Education Testing Measurement Knowlege Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Education Testing Measurement Knowlege - Essay Example 2. Students in the Physics & Astronomy Club are buying telescopes to watch the upcoming lunar eclipse. They found comparable telescopes, at the following prices, each either on sale or with a special pricing offer: The item stem is also wordy and unclear. Buying a telescope for watching a lunar eclipse has little to do with savings. It is not necessary to have information of students not found in the choices. Naming the object to be purchased is also not necessary and makes the problem more complicated to understand. 3. A teacher needs help carrying a class set of textbooks to the department office. The teacher asks five students to carry the 35 books. If each student carried the same number of books, how many books did each student carry 4. The Johnsons are considering hiring an au pair for their child. One very good applicant requests a stipend of $800 per month and health insurance, which will cost them an additional $250 per month. Comparable daycare would cost them $300 per week. What is the cost difference between the au pair and daycare for a full year The item contains a language bias. Use of the term au pair could be confusing vocabulary for certain students. The item can be framed using personal child care and day care service. The answer also reflects that personal baby care is cheaper compared to day care resulting in elitism bias.

Strategic Marketing Planningfor SMEs in Zimbabwe Dissertation

Strategic Marketing Planningfor SMEs in Zimbabwe - Dissertation Example When it was termed that the strategic planning was not feasible, practitioners might want to emphasise short term planning for SMEs in Zimbabwe. Further, the findings for the case of SMEs in Zimbabwe could provide a basis for further study on the implications of strategic planning for other developing countries, and for countries in similar economic and political conditions to Zimbabwe. Acknowledgement I am greatly indebted to my dissertation supervisor, Professor David Crick, who has constantly provided me with his support, encouragement, and guidance. Declaration I, Charles Mudekunye, declare that all information in this project has been compiled by me. Any quoting is stated as so, and when references are made to previous work, they appear as references at the end of the report. No part of this dissertation has been submitted in support of an application for another degree or qualification from the university or any other institute of learning. Charles Mudekunye19th September 2006 Table of Contents Abstract 1 Acknowledgement 2 Declaration 3 Table of Contents... The review, analysis, discussion and case studies in the paper conclude that the strategic planning is necessary for the success of SMEs. Too much of it can also result in non-productive situations in the environment like Zimbabwe. The reason is that the long-term strategic planning cannot be applicable for the situation in the Zimbabwe. The reason is that the inflation and interest rates are changing sometimes on a quarterly basis. The market availability for the majority of the businesses was less and this restricts the use of strategic planning. The SMEs are finding tough to get funds in the form of loans as the lending rates are higher. These higher lending rates can come down when the inflation comes down and government decreases internal borrowings. So this lapse cannot be addressed immediately and can be solved in the course of time as the agricultural production increases and people spend less on agriculture and find enough money to spend on other goods. This study makes a conclusion that the prevailing inflation is capable of restricting the majority of the people to spend money on the things other than food, clothing, and housing. As the market was absent, the banks and financial institutions are also not finding enough businesses to lend their money. This, in turn, was resulting in nonavailability of the funds for low interest. The government should not budge to these types of pressures and must encourage the domestic industry to increase the production, which is capable of increasing the value of the ZWD.

