA is publicized as ‘students may larn as much or every b it small as instructors expect ‘ . Although, teacher outlooks do, in fact, produce high pupil accomplishment, and low outlooks produce low accomplishment. Excessively frequently, teacher outlooks have a negative impact. An inaccurate judgement about a pupil can he do because of mistake, unconscious bias, or stereotype. For illustration, fine-looking, well-groomed pupils are often thought to be smarter than their less attractive equals. Often, male pupils are thought to be brighter in math, scientific discipline, and engineering, while misss are given the border in linguistic communication accomplishments. Students of coloring material are sometimes perceived as less capable or intelligent. A hapless public presentation on a individual standardised trial ( possibly due to illness or an â€Å" off † twenty-four hours ) can do instructors to keep an inaccurate appraisal of a pupil ‘s ability for months and even old ages. Even a insouciant remark in the instructors ‘ sofa can determine the outlooks of other instructors. When instructors hold low outlooks for certain pupils, their intervention of these pupils frequently differs in unconscious ways. Typically, they offer such pupils fewer chances to react, less congratulations, less ambitious work and fewerA nonverbalA marks ( oculus contact, smilings, positive respect ) . In effectual schools, instructors hold high outlooks that pupils can larn, and they translate these outlooks into learning behaviors. They set aims, work toward command of those aims, pass more clip on direction, and actively monitor pupil advancement. They are convinced that pupils can win. Do high outlooks work if pupils do non believe they be? Probably non, and that is excessively frequently the instance. While a bulk ofA secondary schoolA principals believe that their schools hold such outlooks for their pupils, merely 39 per centum of instructors believe this to be true and even more discouraging, merely one in four pupils believe their school holds high outlooks for them. We need to make a better occupation of pass oning these outlooks to pupils, and doing certain that these outlooks genuinely challenge pupils. And it is non lone pupils who benefit from high outlooks. When instructors keep high outlooks for their ain public presentation so the full school benefits. Always endeavoring for excellence, these instructors felt that no affair how good a category was taught, following clip it could be taught better. Methodology Actions to do effectual schooling ( Memoranda-Letter )Early startHigh-quality plans include parent preparation, particular showing services, and appropriate acquisition chances for kids. Such plans are rare, but can significantly raise IQ points and enhance linguistic communication accomplishments. Some of the kids are notA readingA at grade degree and by the terminal of the first class face a one-in-eight opportunity of of all time catching up. In math, pupils who do non get the hang basic constructs find themselves playing catch-up throughout their school old ages. Effective schools identify and rectify such lacks early, before pupil public presentation get worse.Smaller classesASmaller categories are associated with addition pupil larning, particularly in the earlier classs. Children in categories of 15 outperform pupils in categories of 25, even when the larger categories have a instructor ‘s protagonist in attending.Increased acquisition timeALonger school yearss, longer s chool old ages, more efficient usage of school clip, and more ranked prep are all proved methods of heightening academic acquisition clip and pupil public presentation. Appraisal: A Investing clip is utile, but measuring how efficaciously the clip is spent is besides of import. Testing pupil public presentation has been tied to greater accomplishment, and some territories have gone so far as to pay instructors inducements for betterments in student trial tonss.Teacher trainingAThe best manner to better school effectivity is by puting in teacher preparation. Stronger instructor accomplishments and makings lead to greater pupil larning. On the other manus, pupils pay an academic monetary value when they are taught by unqualified and uncertified instructors.TrustTrusting relationships among parents, pupils, principals and instructors is a necessary ingredient to regulate, better, and reform schools. As trust degrees addition, so does academic public presentation.What about engineering? ASchools that are unsure to pass financess on instructor preparation, category size decreases, orA early childhood educationA plans nevertheless are speedy to put important amounts in computing machines and upgraded engineering.Get to cognize the schoolACreate an being without being over-powering. Spend some clip standing in the resort area in the forenoon and after school. Welcome the kids into school in the forenoon, smiled and talked to parents as they looked suspiciously at the new caput and spoke to the community constabulary officers who control the traffic in the busy route around the school. You will derive a huge sum of information about the school from the kids, got to cognize the parent population and enabled them to see that you are interested in what they had to state about the issues that mattered to them. Do non walk around the school without a clear intent. Teachers and learning helpers have categories to settle at the beginning of the twelvemonth and do non desire to experience that they need to affect the new caput as you all of a sudden turn up in their schoolroom. By no agencies that you do non see schoolrooms and spend clip observing and acquiring to cognize staff and kids, but this should be planned into your apprehension of the school procedure and should hold an purpose of which the staff should be made cognizant.Developing the bigger pictureA ATell staff and kids ( what you feel is relevant ) about yourself, your experiences, and your outlooks. It is of import that they see you as a individual and non merely as the caput ship. Ask the staff what they expect of your function and what they hope you will accomplish in your first twelvemonth. I personally found this a really interesting exercising. Expectations ranged from back uping them and listening to their positions to bein g a confident leader and enabling them to portion and contribute.A It is of import to pass planned clip with each of the categories speaking to the students. Ask them what they like larning about, what frustrates them about the school, what their want for the school would be, what they believe your function within the school is and how are they able to assist you better the school. Above all, ask for the staff and kids to state you about what they truly like about the school, what would do it even better for them personally and for the school community as a whole. Remember that this is the ‘getting to cognize the school ‘ procedure and, while you will derive priceless cognition about the school, staff and kids, store the information you gain to develop your apprehension of the school you have been appointed to take. Do n't, nevertheless, promise to alter the universe or connote that you will take on every suggestion for betterment it will non go on overnight and you will merely be puting self-expectations that you may non be able to run into instantly. Always remember that you are non entirely. The fantastic staffs in the office frequently have a immense sum of cognition, understanding and skill that they are trusting you will do usage of. Their cognition of the parent population, pupil attending forms and local concern contacts should surely non be underestimated. Parents It would be a fantastic accomplishment if all parents were all of a sudden on the side of the new caput ; eager to delight, raise tonss of money for the school fund and line up up to lend to the school betterment program. It may be an unrealistic idea ab initio, but working on acquiring the relationship right with parents will guarantee that positive support is achieved from these valuable stakeholders. Invite parents to run into with you in an informal but structured scene. Held two separate meetings in order to supply parents with a pick of clip. During the meetings acquiring the balance right is important. Do n't offer a vision that you may non be up to gaining in the immediate hereafter as it will merely take to discouragement. Do portion with them, nevertheless, some of your values and rules and how you see them working with you. Invite them to state you in the signifier of a simple questionnaire what they believe to be positive facets of the school, countries they would wish to see improved in the immediate hereafter and what they would wish to see improved in the longer term. Keep parents good informed of any school betterments, peculiarly when a alteration has been made in response to facets that parents have suggested. Memoranda – Letterss Beloved Parent ( s ) : It is hard to show the exhilaration I am experiencing in being the new principal. It is an honor and privilege to be at the service of an outstanding faulty and the fantastic parents and pupils that make up the community of the school. With the reaching of new first, 3rd, and 4th class instructors, every bit good as a new secretary, I think you will experience and see a sense of newness and exhilaration as you walk through the halls of our school. I hope that you will experience welcome as you become involved with your kid ‘s experiences. Throughout the school twelvemonth, your kid ‘s instructor and I will be doing a particular attempt to remain in touch with you. We will maintain you informed of your kid ‘s advancement and school activities. Look for documents coming place from school each twenty-four hours, newssheets, invitations, updates, tips, and reminders. Your communicating with us is really of import, excessively. Please do n't waver to reach your kid ‘s instructor, or me, whenever you have a inquiry or concern. The school ‘s phone figure is 22-xxxxxx, and our facsimile figure is 22-xxxxxx. I hope you will take portion in your kid ‘s instruction by asking about their clip spent at school. Ask about their friends and instructors. Get involved as they complete their prep or seek you help on particular projects.. I am confident that your kid will show greater motive as you continue to demo involvement in their academic and societal experiences. We will surely work on our terminal to supply your kid with the best instruction possible. Let ‘s work together to do this an first-class school twelvemonth in every manner! Thank you for your support. Sincerely, PrincipalPrincipal ‘s Message to instructorsOctober is here and larning is in full move backwards and forwards! Before I highlight the exciting activities we can anticipate toA enjoy this twelvemonth, allow me foremost reexamine the work that has occurred this far.A Thank you to everyone who attended our New Families Orientation, The Welcome Coffee, Back to School Night, Parent Volunteer meeting and a host of grade degree events. It ‘s ever a dainty to see old faces, recognize new 1s, and to see the exhilaration that these events bring to the beginning of the twelvemonth. As usual, your energy and enthusiasm for doing this a fantastic twelvemonth is infective and exciting! Along with the societal events, the start of the school twelvemonth besides marks the beginning of instructors acquiring to cognize their pupils. In September, we began the first of a series of treatments refering to our appraisals and the analysis of our SPSA ( Single Plan for Student Achievement ) . These treatments involved grade degree and cross class degree analysis of pupil public presentation and how we as a staff can aline our resources to guarantee the academic advancement and accomplishment of our pupils. These conversations will be ongoing throughout the twelvemonth and will climax in the development of new ends and challenges for ourselves and for our students.A Even though we are difficult at work, there is still clip for merriment by implementing some alterations! In October we start the month off with our fund-raising event of the twelvemonth, Family Picnic on first Sunday! This is a fantastic event that showcases our school and our community. Thankss to the dedication and coordination attempts of many, the twenty-four hours is filled with walking, games, nutrient and merriment. I look frontward to seeing everyone there.A During the twelvemonth, every Wednesday is walk to school twenty-four hours, staff and parents will be observing the twenty-four hours by walking to school with those of you who choose to make so. Come walk with us and assist the environment at the same clip! It ‘s of import that we support and provide the construction and assortment of a ambitious academic plan every bit good as a rich array of extracurricular activities. Our larning environment must supply our pupils with the chance to meet issues, inquire examining inquiries, appreciate differing positions, and grapnel with understanding. In making such an environment, we need to maintain in position, a vision. The confidently cognizant and oddly engaged alumnus, armed with a important organic structure of cognition, plus the tools to encompass, decipher and contribute to the universe which awaits them. With this terminal in head we are challenged to make much more than merely present a prescribed course of study. We must continually look for chances for pupils to build significance, make connexions across subjects, engage in relevant and ambitious undertakings and show their sentiments on a broad array of subjects drawn both from their texts and their experiences. This twelvemon th, we will be committed to supply clip for the module to work together in grade-level squads to put wide aims for all pupils to get the hang and so to analyze the chances which exist to incorporate and organize the bringing of lessons in such a manner that pupils can associate what they are larning to the universe around them. Keeping the pupil ‘s learning experience at the Centre of our planning, we will be taking a close expression at prep outlooks and all of the excess demands our school plan demands with the end of streamlining and incorporating these demands in a manageable work burden and calendar. We will besides be concentrating on the usage of engineering in direction, the development of strong research accomplishments in all class degrees and increasing an consciousness of environmental issues in our school, community and beyond. We have a strong course of study, knowing and inspiring instructors, a supportive community and ample resources to maintain our school invariably working to supply the best possible acquisition experience for our pupils. I will be describing our advancement in making our ends as the twelvemonth in front unfolds. We ‘re off to a great start! PleaseA allow me cognize if you have any inquiries or concerns.A Sincerely, PrincipleA

