Information Systems Case Study

Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies J. G. Thoburn Coventry University, UK S. Arunachalam Coventry University, UK A. Gunasekaran University of Massachusetts, North Dartmouth, Massachusetts, USA Keywords Information systems, Agile production, Small-to-medium-sized enterprises Introduction Today, manufacturing organisations are increasingly required to be highly optimised.Abstract The ability to respond swiftly and effectively The necessity of maintaining optito produce new products and services has mal operations and becoming an agile and responsive enterprise is become not so much a method of gaining competitive advantage, but more a means of becoming increasingly important to survive in the global market. survival. Many companies have seen the need Consequently, all resources in the to adopt a whole range of practices that reduce companies need to be effectively inputs and waste, and allow greater responmarshalled.Tradit ionally SMEs siveness to customer needs and the markethave concentrated on the 4Ms  ± money, materials, machine and place. In reaction to changing requirements manpower but have often neand conditions, manufacturing paradigms glected the effective management continue to be defined. It is possible to identify of information, which many authors suggest is at the heart of two trends: those addressing predominantly any agile organisation.The effect the relationships required in local and global is inadequate or fragmented infor- trading environments such as that described mation systems (IS) that do not by Porter (1996) and those systems focusing on address the demands of operational or the wider strategic needs organisational structures within an enterof the company. The study reprise such as business process re-engineering ported here examines the diversi(Hammer and Champy, 1993).Arguably, the ties of problems that occur in agile manufacturing paradigm combines both. three different companies and, Changes in information technology and compares their systems to the communications in the last two decades have ideals of agile manufacturing. further shifted the balance towards the customer. There has been a huge growth in the number of computers in use, putting huge power on the desktop, at ever-decreasing hardware cost.The arrival of the Internet and the expansion of the free market in telecommunications present the option of simple and low cost communication. Now it has become easy for all players in the supply chain, or even individual consumers, to measure specification, price and supply performance against their needs. They can purchase goods that precisely meet their requirements from anywhere in the world, bypassing any perceived shortcomings of their local marketplace.In response to the need for agility or the requirements to link different parts of the International Journal of Agile organisation or elements of a supply chain Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 effectively, systems are emerging that may # MCB University Press fundamentally change the organisation of [ISSN 1465-4652] manufacturing. In order that they might [ 116 ] achieve this, companies must clearly understand and organise their information resources at the earliest possible stage in their development.It is clear that only those enterprises that are able to respond to market demands with minimum delay will survive. Kidd (1996) argues: The agility that arises can be used for competitive advantage, by being able to respond rapidly to changes occurring in the market environment and through the ability to use and exploit a fundamental resource, knowledge. People need to be brought together, in dynamic teams formed around clearly defined market opportunities, so that it becomes possible to level one another's knowledge. Through this process is sought the transformation of knowledge into new products and services.High reaction flexibility will be no more than a qualif ier in the future, just as high quality is today. This flexibility cannot be realised by high-tech equipment alone. Human creativity and organisational ability, if necessary supported by advanced computer based tools, will be the basis for survival and success strategies. This paper describes studies over a period of 15 months, of three companies, and analyses how far they are away from possessing the ability to become agile, by examining the areas that were dysfunctional.It explores the importance of information management and appraises information systems in place in these companies. It discusses the need for a more structured and holistic approach to transferring information in its various forms to the different areas of an organisation, aiming to give optimal access to information while eliminating wasteful duplication as well as generating and testing new knowledge about the firm's changing requirements. Information defined The term information is widely and often inaccurately used. Many authors agree that J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A.Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 there are three elemental types: data, information and knowledge. However, this paper argues that there is a fourth, intelligence, which is distinct from the others. All but data require an understanding of the socially defined context  ± where the information, knowledge and intelligence came from, the assumptions surrounding them, and their importance and limitations. Each of them may be defined as follows: .Data: a series of observations, measurements or facts. . Information: information is data organised into meaningful patterns by means of the application of knowledge. The act of organising data into information can itself generate knowledge, when a person reads, understands, interprets and applies the information in a specific wor k situation. . Knowledge: the intellectual capital resident within an organisation. The facts, experiences or competencies known by a person or group of people, or held within an organisation, gained by individual or shared experiences, training or education. Intelligence: what a company needs to know about its competitive, economic, technical and industry environment to enable it to anticipate change and formulate strategies to best provide for the needs of the marketplace and its specific customers. Yet many aspects of a company's IS are based, not around formal or technology based solutions, but rather on informal or human oriented systems. Mintzberg (1997) examined a wide range of managerial work, predominantly in large organisations. He reported that managers, while 40 percent of their time was devoted to gaining and sharing information, usually used informal systems centred on people.Nevertheless, he concluded that: the job of managing is fundamentally one of processing inform ation. that managing a company was essentially a matter of control. However, this implies a rigidity of framework and formality that does not fit well with today's organisation, and certainly does not promote agility. Flatter, less hierarchical business systems localise control and make it difficult for management to achieve enterprise-wide regulation. Smith (1984) however, believed that the vitality of living systems was not a matter of control, but rather of dynamic connectedness.Veryard (1994) argues that: systems are a dynamic interplay between adaptation and non-adaptation. This is precisely what is required in agile organisations, where there remains the need for stability and accountability, in an environment of necessary and perhaps rapid change. Dynamic connectedness in an agile organisation is provided by the flows of formal and informal information. Veryard further suggests that: the future belongs to symbiosis  ± external integration in pursuit of common business aims. The authors' research and experience shows that informal systems are equally important in every part of the organisation.This appears to be especially true in smaller organisations, where they have less developed formal systems, or formal systems are not performing optimally. In order to better understand and integrate the IS, the vital role of informal systems must be taken into account. The need for information systems in SMEs to successfully communicate and control For the better part of this century, classical management writers such as Henri Fayol (1949) and Gulick and Urwick (1937) taught This is evidenced in those extended enterprises now reported to be emerging.If this biological view is pursued, it can be seen that biological organisms, especially human ones, achieve precisely the continuous adaptation that is described in the agile paradigm. The most successful individuals are able to blend information from their external environment, with knowledge of their own capabilit ies, using formal and informal systems, whilst retaining information and knowledge in memory. There is constant building and retention of knowledge, with competencies taught by example as well as by the formal methods to be found in education and training.Concurrently, many of the control and co-ordination systems, even those learned, become largely autonomic, permitting more effective processing of environmental and circumstantial changes. Such systems may be clearly observed at work in individuals when they are, for example, driving a vehicle. Failure to function effectively in those circumstances leads to severe consequences. Also, by combining with other individuals, capabilities may be extended to be far more than the sum of the parts.Accordingly, biological systems may provide useful models for what may be expected to occur in manufacturing organisations of the future. With biological organisms, the need for adaptive ISs is most profound in growth and early learning stages, or in times of a significantly changing environment. Failure to adapt and learn from conditions [ 117 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 ay lead to survival difficulties. Similarly, small or growing companies, or those adapting to rapidly changing market conditions will require a dynamically linked IS that binds together all parts of the enterprise, and allows it to adapt to its external environment. This may be very different to the rather rigid systems of the past, operating on pre-defined rules and algorithms. Yet it must be within the reach of the smallest company functioning at low resource levels, which may well preclude expensive and complex IT based systems.Information management differences between large companies and SMEs The EC and the UK Government's Department of Trade and Industry have identified SMEs as critical to future economic growth and job creation within the European Union. They form large and important sectors in most industrialised countries, especially in Europe and the USA. Yet significant differences exist between the management of SMEs and larger companies, where much of the research in this field is concentrated.Just as a small fishing boat and a passenger liner may share the same ocean, so SMEs share the global trading environment with large organisations, and are no less susceptible to environmental effects. Indeed it may be argued that just like the smaller vessel, they are much less able to ride out the storms of uncertainty and rapid change, because of their lower resource base. As a result, they must be more, not less vigilant and adaptive than their larger counterparts, with intelligence systems able to influence their strategy and knowledge base much quicker.The Society of Practitioners of Insolvency in the UK concluded (SPI, 1998) from thei r 1998 survey that many companies, mostly SMEs, fail from lack of information  ± with loss of market being the single most important factor. Case studies Research took place in three companies over a period of three months with Company A, and more than six months each for Companies B and C, when one of the authors was in daily attendance. The companies were self-selected for study. Full access was allowed to every part of the business, its operations, management and financial systems, and to all employees.Research took the form of observation, participatory ethnographic and action research. Questioning of employees used unstructured or semi-structured interviews. [ 118 ] Company A was part of a large international group, operating in a number of countries and in every major geographical area in the world, with a group turnover at the time of the study around ? 