Analytical Essay. Hispanics crossing the border and the physical and Essay

Analytical . Hispanics crossing the border and the physical and psychological barriers - Essay Example Hispanics search for an identity in the society (Vertovec, 2001). Children are the top sufferers. Children follow their native culture in their homes. They are at the same time trying to follow the culture of their new land. Being in this two worlds makes them unfit for both worlds. The forceful attempt of acculturation to mainstream the immigrants to a strange ideology is unpleasant for children as it demands a severe denigration from their original culture. Acculturation pushes the children into a strange world that seldom treats them well. Being brought up in a different environment, a sudden brutal thrust into a new set up makes them feel odd. Children being brought into a new education set up lacks the expertise for excelling in a new environment and their chances of succeeding in the ‘new world’ is far less compared to the native children. Immigrant children are not able to follow their native identities and maintain the unique and exceptional practices followed in their native cultures. Children suffer in the context of the new scenario and are often ill-treated and abused. They are detached from their culture and feel odd in the new world. Hispanic families are in trouble as they struggle for an identity in their new world. These helpless families seek acceptance in the new land where they reached. Parents try to feed their child with the notion of materialism. They desperately want to teach cultural American traditions to their child. Event though they make hard attempts to transform their children they are not still sure whether American society will accept them. Children loses their natural and cultural personality and at the same time fails to acquire the culture of the new land where they reached. America does not welcome Hispanic immigrants and other immigrants no matter they are legal immigrants or illegal immigrants (Takaki 1993). The unfavorable environment in their home country and the lack of support

US Constitution and gun Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

US Constitution and gun - Research Paper Example However, not all these reasons have eliminated the numerous cases reported on a daily basis within the country of civilians’ improper usage of firearms. As such, civilian gun ownership led to a number of unnecessary deaths and injuries in the country. For instance, in most cases, the civilians cited that they needed to use these guns against fellow civilians in self-protection or to prevent a crime. Few of such cases rarely prove that the civilian had any justification to hold a gun against another civilian. Furthermore, the usage of guns in the United States has escalated to considerable levels whereby criminal gangs have ease of access to firearms for which to use in doing their criminal activity. This holds the entire country at ransom, as well as depreciates the level of security in the country. Many a times have irate minded, or persons with mental illnesses held civilians at hostage with firearms, and some even shot at innocent children and schoolteachers at an elementary school. As such, it is evident that civilian gun ownership requires a high level of discipline from the civilians. This is the key reason that civilians give for wanting to own private firearms. This is a valid reason especially considering the high rate of crime and insecurity within the country. It is no doubt that an individual will at one point come across a compromising situation that requires personal protection and self defense with the use of a gun, such as a rape scare for the women, a kidnap attempt for the rich, as well as a carjacking attempt for car and vehicle owners. For these reasons, a gun comes in handy, as the threatened individual will use it to protect himself or herself from the aggressor, and if lucky prevent the occurrence of a crime. Others keep guns in safekeeping at their homes for such cases of insecurity, especially in the event a burglar attacks their home and attempts to steal or make away with their property. The United

The Related Diversification In A Business

The Related Diversification In A Business Since the pioneering study of Rumelt (1947) an extensive research has focused on the effects of diversification on firm performance. Two types of diversification are generally selected by then firms. Variables of investigation like firm size, industry performance and their effects on performance are not controlled. Typical studies always focus upon that how a firm diversifies? Managers take strategic decisions about product/industry diversification and always choose the appropriate strategies. Current study reveals that much diversification has reduced the risk leading to a better performance. More diversification need not to improve the performance of firms. It can be argued that current thinking encourages the broad diversification which is warranted, suggesting that unrelated diversification selection has poorer managers on average. In this paper we examine an alternative explanation of the difference between the two types of the diversifications across the different firms impacting on their performances. Porters thinking on corporate strategies is focused on the diversification and its effects on the firms. Hamel and Prahalad advocate the diversified corporations must be not looked only the portfolio of discrete business but a collection of important competencies used in market for different products. Literature on diversification and performance represents the sustainable work in the business strategy. Rumelts (1947) has tested the hypothesis that companies adopting the strategy other than related diversification has not performed well. Another avenue taken in the efforts marks linear versus non-linear structure of diversification-modeling relationship (Palich, Cardinal and Miller, 2000). Three main important perspectives are identified by the Montgomery (1994) which helps to know that why a firm selects to diversify: market power, resource based view and agency theory. Agency theory says that diversification is due to the managerial interests at the expense of stakeholders. Managers seek the diversification because they want to increase the compensation and also provide the ways to make the firms more secure and also reduce the dangers of their personal investment portfolio. Diversified firms are more consolidated and form the organizing of economic activities in more effective ways (Penrose, 1959). Market power is third theoretical perspective from which corporate diversification is motivated. Why the Firms Diversify? Firms exist due to their products and managers maximize the profits. An entity called Marshalls representative firm has resemblance with the real business firms and more than one products are integrated. Business transactions are key role player which determine distribution of the firms activities in industries. Related Diversification It is claimed that multi-business firms having the same business portfolios may get advantages which non-diversifies business firms cannot achieve. This raises the two main questions. Firstly the kinds of similarity and secondly the circumstances under which similar business portfolios give the efficient advantages. It is seen that relevant similarities imply the resources substitution and complement the resources in other company. First we look the situation in which involving resources substitute across the industries. Teece (1980, 1982) has pointed out that there exist such indivisibilities which explain the joint production but did not explain that why joint production is organized in a single firm. In case when the excess capacity is created and traded in well established markets, then single firm and unrelated diversifier have opportunity to sell out their excess products. They can also buy the products according to their capacity from other companies. Two separate companies ca n contact each other to share the input facilities. Joint production may have fewer benefits as compared to the dangers which are greater in numbers and their impacts. Firm integration depends upon the comparative benefits of contacting and costs. Only the resource substitutability is not the source of efficiency gains but it also needed the resource complementarily (Teece, Rumelt, Dosi, Winter, 1994). The process of complementary increases as the investment in another company is increased. Also the resource use in one industry affects the resource use in another industry. These qualitative and quantitative coordination problems are well controlled by the diversified firms (Richardson, 1972; Milgrom Roberts, 1992). All kinds of supply chain use the process of complementarities but only a few are integrated. Diversification exploits the complementarities only when specialized firms are prevented by the transaction costs to recognize the benefits of contacts. Complementary products are also main type of the relatedness. The products of every company are used with the conjunction of other complementary products of same company or another company. For example computers are used with software, cars are purchased with loans, and e lectronic equipments are purchased with other accessories; hence these strategic practices concerning the complements are distinguished (Porter, 1985). Unrelated Diversification So for the arguments presented mainly focus upon the decisions which exploit the valuable resources across the industries. A prediction that related diversification should outperform the unrelated diversification or conglomerate diversification exists in the literature about the diversification. In US the conglomerates that arose during 1960s did not disappear from corporate scene. As the Rumelt (1982) has reported that number of single business firms decreased very rapidly during the 1950s which resulted in increase the unrelated business firms. However the major US companies continued to be diversified during the 1990s. Montgomery (1994) reported that from 1985 to 1992 more than two third of 500 Fortune companies were interested in five distinct business lines. Companies having slow growth industry need to use the excess cash to initiate the diversifying. Business firms can leverage their core using the best strategy. But unrelated businesses only need the diversification when attractive profit prospects are offered by the related business opportunities. Joint venture is logically possible with other organizations into areas of business. Strategic sense makes a sizeable profit in companies adopting the diversification. A strong company with slow-growth industry needs to curtail the new investment in present facilities. A concept about the diversification is the strategic fit in the field of strategic management. This concept also implies that when the weaknesses and strengths of companies are realized and top management begins considering the need of diversification through the process of acquisition. The purpose of this model is not only acquiring through the diversification but also identifying the strengths which are transferable into other markets. This model is useful for the firms with distinctive capabilities entering into new market through the acquisition (Salter Weinhold, 1979). Finally companies try to manage the interdependence through the acquisition or diversification and also sustain their growth. Objectives of Diversification Trends and contingencies provide the analysis which indicates that a company must diversify and avail the diversification opportunities. What are the diversification opportunities? Three main opportunities are included here in this paper which significantly impacts the firms performance. Diversification due to unique products ensures that material used for the manufacturing is composed of the functional components, basic materials and other parts which form the final shape of the product. A big lot of material is purchased from the suppliers from outside. Vertical diversification branches out the all production into its components, parts and materials. One of outstanding example of vertical diversification is the Ford Empire. This vertical diversification not only introduces the new products but also caters the new mission. We have already given a touch to horizontal diversification that introduces the new products which are not inline; cater to those missions in companys knowledge a lso experience in marketing, technology and finance. Third way of diversification is lateral diversification that moves beyond the limits of the firms which a firm belongs. Horizontal and vertical diversifications are restrictive because horizontal and vertical diversifications delimit the field of interest while lateral diversification is more extensive. Premises of Corporate Strategy Numbers of premises are required to build the successful corporate strategy. Facts of diversification cant be altered and when these are ignored the corporate strategy fails. The diversification at Marriot has exploited the food services and hospitality due to well-developed skills. Marriot earns a great margin due to its services in nine regional procurement centers. The diversification in Marriot has balanced the start- ups and acquisitions. The start-up is used for the acquisition of small companies. Marriot has expanded its geographic base; acquires the companies and disposes those parts which do not fit. Companies need sharing activities when diversify across the business evolving the similar evolutionary paths. Many industries in the market share the activities. Wal-Mart performs such activities of sharing and distributes at its discount stores and Sams Club warehouses. These companies get success through diversifying across the similar companies enough for their requirements. Companies compromise on activities which become generic when the divisions of companies grow in different in their core requirement. Porter has worked on the business strategies for different industries, companies and concentrated on different aspects of the diversification in business. Porter has also worked on diversification and companies can spread risk and attain development by the diversification and acquisition. Blue-Chip companies including the Boston Consulting Companies and McKinsey developed the models for discovering which companies will raise and fall. Porter has identified the three critical tests for the success. An Attractive Test: Diversification adopting companies must be structurally attractive and attractive industries will produce better results and entry barriers will be high. Suppliers and customers will have very moderate bargaining power and very few products will substitute. Unattractive industries have high fixed costs and also high rivalry. Cost of Entry Test: When cost of entry is high it will prejudice the potential investment and profitability which will also erode before the game starts. Better-off test: It is required that how the acquiring will provide the advantage in acquiring and significant advantage to others. Porter has tackled these issues by knowing the competition unit level. Identifying the core businesses based on the strategies. Core businesses include those which are found in attractive industries and competitive advantage is found in these industries. Interrelationships among the core businesses can be facilitated by creating the horizontal organizational mechanisms. Diversification opportunities are pursued based on the shared activities and pass the all three critical tests. Skills can be transferred through the shared activities pursuing the diversification. Porter has further addressed the assertion and says that internet is in infancy; too observes that lack of strategies like diversification will result in weak market penetration. He has argued that many internet companies are following to run on the unsustainable competitiveness. He further says that new rules of competition will be thrown up by the re-emerging principles (Porter, 2001). Porter found that diversification st rategies had failed in US as many companies were not successful to create the value (Porter, 1987). He provided the proof of his comments as he had seen that many companies in US cut costs and downsized their staff during the 1980s. However this strategy of diversification could not create value for these companies. Porter (1985) has also said that diversified company is nothing without synergy; it is only a mutual fund. Kanter (1989) has also argued that diversifications justification is only the achievement of synergy. However both of the Porter and Knater have acknowledged that companies find it hard to achieve the synergy, therefore the high rate of failure is there for companies. Porter has vast experience to study the diversification from 1950 to 1986 for leading thirty-three companies of the US and concluded that track record of diversification remained poor and in many cases of acquisition was divested. During the 1970s many acquired business units were resold and establishe d themselves as independent firms (Porter, 1987). Prior to porter strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats were framed on SWOT framework developed by the Harvard (Andrew, 1971). However this framework lacked an analytical foundation. Porter Competitive strategy has changed the strategic management during his work in 1970; it has achieved high value in 1990 and still is shaping the thinking on competitive strategy. His work is academic to a fault Mr. Porter is about as likely to produce a blockbuster full of anecdotes and boosterish catch-phrases as he is to deliver a lecture dressed in bra and stockings. (Porter, 1994). He abstracted his thinking into digestible chunks of business and he proved to be helpful for the business and academic world. In every organization of the world Porters five forces are used more frequently. Later thinking of the Porter on corporate strategy rides runs on the new ways of evolutionary approach. Value chain model of Porter attempts to analyze those resources which are possessed by the companies; companies perform the activities linked together. Intrinsic factors like work morale, corporate culture, level of communication, team spirit, leadership and interpersonal skills exploit the maximum inherent power of employees. However Porter does not include these factors in analysis. Primary and supporting technologies are identified in competitive advantage. What are the core technologies which impact an organization in achieving the competitive advantage? The core functions consist of internal resources of a company such as company culture, management and organizational stru cture. Joint ventures or acquisition adds new skills to the corporation but in Competitive Advantage the intrinsic factors always lead to create or develop technology advancement. Merging or acquiring is also included in the advance technology of diversification. Prahalad and Hamel (1990) have argued that diversified corporations must not be seen as portfolio of discrete business; but also the collection of the competitively necessary competencies; which are used in many markets and different products. Above arguments of Prahalad and Hamel are based on the Honda Company. The core competence theory of Hamel and Prahalad has identified the fundamentals of the core competencies in companies. Bundle of skills and technologies shape the core competence and not the single skill or the technology do it. Prahalad et.al (2001) argues that firms achieve the core competencies when multiple technologies are harmonized along with the customer knowledge, skills and marketing institution to manage them synergistically. This is called the creative building (Prahalad et.al, 2001). Both of Hamel and Prahalad have focused upon the production skills and corporate wide technologies to define the core competencies. The importance of the Prahalad arguments rests on the similarities found in the forms of relatedness as well as in unrelated business. However Hamel and Prahalad concede that approach adopted by the Porter embodies the concept of strategic fit; matching the external requirement with the organizations resources is not so much wrong but it can be referred as unbalanced. Managers imply the concept of strategy that fits with the resources of an organization. According to Hamel and Prahalad the Porters approach is not wrong but it tends to vague the approach where strategic stretch supplements the strategic fit. Here the strategic means the creation of the gap between resources and ambition. We again come to the core competencies but now it comes from the school of Prahalad and Hamel. Hamel and Prahalad (1990) argued that management created organizational abilities of making the products according to the needs of the customers. They have argued as: The skills that together constitute the core competence must coalesce around individuals whose efforts are not so narrowly focused that they cannot recognize the opportunities for blending their functional expertise with those of others un new and interesting ways (Prahalad Hamel, 1990, p.82). The strategic capability brings the cluster of attributes which assist to achieve the competitive advantage. Toyota is a company which has adopted the diversification strategy and Toyota carmakers are happy with the preferred brands as Prius and hybrid cars. General Motors, BMW and DaimlerChrysler have scrambled to roll out their own hybrid products. Ford has also taken step to increase its products but Toyota is leading to produce the more diversified hybrid products. So for we have discussed the different aspects of the diversification across the different companies; theories of Hamel and Prahalad have focused upon the core competencies of the organizations. These core competencies make differentiation of firms adopting them. Porter has advocated that co-operation and collaboration are the means to retain the competitive advantage. Porter has seen that any sign of alliance may prove to be the source of erosion for the long term competitive advantage. Conclusion: We have tried in this paper to focus upon the corporate strategies in business. In most part of the paper we have focused upon the diversification strategy. Diversification with its two common types is described briefly. We have seen that most of the companies in the world operate on the related diversification. The relationship between the cash flow sensitivity and corporate diversification is also investigated in this paper. The cash flow of diversified companies is lower as compared to cash holding. Diversification objectives are also given in this paper. Arguments on the corporate strategy have focused the views of the Porter and other economists. Corporate strategy of Porter depends upon the competitive advantage. It is tried to evaluate the arguments of porter that diversification destroys the value; but Hamel and Prahalad have contradicted the views of the Porter about the core competencies with examples. Quotes from the Porters work are included in this paper which is based o n corporate strategy.