Reasons for Suffering Essay

The great philosopher C. S. Lewis once wrote: â€Å"They say of some temporal suffering, ‘No future bliss can make up for it,’ not knowing that Heaven, once attained, will work backwards and turn even that agony into glory† (Keller 34). How can agony and suffering be turned into glory? Suffering is a term that is closely related to the concepts of evil and pain. The verb, suffer, means to undergo or endure. Suffering is linked with the experience of anguish or misery in which humans are aware of the hardships of their intent or function. Suffering, with its biological and psychological matters, may be the result of moral evil where human sin leads to affliction (injustice, greed, war, rape, exploitation) or of natural evil (droughts, floods, earthquakes, accident, illness). Suffering, as a state of mind, may also relate to circumstances of places, possessions and people rather than evil (Atkinson 823). Suffering may be due to unrelieved pain, not all pain, as a physical state, necessarily means suffering. God allows us to suffer upon earth. He does not, however, make us suffer. It is our own faults, because of sin, which we suffer. Suffering is caused by sin, which is the rebellion of creation that God had made for us. Sin and suffering are related to each other and also go together. Sin produces suffering, which we can then assume that all suffering, somewhere and somehow, is caused by sin (Henry 651). The Book of Job says important things about suffering. Almost everyone at some point in life asks, â€Å"Why do bad things happen to good people? The Book of Job does not really answer the question, â€Å"Why is there suffering? † But it does show right and wrong ideas and feelings about suffering and the meaning of life (online). Job is a man who is wise, rich, and good. Then suddenly terrible things happen to him. His ten children are killed. He loses all his wealth. And he becomes ill with a painful skin disease. Three friends come to visit him, and they try to explain to Job why these bad things have happened. They tell job that sin caused his suffering and God was punishing him. Job insists it is not true, but no one believes him. Job becomes very discouraged and angry but he still believes God cares about him, although he may not understand why he must suffer so. In the end, God answers Job in a hirlwind, reminding him that humans can never understand how great God is. After Job hears God speak, he says, â€Å"I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eye seeth thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes. (Job 42:5-6 KJV). â€Å" Job realized that his trust in God should not depend on what happens to him. God says that Job’s friends did not know what they were talking about. Finally, God restores Job’s health, makes him twice as rich as he had been before, and gives him ten more children. This book tells us that God is in control of everything that happens to us. Satan can only do what God allows him to do, within reason of God letting him do it. And when God allows suffering He has ways of making everything turn out okay in the end. Romans 8:28 says to us, â€Å"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. † Our part is to trust God and ask him for strength and comfort, in whatever we go though. God has said in His Word that He will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). The question in Job is how to read his suffering back to his sin, his suffering as against the apparently easygoing life of his friends. The book of Job does not give any specific answer except to calm the opinions of his friends and it opens possibilities in the greatness of God. Better things are at stake and better things will happen to Job and his friends (Henry 651). Another example of suffering in the bible is the story of Joseph. Joseph was the favored child of Jacob, who was the grandson of Abraham. Joseph had a bunch of brothers who hated him, since their father gave Joseph attention and gifts that he did not give to the other brothers. Joseph’s brothers then got jealous of him and sold him into slavery. Joseph became the head of the household of a rich man, Potiphar. However, due to false accusations, Joseph was thrown into prison for several years. He was eventually let out because of his ability to interpret other people’s dreams. He became a major authority of Egypt and gathered food for the country since he knew through dreams that famine would come to the land. When famine did come, people from the surrounding lands came to Egypt for food. Joseph’s brothers showed up in Egypt to get food and after playing some games with them, Joseph forgave his brothers and took care of his family in Egypt (Genesis 37-50). Though he experienced years of bondage and misery, Joseph’s character was refined and strengthened by his trials and sufferings. If God had not allowed Joseph’s years of suffering, he never would have been such a powerful agent for social justice and spiritual healing (Keller 24). Many people have to admit that most of what they need for success in life came to them through their most difficulties and painful experiences in life. Some look back on things like a major illness or other hardship and recognize that it was a hard time and they found personal and spiritual growth for them. One man lost the sight in his eyes and he said that it humbled him. â€Å"As my physical eyes were closed but my spiritual eyes were opened. I was a terrible price to pay yet I must say it was worth it. † Though people are not grateful for the tragedies that happened to them, they would not trade the wisdom, character, and strength they had gotten from their experiences (Keller 25). Psalm 119:71 says: â€Å"My suffering was good for me, for it taught me to pay attention to your decrees. The New Testament shows us two ways of understanding. The first is that there is a mass suffering which must be paid for by sinful humanity. The price will be paid by humanity in human history and paid in full. The second answer is Jesus. Jesus, who took sin upon himself to cover the sins of the universe for us. Jesus did three things to solve the problem of suffering. First, he came. He suffered with us. Second, in becoming man he changed the meaning of our suffering: it is now part of his work of redemption. Third, he died and rose. Dying, he paid the price for sin and opened heaven to us; rising, he transformed death from a hole into a door, from an end into a beginning (Kreeft, online). The cross reveals that suffering may be made into something redemptive. If a disciple of Christ accepts suffering upon him in God’s wisdom and love, and also takes upon him the cross, knowing that final answers rest with God in another world. A theologia crucis means the theology of the cross. This term determines God hidden in suffering and humiliation of the cross of Christ. Luther used the phrase Deus crucifixus, which means â€Å"a crucified God,† as he speaks of the manner in which God shares in the sufferings of Christ. It was the late twentieth century that it was the â€Å"new orthodoxy† to speak of a suffering God. Traditional theology declared that Jesus Christ was indeed God incarnate. Therefore it seems to follow that God suffered in Christ. Christ suffered in his human nature, not divine. Thus God did not experience human suffering and remained unaffected by the aspect of the world (McGrath 221). God came to earth to put himself on the hook of human suffering. God experienced the greatest depths of pain. On the cross he went beyond even the worst human suffering and experienced cosmic rejection and pain that exceeds ours as infinitely as his knowledge and power exceeds ours (Keller 30). The Bible says that Jesus had to pay for our sins so that someday he can end evil and suffering without having to end us. The twentieth century faced a lot of suffering during their time. Two world wars broke out, increasing weapons and natural disasters. It is the impossible sufferings of the Holocaust that has raise the most questions about human evil and a God of love. Kenneth Surin, in light of the horrors of Auschwitz, declares a ‘rupture’ of language and need for unbelief as well as belief in relation to God’s apparent inaction (Atkinson 825). So then why does God allow suffering to continue on? Honestly we don’t know the answer that question. The answer is not that God does not love us. He is not indifferent or detached from our condition. God takes our misery and suffering so seriously that he was willing to take it on himself (Keller 31). Jonathan Edwards concludes: â€Å"The suffering which Christ endured in his body on the cross were yet the least part of his last sufferings. If it had been only the sufferings which he endured in his body, we cannot conceive that the mere anticipation of them would have been such an effect on Christ. † James 1:2-4 says â€Å"When troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. † How are you supposed to consider things joy that make you suffer? You are not supposed to consider it joy that you are going through the suffering but what you get out of and learn from the suffering afterwards is supposed to be joyful. You can use your story of suffering to help someone else that is going through the same thing. It is always a blessing to know someone who has gone through the same troubles that you are going through, because they usually have some helpful words of comfort and wisdom in helping you as well. Corinthians 1:4 tells to us â€Å"he comforts us in our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. † God lets you go through these trials and suffering to see whether your faith in Him is real and if you rely on him to help you through it. Sometimes God sees the need to put us through things to make us stronger. Paul tells us in II Timothy 2:3 â€Å"Endure suffering along with me as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. † Although there might not seem to be any logical reason to us for the troubles and sufferings that we often face, but God always has a reason. Sometimes He’s just trying to make us tougher. According to Galatians 5:22, a Spirit-filled Christian is supposed to be longsuffering. Sometimes God lets us suffer o teach us patience. Romans 5:3 says â€Å"We can rejoice when we run into problems and trials for we know that they teach us to develop endurance. There are many reasons why God lets us suffer. He knows what is best for us, and he does not make mistakes. Romans 8:28 says God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

