Tuesday, August 25, 2020

Nazi Education System Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Nazi Education System - Research Paper Example As the report stresses Curriculum is the totality of learning and showing encounters by understudies and educators individually with the goal that the understudies can achieve abilities and information at schools and an assortment of learning locales. This can be extended to join innovative headway, which is remembered for the learning destinations. An educational program in a school setting is intended to cover the subjects being advertised. Every one of the individual subjects has targets, desires, assignments, and cutoff time to be cultivated by the instructors and understudies. As indicated by the conversation discoveries the Nazi schools were generally sorted out as they proceeded with the optional and essential training framework in German. Further, the Nazi German kept up the Party schools so as to instruct and prepare understudies Nazi philosophies. There existed particular Party schools for specific understudies. The Nazi Curriculum was organized to fit diverse learning ages. There are aggregate of ten phases through which understudies pass. Each stage needs to learn four zones of instruction to be specific German, Mathematics, Sciences, and History. The main stage is distinguished as the Foundation stage. In the establishment stage, German strands incorporate language, writing, and proficiency. In science, understudies are to get the hang of getting, familiarity, critical thinking, and thinking. Science has three strands: science understanding, request aptitudes, and science as a human undertaking. Ever, understudies find out about their own history a nd that of their families. These principle regions of study proceed in years 1 through 10. Due to the distinctions in the ages and levels of subjective turn of events, the substance is improved as one move starting with one level then onto the next. Level 10a is the last level recognized in the educational plan and includes learning of science specifically. Here, understudies learn genuine numbers, designs, polynomial math, straight and non-direct connections, geometry, and trigonometry among numerous other center subjects of arithmetic. The structure of the Nazi instructive framework planned to satisfy political requests of the Nazi government since it expected to show understudies hostile to Semitic, xenophobic, and tyrant ideas3. Backing for instructing of science rehearses in school Changing perspectives of instructors and network pioneers was a basic test to the Nazi training framework. Teachers and others can without much of a stretch

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Fairytail analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Fairytail investigation - Essay Example Then again, Cinderella doesn't stop doing great and being merciful towards the individuals who abuse her. At long last, in spite of the fact that she didn't have fine material like her sisters to go to the rulers ball, her back up parent goes to her guide and gets it going. Afterward, she winds up being the wonderful princess that the lord weds. Her considerate mindset abrogates the fiendishness against her, and she winds up the best of all. Perraults ‘Cinderella’ is unassuming, delineating that quietude inspires the less lucky and cautioning us through its ethical that pride precedes a fall. In his story, Perrault only outlines lowliness and its results and what can subsequently happen to the glad. Modesty, empathy and consideration have been portrayed all through the story. Cinderella’s mother bites the dust leaving her under the consideration of her abhorrent advance mother who persistently abuses her. Her progression sisters are nothing more than a bad memory either. In spite of her conditions, she at no time quits doing great. ‘The poor young lady endured quietly, and never let out the slightest peep to her father.’ She did all the house tasks as her sisters enhanced themselves; dozed in the most noticeably terrible spot while the rest appreciated the advantage of very much outfitted rooms. None of these caused her to gripe; rather, she remained quiet about all the agony and not a solitary time did she quit doing her errands. Cinderella isn't welcome to the ball and has no quality cloth to dress for the event; be that as it may, this doesn't prevent her from helping her sisters pick the best dress for the event. She even proceeds to make their hair in the most ideal manner conceivable. Perrault states, She had excellent thoughts and great advices on how they could fix their hair and dress fittingly (Perrault). At the point when the ruler tosses a ball, her progression sisters invest their whole energy talking about it and setting themselves up. They even ridicule her that she would be the fool on the off chance that she showed up at the ball. In spite of the fact that they detest her,

Monday, July 27, 2020

My MIT Interview

My MIT Interview AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! This is the result when you look me up on the MIT website: Im an AFFILIATE now. No longer a student! Maybe thats just as well, though, because according to Youtube its clearly time for a lifestyle change: *     *     * Post-MIT life involves a lot of airports and train stations. Yesterday, I was at LaGuardia waiting for a flight that had been delayed by two hours. So, I got out my laptop and dropped stray documents into folders. I also moved folders into other folders (Im kind of a laptop organization freak): Grad School Apps, La Maison Française, MIT Classes, and MIT Extracurrics are now all in a folder called Old. Eek. In Old, I found a folder named after my high school. Inside are e-mails that I saved from my high school days, back when our ancestors diverged from the chimpanzee lineage. One of them is from my MIT interviewer, saying I remember you mentioned that your birthday was today and wishing me a happy birthday. In the e-mail, he also observed that your last name* maps to a rare earth element whose compounds have magnetic properties and has a very high boiling point!! All good stuff! *Ho is Element #67, has a boiling point of 2973 K, and according to Wikipedia has the highest magnetic strength of any element. Ah yes, my interviewer was definitely an MIT alum. When I read that e-mail, I realized that I couldnt remember ever blogging about my MIT interview. So here goes. In my senior year of high school, I was living in London. I dont really want The Internet to know my address, so for the purpose of this story I need you to imagine that: My address was 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey, and Privet Drive is a large apartment complex. With that in mind: To schedule my interview, I got in touch with my EC and we agreed to meet at his office. He works out in one of Londons financial districts: Canary Wharf. Heres a map of the London tube network: Canary Wharf is over there, bottom right, on that silver line (called the Jubilee Line). Unfortunately, I dont live anywhere near there. One longish tube journey later, I showed up half an hour early with one of my best friends (who lives near Canary Wharf) and we wandered around for a bit to calm my nerves. Finally, I walked into my interviewers office. He studied a form that had my name, address, etc on it, and glanced up at me with a little twinkle in his eye. Interviewer: Where do you live? Me [thinking: dont you have my address right there in front of you? is this an identity test?]: Um, I live inLondon. Interviewer: Yes yes, but where in London? Me [thinking: theres no way youve heard of this place]: Um, well, the area is called Little Whinging. Interviewer [obviously exasperated]: Yes, WHERE in Little Whinging??? Me [thinking: this is getting a little weird]: The building is called Privet Drive. Interviewer: I LIVE THERE TOO!!!!!!! . wat? Turns out that my interviewer lived (lives, probably) a few floors above me in London. Well, that broke the ice. We both felt very silly for meeting in Canary Wharf. I really like MITs attitude towards interviews. I find it much easier to talk about myself in a two-way conversation than in an awkward one-way presentation. In a two-way conversation, for example, you can ask and how about you? what did you like about being an undergrad at MIT? and bounce opinions off your interlocutor. You can (should) relax and be yourself, and you can even smile and drink a cup of coffee (a number of my friends had their interviews conducted in Starbucks). My advice for the MIT interview is: dont think of it as a speech, or a presentation. Think of it as a conversation with an interesting new person (this MIT alum is probably an interesting person!) in which your goal is communicate what you are really excited about. I didnt memorize anything before the interview, and in retrospect I think that rescued me from sounding like I was making a speech. I did practice stringing words together about my interests, though, and answering questions about what I do in my free time and why I wanted to go to MIT. I persuaded a few friend and family members to sit down and practice talking about those things with me. Also, something I didnt realize until my senior year of college: your interviewer is probably nervous and awkward too. If you can smile and say hi and make a little small talk and relax, your interviewer relaxes a bit too, and that goes a long way in making a favorable impression. If you meet at a coffee shop entrance and walk to a table, or meet at a building entrance and walk to an entrance, thats GREAT: you have time to break the ice! So, before your interview, make sure you can talk about: What your major activities were in high school, what you liked about them, what you learned from them (anecdotes!) Why you applied to MIT, why you think it would be a good fit YOUR questions about MIT. Surely you have questions. I spent four years there and I still have questions! And let your interviewer know where you live.

