Dak Son Massacre Essay

During the winter of 1967, the people of Dak Son village had no idea what was bound to transpire just mere weeks before Christmas. Unfortunately, when America said it would aid South Vietnam in their struggle to avoid and annihilate the opposing communist forces: North Vietnam and Viet Cong, they didn’t assume that such atrocities were even humanely possible during a war, which caught America more by surprise than they had expected, leaving them with no choice but to exhibit absolutely no mercy to their enemies. Thus, leaving the United States viewing the war as a way to prevent communist takeover and repeal the domino theory. So, we fast forward eight years into the war, long after both sides are seen to be nothing short of ruthless as well as practically nothing less than fearless. They seemed to be pretty evenly matched throughout quite possibly the longest, most grueling war Vietnam has ever gone through. Since the Viet Cong’s headquarters were based in the south, it gave them much more accuracy and success when planning any sort of attack because they see everything their opposition tries to hide. Eventually, the war ended up as a compilation of many, many massacres; Dak Son village being one of the of the few that had survivors give testimonies to the horrors they had to endure solely because they disagreed with communism and the possibility of this village helping some refugees of the Viet Cong escape leading them to reply with an outlandish act of complete and utter vengeance. This left the Viet Cong with no choice but to act upon the burning fiery fuchsia that is their anger. Two battalions of Viet Cong systematically killed 252 civilians with flame-throwers and grenades that week in December, a â€Å"vengeance† attack on a small hamlet less than a mile from the capital in Phuoc Long Province. Survivors of the December 6 attack said the VC (Viet Cong) shouted their intentions to â€Å"wipe out† the hamlet of Dak Son as they struck from the surrounding jungle. A local defense force of 54 men gave ground before the estimated 300 uniformed communists. The village wasn’t exactly prepared for this sort of uncalled for attack, leaving them in utter shambles upon the departure of the Viet Cong. According to the survivors, the VC (Viet Cong) ranged up and down the hamlet streets, systematically burning more than half the 150 thatched homes of the community. Two defenders were killed, four wounded and three are missing. Many of the victims were burned to death in their homes, others, who fled to underground shelters, died as flame-throwers with their napalm-based fuel, were directed into the small shelters. Other Viet Cong threw hand grenades into holes where families were covered. This was certainly a war where morals had no backup and the only thing that was relied upon was our selfish, animal instincts with how we deal the opposition who are our fellow human beings nonetheless.

“Nowhere Man” by Pico Iyer Essay

â€Å"Nowhere Man† by Pico Iyer talks about how being a transit lounger has it’s ups and downs. Packing and waiting for your next plane as soon as you’re about ready to just sit down and rest. From sleeping in airports to eating almost all of your meals off of plastic plates. I could relate to Iyer to some level but fully. Being a visitor in your home is never a good feeling to experience but seeing the world through your eyes is such a blessing as well. I thought that nationalism was the only thing that created â€Å"monsters† but after reading this piece, I believe that both nationalism and internationalism create â€Å"monsters†. Themes that I picked up while reading this piece were – independence, nationalism, internationalism, lack for sense of home, family and comfort, discovery, self-discovery, exhaustion, loneliness, confusion. I really enjoyed a lot of the sentences that Iyer wrote but one that really caught my attention was, â€Å"We pass through countries as through revolving doors, resident aliens of the world, impermanent residents of nowhere†. This sentence really caught my attention because not only were these words put together very well but they also have a deeper meaning behind them. To me, this sentence means that they were always in a hurry to get from country to the other in time and all though they were always traveling, they never had the true meaning of a â€Å"home† but yet had a house wherever they traveled to. When Iyer said, â€Å"We are visitors in our home† – it really hit home because whenever I go over to my dads house, I feel like such a visitor although I’m suppose to feel like it’s my second home because it’s my dads house. I’m not sure what he felt when he wrote it but when I write it or talk about, I feel empty as though so mething is missing. Personally, I would have a love/hate relationship if I were a transit lounger, not knowing where home is. I would love it because I get to travel the world, discover new cities and meet new people but I would hate it because I would most likely constantly get asked where I live and I would hate to say â€Å"I don’t actually have a home but I’m going to Madrid next!†. If I didn’t have a home, I would probably lose my sense of family and comfort.  I wouldn’t know where I could go back to when I get tired of traveling, once I’m overwhelmed with seeing new cities and meeting new people. But it would also help me build a sense of independence and I would have an exciting lifestyle. Being a transit lounger sure does have it’s deep cons and pros. Two questions: – If he wasn’t a transit lounger, would he still be the same person he is today? Would he be as independent as he is today? – Did any of the other students relate to Iyer when he mentioned â€Å"†We are visitors even in our home†?

Jobs on Human Resource and Criminal Justice Essay

There are a lot of jobs in Human Resource field. A job website shows fifty human resource jobs in New York, forty one in Atlanta, thirty nine in Houston, thirty five in Dallas, thirty one in Chicago, twenty two in Los Angeles, twenty in San Jose, twenty in Austin, and other around one hundred and twenty nine in other areas. There are different positions which are in demand and few of these are HR Administrative and HR Administrative Assistant in Le Parker Meridien, Human Resource Administrator in Bloomingdale’s, Human Resource Generalist in Advertising in Towne Search, Corporate Employee Benefits Specialist in Riddick Group-Executive, Business Office Manager, Human Resource Generalist in Impact Personnel,Inc, Payroll Administrator and HR Associate, HR Business partner, Human Resource Development, Time Attendance Administrator, Compensation and HRIS, Director Human Resource, Talent Representative, Attorney Recruiting Project Assistant, Global HR and Tech, International Compensation Manager, Employment Standards Relationship Manager, Benefits Coordinator, HR Operations Manager, Senior Implementation Manager, HRIS Analyst, Recruitment and Retention Coordinator, Director of Fun, HR is one of the most important functions in an organization and it needs to perform very carefully so that every decision taken is fair and transparent. The responsibility of HR is to make the employees comfortable and the work place an ideal one for them. The greater the efficiency of the human resources department, the better the workplace environment and the employee motivation to work in the organization (Robbins & Judge, 2004). Criminal Justice Job vacancies are also in the market but relatively less in number than HR jobs. There are approximately fifty one jobs available in UK, five in Wales, one in Scotland, forty two in England, four in Yorkshire and Humberside, two in East Midlands, twenty five in Greater London, two in East of England and five in South East. There is City Attorney position in, Madison Alabama, victim or witness coordinator in Hudson Wisconsin, Assistant County Attorney in Los Alamos New Mexico, and Police Officer in Madison Wisconsin. Other vacant position include Communications Officer paid approximately ? 15 to 16 per hour, Social Worker for a youth offending team paid ? 19 to 23 per hour, Probation Officer paid approximately ? 25 per hour, Secretary General in International Commission of Jurists, Counter Fraud Specialist, Probation Prosecutor, Domestic Violence trainer, Senior Consultants and many more. But the popular one and one with most number of vacancies is Youth Offending Team. Apart from YOT a lot of Social Workers are required in the market to intervene and prevent crime.

Literary analysis of Morality and Macbeth Research Paper

Literary analysis of Morality and Macbeth - Research Paper Example at the play`s end, the actions of Macbeth have directly caused the deaths of Banquo, King Duncan, Lady Macduff, her kids and servants, many soldiers, young Siward, and eventually his own death. All these destructions resulted from immoral actions in the name of accomplishing ambition. This play has revealed how destiny and fate (idea of futurism) can have somewhat harmful effects if individuals become over ambitious to the level of being greedy. Key characters in the play acted immorally by lying, killing, betraying their own king and eventually deceiving their entire country. As such, justice was fairly served to them, a lesson learned by the entire audience of Shakespeare. This paper explores, stride by stride, every immoral act in the play and how they were eventually paid by the individuals who committed those immoralities. William Shakespeares Macbeth portrays morality through unwarranted ambitions. Macbeth is  centered on how greed and ambition can override morality and overpower human nature.  The natural desire of all leaders to broaden their political power, like Macbeth, transforms all over the play from desire to ambition,  and to aberration and greed. This unnatural wish for power is the driving force which possesses the key characters regularly and with calamitous consequences. Macbeth is initially portrayed as a leader with moral qualities. The  audience can nearly find itself feeling sorry concerning his erosion towards madness. This reveals that ambition is more powerful, stronger, and more significant than Macbeth himself, therefore ambition in itself  serves to erode morals in the play. As evidenced in Macbeth, many levels of morality may be found in the society. William Shakespeare is well known as a good judge of character, and in his play Macbeth, Shakespeare depicts characte rs to three major types of morality:

Assess the impact of ideology on the (United Kingdom) Coalition Essay

Assess the impact of ideology on the (United Kingdom) Coalition government elected in May 2010 - Essay Example To understand how the ideologies of political parties in the UK affect the present coalition governance it will be necessary to define political ideology based on the UK situation, their development over the years and therefore how they affect people, societies and governance in the land. Political ideology like any other form of ideology will have as part of its components a definition of the cognitive values (expression of knowledge and doctrines), intended effects on the subjects’ feelings, the definition of norms and system of judgment through its valuation criteria, plans and action points and lastly its social base. These are what the main political parties in the UK strive to monitor in order to achieve the support of groups and collectivities. For a government to run smoothly there has to be agreement among the members in the government to a common ideology. However in cases where parties are forced to come together in form of coalitions to form government then comprom ises are sought in the ideologies (Ball, 1987 p 1-3). This is quite a challenge in a case where the ideological differences are sharp and incompatible. In assessment of the state of the UK coalition government formed following the may 2010 general election, political ideologies of the constituent parties are found to have a major contribution on governance of the country. In this paper we seek to give an assessment of the effects of ideology of the constituents of the coalition on governance by first assessing the ideologies of individual major in the UK namely the Conservatives, the Labor Party and the Liberal Democrats. The paper will further consider how the ideologies affect governance in the coalition through analysis of opinions. The role of political parties in the UK Political parties in the UK are charged by the electorate and members with the important role of governance through direct formation of government as the ruling party or as a check to the government as backbench ers or the opposition party. In cases where no particular winner is obtained as the case in the 2010 general elections, the parties agree to form a coalition government. Other functions of political parties in the UK can be summarized as: 1. Development of particular party ideological positions. 2. Facilitation of political education while encouraging participation by party members and the electorate in political processes. 3. Formulation of individual policies that are combined to form a coherent political program implemented in case the party forms government. 4. Oversee political elections at all levels (local, national and regional) 5. Represent political, social, economic and cultural interests of supporters though ensuring they are elected to the Legislature as the ruling party 6. Institutionalization of conflict by providing mechanisms of peaceful conflict resolution in the political system From this checklist it can be understood why party ideals are an important element in the UK political systems because of their deterministic role in the success of governance. An overview of political ideology of political parties in the UK For the purpose of this assessment we shall consider the three major parties namely: the Conservative, the Labor party, and the Liberal D