Reasons Teen Disrespect Is On The Rise Essay -- essays research papers

Though cultures have many differences there have been a few traits that have united them across the spans of time and geographical area. Many of these traits have even been included in religious doctrine or social and moral laws. In western philosophy and religions the concept of respect has help a high place, allowing a clear distinction between those who have experience and answers to those who are young and naà ¯ve. Religions such as Christianity and Mormonism stress greatly that the young should respect the elderly, while the Judaic religion provides a strict consequence, should this command be broken. By Old Testament law, the disrespectful child was to be taken to the town council, and then promptly stoned to avoid the spread of the sin and to keep ?God?s Chosen? pure. In recent times the respect that teenagers have shown for the elderly has decreased significantly, this trend has become extremely apparent in the 1980?s and 90?s. Though modern social guidelines do not dictate the killing of a disrespectful youth, it is still considered something that must be stopped. High school students have always been notorious for their lack of respect for authority. Many have wondered how these changes occur, most children are respectful at a young age but seem to ?change over night? into a youthful teenager who is often disrespectful to those around them. Studies done in recent years have shown that society, media, and the physical changes that a teenager undergoes may all be res...

Application of Deontological ethical theory Essay

In places where there are interactions among people, ethics become one of the most important principles that guide the behaviour, decision making, and evaluating the conduct of the people. Deontological theory is used to evaluate ethics and guide people for ethical considerations. Gender ethics is one of ethical issues that is most prevalent in the society where women live is a society that denies them education, economic, and marital equity. Hence, ethics can be said to be the principles by which people live by in the society. This paper will discuss the deontological theory and how it is applied in gender ethical issues such as economic, educational, and marital equity that are prevalent in most societies. In most education insinuations across the world, admission is in part based on gender and in part in merits, which questions the ethical practice. Gender issues have led to some students been denied chances to get quality education in schools of their choice (Willingham, & Cole2013). Although the issue can be seen as ethical as the schools try to admit students while balancing the gender, it is unethical behaviour on the deontological theory point of view. Male students may be denied a chance for quality education at the expense of a female student. The society expects that a student who has passed his examinations should be in a position to secure the position of a good school and obtain quality education. Deontologists argue that, in order for the schools to portray good gender ethics, it should not discriminate in terms of gender but it should consider merits for its admissions. Gender issues concerning economic equity in work place have been perceived as the most ethical dilemma that organizations face. Some organizations discriminate women in terms of wages and employments (Baker et al., 2009). Women are paid unfair wages while some are denied employment positions based on gender. The gender discrimination can be considered as unethical on the point of view of deontological theory. In this theory, people do right to other people because the societies uphold it as corrects. In this situation, it would be ethically correct not to discriminate women based on gender since the society does not prescribe to that behaviour. On the other hand, offering competitive remunerations and employing people on merits is a socially accepted behaviour and thus follow deontological theory. Consequently, most societies regard women as lesser being when it comes to marital affaires. Women are denied rights to marital make decisions and hence they are bound by the status and the power of their husbands (Baker et al., 2009). Moreover, their roles in the family are only seen as to involve household chores and not any other occupation that is male-oriented. In deontological point of view, this is unethical behaviour and male and female should have equal rights in making marital decisions and supporting families. The strength of deontological theory is that it mandates people to be consistent in doing the right things. That is deontologists try to be consistent with their behaviour because they believe of what is morally upright (Ess, 2008). Hence, the theory can help to address the gender ethics issues across the society in that it helps people in the society to do the right thing irrespective of their situations. For example, when a person knows that discrimination based on gender is morally wrong, the person may live to protect gender equality and always avoid discrimination. In addition, the theory results in a responsible society where each person knows his or her moral obligations and strives to meet them without failure. The conflicts that may arise from the unethical behaviours as a result of people failing to meet their moral obligations is eliminated. The weakness of this theory is that is does not explain how one can ethically act when he or she encounters two moral obligations. It only defines absolute situations. In gender ethics, an employer may employ a female worker for other reasons rather than moral obligations in disguise of gender equality. For example, a female worker may be employed for sexual favours although she is qualified based on merits. This means that the employee could have employed the worker on merits but he has other reasons. Although the employee can be seen to have acted based on moral obligations, he was unethical due to preformed hiring motives. Hence, from this situation it is evident that there is a conflicting moral obligation, which the theory has not factored in when evaluating the ethical behaviours in the society (Thomasma, 2009). Conclusion                      From the paper, it is evident that gender ethical issues are one of the major ethical problems in the society. It is experienced in economic, education, and marital situations. Deontological theory tries to explain how people can act based on their moral obligations. In gender ethics, moral obligations will involve gender equality in economic, marital, and education fields. Deontologists uphold gender equality in the society since it is a moral obligation. The strength of this theory is that it helps the society to be consistent in its behaviour. However, the weakness of the theory is that it only defines absolute situations and fails to explain situations where moral obligations may be conflicting. References Baker, E. H., Sanchez, L. A., Nock, S. L., & Wright, J. D. (2009). Covenant marriage and the sanctification of gendered marital roles. Journal of Family Issues, 30(2), 147-178. Ess, C. (2008). Culture and global networks: hope for a global ethics. Information technology and moral philosophy, 195, 225.Thomasma, D. C. (2009). Theories of medical ethics: the philosophical structure. Military Medical Ethics, 1, 23-60. Willingham, W. W., & Cole, N. S. (2013). Gender and fair assessment. Routledge. Source document