Friday, May 22, 2020

Metamorphosis In Homers The Metamorphosis - 979 Words

Metamorphosis is a concept we are all familiar with, normally using the word to refer to the changes insects go through, specifically butterflies. (Hook) However, there is another idea of metamorphosis, that does not involve a caterpillar creating a cocoon. Humans experience metamorphosis throughout their lives, changing the way they act and behave. Metamorphosis is also experienced in the form of disguises, which can be used to serve many different purposes. (Discussion) This idea of metamorphosis is an important aspect of identity in mythological texts. (Thesis) In the Odyssey, Homer uses metamorphosis on the character Athena to help her fulfill her role as a mentor. Ovid’s The Metamorphoses also uses metamorphosis of the characters Io†¦show more content†¦Without the use of the disguises, Athena would not have been able to fulfil her role in the story as Telemachus’s mentor. Another instance where Athena uses a disguise to act as a mentor is closer to the en d of the book. Athena was disguised as a common man, and walked up to Odysseus, who was unaware of his location. Excited to see another person, Odysseus asks for help in protecting him and his belongings, along with asking where he currently is. Athena accused Odysseus of being uneducated man for not realizing he is in the well-recognized country of Ithaca. Odysseus is ecstatic to find out he has arrived back in his home land, and formulates a lie about how he came to arrive where he did, sure not to give away his identity. Here Athena is using her power to disguise herself to give Odysseus information about his location. In addition to this situation, Lippi mentioned in his article how Athena had assisted Odysseus in upwards of fifty situations (2011). This great amount of involvement Athena had in the story shows how important her and her metamorphosis was to The Odyssey. Additionally, metamorphosis is also a major component in Metamorphoses by Ovid. Ovid tells the story of Io, wh o is spotted by Jupiter, who noticed that she wasShow MoreRelated The Metamorphosis of Achilles in Homer’s The Iliad Essay1159 Words   |  5 PagesThe Metamorphosis of Achilles in Homer’s The Iliad Dr. Frost’s comments: With his clear explanation, illustrative quotes, and logical organization, the student easily proves his thesis, recapped and affirmed very well in the final paragraph. From the first pages of Homer’s The Iliad, Achilles is portrayed as vengeful, proud, and petty. As the book progresses, the image of Achilles as a spiteful child is sharpened dramatically. Towards the end of the epic; however, Achilles begins to exhibitRead MoreAnalysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost 1678 Words   |  7 Pagessociety. Homer’s The Odyssey, like Paradise Lost, paints a vivid picture of superior masculinity in man and a helpless woman. While Homer presents Telemakhos as an epic hero in his quest to return home to his wife, Penelope, Milton portrays Adam as intelligent and powerful man, as he is given dominion over all of God’s creations. In The Odyssey, man is portrayed as the superior head of the house with the woman being relegated to play the subordinate role (Whittaker 35). In Metamorphosis, Ovid employsRead MoreAppropriation Of A Key Text From The Past1364 Words   |  6 Pagesthe upper class lifestyle through the character of Mr Alfred Doolittle. The intertextuality of â€Å"...it’s a choice between Skilly of the workhouse and Char Bydis of the middle class,† a reference to the mythological monsters confronted by Odysseus in Homer’s Odyssey, conveys that lower class and middle class lifestyles are both arduous, suggesting that the middle class lifestyle is no better than that of the lower class. Thus Shaw challenges the validity of class as a social construct in Victorian EnglandRead MoreWhat Determines When A Boy Becomes A Man?1296 Words   |  6 Pagescombination of motivation and guidance that mold a boy into a man. These thoughts and theories have taken a clear spot in the infinite stack of unanswered questions throughout history. During The Odyssey the reader can experience the theories of Homer’s ideas on how to be come a man. Throughout the epic, Homer establishes a clear hypothesis of this transition directly with the character of Telemachus, a feeble child that eventually surprises many. With the help of the goddess Athena, Homer connectsRead More The Serpent-Vampire in Keats Lamia Essay3101 Words   |  13 Pagesfemme fatale, the goddess who offers the hero a paradise of ease and immortality, and the female monster, sometimes visibly horrible, sometimes apparently benign, that lurks in cliffs (Skylla), under the waters (Kharybdis), and on the rocks (Sirens). Homers Odyssey conveniently gives us examples of all of these women. The mortal femme fatale, represented most spectacularly by Helen of Troy, attracts men through her beauty and its promise of sexual bliss, leading them willingly to die for her favors.Read MoreThe And Other Monsters Of The Night By Eric Kripke4165 Words   |  17 Pagesvariations is that an individual, whether they are human or otherwise, are able to change into sev eral different forms in order to escape some sort of danger or difficulty, or to help them during a fight. One of the stories that have this idea is in Homer’s the Odyssey when Proteus was seized and would not give up his wisdom, then proceeded to transform himself into a succession of animal forms and others. He did this in order to protect himself from not giving up the wisdom, but also in order to protectRead MorePoetry Essay Prompt2545 Words   |  11 Pagesboth of these meanings relate to the title. 1982 Poem: â€Å"The Groundhog† (Richard Eberhart) Prompt: Write an essay in which you analyze how the language of the poem reflects the changing perceptions and emotions of the speaker as he considers the metamorphosis of the dead groundhog. Develop your essay with specific references to the text of the poem. 1983 Poem: â€Å"Clocks and Lovers† (W. H. Auden) Prompt: Write a well-organized essay in which you contrast the attitude of the clocks with that of the loverRead MoreGreek Mythology8088 Words   |  33 Pagesoffended  the  gods  by  killing  the  former  king  (recited  by  an  actor).   (p)  1992  Microsoft  Corporation.  All  rights  reserved./Culver  Pictures   Myths  charted  paths  through  difficult  territory,  examining  contradictions  and  ambiguities.  For  instance,   Homer’s  Iliad  explores  the  consequences  during  the  Trojan  War  of  the  Greek  leader  Agamemnon’s   decision  to  deprive  the  warrior  Achilles  of  his  allotted  prize,  a  female  slave.  Achilles  feels  that   Agamemnon  has  assailed  his  honor  or  worth  but  wonders  how  far  he  should  go  in  reactionRead More Shakespeare’s Use of Ovids Metamorphoses and Virgils Aeneid as Basis for The Tempest3769 Words   |  16 PagesOvid goes on to relate other stories of change that come from the Greek tradition, but he also recounts the tale of Aeneas journey from Troy to Italy, which is the topic of Virgils Aeneid. In this account, he also brings in stories that come from Homers Odyssey. In his final book, Ovid tells a flattering tale that involves Julius Caesar and Augustus, but this is most likely due to the fact that Ovid was being banished, and was trying to win back good favor. Relationship to The Tempest Read MoreEssay on The Odyssey21353 Words   |  86 Pagesa singer, for the age of true literacy was still to come. Accurate and complete works of Homer took a long time to be produced, and not for several generations did anything like an official text exist. As there was not a reading public, Homers poems were learned by heart by boys at school. The texts owned by cultivated Athenians in the 5th century BC were merely memory aides, rather than versions to be continuously studied. Some critics consider it unlikely that the same man wrote

Saturday, May 9, 2020

How Loneliness Affects Characters in of Mice and Men

Loneliness Of mice and men. Loneliness is one of the primary themes in Of Mice and Men. Throughout the novel, John Steinbeck shows the enormous effect that loneliness has on the characters. Steinbeck most clearly illustrates this theme through Crooks, Candy, and Curley s wife. Ranch hands are ideal types of people to portray as being lonely, because their constant travel leaves them without someone to talk to or share things with. Steinbeck also shows how important it is for every human being to have a companion. Companionship is necessary in order for someone to live an enjoyable life. Although loneliness affects each one of the characters in Of Mice and Men differently, they all experience negative feelings from their lack of†¦show more content†¦In addition, Crooks also does not know how to relate and function normally anymore because of how his loneliness has effected him. Crooks s animosity was exemplified when Lennie comes into his room unannounced. He greets Lennie with: Come on in and set a whi le... Long as you won t get out and leave me alone, you might as well set down. Crooks has been lonely for so long that he expects people not to talk to him. When Lennie comes in and does not have any intention of hurting him, he realizes it and he let s his guard down. It may seem that he doesn t desire friendships or affection, but he no longer knows how to deal with his loneliness. It has made him into another person, one that obtains a relentless hostility toward anyone and everyone that gets close to Curleys wife -Curley s wife s loneliness has altered her demeanor towards others tremendously, making her overtly insecure and excessively flirtatious. Curley s wife has become virtually another person because of loneliness. The men on the ranch avoid her because of flirtatious personality to keep out of trouble. No one understands her situation and how loneliness affects her. Her insecurity is evident by the way she dresses and utilizes her make-up. She uses her appearance to rec eive attention like when [Curley s Wife] was standing there looking in. She had full, rouged lips and wide-spaced eyes, heavily made up. Her fingernails were red. Her hair hung in little rolled clusters,Show MoreRelatedJohn Steinbeck s Of Mice And Men767 Words   |  4 PagesJohn Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men is a classic among American literature and is regarded as an important novel in American literature. It is an effective novel that keeps the reader on the edge of their seat as it goes through The Great Depression with George and Lennie and their dream of owning a farm and how it is tragically ruined. One of the most important topics of the novel is loneliness and how it affects characters in the book. Loneliness affects the characters by their happiness and theirRead MoreLoneliness Felt in Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and Eleanor Rigby by John Lennon and Paul McCartney542 Words   |  3 PagesOf Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and the poem Eleanor Rigby by John Lenn on and Paul McCartney, many of the characters are experiencing loneliness. When people feel lonely their way of lifestyle are different then that of someones whos not lonely or them if they were not lonely. Also because they are lonely their actions are different. They portray this in both the novel and the poem. The effects of loneliness on people are displayed in the novel Of Mice and Men through the character ofRead MoreOf Mice And Men Loneliness Character Analysis863 Words   |  4 PagesLoneliness is the feeling of sadness because you have no company. What do you think it would feel like to experience loneliness throughout a majority of your life? Inside the novel of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, loneliness was shown by many of the characters including Curley’s wife when she felt like she had no one there, not even her husband, Candy when his dog passed away, and many other characters. Loneliness is a big theme in the novel and affects many of the characters in many differentRead MoreOf Mice and Men1006 Words   |  5 Pagesheart of every novel.† In your view, what are the distinctive ideas explored in Of Mice and Men? Explain how these ideas are developed throughout the novel. Themes are integral and fundamental aspects which render the literature valuable. They usually provide insight into the author’s perception and internalisations of the world in which they live. Set in California during the Great Depression, Of Mice and Men, by Steinbeck, illustrates the hardships experienced by individuals as they roamed theRead MoreMice and Men822 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"Of Mice and Men† The Great Depression took place in the United States in the 1930s. Northern California, Salinas Valley was affected by the Great Depression. Many farmers lost their properties and were forced to find other work. Banks were forced to foreclose on mortgages’ and had to collect debts. Hundreds of thousands of farmers packed up their families and few belongings, and headed for California. The Great Depression left many people in poverty and caused them to face unpleasant eventsRead MoreEssay On Loneliness835 Words   |  4 Pagesone. Loneliness can have many negative effects on a person’s well-being. Some results could be craziness, depression, or even sickness. These effects could lead to even worse mental health issues. In order for humans to be happy, friendships and connections are vital; as well as never keeping isolated from the world. The characters George, Lennie and Crooks were all affected by loneliness. All these characters were affected in different ways. In J ohn Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, loneliness has aRead MoreLoneliness Will Stay Over Our Roofs With Brooding Wings1145 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"Loneliness will sit over our roofs with brooding wings.† - Bram Stoker. This quote is saying that loneliness will continue to change our lives, whether it is being antisocial or not being able to talk to anyone. Loneliness will change our lives, whether we realize it or not. In the Book Of Mice and Men, loneliness portrays a key role in the theme of the story. Affecting many workers on the ranch that Of Mice and Men is set in. In the the book Of Mice and Men, the theme of loneliness is expressedRead MoreOmm Essay888 Words   |  4 PagesOf Mice and Men Essay In 1929, tears swept the nation and gloom bestowed itself upon a once happy place. The Great Depression had started. People lost everything ,so many became migrant workers. Of Mice and Men, a classic novel written by John Steinbeck, emphasizes many sad themes, but gives us a good insight on what life was like in the 1940’s for many people. Although there are other themes, rootlessness, loneliness, and poverty are extremely prominent throughout the novel in many charactersRead MoreJohn Steinbeck s Of Mice And Men1248 Words   |  5 PagesIn Steinbeck s novel Of Mice and Men, He uses imagery many times to create a realistic setting and plot. Steinbeck’s depiction of migrant workers and their daily complications during the depression are objectively precise due to his use of imagery with idioms, dreams, nature, loneliness and animal imagery. The main theme of the book transpires to be loneliness and fate. While George and Lennie, the main characters have a synergetic rel ationship, fate steps in and does away with their dreams, whichRead MoreLoneliness is the Biggest Problem Facing the Characters in ‘Of Mice and Men’809 Words   |  4 PagesThe story ‘Of Mice and Men’ is set in a period of time known as the Great Depression. The Great Depression was a time where the stock market crashed leaving hundreds of thousands of people homeless or striving exceptionally hard to keep their roof from falling in. The characters in ‘Of Mice and Men’ face many dilemmas, for instance Curley’s wife doesn’t get much attention from her husband and seeks it out from the other ranch members and Crooks can’t live a day without being singled out because of