1 billion. The group consisted in total of eleven divisions each producing a different product. The division studied was l ocated in France, and had approximately 200 employees. The company has been established a number of years and operates under an ISO 002 based system, as well as a number of other quality assurance regimes. The organisation manufactured a variety of special, large-scale products for the oil field, nuclear and defences industries worldwide. These complex products were produced individually to specific customer requirements. Lead times on nuclear products ranged from one to two years, and for the others, from six to 12 months. The products were manufactured as individual one-off specials, in a job-shop operation. The company was divided into seven departments, three by product sector, and the remainder by function.One of the latter was the information technology department. Unlike other departments, although it had a functioning office in the French division it was not a part of the local company; IT was attached directly to the parent company in Germany. Its responsibilities encompass ed the development and operation of the main computer and software systems used on the site for production management, purchasing, sales, production costing, and time and attendance systems. The department had additional responsibilities for networks and PCs which variously ran under MsDOS, Windows and Macintosh formats.Where information transfer took place between departments, it was almost entirely carried out manually, transferring information to paper, and then manually transferring it to the next system. No section used the same nomenclature or data dictionary for parts and components. The organisational design was partly hierarchical and partly a matrix structure, and used a predominantly formal communications network. There were a substantial number of formal and informal meetings, through which much of the departmental and inter-departmental co-ordination was attempted.All formal systems describing the company's operation and administration were well documented. Each departm ent, though relatively autonomous, seemed to be run with apparent efficiency. The operations and production management elements were especially highly developed, Company A J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 and had been subjected to repeated internal scrutiny as well as by local universities.Despite this, the company experienced considerable difficulties in meeting quoted leadtimes. Those lead-times were already longer than their major competitors, and the company was also losing price-competitiveness. As much as 50 percent over-run on lead times was common, and substantial underachievement of possible turnover, and erosion of market share resulted. Otherwise the company and its products enjoyed a long-standing high reputation, though the managers believed that without this, considerably greater eros ion of market would have occurred.Their major competitors, predominantly Japanese and American, through price, technical improvements, and a significantly better responsiveness and delivery performance, were nevertheless making increasing gains at the company's expense. The company was a self-contained profit centre, a division of a larger group that trades throughout the UK. There were approximately 25 employees on the site, though there were wide fluctuations in the total due to a self-imposed seasonality in turnover. Certain support services such as accounting and human resources management were provided from the central holding company.Otherwise the company was responsible for all aspects of its operations. The company was engaged in metal finishing to the engineering industry and as a first tier supplier to several Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). It had two production lines and operated under an ISO 9002 system. The formal IS of the company revolved around the sales or der processing (SOP) system operated from group headquarters and accessed remotely over a fixed link. SOP formed part of a non-standard accounting system, originally written for another group company operating in a non-manufacturing sector.The system itself was user unfriendly and slow, and no intuitive use was possible. At the start of the study only one person, the production supervisor, had any training in SOP. However, that training gave even him only limited knowledge of the system. Cryptic codes and generic descriptions entered by him into SOP made it impossible for others to distinguish between one product and another, and the division could not operate in his absence. Product and process knowledge was almost wholly vested in the production supervisor's head.There was no formal planning or production scheduling system, and no collection system for information concerning production times and material usage. Inter- Company B nal and external rejects were not generally noted or analysed. The company had three stand-alone personal computers, two of them extremely outdated. The central management-accountant exercised the most stringent control, and the company was expected to make bottom-line operating profits each month. The whole operational objectives became focused only upon this, and ignored other fundamentals.To reduce costs, â€Å"non-essential† spending such as machine maintenance, health and safety, training, housekeeping and sales were ruthlessly cut. Those â€Å"savings† often represented all of the profits made by the division. The lack of an IS significantly increased the time spent preparing reports, reduced their accuracy and eroded local management time. At the start of the study, new management was installed in the company. Several initiatives aimed at improving operating performance were considered. The absence of any suitable or appropriate IS soon emerged.In some cases, lack of coherent historical information prevented the j ustification of proposed initiatives, while the effectiveness of others could not be judged within the imposed monthly timescale. Machine and process measurement systems were designed and put into place. They quickly showed that processes were incapable. Similarly, measures of rejects and returns showed that external rejects were in excess of 30 percent while internal rejects were almost 60 percent. An analysis indicated the causes of the problems, and allowed them to be addressed.Reject rates fell to less than 1 percent within a few weeks. However the centre continued to rigorously apply the accountant's previous control measures. A monthly operating profit remained a continuous and absolute requirement even though large backlogs of rejects, and uncoated, badly corroded customer parts required processing, and machines needed to be brought to reliable operating condition. Consequently, employee training was vetoed, and workforce stabilisation measures overturned. In a climate previo usly dominated by dismissals and redundancy, the workforce actively delayed the implementation of an IS.After some time, substantial employee involvement began to overcome this barrier, and they became enthusiastic participants in data collection and process improvement. Customer confidence began to return and the customer base marginally improved. However, the new IS also begun to uncover previous managerial shortcomings, especially at group level. In response, draconian short-term financial measures were applied [ 119 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 rom the centre, and initiatives overruled. The workforce was further reduced, and training programmes cancelled. Workforce morale and customer confidence fell sharply. The division has now closed. Company C was a private limited company, whose dire ctors were its owner-managers. There were approximately 60 employees, with recruitment rising because of rapid growth and expansion. The company was in its third year of trading. The company operated under a newly introduced ISO 9002 based system. The company had two product lines. The first produced simple, low volume components for the automotive sector.The second built components for the machine tool industry. The operations involved in both of these activities were largely manual. The second group of products were much more complex  ± many containing more than one thousand sub-components. A number of variants of each were produced, and all work was carried out by hand. Much of the information within the company was held on personal computers. The internal system was networked into three sections; operations management (OM), purchasing and administration. OM includes quality assurance and control (QA), and a computer aided design (CAD) station.Each section was independent of th e others. Employees were inadequately trained in the use of software and frequent problems arose through their lack of understanding of the packages in use. There was considerable duplication of data entry, with employees in each of the sections entering and extracting information in an unstructured manner. Where information transfer took place between sections, it was almost entirely carried out manually, transferring information to paper, and then manually transferring it to the next system. No section used the same nomenclature or data dictionary for parts and components.Manufacturers' references and descriptions were entered in a casual and unstructured way, making cross-referencing impossible. The data structure of each system was entirely different, and there were further large differences even within systems. CAD and QA were not integrated into the OM system. Consequently, internal systems