How did World War 1 help Canadian women get the vote Essay

How did World War 1 help Canadian women get the vote - Essay Example It won the audience with its wit and humor. In 1916, a women’s suffrage bill was passed. McClung moved to Edmonton and was elected to the Alberta legislature in 1921. She worked on the famous â€Å"Persons case†. ‘Until 1929, Senate seats were open only to â€Å"eligible persons† according to the constitution and the Supreme Court ruled that women were not â€Å"persons† and therefore not eligible for appointment to the Senate. McClung and several other women led the fight against this archaic notion. During World War I, some women in Canada were finally allowed to vote. And in 1919, all women over 21 had the right to vote in a federal election. ‘Women got the federal vote in 3 stages: the Military Voters Act of 1917 where nurses and women in the armed services were allowed to vote; the Wartime Election Act which extended the vote to women who had husbands, son or fathers serving overseas; and all women over 21 on January 1, 1919. _________ _____________________________________________________________________ 1. â€Å"A Country by Consent†, World War 1, 1914 – 1918. 2. Ibid. 3. Ibid. ‘On June 19th 1917, the House of Commons voted by 385 to 55 to accept the Representation of the People Bill’s women’s suffrage clause. Suffragists were encouraged to contact their MP’s to support the bill. ... Historians such as Martin Pugh believe that the vote in favor of female suffrage was simply a continuation of the way the issue had been moving before the war had started in 1914. ‘In 1911, there had been a similar vote to the one in 1917. Of the 194 MP’s who voted for the bills in both 1911 and 1917, only 22 had changed their stance. Fourteen had changed to being in favor of female suffrage and 4 changed from being for female suffrage in 1911 to being against it in 1917. This leaves a difference of only 14 – a long way of the 330 majority of 1917. This only proves that the direction the Parliament was moving in before August 1914 was a significant factor in the 1918 Representation of the People Act. The activities of the Suffragists and Suffragettes (the female members of the Women’s Social & Political Union who wanted to take part in the electoral process) pre-1914 have been more important at a political level than the work done by women in the war. Als o, the Parliament was very conscious on how the public would react if they would arrest women who had done important work for the nation during the war just because they wanted political rights after it. A continuation of the way things were going pre-1914 was an important factor as was the fear of social and political unrest in the aftermath of what had happened in Russia. ______________________________________________________________________________ 4. â€Å"The Role of Women 1900 -1945†, 2010. 5. Ibid. 6. Ibid. ‘From 1910 to 1913, two issues dominated British politics: the clash between the Lords and the House of Commons and the continuing rise of militancy by the Suffragettes. The death of Emily Wilding Davison at the Derby in 1913 seemed to many to show that the very fabric of

Software Liability Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Software Liability - Essay Example We need to know more about software liability and know who should be held liable. Issues It is therefore helpful to know what should be protected to be able to make sure that software users are sheltered unintended consequences for any malfunction. Every piece of software comes will a license agreement which strips off the creator for any liability that may result using their product (Tompkins, 2000). We cannot just let the companies sell their products and then by just a click of the license agreement, the programmers are not liable anymore. What if the software is used in medical fields where lives are at risk? What protection should be provided for the end users? Do we have existing protection for the software users? Are the creators, programmers, owners protected too? Discussion Software users should therefore be protected with the contract that they had agreed with the providers, developers or programmers. Each software user enters into a contract or license agreement with the p roviders believing that all the statements regarding the product they wanted to buy or use are true. Thus, any defects and malfunctions of each product or software should be given utmost attention and reparation. According to Kaner (1997), there are a lot of theories which a software consumer is protected and software developer can be sued. The software developer or programmer can be held liable for criminal act and intentional tort, which includes intentional tampering of the consumer’s computer or loading viruses (Kaner, 1997). A consumer can also sue for strict liability and negligence which a defective product caused injury and damage to the consumer since each company has duty to take reasonable measures to make the product safe (Kaner, 1997). Kaner (1997) also included fraud, negligent misrepresentation, unfair deceptive trade practice, unfair competition, and FTC enforcement to cover for misrepresentation of product and other fraudulent and deceptive acts of the progra mmers regarding the software. Lastly, a programmer or company can be sued for breach of contract when in each software transaction, a user and a provider engages in a contract which gives obligation to each other (Kaner, 1997). These protections should not be expanded anymore. Venters (2007) stated that we also need to consider the types of failures that happen. As he explained, there is a big difference between intentional failure and accidental failure (Venters, 2007). Even if we say that consumers can greatly be affected by the malfunctions or defects of the product, we must also consider that the providers such as programmers or developers also did their best to provide the best product with good intention. The software producers, programmers, developers and owners are also protected. The scope of protection and likelihood of enforcement of protection varies by country (International Legal Protection for Software, n.d.). They are protected by Trade Act and other intellectual pro perty and copyright laws in several countries. They are also protected by the license agreement that the consumers or users and providers agreed into. Every time the users agree into license agreement, they are agreeing to the contract and therefore waiving their rights to complain regarding the products they are using. The consumers agreed to purchase the product stating that providers are not liable for any problems that may arise after such transaction. This is their

The significance of British Board of Film Classification in British Essay

The significance of British Board of Film Classification in British Film Industry - Essay Example From a social perspective, such contents are considered as inappropriate to some segments of the prospective audience, especially children. Thus, it becomes necessary to classify movies into certain categories so that the audience can be guided as to which movie is suitable for viewing by a specific group of individuals. In this context, it is relevant that viewing of inappropriate content, especially scenes depicting graphic sex or violence, frightening images and coarse language etc can negatively impact children who are in the developmental stage. Young children as well as teenagers also have a tendency to try or imitate what they view on the movie or TV screens. Besides, they also lack the maturity and intellectual as well as psychological faculties to take informed decisions about what is proper or distinguish the real from what they view on the screen. Therefore, from a sociological perspective, it becomes the responsibility of not only the parents but also the society and gove rnments to ensure that art forms do not expose children and teenagers to inappropriate content. Thus, movie rating or classification has come into practice, with a view to â€Å"help parents to protect children and teenagers from inappropriate contents† (Rating the Movies 2010). ... Therefore, a general need was felt to implement a standard procedure for classifying the movies being produced in Britain, through a single regulatory authority. Thus, the film industry of Britain instituted the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) in 1912, as an â€Å"independent, self financing not for profit media content regulator† (Mission Statement 2011), with a view to make them act as a trustworthy guide for the public in advising them about the suitability of the content for specific segments. This organisation has â€Å"exercised responsibilities over cinema† classification for about 100 years and for videos for about 27 years from 1985, pursuant to the Video Recording Act 1984, passed by the parliament (Student’s British Board of Film 2005, p. 1). According to their mission statement, they seek to function as a labelling service provider, for media content, whose main objectives are as under: - a) Prevent the public especially children, from exp osure to â€Å"content which might raise harm risks† (Mission Statement 2011). b) Help the public in general, and parents in particular to â€Å"make informed viewing choices† (Mission Statement 2011). c) To ensure that â€Å"adult freedom of choice† (Mission Statement 2011) is honoured while adhering to relevant laws on the subject. d) Take into the consideration the changes occurring in â€Å"social attitudes towards media content and respond to them through consultation with the public as well as appropriate research† (Mission Statement 2011). e) Working within statutory constraints to facilitate a â€Å"cost effective, efficient classification service† (Mission Statement 2011). f) Maintain a close rapport with the film

Challenges of Tourism in Orlando Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Challenges of Tourism in Orlando - Essay Example The growth of Orlando from a small town to a large internationally-recognized tourist city has been shaped by several factors. The hostilities between Settlers and Seminole Indians resulted in Florida’s statehood. In the 1860s, cattle ranching was the widely practiced activity in Central Florida. However, the practice was characterized by chaos resulting in the violent cattle wars of the 1860s (Frommers, 2015). Earlier, infrastructure was absent, and its development began in the 1870s. As the years progressed, cattle ranching was abandoned, and residents picked up citrus farming, industrialization, and real estate development. Fires and fruit-fly infestation rolled back the gains, but infrastructure expansion and the population growth continued during the Second World War.Postwar prosperity of Orlando was contributed by the strong financial and transportation infrastructure developed during the Second World War. Also, the advent of the air-conditioner attracted more people to the city. The bustling tourism industry discharged millions of dollars into the local economy and the massive industrialization in the 1950s contributed to rapid growth. Elsewhere, the prosperity has been characterized by the absence of civil behavior. The cattle wars of 1860’s saw the seeds for gunfights, bar brawls, and murders. The problem of cattle rustling is an activity that petered down, but has persisted up to now. Orlando’s tourism industry is characterized by theme parks populated with hotel chains and numerous restaurants.