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Lamb The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Chapter 15 Free Essays

string(22) " thing is outside it\." Chapter 15 Joshua and Balthasar rode into Kabul at a time of night when only cutthroats and whores were about (the whores offering the â€Å"cutthroat discount† after midnight to promote business). The old wizard had fallen asleep to the rhythm of his camel’s loping gait, an act that nearly baffled Joshua as much as the whole demon business, as he spent most of his time on camelback trying not to upchuck – seasickness of the desert, they call it. Joshua flicked the old man’s leg with the loose end of his camel’s bridle, and the magus came awake snorting. We will write a custom essay sample on Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Chapter 15 or any similar topic only for you Order Now â€Å"What is it? Are we there?† â€Å"Can you control the demon, old man? Are we close enough for you to regain control?† Balthasar closed his eyes and Joshua thought that he might be going to sleep again, except his hands began to tremble with some unseen effort. After a few seconds he opened his eyes again. â€Å"I can’t tell.† â€Å"Well, you could tell that he was out.† â€Å"That was like a wave of pain in my soul. I’m not in intimate contact with the demon at all times. We are probably too far away still.† â€Å"Horses,† Joshua said. â€Å"They’ll be faster. Let’s go wake up the stable master.† Joshua led them through the streets to the stable where we had boarded our camels when we came to town to heal the blinded bandit. There were no lamps burning inside, but a half-naked whore posed seductively in the doorway. â€Å"Special for cutthroats,† she said in Latin. â€Å"Two for one, but no refunds if the old man can’t do the business.† It had been so long since he’d heard the language that it took Joshua a second to respond. â€Å"Thank you, but we’re not cutthroats,† Joshua said. He stepped past her and pounded on the door. She ran a fingernail down his back as he waited. â€Å"What are you? Maybe there’s another special.† Joshua didn’t even look back. â€Å"He’s a two-hundred-and-sixty-year-old wizard and I’m either the Messiah or a hopeless faker.† â€Å"Uh, yeah, I think there is a special rate for fakers, but the wizard has to pay full price.† Joshua could hear stirring inside of the stable master’s house and a voice calling for him to hold his horses, which is what stable masters always say when they make you wait. Joshua turned to the whore and touched her gently on the forehead. â€Å"Go, and sin no more,† he said in Latin. â€Å"Right, and what do I do for a living then, shovel shit?† Just then the stable master threw open the door. He was short and bowlegged and wore a long mustache that made him look like a dried-up catfish. â€Å"What is so important that my wife couldn’t handle it?† â€Å"Your wife?† The whore ran her nail across the back of Joshua’s neck as she passed him and stepped into the house. â€Å"Missed your chance,† she said. â€Å"Woman, what are you doing out here anyway?† asked the stable master. Joy scurried out onto the landing and pulled a short, broad-bladed black dagger from the folds of her robe. The ends of the rope ladder were swaying in front of her as the monster descended. â€Å"No, Joy,† I said, reaching out to pull her back into the cave. â€Å"You can’t hurt it.† â€Å"Don’t be so sure.† She turned and grinned at me, then ran the dagger twice over the thick ropes on one side leaving it attached by only a few fibers, then she reached up a few rungs and sliced most of the way through the other side of the ladder. I couldn’t believe how easily she’d cut through the rope. She stepped back into the passageway and held the blade up so it caught the starlight. â€Å"Glass,† she said, â€Å"from a volcano. It’s a thousand times sharper than any edge on an iron blade.† She put the dagger away and pulled me back into the passageway, just far enough so we could see the entrance and the landing. I could hear the monster coming closer, then a huge clawed foot appeared in silhouette in the entrance, then the other foot. We held our breath as the monster reached the cut section of the ladder. Nearly a whole massive thigh was visible now, and one of his talonlike hands was reaching down for a new hold when the ladder snapped. Suddenly the monster hung sideways, swinging from his hold on a single rope in front of the entrance. He looked right at us, the fury in his yellow eyes replaced for a moment by confusion. His leathery bat ears rose in curiosity, and he said, â€Å"Hey?† Then the second rope snapped and he plunged out of our view. We ran out to the landing and looked over the edge. It was at least a thousand feet to the floor of the valley. We could only see several hundred feet down in the dark, but it was several hundred feet of cliff face that was conspicuously monsterless. â€Å"Nice,† I said to Joy. â€Å"We need to go. Now.† â€Å"You don’t think that did it?† â€Å"Did you hear anything hit bottom?† â€Å"No,† I said. â€Å"Neither did I,† she said. â€Å"We had better get going.† We’d left the water skins at the top of the plateau and Joy wanted to grab some from the kitchen but I dragged her toward the front entrance by the collar. â€Å"We need to get as far away from here as we can. Dying of thirst is the least of my worries.† Once we were in the main area of the fortress there was enough light to negotiate the hallways without a lamp, which was good, because I wouldn’t let Joy stop to light one. As we rounded the stairway to the third level Joy jerked me back, almost off my feet, and I turned around as mad as a cat. â€Å"What? Let’s get out of here!† I screamed at her. â€Å"No, this is the last level with windows. I’m not going through the front door not knowing if that thing is outside it. You read "Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Chapter 15" in category "Essay examples"† â€Å"Don’t be ridiculous, it would take a man on a fast horse a half hour to make it around from the other side.† â€Å"But what if it didn’t fall all the way? What if it climbed back up?† â€Å"That would take hours. Come on, Joy. We could be miles away from here by the time he gets here from the other side.† â€Å"No!† She swept my feet out from under me and I landed flat on my back on the stone floor. By the time I was on my feet again she had run through the front chamber and was hanging out the window. As I approached her she held her finger to her lips. â€Å"It’s down there, waiting.† I pulled her aside and looked down. Sure enough, the beast was looming in front of the iron door, waiting to grab the edge in its claws and rip it open as soon as we threw the bolts. â€Å"Maybe it can’t get in,† I whispered. â€Å"It couldn’t get through the other iron door.† â€Å"You didn’t understand the symbols all over that room, did you?† I shook my head. â€Å"They were containment symbols – to contain a djinn, or a demon. The front door doesn’t have any on it. It won’t hold him back.† â€Å"So why isn’t he coming in?† â€Å"Why chase us when we will come right to him?† Just then the monster looked up and I threw myself back from the window. â€Å"I don’t think he saw me,† I whispered, spraying Joy with spit. Then the monster began to whistle. It was a happy tune, lighthearted, something like you might whistle while you were polishing the bleached skull of your latest victim. â€Å"I’m not stalking anyone or anything,† the monster said, much louder than would have been required had he been talking to himself. â€Å"Nope, not me. Just standing here for a second. Oh well, no one is here, I guess I’ll be on my way.† He began to whistle again and we could hear footsteps getting quieter along with the whistling. They weren’t moving away, they were just getting quieter. Joy and I looked out the window to see the huge beast doing an exaggerated pantomime of walking, just as his whistle fizzled. â€Å"What?† I shouted down, angry now. â€Å"Did you think we wouldn’t look?† The monster shrugged. â€Å"It was worth a try. I figured I wasn’t dealing with a genius when you opened the door in the first place.† â€Å"What’d he say? What’d he say?† Joy chanted behind me. â€Å"He said he doesn’t think you’re very smart.† â€Å"Tell him that I’m not the one who has spent all these years locked in the dark playing with myself.† I pulled back from the window and looked at Joy. â€Å"Do you think he could fit though this window?† She eyed the window. â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Then I’m not going to tell him. It might make him angry.† Joy pushed me aside, stepped up on the windowsill, turned around and faced me, then pulled up her robe and peed backward out the window. Her balance was amazing. From the growling below, I gathered that her accuracy wasn’t bad either. She finished and jumped down. I looked out the window at the monster, who was shaking urine from its ears like a wet dog. â€Å"Sorry,† I said, â€Å"language problem. I didn’t know how to translate.† The monster growled and the muscles in its shoulders tensed beneath the scales, then it let loose with a punch that sent its fist completely through the iron skin of the door. â€Å"Run,† Joy said. â€Å"Where?† â€Å"The passage to the cliff.† â€Å"You cut the ladder.† â€Å"Just run.† She pulled me along behind her, guiding us through the dark as she had before. â€Å"Duck,† she shouted, just a second after I realized that we’d entered the smaller passageway by using the sensitive stone-ceiling-sensing nerves in my forehead. We made it halfway down the passageway to the cliff when I heard the monster hit and curse. There was a pause, then a horrible grinding noise so intense that we had to shield our ears from the assault. Then came the smell of burning flesh. Dawn broke just as Joshua and Balthasar rode into the canyon entrance to the fortress. â€Å"How about now?† Joshua asked. â€Å"Do you feel the demon now?† Balthasar shook his head balefully. â€Å"We’re too late.† He pointed to where the great round door had once stood. Now it was a pile of bent and broken pieces hanging on what was left of the huge hinges. â€Å"What in the name of Satan have you done?† Joshua said. He jumped off his horse and ran into the fortress, leaving the old man to follow as best he could. The noise in the narrow passageway was so intense that I cut pieces of cloth from my sleeves with Joy’s dagger and stuffed them in our ears. Then I lit one of the fire sticks to see what the monster was doing. Joy and I stood there, gaped-jawed, watching as the beast worried away at the stone of the passage, his claws moving in a blur of speed, throwing smoke and dust and stone shards into the air as he went, his scales burning from the friction and growing back as fast as they burned away. He hadn’t come far, perhaps five feet toward us, but eventually he would widen the passage enough and pull us out like a badger digging termites out of the nest. I could see now how the fortress had been built without tool marks. The creature moved so quickly – literally wearing away the walls with his claws and scales – that the stone was polished as it was cut. We had already made two ascents up what was left of the ladder to the top of the plateau, only to have the monster come around and chase us back down it before we could get to the road. The second time he pulled the ladder up, then returned to the interior of the fortress to resume his hellish digging. â€Å"I’ll jump before I’ll let that thing get me,† I said to Joy. She looked over the edge of the cliff into the endless darkness below. â€Å"You do that,† she said. â€Å"Let me know how it goes.