Professional communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Professional communication - Essay Example I want to emphasize that taking care of you, our customer, remains our highest priority and we thank you for your patience. If you have any further questions, or require assistance locating an Audi dealer, please visit audi.com or call us directly at 800-822-8987. First of all, as an important rule of business proposal letter writing serves the need to initially define who will be a reader of a letter, or, if it may have multiple recipients, what is its audience. In our particular case the letter is addressed to a concrete person, but there is every reason to believe that this letter was actually sent to many people, and thus is audience-oriented in nature. Its audience then is a group of people who have purchased a certain model of Audi, i.e. the existing clients of the company. Although the signature of the letter belongs to the Vice President of the company, the authorship of the letter is presented as if being from Audi company itself. In this situation such an authorship sets clear relations of seller-buyer between the sender of the letter and its recipients. Moreover, in this case the relations emerge on the ground of sellers responsibility before customers.

Ethnography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 2

Ethnography - Essay Example Thus, through this method, ethnography was created and later developed to become one of the most important contributions of human society to the science of knowledge in the 20th century. As ethnography became the predominant form of data collection in this period, one of its proponents, Clifford Geertz, considered this new, emerging form of social science as a "thick description." Ethnography as a social science that possesses "thick description" is reflective of its ability to bring out a multitude of perspectives from a single observation of a society or culture. However, this very character of ethnography as a social science is also 'interpreted' in various ways, and this will be the focus of the discussions that follow from this text. Discussing and analyzing the works of Clifford Geertz, Peter Winch, and Charles Taylor concerning the issue of ethnography as an alternative form of knowledge and perspective in the field of social science, the concept of "thick description" is best illustrated. This paper posits that Geertz, Winch, and Taylor's interpretations of ethnography as a "thick description" contained variations of how each proponent viewed research in social science must be conducted. Each proponent offered different views on the epistemological roots of ethnography both as a methodological and conceptual discipline or field of study in social science. II. Clifford Geertz: Balance between quantitative and ethnographic data Clifford Geertz is one of the leading ethnologists that began the 'ethnographic revolution,' an American social scientist who developed the field of symbolic anthropology, wherein symbols and rituals are interpreted based not on their ecological and economic meanings, but on the meanings of these symbols and rituals within the context of the culture wherein they are found and practiced. He was also the one who introduced the term "thick description" to describe the science of ethnography. In order to make sense of this concept of 'thick description,' it is best to understand how Geertz utilized his knowledge and ability to interpret cultures using a different, non-Western perspective in his classic work, "Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight." In this particular ethnographic study, Geertz looked into Balinese society and culture in terms of its most dominant and prevalent ritual: cockfighting. In "Deep Play," the anthropologist interpreted Balinese cockfighting as a ritual that is symbolic in nature, wherein his interpretations included the findings that cockfighting is symbolic of Balinese men's masculinity, and the collective nature of Balinese society in general. Cockfighting as a ritual that reflected Balinese men's masculinity is specifically represented by the cock itself, wherein the Balinese man "is identifying not just with his ideal self, or even his penis, but also, at the same time, with what he most fears, hates" Moreover, as a collective ritual participated by the many, Balinese cockfights are also symbolic of what Geertz termed as the "migration of the Balinese status hierarchy into the body of the cockfight" (Geertz, 1973). Both in individualistic and

Sportswear Market Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Sportswear Market - Assignment Example This consumer demand has led to companies like ours, which exclusively cater to this segment of society, sell the sports product like hot cakes because sportswear has rapidly turned into an ever-growing and lucrative market. The youth form a majority of the total buyers of these products. Parry, 2004 has rightly stated that "There has been a significant change in the sports market over recent years driven by a number of key factors, including the high-profile media coverage of sport, the huge marketing budgets of the global brands and the increasing fashion appeal of sports clothing." Keeping in mind this global scenario I would like to bring to your notice that it is the best time to launch a product like our casual footwear. We are bound to be successful if we do the proper planning by using appropriate planning tools in order to develop our marketing objectives and strategies successfully. According to Ideas factory, "Market research pundits estimate that only 20% of all sports footwear will be used for the purpose intended, with the majority being flaunted as casual, fashion or even collector's items." Even fashion giants are trying to lure the local as well as international market segment with their sportswear products. It has rightly been mentioned by the Ideasfactory website that, "The trend has persisted since the mid-1990s when Jil Sander took a shine to Puma's King football boots and had them modified for the catwalk." Hence being a company that spealizes in sportswear, we have 100% potential to shine in the casual footwear for youth market. Only one thing that we should concentrate on is that today's market especially youth; not only get motivated by the comfort quotient but the fashion quotient too. So we have to belong to the fashion pack to avoid any bumpy ride in future. Use of planning tools Our company can make use of the following planning tools to be able to develop its marketing objectives and strategies to reach out to its target market. Boston Consulting Group's Product Portfolio Analysis: It is one of the best product portfolio analysis methods. According to this we have to first classify our 'Strategic Business Unit' (SBU) - our new product; the casual footwear on the following dimensions. 1.Relative market share (horizontal axis) - through this we will be able to derive the strength of our product in the market. 2. Market growth rate (vertical axis) - through this we will be able to judge the market attractiveness quotient. If we divide the matrix into four areas we will get four categories of SBU's from which we can choose the category of SBU our new product belongs to. These four areas have been named in the following ways: Stars: those products that are strong in the market in comparison to their competing brands. They need great investments because they are considered high growth ventures. Cash Cows: these products have low growth rate but their market share is very high. As they are well established and successful, they don't need much investment. But they need to be managed rigorously so that the profit continues, so that company can use this profit for heavy investments required by the 'star' category of products. Question Marks: The products that come under this category have low market share but they operate in markets that see higher growths.

Edit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 6

Edit - Essay Example The main challenge of managing more flourishing and a stable economy in Qatar is that most of the citizens living in this region are foreigners who usually come because of employment related businesses. It is important to note that Qatar has an overall population of about 1.8 million people, whereby 1.5 million of them are expatriates (QFINANCE, 2013). Therefore, the government has been forced to rely mainly on oil and gas in meeting its budget needs. In order for the Qatar government to maintain a healthy and a stable economy in the future, it ought to expand revenue sources, utilize its assets to hedge against instability and create a legacy for the future in by measures mentioned below. Firstly, the government needs to apply a tax on water and electricity as part of expanding its revenue sources. In this case all the households should pay a given fraction of tax to the state so that it can continue sustaining provision of the water and electricity to the people of Qatar. The revenue raised from the water and electricity will be useful in maintaining and expanding the country’s national power grid in the future to cater for the growing demand for electricity from investors in the recent years (QFINANCE, 2013). Additionally, given Qatar is a desert country the taxes on water will be critical in digging more boreholes. This idea will in turn improve the national water supply with an end goal of handling the increasing demand for water used for domestic and commercial purposes. Secondly, the government needs to lease its land for 99 years whereby those who rent the land will be expected to pay a certain percentage of annual rates to the government. It is important to note that the government will be leasing land to expatriates who plans to use the land for various economic activities. Given that currently most of the land in Qatar is not leased to any expatriate, renting the