Cigarettes in Fashion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Cigarettes in Fashion - Essay Example The essay "Cigarettes in Fashion" discovers the symbol of cigarettes in the fashion images. The Hazlitt observation’s of fashion as race of appearances, mode of symbolic expression which has been widely agreed by different sects of the society. Images of models smoking cigar featuring in fashion magazines, movies, posters, etc. have been the main cause for increased level of smoking among the youngsters as well as women which is well supported by Gilly Andrews (2005:47) as smoking is the UK’s largest cause for preventable death and disability, responsible for over 120,000 deaths a year which comprises of 30,000 women costing â‚ ¤1.7 billion each year. M.A.H. Russell et al (1974) mentioned Tomkins psychological theory, wherein smoking was classified into four groups viz; positive effect smoking that produces or increases pleasant feeling, negative effect smoking that reduces unpleasant feelings, anger or fear, shame, etc., habitual smokers who smoke without affect and addictive smokers who smoke continuously without which he gets restless. The present study makes an attempt to collect necessary and appropriate study and findings from the previous studies in order to analyze how images of smoking used by fashion magazines and other editorials impact the people and especially women and will try to answer whether the cigarettes in fashion images increase the women’s sexual appeal or is it just an fashion element to sell the products. Gilman and Zhou (2004) mention that smoking prevailed in the past.... The Mayans, Aztecs, Caribs and many others used to smoke one form or other tobacco. Smoke which was initially taken for curing later became a passion and a source of pleasure for most of the smokers. With tobacco having such a long history, from late 18th century, cigarette smoking was viewed as part of modernity according to Penny Tinkler (2006:5), but the process of modernity had already begun in 1880 in the western societies as it was believed as a quality of social experience and practical negotiation of one's life and identity within the complex and fast changing world. Fred C. Pampel (2001) states that there has been considerable increase in women smokers due to the fact they were having limited access or treated unequally in the past, and thereafter because of narrowing sex differences in times of gender equality and strengthening values of female independence has lead to newfound freedom and higher status of women creating a desire in the women to do things all good and bad, due to increased level of income, power and equal social status comparatively to men. Thus the fact that woman were denied certain luxuries and equalities in the past; has lead to increased level of smoking due to high income, equality and increased level of social status in the present which in turn provided stimulus to tobacco companies to market their product keeping specifically for women. Penny Tinkler (2001) further mentions that in 1996/97, 28% of British women were smokers of manufactured and hand rolled cigarettes as compared to 31% men and it is suggested that cigarettes was more used as fashion accessory for affluent, upwardly mobile city living women. There has been considerable increase in

Homeland Security Strategies Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Homeland Security Strategies - Research Paper Example Introduction The United States of America Department of Homeland Security has been tasked with ensuring the security of the American citizens and their property. One might argue that the Department is only tasked with counter terrorism measures but this is wrong. The Department of Homeland Security is mandated by an act of Congress to ensure that the United States of America is safe domestically. The fact that terrorism is the major threat facing not only the United States domestic security, but even that of all other countries in the world, results in the notion among many people that the Department of Homeland Security is only in charge of fighting terrorism. However, the Department of Homeland Security is tasked with five major responsibilities. They include: protecting citizens of the United States of America from terrorist threats, securing of the United States of America Borders, facilitating legal migration and cracking down on illegal immigration, developing an urgent sense o f readiness, and finally unification and maturation of the Department (Haulley, 2005). When one considers the five responsibilities then it is safe to conclude that the department of Homeland security is not only tasked with preventing terror attacks but also other threats such as natural disasters. This paper will discuss the different strategies that the Department of Homeland Security employs to ensure that it is successful in executing its duties. Surveillance One strategy that the Department of Homeland Security has used profoundly is surveillance. This is where the department uses agencies such as the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to gather intelligence both domestic and foreign that is viewed to be of national security importance by the Department of Homeland Security. Surveillance techniques such as electronic surveillance have been widely used by the Department to follow and intercept conversations of those who are believed to pose a threat to the domestic security of the United of America. This strategy was rampantly used after the September 11th attacks on the United States of America especially during the Bush administration. This is so since the administration allowed the department through the National Security Agency (NSA) to carry out electronic surveillance of terror suspects without the need of any warrant. This strategy can be considered as one of the strategies that have yielded a lot of positive results in the efforts of the Department of Homeland Security in securing the lives and property of Americans from terrorist attacks. For example, according to the director of National Security Agency (NSA), electronic surveillance efforts have resulted in the prevention of numerous terrorist attacks both abroad and domestic on United States of America citizens (Homeland Security News Wire, 2013). Another way that the Department of Homeland Security has employed Surveillance as a strategy of ensuring Natio nal Security is the use of Drones to spy on terrorist groups such as Al-Qaida that operate in foreign countries. Drones are unmanned airplanes that are used by the United States of America government to either spy or attack. These drones have been used to establish the activities of such terrorist groups. The Department of Homeland Security has also used satellites to perform surveillance on its