† â€Å"I will, but first I’ll pray.† And I did. I prayed so hard that beads of sweat popped out on my forehead and ran over my tightly closed eyes. I prayed so hard that even the constant screeching of the monster’s scales against the stone was drowned out. For a moment there, I was sure that it was just me and God. As was his habit with me, God remained quiet, and I suddenly realized how frustrated Joshua must have been, asking always for a path to follow, a course of action, and being answered by nothing but silence. When I opened my eyes again dawn had broken over the cliff and light was streaming into the passageway. By full daylight the demon was even scarier. There was blood and gore all over him from the massacre of the girls, and even as he relentlessly wore away at the stone, flies buzzed around him, but as each tried to light on him it died instantly and fell to the floor. The stench of rotting flesh and burning scales was almost overwhelming, and that alone nearly sent me over the side of the cliff. The beast was only three or four cubits out of reach from us, and every few minutes he would rear back, then throw his claw forward to try and grab at us. Joy and I huddled on the landing over the cliff face, looking for any purchase, any handhold that would get us away from the beast: up, down, or sideways across the cliff face. The fear of heights had suddenly become very minor. I was beginning to be able to feel the breeze from the monster’s talons as he lunged into the narrow opening at us when I heard Balthasar’s deep bass shout from behind the beast. The monster filled the whole opening so I couldn’t see behind it, but he turned around and his spade-tipped tail whipped around us, nearly lacerating our skin as it passed. Joy drew the glass knife from her robe and slashed at the tail, nicking the scales but apparently not causing the monster enough trouble to turn around. â€Å"Balthasar will tame you, you son of a shit-eating lizard!† Joy screamed. Just then something came shooting through the opening and we ducked out of the way as it sailed into space and fell out of sight to the canyon floor, screeching like a falcon on the dive. â€Å"What was that?† Joy was trying to squint into infinity to see what the monster had thrown. â€Å"That was Balthasar,† I said. â€Å"Oops,† said Joy. Joshua yanked the great spade-tipped tail and the demon swung around with a ferocious snarl. Joshua held on to the tail even as the demon’s claws whistled by his face. â€Å"What is your name, demon?† Joshua said. â€Å"You won’t live long enough to say it,† said the demon. He raised his claw again to strike. Joshua yanked his tail and the demon froze. â€Å"No. That’s not right. What is your name?† â€Å"My name is Catch,† said the demon, dropping his arm to his side in surrender. â€Å"I know you. You’re the kid, aren’t you? They used to talk about you in the old days.† â€Å"Time for you to go home,† Joshua said. â€Å"Can’t I eat those two outside on the ledge first?† â€Å"No. Satan awaits you.† â€Å"They are really irritating. She peed on me.† â€Å"No.† â€Å"I’d be doing you a favor.† â€Å"You don’t want to hurt them now, do you?† The demon laid his ears back and bowed his enormous head. â€Å"No. I don’t want to hurt them.† â€Å"You’re not angry anymore,† Joshua said. The monster shook his head, he was already bent nearly double in the narrow passage, but now he prostrated himself before Joshua and covered his eyes with his claws. â€Å"Well, I’m still angry!† Balthasar screamed. Joshua turned to see the old man covered with blood and dirt, his clothes torn from where his broken bones had ripped through them on impact. He was healed now, only minutes after the fall, but not much better for having made the trip. â€Å"You survived that fall?† â€Å"I told you, as long as the demon is on earth, I’m immortal. But that was a first, he’s never been able to hurt me before.† â€Å"He won’t again.† â€Å"You have control over him? Because I don’t.† Joshua turned around and put his hand on the demon’s head. â€Å"This evil creature once beheld the face of God. This monster once served in heaven, obtained beauty, lived in grace, walked in light. Now he is the instrument of suffering. He is hideous of aspect and twisted in nature.† â€Å"Hey, watch it,† said the demon. â€Å"What I was going to say is that you can’t blame him for what he is. He has never had what you or any other human has had. He has never had free will.† â€Å"That is so sad,† said the demon. â€Å"One moment, Catch, I will let you taste that which you have never known. For one moment I will grant you free will.† The demon sobbed. Joshua took his hand from the demon’s head, then dropped his tail and walked out of the narrow passageway into the fortress hall. Balthasar stood beside him, waiting for the demon to emerge from the passageway. â€Å"Are you really able to do that? Give him free will?† â€Å"We’ll see, won’t we?† Catch crawled out of the passageway and stood up, now just ducking his head. Great viscous tears rolled down his scaled cheeks, over his jaws, and dripped to the stone floor, where they sizzled like acid. â€Å"Thank you,† he growled. â€Å"Free will,† Balthasar said. â€Å"How does that make you feel?† The demon snatched up the old man like a rag doll and tucked him under his arm. â€Å"It makes me feel like throwing you off the fucking cliff again.† â€Å"No,† said Joshua. He leapt forward and touched the demon’s chest. In that instant the air popped as the vacuum where the demon had stood was filled. Balthasar fell to the floor and groaned. â€Å"Well, that free will thing wasn’t such a great idea,† said Balthasar. â€Å"Sorry. Compassion got the better of me.† â€Å"I don’t feel well,† the magus said. He sat down hard on the floor and let out a long dry rasp of breath. Joy and I came out of the passage to find Joshua bent over Balthasar, who was actively aging as we looked on. â€Å"He’s two hundred and sixty years old,† Joshua said. â€Å"With Catch gone, his age is catching up.† The wizard’s skin had gone ashen and the whites of his eyes were yellow. Joy sat on the floor and gently cradled the old man’s head in her lap. â€Å"Where’s the monster?† I asked. â€Å"Back in hell,† Joshua said. â€Å"Help me get Balthasar to his bed. I’ll explain later.† We carried Balthasar to his bedchamber, where Joy tried to pour some broth into him, but he fell asleep with the bowl at his lips. â€Å"Can you help him?† I asked no one in particular. Joy shook her head. â€Å"He’s not sick. He’s just old.† â€Å"It is written, ‘To every thing there is a season,'† Joshua said. â€Å"I can’t change the seasons. Balthasar’s time has come round at last.† Then he looked at Joy and raised his eyebrows. â€Å"You peed on the demon?† â€Å"He had no right to complain. Before I came here I knew a man in Hunan who’d pay good money for that.† Balthasar lingered for ten more days, toward the end looking more like a skeleton wrapped in old leather than a man. In his last days he begged Joshua to forgive him his vanity and he called us to his bedside over and over to tell us the same things, as he would forget what he’d told us only a few hours before. â€Å"You will find Gaspar in the Temple of the Celestial Buddha, in the mountains to the east. There is a map in the library. Gaspar will teach you. He is truly a wise man, not a charlatan like me. He will help you become the man you need to be to do what you must do, Joshua. And Biff, well, you might not turn out terrible. It’s cold where you are going. Buy furs along the way, and trade the camels for the woolly ones with two humps.† â€Å"He’s delirious,† I said. Joy said, â€Å"No, there really are woolly camels with two humps.† â€Å"Oh, sorry.† â€Å"Joshua,† Balthasar called. â€Å"If nothing else, remember the three jewels.† Then the old man closed his eyes and stopped breathing. â€Å"He dead?† I asked. Joshua put his ear to the old man’s heart. â€Å"He’s dead.† â€Å"What was that about three jewels?† â€Å"The three jewels of the Tao: compassion, moderation, and humility. Balthasar said compassion leads to courage, moderation leads to generosity, and humility leads to leadership.† â€Å"Sounds wonky,† I said. â€Å"Compassion,† Joshua whispered, nodding toward Joy, who was silently crying over Balthasar. I put my arm around her shoulders and she turned and sobbed into my chest. â€Å"What will I do now? Balthasar is dead. All of my friends are dead. And you two are leaving.† â€Å"Come with us,† Joshua said. â€Å"Uh, sure, come with us.† But Joy did not come with us. We stayed in Balthasar’s fortress for another six months, waiting for winter to pass before we went into the high mountains to the east. I cleaned the blood from the girls’ quarters while Joy helped Joshua to translate some of Balthasar’s ancient texts. The three of us shared our meals, and occasionally Joy and I would have a tumble for old times’ sake, but it felt as if the life had gone out of the place. When it came time for us to leave, Joy told us of her decision. â€Å"I can’t go with you to find Gaspar. Women are not allowed in the monastery, and I have no desire to live in the backwater village nearby. Balthasar has left me much gold, and everything in the library, but it does me no good out here in the mountains. I will not stay in this tomb with only the ghosts of my friends for company. Soon Ahmad will come, as he does every spring, and I will have him help me take the treasure and the scrolls to Kabul, where I will buy a large house and hire servants and I will have them bring me young boys to corrupt.† â€Å"I wish I had a plan,† I said. â€Å"Me too,† said Josh. The three of us celebrated Joshua’s eighteenth birthday with the traditional Chinese food, then the next morning Joshua and I packed up the camels and prepared to head east. â€Å"Are you sure you’ll be all right until Ahmad comes?† Joshua asked Joy. â€Å"Don’t worry about me, you go learn to be a Messiah.† She kissed him hard on the lips. He squirmed to get loose from her and he was still blushing as he climbed onto his camel. â€Å"And you,† she said to me, â€Å"you will come to see me in Kabul on your way back to Israel or I will put such a curse on you as you’ll never be free of it.† She took the little ying-yang vial full of poison and antidote from around her neck and put it around mine. It might have seemed a strange gift to anyone else, but I was the sorceress’s apprentice and it seemed perfect to me. She tucked the black glass knife into my sash. â€Å"No matter how long it takes, come back and see me. I promise I won’t paint you blue again.† I promised her and we kissed and I climbed on my camel and Joshua and I rode off. I tried not to look back, once again, to another woman who had stolen my heart. We rode a half a furlong apart, each of us considering the past and future of our lives, who we had been and who we were going to be, and it was a couple of hours before I caught up with Joshua and broke the silence. I thought of how Joy had taught me to read and speak Chinese, to mix potions and poisons, to cheat at gambling, to perform slight of hand, and where and how to properly touch a woman. All of it without expecting anything in return. â€Å"Are all women stronger and better than me?† â€Å"Yes,† he said. It was another day before we spoke again. Part III Compassion Torah! Torah! Torah! WAR CRY OF THE KAMIKAZE RABBIS How to cite Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Chapter 15, Essay examples