were largely unsynchronised. As they grew in size, so the problems that they created we re progressively magnified. Build and wiring order was an important factor, particularly in the case of control cabinets. It could significantly affect productivity, quality and finished appearance.Company C Consequently, the order and format of cutting and build lists were central to production aims. Despite this, methods of list production failed to recognise this. It was difficult to derive build-order from examination of design information alone. Product variants caused additional difficulties and required translation by unskilled production operatives. As a result, operatives frequently transferred build instructions onto handwritten sheets and maintained unofficial work instruction systems. There was no formal method of transferring or retaining their build-order knowledge.Comparative attributes, and a summary of the most significant problems arising from the collection and use of information, knowledge and data for each of the three companies are shown in Table I. Identified success factors/ dysfunctional areas In order to more accurately compare and analyse the areas of dysfunction in each of the companies it is necessary to use an objective measure. Bailey and Pearson (1983) have produced one of the most definitive and widely used lists of factors that identify the success factors in ISs. Li (1997) added a further seven factors.These 46 elements have been used to form a matrix, shown in Table II, against which the ISs of the case study companies can be compared. However we have made minor modifications to some of the original criteria to widen references from a computer based information system (CBIS) to simply information system (IS). A hash (#) is shown in the description in these cases. A seven-point scale has been used to describe the degree of success or dysfunction of the IS when first observed. The scale used is as follows: 0 Not applicable 1 Significantly unsuccessful or dysfunctional 2Moderately unsuccessful or dysfunctional 3 Broadly neutral  ± neither successful nor unsuccessful 4 Moderately successful 5 Significantly successful X No information available. Discussion and analysis The companies studied were self-selected, with the only common factor being that they were experiencing operational difficulties which extended to their trading environment in one form or another. There was nothing to suggest that they were other than typical of [ 120 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studiesInternational Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 Table I Company attributes Company B UK Manufacturing General engineering Throughout UK Yes Yes 25 Very high Low ? 170k ? 40 million Low Hierarchical High Very low Central Mixed, central file server, local PCs High Low Very low Yes No Very low Manual Management accountant Very high Yes Medium High Very Low Yes Yes Low Directors High Yes Company C UK Manufactu ring Automotive/machine tools English Midlands No N/A 60 Fairly high Low ? 1. 8 million ? 1. million Both high and low Team based Low Medium Local owner/directors Local PCs Characteristic Company A Country of operation Type of company Sales sector Sales area Part of a group High degree of central control Approximate number of employees on site Employee turnover rate General level of employee skills Approximate site sales turnover Approximate group sales turnover Product complexity Organisational structure Organisational formality Degree of manufacturing sophistication Origin of principal control Type of information systemDegree of manual systems Degree of computerisation Degree of IS training Islands of information Local networking Degree of IS integration Transfer between systems Provider of IT support Informal information systems External audit systems (e. g. ISO 9002) France Manufacturing Nuclear engineering/oil and gas production Worldwide Yes No 180 Low Very high ? 12 million ? 900 million High Hierarchical/matrix High Very high Local Mixed, central mainframe (financial), local mainframe and PCs Low High Medium Yes Some Low Manual IT department Medium Yes 121 ] (continued) J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 [ 122 ] Table I Company B . . . . . . . Characteristic Company A Company C Principal symptoms . . . . . . . Poor lead time performance Higher prices than competitors Loss of market share Serious loss of available turnover through lower throughput times . .Poor quality performance Poor lead time performance Extremely small customer base offering low value work Low profitability High degree of seasonality Poor quality performance Poor lead time performance Poor cash flow Frequent stoppages due to material shortages High degree of duplication and wasted effort Principal ca uses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Failures in communication in verbal systems  ± formal and informal Need to manually transfer data between separate IT systems leading to delays and inaccuracy Poor communication with suppliers and failure to keep adequate ata on vendor performance Lack of unified IT and IS strategy . . . . . . . . Lack of any formal operations management and scheduling system Failure to keep manufacturing performance records Control using inappropriate measurements Failure to monitor customers' records and address reasons for erosion of customer base Failure to understand market conditions Failure to understand employment market Self-imposed seasonality High staff turnover and absenteeim Constant loss of skills and competencies Lack of skills sharing Poor training Inappropriate SOP systemInformation systems unable to cope with rates of growth Unstructured data gathering Inappropriate transfer of information to factory floor leading to proliferation of informa l systems Failure to feed back information and knowledge from production Failure to understand employment market Limited knowledge base and deliberate limiting of skills base Lack of understanding of quality failures Lack of appropriate IT training Inappropriate IT systems Ad-hoc IT systems leading to Lack of unified IT and IS strategyJ. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 Table II Success factors and dysfunctional areas Factor no. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 Description factor Top management involvement Competition between computer based information system (CBIS) and non-CBIS units Allocation priorities for IS resources (#) Chargeback method of payment for services Relationship between users and the CBIS s taff Communications between users and the CBIS staff Technical competence of the CBIS staff Attitude of the CBIS staff Scheduling of CBIS products and services Time required for systems development Processing of requests for system changes Vendor's maintenance support Response/turnaround time Means of input/output with CBIS centre Convenience of access Accuracy of output Timeliness of output Precision of output Reliability of output Currency of output Completeness of output Format of output Features of computer language used Volume of output Realisation of user requirements Correction of errors Security of data and models Documentation of systems and procedures User's expectation of computer-based support User's understanding of the systems Perceived utility (worth vs. ost) User's confidence in the systems User's participation Personal control over the IS (#) Training provided to users Job effects of computer-based support Organisational position of the IS unit (#) Flexibility of th e systems Integration of the systems User's attitude toward the IS (#) Clarity of output Instructiveness of output Support of productivity tools Productivity improved by the IS (#) Efficiency of the systems Effectiveness of the systems A 3 2 3 X 4 4 4 3 3 3 2 X 4 4 4 3 2 3 3 2 4 4 4 2 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 2 2 4 4 4 4 4 3 3 Company B 1 1 1 2 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 3 2 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 3 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 4 1 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 C 2 3 2 0 4 2 2 2 2 2 3 1 2 3 4 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 2 2 2 1 2 4 2 3 3 4 4 1 2 5 4 2 4 3 3 2 2 2 2 companies of their size or sector. The studies aimed to determine the extent of use of ISs, report effectiveness and what contribution, if any, their systems had to the areas of dysfunction. They were intended to be preliminary studies from which initial conclusions could be drawn, with reference to published work. By spending a considerable amount of time in each company, and becoming involved with various aspects of their operations, and interacting with employees at all levels in each company, there is a high level of confidence that the systems observed were unaffected by short term experimental bias.Company A, with the highest turnover and backed by a large multi-national parent company was the most resource rich [ 123 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 company. It possessed a highly sophisticated and well-designed production and operations management system, backed by logistics, quality and design departments each equally efficient in their own right. The IS appears from Table II to perform reasonably well. Yet consistently it was unable to meet promised lead times, often by a substantial margin.It was found that the purchasing department was at the centre of many of the problems, with poor communication with suppliers, and adversarial purchasing based p rincipally on price. The consequence was many late deliveries and variable quality. Yet the true cause of the problems was not discovered to be there. The principal means of information transfer between different sections of the company's IT system was manual. Because of incompatible systems, even at PC level, where both Apple and MsDOS based systems were employed, communication was impossible. Each department's system had grown on an ad hoc basis to fulfil its own needs, without reference to others. Each data transfer took place using printed information, usually in the form of schedules, which was translated, then re-entered manually.There were often delays, some considerable, while this process took place. Subtle yet cumulative changes of data and information took place because of translation errors. This had the effect of de-synchronising the whole system. But the most significant effects on leadtime were not to be found in the IT system, but rather in verbal communication syste ms. A large number of formal and informal meetings were held to exchange information often in response to increasing delays against the planned schedule. In response to pressure, the spokespersons from individual departments often gave incorrect answers, sometimes inadvertently because of the cumulative errors or delays in information transfer.Other times, errors were deliberate, where attempts were apparently made to save face, or under pressure from a senior manager or colleagues, to agree