Organizational Performance Management System Essay Example for Free

Organizational Performance Management System Essay In the pursuit of developing most appropriate organizational performance management system, many organizational performance management systems have emerged, making it difficult to choose the best organizational performance management system. The paper reviews the published literature on organizational performance management, and discusses the shift from traditional to new performance management system framework. Also, Balance Scorecard, which is one of the most commonly used approaches in measuring organizational performance, is discussed. Finally, five most important factors in designing organizational performance management are addressed. Introduction In increasingly competitive market, it is imperative that organizations design and implement an effective organizational performance management system to gauge their competitive advantage in the market. An Organization Performance Management System includes multiple activities that help in establishing the goals of the organization, and monitor the progress towards the target. It is used to make adjustments to accomplish goals more efficiently and effectively. Organizational Performance Management System can be best understood through considering the definitions of the words performance and measurement according to the Baldrige Criteria (NIST, 2001): Performance refers to output results from processes, products and services that permit evaluation and comparison relative to goals, standards, past results, and other organizations. Performance might be expressed in non-financial and financial terms. Measurement refers to numerical information that quantifies input, output, and performance dimensions of processes, products, services, and the overall organization (outcomes). Performance measures might be simple (derived from one measurement) or composite. Underlying performance management at both the organizational and employee levels is a set of performance measures. Performance measures with respect to organizational performance are an instrument to assess progress against stated program and organizational objectives. With respect to individual performances it is to assess progress against stated performances objectives, or â€Å"results to be achieved† for individual employees or teams of employees (Good Carin, 2004). The objective of such system would be to increase the efficiency, effectiveness and performance at both organizational and employee level. The challenge for organizations today is how to match and align both organizational and individual performance measures with business strategy, structures and corporate culture, the type and number of measures to use and how to deploy the measures so that the results are used and acted upon. To address these challenges, organizations have been continually searching for an effective organizational performance management framework. Measuring organizational performance management has variety of uses. As per Vince Kellen (2003) those uses include monitoring and controlling activities, driving organizational improvement, maximizing the effectiveness of the improvement effort, achieving alignment with organizational goal and objectives, rewarding and disciplining. The Changing Role of Organizational Performance Measurement System How to create and measure organizational performance measurement system has been a persistent source of debate. Traditionally, organizational performance management system included measuring financial ratios, such as return on investments, cash flows, and cost of sales. Figure one below depicts traditional performance indicators, focused mostly on financial measures. Figure One Source: Frederico and Cavenaghi 2009 In the recent years the focus has been on measuring non-financial ratios, such as quality, customer satisfaction, safety and other stakeholders. Figure Two shows the new performance indicators, incorporating quality together with other financial indicators. Figure Two Source: Source: Frederico and Cavenaghi 2009 Furthermore, according to Shackleton (2007) financial measures prohibit the guidance and evaluation of an organization’s ability to create future value through investments in customers, suppliers, employees, processes, technology and innovation. Shacketon agues that the pressure for reporting on corporate performance today, has confronted the traditional managerial mindset of historical models for performance measurement, and has required them to be more innovative. Table one below illustrates the shift in the mindset and provides a comparison between traditional and more recent performance measurement systems. Table One TraditionalInnovative Based on cost/ efficiencyValue-based Performance orientedPerformance compatibility oriented Profit –orientedCustomer-oriented Short-term orientedLong-term oriented Prevalence of individual measuresPrevalence of team measures Prevalence of functional measuresPrevalence of transversal measures Comparison with standardImproving monitoring Aim at evaluatingAim at evaluating and involving Source: Shackleton, 2007 From the table it can be concluded that organizational performance management systems are moving towards relationship-oriented understanding of the whole organization progress. It is clear that financial indicators are not ignored, but treated as one piece of the puzzle in a more complex set of criteria’s in measuring organizational performance. Organizational Performance Measurement Approaches: Balance Scorecard Several approaches for measuring and managing organizational performance management system have evolved over time, including Balance Scorecard, Benchmarking, Business Process Reengineering, Continuous Improvement, ISO9000, Total Quality Management, Stakeholder Approach, and Performance Prism Approach amongst others. There is no single framework or model that will ensure success in implementing an organizational performance management system. Exploring all the approaches is beyond the scope of this review, hence Balance Scorecard is review at length since it most commonly used for measuring organizational performance. Balance Scorecard was developed by Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton in 1992. It was developed to remedy the weak and vague performance management strategies developed earlier that mostly concentrated on financial indicators.