Tuesday, April 28, 2020

Romantic Vs Classical Essays - Painting, Mural, Landscape, Above

Romantic Vs Classical In the 18th century, there was a period that we called Neo classicism. In this period most of all paintings had the same characteristic which are dark and simple background colors, very masculine, stressed heroism, frieze, sharp edges, more geometric and flat. As we seen in Jean Ingres paintingThe Turkeys Slave, we could see from the simple background and the very sharp edges of her body. Comparing to the classical period, one of the murals that I found around the campus. I decided to use the mural designed by Grant Wood which title is Breaking the Prairie Sod to be one example which have the same characteristic with the classical period even though it had painted in the 19th century. This mural is locate at the main floor east lobby of Parks Library. Actually this mural depicts the breaking of Iowa's virgin soil in the early 1840s with a woman standing beside a man who is drinking out of a jug while his hand rests on the handle of a wooden plow. There are dramatic cloud formations behind them and a view across the field and prairie. And this mural symbolized a lot of things that I never thought before for example; the man in the picture, presented in youth, middle age and maturity, represents Abraham Lincoln, who signed the Morrill Act that founded land-grant educational institutions of which Iowa State is one. Lincoln's presence also sends a strong message to students who view the mural, that with hard work, dedication, honesty and education, that they too could grow up to become president of the United States. I choose this mural become my comparison because this mural has a lot of common with the classical period. The man here represent the masculine (manly) and sort of heroism things, even though the background color is clear and bright but its so simple background and has a lot of sharp edges and geometric line. Because of it was painted on the 19th century so its not really classical. Also at the same time with the Classical period there was another artist whose name is Eugene Delacroix, he was a famous painter who painted The Death of Sardanapalus this period we called the romantic period. At this time the characteristic of painting was changing, at this moment the painting more expressed the emotion of the painter, sublime ( it means that the picture makes us flow into the picture, seems like we feel that we are include or feel what was going on in the picture ), its also have 3 main contents ; the earth, water, and sky (air) and more natural. For the comparison, I choose the mural which drawn by Heggen, Richard. The title of his mural is Water, Land, and Sky it was painted on 1984 and the medium is watercolor. In this painting we could see the landscape scene with sky above green fields and a view of lake shoreline and lake in front. This mural has a lot of common with the romantic period, first it has the 3 main contents which already shown from the titlewater, land, and sky, this painting represent a calm situation, very quite, and so peaceful. I think romantic style more shown in the landscape painting, because a landscape painting show us more about nature, peaceful world, etc. I like romantic style more than the classical style, I like something that very peaceful not a manly thing which the classical style characteristic. Arts Essays

Friday, March 20, 2020

Beyond The Burning Time Character Analyasis essays

Beyond The Burning Time Character Analyasis essays Beyond the Burning Time by Kathryn Lasky is a wonderful novel about the truth and lies of the Salem Witch Trials. During this time, one is either an accuser or the accused. The Chase family is desperately trying to keep calm. Mary Chase, the young daughter of widowed Virginia Chase, and younger sister of Caleb Chase is trying to understand what is going on around her. Mary Chase will not be drawn into the scandal of the Salem Witch Trials, instead she is persistently trying to free her mother from the lies set against her, while trying to help her family survive this crazy time of false accusations and incrimination. Mary Chase is unlike the other girls in Salem Town. She never has any free time to become drawn into the mischeif going on in the town. "And they find the days long. They're not like you, young Mary. You're so busy helping your dear mother on the farm you never have time to think about such things" (Lasky, 32). Mary must help her mother with running the family business, since her father died, and her older brother is being apprentice at the same shipyard where her father was master carpenter before he died. Mary has set chores, which she must perform daily in order to keep the farm properly running. Her daily chores include, mucking out the barn, shimming the fence, helping with the cooking, and sopping the runt piglets. These must be done everyday, or else the farm will not be able to properly function, and if the farm cannot properly function then they will lose money and become poor. The chores are a necessity to the survival of the Chase farm. Persistance seems to be Mary's middle name. She never lets anything rest, even when it seems that everyone else has given up hope. "Mary seems to have more energy, more imagination. Her mind is endlessly working on a plan for escape. But Caleb's mind locks on those terrible stuffed bundles swinging from the tree limbs on Gallows Hill" (Lasky, 214). Continually, Mary is try...

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

How to Become an Instructional Designer

How to Become an Instructional Designer Instructional design is a relatively new industry, employing people in organizations, schools, and for-profit companies. Read on to find out what instructional design is, what kind of background designers need, and how to get a job designing educational experiences. What Is an Instructional Designer? In a nutshell, instructional designers create educational programs for schools and companies. Many organizations have found that the internet provides a huge opportunity for providing virtual instruction, but that designing effective online educational programs isnt easy. A subject matter expert, like a history teacher, may be excellent at leading a class in-person. But, he may not have the technical know-how or an understanding of how to present information in a way that would make an effective online course. Thats where instructional designers come in. What Does an Instructional Designer Do? Theres a lot of variety in the day-to-day work of an instructional designer. They regularly meet with clients or subject matter experts to determine how to best present information to students. They may also edit content for clarity, write instructions for assignments, and design or create learning interactives. Additionally, they may be involved (or even run) the creative side of the equation, producing videos, making podcasts, and working with photography. Designers can expect to spend their days creating storyboards, reviewing content, and asking a lot of questions. What Education Training Does an Instructional Designer Need? There is no standard requirement for instructional designers, and many companies and schools hire designers with extremely different backgrounds. Generally, organizations are looking for employees with at least a bachelors degree (often a masters degree), strong editing skills, and the ability to work well with people. Project management experience is also highly desirable. In recent years, Instructional Design masters degrees have become increasingly popular as are certificate programs for those that already hold a masters degree in a different subject. Instructional Design Ph.D. programs are also available. However, the general consensus is that a Ph.D. generally makes candidates over-qualified for most instructional design jobs and is more suitable for those that would like to be an administrator or director of an instructional design team. Many employers are more concerned with a candidates technical abilities. A resume that lists competency in programs like Adobe Flash, Captivate, Storyline, Dreamweaver, Camtasia, and similar programs is highly desirable. Designers should also have the ability to put themselves into someone elses shoes. Someone that can suspend their own understanding and imagine encountering information for the first time will often make a good designer. What Kind of Experience Does an Instructional Designer Need? There is no standard experience that employers are looking for. However, they do prefer that designers have worked to create educational programs before. A track record of previous design experience is highly desirable. Many instructional design schools require students to complete capstone projects that will be used instructionally and can also be included on the graduates resume. New designers may seek out interns with colleges or organizations to build their resumes. Where Can Instructional Designers Find Jobs? While there are more instructional design jobs every year, finding them isnt always easy. One of the first places to look is on university job postings. Many schools post opportunities on their own websites and fail to publicize them more openly. HigherEd Jobs has one of the more comprehensive lists of jobs available at universities. Employers tend to post openings on virtual job boards like Monster, Indeed, or Yahoo Careers. Attending instructional design or e-learning conferences is a good place to network and seek out potential job leads. Additionally, many areas have local networks of instructional design professionals that meet regularly and communicate via social networking. Having a friend in the industry is a smart way to get connected.

Sunday, February 16, 2020

Disclosure Analysis Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Disclosure Analysis Paper - Essay Example Assets assist in determining the value of the company; hence, providing information to investors. A comprehensive financial report should provide a total of the fixed and current assets that an organization has in order to give support in the calculation of the total amount of working capital available (Israelsen, 2001). The ratio between the total number of assets available to the total number of liabilities aids in coming up with the working capital of an organization. Therefore, a ratio above one indicates that the company has more chances of success rather than failure. The Christopher Corporation segments its company assets into three key parts, which include current assets, fixed assets and other assets. The first category, which includes current assets like cash equivalents and cash, receivables and inventory, convert to cash easily and faster. The cash and cash equivalents engross cash in hand, cash at bank and treasury bills that add up to a total of 20, 000 dollars. In the case of Christopher Corporation, the amount of money available is low indicating that the company has fewer assets in the form of cash. Cash equivalents such as the treasury bills and the cash at bank also seem generally low. A retail business incurs a number of expenses, and the rate of cash inflow is lower than the amount of cash outflow. Additionally, a large number of debtors could also lead to low cash count. The second category of current assets includes receivables, which mainly constitute of debtors. Debts to a business refer to the amount of money other people, groups or firms owe the subject company, which is Christopher Corporation. Debts are either long term or short term depending on the agreement. In the above balance sheet, the records show that the corporation has a total of $60,000 receivable debts. As a trade organization, the company may sell some products or services on credit. A

Sunday, February 2, 2020

Organization Design Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Organization Design - Essay Example For example, in the case of a pharmaceutical company, power is retained by the R&D department because it is the very department that generates resources. Which subunits qualify for receiving the information is dictated by the organizational structure. When a certain subunit in the organizational structure has more control over information compared to other subunits, it is capable of influencing the opinions and accordingly influence the decision making process. Subunits that are central to the organization have more power than others. Manufacturing is central in a low-cost organizational culture. Organizations sometimes need to assign more power to a certain subunit in order to ensure that it makes optimal use of the resources. The balance of power between the different subunits is not always suitable for effective utilization of the resources (Jones, 2010, p. 423). Apart from this, there can be relational ties between the executive managers and the head of one of the subunits, which can become a reason for more delegation of power to that subunit compared to