Factors That Influence Learning

TASK 18 – Outline the factors that influence learning. Learning is influenced by many factors such as attention, motivation and emotions as well as by learner characteristics like prior knowledge, cognitive and learning styles and intellectual capabilities. The following list shows a number of other factors that may also have a bearing on a pupil’s capability to learn: * Family * Culture * Gender * Impact of peers * Subject content * Teaching style * Learning skills * Recognition of need to learn * Past experiences of learning * Personal learning styles * Range of opportunities Awareness of the learning process * Barriers to learning * Rewards and punishments All these factors have an impact on the quality and quantity of learning for the pupil. For example: * Where cultural background encourages the experience of different learning opportunities then the pupil will have more opportunities of developing effective learning skills. * Not all pupils acknowledge the value o f learning. If a pupil has low-level skills, they may deny the importance of learning as a defence mechanism to prevent exposing themselves or the reason might be a lack of family or peer support for learning. Some pupils might be very much influenced by their peers, either having their own learning experiences enhanced or discouraged by peers. * If a pupil encounters a teaching approach that does not match their own learning style, they may be put at a disadvantage. * A productive and effective learning experience will encourage learning skills, which enables that pupil to successfully learn in other contexts. * Facilitators of learning might not provide effective rewards for learning, such as attention and praise.If the young person relies on rewards such as money or gifts for motivation then they will have difficulty learning in a non-reinforcing environment. Factors that may hinder learning for pupils with special educational needs may be attitudinal, organisational or practical . Natalie Levy Student no: SH34604/DLC Assignment no: 6 Page no: 2 Outline the principles of educational inclusion. Schools and teachers are now required to provide equality of opportunity for all children: * Boys and girls * Children with SEN * Children with disabilities Children from different social and cultural backgrounds * Children from different ethnic groups (including traveller’s, refugees and asylum seekers) * Those from diverse linguistic backgrounds The Government is committed to promoting the inclusion of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities into mainstream schools that recognise and celebrate human diversity. Under UK legislation, educational institutions are required to ensure that no learner is prevented from participating fully in education or disadvantage because of factors such as: * Physical, sensory or cognitive impairment Ethnic or social background * Gender Inclusion of children and young people with special educational needs is a key principle of current educational policy and practice. Inclusion is a process by which local education authorities, schools and others develop their cultures, policies and practices to include pupils in mainstream education. Principles of an inclusive education service: * With the right training, strategies and support nearly all children with special educational needs can be successfully included in mainstream education. Schools, LEAs and others should actively seek to remove barriers to learning and participation. * An inclusive education service offers excellence and choice and incorporates the views of parents and children. * The interests of all pupils must be safeguarded. * All children should have access to an appropriate education that gives them the opportunity to achieve their personal potential. * Mainstream education will not always be right for every child all of the time.Equally just because mainstream education may not be right at a particular stage it does not p revent the child from being included successfully at a later stage. The National Curriculum Handbook for primary teachers and the Handbook for secondary teachers in England incorporates a statutory inclusion statement on providing effective learning opportunities for all pupils. It outlines how teachers can modify the National Curriculum programmes of study to provide all pupils with relevant and appropriately challenging work at each KS.It sets out three principles that are essential to developing a more inclusive curriculum: * Setting suitable learning challenges * Responding to pupils diverse learning needs * Overcoming potential barriers to learning and assessment for individuals and groups of pupils. Natalie Levy Student no: SH34604/DLC Assignment no: 6 Page no: 3 Explain the importance of attitudes, skills and resources in the achievement of successful educational inclusion. Sometimes for children with special educational needs and disabilities, obstacles can stand in the way of them getting/achieving the right education and support.Factors that can affect success: * Special education professionals should work in partnership with parents and take into account views of parents in respect of their child’s particular needs * Special educational provision’s should take into account the wishes of the child concerned, taking into account their age and understanding * The culture, practice, management and deployment of resources in school should be designed to ensure all children’s needs are met * Interventions for each child should be reviewed regularly to assess their impact, the child’s progress and the views of the child, their teachers and their parents * LEAs, schools and settings should work together to ensure that any child’s special educational needs are identified early * LEAs, schools and settings should exploit good and best practice when devising interventions * There should be co-operation between all the agencie s and a multi-disciplinary approach to the resolution of issues Depending on the school setting the teaching assistant may play a vital role in supporting the children with SEN. The tasks that a teaching assistant may help with might include helping pupils with reading difficulties, supporting speech therapy programmes and helping pupils to access the curriculum. Explain the importance of encouraging independent learning when promoting educational inclusion.Independent learning concentrates on the creation of experiences and opportunities that help students to become self-reliant, self-motivated and lifelong learners. Independent learning focuses on the individuals need for independence and active participation in their own learning, both in school and in society. Independent learning is important because it is part of an ongoing, lifelong learning process that stimulates deeper thinking and reflection and promotes the continuing growth of students’ abilities and strengths. I ndependent learners develop the attitudes, knowledge and skills needed to make responsible decisions and take actions dealing with their own learning.Teaching staff can help students take responsibility for their learning by providing opportunities and strategies for learning independently and by encouraging pupils to initiate and actively participate in their own learning. Learning is an interactive process among pupils and between teachers and pupils. Pupils engage in learning activities as individuals who are interdependent with other individuals in the classroom and wider society. Students will move towards independence in varying degrees, depending on factors such as age, skill level and ability in a particular subject. Natalie Levy Student no: SH 34604/DLC Assignment no: 6 Page no: 4What support can a teaching assistant provide to a pupil with special educational needs? As a teaching assistant there are three aspects in fostering Independent Learning. They are: * The learning environment created by the staff * The relationship established between teacher and learner * The teaching and modelling of skills needed for independent learning A teaching assistant can play an important role in providing a supportive environment that encourages pupil motivation, self-confidence, interest and desire to learn. It is important that the teaching assistant, in order to promote independent learning, knows their students well and should reflect upon their pupils learning processes.In order to help the students succeed as independent learners, the teaching assistant needs to anticipate difficulties and offer support at crucial intervals. The teaching assistant must develop a good understanding of their students’ strengths and weaknesses (socially, emotionally, intellectually and physically) their exceptionalities, their health and their cultural backgrounds. The relationship between the teaching assistant and learner should foster increasing learner responsibility , meaning that as the student grows in maturity and understanding, they are able to take on greater responsibility for their own learning. An important aspect of the teaching assistant’s role is the teaching and modelling of skills needed for independent learning.The attitudes, skills and knowledge of independent learning will be fostered in students through ways in which the teaching assistant organises the classroom and instructs the student. * Teachers should utilise instructional techniques, strategies and approaches based on collaboration between learner and teacher. This will encourage student participation, both in determining goals and in monitoring the learning process. * Teachers should use approaches that foster student self-confidence and empowers students to take responsibility for their own learning. * Students should be taught activities which facilitate the transition to independence through modelling, demonstration and direct instruction of learning skills.Th ese should then be followed by practice opportunities provided by the teaching assistant, who in turn monitors the students’ progress towards their goals of independent decision making. * The teaching assistant should share with students what is being done and why an activity is useful. The goal is that learners will eventually make their own decisions, connect what they already know with what they are learning, make judgements and inferences, apply new ideas and derive pleasure from learning. The teaching assistant’s role is to be a patient facilitator, showing students how to learn independently, encouraging them, providing feedback and supporting their efforts.These are all crucial factors in providing a learning environment which fosters independent learning and which motivates students to pursue independent learning skills. Natalie Levy Student no: SH34604/DLC Assignment no: 6 Page no: 5 List the stages of the statementing process. Children with SEN who attend mai nstream schools are placed on the SEN list in line with this guidance: * If they require provision which is different from, and additional to, that made for most pupils (â€Å"schools action†) * If the pupils fail to make adequate progress, further provision is to be made (â€Å"schools action plus†) The special educational needs of the majority of children should be met effectively through School Action and School Action Plus. In a small number of cases, where the child is still a ignificant cause for concern after intervention in School Action Plus, the school will ask the LEA for a Statutory Assessment. This involves the LEA, working co-operatively with parents, the child’s school and other agencies, where appropriate. The LEA will seek evidence from the school that strategies and programmes implemented over a period of time have been unsuccessful. The LEA will need information about the child’s progress over time and clear documentation on the childâ €™s SEN and the action taken to deal with these needs. They will then decide whether a statutory statement of the child’s educational needs is necessary. Statutory assessment does not always lead to a Statement of Special Educational Needs.The LEA then looks at the statement request. It may be that a certain child’s needs are very significant and complex, in which case the LEA will carry out a multi-agency assessment and then, if appropriate, provide a Statement of Special Educational Needs. A Statement of Special Educational Needs is a legal document that sums up all the advice gathered during the Statutory Assessment. It sets out what the child’s special educational needs are and the special educational provision required in order to meet them. It names the school where this provision is to be made and any other non-educational needs and provisions affecting arrangements at school.This will be reviewed at least every year but can be more frequent if profes sionals working with the child or the parents identify further concerns. A Statement of Special Educational Needs is split into six parts: 1. Identifies the child or young person and those with parental responsibility. 2. Identifies the needs of the child or young person. 3. Identifies the provision required to meet the needs as described in Part 2. 4. Names the school where the child or young person will be placed. 5. Identifies health needs 6. Determines what provisions are needed to meet those health needs. The provision required will normally be quantified in terms of hours of provision and staffing arrangements in order to meet the changing needs of the child.The school must provide: * Appropriate facilities and equipment, staffing arrangements and curriculum * Any modifications to the application of the National Curriculum * Appropriate exclusions from the application of the National Curriculum and changes needed to maintain a broad and balanced curriculum. Natalie Levy Studen t no: SH34604/DLC Assignment no: 6 Page no: 6 All children with a statement should have short-term targets, set out in an IEP, prepared by the SENCO with the support from the external agencies and the class teacher. Throughout the process, local authority officers work with parents to reach agreement about the content of the statement.Where the LEA declines to provide a statement, the school may request a reassessment after six months. Parents also have the right to appeal against the decision to the SEN tribunal. List and explain the broad content of the SEN code of Practice. The SEN Code of Practice gives practical guidance on the fulfilment of functions under part 4 of the Education Act 1996 to local authorities, the governing bodies of maintained schools, settings in receipt of government funding to provide early education and to those who help them, including the health services and social services. It also provides general practical guidance to such settings about the provisio n of nursery education to children with special educational needs.The Code of Practice provides a framework for developing strong partnerships between parents, schools, LEAs and health and social services. It promotes a consistent approach to meeting children’s special educational needs and places the rights of children at the heart of the process, allowing them to be heard and to take part in the decision making process wherever possible. The focus is on ensuring that SEN are identified as quickly as possible. The code sets out five principles: * That children with SEN should have their needs met * That their needs will normally be met in mainstream schools * That the views of children should be sought and taken into account * That arents have a vital role to play in supporting their children’s education * Those children with SEN should be offered full access to a broad, balanced and relevant curriculum in the foundation stage and later years. The Code sets out guidan ce on policies and procedures aimed at enabling pupils with SEN to reach their full potential, to be included fully in their school communities and make a successful transition to adulthood. It recommends that schools adopt a graduated approach to match provision to children’s SEN so that, where necessary, increasingly available specialist expertise can respond to a child’s individual needs if they do not make adequate progress.The Code also provides advice on carrying out statutory assessment of a child’s SEN and of making and maintaining a statement of SEN for children with severe and complex needs, this would include carrying out annual reviews of statements and planning for young people with SEN when they make the transition to college, training and employment. The Code emphasises the importance of involving children and parents in decision-making and of effective multi-agency, to combine services around the needs of the children and their families. List and explain the broad content of the LEA and school SEN policies. The responsibility of the LEA in respect of SEN is to: Natalie Levy Student no: SH34604/DLC Assignment no: 6Page no: 7 * Plan its overall special educational provision and review it periodically * Assess those pupils whose special needs may require a Statement of SEN * Ensure that the provision specified in the Statement of SEN has been made available * Initiate annual reviews of every Statement of SEN * Monitor the performance of its maintained schools and Support Services * Identify, assess and make provision for all pre-school children who may have special educational needs The LEA also has a duty to consult with schools, Health and Social Services and voluntary organisations over its SEN Policy, which it must publish and keep under review.Regulations require that the LEA must publish information on the arrangements they make for children with SEN in general. The policy covers all pupils and young people between the a ges of 0 – 19 who may/will experience some form of difficulty in their learning which may arise from a variety of factors, including those relating to the pupil or young person themselves, their learning environment and their social environment. The policy model has three key elements: * Philosophy – Relevant basic details. * Principles – Broad guidelines. General statements derived from the beliefs which can be interpreted by policy users to guide. * Procedures – Practical details.Operating routines and actions derived from the principles which cover the most common areas of policy application or critical events. Updating of the policy and evaluation of its implementation will be undertaken through annual review by the LEA’s SEN Management group, with due reference to SEN initiatives contained within the Education Development Plan and associated planning documents. The school SEN policy is a document that gathers together, in one place, all LEA gu idance and information on all aspects of special needs and inclusion. This includes Special Educational Needs and also many other issues to do with the management of inclusion in schools. It is intended as a management tool for senior managers in schools as well as SENCOs.The framework for the Special Educational Needs policy is provided by: * The United Nations convention on the Rights of the Children (Salamanca Statement) * The Children Act 1989 * The 1994 Special Educational Needs Code of Practice (revised 2002) * The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 * The Education Act 1996 * Key DfEE regulations and circulars on the organisation of special educational needs * The Green Paper â€Å"Excellence for All† 1997 and the DfEE Programme of Action 1998 * The Schools Standards and Framework Act 1998 * The Human Rights Act 1998 * The SEN Code of Practice (Draft) 2000 * The â€Å"Quality Protects† Management Action Plan * The SEN and Disability Act 2001 Natalie Levy Student no: SH34604/DLCAssignment no:6 Page no: 8 TASK 19 – Research the responsibilities of all teaching and support staff for learners with special educational needs in a local school to you. Responsibilities and roles of staff/agencies from the school in which I am based. Class teacher: * Should always be aware of any children who are already on the SEN register. * Make sure time is made available for Termly and Annual Reviews. * Attend INSERVICE training. * Attend regular meetings with the SENCO. * Take account of different needs when planning. * Take into account the feelings of, wishes and knowledge of parents. * Maintain a class SEN file which is to be stored securely. Maintains confidentiality at all times. * Seek advice from the SENCO on strategies which might be used to help the pupil. Teaching Assistants/Learning Support Assistants: * Work on a one-to-one basis where necessary. * Allocated time to work with children at School Action and School Action Plus. * Attend INSERVI CE training. * Attend regular meetings with the SENCO. * Have a minimum of 20 hours per week to support children with SEN. SENCO: * Provide professional guidance to staff with the aim of providing high quality teaching. * Has an overview of provisions made for pupils with SEN. * Liaises with teachers, TA’s and multi-agencies when necessary. Ascertains which stage each child is operating at and reviews when appropriate. * Keeps an updated confidential register. * Arranges review meetings with parents/teachers. * Updates teachers on SEN children and explores/discusses current initiatives. * Responds to specific requests from teachers and other multi-agencies * Visit nursery, pre-schools and secondary schools to help with integration when moving in or on from our school. * Store SEN information securely and in an orderly fashion ensuring easy access. * Share information with the Head Teacher/teachers/TA’s where appropriate. Educational Psychologists: * Performs formal psy chological testing. Assess results and determine whether a child has special educational needs. * Give advice to teachers/TA’s in relation to particular pupils (requested through the SENCO) * Runs INSERVICE training on particular needs. * Carries out intervention work such as counselling, behaviour management and student study skills. Natalie Levy Student no: SH34604/DLC Assignment no: 6 Page no: 9 Speech and Language Therapist: * Assesses the extent of the problem. * Makes a diagnosis of the problem. * Liaises with the SENCO/teacher/parent on the best programme of care for the child. School Nurse: * Carries out various hearing/sight tests. * Inform staff in the school setting of any particular health requirements. Trains staff if injections or other medical procedures are required. * Consult/refer to a doctor if they think other professional may be required in the care of the child. Peripatetic Teacher/Support Worker: * Assess and test the child. * Offer advice and guidance to teachers/TA’s. * Advises on specialist equipment when/if needed. In the school setting where I am the school will also contact other settings who offer OUTREACH services if there is a need. Outline the purpose and use of at least two different resources and two pieces of specialist equipment for learners with special educational needs that might be available in schools. Pupils with poor vision may have difficulty in using a normal computer.However there are a number of techniques that can be applied to assist pupils. Touch typing skills often make it possible to use a computer more effectively. They are particularly valuable for partially sighted and blind computer users as they remove the need to constantly look between the keyboard and the screen. Drills are used to practice each key and sequence of keys until the whole alphabet is covered. Large print keyboard stickers will help a pupil identify where the keys are, they are a learning tool rather than something to be re lied upon. These are available in different colours and styles. Many people with no usable vision, may find it useful to operate their computer by voice (known as voice in-voice out).The users speak and the software recognises what was said and types it into the computer. This means that: * Words are correctly spelled. * The user’s flow is not interrupted by having to stop and worry about spelling. * The need to type or hand write is removed – this is also helpful if the user is also dyspraxic. Speech output is also used. This means the user does not need to be able to see the screen to use a computer. Software called a screen-reader can intelligently send all information to a voice synthesiser such as what is being typed, what has been typed and menu options. Natalie Levy Student no: SH34604/DLC Assignment no: 6 Page no: 10Pupils with very poor motor skills will often struggle with normal computers as well. They may find it hard to relate the movement of their hand on the mouse to the movement of the cursor on screen. In these instances it may be that a trackball or joystick is easier to use. A normal keyboard has over 100 keys and can sometimes be very confusing to the user; again key stop stickers could be used. Lowercase keyboards can be used (a standard keyboard but in lower case only) and also overlay keyboards (touch sensitive membranes which slide over the top of a normal keyboard and determine the functions of the keyboard). All of the above are available in the setting where I am and make it easier for the user.They feel confident using computers and can also join in mainstream ICT lessons. Explain the contents and purpose of an individual education plan and explain how a teaching assistant could contribute towards achieving its aim. The Individual Education Plan (IEP) is a planning, teaching and reviewing tool. It should support the process of planning intervention for an individual pupil with SEN. IEPs should be teaching and learning plans setting out â€Å"what, â€Å"how† and â€Å"how often† particular knowledge, understanding and skills should be taught through additional or different activities from those provided for all pupils through the differentiated curriculum.Wherever possible pupils should be involved in setting their own targets for the IEP, in agreeing and implementing appropriate strategies and evaluating the outcomes. IEPs should: * Raise achievement for pupils with SEN * Be seen as working documents * Use a simple format * Detail provision additional to or different from those generally available for all pupils * Detail targets which are extra or different from those for most pupils * Be jargon free * Be comprehensible to all staff and parents * Be distributed to all staff as necessary * Promote effective planning * Help pupils monitor their own progress * Result in good planning and intervention by staff * Result in the achievement of specified learning goals for pupils with SEN IEPs should focus on: Up to three or four key individual targets set to help meet the individual pupil’s needs and particular priorities * Targets should relate to key areas in communication, literacy, mathematics and aspects of behaviour or physical skills * The pupil’s strengths and successes should underpin targets set and the strategies used Though not included in the IEP teachers should always refer back to the pupil’s Individual Pupil Record to get information on their baseline or entry level assessment as well as information about the pupil’s particular needs and current strengths. This profile should also include information regarding the pupils needs in relation to general strategies such as: Natalie Levy Student no: SH34604/DLC Assignment no: 6 Page no: 11 * The short-term targets set for or by the pupil * The teaching strategies to be used * The provision to be put in place * When the plan is to be reviewed * Success and/or exit criteria * Out comes (to be recorded when IEP is reviewed) Success criteria in an IEP means that targets have been achieved and new targets need to be set, whilst exit criteria means that not only have targets been achieved but that an IEP may no longer be required.Teachers should always aim to talk to pupils about their IEPs in a quiet place away from the rest of the class. A teaching assistant can contribute towards achieving the IEP aims by: * Providing a positive caring and learning environment that promotes improved self esteem and confidence * Supporting the child on a one-to-one basis in the area of disability e. g. reading, writing * Providing a quiet place to work * Keeping instructions direct and simple, one at a time. Repeating and rephrasing instructions where necessary * Providing visual cues and peer mentoring * Providing consistent and ongoing clarification * Teaching the child â€Å"strategies† not just facts Reducing working time and expectations initially to ensure the chi ld is successful * Trying to ensure that there is a good partnership between home and the school setting and keeping parents informed as to how they can support their child at home. Describe how you might carry out a case study for a learner with special educational needs and what information it should contain. To carry out a case study for a learner with special educational needs the objective is to portray: * How the learner’s needs are identified * The learning experiences and provisions in place for them * The levels of satisfaction, appropriateness and challenge for the learner * The learning impacts and outcomes for themIn a case study I would need to conduct a range of interviews with: * The individual learner (except in the case of a very young person) * Relatives or friends who might have a perspective on the learners experience and development * Those directly providing the learning opportunities at an operational level (tutors, teachers etc) this would usually incl ude local authority representatives. Questions I may need to ask are: * How are the learner’s needs identified and what learning experiences are in place for them? * Are the learner’s satisfied and challenged? * What are the learning impacts and outcomes for them? Natalie Levy Student no: SH 34604/DLC Assignment no: 6 Page no: 12Where a pupils’ learning has been supported, helped or promoted by local authorities already, my report should identify the nature of the learning experiences, the outcome derived by the individual learner, the factors contributing to the effectiveness of the learning opportunity and key factors that contributed to the success. Alternatively, where a pupil has not been supported, helped or promoted I should include in the report the key factors and barriers affecting achievement. My report should draw out key messages for local authority staff, schools and other organisations and individuals concerned with successful learning. In short a case study should include: * The relevant characteristics of the learner * How his/her learning needs were identified, or the learning opportunities were accessed * Standard of achievement * Quality of access to curriculum * Support available Quality and effectiveness of support * How well providers work in partnership * Barriers that prevent the learner accessing appropriate curriculum and support * Key factors and barriers affecting the achievement in these outcomes * Progress made * Examine and illustrate the distinct role and contribution of the local authority leadership in promoting and ensuring learning * Key issues for action * The next steps or future developments both for the learner and local authority and other providers who may be involved. Design a brief that could be used to advise school staff of the guidelines in confidentiality in an imaginary school. See attached document.