Transport and Logistics Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Transport and Logistics - Case Study Example Basically the Greeks defined logistics as "the science of Correct reasoning by means of mathematics". The first modern use of the term was in military to identify the process of planning and coordinating the movement of army and weapon support systems. Good logistics brings out the ability to move faster and accurately to the battlefront. If one applies to the same to the business organization, it is one's ability to reach the product to the consumer at the right time, right place, and right quantity and at lowest cost. With the increasing competition in the market place, managements starts focusing on customer services in the early 1950's in the developed markets such as Europe and the U.S. In the late 1960's some of the logistics concepts were tested. Following oil crises is 1976 and the concepts of Just-in-time (JIT) in manufacturing. Customer servicing standards were given more importance and new integrated logistics models and solutions were born. The emergence of organized distribution system by departmental stores and super fast courier services, organizations gave a boost to logistics concepts and strategies. Today all businesses are looking for seamless transaction systems to coordinate their information and material requirements along with the value chain. Michel Porter in his famous book "Competitive advantage" has spoken of the value chain approach and emphasized logistics as one of the most important tools for competitive advantage. The various process and elements that are part of logistics as a discipline are: 1. Inbound logistics: Purchasing, inbound transportation, inventory management. 2. Manufacturing: Production, planning systems, Machine scheduling system 3. Outbound logistics: Order booking processes, Distribution management, outbound Transportation and warehousing management systems. Logistics is key to success in new millennium and going through visible changes nowadays. Various new concepts and applications are taking place in all parts of the world and tried by various organizations. Almost everyone agrees that companies must functions in a global market place, there is far less agreement on how this context translate when it comes to managing the supply chain. Although companies may think globally in scope, when it comes down to actual tactical operations there's a lot of local blending going on. There are certain elements that are required to manage any supply chain regardless of whether it's domestic or global. Things like visibility, technology and flexibility are basic ingredients that need to be incorporated seamlessly in order for the efficient supply chain Management. Now here we compare and contrast between North America and India because India is a growing market and becoming one of the fastest growing economics .The concept of logistics in North America is one of the well known concept by any standard. North American trade market in one of the largest blocks in the world. India's logistics market is approximately around $15 billion, which is less than 0.5% of the total North America logistics markets. The volume of logistics market itself shows that North America logistics market is approaching towards higher side whereas Indian logistics market

Informtion Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Informtion Technology - Essay Example Larkin university faces the dual challenge of integrating itself into a university from a diverse group of colleges and at the same time deploying a technology blueprint to launch itself as a modern competitive educational institution. While traditional thinking may argue that technology deployment is a secondary tool-oriented task, modern approaches to information technology suggest that a sound IT strategy is not only a key enabler for the institutional plan but also an integrated part of it. As a result, â€Å"correct technologies† can â€Å"enable the required IS and corporate strategies to be achieved† (Clarke, 2001, p. 107). A failure in an organisation’s IT and IS strategy can translate into a failure for the organisation itself. A strategy for IT is closely aligned and integrated with the institutions overall strategy for growth and competitive advantage. Organisations typically have a slow response time to change, particularly so in the case of wide scale technology shifts. Larkin University has the unique ongoing challenge of combining existing collages into a university. This challenge could be turned into an advantage by using the new IT infrastructure as the vehicle of change. Laptops for staff, lecturers and students are just the end user side of the sea change in IT infrastructure and IS strategy taking place at the university. A productivity environment with standardised IT/IS platform and common email would free the users from issues of compatibility and delays in support of disparate systems. An institution-wide Internet availability would allow the university’s intranet to be accessed from anywhere. This higher productivity environment would enable the staff and lecturers to concentrate on their core functions. Standardised administrative applications such as scheduling, registration, fee, etc. can be deployed across the campus with minimum integration issues. Lecturers and students would interact and have access to their

Improve service operations in public service institution a 'X' Company Essay

Improve service operations in public service institution a 'X' Company - Essay Example Focus was also given on quality management and important areas under this were discussed. Certain tools for quality management were also analysed. This was concluded by stressing the importance of quality in the highly competitive business environment existing toady. Introduction: Quality is something every consumer is conscious about. But it cannot be said about manufacturers or service producers. But in a highly competitive environment, maintaining quality has become the buzzword and is now something that cannot be ignored. "The birth of total quality in the United States came as a direct response to the quality revolution in Japan following World War II. (Basic Concepts). The concept of quality in a public service organisation still has not caught up in the same level as found in privately owned ones, though this trend is changing. "Only recently has the quest for quality come to the fore in public enterprises." (Delaunay p.199). As you all know that this is a newly formed company engaged in supplying food to the children public school and have been directed to increase efficiency and decrease costs of the meal provided. This report is an analyses of the problems in quality management faced by the company and the present situation after the implementation of the suggestions provided for improvement Quality can be improved in three major categories namely quality measurement, quality diagnosis and quality improvement. It was in these areas that focus was given to improve the quality of the service provided by the company. The company has two main divisions, namely the food procurement division and the transport division for delivering food to the schools. The company is supplying food to five schools with a total strength of 2500 children. It also has supporting departments like accounting, payroll and maintenance. The transportation department is also made use of by the procurement department to purchase food items for the purpose of distribution to schools. There are about 5 trucks and 10 smaller delivery vans owned by the company. The maintenance department was created to cut down costs of repairs and maintenance by giving the vehicles to private workshops. Description of the current situation: The company works under budget constraints and increasing costs in inputs without increasing budget allocation had forced us to take up quality management programs. Moreover the company's procurement policies are not cost effective. Purchases like groceries, vegetables and meat are purchased as and when required from wholesalers and sometimes retailers without trying to identify the good quality merchandise at the cheapest price available. The main problem is that even though the exact quantity to be supplied each month was known, no steps were being taken to buy them in bulk thereby saving in prices. Also no attempts were being made to purchase fresh produce like meat and vegetables from farmers and other producers themselves an arbitrary purchasing policy has caused transportation costs to raise because of the higher number of trips made by the company vehicles. Even though there is a purchase manger and department no directives have been recei ved by the company for an agreement with wholesalers to supply the required items on a contract basis. No clear cut policy, as to how purchases are to be made did not exist then. Both the above factors were the main reason why

Customer Driven Quality Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Customer Driven Quality - Research Paper Example One of the driving factors for this trend is the "impact of competition" (Burrill and Ledolter, 1999, pg. 523). The second major factor is the ISO 9000 system of standards. These standards provide a baseline by which processes and organizations are checked. The organizations strive to achieve certification as a stamp of approval. The final factor is quality awards. Companies compete to earn the highly visible quality awards. Not only do these awards make a statement about the organization, but these needs will have leverage in marketing campaigns (Burrill and Ledolter, 1999, pg. 523). The major factors that help define the value of quality have been presented. The next phase is to tie these factors to customer satisfaction. Greater levels of competition provide a catalyst to force companies to keep improving products or services. Consumers can generally choose from one of many companies to meet needs. One way for a company to keep customers is to provide a much greater level of satisfaction. The manufacturing industry will be used to illustrate this example. Automotive manufacturing is a $484 billion industry (Yahoo! Finance, 2007). Quality plays a major role in the success of this business. According to industry data Toyota is currently at the top of the market capitalization with $228.3 billion. Toyota takes both employee's and customer seriously when it comes to satisfaction. Toyota vehicles are in the top five in both the Midsize Car Initial Quality and Midsize Car Reliability awards from JD Power (JD Power, 2007). These examples of quality awards and the financial standing in the industry provide evidence of Toyota's value of quality being important. Consumer trends show the importance of fuel efficient vehicles that are still safe and fun to drive. Industry trends cited record-level gas prices for the beginning of the trend toward more fuel efficient vehicles. The forecast for the 2006 model year showed Japanese Big Three (Honda, Nissan, and Toyota) continuing to capture market shares. Customer needs were being met by these companies. Fuel efficient and hybrid vehicles were being manufactured with attention to quality (Edmunds, 2007). The manufacturers spotted the trend and produced quality vehicles that met the customer's needs. Toyota maintains quality at all levels of the company. This method allows Toyota to garner the best input from every employee. Special attention is paid to Toyota's methods for gathering input from all employees. "Toyota receives 4,000,000 ideas from its 80,000 employees. Since over 95% are implemented, this is over forty-six implemented ideas per employee per year" (Wadsworth, Stephens, and Godfrey, 2002, pg. 92). Toyota leverages the knowledge each employee gains while performing job functions. This allows for a close check to be kept on the quality of the products being manufactured. Steph Service companies lose millions of dollars when failures become repetitive. The failures result in redesign costs, liabilities, and transaction costs (Free Quality, 2007). Much of the business lost as a result of failures is the most serious cost and causes customer defection. The task that service companies must provide is error-free services. Error-free service becomes challenging due to subjective