Saturday, January 25, 2020

Management of Geriatric Health Facilities

Management of Geriatric Health Facilities Nirpreet Kaur Brar ABSTRACT The main purpose of the report is to tell about the different organisation’s services provided to elderly and how they can bring more improvements in their services. It also describes how to minimize the stigma impacts on individuals and their family. In this report the problems among elderly are described and the management of those problems is also described in the report. The report was descriptive in nature. The data was analysed and interpreted. INTRODUCTION In the field of healthcare, support planning for geriatric clients and family is packed with excitement, challenges, obstacles, confusions or frustrations, but all these are combined with the sense of purpose and commitment. Geriatric care management is the process in which planning and coordinating care of the elderly is done to meet the long term care needs of the elders, improving the quality of life of the elderly and maintaining the independence of the old people for a long time. It makes a part to work with persons of old age and their families to manage, render and refer various types of health and social care services. The common medical conditions which affect elderly are diabetes mellitus, hypertension and dementia etcetera. TASK-1 Identify and critically analyse the kind of support and access to community support services Kindly residential care rest home. Select at least five different organisations and explain how their services assist the elderly with common geriatric health conditions. Answer: -1) The Parkinsonism society of New Zealand (Parkinson’s New Zealand):- This society is for the old people who are affected by Parkinson’s. It provides support not just to the individuals with Parkinson’s but to their friends and families also. There is a list below for the carer to consider for providing care to the old persons:- Sufficient information about the need of the person you are supporting. Should have a diary to keep and record the symptoms and difficulties of the person you are caring. Should ask the Parkinson’s community educator about the financial benefits of the old person. Consider about the feelings and what you are doing. Should contact with other carers. It is the key to provide invaluable mutual support, ideas, information and friendship. Should promote independence for the person you are caring for. 2) Alzheimer’s New Zealand: The Alzheimer’s services are available to everyone who has dementia. The groups of this society are free and available in variety of locations such as North, south, east and west. The workers provide a comprehensive range of help and support of dementia which includes:- Telephone consultation and advice Home visits Family groups and individual consultations Excellent information resources Home based dementia support provides:- One to one socialisation for the person with dementia either in home or by the outings etcetera The staff runs weekly activity groups for people with dementia’s early stage for providing appropriate socialisation and stimulation. The Alzheimer’s New Zealand is strategic framework which is demanding and based on future for the national dementia community which provides the direction which in turns required for us to know how to meet the challenge of dementia at present or in the future. In New Zealand dementia is one of the most significant and growing challenge of the health care. There is a framework which challenges all of the organisations in the dementia community. 3) Arthritis New Zealand: Arthritis New Zealand is not-for-profit organisation which aims at enabling a better quality of life to the people which are affected by arthritis? It works in the areas of education, direct support and public awareness etcetera. It is one of the New Zealand’s leading charities which represent the interest of 530,000 people which are living with this painful disease. It aims at enabling a better quality of life for the people having arthritis. The generous community and their contribution help it. It costs $5.6 million annually to provide essential services. The 12% of this cost is provided by the government to the organisation. The rest of the cost has to find from elsewhere. For example through fundraising activities like lotteries and Annual Appeals. The net income which is raised through these fundraising activities is spent throughout 21 arthritis centres. 4) Osteoporosis New Zealand:-Osteoporosis New Zealand is a national organisation which aims at reducing the incidence of osteoporosis in New Zealand. It was formed for the aim of raising awareness and knowledge of osteoporosis and for providing a national voice for people with osteoporosis and for those who are at risk. The main objective of this society is to:- Improve bone health for all New Zealanders. Develop a culture in New Zealand for valuing bone health for life. Osteoporosis New Zealand is dedicated to improve bone health for all New Zealanders at all stages of life. This is done by scientific evidence based decision making through the development of management recommendations and position statements by providing advice, educational material and information for the public and advocating for better access to diagnosis and medication for osteoporosis. 5) Glaucoma New Zealand: Glaucoma New Zealand is a charitable interest which aims at eliminating blindness from glaucoma. It is number one preventable cause in New Zealand. Glaucoma aims at:- Enhancing public awareness regarding glaucoma Supporting and informing people with glaucoma Educating eye health workers for ensuring high quality services. Facilitate research into glaucoma. The key massage of glaucoma New Zealand is that the early detection of glaucoma is vital to prevent blindness which means an eye examination every five years from the age of 45 and every three years from the age of sixty. However at any age any changes noticed in eyesight then eye examination is necessary at that time. It is really important for the people to know that if glaucoma runs in their family the risk increases among every member substantially. At the age of 60 there are more chances of getting glaucoma or short sighted, if anybody used to consume drugs in past or present or have eye injury. Glaucoma activities include:- To aid early detection of glaucoma annual public awareness campaigns are established For educating the people and those with the interest of glaucoma regular public meetings are conducted for helping them to understand about the disease condition and treatment of that disease A glaucoma membership information package Eyesight publication- a regular newsletter sent free Support and inform people with glaucoma Participating in education of health professionals involved in glaucoma care Supporting research into glaucoma In information and education of glaucoma following things are done:- Presentation at public meetings around the country Free information packs for people who are registered Advisory service Fact sheets for distribution by ophthalmologists and optometrists Quarterly newsletter:eyelights b) Select at least six of the following type of services provision and explain how these assist the elderly with common geriatric health condition Hospitals: A hospital provides emergency medical care; intensive treatment; diagnostic testing and it may or may not require admission. The elder people use hospitals more than the younger people. The geriatric interdisciplinary team identifies and meet the complex needs of the old patients and watch for and prevent common problems among the old people. This team aim to ensure the following:- The patient can move easily from one care setting to another care setting The care is not duplicated 2) Residential care: Private companies and not-for-profit organisation provides the residential care in New Zealand. In most of the cases care cost of the individual is subsidised by the government funding which is known as residential care subsidy. Residential care divided into four levels: rest home care long term care hospital, dementia care and psycho geriatric care. Some of the homes provide all levels of care but some do not. 3) Psychiatric services: It is a time limited service which provides assessment, treatment, and management rehabilitation and consultation advice for old people who have functional or organic health conditions. The services are delivered in holistic way that acknowledges and takes account of the client’s cultural, social and spiritual needs as well as their disability and health needs. The service is provided in one of the following locations:- Dedicated mental health service for old people Acute adult mental health ward Assessment and treatment beds in private hospitals Clinics including outreach to rural and remote areas 4) Dementia advisors: Dementia advisors provide following services:- Education and training for people with dementia and their families. Workforce training and education Readily accessible services Governance Culturally appropriate services Funding streams Monitoring and evaluation Advocacy 5) Nursing homes: These are to maximize the physical functioning minimize or prevent the decline in daily living activity and plan for transitions of care. The care strategies include: Maintaining daily routines of individuals. Educate older adults, family and formal caregivers on the value of independent functioning and the consequences of functional decline. Minimize bed rest 6) Sheltered housing: The New Zealand population is ageing. But within the older population older age groups are increasing rapidly which results in increasing of life expectancy, which is higher for women as compared to men due to which women will experience more years with the disability at the end of the life. These factors combine to underline the vulnerability of older women and to suggest that their needs be given a high profile in the planning and designing for housing for older people. TASK-2 QUESTION- Kindly residential care rest home management would like you to prepare an outline of a booklet that they could have printed and use as part of the educational material supplied to stakeholders within the organisation which include staff, individual clients and family members. Management have identified the following stigma impacts: Social isolation of the individual and their family Answer: People living alone have few social connections and the nature of the dementia can make it hard for them to maintain social contacts. It can be defined as the absence of social interactions, contacts and relationships with family and friends. It is considered as a risk factor in disease development and in the existing disease disability. It is included as well as in the measure of quality of life and thus it is an outcome and also risk factor. Social isolation consideration almost always occurs in the context of social support and the two in most cases are used interchangeably. Both concepts are defined inexactly over the past few decades. A new study has shown that being socially isolated can have a greater effect on risk of early death especially among the elderly. In addition feeling of loneliness reported by the participants often linked with isolation was not significantly linked with death risks. Assumption of automatic loss of independence:- Answer: One may feel that by asking others for help, you will lose your sense of self or become dependent. The policies which are designed to meet the challenges of old population should be based on understandings of process of disability in old age. Unable to make decisions about own care:- Answer: Patients have the right to participate in decisions about their care, e.g., diagnostic and treatment interventions, diet, ambulation, daily care, and end-of-life care. Consent to diagnostic and treatment interventions requires that the patient demonstrate their ability to consider the benefits, burdens and risks of the decision. Whether or not an individual has the capacity to understand, make a decision and take responsibility for the consequences of the decision is a clinical determination; it is not a question of legal competence. Persons with mild-to-moderate dementia can have the capacity to make some, but not all, decisions. They may be able to participate in decision making but impaired memory recall might preclude their ability to demonstrate that they understand the treatment options. Dissatisfying interactions with the medical community Answer: One of the barrier that put the person with dementia in serious conditions by approving and complying to medical management. Many researchers stress the clinical and theoretical importance of effective communication in medical encounters Both empirical data and clinical experience suggest that there are important ways that physicians can maintain and enhance the health and well-being of patients, as well as family caregivers, by fostering mutuality through a triadic relationship Geriatric patients usually have a complex array of interacting biomedical, psychosocial, and functional disabilities .Caregivers play a substantial role in assisting patients in daily activities .In addition to the physical disabilities associated with age related co-morbidities, many older patients have cognitive impairment that compromises their ability to exercise judgment and report symptoms and experiences. Caregivers have knowledge of the patients physical, social, cognitive, and financial well-being, and bring this information to the medical encounter. This factor necessitates that physicians extend their learning possibilities and information-giving practices to caregivers. Research on geriatric encounters typically focuses on the many problems that exist between doctors and their geriatric patients, especially difficulties of patient communication .Other studies call attention to problems with the elderly persons capacity for self-care. Wait kin (1991) notes that some of the most interesting and important features of research on geriatric medical encounters involve concerns about matters that appear marginal or peripheral to the technical goals of clinical medicine. He found that elderly patients personal troubles included social isolation, financial insecurity, loss of community and material possessions, death of family members, and retirement from work. Physicians often responded to such social psychological problems by cutting off any discussion about social context and reemphasizing technical matters. At best, the current literature only implicitly addresses the pivotal role caregivers play in this relationship. Uncertainty of support and treatments:- In 2010/11 a wide range of health professionals, service providers and consumers were engaged in a process to develop a new way to deliver good quality, safe and sustainable services to meet the needs of the increasing number of older people in Hawke’s Bay. The model outlined in this document was been developed in line with the key principles of the government’s Better, Sooner, More Convenient and initiative. Evidence of what really makes a difference in the lives of older people was drawn upon, along with evidence of what has worked to reduce the pressure on hospitals both in New Zealand and overseas. Many older people especially those who are intensive users of health and support services have long term health conditions and support needs that require ongoing monitoring and follow-up. The model of care described here has been developed as a generic model which has the potential to be applied to other client groups with long term needs. Report prepared by Andrea Joplin, Project ManagerKey developments outlined in this paper includes: The establishment of an Older Person’s Health Service within Hawke’s Bay DHB. The closer alignment of the over 65s team at Options Hawke’s Bay with the DHB’s Older Person’s Health Services. The establishment of interdisciplinary Care Clusters aligned to General Practice groups to include a Care Manager, Allied Health and District Nursing. Piecemeal changes to older people’s services are unlikely to make significant gains in the quality of life for our clients or achieve clinical and financial sustainability. The development of Care Manager Roles to undertake comprehensive assessment, care planning and service coordination for older patients with very complex needs. The development of Community Geriatrician resources. The resourcing of intermediate care services in community settings. The development of restorative home-based support services. The Steering Group recognised at the outset of the planning process that piecemeal changes to older people’s services were unlikely to make significant gains in the quality of life for our clients or achieve clinical and financial sustainability. As such the developments discussed in this paper are not insignificant. However, changes will be made in an evolutionary, rather than revolutionary manner and the model may take several years to fully implement. Changes will need to be carefully planned and implemented in stages, as finances and other resources allow. There is a window of opportunity to begin service developments before the increase in the number of adults aged over 85 years begins in earnest in 2013-2014. It will be possible to redirect existing resources to fund some of the new services in 2011/12, but there will also be a need for further investment in coming years as the proportion of older people in the Hawke’s Bay population grows. RECOMMENDATIONS There should be regular monitoring of the services to maintain good performance and to assess the areas of improvements. Planning should be made to provide good services and then that planning should be implemented in a better way. Sufficient staff should be there in every organisation to support and treat the old people. Good management for everything is very necessary. Conclusion The group believed that utmost management of geriatric health facilities is as important to the safety of the patient, the value given to staff, and the profit of the institution. The staff’s safety is also as much important as the patient’s safety. If staff will be good then only he /she can take care of his residences. REFRENCES Alzheimer’s New Zealand (1982) Retrieved from http://alzheimers.org.nz/ Hospital care and elderly (2013) Retrieved from http://merckmanuals.com/geriatrics/elderly/hospital_care_and_the_elderly Mental health services for old people (2014) Retrieved from http://otago.ac.nz/christchurch/otago014051 Social isolation among older individuals (1992) Retrieved from http://nap.edu/openbook.php Loss and recovery of independence among seniors (July 2002) Retrieved from http://odesi1.scholarsportal.info/documentation/PHIRN/NSAI/6316-eng