Free Essays on Lutherans

Introduction My choice of a local religion to do a case study about was the Lutheran Church. For my interview, Pastor Steve Nuske at St Andrew’s Church in the City recommended that I interview a strong Lutheran believer Mr Sanchez. Mr Sanchez has been a Lutheran for over 40 years and is a dedicated and weekly going member of the church. He answered my questions with great knowledge of the Lutheran religion. I also attended a Sunday church service at Mt Gravatt that I observed carefully. In a brief description of the Lutheran background, I discovered that a Lutheran is a follower of Jesus Christ and are considered a Christian Church, the same as Roman Catholics. Lutherans were deeply influenced by a man named Martin Luther (1483 – 1546) who was the founder of the church. Something that all Christians believe in is the bible. It is the centre of the belief for Roman Catholics but to the Lutherans it’s just some teaching keeping their main focus is on God and his son, Jesus Christ. This would be due to Martin Luther’s learning experience using the bible as a tool to learn about a God of love, forgiveness and grace. I see that a religion with a mans teachings, is giving what he learnt and believes to his followers and themselves are not learning for their own knowledge, they are just using Martin Luther’s teachings. This differs from the Roman Catholics as they believe what they learn themselves which is strait from the bible not one mans teachings. Lutherans Idea of Jesus doesn’t have any differences to the Roman Catholics. We all believe that he was born of a virgin, didn’t live a life of sin and rose from the dead, which is remembered by the special occasion time of the year Easter. One of the main purposes people come across religion is to see how they were created and where they are going after death. Lutherans are no more special then any other religion and cannot see past death, but they like... Free Essays on Lutherans Free Essays on Lutherans Introduction My choice of a local religion to do a case study about was the Lutheran Church. For my interview, Pastor Steve Nuske at St Andrew’s Church in the City recommended that I interview a strong Lutheran believer Mr Sanchez. Mr Sanchez has been a Lutheran for over 40 years and is a dedicated and weekly going member of the church. He answered my questions with great knowledge of the Lutheran religion. I also attended a Sunday church service at Mt Gravatt that I observed carefully. In a brief description of the Lutheran background, I discovered that a Lutheran is a follower of Jesus Christ and are considered a Christian Church, the same as Roman Catholics. Lutherans were deeply influenced by a man named Martin Luther (1483 – 1546) who was the founder of the church. Something that all Christians believe in is the bible. It is the centre of the belief for Roman Catholics but to the Lutherans it’s just some teaching keeping their main focus is on God and his son, Jesus Christ. This would be due to Martin Luther’s learning experience using the bible as a tool to learn about a God of love, forgiveness and grace. I see that a religion with a mans teachings, is giving what he learnt and believes to his followers and themselves are not learning for their own knowledge, they are just using Martin Luther’s teachings. This differs from the Roman Catholics as they believe what they learn themselves which is strait from the bible not one mans teachings. Lutherans Idea of Jesus doesn’t have any differences to the Roman Catholics. We all believe that he was born of a virgin, didn’t live a life of sin and rose from the dead, which is remembered by the special occasion time of the year Easter. One of the main purposes people come across religion is to see how they were created and where they are going after death. Lutherans are no more special then any other religion and cannot see past death, but they like...