Ethics in Group Counseling Essay Example for Free

Ethics in Group Counseling Essay Ethics is also termed as philosophy, which is a branch of philosophy that includes the systematizing, defending and recommending concepts of the right and wrong conducts. There are three major field of study within ethics that involves Metha-ethics that concerns with the theoretical meaning that are used to reference of moral propositions and their truth-values that can be determined, the normative ethics that concerns with the practical means of determining a moral course of action. Lastly is the applied ethics that concerns with what an individual is obligated to do in an appropriate situation or at a particular domain. This research paper can explore the various ethical issues that arise during a group session. There are certain ethical conditions that should be upheld in the panel session from the initial stages of the formation of the group to the working phase of the group. The group leader should be able to uphold definitive ethical, moral codes. Thus, the paper can enlighten the various ways that a group leader should act in the midst of a conflict as well as confidentiality within the group. In focusing on the ethical responsibility of members of a group it necessary to concentrate on the following topics that are explained as follows. Ethical Responsibility Ethical responsibility is the duty that follows the moral correct paths. The ethical responsibilities of the group entail that each member has the responsibility to be honest with other group members so that to be able to make decisions in the group sessions. It is necessary that there must be a clear moral standard from the outset. For instance, create and enforce a code of conduct that ensures that group members are treated fairly to avoid the appearance of unethical behaviors. The group leader should be able to ensure that there is transparency when dealing with group members. Also the ethical that you might feel you have, you should consider how the group‘s morality could affect the group productivity. Ethical Communication in  Small Groups Dealing with small groups work we major on focusing on getting the job done while maintain a reasonable relationship among group members. Ethics in a small group involve three levels whereby we have the individual group member, the group, and the group environment. Thus using ethics in a small group, it enhances the moral aspects of the group interaction. The ethical communication enables the human worthiness and the dignity by fostering the truthfulness, fairness, responsibility and enhancing the personal integrity. Thus, ethical communication in small groups is used for caring and accountability for oneself and other group members. Some other principles that are more applicable to small group communication involves: the truthfulness ,accuracy, honesty and provision of the integrity of communication, endorse freedom of expression and diversity of perspective together with the tolerance of dissent to be able to achieve the informed and responsible for making decision making fundament al to a civil society. Unethical communication causes threats to the quality of all communication and the consequently of the well-being of the individuals and the society. In addition, as a manager be able to create a promotion communication climate of caring and mutual understanding that exist with respect and uniqueness needs and characteristics of individuals communicator and be able to accept responsibilities for the short and long-term consequences. Ethics is more easily discussed than putting into real practice as demonstrated by San Jose Mercury stated that the increasing trend in an organization to integrate a code of ethics for daily activities. Ethical communication requires that an effective critical thinking skills, recognizing the importance of the diverse perspectives and respect for the well-being of self and other taking the responsibility for individual and the group actions and reflecting on the choices the group members can make.. Ethics in Group Counseling During the session of group counseling, consist of the psychiatric care that many patients meet more at therapist at a time. Each group has different topics that they wish to tackle for the growth that enhances the distinction of the financial issue that an individual counseling can be able to create.  The financial tights limit the delivery of the community agency for individual counseling. Focusing on the Barlow Research stated that group-counseling sessions are more successful than the individual ones. Thus by evaluating the various facts that the states that group counseling benefit more patients at one time as well as being used more than the individual counseling. Through McCarty studies, they were able to answer questions that were concerning the indicator of the importance of group counseling as compared to individual counseling. They described the positive aspect of the group counseling as well as stipulating the negative side of the group counseling. The positive results of the group counseling involve the developing of the social skills among the group due to a safe environment in which the group members can share their thoughts feelings and ideas. In addition, the aspect that concerns the patients to be able to receive a positive feedback from their own group mate as well as various perspective on a similar issue, the group members can enhance to learn new ways in order to see a particular problem. Considering the negative aspects of the group therapy involves the clients were not speaking during a group therapy session since they are too shy to share their views in the front of other individuals. The other aspect consists of group settings and the benefits that are more important in the individual setting. The other aspect involves the issue of time which is limited and the group and the group sessions do not have flexibility date setting, thus any session that is placed by the counselor should be mandatory and set in the panel settings Characteristics of an Ethical Leader During the group, counseling session there must be proper individuals that are trained and equipped in an efficient manner to lead during the session. The individual that lead the session is considered as a leader who addresses the various issues that arise during the session. Some research that was done by Kalshoven and Hugh wanted to determine the individual characteristics that a leader requires that to lead an effective a counseling session. They stated that the major features of the ethical leader were both agreeable and conscientious. In their study, they proposed that a leader possess the traits whereby the manager requires the features to ethical standards in the counseling session. Another study that was done  by Riggio stated that the two important moral emotions that a leader must possess is the empathy for their clients as well as compassion for the individual wellbeing. Jacobs in his literature book stated strongly that leaders in group counseling must be at a state to have skills in organizing and planning the counseling sessions in order to keep orders and maintain the structure of the group. As a counselor, he/she must be able to answer the challenging question that can arise and ensure a complete knowledge understanding. The counselor should be able to understand the counseling theory to enhance proper training that can assist in the implementation of the ethical foundations. Primary Planning The counselor should be given proper training in advance with the aim of ensuring an effective ways in the counseling session. Thus, the counselor is required to attend a counseling session to have the insight to the future issues and the dilemmas they might face. Thus in the participation of that session it allows them to coin and gain the understanding and the perspective. According to Corey, the study suggested that for a minimum of 10 hours of observation and taking notes of the session. This paramount process enables the counselor to be involved in ethical decision-making and well-organized knowledge. The area of jurisdiction must be satisfactory to the counselor by screening the patients before joining the group, in a move to avoid disruption and hurting the whole group at the end of the process. During the screening session, it entailed answering, unsettled questions at the stipulated time. Further, there must be an alignment with the purpose of the group as well as make the t eam leader who will be able to meet the needs of the client as much as possible. The process of planning entails alignment of the client and counselor so that the customer will be free to the counselor to give out and share the deep and times emotions. Once the process of screening is finished, there is an informed consent section. The client that discusses what issues they will be able to encounter during the counseling sessions. The preliminary role of these step, it enables the disclosure of information to the group members to inform the clients the pros and cons of joining the group. It is also suggested that the informed consent section has potential risks that the members might face while in a group therapy session. It is well explained by the Corey survey, which  states that some clients might experience their privacy, which is a guarantee that the other member will respect their privacy The informed consent is usually presented to customers in a written and oral manner so that the clients can be completely informed of what they will encounter so that to avoid surprises when the sessions begin. In the consent, the clients are required to contain the role expectations of colleagues and the leader, the policies and the procedures that are governing the mandated group, the documentation requirements and the procedures for the consultation between group leader and the group members. Open or Closed Group It is stated that it beneficial to choose the group counseling since it is better to make a decision. There are supportive reasons to those suggestions that cause the more efficient counseling method. At first, the counselor can reach out a larger group of people. Instead of focusing much time on one person, we assist the lives of many other than concentrating on a single individual. Through group counseling, it benefits both the client and the counselor since it creates a great way to build a community and stimulate the counseling session. Secondly, the group counseling is more effective since the counselor can build his/her leadership skills this is created because of the counselors can encounter various problems and through making mistakes, they can become stronger and efficient leaders as the session progresses. The third reason it beneficial for both the counselor and the group since the counselor can be able to raise his revenue through obtaining a group counselling session as compared to one person and the member of the group can save money as well. Also, the cost of individual counseling is expensive as compared to the panel session The last reason to consider the group session is such that it is much effective since the counselor can continually learn experiment and strive to make a difference in the life of a client. Group Processes According to Corey, he stated that in-group counseling the issue of conflict within counseling in a group is common. The topic at times is inevitable within the group when you have personal clashing and perspectives within the group. However, according to Jacobs warned that the issues that are dealing with the denominator, negative member, and the overwhelming chronic talker,  and some issues of asking a member to leave are expected to arise in the counseling setting. Thus, it is important to note that some of the problems do not solely happen in the group setting but may happen as well in the personal counseling setting session. Therefore, the most important issue about conflict is not the conflict itself but how the counselor will be able to deal ethically with the issue when it arises. Thus, a great tool that one should use is to list all the conflict issues that they may arise and then gain the insight as to how to solve the issue ethically. In addition, it is desirable to seek advice from other colleagues about the tactics that may be used in the sessions to resolve the issues. The counselor is supposed to develop either an open or closed session group setting. Whereby in the public group setting session the members of the group are allowed to go and come at their own pleasure. Nevertheless, in the closed group sessions the member is required to be a continuance of the attendance throughout the designated sessions. Close relationship should be built on the counselor as well as a close relationship in-between the other group members as stated by the Forsyth who stated that the aspect of cohesion when conducting the issue of evaluation the leader must activity gain the virtue to keep the group in a cohesiveness mode. The ethical questions that arise from a closed group therapy sessions show the ability for the client to leave at any point. According to Corey, stated that a member should choose to leave the counseling session then that must openly let the group and the counselor must know that they wish to exit and the reason they exiting the group. It can be done in order not to harm the homeostatic environment of the group. Thus when the team member does not do this, it can harm the rest of the group and disrupt the growth process that there is among the group. It leads to a critical ethical topic that must be addressed in the every counseling group that is the issue of com fidelity. As a counselor it safe to uphold the confidentiality of the group members, this can lead to the group members being shy about sharing certain area their lives. There are certain aspects that the counselor can break in the confidential barriers While in the individual counseling, it involves talking personal feeling thoughts and behaviors and the things that are troubling and spend time in talking about the individual relationship with others. Your counselor will work with you to be able to set goals and the things you require to be accomplished  together. The counselor assists you to develop different strategies that can assist you to be able to reach the personal goals. In some cases, it could mean changing the pattern of thinking, learning new skills, changing the behaviors, and shifting the way you feel and express the emotions. References American Psychological Association. Publication manual of the American PsychologicalAssociation (Current ed.) Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Association for Specialists in Group Work. (2007). Best Practice guidelines 2007 revision. Retrieved from http://asgw.org/pdf/Best_Practices.pdf Baurhan, S., Smith, J., Steen. S.(2008). The preparation of the professional school counselors for group work. The Journal for Specialists in Group work, 33(3), 253-269 DOI 10.1080/01933920802196120 Booker, B., Henfield M., Steen S. (2014).The achieving success everyday group counseling model: implication for professional school counselors. The Journal for Specialists in Group work, 39(1), 29-46. DOI 101080101933922.2013.861886 Brigman, G., Campbell,C.(2005). Closing the Achievement Gap: A structured approach to group counseling, The Journal for Specialists in Group work, 30(1) ,67-82. DOI 10.1080/01933920590908705 Corey, G., Corey, M., Haynes, R. (2014). Groups in action: Evolution and challenges (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole. ISBN: 9781285095059 Cornish, M., Post, B., Wade, N. (2014). Religion and spirituality in group counseling: beliefs and preferences of university counseling center clients. Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice. 18(1), 55-68 DOI 10.1037/a0034759 Hartman, D., Zimberoff,D.(2012). Ethics in heart-centered therapies. Journal of Heart Centered Therapies, 15(1). Jacobs, E. E., Masson, R. L., Harvill, R. L., Schimmel, C. J. (2012). Group counseling: Strategies and skills (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole. Petrini, C. (2013). Professional ethics between the individual and society. Physical TherapyReviews, 18(2), 142-143. Stuckton, R. (2010). The art and science of group counseling: The Journal for Specialists in Group work, 35(4), 324-330. DOI 101080101933922.2010.515904