Effective Reading Essay Example for Free

Effective Reading Essay Reading will always be a part of any educational instructions. From grade school to PhD levels, reading is an essential task that endures every student to be able to comprehend what needs to be discussed in class, prepare for an exam or simply gain new knowledge aside from oral and visual communications. The journal article in reference comes from the Griffith University titled â€Å"Reading Effectively† Basically, the article discusses the major contributory factors for effective reading. It discusses three factors in reading considerations; the type, structure and the purpose. The Type refers to the type of material to read. There are different mediums like journals, textbooks, novels or research papers. Purpose concerns the goal of the reader in reading a document. It can be for enjoyment, in preparation for an examination, assignment or personal knowledge gaining. The Structure explains the format of the material like a narrative, descriptive and expository among others. The article also considers the importance of the mentioned elements before one wish to continue reading a material; so that he can decide whether to execute reading in Scan, Skim, Key (looking for key ideas) or in Full mode (Griffith). The article also mentions the principle behind â€Å"SQ3R† strategy of reading. Survey which primarily intends to look for format clues, Questions to ask about the material, Read, Recall and Review. On a personal note, it is really a good way to establish effective reading by following the SQ3R. It has always been my procedure to first analyze the contents of the book, criticize the purpose of reading by asking a question first and then continue reading, recalling key ideas and reviewing the entirety of a reading material’s contents. References Griffith, (ND). Reading Effectively. Griffith Information Sheet, Retrieved 2009, from http://www. griffith. edu. au/ins/training/resources/reading/content_reading_effectively. html