Free Essays on Feminist Hypocrites

, from a song by Fiona Apple, describe the current turn of the feminist movement. Feminism is a term that has been taken very lightly, and often adopted by women because the feminist movement is â€Å"cool†. The current feminist movement, if it could even be called that, centers mainly around sexual acts, rather than â€Å"real† issues that every woman should be concerned about. I believe that all current feminists need to thoroughly examine their reasons for calling themselves feminists and that the movement needs to return to the old adages of feminism, or women will continue to be degraded, and it will come from within rather than from men. Feminists seem to be routinely correcting themselves and do not have a unanimous voice. The essay â€Å"Hypocritics†, published in The New Republic, and written by Peter Beinart, uses an article by Noemie Emery to make his point that feminists are resoundly â€Å"confusing consensual and nonconsensual sex† and  "portraying women as sexual victims†. Ms. Emery writes, â€Å"the feminists stand exposed as a partisan pressure group, which is not what they said they were. They said they were a universal moral movement acting on behalf of all women. They claimed, very loudly, that harassment was an outrage and a horror. But, as it turns out, they are for women selectively, and against harassment only now and then.† Beinart attacks feminists as hypocritical with regard to the Clinton cases for not â€Å"rallying to Jones’s and Willey’s defense when there is evidence that Clinton made a pass at them† and accuses conservatives of also being hypocritical for â€Å"not rallying to the president’s defense when there is no evidence that he punished either woman for resisting?† This is only one of the many problems that that old guard feminists see. Just as the media played a huge role in convicting... Free Essays on Feminist Hypocrites Free Essays on Feminist Hypocrites Feminist Hypocrites â€Å"It’s a sad sad world, when a girl will break a boy just because she can.† These words, from a song by Fiona Apple, describe the current turn of the feminist movement. Feminism is a term that has been taken very lightly, and often adopted by women because the feminist movement is â€Å"cool†. The current feminist movement, if it could even be called that, centers mainly around sexual acts, rather than â€Å"real† issues that every woman should be concerned about. I believe that all current feminists need to thoroughly examine their reasons for calling themselves feminists and that the movement needs to return to the old adages of feminism, or women will continue to be degraded, and it will come from within rather than from men. Feminists seem to be routinely correcting themselves and do not have a unanimous voice. The essay â€Å"Hypocritics†, published in The New Republic, and written by Peter Beinart, uses an article by No emie Emery to make his point that feminists are resoundly â€Å"confusing consensual and nonconsensual sex† and â€Å"portraying women as sexual victims†. Ms. Emery writes, â€Å"the feminists stand exposed as a partisan pressure group, which is not what they said they were. They said they were a universal moral movement acting on behalf of all women. They claimed, very loudly, that harassment was an outrage and a horror. But, as it turns out, they are for women selectively, and against harassment only now and then.† Beinart attacks feminists as hypocritical with regard to the Clinton cases for not â€Å"rallying to Jones’s and Willey’s defense when there is evidence that Clinton made a pass at them† and accuses conservatives of also being hypocritical for â€Å"not rallying to the president’s defense when there is no evidence that he punished either woman for resisting?† This is only one of the many problems that that old guar d feminists see. Just as the media played a huge role in convicting...

Locutionary Act Definition in Speech-Act Theory

Locutionary Act Definition in Speech-Act Theory In speech-act theory, a locutionary act is the act of making a meaningful utterance, a stretch of spoken  language  that is preceded by silence and followed by silence or a change of  speaker- also known as a  locution or an  utterance act. The term locutionary act was introduced by British philosopher J. L. Austin in his 1962 book, How to Do Things With Words. American philosopher John Searle later replaced Austins concept of a  locutionary act with what Searle called the propositional act- the act of expressing a proposition. Searle outlined his ideas in a 1969 article titled Speech Acts: An Essay in the Philosophy of Language. Types of Locutionary  Acts Locutionary acts can be broken into two basic types: utterance acts and propositional acts.  An utterance act is a speech act that consists of the verbal employment of units of expression such as words and sentences, notes the  Glossary of Linguistic Terms. Put another way,  utterance acts are acts in which something is said (or a sound is made) that may not have any meaning, according to Speech Act Theory, a PDF published by Changing Minds.org. By contrast, propositional acts are those, as Searle noted, where a particular reference is made. Propositional acts are clear and express a specific definable point, as opposed to mere utterance acts, which may be unintelligible sounds. Illocutionary vs.  Perlocutionary Acts An illocutionary act refers to the performance of an act in saying something specific (as opposed to the general act of just saying something), notes Changing Minds, adding: The illocutionary force is the speakers intent. [It is] a true speech act such as informing, ordering, warning, undertaking. An example of an illocutionary act would be: The black cat is stupid. This statement is assertive; it is an illocutionary act in that it intends to communicate. By contrast, Changing Minds notes that perlocutionary acts are speech acts that have an effect on the feelings, thoughts, or actions of either the speaker or the listener. They seek to change minds. Unlike locutionary acts, perlocutionary acts are external to the performance; they are inspiring, persuading, or deterring. Changing Minds gives this example of a perlocutionary act: Please find the black cat. This statement is a perlocutionary act because it seeks to change behavior. (The speaker wants you to drop whatever you are doing and go find her cat.) Speech Acts With Purpose Locutionary acts may be simple utterances devoid of meaning. Searle refined the definition of locutionary acts by explaining they should be utterances that propose something, have meaning, and/or seek to persuade. Searle identified five illocutionary/perlocutionary points: Assertives: Statements that may be judged true or false because they aim to describe a state of affairs in the worldDirectives: Statements that attempt to make the other persons actions fit the propositional contentCommissives: Statements that commit the speaker to a course of action as described by the propositional contentExpressives: Statements that express the sincerity condition of the speech actDeclaratives: Statements that attempt to change the world by representing it as having been changed Locutionary acts, therefore, should not simply be  meaningless bits of speech. Instead, they should have purpose, either seeking to bolster an argument, express an opinion, or cause someone to take action. Locutionary Acts Do Have Meaning Austin, in a 1975 update of his book How to Do Things With Words, further refined the notion of locutionary acts. Explaining his theory, Austin said that locutionary acts, in and of themselves, did indeed have meaning, stating: In performing a locutionary act, we shall also be performing such an act as: Asking or answering a question; Giving some information or an assurance or a warning; Announcing a verdict or an intention; Pronouncing a sentence; Making an appointment, an appeal, or a criticism; Making an identification or giving a description. Austin argued that locutionary acts did not need further refinement into illocutionary and perlocutionary acts. Locutionary acts by definition have meaning, such as providing information, asking questions, describing something, or even announcing a verdict. Locutioinary acts are the meaningful utterances humans make to communicate their needs and wants and to persuade others to their viewpoint.

Intertextuality In Films Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Intertextuality In Films - Essay Example The basic concept of intertextuality is that no text, much as it might like to appear so, is original and unique in itself. It is very useful concept; some might also say it is essential for literary studies. generally it is concerned with the cultural sign system. Intertextuality frequently occurs in popular media such as television shows, movies and even interactive video games. In these , intertextuality is often used to provide depth to the fictional reality portrayed in the medium, such as characters in one television show mentioning characters from another.intertextuality was first proposed by Julia Kristeva . According to her a single text that can consists of many texts or it is act of changing one set of sign into another. the use of intertextuality is perhaps the most useful and essential method of ensuring a successful show or film in today’s marketplace. as there are many source of entertainment available in today’s life apart from films, it is very useful f or modern and new directors to attract a particular audience. many directors and film makers refer to previous and old books, novels ,songs, history or remake many popular films, because the audience get familiar with the next story they see hear or read will remind them of some thing they have already experienced.

The Fourteenth Amendment Analysis Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Fourteenth Amendment Analysis - Article Example The police took notice of the car, and when they confronted her, she conceded of having cocaine. The issue under contention is whether the anonymous tip amounted to reasonable suspicion. The court was of the opinion that such an act amounts to reasonable suspicion (Engdahl, 2009). The court was of the opinion that the basis of knowledge, reliability, and veracity are the main basis amounting to the definition of reasonable suspicion. The anonymous caller satisfied all these conditions. The stop and Frisk search occurs when a police officer encounters a suspicious person, and to prevent an occurrence of crime, they conduct a frisk search (Engdahl, 2009). A stop amounts to temporary interference with the liberty of an individual. The police can implement this concept, only when they have grounds to be reasonably suspicious of a person. Probable cause is a higher of the belief that is supported by facts and can satisfy the threshold of prosecuting a person to a court of law (Engdahl, 2009). This concept is mostly used when a law enforcement agent applies for a search and an arrest warrant. The agent must prove a probable the existence of a probable cause. The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches, and entry, but gives an exemption when there exists a probable cause to conduct the search. A valid arrest warrant must show probable cause. The Supreme Court in Carol vs. US, 1971 was of the opinion that information under the police custody providing a valid ground to believe that a crime is about to take place is an element of a probable cause (Engdahl, 2009). The warrant must describe the place and person to be searched. Warrants must provide details of the person under investigation, and the place under suspicion. The address of the place and a vivid description of the suspected person is essential for purposes of the person from the crowd. The magistrate who issues the arrest warrant must be impartial. The magistrate must not be a member of the executive branch, as this contravenes this law.

United Parcel Service Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

United Parcel Service - Term Paper Example It is however, critical to note that the market trends may be more volatile in future to continue to offer unprecedented services. Changing consumer preferences, new technology etc can have a significant influence over the way business may perform in future. The very nature of the industry indicates that it is dominated by very few but large players which control much of the market however; smaller companies operate too to offer low cost solutions. Though the industry is having higher government regulations because of checks and balances however, the overall competition is still concentrated. Due to lack of larger players in other countries, UPS, FedEx and DHL are the major global players in this industry. This report will provide a strategic review of UPS and will also make a comparison of its activities with other players in other countries. More specifically, this report will offer an strategic insight into different factors associated with UPS. Nature of the Product or Service As discussed above, UPS offers parcel delivery service however, over the period of time, it has been able to diversify its product ranges and is now offering a comprehensive package of logistic and supply chain services along with its basic primary service of package delivery. The overall range of services now not only includes general logistics solutions but it now offers very specific and niche market services to hospitality industry also. (Niemann, 2007) It is important to note that technology plays an important role in offering these products and services. Integrated tracking services for parcels are now an important part of the overall product life cycle of the product. It is important to note that alternative or substitute products have been in the market due to technological advancements. Earlier technologies such as fax machines have reduced the need for sending documents especially through courier services. Introduction of email has further reduced the need for sending physical documents. However, the need for other logistics and supply chain services exists but these services are not typically offered to the general consumers and are mostly B2B. It is also important to note that these services are highly price elastic in nature as presence of other players in the market more specifically makes the price competition more sensitive to the changes. Mushrooming of smaller players in the market specially those service small er localities and communities also tend to add more to the competition and resultantly prices remain low and more sensitive to the changes across the whole market. In other countries, similar firms are mostly concentrated into the one segment of the business i.e. parcel delivery and are into the supply chain management services for the local or international firms. Market Trends One of the key parameters of consumer behavior for UPS is the seamless integration of technology with parcel and package delivery services. Consumers prefer to have their goods and packages reach at the right destination, in right time and also require real time tracking of their shipments. E-commerce and technology therefore are the biggest drivers of change in the consumer behavior in this industry. (Strategic Direction, 2003) There has been a continuous growth for the B2C market in what is called free shipping services especially in US. UPS along with other players, in order to attract online customers, c ontinue to offer free shipping ser

