Saturday, August 31, 2019

Impact of Applied Agro-Cooperative Credit and Banking on Farmers and Farming

People depend for good introduction in Agro-Farming not only on good seeds, good fertilizers, good irrigation and good Agro-technology; but they need also short-term, medium and long term loans to meet their other demands at farm level in farming. This genuine situational scene has a power to present an impact of applied cooperative credit and banking on farmers in farming from the point of origin of the Indian Cooperative Credit (a facile credit) movement from the period of working of NIDISH in Madras Province in 1882 to 1904 till date. This is a good Genesis of this issue with a scientific periodicity which may be perused in following section. An Iota in the facile cooperative credit scene of madras province Nidish a socio-economic social group were working in very active form like the primary cooperative credit societies at farm level in rural Madras province in 1882-1884. Madras Provinces 1882-1884 :- Fedaric Nicholson’s visit from India to Germany to study the working of The Raiffieson Model Rural Cooperative Credit societies and came back with a finding â€Å"Find Raiffieson† because he found 100% similarities in need of Agro – financing for Rural India, with cultural similarities at great scale in rural India and Rural Germany. In India also there was great exploitation done by private moneylenders by charging 75% rate of interest and in Germany also such high interest was taken by Jews/Nazis from Rural Germany Farmers. The profit motive and usurious practices were similar in India and Germany. In 1882 to 1884 Fedaric Nicholson came back from Germany in Madras Province and recommended to the government to start primary Agro-Cooperative credit and Banking instead of Nidish to protect rural people from great exploitation and usurious practices of private money lender. His report and recommendations were accepted by the Madras provincial government under the control of British government. This was also studied and accepted by the government of Bombay province Maharashtra due to great vitality in his recommendations in public interest. In 1896, the British government appointed Edward committee (sir Edward as chairman) to study the Indian Rural conditions, needs and scope of working of the primary Agricultural Cooperative Credit societies under the control of British government for the people to work with cooperation of the people for the people with democratic management at grass root level. The Edward Committee 1896-1904 surveyed the Indian Rural agro-banking system and passed first cooperative Societies Act 1904 which was accepted and made applicable for greater India (from Kabul to Burma) with democratic centralised cooperative credit banking; viz; from Kabul to Burma, if any primary Agricultural cooperative society was organised, then it was bound to get registration from Delhi only. This was a real scene from 1904-1908. The distance factor was main problem for for mation and registration of Agro-primary Cooperative Credit Societies. In this era cooperative credit was considered as a facile credit and cooperative banking was accepted a means to achieve the desired goal in a desired time. In 1908, Lawd recommended to add cooperative Audit, with cooperative credit and banking by increasing two sections in the cooperative Act of 1904. Thus total sections from 48 to 50 were made in the first cooperative society’s act of 1904 in 1908-1912. This added great strength to Agro-cooperative credit and banking system for Rural India. In 1912, the cooperative society Act was again examined by Sir Malcolm I. C. S and others. They suggested to add three sections more for facilitating cooperative credit, Consumption, and Marketing to the people of Rural India to protect them from exploitation of private traders and took them away from cruel clutches of exploiters by using cooperative organisation of the people for the people. It was accepted by the government in public interest. In 1914-1915, the cooperation was made state sponsored subject to give chance to the state (provincial governments) to frame their own cooperative society Acts on the basis of this model Act of 1904 with due consideration of the interpersonal situations of the concern state in preparation of their own cooperative societies act. It gave good chance to states from Kabul to Burma to register primary Agro-cooperative credit societies for credit and banking activities according to their interpersonal conditions to work and upgrade socio-economic life of rural people by effective working of primary Agro-cooperative credit and banking business. There was a rapid growth of members of primary Agro-cooperative credit and banking business and growth also found in qualities of services from 1912-1915 in cooperative credit movement in India. The first world war of 1915 gave great shock for the growth of Rural Agro-Cooperative banking due to more involvement of rural people in Indian Army. Therefore there was stunted growth of working of Agro-cooperative credit and banking from 1915 to 1925. There was Second World War in 1930-1935. The Burma separated from India in 1920 and Shyam, Rangun and Kabul were also separated in 1937-38 and became independent countries. These newly made countries accepted and used Indian model cooperative society Act of 1912-15 to make their own cooperative acts. In 1939-40 in India, the Vijayraghavacharya committee recommended to start linking of cooperative credit with Agro-production and marketing in Madras provinces in Salem district. It was applied in Salem district only for testing. India became independent country in 1947 from the clutches of britishood separate it. The public finance sub-committee (headed by Dr. D. R. Godgil) in 1946 submitted its report and recommended to allow crop loan systems to Rural people (farmers) to bring new change in farm financing by deciding Maximum Cooperative Credit Limit (M. C. L. ) per farmer, per acre per crop per season to upgrade economic strength of rural borrowers on the one hand by weathering the deep rooted exploitation of private moneylenders which gave a good chance for effective working of rural Agro-cooperative credit and banking on the other. It was again reviewed by Thakurdas Mehta committee in 1948. This committee recommended starting its application from April 1950 in First Five Year Plan. At this time Ready Recknor was not made crop-wise for farmers but Rs. 500 M. C. L. (Maximum Credit Limit) per acre per crop was approved to apply from 1951 to 1954 in the first five year plan for good financing to farmers through primary Agro-Cooperative credit societies. It was brought in real practices. In 1950-54, A. G. Gorwala I. C. S was appointed to do All India Rural Credit Survey to judge the extent of credit distribution by the cooperative credit societies in presence of several moneylenders. He did survey in 75 districts of India, in 400 villages and 127475 farmers families who found 3. 5% farm financing and banking was done since 1904 to 1954 by cooperative credit societies and 96. 5% was done by non-cooperative agencies. The extent of linking of cooperative credit with farm production and cooperative marketing was found 1 % only. There was major failure of cooperative credit and banking role in rural India in socio-economic upgradation process for farming community. The AIRCS committee 1954 gave remark, â€Å"Cooperative have failed but must succeed. † The AIRCS committee recommended starting CCR (controlled credit recovery) scheme under integrated Approach, viz: linking of cooperative credit with farm production and cooperative marketing to upgrade socio-economic life of farmers on the one hand and quality of services of cooperative credit and banking on the other. This recommendation was applied in second five year plan from 1955 to 1960. It was found that linking of cooperative credit and marketing increased from 1% to 11% and extent of cooperative credit distribution was increased from 3. 5% to 30% and maximum credit limit (MCL) increased from Rs. 500 to Rs. 1200 per crop per acre per year. This gradual growth gave great encouragement to cooperative credit and banking system in farm financing at a great length. This had motivated for a reliable and very valid effective approach through cooperative credit and banking for rural reorientation as well as upgradation of socio-economic change of rural people in rural India. This indicated a good desired shifting of cooperative credit business and gave a motivation to cooperative sector to face challenge for a desired change at farm level in the system of farming with Agro-technology. If we examine socio-economic changes from 1950 to 2012 or from first five year plan to 11th five year plan through applied cooperative credit and banking, the desired changes are found based on multiple variables with varieties of risks (challenges for changes). This scene is inviting attention of planners, surveyors, researchers and the governments to identify factors or obstacles affecting in achieving the desired results. Nobody has made any attempt on this issue at a great length till date to identify the factors affecting the quality of socio-economic change operation of cooperative credit and rural banking practices. There is urgent need and demand of the rural people, primary Agro-cooperative credit societies and applied cooperative banking to identify the problem raising factors and discover reliable and valid solutions to achieve the desired goal in the desired time. Therefore, an attempt is needed to make on this issue. The present study aims to work on this issue at a great length. Objectives of the study Broadly speaking, this study has main following objectives:- 1. To identify/ analyse the reliable and valid factors affecting the working of applied cooperative credit and banking at grassroots level and also to identify socio-economic changes at farm level and; 2. To explore practical possible solutions as remedial measures to solve the problems at grass root levels, to do socio-economic upgradation of farmers and their farming with help of modern Agro-technology and rational farm financing. Research Design The present study is going to do Exploratory-cum-Descriptive research work. It is a systematic and purposeful empirical enquiry; it includes surveys and fact-findings enquiries of different kinds. The main characteristics of this method are that the researcher has no control over the variables. It only reports what has happened or what is happening. In which the researcher does not have direct control over independent variables either what has happened or what is happening. But in this solution by the research an attempt has to make to search reliable and valid factors to discover a good solution for solving the problems. Location of the Universe/ Population B. R. College Agra of the Agra University as centre for the study and district Mewat Haryana has been selected by the purposive sampling method as definite universe of the study. Sampling design:- Sample selected by multistage stratified disproportionate random sampling. Total number of farmers members involved in CCR scheme in Agro-cooperative credit and banking are 380. Their size group and covered credit operation is given as under:- Size groupSize group of farmersTotal Farmers membersTotal Land covered by members in acresSample fractionTotal farmers A0-2. acres14028020%700 B2. 5-5. 0 acres12036020%600 C5. 0-7. 5 acres10060020%500 D7. 5-above acres2012020%100 Total members380126020%1900 Data Collection: – Research instruments:- Schedule-cum-questionnaire has been used for data collection. The Complete participant observation method and interview technique has been used for data collection. We have done pretesting at small scale to judge the effectiveness of the research ins truments. It has been found very correct and useful for the work.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Examining the selection criteria for equity finance investment in social enterprise