to plans that they knew to be unrealistic. Different participants often repeated this process in turn during a meeting. Accordingly, this information was recorded and became crystallised into the formal system with the result that delays were progressively magnified. Thus it was lack of true dynamic connectedness of the system that created the problems that led to continual poor lead-time performance. In contrast, the IS in Company B was not only seriously deficient and absent in many places, bu t was dysfunctional in every area where it did exist. IT systems were limited, unfriendly and uncoordinated, with training and documentation absent.In the wider system information, and particularly feedback, was deliberately withheld, and knowledge generation stifled in response to the corporate culture. The annual haemorrhage of accumulated skills combined with the lack of training and poor human resources policies substantially added to the problem. Inappropriate measurement and control of the feedback systems that did exist reinforced this culture, and the problems that were occurring. Because of poor management techniques, both internal and external intelligence was ignored for considerable periods of time. At the times attention was placed upon this aspect, the system was incapable of multiple focus, and one set of problems was replaced with another.The response of senior group managers was particularly interesting. As IS was put in place or repaired, long-accumulated problems began to emerge which pointed to previous management failures. Their immediate response was to try to dismantle newly implanted systems, and halt knowledge generation and dissemination, and return to the previous culture. Once they took these steps, failure was inevitable. In Company C, the problems were quite different. There was a clear belief in the ability of computers to solve problems by their mere presence. Yet the growth and structure in their IS was wholly unplanned and uncoordinated, and was incapable of supporting the rapid growth of the organisation.There was substantial redundancy and duplication of software systems, and poor understanding of their capabilities that led to the disablement of important reporting and control facilities. Poor system management and training allowed proliferation of duplicated files, and it was often difficult to determine the correct version of any instruction. As a consequence, a considerably higher level of employee time was expended than necessary, substantially increasing costs. Poor data gathering, knowledge management and information generation techniques exacerbated these problems, and informal systems proliferated. Yet simple trial measures to return acquired manufacturing process and merge formal and informal systems, improved quality, productivity and worker-satisfaction.Information systems in an agile company should contribute to responsiveness as well as to overall corporate and organisational aims (Burgess, 1994; Goldman and Nagel, 1993; Kidd, 1994). There are a number of broadly accepted principles of the agilemanufacturing paradigm that provide the [ 124 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 basis for a rapid and flexible response to changing trading conditions. That is to say there is emphasis on strategies (Goldman et a l. , 1995), technologies, systems (Cho et al. , 1996; Gillenwater et al. , 1995) and people (Goldman et al. , 1995; Kidd, 1994).In many cases, many authors have placed great emphasis on the technological capabilities of the organisation (Adamides, 1996; Medhat and Rook, 1997; Merat et al. , 1997). Such resources may not be available to smaller companies. Does this necessarily mean that small companies may not be agile. This would be directly contradictory to the long held view that the strength of smaller companies is their inherent flexibility and responsiveness. Nevertheless, from the comparisons shown in Table III it is possible to conclude from this study that the more dysfunctional, and less dynamically connected the IS, the less able the company is to achieve agile outcomes, flexibility and responsiveness, in the broadest sense of its definition (Gehani, 1995; Kidd, 1996). Conclusion and implicationsIn this section consideration is given to three broad issues arising from the case studies: potential implications of the results; preliminary conclusions; and plans for further work. The studies found broadly in line with previous work, though we have suggested that the normal three-part definition of information of data, information and knowledge be extended to include a fourth, intelligence. We have further observed the fundamental importance of informal systems particularly in the case of the two smaller companies B and C. Here personnel at every operational level relied heavily on informal information, and constructed their own systems, either to protect their position, or to operate more effectively.We have also propounded the biological view that human behavioural systems in particular provide a useful view of how responsive organisations should behave if flexibility and responsiveness is the desired outcome. This paper then considered the companies against the background of agile manufacturing and compared their actual performance to the ideals of the paradigm. It can be concluded that in every case in this study, the more dysfunctional and less dynamically connected the IS, the less able the company is to be agile in the broadest sense of its definition. However current tools and techniques of evaluation and design of ISs are far less wellTable III Comparative performance against agility principles Company A Strategy Agile principles Technology Systems Lack of direct integration of IT systems and connectedness of IT and people-centred systems Absent, deficient or dysfunctional. Without effective coordination or integration People Flexibility Outcomes Responsiveness Low Good strategic Good to awareness excellent Low People highly trained, valued and rewarded but failure in communications in people-centred systems People poorly valued and rewarded. No training and deliberate withholding of knowledge in response to company culture Poor B Poor strategic Badly provided, maintained and awareness  ± understood with lack of internal and external intelligence Poor C Strategy held in individuals at board levelLimited, uncoordinated and unplanned. Computers seen as an answer by simply being present Uncoordinated and incapable of adapting to rapidly increasing demand Poor HR policies Rapidly decreasing leading to staff shortages and low reputation. Poor knowledge management Rapidly decreasing [ 125 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 suited to the needs of many companies (Sauer and Lau, 1997), SMEs in particular, and the achievement of their strategic, commercial and operational goals.This suggests that a new and simpler technique is required that aims to lay down the foundation for an IS at an early stage in the development of a company. This system must be capable of being applied by non-specialist managers in circumstances where there may be a mix of information technology and manual systems. Nevertheless it must be one that incorporates the four elements of information that have been defined in this paper. Work to devise such an audit and planning tool, together with a methodology for its application, is currently being undertaken. References Adamides, E. D. (1996), â€Å"Responsibility-based manufacturing†, International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology, Vol. 11 No. 6, pp. 439-48. Bailey, J. E. and Pearson, S. W. 1983), â€Å"Development of a tool for measuring and analysing computer user satisfaction†, Management Science, Vol. 29 No. 5, May, pp. 519-29. Burgess, T. F. (1994), â€Å"Making the leap to agility: defining and achieving agile manufacturing through business process redesign and business network redesign†, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Vol. 14 No. 11, pp. 23-34. Cho, H. , Jung, MY. and Kim, M. (1996), â€Å"Enabling technologie s of agile manufacturing and its related activities in Korea†, Computers and Industrial Engineering, Vol. 30 No. 3, pp. 323-34. Fayol, H. (1949) General and Industrial Management, Pitman, London. Gehani, R. R. 1995), â€Å"Time-based management of technology: a taxonomic integration of tactical strategic roles†, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Vol. 15 No. 2, pp. 19-35. Gillenwater, E. L. , Conlon, S. and Hwang, C. (1995), â€Å"Distributed manufacturing support systems  ± the integration of distributed group support systems with manufacturing support systems†, Omega  ± International Journal of Management Science, Vol. 23 No. 6, pp. 653-65. Goldman, S. L. and Nagel, R. N. (1993), â€Å"Management, technology and agility: the emergence of a new era in manufacturing†, International Journal of Technology Management, Vol. 8 Nos 1/2, pp. 18-38. Goldman, S. , Nagel, R. and Preiss, K. 1995), Agile Competitors and Virtual Organisa tions, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, NY. Gulick, L. H. and Urwick, L. F. (1937), Papers on the Science of Administration, Institute of Public Administration, New York, NY. Hammer, M. and Champy (1993), Re-engineering the Corporation, HarperCollins, New York, NY. Kidd, P. T (1994), Agile Manufacturing: Forging New Frontiers, Addison-Wesley, London. Kidd, P. T. (1996), Agile Manufacturing: A Strategy for the 21st Century, IEE Colloquium Digest Nos. 96/071, March, p. 3. Li, E. Y. (1997), â€Å"Perceived importance of information system success factors: a meta-analysis of group differences†, Information and Management, Vol. 32 No. 1, pp. 15-28. Medhat, S. S. and Rook, J. L. 1997), â€Å"Concurrent engineering  ± processes and techniques for the Agile Manufacturing Enterprise†, IIE Conference Publication, No. 435, pp. 9-14. Merat, F. L. , Barendt, N. A. , Quinn, R. D. , Causey, G. C. , Newman, W. S. , Velasco, V. B. Jr, Podgurski, A. , Kim, Y. , Ozsoyoglu, G. and Jo, J . Y. (1997), â€Å"Advances in agile manufacturing†, Proceedings  ± IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Vol. 2, pp. 121622, IEEE, Piscataway, NJ. Mintzberg, H. (1997), â€Å"Rounding out the managers job†, IEEE Engineering Management Review, pp. 119-33. Porter, M. E. (1996), â€Å"What is strategy? †, Harvard Business Review, November-December, pp. 61-78. Sauer, C. and Lau, C. 1997), â€Å"Trying to adopt systems development methodologies  ± a casebased exploration of business users' interests†, Information Systems, pp. 255-75. Smith, K. K. (1984), â€Å"Rabbits, lynxes and organisational transitions†, in Kimberly, J. R. and Quinn, R. E. (Eds), New Futures: The Challenge of Managing Corporate Transitions, Dow-Jones Irwin, Homewood, IL, pp. 269-94. SPI (Society of Practitioners of Insolvency) (1998), Insolvency, The Director, London, June, pp. 82-84. Veryard, R. (1994), Information Co-ordination: The Management of Informati on Models, Systems and Organisations, Prentice-Hall International (UK) Ltd, Hemel Hempstead, p. 22. [ 126 ]