Corporate Compliance Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Corporate Compliance Plan - Assignment Example framework and the related laws assumed significant importance as one after the other of the big companies failed because of scams and nexus in between the management of the companies and the financial institutions e.g. Enron, World Com, Adelphia and Tyco International. Riordan Manufacturing, Inc is the industry leader in the manufacturing of plastic injections. The company was previously named as Riordan Plastics, Inc and was established in the year of 1991 by Dr. Riordan, a professor of Chemistry who had many patents in his credit in the plastic related subjects. The company employs more than 500 employees and operates from various centers of United States as well as China though headquartered at San Jose. The Riordan Manufacturing is a company by nature and not sole proprietorship or partnership. The sole proprietorship is such a business that is owned by the owner individually. The owner is not separate form such businesses and the liability of the business can be bestowed upon the owner. The partnership is another form of business where two or more persons come together for a certain business operation in order to make profit. In the case of partnership also, the liabilities of the firm can be transferred to the owners if the firm is unable to meet it. The company form of business is the most widely used form. It can be private limited company or the public limited company. In case of a private limited company, the directors are responsible for liable for financial obligations but for the public limited company or the limited liability company that is not the case. Even if the company is limited as Riordan Manufacturing is assumed to be, the officer’s liability would include the following: The liabilities of the directors and the officers in any public limited company in the United States are guided by Sarbanes – Oxley Act. Sarbanes – Oxley Act was enacted in the year of 2002 in order to check financial scandals and scams in the western economies like

Issac Newton(Scientist) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Issac Newton(Scientist) - Essay Example When he was sixteen, his mother, who had become widowed once again, pulled her son from school in the hopes of turning him into a farmer. Newton detested farming, preferring to spend his time in the confines of his books. Fortunately, the master at the school that Newton attended convinced his mother to allow Newton to finish his education. He became the top-ranked student of his year, and in June 1661, he was admitted to Trinity College in Cambridge, where he studied advanced philosophy and the works of many renowned astronomers (Dolnick 18). The courses that he took influenced not only the rest of his educational years, but his future career as well, making many contributions to mathematics and space sciences. In regard to his contributions to mathematics, Newton discovered the binomial theorem, as well as began to form a mathematical theory that would eventually become what it now known as infinitesimal calculus. Not too long after these discoveries and developments, the school th at Newton attended closed down in an attempt to protect teachers and students from the Great Plague. The private studies that he tended to at home showed more development than they had while Newton was physically attending school. During his independent studies, Newton further developed his calculus theories, as well as theories of optics and the law of gravitation. Newton published many books about his mathematical theories, but then decided to focus more on mathematics in regard to space. After his education, Newton lectured on optics, focusing primarily on the refraction of light, â€Å"demonstrating that a prism could decompose white light into a spectrum of colours, and that a lens and a second prism could recompose the multicoloured spectrum into white light (Ball 324).† It was also during this that Newton discovered that colored light does not change its properties, regardless of whether or not it was scattered or reflected, which became known as Newton’s theory of color. Wanting to test his theory, Newton built the first refracting telescope to physically display his theory of color. When Newton had penned out and taught all that he could about color and light, and after many successes with publishing and being acknowledged for his works, Newton turned back to his work on celestial mechanics. He focused more specifically on the effect of gravity on the orbits of planets, referring to Kepler’s laws of planetary motion. Newton became even more involved in his work with space sciences at the appearance of a comet, which he used to prove his theory of universal gravitation. This law of universal gravitation reveals that â€Å"every point mass in the universe attracts every other point mass with a force that is directly proportional to the product of their masses (Brackenridge 36).† Between the universal gravitational law and Kepler’s laws of planetary motion, Newton was able to prove that the Moon has a gravitational attr action to the Earth, which he was then able to apply to the orbits of comets and other celestial objects. Newton also made an impression in the ongoing argument of whether or not the universe was heliocentric (everything orbits around the Sun) or geocentric (the belief that everything orbits around the Earth). This argument had been one that was religiously heated, especially from within the Catholic Church, so a lot of the information in regard to the arguments were based

Managment 3000 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Managment 3000 - Assignment Example 2. The key stakeholders would obviously be top management and the board of directors. Management would likely be in favor of researching the drug while the directors would be worried more on the financial side of things. As the company does tend to focus on the human need, then it is likely to pursue the drug. 3. If research does go ahead on the drug, then it has the potential to cure millions of people worldwide in some of the poorest areas of the globe. The cost would be that valuable research dollars would be spent on individuals who could not afford to purchase the medicine, and so the company's profits would likely be reduced. Chapter 5 Management Live 5.5 on page 181 This Management Live discusses the importance of picking the right communication channel to convey different information. Importantly, technology is not always the answer to sending messages. As evidenced at Google, where technology dominates, posters taped to doors was an effective way to draw attention. If the au dience is being overloaded in one channel, presenters might want to try to send their message through another channel. Or, presenters can alter the channel in a creative way to attract attention. Read the section in the chapter about communication channels as they relate to information richness and topic complexity. Consider the following messages and discuss which communication channel would be most effective in each scenario and why. 1. Managers at a shipping facility are concerned by the number of back injuries employees are suffering due to improper lifting techniques. Workers have already been trained on proper lifting, so how can management get the message to â€Å"stick†? Management can get the message to stick by placing printed out reminders on boxes and containers so that employees are presented with the correct lifting technique just before they are about to lift something. 2. A college professor wants her students to participate in a research project in the evenin g. How should she send this message so students will notice it and participate? The college professor should set up a Facebook group for the research project so that students can discuss the project while socializing with their friends. The students are far more likely to participate if it is on a user-friendly medium. 3. An employee is frustrated by his job. He feels like his boss doesn’t give him enough direction about the goals and expectations of the job. How can he best communicate this message to his boss? The employee can get the attention of his boss by requesting a face-to-face meeting. Employers are constantly busy, so sending an email or paper note would likely be passed over. Talking to the boss in his or her office allows the employee to get direct to the point and not waste any unnecessary time for the boss. Chapter 6 Gina is a manager at a customer call center for an insurance company. Gina has noticed a lot of areas for improvement in the performance of her cu stomer service agents. The following list describes the behaviors that Gina would like all customer service agents to perform. 1. Keeping customer call times short (company target is for agents to respond to 15 customer calls per hour). 2. Giving correct information about insurance policies to customers. 3. Logging detailed notes about the customer call in the online database. 4. Being a good listener and being polite and professional even when the customer is angry.

Issac Newton(Scientist) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Issac Newton(Scientist) - Essay Example When he was sixteen, his mother, who had become widowed once again, pulled her son from school in the hopes of turning him into a farmer. Newton detested farming, preferring to spend his time in the confines of his books. Fortunately, the master at the school that Newton attended convinced his mother to allow Newton to finish his education. He became the top-ranked student of his year, and in June 1661, he was admitted to Trinity College in Cambridge, where he studied advanced philosophy and the works of many renowned astronomers (Dolnick 18). The courses that he took influenced not only the rest of his educational years, but his future career as well, making many contributions to mathematics and space sciences. In regard to his contributions to mathematics, Newton discovered the binomial theorem, as well as began to form a mathematical theory that would eventually become what it now known as infinitesimal calculus. Not too long after these discoveries and developments, the school th at Newton attended closed down in an attempt to protect teachers and students from the Great Plague. The private studies that he tended to at home showed more development than they had while Newton was physically attending school. During his independent studies, Newton further developed his calculus theories, as well as theories of optics and the law of gravitation. Newton published many books about his mathematical theories, but then decided to focus more on mathematics in regard to space. After his education, Newton lectured on optics, focusing primarily on the refraction of light, â€Å"demonstrating that a prism could decompose white light into a spectrum of colours, and that a lens and a second prism could recompose the multicoloured spectrum into white light (Ball 324).† It was also during this that Newton discovered that colored light does not change its properties, regardless of whether or not it was scattered or reflected, which became known as Newton’s theory of color. Wanting to test his theory, Newton built the first refracting telescope to physically display his theory of color. When Newton had penned out and taught all that he could about color and light, and after many successes with publishing and being acknowledged for his works, Newton turned back to his work on celestial mechanics. He focused more specifically on the effect of gravity on the orbits of planets, referring to Kepler’s laws of planetary motion. Newton became even more involved in his work with space sciences at the appearance of a comet, which he used to prove his theory of universal gravitation. This law of universal gravitation reveals that â€Å"every point mass in the universe attracts every other point mass with a force that is directly proportional to the product of their masses (Brackenridge 36).† Between the universal gravitational law and Kepler’s laws of planetary motion, Newton was able to prove that the Moon has a gravitational attr action to the Earth, which he was then able to apply to the orbits of comets and other celestial objects. Newton also made an impression in the ongoing argument of whether or not the universe was heliocentric (everything orbits around the Sun) or geocentric (the belief that everything orbits around the Earth). This argument had been one that was religiously heated, especially from within the Catholic Church, so a lot of the information in regard to the arguments were based