History Of Measuring Consumer Ethnocentrism Marketing Essay

History Of Measuring Consumer Ethnocentrism Marketing Essay For marketers it is essential to understand the importance of attitudes, motives, beliefs and attitude change in the study of Marketing and Consumer Behavior. Therefore, Consumer Behavior is about the perceptive of the consumers needs and what affect their purchase intention. Consumer behavior can be distinct as the study of individuals, groups or organizations and the processes they use to select, secure, use and dispose of products, services, experiences or ideas to satisfy needs and the impacts that these processes have on the consumer and society (Hawkins, 2001). It covers the field from psychology, sociology and economics. With the open-door-policy in 1979, China has improved its trade relations with the rest of the world. China benefited from foreign direct investments and its export expansion. Today, China is the second largest economy in the world. The rapid growth in China led to an increase in consumption. Chinese consumers nowadays have comprehensive choices in buying different kind of products. Due to the open-door-policy, many overseas companies have entered China and benefited from the increased consumer spending. Chinese consumers can choose from foreign goods that are imported from overseas or manufactured by foreign companies in China, or domestic goods. Due to the increased foreign investments, domestic companies face fierce competition in several markets. Markets are globalizing in China but Chinese consumers still keep buying local products. The globalization affects consumer behavior but China has a strong traditional culture which remains noticed in the countrys choice of product purch ase. According to Mooij (2011), globalization can also cause a strengthening of local identities. Studies have identified that consumers in developing countries have a different perception than consumers in developed countries towards local made products. The consumers in developing countries believe that foreign sourced goods are better than local made products. Belk (1996) identified that globalization can lead to motives to resist the globalization policies, such as localism, ethnogenesis and the neo-nationalism. Further research about this paradox can be an effective way for investors, entrepreneurs, companies and producers to develop and enhance their marketing strategy in China. There have been several studies about consumer ethnocentrism and its effect on consumer behavior and purchase intention. Most of the studies have their focus on the Western consumers. There has been little emphasis on the research of Chinese consumer purchasing behavior and evaluation towards consumer ethnocentrism, which leads to a scarce knowledge of the Chinese consumers. This study focuses at explaining the degree of consumer ethnocentrism and its assumptions on evaluation of several products. This research will focus on food products by Chinese consumers. To explain the relationship there has to be a literature review to issue the concepts in the research and analyzing existing studies on consumer ethnocentrism to understand the theoretical background. Secondly, a research question and the hypotheses will be described and after the methodology will be explained. To test the hypotheses, data will be collected. At last, after evaluation of the hypotheses, a conclusion can be drawn from the present study. 1.1 Problem statement Chinese consumers are shifting towards other consuming patterns as the economy grows faster than any other country in the World. The behavior of Chinese consumers has shown significant changes in the couple of years. In the 12th five-year plan, the Chinese government wants to boost its domestic consumption. The changes have led to a declining demand for foreign goods. An explanation can be that Chinese consumers are becoming more ethnocentric because of the favoring for domestic products. The central question in this research is therefore: Does Consumer Ethnocentrism (CE) apply for the Chinese consumer towards food products? Which moderators are influencing the relationship between CE and the outcomes of CE for Chinese consumers towards food products? 1.2 Research method A literature review is needed in order to answer the central question. A literature review is needed to gain insight about a suitable method to measure Consumer Ethnocentrism. It is important to set a theoretical background to gain insight about the factors that are influencing CE, the effects of CE and the moderators that are influencing the relationship between CE and the outcomes of CE. A conceptual framework can be developed after a literature review. In this framework, the factors that can be found that are influencing CE and also the outcomes and moderators that are influencing the relationship between CE and the outcomes, will be presented. The final conceptual model will be empirical tested. This research will be a quantitative research. A questionnaire will be developed and a convenience sample will be used to collect data. A total of 210 questionnaires will be delivered randomly to adult participants. 1.3 Thesis structure In Chapter 2, there will be an explanation how Consumer Ethnocentrism can be measured and if this is applicable in this research. In Chapter 3 there will be a brief description of the Chinese consumer market. In Chapter 4, the conceptual framework of Consumers Ethnocentrism will be developed and thereby its hypotheses. This framework will be the basis for the empirical research that will be described in Chapter 5. At last, the conclusions, limitations and recommendations will be discussed in Chapter 6. 2. Theoretical background 2.1 Ethnocentrism The concept ethnocentrism was first introduced by Sumner (1906). According to the author, ethnocentrism is the tendency to perceive that a particular ethnic or cultural group is being more significant than other groups. Individuals who tend to be more ethnocentric find their group better than others, who are seen as inferior. Ethnocentric individuals have developed an own perspective of how they see people or groups and they dont accept individuals who are different from them (Netemeyer et al., 1991; Shimp and Sharma, 1987). In the field of sociology Lewis (1976) argued that individuals tend to give their group members a privileged treatment than non-group members. Thus, ethnocentrism established the development of in-groups, which is the group of the individual as pride and on the other side a disfavor for out-groups (Levin Campbell, 1972). According to Lynn (1976) ethnocentrism is part of the human nature. Thus, the phenomenon can be used for large diversity of societal groups including the local community, regions and nations. In the study of Chryssochoidis et al (2007, p. 1518) he issued: ethnocentrism is based on the formation of we-group feelings, whereby the in-group is the focal point and all out-groups are judged in relation to it. Levinson (1950) also related ethnocentrism to cultural narrowness which explains behavioral tendencies of favoring the individuals with the same culture and excluding other cultures, who are not the same. 2.2 Consumer ethnocentrism Consumer ethnocentrism is derived from the psychological concept of ethnocentrism and particularly points out to ethnocentric perceptions held by consumers in one country, the so called in-group, towards products from a different country, the out-group (Shimp and Sharma, 1987; Shankarmahesh, 2004). Ethnocentrism is adapted in order to suit Consumer behavior, which is suitable for marketers. Ethnocentrism has already been discussed to the study of consumer behavior in the 1970s (Markin, 1974; Berkman et al, 1978). Shimp and Sharma (1987) defined the concept in order to suit the field of marketing. Sharma, Shimp Shin (1995) argue that the ethnocentric tendencies of consumers are influenced by social-psychological and demographic factors. The basic conceptual model of Sharma, Shimp Shin (1995) shows that Consumer Ethnocentric is the focal concept that is related to demographic variables (age, gender, education) and social physiological variables (openness to foreign cultures, patriotism, collectivism/individualism and conservatism). The result of Consumer ethnocentrism is overestimating the domestic products and underestimating the import products. Thus, Consumer Ethnocentrism is a significant factor towards import product attitude. In their model, there is also a moderating factor. The model issues that when products are perceived as not necessary, consumers will have stronger ethnocentric tendencies towards the attitude of import products. Sharma, Shimp Shin (1995) have tested this conceptual model in Korea. Results have shown that there is a negative correlation between openness to foreign cultures and Consumer ethnocentrism. This shows that people who are open to foreign cultures, are less ethnocentric. There is a positive correlation between patriotism and Consumer ethnocentrism. The demographic variable gender is also significant related to CE: women show more ethnocentric tendencies than men. The study also identified that higher education leads to less ethnocentric tendencies. The research did not find a negative correlation between age and CE. Consumer Ethnocentrism tendencies Antecedents Openness to foreign cultures Patriotism Conservatism Collectivism/individualism Attitude towards imports Moderators Perceived necessity Economic threat Demographics Age Gender Education Figure : Basic model Sharma, Shimp Shin (1995) Consumer ethnocentrism is about the perceived appropriateness and morality when buying foreign products and preferring domestic goods over foreign goods which can be seen as consumer loyalty (Shimp and Sharma, 1987). According to Shrimp and Sharma (1987) highly ethnocentric consumers tend to believe that purchasing foreign-produced goods will affect the countrys economy negatively and will cause unemployment. Conversely, non-ethnocentric consumers, who do not consider ethnocentric beliefs, have no bias where a product is produced. These consumers will consider their purchase based on evaluation of the merits of the products. Shimp and Sharma (1987) state: The family unit would be expected to be the primary socialization agent, but adult opinion