Liabilities of a Director Essay Example for Free

Liabilities of a Director Essay A company is usually established by individuals or Directors (officers included) in this case so as to run it in appropriate manner in order to make maximum profits. For this to happen, it is for the company (Pandora Diamonds and Gems Pty Ltd in our case) to enter or make contracts with outsiders like Kaplan Bank Ltd and Space Solutions Pty Ltd as far as our case is concerned. The contracts made by the company with other outsiders are usually done by Directors who are, most often than not, act as representatives of that mentioned company and be able to be liable by the acts of its Directors as stated in s126. Directors acting on behalf of the company during any contracts are usually in a crucial position of trust within that company, and therefore, the vast array of legal duties will stretch out on their shoulders for holding that position. Due to this hot position, it is easier than not, for their powers to be abused in different ways. Directors have been known to abuse their powers in office for their personal gain. For example, Directors have been held liable for inappropriately using company’s funds in making their personal secret profits. In such cases, the corporate law comes into play (the Common Law and the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)) and Directors or any other officer who recklessly breach specific duties and obligations should be prosecuted in the court of law. So for the purpose of liability, the common law and the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) have been laid down so as to minimize the risk of wrongful behaviors by company’s Directors. In this paper, I will discuss the responsibilities, liabilities and duties of a director(s) in a company and give examples how Directors of various companies have been accounted or held responsible for infringing Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) laws. Directors’ Duties Since companies are usually established and managed by directors and a number of officers, these directors have that ostensible authority, collectively, to represent that mentioned company and not as an individual Director. As I am going to talk about it below, some individual directors (Andrew and Brian in this case) have been known to enter in to some kind of contract with outsiders (other companies) and not collectively as board of directors, as allowed under s201J and s198D of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). Directors, in most cases, have contravened these sections of the Act because they have their own material personal interests outside the company and have disowned their â€Å"duty to act honestly and in good faith to the best interest of the company† as per Part 2D.1 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). Directors can only avoid the civil or criminal penalties for breaching the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) only if they fully understand their liabilities and duties (Sieve rs, 1997 and Cassidy, 2006). Some of Corporations Acts laws, which directors need to be watchful for, in order to avoid contravening Corporations Act laws, are and not limited to: 1. Act in good faith and honest for the best interest of the company. 2. By considering company’s interests ahead of their own. 3. Avoiding conflicts of duty and interest. 4. Duty to avoid insolvent trading by the company 1. Duty to act honestly and in good faith to the best interest of the company As far as s181 of Corporations Acts 2001 (Cth) is concerned, any director including Andrew and Brian in our case, have to act â€Å"in good faith and in the best interest of the company (Pandora Diamonds and Gems Pty Ltd)† (see Darval v North Sydney Brick and Tile Co (1988) 6 ACLC 154) and not for their personal intentional purposes. In our case, before resigning, Brian set up his own jewellery business so that he can engage in a lucrative business of supplying jewellery to his new friend Victor after resigning from Pandora Diamonds and Gems Pty Ltd. Brian, under Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) s.184, may have infringed the statutory duties that are found in ss.181-183, and therefore liable for civil or criminal penalties as per Corporations Act laws (Sievers, 1997 and Cassidy, 2006). 2. Duty not to improperly use the position of a director to gain any personal benefits As contained in s182 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth), directors must demonstrate their powers for the required purposes so that companies like Pandora Diamonds and Gems Pty Ltd for example can benefit and those directors who violate s180 of the Corporations Act law Sbe penalized or disqualified in the court of law as was illustrated in the case of Mills v. Mills (1938) 60 CLR 150 (Cassidy, 2006). In our case, the exercise of power by Brian to secure some personal advantage by starting his own jewellery business, is considered as an ‘improper purpose’ because it is not within the purpose of benefiting Pandora Diamonds and Gems Pty Ltd, but to himself (see Mills v. Mills (1938) 60 CLR 150, Biala Pty Ltd v. Uallina Holdings (No 2) (1993) and ASIC v. Adler (2002)). Eventually, Brian will be responsible for any financial benefit he might have received as the head of Pandora Diamonds and Gems Pty Ltd (see Queensland mine Ltd v Hudson (1978) 18 ALR 1) (Cassidy, 2006, p. 251). 3. Avoiding conflicts of duty and interest. The conflict of interest is a matter for all board of directors that does not only affect specific directors in the company. According to section 182 and 183 of the Corporations Act, any misuse of director’s position just for the disadvantage of the company and for the benefit of the director is generally forbidden by the law (see Aberdeen Railway Co. v. Blaikie Bros (1854). If some sections like s191 to s195 of the Corporation Act is analyzed further, it details some important rules on how Directors (Brian included) are supposed to disclose or declare to the board of directors, if there is any personal interest that is related to the affairs of the company. This is required so as to ensure that the honesty and integrity of directors are thoroughly observed (Cassidy, 2006). As far as our case is concerned, Brian may have violated s181 of the Corporations Act, for he did not declare or disclose to the board of directors that he has some interest of starting is own business as required under s191 (3) and he may be prosecuted in the court of law for not declaring his interest. 4. Duty to prevent insolvent trading by the company Corporate regulators have tried many means to make sure that there are no companies that can trade while insolvent by imposing higher level of liability on directors. As per s588G of the Corporations Act, civil penalties and personal liability on directors have been imposed on them if in case a company incur a debt and is declared insolvent. An example of a case where directors were liable for the company’s insolvency was that of Commonwealth Bank of Australia v Friedrich. Here, Maxwell Eise who was a director was fined millions of dollars for causing the company to undergo insolvency. The court argued that Maxwell Eise (Brian and Andrew in our case) had breached s588G of the Corporations Act and was liable for debts incurred by the company because his failure to prevent it. If in case directors of companies like Pandora Diamonds and Gems Pty Ltd have acted criminally and believed to be dishonest, in which may harm the company because of their self personal advantage, ASIC with the assistance of Australian Federal Police, criminal investigation can be conducted and tough procedures has to be followed when collecting evidence that will be use to determined as to whether a prosecution should go a head. And if the case is found to be more serious, it will be handled with the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecution; otherwise the lower courts will deal with these kinds of cases. All in all, directors should carefully study, understand and appreciate their duties and responsibilities that they are subject to as company bosses. Being a director of a company is not an easy task because there are several fiduciary duties that need to be adhered to.