Iran-Iraq War Essay Example for Free

Iran-Iraq War Essay The Iran-Iraq War is considered as one of the longest and most violent battles in history. This eight-year long armed conflict was actually the result of many events. The rivalry between Iran and Iraq can be traced from the seventh century. It was a rivalry grounded on the antagonism between Persians and Arabs, just as it was based on the conflict between Sunni Muslims and Shi’a Muslims. These ethnic and religious divisions were further intensified by territorial disputes, which would continue until the 20th Century. In addition, politics played a role in initiating the war itself. The rivalry existed many years ago, but the war was aggravated by the changes in governance in both countries. The Iran-Iraq War was a violent combat between the aforementioned nations from September 1980 until August 1988. The conflict was only stopped with the intervention of the United Nations. The battle proved to be a long and tedious one, as the tension between the countries extended for years. There were also countless casualties as a result of the disastrous occurrence. When the war ended, neither nation could truly be declared the victor. Both Iran and Iraq did not succeed in gaining new territories or political advantages. It is important to note that Iraq was the nation responsible for starting the war. However, the aggression of Saddam Hussein was not the main cause of the war’s occurrence. In fact, there is no single cause to be blamed for the war. The origins of the Iran-Iraq War are deeply rooted in ethnic, religious and territorial conflicts which date back from the seventh century; it was exacerbated in the modern era due to ambitions of dominance. This term paper aims to discuss the reasons behind the Iran-Iraq War on two accounts: the dispute over the Shatt al-Arab river and the political tension caused by the Islamic Revolution and the rise of Ba’ath regime. The Iran-Iraq War occurred because of various reasons. The conflict between the two nations involved was characterized by other conflicts. The tension that had long persisted between Iran and Iraq were caused by differences in religious beliefs and political positions, as well as disagreements on the borders (Iran Chamber Society [ICS], 2009). The problem between the countries was fueled by the problems between the following opposing parties: Sunnis and Shia Muslims, Arabs and Persians, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and Saddam Hussein (Ehteshami Hinnebusch, 1997). Moreover, both Iran and Iraq sought to gain supremacy in the region (Brown, 2008). The Iranian-Iraq War which started in September 1980 was a testament to the extended conflict regarding the boundaries of their territories and their share in the Shatt al-Arab river (Hunseler, 1984). The war was also a result of the struggle of both parties to become the most dominant and influential in the region. However, it is important to point out that there is a significant difference between the 1980 war and the conflicts prior to it. The early conflicts between Iran and Iraq were settled with the interference of European countries which only meddled to safeguard their respective interests. As for the 1980 war, both sides fought to preserve their own interests. No external power intervened with that war. Two main reasons why the conflict became prolonged are the mutual disputes over territory (especially the Shatt al-Arab) and the involvement of both sides in the domestic problems of the other (Hunseler, 1984). The Beginning of the Persian-Arab Conflict The origins of the conflict between Iran and Iraq started many centuries before both nations were established. It is important for one to be familiar with the history of the conflict why the 1980 war began in the first place. According to Hunseler (1984), the Iran-Iraq tension had its roots in the seventh century with the Arab-Persian conflict. It was this centuries old rift which ignited the battle over the Shatt al-Arab. Persia stood out from the others because despite being under the control of the Arabs, it retained its national identity (Hunseler, 1984). In AD 636, the Sassanids of Persia lost to the armies of Arab General Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas at the Battle of Qadisiya. Meanwhile, the Persian Empire became dissolved in AD 642 due to the Battle of Nihawand. While they held on to their state’s culture and territorial honor, the Persian population embraced Islam in the aftermath of the collapse of the Persian Empire. The Arabs and the people they conquered viewed Islam and Arabism as a union. However, despite being under the influence of Islam, the culture of Persia cannot be restrained (Hunseler, 1984). An important thing to consider in understanding the history of Persia and its political and social existence is what Hunseler (1984) called the â€Å"juxtaposition of Persia and Islam† (p. 8). The principle was said to have been derived from the notion of the state based on Zoroastrianism. According to the Zoroastrian notion of a state, it must have the following: â€Å"a secularly-legitimized kingship, the survival of the Persian language and the proud awareness of a distinct Persian history† (Hunseler, 1984, p. 8). After two centuries, the Sunni-Arab Abbasid caliphate had become interested in the Persian literature (Hunseler, 1984). In time, the Persian families which belonged to the caliphate of the Abbasids began to assume control by grabbing power repeatedly. From AD 954 until 1055, the Buyid dynasty possessed enough authority to manipulate politics in the western portion of Persia and Iraq. In addition, they also had the power to strictly limit the function of the caliphs of Abbasid to religion only. This was the reason why the legacy left by the Buyids in Iraq was considered as the conflict between Persianism and Arabism (Hunseler, 1984). In the 17th century, the Safavids in Persia declared Shi’ism as the state religion (Hunseler, 1984). The Safavids exerted influence on Persia for 15 long years; they stayed in the state from 1623 to 1638 (Hiro, 1991). The declaration was seen as Persia’s attempt to establish its boundaries and separate itself from Arab nations while keeping the matters under the influence of Islam. Shi’ism became a crucial part of Islamic history, as it was the first to present a rift in the unified world of Islam. This was because Shi’ism founded itself in a separate state. The kings of the Safavids considered themselves as mainly secular leaders; they assigned the religious functions to the theologians. In turn, the Shi’a ministers did not want to give up their posts which were assigned to them under the Safavid rule. Most especially during the time of the Qajar leaders, the clergy were given money and land. The awarding of such gifts allowed them to be financially independent from the king; it also gave them the opportunity to exert political influence. Meanwhile, no such similar progress had occurred in the Sunni Arab states (Hunseler, 1984). The Sunni-Shi’a Problem The existing Persian-Arab conflict had taken a complicated turn with the addition of yet another conflict: the Sunni-Shi’a problem (Hunseler, 1984). The problem was not exactly about tension between the differing branches of Islam. Instead, there was antagonism due to the amount of influence that a particular religion has on the development of political power in the state. The conflict continues at present day, as there are still areas wherein the Arab communities consist of both Sunni and Shi’a factions (Hunseler, 1984). Those who head the Shi’a clergy in Arab countries such as Iraq and Bahrain found difficulty in assuming certain social positions (Hunseler, 1984). In Persia, the Shi’a clergy had no problems exerting influence in society because Shi’ism was revered with national significance. In addition, Shi’a leaders faced with two issues regarding loyalty. First, they encouraged the spread of Shi’ism in states whose population were not exclusively Shi’a. Therefore, they became involved in the centuries-old conflict between the Shi’a and Sunni. Second, they were victims of the suspicions of Arab rulers who thought they were submitting to the influence of non-Arabs (Persians). They were often seen by their Arab counterparts as promoting non-Arab causes. This situation caused the Arab Shi’as to be constantly detached from their political leaders. The separation was also caused by doubt on secular leadership, as well as Shi’a millennialism (Hunseler, 1984). The Persian-Arab conflict and the attempts of both sides to become more dominant and influential than the other in the Middle East became evident in areas where the Sunni and Shi’a groups, and the Arabs and Persians, fought against each other (Hunseler, 1984). Even though the Persians and Arabs in the Arabian peninsula had the Persian-Arab Gulf to set them apart in terms of geography, the conflict eventually made itself apparent on the boundaries on land. This was the primary reason why the conflict persisted for many years; both sides incessantly tried to acquire the territories of the other and the quest for a mutual border dragged on (Hunseler, 1984). The Origin of the Conflict over the Shatt al-Arab The conflict between Iran and Iraq over the Shatt al-Arab river originated in the 17th century and began as the rift between the Ottoman Empire and Persia (Hunseler, 1984). The sultan of Turkey, Murad IV, captured Baghdad in 1638 and the initial resolution regarding the boundaries with Persia was drafted a year later. The Kurds and the Armenians occupied the north while the Arabs dominated the south. The boundary fell on areas wherein the tribes did not consider either the Persians or Turks as their masters. As a result, the border settlement was drafted with consideration to the tribes and the names of the places. The agreement also took in consideration the intention of both parties to unite the tribes of Istanbul or Esfahan. The Kurdish-Armenian boundary caused many conflicts after it was established, but order was always restored in reference to the 1639 resolution. Unfortunately, the 1639 agreement proved lacking in setting the boundaries in the Shatt al-Arab region. On one hand, Persians believed the river itself was a natural border. On the other hand, the Turks upheld the claim that the river belonged to the Ottoman Empire. According to the Turkish point of view, the Arab tribes which occupy both sides of the river are considered a single entity from Arabistan. Arabistan is part of the Ottoman Empire. Hence, the Shatt al-Arab was to be considered as under the possession of the Ottoman Empire (Hunseler, 1984). In the 19th Century, boundary problems continued. In 1823, a boundary problem surrounding the Muhammarah surfaced and Persians settled in the city (Hunseler, 1984). Both Russia and Great Britain extended their assistance on the matter. On May 15, 1843, a boundary committee was formed and gathered in Erzerum, a city in Turkey. The committee consisted of representatives from Turkey, Persia, Russia and Britain. A treaty was created on May 31, 1847, and contained three major guidelines. First, Muhammarah and its harbor, as well as Khidhr Island, were awarded to Persia. Meanwhile, Turkey was granted admission to Zuhab and Sulaymaniyah. Second, the committee was designated â€Å"in situ† to delineate the specific course of the boundary (Hunseler, 1984, p. 11). Lastly, the Ottoman Empire was given the entire Shatt al-Arab extending to the marker on the east, except for the territories mentioned above (Hunseler, 1984). The treaty of 1847 was rather ambiguous, and its inherent vagueness proved to be its biggest flaw (Hunseler, 1984). The treaty did not address the question of which nation had the responsibility over the eastern shore. While the Shatt al-Arab was placed under Turkish jurisdiction, the specifications of the border were not indicated. Turkey wanted to resolve the issue over the treaty’s vague statements regarding Arabistan/ Khuzistan. As a result, Russia and Great Britain included an â€Å"explanatory note† to assert that the problem raised by Turkey was not compromised by the treaty’s lack of clarity (Hunseler, 1984, p. 11). Turkey declined to approve the treaty until Persia acknowledged the note as part of the treaty (Hunseler, 1984). Mirza Muhammad Ali Khan acknowledged the note and signed the treaty as a delegate of the Persia. After the Persian administration discovered the inclusion of the added note, it nullified the treaty and failed to approve it. They argued that the Persian representative had no power to sign the document (Hunseler, 1984). To address the issue, the boundary committee inspected the Turkish-Persian border from 1850 until 1852 (Hunseler, 1984). Unfortunately, the commission was not able to do its job properly because of the opposing claims of Turkish and Persian commissioners. Persia maintained that they were given the entire expanse found east of the Shatt al-Arab, while Turkey opposed the claim. The committee was unable to provide a definite proposition to solve the problem. While the committee continued its efforts in the northern area of the Shatt al-Arab, the determination of the boundaries of the river’s region was postponed indefinitely (Hunseler, 1984). Persia was relentless in its efforts to claim territories and continued to bring up its border issues in the succeeding years. Persia sought Russia and Britain to mediate on the border problem (Hunseler, 1984). Persia wanted to share control of the Shatt al-Arab with Turkey; the state also wanted to discuss the rights with regards to the harbor. Unfortunately, Britain and Russia were not in agreeable terms since the mid-19th Century. Hence, both nations were not prepared to mediate in behalf of the Shatt al-Arab tension. On August 31, 1907, the Anglo-Russian convention had an agreement. This agreement divided Persia into three separate zones. In the northern part of Persia, Russia maintained a sphere of influence. In the southern area, Britain had its own sphere. Meanwhile, the middle area was considered as neutral ground. It was not until after this division was established that the Anglo-Russian concern for the Turkish-Persian border was revived (Hunseler, 1984). Russia became once again involved with Persian-Turkish affairs because it was specifically interested with the province of Azerbaijan in Persia (Hunseler, 1984). The interest was the result of strategic and economic factors in relation to Turkey. On the contrary, Britain was different from Russia because its interests were not limited to Persia alone. Britain was also focused on the Turkish territory of the Shatt al-Arab because it played a crucial part in British interests in the Gulf area. In July 1911, an Anglo-Turkish mediation in attempt to come up with a resolution that would define the territorial claims and rights in the Arab-Persian Gulf region began. On July 29, 1913, the resolution was signed by Turkey and Britain. The agreement included the decisions regarding the status of Arab sheikdoms. The resolution also included the agreements about the Shatt al-Arab and its significance to the increasing British authority in Arabistan and Iraq. The resolution proved to be beneficial for Turkey, but only because Britain acted on it for its own advantage. Meanwhile, Russia was outraged by the Anglo-Turkish agreement and initially renounced it. Britain caught Russia by surprise by awarding the Shatt al-Arab in its entirety to Turkey. Russia had its own interests to protect in Shatt al-Arab and the Gulf area, and the agreement served as a hindrance to the Russian cause. However, Britain gave Russia the guarantee that it would offer assistance in the latter’s interest in the northern section of the Turkish-Persian border. After Britain gave its guarantee, Russia acknowledged the Anglo-Turkish agreement (Hunseler, 1984). On December 21, 1911, Persian Foreign Minister and Turkish representatives from Tehran gathered in Istanbul to create a boundary commission to resolve the Turkish-Persian border problem (Hunseler, 1984). The commission began to meet in March 1912; by August, the commission