An Author’s Life Is Reflected in Their Works

I strongly believe that an author’s life is reflected in their works. Well-known authors all over the world claim that important events in their lives are mentioned in the books they write. Tessa Duder said that her sailing experience inspired her to write about some children sailing together in her short story Too Close to the Wind, Patricia Grace wrote Beans based on the sports she played with her relatives when she was little, and The Lumber Room reflected the revenge Saki used to play on his aunts. Tessa Duder, Patricia Grace, and Saki are examples of authors whose lives are reflected in their works. Let’s take Saki, for example. His mother died when he was very little. Saki was looked after by his grandmother and two strict aunts Charlotte and Augusta throughout his childhood. Living with them was a nightmare for Saki, as he often took revenge on them when he was little, just like Nicholas in The Lumber Room and Conradin in Sredni Vashtar. Saki also cared for wild animals. His love for animals was shown in his famous short stories, The Lumber Room, Sredni Vashtar, The Open Window and Tobermory. Saki loathed people in mid-upper class in Britain in the 1900s. He thinks that all they care about are themselves. He didn’t write about them with kindness in The Easter Egg, and used a talking cat to embarrass them at a tea party in Tobermory. Saki’s health was very fragile when he was little. The doctor said neither him nor his siblings would survive into adulthood. His delicate health was reflected by the main characters in Sredni Vashtar and The Easter Egg. From all those examples, it is clear that Saki’s life is reflected in his works. Patricia Grace is another author who writes about her life in her works. Her writing career started when she was 25 years old with children. She has a large family and she displayed her love for her relatives in Butterflies, It used to be Green Once, The Trolley and A Way of Talking. Patricia also honoured her Maori culture by using Maori words in three of her short stories that I’ve read. A Way of Talking is a clear example of Patricia’s feelings about racism in everyday life. In the story, Jane was making disparaging comments about Maori people in front of Rose, the same thing that happened when Patricia Grace was at primary school because she was the only Maori girl there. Fun times in Patricia’s life were also shown between the lines of her writing. Meeting up with her cousins in the weekends, playing sports and doing physical things were mentioned in The Trolley; It used to be Green Once and especially in Beans. The events that took part in Patricia Grace’s stories are based on events that happened in her life. Most of Tessa Duder’s characters are created based on her personality. When Christchurch Children’s Library interviewed her, Tessa said that she was good at sports and literacy when she was young, just like Moana in Moana’s Secret, Cindy in Cindy Becomes a Star and Michael in The Violin. Her personal tragedy was reflected in the Alex quartet. Both Tessa and the main character, Alex lost someone they love; which in Tessa’s case is her daughter Clare, and in Alex’s case her boyfriend Andy. Activities Tessa did when she was little were also reflected in her stories. When she was five years old she sailed on a sailboat from New Zealand to England with her family. Sailboats were mentioned in her novella Too Close to the Wind and her short story, Person Overboard. Without knowing what sailing is and how to sail, it is not possible for Tessa Duder to write about sailing in her stories. As a swimmer who trained for six years in her teenage life and the first New Zealand woman to train seriously in the Dolphin-Butterfly stroke first introduced in the 1956 Olympics, Tessa Duder wrote about swimming in three of her short stories and the Alex quartet is about a girl who trained very hard in order to take part in the Olympic Games in Rome. Tessa Duder’s life is clearly reflected in her works from the examples shown. An author’s life is reflected in their works. This statement is clearly proven with the British author who wrote 100 years ago and two New Zealand authors who still spend their time working on new book drafts. The storyline, the personality of the characters and the twist in the stories are often related to the events that happened in the author’s life. Through the eyes of a reader, I believe that their love for writing inspires authors to write. An author’s life is reflected in their works.

The role of educators to promote human rights and social justice Essay

The role of educators to promote human rights and social justice - Essay Example Therefore, this will mean that the social justice activists will articulate their mission as they mention human rights. This is maintained in pedagogy to create a community of learners that understands and values rights of humans recognizing that every human being has to be dignified. The aim of this dissertation is to examine social justice and education by focusing on the integration of human rights in curricula, policies, and practices of secondary schools. The context describes the focus of the research topic in secondary schooling and the terms used in this study.   The third section looks at three issues relevant to the research topic, namely, the relationship between human rights and education, the stakeholders in human rights education, and the integration of human rights education in secondary schools.The function of education within a social justice framework involves the empowerment of learners to become active change agents in the community. Secondary school education i n human rights should focus on developing the learners’ critical thinking skills in relation to their knowledge about human rights. Teaching about human rights entails transmitting information and ideas on human rights and promoting attitudes and values that support such rights. This is associated with the position that teaching for human rights is characterized by examination of fundamental components that consist of human rights including equality, freedom, justice, and life, and the disparaging impact of pain.

Concepts of Caring Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Concepts of Caring - Essay Example The staff must look at the use of their body language as well. According to (Justice, 2006) the staff must watch how they use body language and more importantly the way the voice is used. â€Å"These are known as linguistic, non-linguistic and paralinguistic communication skills. The staff must watch their tone, pitch, and loudness. The staff must also watch their body posture, proximity and facial expressions. All of these features are very necessary to make sure that the staff comprehends what is going on in the case.† The staff must show that you know what you are doing right from the start or you will not make any progress with the patient. In your immediate observation of the patient the staff will notice that she is highly anxious. The other subjective signs could be that she could be holding the abdominal area. Emma could also be crying or yelling out. The staff has to build a rapport and gain trust with the patient in order to gain the basic information you need to gai n a diagnosis. The staff will need to feel confident in their decisions, for example if you would decide to call her parents about her location and her problem. The staff will have to decide about the issue of confidentiality and informed consent. Remember In the medical profession or any profession ‘Do No Harm’. Emma will need to be handled with care body, mind and soul. She needs to be told what to do to bring understanding of her physical and emotional health even if she doesn’t want to hear it. 5. Self-Actualization- The nurses can try to teach and tell her that it is not her fault that her parents separated, if that has happened. The nurse can also try to teach her that running away is not the answer to any problem. The nurse must try to talk to her about the abdominal pain she is feeling could mean. When she starts to calm down