leaders, peers and mass media would also influence a childs ethnocentric orientation during the prime period of early childhood socialization. This statement explains that an adults perception is created by what he or she has learned and exper ienced as a child. According to Lingquist (2001) the degree of ethnocentrism is influenced by the developed levels of different regions. In some studies there has been concluded that consumers in developing countries tend to perceive foreign sourced products as prestigious and of high quality while on the other side, developed countries tend to perceive domestic products as prestigious and of higher quality (Agbonifoh and Elimimian, 1999; Bow and Ford, 1993; Sklair, 1994; Wang et al., 2000). Sharma et al. (1995) assume that the less significant product categories lead to greater ethnocentric tendencies and behavior by consumers. Orth Firbasova (2003) and Dosen Krupka (2007) have researched the food industry, where it has been identified that ethnocentric consumers have more willingness to purchase domestic food products instead of foreign food products. To measure consumer ethnocentrism, Shimp and Sharma (1987) developed The Consumer Ethnocentric Tendencies Scale (CETSCALE). The CETSCALE is a 17-item predictor of consumer ethnocentrism (Lindquist et al. 2001). This measurement distinguishes consumers whether they are highly ethnocentric or not, thus consumers scoring high on this scale will tend to prefer domestic products over foreign ones. There are several researchers that use the CETSCALE with their own modification for aiming on employment impact, patriotism and economic impact in studies (Lindquist et al., 2001; Cleveland et al., 2009). The scale has been applied widely in different countries, such as Turkey, France and the Czech Republic (Klein et al., 2006). Herche (1992) identified that the CETSCALE is able to forecast consumers choices to buy domestic or foreign products. He argues that this measurement is even better than demographic and marketing mix variables. According to Balabanis (2001), the Customer ethnocentric mea sure of buying intentions differs from countries. Good and Huddleston (1995) agreed on this. They identified that Polish consumers find it significant to purchase foreign goods, contrary to Russian consumers. In a research study of Wei (2008) he issues that the Consumer ethnocentrism will decrease when brand sensitivity and product cues are taken in account. These factors will influence the purchase intention of the consumer. The CETSCALE will be further explained in paragraph 2.3. 2.3 CETSCALE The central question in this research is: Does Consumer Ethnocentrism apply for the Chinese consumer towards food products? This question can only be explored if there is a method to measure CE. There are different kinds of methods and tools to measure CE, but the Consumer Ethnocentric Tendencies Scale is the most common used. Shimp and Sharma (1987) have developed this scale to measure CE (see 3.1). Previous studies have tested this scale on its reliability and validity (see 3.2 and 3.3). At last there will be a conclusion if this CETSCALE is valid for measuring CE in this research. 2.3.1 Measuring Consumer-ethnocentrism The first study to measure CE was done by Shimp (1984). He came to a conclusion that measuring CE was being hindered by a suitable tool. Before Shimp developed the CETSCALE, there were other tools, such as the famous F- and E-scales of Adorno et al. (1950). These scales were able to measure ethnocentric tendencies but were useless because of the commonality and dated nature of the scales. Shimp (1984) used an open question to test CE empirically. He used the following sentence: Please describe your views of whether it is right and appropriate for American consumers to purchase products that are manufactured in foreign countries. The question is aimed on the perception of the respondent, questioning if buying foreign products is ethical. Shimp (1984) indicated that the choice for an open question is legitimate, given that the concept of CE is very complex and the relevant dimensions were not known at that moment. Shimp Sharma (1987) developed and validated a multi-item scale to measure the CE of individual consumers: the CETSCALE, which stands for Consumer Ethnocentric Tendencies Scale. The CETSCALE consist 17 items, with a 7-point Likert-scale ranged from Totally disagree (1) to Totally agree (7). The 17-item CETSCALE is validated and tested on its reliability in three studies, which are the four area study, Carolinas study and crafted-with-pride study. Shimp Sharma (1987) also developed a shortened version of the CETSCALE for the national consumer good study. This scale consists 10 items of the original 17-item scale. This is because the 17-item scale is often being used for commercial market research. For this subset scale Shimp Sharma (1987) use a five-point Likert-scale. In table 1, the 17-item and the subset 10-item scale is shown. 17-item CETSCALE 10-item CETSCALE 1 American people should always buy American-made products instead of imports. 2 Only those products that are unavailable in the U.S. should be imported. 1 Only those products that are unavailable in the U.S. should be imported. 3 Buy American-made products. Keep America working. 4 American products, first, last, and foremost 2 American products, first, last, and foremost 5 Purchasing foreign-made products is un-American 3 Purchasing foreign-made products is un-American 6 It is not right to purchase foreign products, because it puts Americans out of jobs. 4 It is not right to purchase foreign products, because it puts Americans out of jobs. 7 A real American should always buy American-made products. 5 A real American should always buy American-made products. 8 We should purchase products manufactured in America instead of letting other countries get rich off us. 6 We should purchase products manufactured in America instead of letting other countries get rich off us. 9 It is always best to purchase American products. 10 There should be very little trading or purchasing of goods from other countries unless out of necessity. 11 Americans should not buy foreign products, because this hurts American business and causes unemployment. 7 Americans should not buy foreign products, because this hurts American business and causes unemployment. 12 Curbs should be put on all imports. 13 It may cost me in the long-run but I prefer to support American products. 8 It may cost me in the long-run but I prefer to support American products 14 Foreigners should not be allowed to put their products on our markets. 15 Foreign products should be taxed heavily to reduce their entry into the U.S. 16 We should buy from foreign countries only those products that we cannot obtain within our own country. 9 We should buy from foreign countries only those products that we cannot obtain within our own country. 17 American consumers who purchase products made in other countries are responsible for putting their fellow Americans out of work. 10 American consumers who purchase products made in other countries are responsible for putting their fellow Americans out of work. Table 1: The CETSCALE of Shimp Sharma (1987) 2.3.2 International reliability The basic requirements of a scale, that can be used in several countries, is the reliability of a scale (Craig Douglas 2000). In case a scale is being used in a different country than where the scale is developed, there can be a measurement invariance. This refers to observing the construct in different conditions and studying constructs where the measurement does not always measure the same attribute. Linguistically or conceptual inequality of measuring instruments can cause variations in the reliability. This is a threat to the validity of conclusions. The focus on the study of the reliability is to obtain the same results when using the existing measuring instrument in a different context, different way or different point of time. These tools do not have to be reliable in every context, despite the attempt to develop tools that can be used in every culture (Craig Douglas 2000). Therefore, the CETSCALE does not have to be reliable everywhere. If the scale in the United states giv es a good reflection of the items that are measuring the CE in the United States, however this does not mean that these are the right items for a different country (Douglas Craig 2000, p.277). It is important to determine if the CETSCALE is international reliable and therefore suitable in other countries. The reliability of a scale can be identified in multiple ways. There are two parts of reliability of the CETSCALE that come up for discussion: The internal consistency and the dimensionality of the CETSCALE and the stability of the CETSCALE over time. The internal consistency is being measured with the Cronbachs Alpha. The Cronbachs alpha measures if the items of the CETSCALE truly measure one concept: Consumer Ethnocentrism. The internal consistency has to be large enough (alpha higher than 0.60) to measure CE with the CETSCALE. When this is the case, the items can be considered as reliable indicators of CE (Hair et al. 1998). When a low alpha occurs, the respondents do not have consistent image of the concept and in that case the measurement is not reliable. A requirement by measuring the internal consistency of a set of items, is that the items are one-dimensional (Hair et al. 1998). This means that the items have to be interdependent and combined they have to measure one concept (Hair et al. 1998). Factor analyses are important to measure the dimensionality of a set of items by determine several factors (Hair et al. 1988). For one-dimensionality all items of the CETSCALE have to load high on one single factor (Hair et al. 1998). The stability of the CETSCALE over time is being measured by a test/retest method. The consistency of the answers of a respondent is being measured at different moments. The objective of this method is to be sure that the answers do not vary over time, in order for the CETSCALE to be considered reliable at every moment (Hair et al. 1998). According to Hair et al. (1998) Cronbachs alpha is being defined as: Cronbachs Alpha is most widely used objective measure of reliability. It is used to measure the internal consistency of a test or