Research Methodology The main purpose of this section is to discuss how the primary research has been carried out and the rationale for the choice of methodology. The conclusion of the literature review showed that there are currently no publically agreed criteria for social venture capital funding and very little in the way of conclusive advice for social enterprises attempting to raise this kind of funding. As a result, it is important to gather primary data to facilitate the development of robust conclusions and to answer the research questions. When proposing a research methodology for an in-depth study such as this, Saunders et al. (2009) suggest that it is practical to build the research methodology and research design in such a way that it supports the overall aim and objectives of the research. As such, every aspect of the methodology must reflect the overall purpose of the research, and be geared towards answering the research question and accomplishing its objectives (Neuman, 2000). This chapter therefore outlines the methodology through which the research objectives were met, and the question answered. Several important factors, such as the research philosophy, design, strategy and data collection are highlighted. Issues relating to the research’s validity, generalizability and reliability are also discussed. Research Philosophy According to Easterby-Smith et al (2008), it is important to understand the research philosophy being adopted in management research, as it helps clarify how the research should be designed, approached, and how data could be collected and analysed. Easterby-Smith et al also note that an understanding of the research philosophy could help the researcher in creating, designing and identifying research that may not in line with past experiences. Based on the research aims and objectives, the researcher deemed it most appropriate to adopt an interpretivist philosophy. This is due to the overriding aim of this research, which is to understand the reasons behind social enterprise funding, thus implying that there is a need to understand human responses to a situation, thereby making the result of the findings potentially subjective in nature (Denzin and Lincoln, 2003). Saunders et al (2009) note â€Å"interpretivism is an epistemology that advocates that it is necessary for the researcher to understand differences between humans in our role as social actors† The researcher will need to make sense of the subjective and socially constructed meanings expressed by respondents, as per the interpretivist philosophy (Saunders et al, 2009). The interpretivist perspective can be argued to be decidedly appropriate when it comes to management research due to the complexity and uniqueness of business situations (Saunders et al, 2012; Neuman, 2000). As a result of this choice, the positivist philosophy would not be adopted in this study, as it would be ineffective to adopt a philosophy that observes and generalises social reality (Robson, 2002). Collis and Hussey (2003) also argue that the positivist philosophy cannot help understand the inner feelings, attitudes and human emotions behind social enterprise investments, as these could differ from one investor to another. Research Approach According to Collis and Hussey (2003) a research that adopts an interpretivist philosophy should be inductive in its approach. An inductive approach to research can help to gain an understanding of human interpretation to events, which is especially useful in management research, where the attitude and motivation of stakeholders matter (Saunders et al, 2009). As this study is concerned with understanding how social enterprise investors determine their investment criteria, then it is useful for this research to adopt an approach that makes it possible to understand human emotions and attitudes, compared to the deductive approach that is usually based on generalised scientific principles and academic theories (Bryman and Bell, 2007). Research Purpose As the aim of this study is to identify what social venture capitalists look for in an investment opportunity, this lends itself very much to an exploratory research methodology. According to Robson (2002, pg. 59), â€Å"an exploratory research is a valuable means of finding out what is happening; to seek new insights; to ask questions and to assess phenomena in a new light.† Saunders et al (2009) also state that an exploratory research is useful if the aim of the research is to understand a problem, find out what’s happening, or when the researcher is particularly unsure about a research problem. As such, an exploratory study is an ideal design, as it helps to answer this research’s question more effectively. An exploratory study has been chosen compared to descriptive studies – which portray accurate events of people, events or situations (Robson, 2002), because this research seeks to ‘find out’ and not to ‘narrate’. Furthermore, the literature review already shows that there is insufficient information on selection criteria on social enterprise investments, which defeats the purpose of a descriptive study. The same also applies to explanatory studies, where the emphasis is to study a situation and explain the relationship between two or more variables (Saunders et al, 2009). This study is not designed to assess the relationship between variables, but rather to understand investor attitude. An exploratory study is therefore the most effective form of answering the research question. Data Collection Saunders et al. (2009) suggest that when gathering primary data for an inductive exploratory study, it is normal that much of the data will be qualitative in nature. While there is a considerable amount of quantitative data around the subject of venture capital and social enterprise, these statistics are not sufficient to clarify investment criteria. A further issue with quantitative data is that this research does not seek to reconcile hypothesis and as a result, a methodology needs to be chosen that produces qualitative data. To answer the research question, and to develop a better understanding of this new development for both the social VC and social enterprise industries, it is important to collect data that is rich in opinion and explanation (as recommended by Morris and Wood, 1991). Qualitative data collection is therefore the most appropriate for this research. As it is anticipated that much of the primary data gathered for this study will be qualitative in nature, Saunders et al. (2009) suggests that there are several techniques for gathering primary data. These include inter alia interviews, surveys, focus groups, case studies, and participant observation. To obtain rich data that will be sufficient to allow for analysis, the development of themes, and sufficient contrast of opinion, techniques such as questionnaires and general surveys with large samples are unlikely to be effective (Morris and Wood, 1991). Firstly due to the fact that they will not provide the necessary opinion to answer the research question but more importantly due to the fact that there is a limited sample of available respondents with the necessary experience in their industry, as will be clarified in the data sources section of this methodology. While both the VC industry and the social enterprise ‘movement’ are well established, the actual link between them is relatively new and as a result it is important to select a technique that allows for the development of theories to emerge during data collection and analysis. A longitudinal study would potentially be ideal as would the case study method, since both of these allow for the opportunity for the discovery of interesting new ideas and theories (Adams and Schvaneveldt, 1991). A longitudinal study is not appropriate for this dissertation due to the time constraints, and so a cross-sectional study is more appropriate. While there was the potential to carry out a case study of either a social VC fund or a social enterprise, this would have only provided information around one organization. To effectively analyse the link between two industries it is more appropriate to gather data from a broad cross section of organizations and links to avoid either any bias or à ¢â‚¬Å"isolate opinion† (Collis and Hussey, 2003). According to Belk (2008), the main weakness of qualitative data collection is that it can be limited by insufficient resources. This means that because interviews are resource intensive, a narrower range of opinion is gathered. However Collins & Hussey (2003) argue that if the interviews are well structured even though they only gather the opinions of a relatively small research population the depth and breadth of data gathered and the fact that it is contextually relevant is certainly sufficient in terms of data validity and reliability for an exploratory study such as this. Having established the time limitations and the issue that the potential sample is limited but should be sufficiently broad, interviews emerge as the most appropriate methodology. As Sanders et al (2009) explains, there are a number of different ways that an interview can be conducted. It is first important to establish which structure of interview is the most appropriate. There are three main categories of interview structure, and these are: structured, semi-structured and unstructured. The primary distinction between them being the level of freedom given to the researcher in terms of asking different questions to interviewees, and varying the length allowed for the responses (Saunders et al, 2009). The literature showed that there is no clarity as to either the criteria used for funding or for the advice to those seeking funding, and as a result there needs to be the opportunity for the interviewees to express opinion and provide information that moves beyond the confines of a set of structured questions. To develop new and interesting theories, it is essential that the interviews allow for different responses (Robson, 2002). However, this dissertation has a limitation of length which prevents unstructured interviews from being an appropriate technique as it could potentially allow for too much data to be collected making analysis overly complex or it could prevent the necessary focus on the issues related to the research question. Semi-structured interviews allow for sufficient data to be collected while also providing the flexibility that is necessary for the researcher to develop both original insight and sufficient opinion for the analysis (Bryman and Bell, 2007). Data Sources and Data Collection Techniques Since it has been established that the author shall conduct semi-structured interviews, it is important at this stage to re-visit the research questions, which are as follows: When evaluating social enterprises for equity investment, which criteria are considered most important Do social venture capitalists differ in their evaluation criteria compared to commercial venture capitalists Secondary research question: What are the drivers for the social venture capitalists A questionnaire has been developed accordingly and used as a guideline, allowing for flexibility of the discussion and giving the respondents room to reject certain questions or focus on questions that was within their expertise, whilst still ensuring answers to the more critical questions. This semi-structured format is favourable also because it allows for discretion and prioritization in time management, without the need to interrupt or inconvenience the respondent (Neuman, 2000). Primary data has been gathered using said questionnaire, from five individuals that are responsible for screening social enterprises in the UK for access to equity investment. Five interview respondents were seen as ideal for a number of reasons. Firstly, this research is exploratory in nature; secondly, time constraints would have made it difficult to gather and analyse data from more than five respondents; and lastly, it was difficult to gain access to these individuals. The semi-structured interviews were conducted over the phone and in face-to-face environments, as per the respondents’ preference. The questionnaire was shared beforehand allowing the respondents time to consider and prepare for the questions if need be, as well as to filter out respondents who were not well suited. Research participants were encouraged to expand upon their responses to allow the researcher to gather a wide range of data (Belk, 2008). The interviews were audio-recorded with consent and subsequently transcribed verbatim[1], in order to allow the researcher to focus on the interview and fully engage with the respondent, without compromising on the accuracy of the data collected (Robson, 2002). This further allowed for the researcher to take note of additional non-verbal communication to enrich the quality of data retrieved (Kvale and Brinkmann, 2009). At the end of each interview, a summary was developed in order to reflect upon the progression of the interview process and start developing any findings. This â€Å"stop and reflect† process in between interviews, as recommended by Saunders et al (2009), has allowed the researcher to adapt to this new knowledge and delve deeper into the research questions with each ensuing interview. This process has led to an additional set of questions on the questionnaire[2], with the aim of addressing four new research questions: Is there in fact a market/demand for equity investment in social enterprise in the UK Is there a supply/demand balance of social enterprises to social investment How do SIFIs interact What does the future of social investment look like Once the data had been gathered, the author administered data reduction techniques (Miles and Huberman, 1994) by critically reviewing and selectively focusing on key parts of the extended text which are the transcripts. By extracting relevant pieces of information to answer our research questions, along with our notes throughout the interview process, the author was then able to codify the data, which was then subject to thematic analysis. Data collection, data analysis and the development and verification of the propositions have been very much an interactive and interrelated set of processes, whereby actual analysis occurred throughout. The flexibility of this process was key to enabling more insightful data and propositions, as enabled by an inductive approach. Issues of Reliability, Validity and Generalisability Reliability denotes the extent to which findings from a research can provide consistent findings, if another study were to adopt its data gathering and sampling technique (Easterby-Smith et al, 2008). The major threats to research liability: respondent bias, respondent error, interviewer bias and interviewer error (Robson, 2002) were avoided by: Sending the questionnaires to the respondents beforehand to avoid misinterpretation of intent or questions. Audio-recording the interviews, and taking ‘time-outs’ to reflect on the answers and ask further questions. Analyzing the data using data-reduction techniques, in order to prioritize the key findings and avoid loss of data. Validity, according to Saunders et al (2009) â€Å"is concerned with whether findings are really about what they appear to be about†. The interview questions were based on the research question, thus linking respondent answers to the overall aim of the research. Furthermore, the respondents were accredited professionals with industry insight on social enterprise investments. As a result, they were most fit to answer the interview questions. This helped ensure the data collected and analysed was valid. Generalisability measures the extent to which research findings are generalizable to other research settings (Saunders et al, 2009). Due to the inductive nature of this study, it is the researcher’s opinion that the findings of this research are generalizable to social enterprise investments in the UK. The findings from this research could help explain how investors determine what social enterprises they would invest in the UK. This is due to socio-economic factors that may differ from one country to another. Ethics With any primary research it is imperative that matters relating to research ethics are taken into account (Denzin and Lincoln, 2003). This includes ensuring that research participants have a clear understanding of what the research will entail and their contribution to the research. Research participants have agreed to support the research voluntarily, and so Denzin and Lincoln (2003, p.114) describe this as â€Å"informed consent†. The author has explained the nature of the research and reassured research participants of their role. Furthermore, confidentiality will be maintained through ensuring anonymity of research participants throughout this dissertation, only divulging participants’ names on a need to know basis to dissertation assessors. Not only is this ethical best practice, but Bryman & Bell (2011) also highlight the fact that it further ensures that the researcher gathers legitimate data which is not subject to inadvertent bias, for example a research p articipant feels that they must say nice things about their supervisor. In this instance because the research is heavily reliant on personal opinion then it is imperative that research ethics are observed. Due to the respondents’ varying assumptions in definition when referring to key research terms, such as â€Å"social enterprise† and â€Å"social venture capital†, all questions were clarified in detail where necessary, and the author ensured an alignment of understanding prior to collecting data. References Adams, G. R. and Schvaneveldt, J. D. (1991) Understanding Research Methods, Longman Group: UK, 406pp Bryman, A. and Bell, E. (2007) Business Research Methods, 2nd Ed, Oxford University Press: Oxford, 786pp Collis, J. and Hussey, R. (2003) Business Research: A Practical Guide for Undergraduate and Postgraduate Students, 2nd Ed, Palgrave McMillan: NY, 374pp Easterby-Smith, M., Thorpe, R., and Lowe, A. (2008) Management Research: An Introduction, 2nd Ed, SAGE: London, 194pp Morris, T. and Wood, S. (1991), ‘Testing the survey method: continuity and change in British industrial relations’, Work, Employment & Society, Vol. 5 No. 2, pp. 259- 82. Neuman, W. L. (2000) Basics of social research: qualitative and quantitative approaches, Pearson: UK, 391pp Robson, C. (2002) Real world research: a resource for social scientists and practitioner – researchers, 2nd Ed, Wiley-Blackwell: NY, 599pp Saunders, M., Lewis, P. and Thornhill, A. (2009) Research methods for business students, Fifth Edition, Pearson Education: NJ, 624pp