Economical and Environmental Consequences of Overfishing Essay

Economical and Environmental Consequences of Overfishing - Essay Example The problem of overfishing has its roots in human activities. Human beings have the mandate of taking care of their environments but in most cases, they do not do it. Human activities increase carbon emissions, which is a root cause of the problem is acidification of our seas. According to United Nations Environment as quoted in Ecocentric times, increasing carbon emissions has found its way in our oceans and the PH balance is no longer the same. Although only a few species like the crabs, corals, and shellfish will be greatly affected by acidification of the seas, a broken ecosystem balance will also affect the fish and hence food security (Walsh Web). It is worth noting, with interest, that all forms of life are interdependent and that extinction of one form of life threatens the survival of the rest of the ecosystem either directly or indirectly. On a global scale, the world has enough fish to cater for all its inhabitants and three other planets like earth. This means that the pr oblem is not with less fish in our oceans. According to Koster, â€Å"Worldwide, fishing fleets are two to three times as large as needed to take present-day catches of fish and other marine species and as what our oceans can support† (Koster, 2011, p.1). ...Statistics show that for every five persons, one depends on fish as a source of protein. Monterey Bay Aquarium foundation as quoted in Sea the Sea website clearly shows a great rise in fishing volumes. It is claimed, â€Å"Between 1950 and 1994, total fish caught increased by 400% and this increased in subsequent years† (Sea-the Sea, Web). UN Food and Agricultural Organisation statistics as quoted in Overfishing website depicts that there is no proper balance of fishing habits. That is â€Å"52% of fish fully exploited, 20% moderately exploited, 17% overexploited, 7% depleted, and 1% recovering from depletion† (Koster, 2011, p.1). At times overfishing is caused by corrupt activities of the managers of the se as who fully aware of the stress in our seas allow fishing. First, overfishing is a problem since economically fishing is an activity that supports so many livelihoods who earn a living from it. According to a UN website, â€Å"200 million people in the world depend on fishing worldwide† (Natal, 2006, P.1). Overfishing means that we are risking such millions of people losing their ways of earning a living. This is because fish is a finite resource that depletes over time especially if the stocks of fish left cannot replenish themselves. Secondly, overfishing destroys the normal ecosystem flow of marine species. This occurs after the extinction of one or more species that depend on the other for survival, which means that extinction of one or more fish species will adversely affect other sea species or even cause their extinction too.

Enterpreneurship, Innovation and Economic Development Essay

Enterpreneurship, Innovation and Economic Development - Essay Example Therefore, organizations require innovative and creative individuals; who are ready to explore new opportunities. Entrepreneurship, innovation, creativity, and problem solving are the key aspects that result to economic development in any society. The term entrepreneurship in business to describes the process of taking the risk to explore markets and invest capital with the hope of making profits. An entrepreneur is a confident person, who is willing to venture into the market sometimes with a new product or idea (Wennekers, Stel, and Carree, 2010:370). However, he or she is ready to face the challenges involved and keep focused on the results. Such individuals are dedicated to achieving their goals of making profit no matter the market trends. Entrepreneurs do not limit their ability to the resources they control but seek opportunities of mobilizing more resources. Entrepreneurship requires prior planning. One must analyze the market critically. Despite the risk, one must have faith of creating a difference in the global market. An entrepreneur must think positively and be able to make decisions. Due to changes in the market trends, the entrepreneur should learn how to adapt to new situations. Therefore, flexibility is a necessity but the goal of making profits remains unchanged. Successful entrepreneurs should study the market and recognize a need that other businesses are not addressing fully. They then set out to transform the unrefined, raw idea into a business venture. The viability of the idea should be critically. This requires a lot of patience and hard work. Persistence is evident from Ted Turner’s example on his road to becoming a successful entrepreneur. Ted came up with the idea of giving people more news than they were receiving and started CNN. He carefully studied the market to recognize the opportunity and it took him faith and persistence to pull it through effectively. People who lack endurance are not successful entrepreneurs. For an entrepreneurial venture to be a success, planning and management should be effective. Self-discipline is also compulsory. One should ensure that there is sufficient financing before they choose to start up any venture. Management is very critical in entrepreneurship because many ventures fail due to lack of proper management. Some are ideas are very viable but the individuals lack critical managerial skills and therefore personal failure contributes to failure of the idea (Terrence and Ulijn, 2004:105). The market should be read logically and analytically to avoid disappointment. There are individuals who prefer to start on small scale and advance with time as they learn to adjust to market trends. Others start large-scale businesses. Capital entrepreneurs invest a lot of capital and therefore take a greater risk. Capital entrepreneurs are daring enough to invest a large sum, expecting better profits. Usually, they have control on more resources and have the right connections in the market. However, even small-scale entrepreneurs can succeed if they plan strategically. Entrepreneurs must apply innovation to compete effectively in the market. Innovation is the exploitation of any new opportunity in the business world to comer up with a new product or service in the market. Innovation seeks to improve the products, goods, or services existing in the market. Innovation takes advantage of new technologies to improve the existing products. Innovators are critical thinkers and can recognize the sectors of business that can benefit

Modernity and Tradition in Asia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Modernity and Tradition in Asia - Essay Example Modern history discusses the historical timeline after the middle Ages. It has two stages which include; early modern and the late modern periods. Contemporary history tells more about the period of historic events that are immediately applicable to the present time. Modern period is a period of important growth in various fields that include; politics, warfare, technology and science, these fields not only dominated the Western Europe and North America but nearly every cultured area on the world. Cultural nationalism is a body that mainly forms the modern political societies within an unsanctioned state authority hence it is a form in which a nation is defined by an inherited culture and it is a strong belief that interests a particular state. Role of cultural nationalism in china Cultural nationalism played some roles in the China community and made it what it is today. The China’s nationalism today (present) was produced by its pride in its history and its century of the humiliation at the hands of the west and the Japan. The Chinese nationalism had a positive impact that came all over during the post WWII era. Role of cultural nationalism in India Nationalism is commonly understood as a political concept hence, it is an ideology that provides source for the national integration, solidity and as well as seeking national independence from the colonial. Cultural nationalism has played a major role in the political reshaping of all the central Europe. During the post-WWII era nationalism emerged as a powerful force. It acted as a suitable system of acquiring economic aid and security declaration. During the post- WWII era nationalism reemerged as a serious factor in improving the worldwide political scene in the post cold war era. Modern Asian Civilizations Civilization is a controversial word that has been used in various connected ways. It is used to refer to the human cultures which are obviously complex in terms of science, technology and division of labor. The civilization advancement is usually and often measured by its progress in long distance trade, agriculture, urbanism and occupational specialization. 1. Japan The Japanese civilization began in approximately A.D. 400 when the Yamato clan who were based in Kyoto gained extreme control of family groups in the Western and Central Japan. In the 700s the Japan was influenced by China, this influence made the Yamato clan to set up a majestic court that was similar to that of the China. The Yamato ruling system contributed largely to the formation of the Japanese culture and its tradition that stated gods of the others s hould be venerated equally hence other people’s gods should be treated and be compared to their own gods (this Japanese tradition stills remains to date) (Matsumoto and Hosaka 1). 2. China China being an East Asian country has a large territory, an ancient history and a huge population. It has written records that date back to 4000 years. China is considered to be an ancient civilization that extends over a large area in the East Asia. China is among one of the four great world’s oldest civilizations and one among the most highly developed societies and economies. Most of the china’