had convened a total of 18 times. In the beginning, the efforts of the commission seemed futile due to Persia’s disapproval of a specific â€Å"note explicative† of April 26, 1847 (Hunseler, 1984, p. 13). However, Russia exerted influence and Tehran was forced to agree on the note on August 15, 1912. The early progress of the Turkish-Persian commission was accompanied by statements already found in the Four-Power Protocol of Constantinople dated on November 17, 1913. With regards to the area of the Shatt al-Arab, the definition of the border was determined in conformity with the Second Treaty of Erzerum of 1847. According to the treaty, the Shatt al-Arab is considered as a Turkish territory excluding the limitations concerning Abadan and Muhammarah. By November 1913, two-thirds of the border assignment was completed. The task of settling the complete boundary was given to a Four-Power Delimitation Commission. This commission had to define the border based on what was 1869’s â€Å"carte identique† (Hunseler, 1984, p. 13). The commission started working in 1914. Unfortunately, the First World War broke out. The emergence of the war hindered Persia and Turkey from acknowledging the border (Hunseler, 1984). The Aftermath of World War I: The Iranian-Iraq Disagreement on the Shatt al-Arab The conflict and rivalry between Iran and Iraq officially started after the First World War (Hunseler, 1984). The outcome of the war significantly altered the issue over the borders concerning the Shatt al-Arab. Hunseler (1984) explained: â€Å"The British mandate of Iraq, which had come about in Mesopotamia, entered into the Turkish boundary claims against Iran, although it also impinged upon British navigational privileges on the Shatt al-Arab† (p. 14). The aftermath of the Great War also allowed Iran to experience a dramatic political transformation. In 1921, Muhammad Reza Khan came into power. Under his reign, Iran became resistant to the established agreements regarding the Shatt al-Arab (Hunseler, 1984). It was also in 1921 when Khaz’al, the Sheik of Muhammarah, lost. Khaz’al was a known supporter of the British cause. With his defeat, Iran was granted the opportunity to fervently defend its own interests on the Shatt al-Arab conflict. Due to the new found empowerment of Iran, Britain was suddenly placed in a position wherein it should implement its rules without putting its Iranian interests in jeopardy (Hunseler, 1984). Meanwhile, Iraq asserted its control over the Shatt al-Arab (Hunseler, 1984). Due to the claim, Iran declined to recognize the state of Iraq. In 1929, Iran did give diplomatic recognition to Iraq, but only because it sought to gain the attention of Britain. Iran hoped that by acknowledging Iraq as a state, Britain would be sympathetic towards the Iranian cause. Britain was still interested in Iran because of economic reasons; the former is involved with the latter through the Anglo-Persian Oil Company. Moreover, Britain was still interested with the Shatt al-Arab issue. This was because it could provide the British complete access to the refineries located in Abadan. On August 11, 1929, the Iranian and Iraqi governments had interchanged several notes. This exchange gave way to the establishment of a temporary arrangement to manage the relations between the two states involved. The arrangement included settlements on trade and navigation. However, the negotiations failed because Iraq and Britain refused to recognize the jurisdiction of Iran on the half of the river (Hunseler, 1984). When Britain decided to remove its authority on Iraq and break away from their alliance in 1930, it imposed the right of the British navy to pass through the Shatt al-Arab anytime, regardless if it was wartime or peacetime (Hunseler, 1984). However, Iran had no intention in being involved in a peaceful settlement. The Iranian government also declined to accept the legitimacy of the border. On March 25, 1924, Iran announced its non-acceptance of determination of the boundary as stated in the Constantinople Protocol. The Iranian government also refused to recognize similar settlements created on September 20 and December 2 in 1931. The situation worsened when Iran sent four gunboats to pass through Shatt al-Arab and proceed until Muhammarah. Due to this incident, problems regarding the pilot and the flags of the ships were added to the already intense conflict (Hunseler, 1984). The boundary issue as well as the flag and pilot inquiries which remained unanswered increased the tension surrounding the conflict (Hunseler, 1984). On November 29, 1934, the Iranian government was forced to seek assistance from the League of Nations in an effort to address the problem. Unfortunately, the League of Nations and the representatives it sent failed to bring any positive change in the current situation. The only thing which provided temporary resolution to the problem was the Middle East pact of 1935, which Iran had introduced with the help of Turkey. The pact presented an opportunity wherein all points of disagreement could be settled. On July 4, 1937, a treaty on the Iranian-Iraqi border was agreed upon in Tehran. The treaty upheld the conditions indicated in the 1913/14 Protocols of Constantinople. According to the treaty, the Iran-Iraq border would remain along the east bank of the Shatt al-Arab. There were specific considerations made for Abadan and Muhammarah. Iran was also awarded an anchorage zone in Abadan which was four miles long. In addition, the treaty rendered the river as open territory, as it allowed access to naval ships of Iran and Iraq and traders of all countries. A transit fee was imposed, but this would be utilized for purposes of maintenance as well as the development of the shipping lanes in the river. In another decision, both sides agreed to accept the protocol within two years after the agreement had been reached (Hunseler, 1984). The adoption of the covenant was not implemented (Hunseler, 1984). On December 8, 1938, the commission in charge of the Iranian-Iraqi boundary started working on the confluence of the Shatt al-Arab and the Khayeen. The efforts of the commission were stalled by opposing translations of the treaty and the definite determination of the border. The Iranian government submitted suggestions regarding the balance of power between Iran and Iraq with regards to supervising and safeguarding the Shatt al-Arab shipping lanes. Meanwhile, the Iraqi administration saw this move as a threat to the sovereignty of the Iraqis on the river (Hunseler, 1984). In the 1950s, Iran and Iraq had another opportunity to resolve their issues regarding the Shatt al-Arab border (Hunseler, 1984). In 1955, both countries, along with Britain, Pakistan and Turkey agreed upon the Baghdad Pact (Karsh, 2002). This pact was initiated by the West and was established to strengthen defense and security in the region. In October 1957, King Faisal of Iraq paid a state visit to Iran (Hunseler, 1984). In this encounter, both nations reached an agreement regarding the Shatt al-Arab problem. Iran and Iraq agreed on two points. First, there will be a commission to be based in Baghdad which is assigned to work out the details of the joint supervision of the Shatt al-Arab. Second, a Swedish adjudicator will be in charge of delineating the border; this arbitrator is to be situated in Tehran and must work with the joint commission. Once again, an agreement between Iran and Iraq was hindered by yet another occurrence. On July 14, 1958, a revolution broke out in Baghdad (Hunseler, 1984). The change in Iraqi governance eventually disrupted the recently resumed development of Iranian-Iraqi ties (Hunseler, 1984). Also, the political change once again awakened the border conflict on the Shatt al-Arab and the land borders. Four short months after General Abd al-Karim took control, the revolutionary administration of Iraq declared that they would extend their claim on the river to 12 miles. On November 28, 1959, Iranian Shah Reza Pahlevi revived their request to have the border line of the river drawn along the middle. He justified his demand on grounds of Iraq’s clear violation of the 1937 treaty. He also argued that because they were already in the 20th Century, a river which served as a boundary such as Shatt al’Arab cannot be attached to the absolute sovereignty of either nation. General Qasim addressed the demand of the shah with another demand. Iraq sought to regain the anchorage zone awarded to Iran in the 1937 treaty. Despite their counter demand, Qasim still wanted to resolve the dispute through peaceful means. Iraq was willing to withdraw their claim of the anchorage zone if Iran would acknowledge the Iraq’s demands on the river and the treaty of 1937. The peaceful settlement was not reached. On December 10, 1959, Abbas Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aram declined Iraq’s offer. Nine days later, General Qasim reasserted Iraq’s legal right to the anchorage zone without insisting on its return. He also appealed for Iran to value the early treaties. General Qasim suggested that they could address the problem with the help of the United Nations. However, Iran provoked Iraq again when the local newspaper Ettelaat stated that â€Å"the existence of Iraq was in any event a historical misunderstanding and the whole of Iraq a Persian province† (as cited in Hunseler, 1984, p. 17). An armed struggle between Iran and Iraq was quelled before the further tension could develop. On March 5, 1959, Iran became involved with the United States in a defense settlement (Hunseler, 1984). Soon after, Iran felt coerced by Russia. Iran had reasons to be concerned. It was threatened by Soviet influence and the possible circulation of further revolutionary ideals. Meanwhile, Iraq was also concerned with the threat of the United Arab Republic, a state established in 1958 as a result of the merger between Syria and Egypt. Abd al-Karim Qasim was frightened that Syria might provide assistance to Iraqi Nasserites if and when a war with Iran occurs. Hence, there was no real war between both parties at that time. The tension manifested itself through a media war between Iran and Iraq (Hunseler, 1984). In 1967, Britain declared its wishes to pull out from the Gulf area. Prime Minister Harold Wilson expressed the desire of the British administration to remove its military troops located ‘east of Suez’ (as cited in Hunseler, 1984, p. 17). With this announcement, Iran wanted to replace British forces with their own troops on the moment of the latter’s departure (Hunseler, 1984). The 1967 blockage of the Suez Canal was a welcome development, as it prevented Soviet activity in the Gulf region. In terms of security concerns, Iran wanted to unify and lead the Arab countries in the region. The supposed partnership had the goal of preventing the spread of Soviet control and power of revolutionary nations and factions, such as South Yemen and Iraq. The Arab countries in the Gulf were cautious in dealing with Iran. While they were hesitant to collaborate with Iran which was associated with Israel, they did not want to create a rift among the states (Hunseler, 1984). Iran continued to strongly pursue its ambition of becoming an unshakeable force in the Gulf region (Hunseler, 1984). In 1969, it condemned the 1937 treaty. The shah knew that if Iran wanted to govern and manipulate the shipping lanes in the Gulf, it must have exclusive control of the river. This move would also liberate the Iranian ports on Abadan and Khorramshahr from Iraqi jurisdiction. On one instance, an Iranian vessel sailed despite the absence of an Iraqi pilot. It departed from the Khorramshahr port with the assistance of Iranian patrol vessels and successfully arrived at the Persian-Arab Gulf. Iraq was aware of the violation, but it did not wage a war against Iran due to the weakness of the military (Hunseler, 1984). After 1972, the shah became more determined to cripple Iraq. After the completion of the Iraqi-Soviet friendship treaty, the Shah approached American President Richard Nixon to ask for assistance in the Kurdish cause in Iraq (Hunseler, 1984). This action was done with the objective of weakening the Iraqi army through an attack on its internal disputes. In August 1972, another uprising emerged in Kurdistan. The Iraqi administration and Kurdish chief Mullah Mustafa Barzani met in March 1970 and agreed on the autonomy of Kurdistan beginning in 1974. However, the agreement was threatened by the support of Iran and the United States for Barzani. Because of this, the Kurdish insurgents continued to hold on to their weapons and proceed with the civil war. Meanwhile, the Iraqi forces benefited from the Iraqi-Soviet friendship treaty, for it allowed for a steady supply of ammunition from Russia. The weapons were instrumental in guaranteeing the military success of Iraq. Nevertheless, the malfunctioning of the army’s weapons and the failure of the Soviet Union to provide more ammunition endangered the progress Iraq had in its fight against the Kurds. In the early part of March 1975, the Iraqi government was prompted to consider Iran’s proposition that it would refrain from supporting the Kurds if the former would approve the latter’s suggestion to resolve the border issue by placing the border line along the thalweg (Hunseler, 1984). On June 13, 1975, Iran and Iraq agreed on yet another treaty in Baghdad (Hunseler, 1984). The treaty consisted of four crucial agreements. First, the boundaries will be definitely marked based on the Constantinople Protocol of 1913 and the 1914 proposal created by the committee regarding the establishment of the boundary. Second, the river boundaries would be situated in the middle, or the thalweg. According to Willet (2004), the thalweg was the â€Å"central deepest part of the river† (p. 7). Third, there are two things to be rebuilt: the mutual trust between both nations as well as the security of the land boundaries they shared. Also, the invasion on both sides will be stopped. Lastly, the problem will be settled upon with the acknowledgement of the aforementioned points. When Iraq signed the treaty, the country accepted the thalweg agreement for the first time. After five years, it became evident that the said recognition was merely the result of coercion from Iran’s side. The acceptance of Iraq was also caused by the failure of the Soviet Union to provide weapons. Nonetheless, the compromise made regarding the Shatt al-Arab paved the way for the Kurdish civil war to stop. Meanwhile, the relevance of the river in terms of Iranian strategy was relatively reduced. This was because Iran transferred its navy from Khorramshahr to the Bandar Abbas port in August 1978 (Hunseler, 1984). The Iran-Iraq War from a Political Perspective The dispute over the borders and boundaries of the river of Shatt al-Arab was instrumental in the emergence of the war between Iran and Iraq in 1980. While the territorial conflicts played a crucial role in causing the war, the political conditions in both countries must also be considered as initiators. The transition in the governments helped influence the leaders on how to deal with the Shatt al-Arab issue. In Iran, there was a dramatic shift in leadership as the Shah was removed from power through a revolution led by a radical Muslim. In Iraq, several coups have altered governance while the rise of the Ba’ath Socialist Party to power resulted in the domination of Saddam Hussein. Both countries longed to dominate the other and emerge as the most powerful in the region (Jacoby, 2008). The Iranian-Iraqi situation under the Rule of the Shah In the 1970s, the tension between Iran and Iraq was heightened (Karsh, 2002). This was because of the Shah of Iran, Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, became aggressive and tried to present Iran as the dominant force in the Persian Gulf. The Shah had been governing the Iran for decades. However, he was temporarily overthrown from power. In 1953, the head of the Iranian Parliament started a coup to remove the Shah (Willett, 2004). The coup succeeded and Pahlavi vacated the Iranian leadership for a brief time. However, the United States