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Counselor Role in Special Education Essay

My perception of the school counselor’s role in special education is that it largely mirrors the role embodied for all students, but with some added considerations and collaborations for the special needs student. My understanding is that a school counselor should be available to all students for personal, ethical, academic, career, and social advice; to listen to a student’s point of view; to deal with any mental health issues that may arise for a student; to help a student prepare for transitions; to advocate for a student in a given situation, and to whatever degree possible, teach the student to advocate for himself. A counselor must be committed to helping all students reach their full potential; but for students with disabilities and other special needs, a school counselor needs to accomplish this in the face of extra challenges. These tasks and trials are not limited to those presented by the varying disabilities of a child, but include the demands of satisfying the administrative and legal requirements of a counselor serving students with special needs. Today’s school counselor is likely to be involved in a student’s individualized education program (IEP) when one is warranted. According to the Ohio Department of Education’s Office for Exceptional Children, at least one of the IEP team members needs to be an individual who has knowledge or special expertise regarding the child. This person is in addition to the child’s regular and special education teachers, a principal/assistant principal or other senior staff member, the parents, the school psychologist, and the child (if appropriate) required to participate on the team. The school counselor, at the discretion of the parent or the school district, may be included as a member of the IEP team if they have special insight regarding the child. A school counselor will work as part of a multidisciplinary team within the school and community in aligning and providing services for the special needs student. Without yet having been exposed to a practicum or internship experience as a school counselor, I perceive this piece of the workload to be potentially delicate and complex. A parent may have a viewpoint divergent from that which is covered in the Evaluation Team Report (ETR), resulting in an extended identification process. School staff members may have contrasting opinions as to whether a child is in need of special education and an IEP, or just accommodations covered under a 504 Plan. The bottom line is that the identification team must work collaboratively, with a lack of ego, in assessing and determining what measures are in the best interests of helping the child to be successful in school. It seems that the most difficult aspect of a school counselor’s job is to find a balance in managing so many responsibilities in each given day. Responding to the unique challenges of special needs students can both intensify and complement the workload. I think much can be gained professionally, personally, and emotionally by embracing that responsibility. A good counselor should teach the special education students attending her school about resiliency, inner strength, positive identity, and a sense of purpose. In the general terms of the professional school counselor’s role, I believe that the most valuable services to be provided in the special education realm are: †¢ Individual Student Planning – communicate high expectations and help disabled students establish personal goals for each school year and their future success. Familiarize oneself with the varying learning styles of the students who have disabilities, and work consultatively with teachers to improve their performance behaviorally and academically. Be a staunch advocate for these students and their post-secondary options; help create opportunities for them. †¢ Responsive Services – implement prevention and/or intervention activities like individual and group counseling, provide referrals, facilitate better peer relations, and advocate for them. Conduct needs assessments to identify potential systematic, programmatic, and attitudinal areas for change in order to create positive environments for their learning. Assist teachers in staying on top of 504 and IEP accommodations/interventions, being prepared to troubleshoot if certain measures are not enabling student to perform optimally. †¢ School Guidance Curriculum – developing and delivering a curriculum of structured lessons to help each identified student achieve desired social and academic outcomes. A counselor could implement a student development curriculum aimed to improve typical students’ understanding of and sensitivity to their special needs’ peers.

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

The Tempest for Shakespeare Act I Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

The Tempest for Shakespeare Act I - Assignment Example In case of a shipwreck, everyone would die. The professionals, nobles and the servants, who make up the mix of characters, all included. In terms of the plot point, the Tempest is central to the plot and begins with the confusion caused by the storm and conflict between classes that continues through the play. 2. The two factions are generally comprised of a split of the noble men and commoners. It is a display of the different political and social class existent. The noble are the masters such as Alonso, Sebastian, Antonio and Gonzalo. The commoners are the subjects and servants such as the boatswain and the mariners. The boatswain is a master in the case of controlling the ship in the storm at sea whom the nobles cannot do yet at the same time is a commoner on land. The passage means that Gonzalo, a noble, is the character caught in between the factions. This can be attributed to how he thinks that the boatswain is the type of person with a destiny to die by hanging and not drowning. Gonzalo is suggesting that the boat would not capsize because that is not his fate and thus is their cable of rescue and if not they are doomed to die. 3. Gonzalo implies that the Boatswain looks like a man brought forth into the world to be hanged. Gonzalo has these great hopes that fate will not let him be drowned, rather that the ship be saved in order that the Boatswain can fulfil his destiny to be hanged. The ugliness of the Boatswain also gives Gonzalo the hope that the ship will be saved. If that would not be the case (the hanging of the Boatswain) then the ship would capsize and they would