Computer Forensics Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Computer Forensics - Research Paper Example Now this is the point where a forensic toxicologist comes onto the scene. â€Å"According to the American Board of Forensic Toxicology (ABFT), Forensic toxicology is interdisciplinary field of study dealing with the effects and reactions of various toxicants and chemicals on the human body† (Bell, 2008). As the name suggests, a forensic scientist works very closely with legal experts and at most of the occasions the forensic scientist himself in a situation where his opinions form the basis of legal process. More than 21 million compounds fit the definition of intoxicant and have the capability to cause damage to the human body (Wecht & Rago, 2006). The history of this field goes back to the earliest times when human formed societies and learned about the use of various chemicals. It was in the 19th century when scientists and chemical experts gained insights about the use of chemicals and in the next century, the world witnessed cases concerned with deaths caused by intoxication more than in the previous recorded history. â€Å"Mary Ann cotton, Belle Sorrenson, Gunness Nannie Doss, Doctor Thomas Neill Cream, John Otto Hoch, Graham Frederick Young and Donald Harvey† (Hayes, 2001) are most of the most famous criminals who took unjust advantage of their knowledge of toxicants by killing people (Bell, 2008). Before the legal experts could catch their crime, they had killed many of their targets. This asked the investigators to understand the dynamics of toxicology and apply it to th e field of forensics. The applications of this field are in three major sub fields that are â€Å"postmortem forensic toxicology, human performance toxicology, and forensic drug testing† (Casarett & Doull, 1975). There are various sources for forensic testing of toxicants in human body. Testing with blood, citreous humor, urine, bile, liver, hair sample, saliva, and others are the most commonly used sources (Hayes,

Hinduism Paper Essay Example for Free

Hinduism Paper Essay Hinduism is a unique religion. Except for Hinduism, the world’s most popular religions share the quality of having a single founder. Christianity is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ, Islam on those of Mohammed, Judaism on those of Abraham, and Buddhism on those of Gautam Buddha. According to Adherents.com (2007), Hinduism is the fifth-ranked most popular organized religion in the world; however, unlike the top four religions, Hinduism lacks a unifying belief system. One may wonder how the religion sustains itself when it is so different from the other major religions. All forms of Hinduism are based on four central themes, and the cultural and societal influences of these themes have made Hinduism vital to the region where it originated. According to Das (2009), â€Å"Hinduism is a conglomerate of diverse beliefs and traditions†. True Hindus live their lives with devotion to ethics and duties, known as Dharma. Dharma is important because along with Karma (the effects actions have on one’s life), these two forces influence the soul’s reincarnation, or Samsara. Hindus believe that after many lives of good Karma, the soul reaches the end of the Samsara process, called Moksha. Upon achieving Moksha, the soul gains â€Å"liberation from the limitations of space, time, and matter through realization of the immortal Absolute† (Fisher, 2005, p. 75). To ensure this upward movement of the soul, Hindus typically strive to observe tenets of non-violence, celibacy, truth, and cleanliness, among other ethical principles (Das, 2009). Hinduism is practiced largely in the impoverished areas of India. What makes these areas impoverished? According to IndianChild.com, â€Å"The poor spend about 80 percent of their income on food while the rest of the population spends more than 60 percent†. One way in which the practice of Hinduism benefits people of this area is the belief that cows are sacred. Rather than using the cow for its meat, Hindus benefit more by using the cows for dairy and working the farmlands (Prakasa, 2008). Maintaining a nonviolent lifestyle has also kept warring to a minimum, and as a side effect few cows have perished as a result of war. Sociologists using the social-conflict approach to their studies would find the Hinduism regions a gold mine of information. Most Hindu societies are organized into what is known as a caste system. In a caste system, individuals are born into a certain tier of social privilege and typically remain there throughout their lives. The highest tier, known as Brahmins, was the priestly caste. Brahmins served to bridge the gap between men and gods, acting as temple priests and invoking gods on behalf of others. Besides the two castes just below Brahmins, they were the only ones permitted to study the Vedas, the ancient Hindu holy texts (V, 2008). Kshatriyas are those who make up the second highest caste in the Hindu caste system. This caste is known as the warrior class and the caste of kings. A king’s social duties included protecting his kingdom and its people, showering the Brahmins with luxurious gifts, and administering justice in a fair manner. Hindu kings were thought to be imbued with the essence of the gods, and as such were never to be despised. Never was a king’s authority to be questioned unless the king was not fulfilling his responsibilities to the Brahmins. The Vaishyas and the Shudras make up the next two classes. Vaishyas were expected to â€Å"tend cattle, offer sacrifices, study the Vedas, trade, lend money and cultivate the land.† While they were allowed to participate in many religious rituals, they could not marry the women of a higher class. The Shudras relate most equally to the middle class of United States society. As the working caste, their only duties were to serve the higher three classes. They could observe some of the religious rituals, but in most cases were not required to do so. Already not allowed to study the Vedic texts, they were also not allowed to hear the sacred chants or eat food in the company of those from a higher caste. Four castes are typically recognized, but many Hindu cultures observe a fifth, lowest class. The Chandalas were known as the â€Å"impure ones.† Chandalas were not allowed to walk in the same streets as men from higher castes, nor were they even allowed to enter the city during daylight hours. The sight of a Chandala was seen as a bad omen, and even their shadows were considered impure. Forced to live on the outskirts of society, Chandalas typically made their livings as graveyard caretakers, hunters, and professionals adept at cleaning human waste. Being a very different religion from the other major religions, Hinduism has had a unique effect on the regions where it developed. Though one common belief system cannot be found, the tenets on which the religion is based have served to promote a very organized civilization. Whether or not that organization has been more beneficial than what a different organization would have been has been probably been hotly debated, but one undeniable fact remains: if the caste system was not a viable form of social construction, it would not have survived for so long.   Perhaps much of the world can learn about the benefits of religious devotion and ethical lifestyle through study of Hinduism.

Marketing Mixmarketing Mix Essay Example for Free

Marketing Mixmarketing Mix Essay 1. Marketing Research : A new product strategy will ultimately need to be tested through focus groups, phone surveys and beta tests. Focus groups are sessions where company managers observe consumers through a one-way mirror. A moderator or interviewer will ask the consumers questions related to the companys product concept, including their likes, dislikes and suggestions for the product. This information is usually evaluated later to help tweak the product concept. After focus groups, companies use phone surveys to obtain a more reliable sample about the markets reaction to the product. 2. Product Positioning: Product positioning is a best practice strategy used for both new and existing products. Small companies typically use a grid when developing a product positioning matrix. The objective of product positioning is to determine which segment of the market to place a product. Companies often use two important product variables in a product positioning matrix. For hot cereal, these variables may include price and time to cook. The product price can be low or high, and the time to cook the cereal can be slow or quick. Consequently, segments for hot cereal may be low price/quick to cook, low price/slow to cook, high price/quick to cook or high price/slow to cook. A small company will usually plot its existing products as well as competitive products within the various segments. The segment with the least amount of plotting points may indicate an opportunity for the company, as that particular segment is under-served. Place of Distribution Strategies Depending on the type of product being distributed there are three common distribution strategies available: 1. Intensive distribution: Used commonly to distribute low priced or impulse purchase products eg chocolates, soft drinks. 2. Exclusive distribution: Involves limiting distribution to a single outlet. The product is usually highly priced, and requires the intermediary to place much detail in its sell. An example of would be the sale of vehicles through exclusive dealers. 3. Selective Distribution: A small number of retail outlets are chosen to distribute the product. Selective distribution is common with products such as computers, televisions household appliances, where consumers are willing to shop around and where manufacturers want a large geographical spread. Pricing Strategies 1. Penetration pricing: Here the organization sets a low price to increase sales and market share. Once market share has been captured the firm may well then increase their price. A television satellite company sets a low price to get subscribers then increases the price as their customer base increases. 2. Skimming pricing: The organization sets an initial high price and then slowly lowers the price to make the product available to a wider market. The objective is to skim profits of the market layer by layer. A games console company reduces the price of their console over 5 years, charging a premium at launch and lowest price near the end of its life cycle. 3. Competition pricing: Setting a price in comparison with competitors. Really a firm has three options and these are to price lower, price the same or price higher. Some firms offer a price matching service to match what their competitors are offering. Promotion Strategies 1. Public relations: Involves developing positive relationships with the organization media public. The art of good public relations is not only to obtain favorable publicity within the media, but it is also involves being able to handle successfully negative attention. 2. Internet Marketing: Promoting and selling your services online using various forms of online marketing techniques such as banner advertisements, videos or social media. 3. Sponsorship: Where you pay an organization to use your brand or logo. This organization usually has a high profile so that you know that your brand will be seen by a large audience. Most common use of sponsorship is with sporting events. The 2012 Olympics being held in London is being sponsored by a number of organizations such as Mcdonalds and Coca-Cola as the event will attract a worldwide audience that will run into hundreds of millions.