Ceramic Materials In Cutting Tools

Ceramic Materials In Cutting Tools Traditional cutting tools are mostly made of steels and irons, however, ceramic cutting tools are developed quickly these years. Ceramic cutting tools have a lot of advantages over other cutting tools in certain areas. Ceramics possess a lot of required properties for cutting tools such as high strength and good thermal conductivity. The development of ceramic cutting tools has once been hindered by the high cost and difficulty in manufacturing ceramics. Thanks to the improvement of materials engineering and the advent of composites, both the cost and the difficulty of manufacture have been resolved. The market share of ceramic tools has increased in recent years, which indicates that the ceramic cutting tools are well along in development. With a comparison and evaluation of many processing routes, die pressing and sintering are chosen as the most convenient and appropriate way for the manufacture of ceramic cutting tools. There are a lot of potential ceramic materials can be used in cutting tools and most of them are alumina or silica based. Composites have also attracted much attention with a relatively low cost and high performance. Cutting tools Cutting tools are designed to separate materials. They can be divided into different categories, each of which has its own characteristics and requirements for the materials used. The mostly used materials for cutting tools are steel and iron. However, with the development of materials science and engineering, ceramic cutting tools are playing a more and more important role. Ceramics are usually very hard, heat resistant and have little reactivity with steels, which are properties vital for cutting tools. Hence they can be used at high cutting speed without deformation and dissolution.[1] However, ceramics have their own drawbacks that they lack toughness and are sensitive to mechanical or thermal shock, which has limited the use of ceramic materials in cutting area. Humans have used ceramic cutting tools for more than 100 years. [2] The cutting objects vary from very soft substances (butter) to extreme hard things (steels). In the early days, the major composition of these ceramic tools was alumina. However, the toughness of alumina material then was low and softened by glassy phases, which were the reasons why their applications were limited. [1] With the effort of scientists, materials science and technology has dramatically developed so that the properties of ceramics have been greatly improved. They become harder by improving the purity, less brittle with some additives and tougher with reinforcements. [1] The first ceramic material used in cutting tools was Alumina. [1] A variety of other ceramics have also been produced to be specifically used in cutting tools manufacture. There are three categories available, namely pure oxide ceramics, mixed oxide plus carbide or nitride and silicon nitride based material. [2] Whisker reinforced ceramic materials, with high toughness and hardness at high temperature, has pushed forwarded the development of ceramic cutting tools. Figure 2.1 Cermet indexable milling tools [1] There are a lot of aspects that should be considered when the materials are chosen. The following three aspects were taken into consideration in the design of the tool material. [2] Firstly, the surface layer should possess the highest heat conductivity that is favourable for dissipation of cutting heat. Secondly, the thermal expansion coefficient of the surface layer should be the lowest of all the layers of the materials so as to form residual compressive stresses in the surface layers in the fabricating processing, which may partially counteract the stresses resulting from external loading. Finally, the value of maximum Von Mises stress should be the lowest in order to guarantee the structural integrity of the compact. [2] The properties of the ceramic are not the only factor involved in the material choice, the economic factor has also played an important role in the consideration of the material. [1] One of the main focuses in ceramic industry is how to cut the prime cost and the future developments most important direction must be cost reduction. New kind of raw materials and methods are needed to attain this goal. In the future, with the development of material science and technology, more methods will be used in improving ceramics. The perfection of coating technology and the progresses in composites will promote the usage of ceramics in cutting industry. CMCs (ceramic matrix composites) are considered to be one of the most popular materials used for cutting tools in the future. Current market situation There are three main cutting tools markets. Solid tools and indexable inserts; milling, turning and drilling tools are investigated to show the trend of current market of cutting tools. Grades include carbide, ceramic, cermet, CBN/PCBN, diamond and steel. Products are analyzed by country and end-use markets.[3] The consumer markets are specifically broken down by each of the following geographic regions: [3] à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ China à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ United States à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Germany à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Japan à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Korea à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Italy à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ France à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Taiwan à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ United Kingdom à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Brazil à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Other EU à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Other NAFTA à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Other Europe à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Other Asia/Pacific à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Other Latin America à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Rest of World The geographic regions from top to bottom represent the biggest markets for cutting tools. The United States Cutting Tool Institute which was formed when the Metal Cutting Industry and Cutting Tool Manufactures Association merged is now said to represent 80% of the domestic cutting tool market.[4] Great strides continue to be made in the cutting tool market that result in reduced bench time and additional handwork, as well as heavier depths of cutting which leads to increased productivity and higher accuracy. Over the past ten years the cutting tools market has increased dramatically. The tools have taken on very specific roles depending on the application. Now there are specific carbide grades, coatings and geometries to match the customers needs. The market is predicted to expand and grown and achieve new heights. [4] The majority of end users in industry of cutting tools are listed below: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Aerospace à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Automotive à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Chemical Processing à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Communications à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Construction à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Defense/Military à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Electronic à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ General Machining à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Medical/Research à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Oil Gas à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Paper Pulp Industry à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Power Generation Global market for cutting has been captured by the metal cutting tools for a long time. However, some special properties make the advanced ceramics tend to be more inexpensive, longer life, larger range of application, which become a competitive advantage for manufacturers.[4] Therefore ceramic cutting tools are expected to recapture the cutting market. The competition among manufacturers is expected to remain intense, which forces the manufactuers to work harder to get a smaller market share. The three largest competitors focus on carbide-tipped tools and carbide inserts worldwide. Current materials used There are four main ceramic compositions used in the cutting tool industry have been outlined below, the most important aspects of each material have been highlighted. [5] Sialons A sialon is a class of ceramic based on silicon nitride. The ceramic is composed of four different ceramic powders; silica (SiO2), alumina (Al2O3) and silicon nitride (Si3N4). The fourth component is either yittria (Y2O3) or magnesium oxide (MgO). The yittria is used to aid in the sintering process to increase efficiency of the process. [5] Sialons have very low coefficient of thermal expansion meaning that they are good in situations of thermal shock. Sialons are retain their hardness at temperatures of 800ÃÅ'Ã…   C to 1000ÃÅ'Ã…   C which enables them to be very effective when machining heat resisting alloys. They are also effective when machining hardened die steels and cast irons at high speed. [6] Aluminium oxide-based ceramics These ceramics are composed as their name suggests but are commonly found with small additions of zirconia (2-5%).the additional zirconia is added to increase fracture toughness. Al2O3 based ceramics show an increase in mechanical properties above 800ÃÅ'Ã…  C. Below this temperature the hard metals posses a greater strength than the ceramics. The hardness of the ceramic can be increased further by 30-40% with the additions of titanium carbide or titanium nitride. These harder ceramics are generally used for finishing and harder metals. Another common addition to the (Al2O3 + ZrO2) base are silicon carbide (SiC) whiskers at around 25%. The whiskers act as reinforcements to the structure and increase the toughness. This enables the ceramic to be used for cutting nickel based super alloys at high speed. [5] Silicon Nitride The ceramic has a density of around 3.2g/cm3 and the grain size is approximately 2-3 micrometres. Silicon nitride boasts good wear resistance and cutting edge strength as well as high resistance to thermal shock. Si3N4 is generally used in the field of providing a roughing grade for turning and milling cast iron. The bad solution wear properties of silicon nitride restrict the ceramic from being used as a cutting tool for machining steels. The high resistance to thermal shock means the ceramic can be used with and without the use of coolants. Money can be saved on cooling equipment in such a controlled manner. [5] Cubic Boron Nitride Cubic boron nitride is a synthetic compound, in its natural state it has a soft hexagonal crystal structure. Ton achieve a cubic structure it is heated to 1400ÃÅ'Ã…  C in 60kbar of pressure. This has a great effect on the hardness of structure, (Around 4000VDH) this is similar to diamonds hardness. [6] Carbon boron nitride is a polycrystalline and is used in applications where hard metals become limited by the cutting speeds employed. Examples are; high speed steels, tool steels, case hardened steels, chilled cast iron and satellite. Carbon boron nitrides hardness is second only to diamonds, for this reason carbon boron nitride offers great wear resistance and the ceramic will not need to be replaced on cutting tools as much as others. Harder metals are also possible to machine with more efficiency, however carbon boron nitride offers no advantage when machining softer materials. [5] Composites The properties of ceramics are dramatically improved by using some sizes, such as TiC, Co and WC, as dispersed phase, named composite ceramics. The type composite ceramics is the Si3N4 composite ceramics, which hardness, bending strength and toughness is higher than the simple Si3N4-based ceramics. It also has a better thermal impact resistance. Because of its special properties, it is widely used in machining cold hardened cast iron roller, and it can finish the work of coarse and precise machining of roughcast, for overcoming the low machining hardening of steel parts used in the mining facilities. Its disadvantage is poor abrasion machining. [6] Coating material Coating technology plays a very important role during the cutting tool manufacture. It is used to produce the perfect cutting tools which have both hard surface as well as high toughness. With the development in the last 10 years, this technology has made materials with high-speed cutting, hard cutting and dry machining possible. Cutter coating can be divided into four kinds. They are chemical vapor deposition (CVD), Low-temperature chemical vapor deposition (PCVD), Middle temperature chemical vapor deposition and PVD. However, cutting tools are expected to be coated differently to meet the demands for comprehensive mechanical properties. Therefore more attention should be paid to make coating thinner and coating temperature lower. [6] The future materials The future of ceramic cutting tools is dependent on the development of super hard coatings for the cutting tools. A new coating for a ceramic cutting tool is a titanium aluminum nitride coating. The coating helps to control the temperature of the cutting tool when it is used at high speeds. This allows for quicker cutting and therefore a more efficient process. [6] The coating also adds to the lifespan of the tool, in some cases it can make the tool last several times longer. It is important to note that the addition of the coating also adds 10% to the cost of the tool although this is immediately recovered by lasting much longer. [7] Possible processing route Most of the ceramics are processed by shaping and sintering. The shaped ceramics are called green body. The shaping process of ceramics is crucial as it can influence the properties of the sintered products such as porosity. Nowadays, the main methods of forming ceramic green bodies include die pressing, slip casting, pressure casting, and injection molding. Shaping All the methods above start with a suspension where the ceramic particles are mixed with a liquid or a polymer melt, proper dispersant, and possibly further additives such as binders, plasticizers, and antifoaming agents so that a well-dispered, nonagglomerated ceramic slurry can be made. Die pressing can be divided to many different pressing route such as dry pressing, cold isostatic pressing and hot isostatic pressing. Green bodies are manufactured by pouring powders into the die and these granules are formed under certain pressure. [8]The method of dry pressing is almost as the same as the cold isostatic pressing. The two methods are widely used in the industrial production of ceramic materials, accounting for their productivity ,and the development of cold isostatic pressing makes green bodies of higher density possible. Slip casting and pressure casting are included in the drain casting techniques, which invovle a solid-liquid separation process to form a dense green body. [8] The driven force of flow liquid in the two castings is an external pressure gradient. [8] Slip casting is a low-pressure filtration of which the driving force provided for the green bodies forming is the capillary suction.[9] slip casting is slow compared with die pressing but complex figure can be obtain. Pressure casting is usually used to fabricate the traditional clay-based ceramic materials, such as pottery and sanitary porcelain. [9] Pressure filtration is an improved method of slip casting, the casting rate is raised and the green bodies have a higher density. [9] Both die pressing and casting are plagued by some genetic problems. The liquid flow of the suspension is required and the stress gradient may also lead to nonuniform densities of the green body which lead to the pockety mass.[9] Injection molding is an excellent method to form smaller objects. The mixture of powders and binder are intruded to the mould and form green bodies. [9] However, the removal of the binder which can be burned at relative low temperature has been a problem. Crack and imperfections will be introduced during this procedure. [8] There is also a technique called solid freeform fabrication(SFF) by which we can form a ceramic green body without using a mould. All the process is controlled by computer using 3D CAD designed before the process.[10] This method have been used to form complex figures, however, the surface finish is poor. [9] This method has not been widely used for its immature technology. Sintering After shaping, the density of a green body is usually about 50% of its theoretic density. Full densification can be achieved by sintering at temperature up to 1800 °C.[11] During this process, individual powder particles can get enough energy to bond together realize the transformation from the porosity present to the compaction stages. Composites processing Composites are consisted of two parts: the matrix phase and the reinforcing phase. Generally, the combination of the two parts is achieved through a melding event. After the melding event, the part shape is set. According to the melding event, the methods of composites preparation can be classified into four main methods ¼Ã… ¡vacuum bag moulding, pressure bag moulding, autoclave moulding and resin transfer moulding (RTM).[12] Besides, there are some other types of moulding that include press moulding, pultrusion moulding, filament winding and so on. [12] Composites can also be devided into metal matrix composites(MMC) and ceramic matrix composites(CMC) based on the matrix materials. According to the temperatrue of metallic matrix during processing, the processes of MMC can be classified into five categories: [14] 1).liquid-phase processes, 2).solid-liquid processes, 3).two-phase (solid-liquid) processes, 4.) deposition techniques 5) In situ processes. The selection of materials and processing route Then dry processing has much influence on the green microstructure and production rate. We must treat this opreation to avoid the problem of cracking and warping. The desired result in ceramic part production is fast drying, but fast drying causes cracking. It has been studied that decreased drying rates results in the increasing green densities. The size of power also affects ceramics sintering properties. These days, nonasized powder attracts much attention, because of its special properties (mechanical, optical, magnetic and electrical). The compacts of nanosized powder can be sintered at significantly reduced temperatures, thereby lowing the firing cost.[10] And it is possible to get high density ceramic body in the formation of nanosized particles.[11] From the ceramics already discussed the best ceramic to use for this product would be the Aluminium oxide-based ceramic. It is already widely used in the industry so there is no need for testing to make sure it works. When cutting the cutting tools increase in heat rapidly, sometimes this has an effect however with Al2O3 their mechanical properties get better the hotter they get. The ceramics hardness will also be increased further with addition of silicon carbide whiskers. These whiskers add reinforcement to the structure and increase it toughness. Therefore the cutting tool can be used at higher speeds. Not only will our ceramic have added strength from the whiskers but with have a tough outer shell from a coating of TiAlN. This coating has a high bond strength, high hardness, abrasion resistance and high cutting speed.[8] From all of the possible processing routes in the industry, it has been decided that Dry Pressing would be the route which is most beneficial to the company. Dry Pressings most appealing feature is the productivity factor. Its fast productivity means that the product quantities are increased therefore meaning that costs will be reduced. Ben Franklin one said Time is money, he was right. Reducing production times reduces the amount of time staff needs to work, it reduces the amount of time that machines have to be on, and therefore it reduces the costs of production. Dry Pressing is conducted with granulated or spray-died powder containing 0 to 4% moisture which is where Dry Pressing gets its name from.[1] There are some disadvantages of using this process but the many disadvantages overrule this fact. One of these disadvantages is that high pressures are used in the process, but then again these high pressures are not as high as the ones used in pressure casting. Dry pressing can only gain good results if all the steps prior of the forming or pressing is kept under careful control. The product once leaved the die cavity is in a plastic condition and if not handled carefully, may deform. With dry pressing there is no limit to the compositions which can be used because the plasticity of the body is not relied on to aid the forming. Under normal conditions and supervision it is possible to produce ceramics to very good tolerances. In special cases with very close controls tolerances can be kept which are considerably better than usual. Slip casting is in need of too much careful control to be able to mass produce at a beneficial production rate, especially with the long time it takes to cast articles on the mould. Pressure casting is pretty much the same as slip casting but with added pressure to speed up the casting time. This added pressure is not justified because it is too expensive and does not take enough time off the process. Injection Molding has a few defects, which can occur to the product. There can be an incomplete fill within the mould, knit lines, and microcracking, which will all, have a visual defect on the finished body. Concluding, the dry press process has the least amount of possible defects to occur in comparison to other process routes. It is the quickest route with great productivity and can offer very high tolerances. These are the main reason for our choice of dry pressing process route. 7. Reasoned argument for RAC The ceramic that has been selected to be taken forward is Al2O3 + (2%Zr) + (20%SiC whiskers), there is no issue in using this composition legally. However the methods of using the cutting tool must be reviewed as such patent 4,879,277 which claims . In a method of cutting metal wherein a cutting tool is brought into contact with a metal workpiece and the cutting tool and metal workpiece move relative to each other whereby metal is removed by the cutting tool from the metal workpiece, the improvement comprising using a sintered composite cutting tool having a matrix consisting essentially of alumina and 2-40 volume percent silicon carbide whiskers distributed therethrough. [14] A work around the patent would have to be implemented if the material is to be used in such a way. A variation in whisker content or physical machining could help to deviate from the patents claims. RAC could create a competitive edge for themselves by proceeding with this option as it will help them to differentiate themselves to most of their competitors. The material selected is a very cutting edge material with extremely high levels of performance. Many of the competitor businesses would not have adopted this material and may continue to use a lesser and cheaper material such as unreinforced aluminium oxide based ceramics. RAC will be able to offer a faster and more efficient cutting solution to their clients. The superior technology is likely to attract new customers to the business leading to a larger market share. The harder cut edge and faster cutting speed will lead to a greater cutting quality also, the tools will be able to be smaller in size and so more precise machining is possible. The business will be able to supply their service to a wider range of clients requiring different finishing qualities. From the market analysis carried out previously it is clear that the cutting tool industry is a blooming one. It is encouraging that the market has grown so dramatically over the last ten years and that there is an increased demand for new cutting tool technologies. The need for faster and more accurate methods will remain the same as the products on the market continue to develop in complexity. To conclude the ceramic and manufacture process put forward can be projected to be a positive step for RAC after considering the factors involved. The only problem to resolve before proceeding with the decision is the patent on the ceramic and its method. Once this is resolved the decision to proceed is an easy one and should lead to business success.