Review7 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Review7 - Assignment Example His determination and strategically planning has been highlighted in the video clip. The interesting fact about this video clip is how it elaborates about the history of the city in precise time in a compact manner. The video has extensively covered all the major efforts of the mayor and also gives a brief and well versed political background of the mayor. The video is compiled in a catchy manner, where in the audience get a bird’s eye view of the city mentioned in the clip. The clip shows the gratitude and honor the city dwellers carry in their mind for the city which is truly appreciative. It is impressive to see the love the people have for the city and to hear how they would like to remain in this place forever. The video clip is presented in a special manner where there is a surprise element. When the video clip starts, it seems to be just like a short documentary about a city in brazil, but as it proceeds it slowly reveal the sole purpose of it. It interestingly and surprisingly reveals the aim of unleashing the unique personality of the mayor who changed the face of a Brazilian city. The video introduces the Mayor who is honored by all since many years because of his dedication to the city and the state as a whole. His plan for the city and the implementation of it is evident in all nook and corner of the city. He changed the infrastructure of the city roads and established road system for comfortable traffic movements. The contribution of the mayor is majorly evident in this video and the manner in which people idolize him is outstanding. The video showcases the mayor ship of this celebrated person of Brazil and his strategy of cleaning the slums and poor and unclean areas of Brazil. The poor were motivated to collect garbage in return of fresh vegetables and fruits which was a great nutritional aid to them. It is also hair rising to watch the road design implemented by the Mayor for the up gradation of city, which in many years proved as a

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Values Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Values Paper - Essay Example The officer also vows to be honest both in his personal and official life and to become an example by obeying the laws and regulations of the land. In this statement the officer also recognizes the importance of not permitting his personal feelings, animosities or friendships and prejudices to influence his decisions. He vows to enforce the law appropriately and courteously without malice, fear or favor and never to use unnecessary force or violence. Our Core Values Convict the guilty Protect victims Protect the innocent from wrongful conviction Maintain order Protect both the innocent and guilty from oppressive or arbitrary treatment Secure public confidence and cooperation in policing and prosecution; and Pursue these goals effectively and efficiently without disproportionate cost and consequent harm to other public services Our core values relate to the criminal justice agency’s values statement as follows: we strive to protect all people including the innocent and victims from oppressive or arbitrary treatment just like the criminal agency strives to protect all persons including the weak and the peaceful from oppression, violence or disorder. Another core value is securing public confidence in policing and prosecution which relates to the law officer will enforce the law without malice, fear or favor. ... These values are mostly based on a person’s ethnicity and the kind of people a person grows up with. They are also subject to change. According to Koivula (2008) values are abstract rules of desirable conduct and goals developed to fit the conditions in which the society lives. The author also asserts that common values ensure that members of a society understand each other and pursue similar goals in a compatible way without a great deal of negotiation. Values lead to knowledge sharing in the workplace (Koivula, 2008). The author gives an example of self-transcendence values including benevolence and Universalism which are positively connected with knowledge sharing in the workplace. Values make us better people and help us contribute to the betterment of the society including other people and the environment. Values drive us to helping other people either as individuals or groups. Values cause people to become independent in the workplace. People do not need to be closely su pervised if they are guided by values. One is able to determine the nature of his or her work without significant direction from others. Values enhance teamwork in the workplace. People tend to work towards common goals when they are guided by the same values. Employees are more likely to have a good working relationship when they work as a group and are governed by similar organizational values when performing their duties. Values lead to organizational change. Koivula (2008) found that attitudes rely on values and they usually guide behavior in the workplace. The author states that organizational change requires a person to at least sacrifice his or her own resources and interests for the benefit of the whole

Monday, August 26, 2019

Developments And Changes Music Over Time Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Developments And Changes Music Over Time - Essay Example Music publishing is the process concerned with valuing, developing, and protecting music in the wider music industry. Music publishers are the people charged or tasked with the duty of developing new music and taking care of the business side. They do this to help songwriters and composers to concentrate their efforts on the creation of new music. This therefore leads to the definition of a music publisher as that person who seeks out music, composers and songwriters, goes ahead to promote their catalogues, manages the business exploitation of those catalogues through registration of works and collection of due royalties in order to protect and enhance the work of songwriters and composers (Dolfsma, 2000). They achieve this by doing the following tasks; finding new talents then supporting and encouraging them. Coordinate work flow and secure commissions. They also register the works of songwriters to the appropriate societies and agencies. They produce demo recordings and performance materials in contemporary classical music. They also license and produce printed music.

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Apitalism, globalization and fundamentalism Essay

Apitalism, globalization and fundamentalism - Essay Example Weber explains different aspects of capitalism. He discussed how capitalists helped in the economic development of America and how the spirit of capitalism fought its supremacy against a whole world of hostile forces. Globalization is termed as a worldwide integration of humanity and the compression of both temporal and spatial dimensions of planet wide human interaction. The whole world is changing very fast and every country is in the road of development. Modernization is the present trend and globalization is a part of it. Globalization narrowed the gap between different cultures and cultural pluralism is gaining more importance. Because of globalization intercultural education is increasing. The best example is number of students from different parts of the world are coming to US to pursue their higher studies. Multiculturalism became possible due to globalization. We can see different cultures existing in one roof in US. Internet, which became popular at the end of the 20th century helped in narrowing the gap between different parts of the world. Now information is being shared at the speed of light. With the help of Internet the whole world became global village. Internet has opened the gates for globalization. It created many possibilities for human interaction and business transaction. Capitalism is defined as economic an... Capitalism is defined as economic and social system in which means of production are privately owned. Individuals, companies or corporations make investments and share profits or losses. Capitalists help in the improvement of a country's economy. He/she is the persons who ventures in the investment area. Because of the efforts of capitalists the US economy has vastly improved. Religion is one the important factors of a society. There are many religions that exist in the present world. Every religion preaches to believe and keep faith in god. It preaches deism. Fundamentalism has become a thorn in every religion. It is slowly taking the form extremism. Fundamentalism is the belief in absolute religious authority and the demand that this religious authority be legally enforced.Religious Fundamentalism exists in Christians, Jewish, Muslims, Hindus, etc. This way of making the people to follow a religion is creating more problems. The Jews were never allowed to use things that were offered to other religious gods and it's a big sin and severely punishable if any does use. In Muslim dominated countries the existence of fundamentalism and extremism could be easily seen. Most of the Islamic nations follow Shariat law and in any way a person breaks this law is strictly punished. According to this law no one is above the god and religion. Women should not come out of their houses. They always should remain indoors. They should not show their face or any other part to other men except to her husband and family members. She should always be in veil. A man can marry any number of times and women should marry only once in their lifetime. Women in western countries are more liberal

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Constructing a motorway (civil engineering project) Essay

Constructing a motorway (civil engineering project) - Essay Example This essay discusses that a motorway can be defined roughly as a main road or highway, with two or more lanes on opposite direction, and where fast motor traffic occurs. A motorway has to be well constructed with all the required plans, materials and skilful engineering needed to provide a long-lasting use for motorists. As the Junior Site Manager of a 30-mile motorway, my job is to provide the plan and the necessary activities to have a smooth flow of construction, maintenance and completing of this motorway. But before going on an analysis of the construction parameters, I deemed it necessary or compulsory on my part to study history and the great accomplishments of the engineers and architects who made the British Motorway System, on how it was visualised, planned, and made to action to provide the future generation with a quality highway for the vast land transportation that we have today. First, the planners used geographic and topographic maps. Although technology and computers were not yet very effective at that time, the information the planners had was enough to make them achieve their great objective. Present planners and engineers have all the information from computers and databases before they embark on such a gargantuan task. The vision that the planners had is mastery itself, considering that in the nineteenth century, motor vehicles were just beginning to be invented. Engineers and builders of motorways are faced with multiple and complicated tasks. In the initial steps, they are concerned particularly of the volumes of earth to be moved during embankments and cuttings. There is also the concern of the cost of moving those volumes of earth. Present engineers try to balance these two activities – the cut and fill. The aim is to avoid borrow or spoil, which adds costs to construction. Formation of cutting and embankments Cuts and embankments are needed in constructing a motorway or an elevated highway. In doing this, there are excavations a nd earthworks involved. Earth movement will involve a lot of activities in road construction. The first job of a builder of a motorway is to balance the cut and fill by calculating quantities to be moved. Calculating the volumes to be moved will involve measuring the horizontal and vertical sections using a planimeter, and in order to be accurate about this step, it has to be done at least three times. (Gallagher, 2004, p. 415) The principle in calculation is analogous to measuring the volume of a ship, which is measuring the displacement and tonnage. To do this means to measure the area of vertical cross section in successive lateral points. This technique of measurement was first introduced by Matthew Baker when he applied it in a cross section of a ship in 1586. The series of measurements were then compiled by George Parker Bidder in a paper titled â€Å"Table of Cutting and Embankments† on the construction of the London and Birmingham Railway in 1836. (Gallagher, 2004, p. 415) An important factor to be considered in earth work or excavation is to determine the material a junior site engineer like me will be working with. I will have a lot of site investigation and analysis of the materials. A lot of information from our databases regarding the site, the materials and equipment that we will be using, will help a lot in the success of the motorway project. A common way of classifying the soil to determine its ease of excavation is known as the Ease of Digging scale. This is common in the United Kingdom. According to this theory, the soil is classified into four categories: E – for Easy digging, e.g. sands, fine gravels, etc. M – for Medium, example is cohesive soil like clay, gravel, etc. M-H – for Medium to Hard – refers to rock broken to pieces, heavy clay, gravel with boulders, etc. H – Hard refers to hard materials that require blasting. (Durham. Ac.uk.) Foundations Foundation engineering involves an analysis of the soil mechanics and judgment on the part of the engineer on the complex blend of the