scale. The measurement is expressed as number of 0 and 1, whereby the nearer Cronbachs Alpha coefficient is to 1, the better the internal consistency of the set of variables. Internal consistency and dimensionality of the CETSCALE Shimp Sharma (1987) were the first researchers that executed four distinctive studies to determine the reliability of the 17-item CETSCALE. These studies have shown that the internal consistency of the CETSCALE is very high; the Cronbachs alpha of the four studies varies from 0.94 to 0.96. The internal consistency and the dimensionality of the CETSCALE is identified in several studies and countries (Appendix 1). The alpha coefficients in the appendix show a consistency. That implies that the alpha in every study lies about 0.90 (with exception of the alpha for Hungary in the study of Lindquist et al. (2000)). In any other cases the internal consistency meets the minimum of 0.60.Orth Fibrasova (2003) have studied the role of CE towards the evaluation of food. They have found a high Cronbachs Alpha value for the CETSCALE and imply that the CETSCALE is internal consistent. There are different opinions about the amount of items of the scale that must be used. Shimp Sharma (1987) have used 10 items in the national consumer good study, because of the limited possibilities in the questionnaire. Lindquist et al. (2001) have studied the dimensionality of the shortened 10-item CETSCALE in Hungary, Czech and Poland. According to this research, the CETSCALE does not have a universal good fit in the central- and east-European countries. They assume that a scale that can be used in every country does not exist. Therefore, they suggest to use a part of the CETSCALE items and add some land specific or population specific items to effectively measure the CE. Another problem the authors have identified is the translation of the CETSCALE. The authors imply that the scale functions better in English then translated to their native languages in their research. The authors emphasize that the back-translation technique must be used to set up an accurate translation of the scale. Stability of the CETSCALE over time Shimp Sharma (1987) have used the test-/retest method by doing the research twice with a interim period of five weeks. These studies have found comparable alpha values. Shimp Sharma (1987) conclude that the CETSCALE is stable over time. Nielsen Spence (2001) have also researched the stability of the CETSCALE over time. They studied the stability in the United States over an eight week period during the summer of 1992. In this period they have found that the CETSCALE-scores are stable over time but by investigating different groups, the scores can vary over time. They conclude that a longer period of data collection, scores can vary more. 2.3.3 International validity The validity of a scale refers whether a scale or set of measurements measures the focal concept accurate (Hair et al. 1998). The three most accepted types of validity are convergent, discriminant and nomological validity. Convergent validity examines the degree to which the operationalization converges with other known measuring instruments of the concept. Discriminant validity assures that the scale differs enough of other similar concepts and nomological validity measures if the scale shows the relationship based on previous studies or theories. These types of validity are empirical tested by defining the correlation between theoretical defined sets of variables (Hair et al. 1998). Convergent validity This type of validity examines the correlation between two measurements that measure the same concept (Hair et al. 1998, p. 118). A researcher can look for this and find an alternative tool to measure CE and correlate this method with the CETSCALE. If the correlations are high, then the CETSCALE truly measures CE. Shimp Sharma (1987) have found a convergent validity in their study. The 17-item CETSCALE correlates with the open question of Shimp (1984). This correlation (r (=correlation coefficient) =0.54, n=388, p Discriminant validity Discriminant validity is the degree where two concepts are different. This type of validity examines the correlation between measurements. In this case, the CETSCALE is being correlated with a different conceptual measurement. The correlation has to be low, as it shows that the CETSCALE differs enough comparing to another measurement (Hair et al. 1998, p. 118). Shimp Sharma (1987) have found evidence for discriminant validity. Three constructs are being used in the studies (patriotism, politics, economic conservatism and dogmatism) that are related to Consumer Ethnocentrism. The researchers have used a test of Fornelll Larcker (1981). They assume that the average variance of the separated constructs is larger than the variance where the constructs are being combined. They have found that this is the case for the CETSCALE and the politic-economic conservatism-scale. The variance distinctive is 71% for the CETSCALE and 61% for the conservatism-scale, as the combined variance of the two constructs is 34%. Thus, Shimp and Sharma (1986) indicate that there is a discriminant validity. The study of Sharma, Shimp Shin (1995) also proves that there is a discriminant validity between CE and the product attitude towards foreign goods. They have found this through a factor analyses on the 17-item CETSCALE and the 10 attitude items. Findings have shown that the CETSCALE items and the attitude-items load on two different factors. A factor analyses have shown that the correlation between the two constructs (r = 0.568) differs significantly . Thus, these two constructs are not similar. Nomological validity Nomological validity examines how far the CETSCALE can give an accurate prediction for other concepts in a model that is based on theories. In this case, a research must identify theoretical supporting relationships from earlier studies, then he has to determine if the scale has comparable correlations (Hair et al. 1998, p.118). For the 17-item scale Shimp and Sharma (1987) have used the CETSCALES-scores of the respondents to determine the nomological validity. Shimp and Sharma (1987) applied different measuring instruments of Warshaw (1980), Fishbein Ajzen (1975) and Ajzen Fishbein (1980). These tools have been used two years before the development of the CETSCALE to investigate the purchase of a domestic or foreign car. The purchase of a foreign car is negative correlated with the CETSCALE score of the ethnocentric respondents of Shimp and Sharma (1987). Furthermore, the ethnocentric consumers have less favorable cognitive structures and attitudes regarding foreign cars than non-ethnocentric consumers. These results imply the nomological validity of the Consumer Ethnocentrism concept and measuring this concept with the CETSCALE. The 10-item scale is also tested on its nomological validity by Shimp and Sharma (1987). They have tested this by looking to the country origin of the manufactures. According to this study, the country of origin of the manufacturer is an important purchase consideration when the scores on the CETSCALE increase. Consumers with a higher score on the CETSCALE are likely to choose for American manufactures and have less preference for European and Asian manufactures. Predictive validity Herche (1992) has some remarkable notes about the predictive validity of the CETSCALE. He assumes that the predictive validity of the CETSCALE is product specific (the predictive validity for cars is higher than computers). Herche (1992) gives several explanations for this phenomena. First, when buying a more expensive product, people tend to have more ethnocentric tendencies because these transactions have a bigger economic impact. Another possibility is that if there are no acceptable domestic goods available, even ethnocentric consumers are being forced to purchase foreign goods. Also, the degree of involvement can be responsible for the difference between product categories. Purchases with a higher involvement can evoke emotional reactions about the country origin. However, this does not have to be true because the involvement of a purchase of a car does not has to be bigger than the purchase of a computer. Witkowski (1998) assumes that the predictive validity of the CETSCALE does not has to be product specific but also country specific. He has found this assumption in his study in Mexico and Hungary. Respondents in this study are asked to give nine durable products in the past three years. There was a significant negative relationship between the CETSCALE-scores and the purchase of a foreign car, television, video recorder and washer in Hungary. No significant relationship was found between CE and the purchases in Mexico. 2.3.4 CETSCALE in this research The internal consistency of the scale is high in most of the studies and meets the minimum requirements of the Cronbachs alpha value of 0.60. Orth Fibrasova (2003) have done studies of the role of CE regarding food products. To measure CE, they make use of the CETSCALE. In this research the shortened 10-item scale of Shimp Sharma (1987) will be used. The main reason the use the 10-item scale is because the length of the questionnaire has to be limited. In paragraph 3.3, sufficient evidence has found for the international validity of the CETSCALE. Thus, the CETSCALE is an useful scale to measure CE in China. 3. Chinas consumer market Due to the globalization of markets, there is an abundance of foreign goods in China. Domestic companies had to face strong competition of foreign companies during the last ten years. According to Cui (1999), the Chinese consumer market has the largest growth opportunity in the world. The market of 1.3 billion people, with an emerging spending power of the middle income class, is an enormous opportunity for producers of consumer goods. Each year 10 million new Chinese consumers enter the market. In 2010, Chinas consumer market was approximately worth $1.7 trillion. According to Forbes (2011) the domestic consumer market in China could grow to about $15 trillion within ten years. A.T. Kearney (2007) assumes that the middle class will increase its consumptions especially on food, the branded food product market supposed to increase from $150 billion to $650 billion by 2017. The statistics show that the mediocre