Cultural Policy in the UK

Cultural Policy in the UK CULTURAL POLICY IN THE UK: Mid-1960s to late 1980s Cultural Policy in the UK: Critical overview of the last 30 years MARCH 2010 In the last three decades (approximately 1980 to 2010), cultural policy in the UK has taken a generally questionable direction. Overall, cultural policy and practices of the past 30 years have been overwhelmed by new neo-liberal discourses and ideologies, namely: economic rationalism, monetarism, neo-conservatism, commodification of culture, managerialism and performativity. Examining each of these in turn, it becomes apparent that a market-driven, neo-liberal approach to UK cultural policy has largely failed in each of its stated aims: economic growth, artistic excellence, increased access to the arts, and social justice. The mid-1970s were a real turning point in terms of cultural policy, with broad policy changes occurring from this time on both within and without the cultural sector. In many ways, the earlier 1970s epitomised cultural and political concerns with the general welfare of the public, and some support of the arts for their own sake rather than as an instrument of broader political and social change. The early 1970s saw, in many ways, a political climate of idealism. Cultural policy of the time reflected this atmosphere. However, there were drastic political, cultural, and ideological changes made later in the 1970s which have, to a degree, continued to shape the cultural policy discourse of the next thirty years and up to the present day (Gray, 2007). In the cultural sector as a whole, Gray describes the development of what he calls instrumental policies (Gray, 2007, p.5) since the mid-1970s. By this term Gray describes the shift in cultural policy from an arms-length, distanced governm ental approach to the arts and culture; to a political interest in using the cultural sector as an instrument, or instruments, of social, economic, and political change. In the first decades of state patronage of the arts, the Arts Council saw itself not as a source of direction, not as a source of artistic policy, but as a kind of enabling body (Stevens, 1998: 10, quoted in Caust, 2003, p.52). By the late 1970s, however, this attitude on the part of the state had changed dramatically. Instead of standing back and simply allowing the arts to develop and flourish via generous state subsidy and support, many Western governments including that of the United Kingdom developed the ideology that they could and should instead expect outcomes for their investments (Caust, 2003, p. 52). The overwhelming shift to a market-based, market-driven ideology in terms of cultural policy has had many negative effects upon the arts themselves, and several tangentially-related areas of the social and political landscape. In the last thirty years, it is economic change which appears to have been the states prime concern in terms of cultural policy, despite public assertions to the contrary. Gray states that the ideological and organisational changes toward instrumental policy-making have had an effect upon what the state does, how it does it, and the justifications and reasons that have been put forward to explain them (Gray, 2007, p.5). The reforms that have taken place in the realm of cultural policy in the United Kingdom have been summarised by scholars as variously representing a mode of privatisation (Alexander and Rueschemeyer, 2005, pp. 71-4), or one of commodification (Gray, 2000). Privatisation concerns, variously, a heightened level of interventionism in the management and administration of public assets (Gray, 2007, p.5) by private entities or actors; or the sale of previously-nationalised state industries and assets to the private sphere. Commodification is a term used to describe wider ch anges in political actions and ideology, concerning the replacement of cultural value derived from its usefulness, to value derived from its exchangeability (Gray, 2007, p.5). Commodification results from an ideological shift within the state, and this can be seen as a driving force in cultural policy developments within the last thirty years. Despite government assertions that artistic excellence and broadened public access to the arts are prime concerns of the state, economic concerns are also often of perhaps overriding concern to the Thatcher, Major, Blair and Brown administrations which governed Britain between 1980 and 2010. Tony Blairs opening statement in the government publication Culture and Creativity: The Next Ten Years (____) makes the economic preoccupation of the government in relation to cultural policy quite explicit. Blair acknowledges a connection between creativity and production and then makes an economic justification for his governments investment in supporting creativity in its broadest sense (Caust, 2007, p. 55). With reference to both culture and creativity, Blair states: [t]hey also matter because creative talent will be crucial to our individual and national economic success in the economy of the future (Smith, 2001: 3; quoted in Caust, 2007, p.55). Economic Rationalism Economic rationalism is a term first coined in Australia with regards to economic policies and ideologies which favour privatisation of state industries, a free-market economy, economic deregulation, reduction of the welfare state, increased indirect taxation and lower direct taxation (Pusey, 1991). Such policies were particularly widespread in a global context during the 1980s and 1990s. The policies of Thatcherism provide an example of economic rationalism in action. The origins of the term economic rationalism were actually favourable, in describing market-oriented policies of various administrations in Australia, the UK and the US in the 1970s and 1980s (Pusey, 1991). In the 1990s, the term started to be used with an unfavourable tone, toward the Third Way policies of both the Australian Labour Party and the UK New Labour party of the 1990s. Both these parties initiated market-driven reforms within their political ideologies, which placed them closer to Thatcherite economic rationalism via increased emphasis upon the private sector in economic, political, and cultural arenas (Pusey, 1991). These were parties which had not traditionally placed a relatively great emphasis upon the free-market economy, and therefore the term economic rationalism has been used somewhat disparagingly to indicate that these parties have, to a degree, abandoned their historically leftist roots, when social justice and expansion of the welfare state took precedence over sheer capitalism. In terms of cultural policy, economic rationalism is evident throughout the 1980s and 1990s in the United Kingdom. Thatcherist policies in the 1980s placed unprecedented ideological and practical emphasis upon the free market, and in terms of cultural policy this translated to cuts in arts and education budgets, and the development of private-public partnership in cultural funding. The logical effect of such policies was that the arts, in particular, became increasingly monetised and reliant upon market and mass appeal in order to survive economically. The UK governments of the 1980s and 1990s placed great ideological and political emphasis upon the economic potential of the countrys cultural sector. Bennett (1995) views such economic potential as being used as a prime justification for state action and interventions within the cultural sector (p. 205-7). However, as Gray (2007) points out, this is not necessarily the same as seeing culture as a mechanism for economic regeneration (p. 16). The governments of the 1980s and 1990s appear to have sought to use various pretexts, including economic arguments, in order to justify their interventions in the sphere of cultural policy, however their true intentions most of the time were to stimulate broader economic growth through such cultural policies. As we shall see later, attempts at stimulating economic growth through cultural policy have, by and large, failed overall. Caust (2007) asserts that more recent government policy debates have been dominated by an economic paradigm (p.52). Arguments which focus upon the economic value of the arts have developed, and thus a political atmosphere is created in which the intrinsic value or worth that society may place upon the arts is trumped by the arts purely economic value. Economic rationalism, through its emphasis on the free market and upon the private sector, speeds the development of such an atmosphere, which permeated the UK cultural policy sector throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Although Causts discussion (2007) focuses on cultural policy in the Australian context, there are many parallels with UK cultural policy during the same time period. Caust describes a changing climate in which less emphasis came to be placed on the definition of art itself and upon value judgments of a particular art piece or art form by acknowledged experts.   Instead, market theory is emphasised, and increased importance is placed upon those art forms which can achieve the greatest commercial success. In the realm of cultural policy, such a change in the mode of arts valuation by the state leads to the desire to support arts activity which was commercial, exportable and cost-efficient (Caust, 2007, p.52). In the realm of cultural production, the natural result of such cultural policies is the emergence of mass cultural products which satisfy the market. Simon Cowell, and the massive, global Pop Idol and X Factor talent-show franchises he created, epitomises the result of two decades of economic rationalism. These programs, in which amateur singers compete in a televised, viewer-voted series, are vastly commercially successful and have been licensed in the US and many European and Latin American countries. Cowell has made a fortune, and it is typically a given that the winner of Pop Idol or The X Factor will have the Christmas number-one single in the UK (2009/2010 was an exception to this rule, when a social-media campaign deliberately pushed a reissued single by agit-rock group Rage Against The Machine to the top of the UK charts in a display of protest against the blandness and ubiquity of Cowells cover-song artists). While a huge success in economical terms Cowells franchises combine all the government-desired traits of exportability and mass-market appeal, while stimulating sales of music media in addition to generating signifi cant revenue via paid telephone voting and merchandise it could hardly be argued that the format of these shows stimulates artistic originality, experimentation, or musical development in any significant way.   The example above demonstrates that to give the market what it wants often leads to a lowest-common-denominator approach to cultural production and a bland stifling of the development of new and exciting art forms. Such effects of economic rationalism on cultural policy and therefore upon culture itself reflect Causts discussion of economic concerns and their effects on culture. As Caust states, such market-oriented cultural policy creates a compromising role for artists since serving the state as an economic generator is very different from taking risks artistically, or being innovative and creative generally. It could be argued this objective is little different from the expectations of a totalitarian state, in which its artists serve the states political aims. (Caust, 2007, p.54) Managerialism Prior to the late 1970s and early 1980s, governments had on the whole aimed to effect an arms-length approach in terms of arts management. One of the founding principles of the Arts Council itself was that it should be relatively independent of the government itself, and not directly under government control. Gray (2007) noted the general tendency of governments to adopt relatively indirect forms of involvement (p.11). Gray states that this role can be advantageous for governments, as they are not especially held accountable for the results of such policies implemented at arms-length: they can have some effect on the sector by producing general policies but, at the same time, they can avoid being held directly responsible or accountable for the specific policy choices that are then made on their behalf. (Gray, 2007, p.11) However, with the political, ideological, social and economic changes which took place when Thatcher was elected, the governments of the 1980s onwards adopted an increasingly managerialistic approach to the arts and cultural policy. Increasingly, the arts management implemented by successive administrations over the last three decades has been moved towards a new style of management that has been influenced by private sector models (in the form of mission statements and marketing, for example) (Gray, 2000, p. 112). It certainly follows logically that governments which prioritise capitalism and the free market would be attracted to the idea of imposing private-sector management models upon spheres they were hoping would become economically productive. Hence, successive governments have attempted to run the arts and cultural spheres, to some degree, as if they were private commercial enterprises. In many cases, this is a misunderstanding or misrepresentation of the inherent nature of m any areas of the arts. Generally, the start of managerialism in UK cultural policy can be seen during the reforms taking place under the label the New Public Management (NPM) (Gray, 2007, p.6). NPM emphasised several core concepts, which were put into action via UK state intervention in the cultural sphere. Under NPM, managers in the arts realm were empowered to make more decisions relating to their sphere of management; results were prioritised, and valued, over processes; managerial control was more generally decentralised; competition in terms of public service provision was actively encouraged; new emphasis was placed upon performance measurement; and management appointments now tended to be made through contracts rather than through seniority or hierarchy within the sector (Osborne and McLaughlin, 2002, p. 9; Pollitt, 2003a, pp. 27-8; Gray, 2007, p.6). Following the 1988 Ibbs Report, new managerial bodies were created by the government for example, the Executive Agencies (or, more formally, Non-Departmental Public Bodies) (Gray, 2007, p. 8). This led to a general decentralisation of government arts management, but also to issues regarding accountability, managerial responsibility and the relationship of elected politicians and appointed managers with the prime example being that of the clash between the then Home Secretary Michael Howard and the then head of the Prison Service, Derek Lewis. (Gray, 2007, p. 8) Local Strategic Partnerships and Regional Development Agencies were newly-instigated modes of arts management, which further emphasised both the decentralisation of government cultural policy during this period. Additionally, these agencies show evidence of overall managerialism towards the arts in that they demonstrate a devolution of power to local and regional arts managers. (Gray, 2007, p. 9) In later years, a somewhat different (modernizing) model of public management (Gray, 2007, p.6) was implemented, although the more general emphasis upon the concept of managerialism with respect to cultural policy did endure. Commodification of Culture In keeping with governmental emphasis upon the economy and the free market within the last three decades, there has followed an increasing commodification of culture. An obvious example of such commodification is enclosed within the