Friday, January 17, 2020

Organizational change Essay

Organizational change is an ongoing process with important implications for organizational effectiveness. An organization and its members must be constantly on the alert for changes from within the organization and from the outside environment, and they must learn how to adjust to change quickly and effectively. Organizational change is the movement of an organization away from its present state and toward some future state to increase its effectiveness. Forces for organizational change include competitive forces; economic, political, and global forces; demographic and social forces; and ethical forces. Organizations are often reluctant to change because resistance to change at the organization, group, and individual levels has given rise to organizational inertia. Sources of organization-level resistance to change include power and conflict, differences in functional orientation, mechanistic structure, and organizational culture. Sources of group-level resistance to change include group norms, group cohesiveness, and groupthink and escalation of commitment. Sources of individual-level resistance to change include uncertainty and insecurity, selective perception and retention, and habit. According to Lewin’s force-field theory of change, organizations are balanced between forces pushing for change and forces resistant to change. To get an organization to change, managers must find a way to increase the forces for change, reduce resistance to change, or do both simultaneously. Types of change fall into two broad categories: evolutionary and revolutionary. The main instruments of evolutionary change are sociotechnical systems theory, total quality management, and the development of flexible workers and work teams. The main instruments of revolutionary change are reengineering, restructuring, and innovation. Often, the revolutionary types of change that result from restructuring and reengineering are necessary only because an organization and its managers ignored or were unaware of changes in the environment and did not make incremental changes as needed. Action research is a strategy that managers can use to plan the change process. The main steps in action research are (a) diagnosis and analysis of the organization, (b) determining the desired future state, (c) implementing action, (d) evaluating the action, and (e) institutionalizing action research. Organizational development (OD) is a series of techniques and methods to increase the adaptability of organizations. OD techniques can be used to overcome resistance to change and to help the organization to change itself. OD techniques for dealing with resistance to change include education and communication, participation and empowerment, facilitation, bargaining and negotiation, manipulation, and coercion. OD techniques for promoting change include, at the individual level, counseling, sensitivity training, and process consultation; at the group level, team building and intergroup training; and at the organizational level, organizational confrontation meetings. CHAPTER OUTLINE 10. 1 What Is Organizational Change? Organizational change is the process by which organizations move from their current or present state to some desired future state to increase their effectiveness. An organization in decline may need to restructure its competences and resources to improve its fit with a changing environment. Even thriving, high-performing organizations such as Google, Apple, and Facebook need to continuously change the way they operate over time to meet ongoing challenges. Targets of Change Organizational change includes changes in four areas: 1. Human resources are an organization’s most important asset. Because these skills and abilities give an organization a competitive advantage, organizations must continually monitor their structures to find the most effective way of motivating and organizing human resources to acquire and use their skills. Changes made in human resources include investment in training, socializing employees, changing norms to motivate a diverse workforce, monitoring promotion and reward systems, and changing top management. 2. Each organizational function needs to develop procedures that allow it to manage the particular environment it faces. Crucial functions grow in importance while those whose usefulness is declining shrink. Thus, key functions grow in importance. Organizations can change structure, culture, and technology to improve the value created by functions. 3 Organizational change often involves changing the relationships between people and functions to increase their ability to create value. 10. 2 Forces for and Resistance to Organizational Change Forces for Change If managers are slow to respond to the forces of change, the organization will lag behind its competitors and its effectiveness will be compromised. (Refer to Figure 10. 1) Competitive forces spur change, because unless an organization matches or surpasses its competitors it will not survive. Managing change is crucial when competing for customers. To lead on the dimensions of efficiency or quality, an organization must constantly adopt the latest technology as it becomes available. To lead on the dimension of innovation and obtain a technological advantage over competitors, a company must possess skills in managing the process of innovation. Economic, political, and global forces, such as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) or other economic unions, are significant forces of change. The European Union (EU) includes over 27 members eager to take advantage of a large protected market. Global challenges facing organizations include the need to change an organizational structure to allow expansion into foreign markets, the need to adapt to a variety of national cultures, and the need to help expatriate managers adapt to the economic, political, and cultural values of the countries in which they are located. Demographic and social forces include an increasingly diverse workforce. Changes in the demographic characteristics of the workforce require managers to change their styles of managing all employees and to learn how to understand, supervise, and motivate diverse members effectively. Many workers want to balance work and leisure. Managers need to abandon stereotypes and accept the importance of equity in the recruitment and promotion of new hires. Ethical forces such as increasing government, political, and social demands for more responsible and honest corporate behavior are compelling organizations to promote ethical behavior. Many companies have created the position of ethics officer. If organizations operate in countries that pay little attention to human rights or to the well-being of organizational members, they have to learn how to change these standards and to protect their overseas employees. Resistances to Change Resistance to change lowers an organization’s effectiveness and reduces its chances of survival. Resistances or impediments to change that cause inertia are found at the organization, group, and individual levels. (Refer to Figure 10. 1) Organization-Level Resistance to Change Power and conflict: When change causes power struggles and organizational conflict, an organization is likely to resist it. If change benefits one function at the expense of another, conflict impedes the change process. In the old IBM, for example, managers of its mainframe computer division fought off attempts to redirect IBM’s resources to produce the PCs that customers wanted in order to preserve their own power. Differences in functional orientation: This means that different functions and divisions often see the source of a problem differently because they see an issue or problem primarily from their own viewpoint. This tunnel vision increases organizational inertia. Mechanistic structure: Mechanistic structures are more resistant to change. People who work within a mechanistic structure are expected to act in certain ways and do not develop the capacity to adjust their behavior to changing conditions. A mechanistic structure typically develops as an organization grows and is a principal source of inertia, especially in large organizations. The extensive use of mutual adjustment and decentralized authority in an organic structure makes it less resistant to change. Organizational culture: Organizational culture, values, and norms cause resistance to change. If organizational change disrupts taken-for-granted values and norms and forces people to change what they do and how they do it, an organization’s culture will cause resistance to change. Group-Level Resistance to Change Many groups develop strong informal norms that specify appropriate and inappropriate behaviors and govern the interactions between group members. Often, change alters task and role relationships in a group; when it does, it disrupts group norms and the informal expectations that group members have of one another. As a result, members of a group may resist change because a new set of norms must be developed to meet the needs of the new situation. Group cohesiveness, the attractiveness of a group to its members, also affects group performance. A highly cohesive group may resist attempts by management to change what it does or even who is a member of the group. Groupthink and escalation of commitment also make changing a group’s behavior very difficult. Individual-Level Resistance to Change People tend to resist change because they feel uncertain and insecure about what its outcome will be. Selective perception and retention suggest that people perceive information consistent with their views. If change doesn’t benefit them, they do not endorse it. People’s preference for familiar actions and events is a further impediment to change. Lewin’s Force-Field Theory of Change Force-field theory is a theory of organizational change that argues that two sets of opposing forces within an organization determine how change will take place. When the forces are evenly balanced, the organization is in a state of inertia and does not change. To get an organization to change, managers must find a way to increase the forces for change, reduce resistance to change, or do both simultaneously. Any of these strategies will overcome inertia and cause an organization to change. (Refer to Figure 10. 2) Managerial Implications Managers must continuously monitor the environment to identify the forces for change. They must analyze how the change will affect the organization and determine which type of change to pursue. 10. 3 Evolutionary and Revolutionary Change in Organizations Evolutionary change refers to change that is gradual, incremental, and specifically focused. It adds small adjustments to strategy and structure to handle environmental changes. Sociotechnical systems theory, total quality management, and the creation of empowered, flexible work groups are three instruments of evolutionary change that organizations use in their attempt to make incremental improvements in the way work gets done. Revolutionary change refers to change that is sudden, drastic, and organization-wide. It has repercussions at all levels in the organization—corporate, divisional, functional, group, and individual. Three ways to implement revolutionary change are reengineering, restructuring, and innovation. Developments in Evolutionary Change: Sociotechnical Systems Theory Sociotechnical systems theory is a theory that proposes the importance of changing role and task or technical relationships to increase organizational effectiveness. It emerged from a study of changing work practices in the British coal-mining industry. The socio-technical systems theory argues that managers need to fit or jointly optimize the workings of the technical and social systems. A poor fit between an organization’s technology and social system leads to failure, but a close fit leads to success. When managers change task and role relationships, they must recognize the need to adjust the technical and social systems gradually so group norms and cohesiveness are not disrupted. By taking this gradual approach, an organization can avoid the group-level resistance to change. Researchers suggest that a team-oriented system promotes values that enhance efficiency and product quality. Total quality management uses sociotechnical systems theory. Total Quality Management Total quality management (TQM) is a technique developed by W. Edwards Deming to continuously