Friday, August 23, 2019

Switched at Birth and Kinship Implications Essay - 140

Switched at Birth and Kinship Implications - Essay Example Mary and Norbert Miller were given the biological daughter of Sue and Kay McDonald and vice versa. This paper explores kinship implications of the switch, on the daughters, Sue McDonald and Marti Miller, as well as, the rest of the family unit. After learning about the exchange at the age of 43 years, Sue McDonald, the Millers’ biological daughter, and Marti Miller, the McDonalds’ biological daughter, got to speculate on their relations with both the adoptive and biological families. When Sue got to meet her biological parents, she noted that they were as eager as she was to know her and embrace her as part of the family. However, despite her admiration of the big family she always wanted to be a part of, she could not right away establish a relationship with them, although this has gradually happened over time. She remains close to her adoptive parents than her biological ones and although she is different from the adoptive family by being tall, skinny, and studious, K ay and Sue McDonald remain immensely close to her. However, Sue describes her relationship with her adoptive brother, Bob, as strained, since they did not have anything in common. The rift between them became even larger when Marti came into the picture, because they share a natural social ease, among other attributes (Chicago Public Media and Glass, n.pg). Marti Miller’s case also takes a path almost similar to that of Sue McDonald. She grew up as the sixth born child, in a family of seven children, and stood out from the rest. While all the Miller kids were serious and bookish, she was the jovial one, who engaged in numerous social activities at school including cheerleading. As she speculates on her upbringing as a Miller, she indicates that she was not that close to her adoptive mother, but had a cordial relationship with the parents just like the other kids in the family.  

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Outline How Material Things Essay Example for Free

Outline How Material Things Essay This essay will outline how material things on City Road favour the activities of some groups of people over others by looking at Ethnicity, Class and Gender. City Road is a big road filled with lots of different cultures, gender, class, age and history. When walking down the road it can be seen that the belonging and not belonging in the society. It opens your eyes as to what exactly goes on in different societies and City Road is a big street with a lot of demands and structures in it. Over the years society changed and so did the street. It goes by what is in demand, how society changes and by the vast majority of different cultures coming into the area. You see a lot of people trying to conform to the society and many trying to hold onto their own identities. First of all I’m going to talk about the Ethnicity on the street. We are going to the Xquisite Africa shop. Janet, the lady that owns the shop originates from Africa and moved to the UK over ten years ago. When she came to the UK she thought that she had to change her identity and conform to the society. She sells a lot of things from Africa and by doing this she gets to hold onto her identity of the African culture and also appeals to customers from the same ethnic background. She felt after being in the UK for ten years that she had lost her identity and so she decided to take a trip back home to Africa to re-charge her batteries as she puts it. She wanted to re-gain her culture that she so desperately lost. This aspect could help her re-gain her culture and identity and allows her to share this with the right clientele from a multi-racial background. She can share a state of belonging to a social group that has in common a national or cultural background, whilst negotiating with people on the complex of different identities. She contributes to the African social life and society as well as on City Road. Therefore promoting her African background and understanding there is no need to conform to the society and changing her identity. We then move onto class in the Municipal Club. A social stratum, whose members share a certain economic, social or cultural characteristics. For this instance the working class. It is aimed at the local residents and has over 100 years of history. A group containing members regarded as having certain attributes of traits in common has slowly disappeared and they long for the society to change back to what they believed it was. Whilst in the (DVD, Making social lives on City Road, 2009, scene 5) Lloyd Robson talks to couple of residents in the club and gets their insight of what is going on. He asked them if they thought the club had a future. They said no. no-one wants to know it anymore and even the members have started to lose interest. But because the society has changed it meant that they described city road as being dangerous and rough. They long for the past. They want it to go back to what they say it used to be or imagined it. The inequalities and differences that has changed and also the traditions has been lost. They lack the sense of belonging they used to have when City Road used to be theirs. Then we come across the Sanna Silk shop. This is where the female is favoured over the male. It’s a family business orientated around females as they sell and make dresses of different materials. They get to choose their type of material and their patterns. It is mainly focused at Asian women. In the (DVD, Making social lives on City Road, 2009, scene 6 by Raghuran) she says â€Å"it is a very different way of portraying Asian women than I often seen in the media. † They also have a section for jewellery. Most of their jewellery is 22 carat gold and is mainly aimed at the women. They also have a selection for their wedding day. So it has an Asian culture that is even though yes men go in to buy but is very female orientated. Conclusion Therefore in City Road, my examples favour female gender activities over male, is a very multi-racial area and favours specific class over others. Therefore explaining that society changes all of the time and conforms to whatever is more in demand in that specific time of era.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

The threats of these in all 4 plays of act one Essay Example for Free

The threats of these in all 4 plays of act one Essay In this essay I will be portraying many different acts of emotion. Love and kindness can come very easily, but its just as easy to endanger and threaten it. Each of my paragraphs will represent a different play. The first play is called Love is a many slendoured thing by Alan Bleadsale. Its about two teenagers, Mickey and Dawn, who are set a project by their English teacher in which they have to work as a pair. Their target is to find out what young love means to a number of people. Mickey has intended to spend his time watching his team Liverpool play at home. Mickey, throughout the play remains cynical towards Dawn and all girls. This is probably him feeling inadequate compared to the more mature and more confident Dawn. This is shown on the first page when Mickey says, He made us sit next to a girl. A girl! Urgh! This instantly shows his scepticism and curiosity towards the other sex. Later on Dawn and Mickey are having an argument about boys being less mature than girls. This is when Dawn makes a very significant remark, No one in their right mind would fall in love with you. This instantly sets alarm bells of in the readers mind. This shows that Dawn has very intermit feelings towards Mickey and is trying to hide them. When the interview about young love falls on Dawns divorced Sister Janet, the growing bond between Dawn and Mickey is threatened. Janet sarcastically states, Young love? You want to know about young love? Ill tell you about young love. Its all lies, from beginning to end. That was a crucial point in the relationship between Dawn and Mickey. Later on Mickey is trying to get out of the whole reporter act, in order to go to the game. Surprisingly Dawn offer to go with him. At first Mickey is resentful but soon finds out she is also a Liverpool supporter. This is a major leap in their relationship. Near the end Dawn admits her love towards Mickey. As expected Mickey receives a massive shock and runs of. In the end they both accept it. Their love for each other. The next play is also about the relationship between two people, but in a very different mood. It is called On the face of it by Susan Hill. Set in an old mans garden, it is about a fourteen year old boy, Derry, whose face has been badly disfigured in an accident. He climbs into the garden, trying to escape the harsh realities of life. He then comes face to face with the old man, Mr Lamb. He expects him to be put of by his face (as most people are), but instead he engages Derry in a conversation about a variety of things. Mr Lamb isnt startled at all by Derrys face. This reaction is very kind but also much unexpected. Derry is at first suspicious and bitter, thinking Mr Lamb is only changing the conversation. Gradually though as the old man reveals that he to is handicapped (he lost a leg). He starts asking Derry many unexpected question. Always showing kindness. Derry then begins to relax and admits that hes enjoying his time with Mr Lamb. He still remains somewhat cautious, but Mr Lamb has given him a new confidence and enthusiasm for living. Derry then happily volunteers to help pick Mr Lambs crab apples. Instantly Mr Lamb tells him to instruct his mother where he is (because it was getting late). As he arrives home he explains about the eccentric old man. She instructs Derry to stay at home, Derry replies with some very powerful words, If I dont go back there, Ill never go anywhere in this world again. His mother is the obvious threat between Derry and Mr Lamb relationship. He runs back to the garden only to find that Mr Lamb had got the ladder and begun picking the apples, fallen and died. Derry is isolated by his disfigurement and is bitter about his fate. Mr Lamb is also an isolated, old solitary man. From Mr Lamb Derry learns to have a positive attitude to life, and at the same time gains confidence within him. We are left to ponder whether what Derry has learnt will be undone by the old mans death. The next plays called Mr Bruin who wants drove the bus by Don Haworth. This has more of a light hearted theme to it. Kindly Mr Bruin drives a bus which, every day makes a circuit of a number of villages, picking up school children and taking them to school in the nearby town. So kind is Mr Bruin that he gives lifts to those who need them. Here Mr Bruin explaining to the headmaster about picking up pedestrians, This poor old chap at Bench Road ends.. The headmaster then states, But it is against regulations to give lifts. He is also kind enough to wait for the kids who are late. This immense kindness is what is threatening his job. The result in all this is that the bus is getting to school late, meaning the kids miss part of the school day. Mr Bruin shows his kindness when he takes up the case of an overweight boy. He took him to the headmaster to find out if the child could do different things in certain lessons. Take woodwork, Fatty Foggon always hits things to hard or bends up breaking things due to his size. Mr Bruin wants him to be normal and do more constructive things with his time. Under pressure from a local councillor, the director of education and parents, the headmaster tells Mr Bruin to drive faster and keep better time. His subsequent speeding only brings in more complaints, but his final undoing comes when he dresses up as an elephant as part of an advertising stunt at the local supermarket. For this last act he is deemed irresponsible and is fired. Being the kind person he is, he walks away without a fuss. The final play is called Our day out by Willy Russell. Its about a school outing for a progress class in Liverpool. This is set in the inner city of Liverpool, a concrete jungle. The class were being taken to Conway in north Wales. In charge of the pupils is easy going Mrs Kay. Fearing what may result from her tolerant attitudes, the Headmaster sends the very uptight and strict Mr Briggs. Throughout the play theres a contrast of reactions between the two teachers towards the childrens behaviour. There are countless incidents with the children for example, staling sweets and animals from a zoo and a cafi and later gallivanting around at Conway castle. There are many other relations apart from the running battle between Mrs Kay and Mr Briggs. For example, the relations between the two younger teacher and the older boys and girls. Also the pressing problem of Carol, the girl to whom life offers so little in inner city Liverpool that shes prepared not to go back. Its her threatened suicide that brings out a new Mr Briggs, a kinder and more fun person. At the end of the trip Mr Briggs learnt a far more important lesson than the children, he learnt to live.