phrases cultural industries and creative industries, which were hailed by New Labour in the 1990s and 2000s as a means of economic regeneration in the United Kingdom. Caust (2007) argues that the development of a view of cultural activity and production as an industry grew not only from the government, but also from the cultural producers themselves: When it became increasingly difficult in the early eighties to successfully argue the arts to government purely on the basis of the community welfare model, bureaucrats, practitioners and academics began the shift towards using a language that described the arts as an industry and developed the economic/cultural industry model. This led to the use of the terms cultural industries in Australia or in the United Kingdom, creative industries to describe all activities connected with the arts, as well as sectors far removed (Caust, 2007, p. 54) These cultural industries had been growing throughout the latter part of the twentieth century, aided by technological advances and global economic factors. In the northern hemisphere, populations were enjoying increased economic prosperity; leisure time was on the increase generally; television allowed mass cultural consumption in unprecedented fashion; and consumer electronics including audio and video equipment were becoming widely available and affordable (Hesmondhalgh Pratt, 2005, p. 3). By the early 1980s, the state was increasingly aware of these growing cultural industries both within the UKs own economy, and on a more global level. A path of increasing commodification of public policies was followed since the mid-1970s, with resultant changes in a broad range of cultural spaces. Ideologies prior to this mass commodification of culture had identified society as a whole as the primary intended beneficiary of government cultural policy. Increased commodification led to a shift, as the intended beneficiary of cultural activity and policy was now the individual consumer (Gray, 2007, p.14). Whereas cultural policy had previously been judged upon a broad range of criteria including social justice, access, and excellence; increasing commodification led to a narrowing of the criteria for judging cultural policy (ibid). Increased emphasis on the market value of cultural products and industries leads to an assessment of cultural policy in primarily, if not exclusively, economic terms. Again, this demonstrates a political preoccupation with the outcomes and outputs of cultural policy rather than the processes and inputs re lated to such policies, and a clear link between managerialism in cultural policy and the concomitant overall commodification of the culture produced under such a system. Performativity Just as the language and aims of commercial private industry were adopted for the cultural policy sphere via managerialism, economic realism, and the commodification of culture, so too the cultural sphere adopted measures and concerns regarding performance during the last three decades. Again, policies were judged on their results, their output and their products, and the economic success of cultural endeavour. In the realm of education, standardised performance tests have been increasingly introduced into the state schools, with the frequency, scope and range of educational tests increasingly greatly throughout the past thirty years. Likewise, in the sphere of cultural policy, tests of performance have also been increasingly implemented. These include Comprehensive Performance Assessments, and the Comprehensive Area Assessments replacing them in 2009, Best Value Indicators, Key Lines of Enquiry for Service Inspection, Local Area, Funding and Public Service Agreements, all of which p rovide explicit criteria against which service provision can be assessed (Gray, 2007, p. 8-9). The driving ideology behind such a raft of new tests to measure cultural and educational performance would appear to be a notion of accountability. The government wants to prove to an often sceptical public that its policies, whether in education or in culture, are working. Decentralisation of managerial power, and increased managerialism in cultural policy, provide a layer of accountability, or at the very least a scapegoat for failed or disappointing policies. Again, this move towards evidence-based policy-making and assessment reflects the belief of successive governments that the models that work for business can be applied to the cultural sphere. It is uncertain whether this is in fact correct. Culture does not function in the same way as manufacturing or other private business enterprises, and the outputs or achievements of the cultural industries and creative industries may be relatively intangible and ultimately difficult to measure with performance tests. Here, again, the inappropriateness of applying capitalist, market-driven ideals to the sphere of cultural policy is exposed. Also, the possibility is raised that such performativity in the cultural sphere serves two, largely unstated functions for the government: firstly, regular testing encourages increased cultural production, which within the confines of cultural industry could be expected to increase economic production; secondly, such emphasis on performance provides a form of justification for government policy in the cultural sphere. There has always been dissent regarding state arts spending in the United Kingdom how much public money is spent, what it is spent on, and what return the British taxpayers can exp ect on their investment in the arts. Performance tests in the cultural sector allow the state to point to demonstrable success, progress, or productivity in the cultural sector, which can be interpreted as proof of successful cultural policy implementation. Instrumentalism Instrumentalism the use of cultural institutions and cultural policy to achieve specific political aims is in many ways as old as cultural policy itself. For as long as there has been state arts patronage in the United Kingdom, the state has attempted to utilise the institutions, activities and sectors it sponsored to make political, social and economic changes to society. In the most recent three decades, the emphasis has been upon the latter, whereas earlier in the twentieth century, more importance was perhaps placed upon concepts of social change and nation-building. The roots of the Arts Council the organisation CEMA which was instituted during the Second World War were in morale-building, increased public access, softening of Britains class divisions, and fostering patriotism and a sense of the unified nation. As such, state intervention in the cultural sphere has more often than not been with at least some intention of using said intervention as a political or other tool. Gray states that the museums sector, in particular, is effectively being used as a tool for the attainment of the policy objectives of actors and concerns that have traditionally been seen to lie outside of the museums sector itself (Gray, 2007, p. 3). Museums are particularly susceptible to political manipulation, as they occupy a unique cultural space in terms of creating a nations sense of history and heritage, and fostering ideas of nationhood and the future of a country. What is included or excluded in a museum, and the manner in which it is displayed and framed, has a huge effect upon its reception and the ideas it can inspire. Vestheim (1994), talking of cultural policy, defines instrumental policy as being to use cultural ventures and cultural investments as a means or instrument to attain goals in other than cultural areas (p. 65). In broad terms, all cultural policy, and by extension all public policy, can be viewed as instrumental policy. All policy is intended to achieve something (Gray, 2007, p. 205). So, while instrumentalitsm has always been a feature of cultural policy in the United Kingdom, it is in recent decades that it has come to the forefront of the cultural discourse. Thatcher, Major and New Labour under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown have all emphasised cultural policy as an instrument of economic regeneration, and achievement within the market. As such, they have acknowledged that their cultural policies are more baldly instrumental in nature than those of preceding administrations which at least paid lip service to ideals of social justice, welfare, and development of the arts for their own sake. Neo-Conservatism After the industrial and economic woes of the 1970s in the United Kingdom, the tide was ready to turn to neo-conservatism, and this was a change mirrored in many of the Western societies. Reagan, for example, was president of the United States during the Thatcher regime in the UK, and both pursued Conservative policies within a capitalist framework. In cultural policy and artistic thinking, neo-conservatism was perhaps the ideological opposite to the Romanticism of the preceding century. In the nineteenth century, cultural discourse was dominated by the ideal of the lone, genius artist who would be successful only posthumously (a striking example of this would be many of the great Romantic musical composers). Romantic ideology lauded the isolated artist-genius who was inspired to work purely because of artistic passion, rather than economic concerns. In fact, to be a poor and starving artist conveyed perhaps relatively more artistic credibility. It was believed that the true value of art is transcendent and can be determined by experts, commonly accompanied by the idea that the monetary value of art is false and the market cannot decide (Hesmondhalgh Pratt, 2005, p. 5). Concomitant with this was the Romantic belief that art was for all, and that culture has the power to act as a civilising force upon society as a whole. Neo-conservatism tuned these ideas on their head. The lauded artist of the 1980s through 2000s is economically successful, creating a cultural product or commodity that appeals to, and responds to, the demands of the mass capitalist market. Ideals of the civilising powers of high culture upon society as a whole have been largely abandoned in practical terms, in favour of economic concerns (despite state assertions to the contrary, the prime goal in recent years appears to be financial rather than social). Limited positive effects of neo-conservative cultural policies and ideologies can be appreciated in some spheres. Caust argues that, in a society which is dominated by capitalist values (Caust, 2007, p.54), an economically successful artist will likely receive greater respect for their work, as well as more money. Furthermore, the market-driven, neo-conservative emphasis on the exportability of cultural product can have the positive effects of creating national pride and highlighting the value of cultural production to the wider world (ibid, p. 54). Monetarism Conclusions In recent times arts funding agencies have been restructured to reflect a market-driven agenda rather than an arts-driven agenda. (Caust, 2003, p. 51) Overall in the last thirty years, cultural policy in the UK has looked increasingly to capitalism, the free-market economy, and the so-called cultural and creative industries in terms of cultural policy direction. Models from the world of business and commerce have been applied over several decades to the cultural sector: managerialism; instrumentalism; monetarism; economic realism; performativity; and the overwhelming commodification of all kinds of culture. In implementing these policies, many of the more socially-just aims of prior generations of cultural policy-makers have been neglected or abandoned. In an era of increasing globalisation, successive UK governments of the past thirty years have pushed for cultural production, economic viability and profitability, and the creation of exportable cultural commodities for mass cultural consumption. Applying such concepts and organisational structures from private industry to the cultural sector has its drawbacks. Caust states that, when it comes down to dollars, the arts cannot in any way compete with many other components of the broad cultural industry spectrum such as the communications or IT areas. (Caust, 2007, p.55). Overall, the forces of neo-conservatism have not succeeded in making the UK cultural sector an economically productive and independently viable industry. In attempting to fit the arts and culture into a capitalist mould, UK cultural policy of the past thirty years has failed in many arenas cultural, social, economical, and political. Bibliography ACGB, records: 1928-1997. http://www.vam.ac.uk/vastatic/wid/ead/acgb/acgbb.html (London: Victoria Albert Museum) Alexander and Rueschemeyer, 2005 _________________________________ Alexander, David (1978), A Policy for the Arts: Just Cut Taxes, (London: Selsdon Group, 1978) Amis, Kingsley (1979). An Arts Policy? ( London: Centre for Policy Studies, 1979). Barnes, T. (2001) Retheorizing economic geography: from the quantitative revolution to the cultural turn. Annals of the Association of American Geographers 91, 546-65. Pusey, Michael (1991).   Economic Rationalism in Canberra: A Nation Building State Changes its Mind. Cambridge University Press. Bennett, O (1995), Cultural Policy in the United Kingdom: Collapsing Rationales and the End of a Tradition, European Journal of Cultural Policy, Vol. 1, pp. 199-216 Bilton, Chris (____).   Cultures of Management: Cultural Policy, Cultural Management and Creative Organisations _______ Caust, Jo (2003).   Putting the Art back into Arts Policy Making: How Arts Policy has been Captured by the Economists and the Marketers, The International Journal of Cultural Policy, 2003 Vol. 9 (1), pp. 51-63 Cormack, Patrick ed., Right Turn ( London: Leo Cooper, 1978) Croft, Andy (1995) Betrayed Spring: The Labour Government and British Literary Culture, in Labours Promised Land? Culture and Society in Labour Britain, 1945-51, ed. Jim Fyrth (London: Lawrence Wishart, 1995) Elsom, John (1971), Theatre Outside London ( London: Macmillan, 1971) Fisher, Rod (2010) United Kingdom/ 1. Historical perspective: cultural policies and instruments, Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in Europe, 11th edition, 2010. Council of Europe/ERICarts. Retrieved from http://www.culturalpolicies.net/web/unitedkingdom.php Fyrth, Jim (1995). Labours Promised Land? Culture and Society in Labour Britain, 1945-51, London: Lawrence Wishart Gray, C. (1995), The Commodification of Cultural Policy in Britain, pp. 307-15 in J. Lovenduski and J. Stanyer (eds), Contemporary Political Studies 1995 (Belfast, Political Studies Association) Gray, Clive (2007).   Instrumental Cultural Policies: Causes, Consequences and Museums, Paper to the Arts and Humanities Research Council Instrumental Museum and Gallery Policy Workshop, University of Glasgow, October 2007 Gray, Clive. (2000). The Politics of the Arts in Britain.   Palgrave Macmillan, UK. Haines, Joe (2003) Glimmers of Twilight. London, Politicos Publishers. Haney (2010). Britpop, Retrieved March 17, 2010 from http://uweb.cas.usf.edu/~dslone/pathfinders/haney.htm Harris, John S. (1969), Decision-Makers in Government Programs of Arts Patronage: The Arts Council of Great Britain, The Western Political Quarterly, Vol. 22, No. 2 (Jun., 1969), pp. 253-264. Western Political Science Association, University of Utah Hennessy, P. and Seldon, A. (eds.) (1987) Ruling Performance: British Government from Attlee to Thatcher. Oxford: Basil Blackwell. Hewison, R. (1998), New Cultural Models for Old, International Journal of Cultural Policy, vol. 5(1), 99-107. Hull, Robin (1958). Subsidised Music: 1. Th