improve the effectiveness of flexible work teams. It was embraced by Japanese companies after World War II. Changes frequently inspired by TQM include altering the design or type of machines used to assemble products and reorganizing the sequence of activities—either within or between functions—necessary to provide a service to a customer. Changing cross-functional relationships to help improve quality is important in TQM. The changes associated with TQM are changes in task, role, and group relationships. Implementing a TQM program is not always easy because it requires workers and managers to adopt new ways of viewing their roles in an organization. Managers must be willing to decentralize control of decision making, empower workers, and assume the role of facilitator rather than supervisor. The â€Å"command and control† model gives way to an â€Å"advise and support† model. Flexible Workers and Flexible Work Teams In implementing socio-technical systems theory and TQM, many organizations are finding it easier to achieve their goals by using flexible workers and teams. Flexible workers can be transferred between departments and functions as demand changes. The advantages of flexible workers include quick response to environmental changes; reduced boredom and increased incentives for quality; better understanding by learning one another’s tasks; and combining tasks to increase efficiency and reduce costs. A flexible work team is a group of workers who assume responsibility for performing all the operations necessary for completing a specified stage in the manufacturing process. A flexible work team is self-managed; members jointly assign tasks and transfer from one task to another. In a flexible work team, separate teams assemble different components and turn those components over to the final-product work team, which assembles the final product. Each team’s activities are driven by demands that have their origins in customer demands for the final product. (Refer to Figure 10. 3) Developments in Revolutionary Change: Reengineering The term â€Å"reengineering† has been used to refer to the process by which managers redesign how tasks are bundled into roles and functions to improve organizational effectiveness. It involves rethinking business processes, activities that cross functional boundaries. Instead of focusing on an organization’s functions in isolation from one another, managers make business processes the focus of attention. A business process is an activity that cuts across functional boundaries and is vital to the quick delivery of goods and services or that promotes high quality or low costs. Because reengineering focuses on business processes and not functions, an organization must rethink the way it approaches organizing its activities. A good example of how to use reengineering to increase functional integration comes from attempts to redesign the materials management function to improve its effectiveness. In the traditional functional design the three main components of materials management—purchasing, production control, and distribution—were typically in separate functions and had little to do with one another. Thus coordinating their activities is difficult. Each function has its own hierarchy, and there are problems in both vertical and horizontal communication. Today, most organizations put all three of the functional activities involved in the materials management process inside one function. Three guidelines for performing reengineering successfully are as follows: Organize around outcomes, not tasks. 2. Have those who use the output of the process perform the process. 3. Decentralize decision making to the point where the decision is made. Reengineering and TQM are highly interrelated and complementary. E-Engineering This is a term used to refer to companies’ attempts to use all kinds of information systems to improve performance. The importance of e-engineering is increasing as it changes the way a company organizes its value-creation functions and links them to improve its performance. Restructuring Restructuring is a process by which managers change task and authority relationships and redesign organizational structure and culture to improve organizational effectiveness. Downsizing is the process by which managers streamline the organizational hierarchy and lay off managers and workers to reduce bureaucratic costs. The drive to decrease bureaucratic costs results from competitive pressures. Mergers and acquisitions in many industries, such as banking, have led to downsizing because fewer managers are needed. Other companies have reduced staff to match competitors. The negative effects of downsizing include overworked managers and lost opportunities. Companies that fail to control growth must downsize to remain competitive. The terms anorexic or hollow are used to refer to organizations that downsized too much and have too few managers to help them grow when conditions change. Restructuring, like other change strategies, generates resistance to change. Often, the decision to downsize requires the establishment of new task and role relationships. Because this change may threaten the jobs of some workers, they resist the changes taking place. Innovation Innovation refers to the process by which organizations use their skills and resources to develop new goods and services or to develop new production and operating systems so they can better respond to the needs of their customers. 10. 4 Managing Change: Action Research In Lewin’s view, implementing change is a three-step process: (1) unfreezing the organization from its present state, (2) making the change, and (3) refreezing the organization in the new, desired state so its members do not revert to their previous work attitudes and role behavior. Action research is a strategy for generating and acquiring knowledge that managers can use to define an organization’s desired future state and to plan a change program that allows the organization to reach that state. Figure 10. 6 highlights the steps in action research. Diagnosis of the Organization The first step in action research requires managers to recognize the existence of a problem that needs to be solved and acknowledge that some type of change is needed to solve it. In general, recognition of the need for change arises because somebody in the organization perceives a gap between desired performance and actual performance. Determining the Desired Future State This step also involves a difficult planning process as managers work out various alternative courses of action that could move the organization to where they would like it to be and determine what type of change to implement. Implementing Action 1. First, managers identify possible impediments to change at all levels. The second step is deciding who will be responsible for actually making the changes and controlling the change process. The choices are to employ either external change agents or internal change agents or use some combination of both. 3. The third step is deciding which specific change strategy will most effectively unfreeze, change, and refreeze the organization. The types of change that these techniques give rise to fall into two categories: Top-down change is implemented by managers at a high level in the organization, knowing that the change will reverberate at all organizational levels. Bottom-up change is implemented by employees at low levels in the organization that gradually rises until it is felt throughout the organization. Evaluating the Action The fourth step in action research is evaluating the action that has been taken and assessing the degree to which the changes have accomplished the desired objectives. The best way to evaluate the change process is to develop measures or criteria that allow managers to assess whether the organization has reached its desired objectives. Institutionalizing Action Research Organizations need to institutionalize action research—that is, make it a required habit or a norm adopted by every member of an organization. The institutionalization of action research is as necessary at the top of the organization as it is on the shop floor. Managerial Implications Managers must develop criteria to evaluate whether a change is necessary, and carefully design a plan that minimizes resistance. 10. 5 Organizational Development Organizational development (OD) is a series of techniques and methods that managers can use in their action research program to increase the adaptability of their organization. The goal of OD is to improve organizational effectiveness and to help people in organizations reach their potential and realize their goals and objectives. OD Techniques to Deal with Resistance to Change Education and Communication: One impediment to change is that participants are uncertain about what is going to happen. Through education and communication, internal and external agents of change can provide organizational members with information about the change and how it will affect them. Participation and Empowerment: Inviting workers to participate in the change process is a popular method of reducing resistance to change. Participation complements empowerment, increases workers’ involvement in decision making, and gives them greater autonomy to change work procedures to improve organizational performance. These are key elements of most TQM programs. People that are involved in the change and decision-making process are more likely to embrace rather than resist. Facilitation: Both managers and workers find change stressful. There are several ways in which organizations can help their members to manage stress: providing them with training to help them learn how to perform new tasks, providing them with time off from work to recuperate from the stressful effects of change, or even giving senior members sabbaticals. Bargaining and Negotiation: Bargaining and negotiation are important tools that help managers manage conflict. Because change causes conflict, bargaining is an important tool in overcoming resistance to change. Manipulation: Sometimes senior managers need to intervene, as politics shows that powerful managers have considerable ability to resist change. Coercion: The ultimate way to eliminate resistance to change is to coerce the key players into accepting change and threaten dire consequences if they choose to resist. The disadvantage is that it can leave people angry and disenchanted and can make the refreezing process difficult. OD Techniques to Promote Change Counseling, Sensitivity Training, and Process Consultation: Recognizing that each individual is different also requires them to be treated or managed differently. Sometimes, counseling will help individuals understand that their own perceptions of a situation may be incorrect. Sensitivity training is an OD technique that consists of intense counseling in which group members, aided by a facilitator, learn how others perceive them and may learn how to deal more sensitively with others. Process consultation is an OD technique in which a facilitator works closely with a manager on the job to help the manager improve his or her interactions with other group members. Team building is an OD technique in which a facilitator first observes the interactions of group members and then helps them become aware of ways to improve their work interactions. The goal of team building is to improve group processes to achieve process gains and reduce process losses that are occurring because of shirking and freeriding. Intergroup training is an OD technique that uses team building to improve the work interactions of different functions or divisions. Its goal is to improve organizational performance by focusing on a function’s or division’s joint activities and output. Organizational mirroring is an OD technique in which a facilitator helps two interdependent groups explore their perceptions and relations in order to improve their work interactions. This technique is designed to get both interdependent groups to see the perspective of the other side. Appreciating others’ perspectives allows the groups to work together more effectively. Total Organizational Interventions: A variety of OD techniques can be used at the organization level to promote organization-wide change. Organizational confrontation meeting is an OD technique that brings together all of the managers of an organization at a meeting to confront the issue of whether the organization is meeting its goals effectively.