First Analysis of the Great Gatsby Amina Bangura

First Analysis of the Great Gatsby Amina Bangura In The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraways second cousin, Daisy Buchanan, comments on her newborn daughter saying, Im glad its a girl. And I hope shell be a fool-thats the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.(22) Daisy echoes this sentiment as a mother trying to shield her child from heartache in a cold, hard world. As a woman who is aware of the fact that her husband is having an affair, Daisy is left bitter and scorned when his mistress calls him at dinner time. By wishing that her daughter will be a fool, Daisy is essentially wishing that she is kept blissfully ignorant from the cruel, callous and blatant disrespect that she will face as a woman, in a male dominated world.ÂÂ   She believes that living in oblivion will ultimately mean living a happier life. Daisy is a fool because it is subtle throughout the first chapter that she knows that her husband is cheating on her, but goes to painful lengths to prove otherwise. In the book, Nick explains Daisys reaction to Tom leaving the table to pick up a phone call from his mistress, saying, As if his absence quickened something within her, Daisy leaned forward again, her voice glowing and singing.(19) After she and Tom return to the table following the confrontation in the house, she chirps, I looked outdoors for a minute, and its very romantic outdoors. Theres a bird on the lawn that I think must be a nightingale come over on the Cunard or White Star Line. Hes singing away-its romantic isnt it Tom?(20). Furthermore, after following her to the front porch, Daisy confides in Nick, saying, You see I think everythings terrible anyhow, everybody thinks so-the most advanced people. And I know. Ive been everywhere and seen everything and done everything. Sophisticated-God, Im sophisticated! (22). Though she is deeply hurting on the inside, Daisy tries very hard to appear cheerful and unaffected on the outside, almost to an annoyingly creepy extent-as if she is overcompensating for her negative emotions to the point that she needs to exude fake happiness to feel better. This needless behaviour is in fact foolish, because it changes absolutely nothing. Putting on a happy front and pretending that her husband isnt unfaithful will probably only make her feel worse, because it requires her to reject a reality that deep down she knows deep down is true. Daisy is inherently not a fool as she is knowledgeable about worldly things, yet willingly plays the part of the fool, to her husbands benefit. This manner of thinking stems from the fact that prior to the 1920s, women were taught that a good woman was a good wife-docile, submissive and completely devoted to their husband. The 20s however, was an era based on superficiality and artificial happiness. It was all about keeping up unrealistic appearances of being happy, rich and carefree, even if that werent the case. Women were lead to believe that they had to act like fools to be happy because the 20s were a time where men thought little about women in terms of equality. Women were expected to be slender and beautiful, and obedient, humble wives to their husbands, despite their gross indiscretions. Back then, women were taught that their worth as a female lay in their physical appeal and carefree attitude, rather than what knowledge they possessed. Society put more emphasis on beauty than brains, which unfortunately led women to stay in abusive relationships, because they believed that that was the best they could hope for and that it would make them happy. I dont agree with Daisys sentiment that women should be beautiful little fools for men, because I believe that a womans intelligence is by far her greatest asset. She should be judged based not on her physical attractiveness, but on her ideas and intellectual capacity. If a man is disloyal to his wife, the fault lies not with the woman, but with the unfaithful man. And for a self-proclaimed sophisticated woman like Daisy to stay oblivious to her husbands infidelity on the basis that she will be happier, is doing a great disservice to herself, because she deserves so much better. I believe that we should start teaching our young women and daughters the importance of value and self-worth; that they are not extensions of their husbands, but are individuals capable of intelligent thought and deserving of love and respect and nothing less. Throughout the first three chapters of The Great Gatsby, women are continuously portrayed as fools obsessed with ostentatious material objects and excessive glamour. This one- dimensional portrayal of women in the book provides a very limited view of what women were really like in the 1920s. It reduces their characters to merely carefree and indulgent individuals, concerned more about their looks and perception in society, meanwhile lacking intellectual substance and thinking capacity. Today, the perception of women in society has changed greatly. Women have destroyed the idea that they are weak, unintelligent individuals, incapable of doing anything but to look pretty and obey their husbands. They now occupy every single sector of society and have continuously broken down barriers to equality. With the rise of progressive feminism, women are slowly challenging the patriarchal society, while simultaneously promoting the gain of womens rights. Furthermore, the role of women has change d drastically. Women are no longer trapped within the confines of their roles as homemakers and sentenced to a life of cooking, cleaning and raising children. Though women still have a long way to go in their road to equality, they have made great strides in regards to education, civil rights and the workforce.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

The Reflections Of Gore Vidal :: essays research papers fc

The Reflections of Gore Vidal   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are many people in today's society that would love to have their views published for the whole world to view, but few can match the wit and originality of Gore Vidal. Vidal is the author of many short stories, novels, playwrights, and movie scripts. Gore Vidal has been and continues to be an influential figure in American literature. One of Vidal's most effective strategies as a writer has been to make the public aware of his opinions through his very popular and controversial works. Gore Vidal is an opinionated man with strong beliefs on many aspects of modern American culture.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Gore Vidal is a man who likes to provoke controversy. The works of Gore Vidal revolves around three main themes: human behavior, politics, and homosexuality. These are Vidal's favorite subjects to write about because they are all something he deals with every day of his life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Readers of Gore Vidal should realize that he is out to shock the public with his beliefs, and he accomplishes this task quite well by being in favor of homosexuality. Gore Vidal sees nothing but positive outcomes should homosexuality become an accepted practice. According to American Writers 'The consequences of publishing a gay novel in 1948 were severe, and Vidal's literary career nearly ground to a premature halt'; (681). With the publication of The City and the Pillar, Vidal became ostracized by his fellow writers and the public as well. Homosexuality is not an accepted practice today by many, and since it was less common in 1948, some became enraged and refused to buy any of his work (681). For years Vidal could not sell anything because he had already been labeled as an advocate of homosexuality. In an interview with Salon, Vidal said that he thought that within the next century the government would encourage homosexuality to decrease the population (3). Gore Vidal believes that children are no longer needed and that they are only taking up valuable space in today's world (3). Mr. Vidal believes that by promoting Dunst 2 homosexuality the over crowding will cease to be a problem (3).He refuses to have children because he thinks he will only be adding to the world's population problem. ('Vidal, Gore'; 683) Vidal also sees the practice of homosexuality as a cure for sexually transmitted diseases such as AIDS. Vidal thinks that by eliminating all male and female intercourse the sexually tranmitted diseases will eventually cease to be passed on as he believes this is the safest form of sexual intercorse. (684)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of Gore Vidal's more popular beliefs is that women should never be abused.

Monday, August 19, 2019

Ambiguity in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Essay -- Young Goodman Br

Ambiguity in â€Å"Young Goodman Brown†Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   Peter Conn in â€Å"Finding a Voice in an New Nation† makes a statement regarding Hawthorne’s ambiguity:   â€Å"Almost all of Hawthorne’s finest stories are remote in time or place. The glare of contemporary reality immobillized his imagination. He required shadows and half-light, and he sought a nervous equilibrium in ambiguity† (82). There is considerable ambiguity in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s â€Å"Young Goodman Brown,† and this essay will examine this and its causes.    R. W. B. Lewis in â€Å"The Return into Rime: Hawthorne† mentions the ambiguity associated with the key imagery in â€Å"Young Goodman Brown†:   â€Å"For Hawthorne, the forest was neither the proper home of the admirable Adam, as with Cooper; nor was it the hideout of the malevolent adversary. . . . It was the ambiguous setting of moral choice. . . .† (74-75). Henry James in Hawthorne, when discussing â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† mentions how allegorical Hawthorne is, and how it is not clearly expressed with this author:    The only cases in which it is endurable is when it is extremely spontaneous, when the analogy presents itself with eager promptitude. When it shows signs of having been groped and fumbled for, the needful illusion is of course absent, and the failure complete. Then the machinery alone is visible and the end to which it operates becomes a matter of indifference (50).    When one has to grope for, and fumble for, the meaning of a tale, then there is â€Å"failure† in the work, as Henry James says. This unfortunately is the case of â€Å"Young Goodman Brown.† It is so ambiguous in so many occasions in the tale that a blur rather than a distinct image forms in the mind of the reader.    The Norton Anthology: Amer... ...    Lang, H.J.. â€Å"How Ambiguous Is Hawthorne.† In Hawthorne – A Collection of Critical Essays, edited by A.N. Kaul. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1966.    Lewis, R. W. B. â€Å"The Return into Time: Hawthorne.† In Hawthorne – A Collection of Critical Essays, edited by A.N. Kaul. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1966.    Martin, Terence. Nathaniel Hawthorne. New York: Twayne Publishers Inc., 1965.    Melville, Hermann. â€Å"Hawthorne and His Mosses.† In The Norton Anthology: American Literature, edited by Baym et al.   New York: W.W. Norton and Co., 1995.      Ã¢â‚¬Å"Nathaniel Hawthorne.† The Norton Anthology: American Literature, edited by Baym et al.   New York: W.W. Norton and Co., 1995.    Wagenknecht, Edward. Nathaniel Hawthorne – The Man, His Tales and Romances. New York: Continuum Publishing Co., 1989.         