Evaluation of Sigmund Feud and his theory

Evaluation of Sigmund Feud and his theory Sigmund Freud may have pioneered psychoanalysis and initiated interest in behavioral patterns, but some of his concepts/theories are controversial. Sigmund Freud is one of the well know scientist of his time in the area of psychology, he is intentionally referred to as the godfather of psychology. Freud was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, who created an entirely new approach to the understanding of the human personality. He is regarded as one of the most influential and controversial minds of the 20th century. Sigismund (later changed to Sigmund) Freud was born on the 6 May 1856 in Freiberg, Moravia (now Pribor in the Czech Republic). His father was a merchant. The family moved to Leipzig and then settled in Vienna, where Freud was educated. Freuds family was Jewish but was himself non-practicing. In 1873, Freud began to study medicine at the University of Vienna. After graduating, he worked at the Vienna General Hospital. He collaborated with Josef Breuer in treating hysteria by the recall of painful experiences under hypnosis. In 1885 Freud went to Paris as a student of the neurologist Jean Charcot. On his return to Vienna the following year, Freud set up his private practice, specializing in nervous and brain disorders. The same year he married Martha Bernays, with whom he had six children. Freud developed the theory that humans have an unconscious in which sexual and aggressive impulses are in perpetual conflict for supremacy with the defenses against them. In 1897, he began an intensive analysis of himself. In 1900, his major work The Interpretation of Dreams was published in which Freud analyzed dreams in terms of unconscious desires and experiences. In 1902, Freud was appointed professor of neuropathology at the University of Vienna, a post he held until 1938. Although the medical establishment disagreed with many of his theories, a group of pupils and followers began to gather around Freud. In 1910, the Intentional Psychoanalytic Association was founded with Carl Jung, a close associate of Freuds, as the president. Jung later broke with Freud and developed his own theories. After world war one, Freud spend less time in clinical observation and concentrated on the application of his theories to art, literature, and anthropology. In 1923, he published The Ego and the Id, which suggested a new structural model of the mind, divided into the Id, the Ego, and the Superego. In 1933, the Nazis publicly burnt a number of Freuds books. In 1938 shortly after the Nazis annexed Austria, Freud left Vienna for London with his wife and daughter Anna. Freud was diagnosed with cancer of the jaw in 1923, and underwent more than 30 operations. He died of cancer on 23rd September 1939. (http://bbc.com.uk/history./freud_sigmund.shtml) Freud studied hysteria at length, and became involve with Josef Breuer. Dr. Breuer became Freud mentor, and together they co-authored a book on hysteria. It was during these studies that Freud came to realize that the personality was made up of having three aspects the id, ego, and super ego, (Krogh, D.). The id is the part of personality that is responsible for survival and self gratification, it is our primitive mind. It is the source of our libido and has only one rule, satisfying the pleasure principles, (Gay, P.). The ego deals with our rational thought, it develops our growing awareness that you cannot always get what you want. It has a tough job compromising negotiation between the id and the super ego. It pleases the id but also remains responsible and bears the long term consequences in mind. The super ego is the last part of the mind to develop. It is best described as the moral of personality. The super ego has two sub systems, those been the ego ideal and conscience. The ego ideal lays down the laws regarding positive behavior and standards which the ego must live up to. The conscience are the sets of rules which define deviant behavior, it houses thoughts and behaviors that would result in punishment if they were to be acted out. Freud was also responsible for defining the five stages of psychosexual development, which are briefly explained below. Stage One: The oral stage, (0-18 months). During this stage, the physical focus is on the mouth. The young child receives libidinal pleasures while feeding. Any problems at this stage, for example, over indulgence or privation could lead the child to an oral personality in adulthood suggesting, that the adult would partake in extensive oral activities e.g. smoking, drinking, or eating disorders, (Gay, P.). Stage two: The anal stage (18-36 months). Freud believed that the child experienced erogenous pleasure while defecating. Potty training takes place round about this time, so that the child had to learn control over its bowels. Also the caregiver puts emphasis on the child to control urges regarding deviant behavior (often called the terrible twos). If the caregiver is too controlling the child is likely to grow to have a retentive personality e.g. the adult will have rigid thought complexes, be overly organized, and obsessed with neatness. On the other hand, if the caregiver is not controlling enough, the child will grow up to be messy, untidy and could possibly be defiant with little self-control, (Feldman, R, F). Stage Three: The phallic stage (3-6 years).The physical focus at this stage for both boys and girls is the penis boys wonder why girls havent got one. In return, girls start noticing that they are without one and become curious. Also during this stage, Freud suggested that children have sexual feelings for the opposite sexed parent, (so they deal with Oedipus and Electra complexes respectively). Boys experience castrations anxiety and girls suffer penis envy (the lack of). Fixation at this stage could result in promiscuity and immoral behavior, (Feldman, R,F.). Stage four: The latency stage,(6 years to the onset of puberty). This is a calm period where virtually no psychosexual conflicts are taking place. Boys and girls tend to be gender aware thorough this stage and have little in common with the opposite sex, (Feldman, R.F.). Stage five: The genital stage (post puberty). If all transitions of the above stages have been smooth and the caregiver has responded in a relevant well balanced manner. A healthy competent adult should emerge, fully equipped to contribute to society emotionally, and physically. If on the other hand, one or more of the transitions have been impaired, a fixation of the impaired stage will occur. Stress will trigger the adult to regress to the particular impaired stage in question, (Feldman, R,F). As straight forward and relevant as Freuds theories were, he was not without criticism , Carl Jung, Karl Krus et al, and T.S. Szasz are among a few who strongly object to Freuds findings (Robinson, P. Feud and his critics). Could they have a point? For all Freuds genius, he failed to incorporate genetic influences regarding behavior in his studies. Freud dealt only in the unconscious mind, with a few age related triggers thrown in, and that our whole personality is based on the development of these triggers. These triggers were purely Freuds interpretation. Behavior on the other hand, deals solely with environmental factors, and believes that babies are born as a blank slate, often termed tabula rassa Freud is also accused of been totally subjective and having a bias attitude. An example of this would be that he based all his findings on his recollections and findings (Robinson, P. Freud and his critics). He did conduct research using his youngest daughter Anna, but this form of opportunity sampling is not productive, because being his daughter, she would strive to produce socially desirable answers. When conducting psychoanalysis, Freuds patients were always middle class women. This was not a representative samples of the population, the data collected from his analysis would again be bias. Other arguments against the proficiency of Freuds practices are that due to patient Problems occurring in childhood, this may result in parental blame. There are also problems surrounding false memory syndromes, it has been found that patients receiving Freudian analysis have imagined childhood abuse. These allegations could be imagined and have no facts, (Robinson, P. Freud and his critics). Also the whole model of psychoanalysis is non-scientific, it cannot be falsified. So there we have it, the basic from which Freud conducted his psychoanalysis. In its day it was a revolution but certainly not without opposition, as previously discussed Freud managed to put words, terms, and phases to complex notions regarding personality and unravel almost simplify intricate developmental processes, enabling Freudian psychologists to accurately define and hopefully rectify a patients regressed emotional problems. Was Feud practicing a pseudo-science? Are his findings mere quackery? Were his theories on psychoanalysis a revolutionary breakthrough? Either way people will remain divided.