Beowulf :: Epic of Beowulf Essays

In the heroic epic Beowulf, there are various examples of religious beliefs, both Christian and pagan. These examples play a major role in the tale, and include things such as God’s love (Christian) and making sacrifices to several gods (pagan). Explanations of these beliefs are necessary to understand this epic and here six of these beliefs will be discussed, three Christian and three pagan.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the many Christian beliefs is expressed at the beginning of the tale, when the creation of the earth is explained. The epic describes creation by saying that The Almighty (God) made and shaped the earth. The explanation given matches that of the first book of the Bible, Genesis. This belief is used to help introduce Grendel and where he came from.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another Christian belief is used when king Hrothgar’s throne is described as being protected by God. Royal possessions, and even royal members themselves, were ordained, therefore pure, clean, and protected. Such practices still exist today. However, only royalty and religious figures are said to be â€Å"ordained†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One last display of a Christian belief is shown at the end of the tale, in which the men are said to have praise to God for the souls of the fallen to be able to make it to Heaven. Many Christians give praise and prayer to God at their beloved’s funeral to help in their healing and give assurances that the souls of the dead will be safe and protected on their journey to Heaven.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Not only are Christian beliefs displayed in Beowulf, but also pagan practices are used. A first of these is the ritual of sacrificing to the stone gods, the making of heathen vows, hoping for Hell’s support, and the Devil’s guidance in driving the warriors’ affliction off. This affliction was Grendel. Such actions were resorted upon when none of their prayers to God were seemingly answered.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A second pagan exercise is done when Grendel attacks the first Geat, and drinks the Geats’ blood from his veins, and then snaps his mouth shut, killing the Geat. Pagan practices such as drinking of another’s, or a victim’s blood, are believed to give the drinker all the unfortunate’s powers and knowledge. Even more, some believe this act gives the drinker the victim’s soul. Pagans believe this deadly beverage makes them stronger, and in some cases godly.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the biggest and final pagan beliefs is given at the end of the epic, when Beowulf’s body is burned. Beowulf :: Epic of Beowulf Essays In the heroic epic Beowulf, there are various examples of religious beliefs, both Christian and pagan. These examples play a major role in the tale, and include things such as God’s love (Christian) and making sacrifices to several gods (pagan). Explanations of these beliefs are necessary to understand this epic and here six of these beliefs will be discussed, three Christian and three pagan.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the many Christian beliefs is expressed at the beginning of the tale, when the creation of the earth is explained. The epic describes creation by saying that The Almighty (God) made and shaped the earth. The explanation given matches that of the first book of the Bible, Genesis. This belief is used to help introduce Grendel and where he came from.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another Christian belief is used when king Hrothgar’s throne is described as being protected by God. Royal possessions, and even royal members themselves, were ordained, therefore pure, clean, and protected. Such practices still exist today. However, only royalty and religious figures are said to be â€Å"ordained†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One last display of a Christian belief is shown at the end of the tale, in which the men are said to have praise to God for the souls of the fallen to be able to make it to Heaven. Many Christians give praise and prayer to God at their beloved’s funeral to help in their healing and give assurances that the souls of the dead will be safe and protected on their journey to Heaven.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Not only are Christian beliefs displayed in Beowulf, but also pagan practices are used. A first of these is the ritual of sacrificing to the stone gods, the making of heathen vows, hoping for Hell’s support, and the Devil’s guidance in driving the warriors’ affliction off. This affliction was Grendel. Such actions were resorted upon when none of their prayers to God were seemingly answered.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A second pagan exercise is done when Grendel attacks the first Geat, and drinks the Geats’ blood from his veins, and then snaps his mouth shut, killing the Geat. Pagan practices such as drinking of another’s, or a victim’s blood, are believed to give the drinker all the unfortunate’s powers and knowledge. Even more, some believe this act gives the drinker the victim’s soul. Pagans believe this deadly beverage makes them stronger, and in some cases godly.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the biggest and final pagan beliefs is given at the end of the epic, when Beowulf’s body is burned.