Sunday, August 18, 2019

MODERN DAY PINNOCHIO’S: THE INSIDES COOPONINTERNET PLAGIARISM :: Essays Papers

MODERN DAY PINNOCHIO’S: THE INSIDES COOPONINTERNET PLAGIARISM I am one of those people, you know the ones; they spend five weeks on a term paper writing twenty different introductions (this is number twelve), seven conclusions, and finally after going through fifteen drafts, turns in the final copy. Yup, that is me. Dedicated; That is how I would describe myself. I take pride in my work, and that is why I get so angry about fraud, plagiarism, and general laziness. These things make me irate and it doesn’t seem like it will be getting better any time soon. Unfortunately, we live in a point and click society and plagiarism is becoming easier and easier because of the Internet. Copyright fraud is becoming a very big issue, companies like Napster have been getting much publicity because artists and writers have spent many hours creating their product and they see the injustice in it being stolen. Without a doubt this is becoming an epidemic that it seems we won’t be seeing an end to anytime soon. So, what began the era of plagiarism? Many people blame the Internet for giving the public free access to that one precious commodity--information. However, it is clear that plagiarism existed long before documents were posted on the World Wide Web. Since the advent of the Internet it has became easier to falsify credit for works, however it has been happening for years. Some people claim that Aesop never really wrote those fables, and others claim that William Shakespeare’s sister, Elizabeth, was the mastermind behind his great dramatic works. From this it becomes clear that fraud is no new issue, however, the increased frequency is something to ponder. It is my belief that the amount of plagiarism has increased due to the Internet and the accessibility of such a vast amount of information. Let me show you just how easy it is to get a complete term paper on any subject off the net. While looking for information on Google (www.google.com), a popular Internet search engine, I ran across several paper mills. These sights boast of having reputable resources and fantastic papers. One such sight called The Paper Geeks sells term papers for only $9.85 per page. This sight claims to have been in business since 1994 and they also claim to have a paper on every topic imaginable.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Coperate Gorvernance Essay

Executive summary: Cadbury Report (1992) stated that â€Å"corporate governance is the process by which companies and directed and controlled† (cited in Tricker, 2009). In other words, it helps the corporate entities increase the value provided to the organisation’s various stakeholders. Therefore, appropriate corporate governance plays a very important role in development of organisations. This  review will define corporate governance and some of its concepts (through the paper). Following, the review will give a Memorandum or a general introduction about Nufarm, which is a publicly listed company and then consider the structure, process and effectiveness of its governance. Besides, the paper will mention about areas such as the composition and responsibilities of the Nufarm Board of Directors, and disclose policies, codes of conduct adopted by the company, which are relevant to the company’s governance scopes. Finally, from information and analyses, there are some recommendations for the Nufarm to achieve appropriate improvements. For example, the company’s governance should recognise and adhere to all relevant laws and regulations and meets high standards with respect to honesty and integrity. In addition, the company should have open and effective communications with its shareholders and the general investment community. Furthermore, the company should have effective methods to review drivers of governance, etc. Table of contents Contents I.Introduction3 II.What is corporate governance?3 III.General introduction about Nufarm, information of the company (Memorandum)3 IV.The Structure, process and effectiveness of the Nufarm’s governance4 The Scope of the company’s Corporate Governance influences the company’s codes:7 V.Recommendations8 VI.References10 I. Introduction Recently, the appearance of high-profile corporate failures, scandals and executive corruption arises the requirement for organisations to follow appropriate corporate governance structures, processes standards and practices. The aim of this paper is to investigate the structure, process and  effectiveness of the governance of Nufarm, a publicly listed company and give recommendations for it to achieve appropriate improvements. II. What is corporate governance? Cadbury report (1992) and OECD (1999) defined that ‘corporate governance is the process by which company are directed and controlled’.  Monks & Minow (2001) suggested that ‘corporate governance is the relationship among various participants in determining the direction and performance of corporations. The primary participants are the shareholders, the management and the board of directors’. OECD (2001) supposed that ‘corporate governance refers to the private and public institutions, including laws, regulations and accepted business practices, which together govern the relationship, in a market economy, between corporate managers and entrepreneurs, on the one hand, and those who invest resources in corporations, on the other III. General introduction about Nufarm, information of the company (Memorandum) Nufarm Limited is a publicly listed company, one of the world’s leading crop protection companies (Nufarm’s website, 2012). The company manufactures products to help farmers protect their crops against damage caused by weeds, pests and disease. Its manufacturing and marketing spread throughout Australia, New Zealand, Asia, The Americas and Europe and sells products in more than 100 countries around the world. According to the Nufarm’s website (2012), the company employs more than 2,600 people around the places having its manufacturing and marketing operations, all of whom make a vital contribution to the company’s reputation for quality products, innovation and first class marketing and technical support. Proudly based in Australia, Nufarm is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (with symbol NUF). Its head office is located at Laverton in Melbourne, Australia. Table1: the information contained in the company details table (ASX website, 2012) IV. The Structure, process and effectiveness of the Nufarm’s governance The company’s board structure contains Chairman (Donald Gordon McGauchie), Managing Director/CEO (Doug Rathbone), and five Non Executive Directors who are Anne Bernadette Brennan, Gordon Richard Davis, Bruce Goodfellow, Gary Hounsell, Peter Margin (Nufarm’s website, 2012). According to the company’s website (2012), the Board is the governing body of the Company. The Board is responsible for the oversight of the Company. It is responsible to ensure that the business of the Company is carried out in the best interests of all shareholders and with proper regard to the interests of all other stakeholders. Specifically, the Board has responsibility to protect and enhance the value of the assets of the Company, set strategies and directions and monitor and review those strategic objectives, review and ratify internal controls, codes of conduct and legal compliance, review the Company’s accounts, approve and review the one year operating budget and five year strategic plan for the Company, appoint the Managing Director, evaluate performance and determine the remuneration of the Managing Director and senior executives, ensure the significant risks facing the Company have been identified and adequate control monitoring and reporting mechanisms are in place, approve transactions relating to acquisitions, divestments and capital expenditure above authority limits delegated to management, approve financial and dividend policy, appoint the Company Secretary, ratify the appointment of the Chief Financial Officer (Nufarm’s website, 2012). The managing Director is delegated to be responsible for the day-to-day leadership and management of the Company. To assist the Board to discharge its responsibilities and duties, the Board has delegated to the Managing Director specific authorities which are subject to appropriate reporting and monitoring procedures. For example: * Shareholder values / corporate strategy: the Managing Director formulates and brings to the Board for review and approval, an appropriate long term strategy for the Nufarm Group  and appropriate financial standards and policies. The strategy is reviewed by the Board at its annual strategic planning review and any changes in financial standards are reviewed by the Audit Committee. * Organisation Planning: the Managing Director formulates an appropriate human resources policy which is reviewed by the Board annually. * Capital Allocation: The Managing Director approves capital expenditure within limits set by the Board. All approvals made by the Managing Director are reported and reviewed at every Board Meeting. * Company Financial Performance: the Managing Director reports to the Board at each Board Meeting on the financial results of the Company. * Compliance: The Managing Director is responsible for ensuring compliance with all relevant legislation. In brief, the Board has delegated to the Managing Director all powers required to manage the business of the Company and the Managing Director reports on a monthly basis on all material matters affecting the Nufarm Group to the Board. Besides, The Board has three committees: the Audit Committee, the Nomination Committee and the Remuneration Committee. These Board Committees review and analyse policies and strategies within their specific terms of reference. The Board Committees examine proposals and, where appropriate, make recommendations to the Board. The Board Committees do not take direct action or make decisions on behalf of the Board unless specifically mandated by prior Board authority (Nufarm’s website). The Nomination Committee consists of three non-executive Directors and is comprised of a majority of independent Directors. The Committee’s purpose is to develop criteria for Board membership and identify specific individuals for nomination; and establish processes for the review of the performance of individual Directors and the Board as a whole. The duties of this committee is facilitating a Board performance assessment, develop criteria for Board membership, identify suitably skilled, qualified and experienced individuals for nomination and to establish processes for the review of the performance of Directors. According to Tricker (2012, p.283), ‘the essential and original role of the audit committee is to act as a bridge between the independent external auditors and the board, avoiding the possibility of powerful executive directors’ and over the years the role and responsibilities of the committee have expanded. Nufarm company’s Audit Committee’s primary function is to assist the Board in fulfilling its corporate governance responsibilities in regard to financial reporting, audit and risk management, including: oversight of the preparation of Nufarm Limited’s (the Group) financial reporting; compliance with legal and regulatory obligations; oversight of the effectiveness of the Group’s enterprise-wide risk management and internal control framework; and oversight of the relationship with the external and internal auditors. The specific duties and responsibilities of the company’s audit committee in meeting will be: report Committee actions to the Board with such recommendations as the Committee may deem appropriate (e.g. The Committee will report to the Board immediately if it becomes aware of any material misstatement in financial information provided by management to the Board or of any material breakdown in internal controls), continuously monitor a framework and processes for compliance with laws, regulations, standards, best practice guidelines and the Group’s code of conduct, maintain suitable interaction with the Health Safety & Environment Committee and the Nomination & Governance Committee, perform such other functions assigned by law, the Company’s Constitution, or the Board. The Remuneration Committee’s purpose is to recommend to the Board policies and practices which enable Nufarm to attract, develop, retain and motivate high caliber Directors and executives. The Committee will review and make recommendations on policies for remuneration, development, retention and termination of Directors and Key Management Personnel (KMP). The Committee’s duties are to review and make recommendations to the Board in relation to Nufarm’s Board and executive remuneration strategy, structure and practice with regard to: Nufarm strategic objectives; corporate governance principles; and competitive practice. The specific matters the Committee may consider include the review of: executive management and Directors’  remuneration, including the link between Company and individual performance; current industry best practice; the outcome of the annual vote on the adoption of the Remuneration Report; different methods for remunerating senior management and Directors including superannuation arrangements; 2/4 existing or proposed incentive schemes; retirement and termination benefits and payments for senior management; professional indemnity and liability insurance policies. The Committee is responsible for seeking and approving remuneration advisers that will provide independent remuneration advice, as appropriate, on Board, CEO and other KMP remuneration strategy, structure practice and disclosure. However, according to the company website (2012), the Committee does not have executive powers to commit the Board or management to its recommendations except where authorised by a resolution of the Board nor become involved in day to day management activities or decision making. The Scope of the company’s Corporate Governance influences the company’s codes: According to Tricker (2012), the structure, the membership and the process of the governing body are central to corporate governance. However, the relations with shareholders, contractual stakeholders, legal institutions, etc also influence the structure and operation of Nufarm’s corporate governance. Therefore, the company’s corporate governance refers to the private and public institutions, including laws, regulations and public institutions, which together govern the relationship between corporate managers and entrepreneurs, on the one hand, and those who invest resources in corporations on the other (Tricker, 2012). For example, the company’s code of conduct is governed by and contrasted in accordance with the laws in the State of Victoria, Australia. Besides, Nufarm has ensured to be compliance with the ASX Listing Rules, and ensured that Key Management Personnel and their associates are aware of the legal restrictions in dealing in Nufarm’s shares, options or other securities while such a person is in possession of unpublished price sensitive information concerning Nufarm. V. Recommendations There are some recommendations in order for Nufarm to make appropriate  improvements for its corporate governance are: Firstly, Nufarm should conduct its business in a manner which recognises and adheres to all relevant laws and regulations and meets high standards with respect to honesty and integrity. In order to meet this commitment, we require all Nufarm directors, employees, contractors and consultants to be familiar with and uphold the company’s code of conduct in all business dealings. Besides, according to Tricker (2012), the Board, which determines whether the company’s governance is good, is the major driving force in a company. However, there are other drivers of good governance in the company such as shareholders. Therefore, the company should have open and effective communications with its shareholders and the general investment community. For example, with shareholders, the company should adopt a shareholder communications policy in order to: * Ensure that shareholders and the financial markets are provided with full and timely information about its activities; * Comply with continuous disclosure obligations contained in applicable Listing Rules and the Corporations Act in Australia as well as industry guidelines such as the Australasian Investor Relations Associations’, Best Practice Guidelines for Communication between Listed Entities and the Investment Community; and Ensure equality of access to briefings, presentations and meetings for shareholders, analysts and media. * Encourage attendance and voting at shareholder meetings; The company’s Remuneration Committee should review induction and development arrangements for the Board to ensure Board members gain and maintain a suitable level of knowledge about Nufarm. Audit Committee should usually review and make recommendations to the Board on the Nufarm Diversity Policy ensuring the Policy is in line with applicable legislation and governance principles. Self-assess whether the Committees comply with its membership requirements at least once every year. Critically review the Remuneration Committee Charter at least once per year to ensure its relevance and compliance with overall governance legislative requirements and best practice. VI. References Monks, B., Nell, M. 2007, Corporate Governance, 4th edn, Chichester, UK:Wiley. Tricker, B. 2009, Corporate Governance: Principles, Policies, and Practices, Oxford University Press. Nufarm website 2012, , viewed 15 July, 2012. ASX website 2012, Nufarm Limited (NUF), , viewed 15 July, 2012.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Dandelion Wine Essay

Everyone enjoys the summertime. In Ray Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine, Douglas Spaulding, a twelve-year-old boy, wakes up the town to summer. A few days into summer, he suddenly realizes his existence and livelihood. Not merely existing and taking up space, Douglas notices his surroundings and slowly begins to understand life. How to manage and control one’s life on earth exists as one of the main issues Doug faces. He struggles in finding how to live life and using his time on earth to his full advantage. In Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine, the motif of time shows the struggle between life and death, serves as an object of change, and reinforces one’s short time on earth, suggesting that quality trumps quantity. The struggle between life and death exists throughout this novel. In the middle of summer, John Huff tells his best friend Doug that he is moving away. Doug then â€Å"freezes† John during a child’s game in an attempt to stop him from leaving. Doug’s actions represent the process that many people perform in order to slow down death. On the other hand, John acknowledges that he must leave and readily accepts his own personal death. He realizes his time to go has arrived and walks away with his head held high. Just like John, other people in Green Town accept their fate and simply continue on with life. Bradbury says in relation to the battle between people and pesky mosquitoes: â€Å"The mosquitoes were gone from the porch, and surely when they abandoned the conflict the war with Time was really done, there was nothing for it but that humans also forsake the battleground† (237). The battle between the mosquitoes and humans compares to the battle between life and death. Once humans give up the battle of fighting death in order to â€Å"live† longer, they will truly start to live by smelling flowers, climbing trees, and noticing the color of a loved one’s eyes. Quality time and quantity time serve as two types of time, and the choice of quality or quantity endures. Peoples’ attitudes and perspectives change considerably over time. Helen Loomis tells William Forrester of her gladness for the fact that he did not see her at the age of twenty, for she acted foolish and unwise. With age and elapsed time, she matures and becomes an influential speaker in the present. Grandpa Spaulding also modifies his recollection of events as he ages. He tells Doug and Tom that â€Å"you’ll find as you get older the days kind of blur . . . can’t tell one from the other. † (237). Grandpa does remember one event: William Forrester attempting to convince him to plant â€Å"cut-less† grass. Quality memories that are truthly important to someone will be remembered more than many unimportant, insignificant ones, as shown in this memory. Contrarily, time influences events and changes them in a circular way, where each step repeats but sometimes without Doug’s approval. The cycle of the type of shoes Doug wears develops this idea. Every summer, Doug buys a new pair of tennis shoes and wears them until early September. Next, he wears iron leather shoes all winter and at the beginning of summer, he runs barefoot for a time before buying new tennis shoes. The time of year influences his shoe selection and changes his choice of what to wear. Although, the season when he wears each shoe type remains constant, year to year. Doug believes his choice of shoes changes, but the sequence of selections remains constant. Similarly, the production of dandelion wine appears different day to day to Doug because of the unique events of the day, yet all the wine tastes essentially the same. â€Å"He saw the other numbered bottles waiting there, one like another, in no way different, all bright, all regular, all self-contained. There’s the day I found I was alive, he thought, and why isn’t it brighter than the others? . . . Did the wine remember? It did not! Or seemed not, anyway† (138). When the wine is made means nothing, because the quality of each batch remains the same. Time can change events or people by developing them into something new. Humans do not have much time on earth, so their time must be of quality. One of these principles says that one should live life to the fullest. Colonel Freeleigh loves calling to Mexico City and listening to the city’s sounds. Colonel Freeleigh disobeys the nurse and calls back to Mexico. He wants to die doing the thing he enjoys most and gladly accepts death as it envelopes him while listening to one of the few things that keeps him alive. Likewise, using tobacco remains harmful and bad, yet some people chew it for the enjoyment and satisfaction. Bradbury writes, describing the scene â€Å"In front of the United Cigar Store this evening the men were gathered to burn dirigibles, sink battle ships, blow up dynamite works and, all in all, savor the very bacteria in their porcelain mouths that would some day stop them cold† (33). These men realize the side effects of using tobacco, yet they would rather enjoy a few more years of life with tobacco rather than a few more years without it. The good times hardly ever last for as long as one would want them to, so one must live life to the fullest. Calendars and clocks only divide time into equal and smaller portions, yet everyone knows that some time periods pass quicker than others. The summer comes and goes quickly, so Doug documents it by recording each event as either a new discovery or a past ceremony. Other times of the year slip by and Doug takes little interest in them. Once again, time influences how one acts during the short periods of great enjoyment, especially the little time one is â€Å"living† here on earth. Time creates a sense of urgency that sometimes pressures people into actions they would have avoided. Time also may assist one in finding the true way of living. Without the realization that time is of the essence in Dandelion Wine, Douglas’ discovery of the important struggle between life and death or that over time people change and mature would have not occured. With that said, is Douglas too young to understand these universal ideas? Does he truly grasp the notion of quality over quantity by the end of this book? In Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine, the motif of time shows the struggle between life and death, and considering that one’s time on earth is short, quality trumps quantity.