Comparing two poems - Binsey Poplar by Hopkins and I wandered lonely Es

Comparing two poems - Binsey Poplar by Hopkins and I wandered lonely as a cloud' by Wordsworth. Compare the two poems and comment on: - The overall feelings of the poem - How they use language effectively - What the poems suggest about the characters of the authors. The two poems 'Binsey Poplars' by Hopkins and 'I wandered lonely as a cloud' by Wordsworth both contain very strong, emotive feelings. However, the feelings that they contain are very different. The 'Binsey Poplars' poem has an overall feeling of anger. Hopkins is openly enraged by the removal of the trees which is clearly seen in the poem as it stresses the sudden shock that Hopkins experiences as he sees his trees have gone. There is also a great feeling of sadness as Hopkinshas clearly lost something he cared for. 'My aspens dear' The opening word of 'my' tells us that Hopkins thinks of the trees as his own which show his care for them and the attention he must have given them. They were clearly very important to him which explains his protectiveness over them and also why he used the 'my' and 'dear. On the other hand, the Wordsworth poem is more joyful. It has an overall feeling of happiness which is seen from the word 'dance'. This word is repeated in every stanza of the poem to continually remind the reader of the joyous feeling throughout the poem. The poem also comes across as carefree which can be seen by the description of the jubilant mood the author is in: 'on my couch I lie in a vacant or in pensive mood' Wordsworth writes that he 'lies' on his couch it immediately shows the calm and peaceful state he is in. There is then confirmation on his carefree state of mind when he describes himself in a 'vacant or ... ...rates the number of plants as well as the fact that the daffodils are 'stretched in never-ending line' The 'Binsey Poplars' poem contains a lot of anger and rage, this reflects on the author, Hopkins. So, from this poem we can see that the character of Hopkins can be very hot-tempered and vengeful. However, the fact that he acted in this outraged fashion means that he cared for the trees very much and therefore we see a loving and caring side to Hopkins. On the other hand, Wordsworth does not show any anger in his poem but only positive feelings such as happiness and elation. In conclusion, we can see that the two poems differ greatly in the feelings they project through mood and literacy devices. However, the poems do have one thing in common in that they both portray the same sentient of concern over plants that the authors clearly care a lot about.

Explain different methods of feedback Essay

Learning is an active process. To learn, we need to plan what we’re going to do; attempt to do it and then receive feedback on our work. We then use this feedback to improve the work we have just done; or, more often in education, to ensure that the next work we do embraces what we have learned. Feedback also affects how we feel about our work, and inevitably also about ourselves; feedback thus also affects student motivation. Feedback can be delivered in a number of styles. Methods which can deliver a higher payoff for both trainers and students are: Self assessment, Students comparing work, Individual learning development plans, Peer-marking with feedback, Presentations by students, Verbal feedback to individuals, Feedback Sandwich and Verbal feedback to whole class. Carl Rogers places self assessment at the start and heart of the learning process. And the learning from experience cycle devised by Kolb places heavy emphasis on self assessment. It is most important that we reflect in a way that enables us to learn. This involves not blaming the students or our self for anything that went wrong but instead trying to identify why things worked or didn’t work. Try to learn the general principles of what works, and then you can use these principles to work out how to teach better in the future. It can be made by learners as well where they can make judgement about their own work. An easy method of feedback is just by allowing the learners to compare their work. This will allow them to correct their mistakes and improve their work. And Peer Assessment is where a pupil’s work is judged by fellow pupils. Individual learning plans form a ‘route map’ of how a learner will get from their starting point on a learning journey to the desired end point. They may be for one course and include the acquisition of qualifications and skills, or may link several courses that give progression to different  levels (from level 1 to 3, or from level 2 to Higher Education). They should be individual for each learner to reflect aspirations, aptitude and needs. Peer Assessment is where a pupil’s work is judged by fellow pupils. Self Assessment involves pupils making judgements about their own work. These strategies involve more than using marking keys, but give opportunities for exploration of the fundamentals of the assessment process, including various types of evaluation. One of the most popular methods is Sandwich Feedback. The sandwich feedback technique is a popular three-step procedure to help tutors who are ill at ease with providing corrective feedback. The sandwich feedback method consists of praise followed by corrective feedback followed by more praise. In other words, the sandwich feedback method involves discussing corrective feedback that is â€Å"sandwiched† between two layers of praise. The purported benefits of this technique are twofold: (1) it â€Å"softens† the impact of the criticism or corrective feedback on an employee/learner, and, (2) given that a manager/tutors is probably more comfortable with praising the employee/learner, the manager/tutor finds it easier to discuss problems with the learner/employee’s behavior if this discussion begins and ends with praising the employee/learner. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Dr R. Paton and Dr S. Fearnley, Asssesing Students’ work (Undated) http://www.brookes.ac.uk/services/ocsld/firstwords/fw21.html (Accessed on 1/12/2011) Geoff Petty , Self Assessment: Evaluating your teaching (2004), http://www.geoffpetty.com/selfassess.html (Accessed on 1/12/2011) EXCELLENCE GATEWAY, LEARNING AND SKILLS IMPROVEMENT SERVICE (LSIS) 2011 HTTP://WWW.EXCELLENCEGATEWAY.ORG.UK/PAGE.ASPX?O=108288(ACCESSED ON 1/12/2011) THE HIGHLAND COUNCIL,( 20/08/2010), HTTP://WWW.HIGHLANDSCHOOLS-VIRTUALIB.ORG.UK/LTT/FLEXIBLE/PEER.HTM(ACCESSED ON 1/12/2011) NAGESH BELLUDI, THE SANDWICH FEEDBACK TECHNIQUE (FEBRUARY 20, 2008) HTTP://WWW.RIGHTATTITUDES.COM/2008/02/20/SANDWICH-FEEDBACK-TECHNIQUE/(ACCESSED ON 1/12/2011)

Coffee and Mission Essay

Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement Of Nokia Essays and Term Papers Search Results for ‘analysis of mission and vision statement of nokia’ Displaying 1 – 30 of 1,500 * Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement Toyota Indus Motor Company Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement TOYOTA INDUS MOTOR COMPANY LTD. VISION STATEMENT: To be the most respected and successful enterprise, delighting†¦ * Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement Toyota and working toward creating a prosperous society and clean world. ANALYSIS: The vision statement of Toyota Indus Motors Company Ltd is clear and powerfully†¦ * Starbucks Coffee Mission And Vision Statement: concise, and direct for the target audience. Starbucks combine Mission and Vision statement can be broken down into six key elements which are the followings: Coffee†¦ * Mission And Vision Statement seems a bit unnecessary. KHULNA SHIPYARD LIMITED (KSY) Mission and vision statement of this organization have been written tactfully and they are praise worthy†¦ * Mission And Vision Statement exact, measurable, and time-sensitive goals to guide my development; however, the mission and the vision statement offer a solid foundation for building these goals†¦ * Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement Of Nokia. complex and challenging environment. Nokias mission/vision statement analysis In analysing Nokias mission/vision statement Ill be using the 9 essential * * published this * no reads * no comments * Saved * Mission And Vision Analysis Of Pso And Coca Cola order to meet the needs and satisfy the customers. Vision Analysis Conclusion: Overall, Coca-Colas mission and vision statement defines its goals, policies†¦ * Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement Of Nokia. B: SAMPLE RESUME PERSONAL DETAILS * * published this * no reads * no comments * Add to your reading list * Tcs Mission And Vision Analysis Leading change, Learning and Sharing etc are getting reflected in its mission and vision statement. The core value excellence is getting clearly reflected in the * * published this * no reads * no comments * Add to your reading list * Mission & Vision Statements theyve got their mission and vision confused. One is definitely not the other and both are mixed up in this statement. † Today, our mission is to connect people * * published this * no reads * no comments * Add to your reading list * Starbucks Vision And Mission Statement obtain the organizations desired end state. Within the organizations mission and vision statements Starbucks Corporation states that listening to its customer needs.