Empowerment Of Pakistani Women

Empowerment Of Pakistani Women A Woman plays a key role in the maturity of a nation. The Pakistani traditions is one of a kind where in one segment the status of women is considered as the center of soul, existence and life; while on the other edge considers them no more than second-rate citizens. She plays four important roles during her life-time i.e. as a mother, wife, sister and daughter, but today she is facing lots of tribulations inside the home as well outside. There are many forms of hostilities i.e. physical, sexual, psychological etc. that costs the life of a woman; her dignity, confidence and personality. Although we are living in an Islamic society, where Islam provides a comprehensive frame work about the rights and duties of women, yet due to illiteracy, people of our society are oblivious to religious conviction and they follow their own customs and traditions not accordance with Islam, so discrimination against women is present in our society. Today women development is the most important component of social welfare programmes in Khyber Pukhtoonkhwa in public sector as well in private sector. They are in operational for the empowerment of women in District Dir Lower like other backward areas of the province, to accomplish their imperative and basic needs, providing them a decorous life in their society, and also bestowing opportunities for their dynamic contribution in nation-building activities. In this research paper an attempt has been made to emphasize the real status of women in district Dir Lower of Khyber Pukhtoonkhwa and the role of public sector as well as private sector in their empowerment. Objectives of the Research To make some contributions to my native land Dir Lower To know about the major socio-economic hindrance in the empowerment of women in Dir Lower To identify the various socio-cultural obstacles in the empowerment of women in Dir Lower To know about the misinterpretation of religion, which adversely effects the empowerment of women in Dir Lower To evaluate the role of government in the empowerment of women in Dir Lower To evaluate the role of NGOs in the empowerment of women in Dir Lower Hypothesis 1. socio-cultural constrains have close relation with the empowerment of women in Dir Lower. 2. Education can play vital role in the empowerment of women in Dir Lower. 3. Economic empowerment of women is essential for their overall empowerment. Significance of the Research study The proposed work is an attempt to understand and explore the actual status of the empowerment of women in Dir Lower. Although women in large number are exercising their rights and duties within the fold of Islam in Dir Lower, yet some segments of our society are misinterpreting their status here. On the other side most of the religious segment and some of the moderators in our society are against the NGOs activities for the empowerment of women by considering them a western agenda. Keeping in view of this troublesome situation related to the activities of social welfare services in Dir Lower and community response towards them, their work is not so fruitful and ultimately their developmental role is affected. It is expected that after the completion of this research work people will know about the real status of women and the ratio of empower women as well as the role of governmental and non-governmental organizations in this direction. It will also help to find out that how the sta tus of women here can be improved actually. Review of literature Society is comprised of men and women and both have very important role in a successful life as well in the development of a nation, although both are different biologically and socially from each other, but throughout the history women have been denied in every sphere of life. The vast majority of the worlds poor are women, two third of the world illiterate are female and the majority of poor health are also women. On the other hand the role of women in the development of a nation cannot be ignored. Studies show that when women are supported and empowered, all of society benefits, their families are healthier, more children go to school, agriculture productivity improves and income increases. In short, communities become stronger. The hunger project family believes that empowering women is a key change agent to end hunger and poverty. Therefore it is the emerging and most important agenda of all developed countries of the world, to empower their women to play their due role in natio n building activities. Before the advent of Islam, women held a very low status in society and were treated like slaves and chattels. But in the history of the world, Islam is the first religion which recognize the human status of women and conferred them height, dignity and honour by granting equal rights. Islam also provided equal opportunities to both men and women for the progress and prosperity of life and granted them immense social and economic rights. Also all the three constitutions promulgated in Pakistan had attempted to proclaim equality of rights for women but still in Pakistani society, on one hand women place is the centre of attention and life but on the other hand considering them no more than a secondary citizens. The reason is that our people are unaware and they follow their own customs and norms by neglecting the religion and the law. Pakistan is the world 6th largest country by population, approximately 177.28 million with the sex ratio as 1.07 male per female. This clearly conveys the message that almost half of the countrys population is comprised of women folk. Despite of such large proportion of women population, Pakistan, based on the gender empowerment measure is ranked as 99 amongst 109 countries of the world. The total population of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is 17.75 million. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is predominantly occupied by Pakhtuns tribe. The social structure of Pakhtuns does not permit free mobility or employment of the women. The government faces numerous problems to safeguard employment opportunities for rapidly increasing population with strict social structures. The situation is even worse for the women folk who ultimately live a life of subordination and suppression inside the home. In our society, woman has the rights of academic achievements but at the same time she also has to acquire permission from he r male heirs whether to utilize her educational experience for economic independence or not. Our women are not inferior to those in western countries but due to comparative availing basic amenities, which prevent them to play their due role in the national life. Not all Pakistanis women are beaten, sold or mutilated but majority are still facing imbalance treatment by their male heirs. If same facilities and opportunities are given to our women as the developed nations have done, they might be able to contribute in nation-building activities. In this regard the social welfare and women development department can play a significant role with the help of NGOs. There is no uniformity in the status of women in Pakistan because of diversity in our cultures in the present four provinces which are further sub-marked under rural and urban areas. In this regard in khyber Pukhtoonkhwa, Pukhtoon society has its particular traditional basis and the role of women is also a traditional one. Pukhtoon are very sensitive about the honour and dignity of their women and they considered it their outmost duty to protect their women, therefore he guards her name and her reputation with extra care. Dir Lower is one of the backward district of Khyber Pukhtoonkhwa, which remained backward in all respect i.e., Educationally, Socially, politically and economically due to the dominant force of Nawab of Dir Shah Jahan, since the 6th decade of 20th century. He wanted to keep the people illiterate, in the darkness, unaware and backward to maintain his power. Therefore he was against of any type of development in Dir. Before and after the rule of Shah Jahan, education was zero. Formal education was started after 1960, but that was limited only to male. Slowly and gradually the rising awareness in people of Dir felt the need and importance of female education, thereby some primary schools were established for girls at the initials. because of scarcity and lack of proper education and guidance, Dir remains backward in every field of life especially, in the empowerment of women and due to their unawareness the life of women were influenced by customary norms. House remained the main center of activities for them however very few women were educated here. The main reason was that they couldnt come out of their houses because of the restriction of purdah. Women are not allowed to associate with men in public. Though now-a-days, in big villages, education has changed the social position of women because the male society of Dir became educated and they are providing opportunities to their women to play her due role in the society within the fold of Islam. A number of schools and colleges have been opened for females whereby to get education, many of them are now entered into the universities and other different institutions for their higher education competing with the dominant male society in every walk of life in every city and province of Pakistan as well abroad. Keeping in view the worst situation stated earlier, the people of Dir Lower realized that until and unless a two pronged developmental approach, it would be impossible to attain the long cherished goal of social justice. Therefore educated and talented people started working with social welfare departments and started running of Non-Governmental Organizations. The formation process of NGOs started in 1970s in Dir Lower and within 34 years 64 NGOs have been registered. Some of these NGOs are fairly diligent while others are not functioning with their maximum potentiality. In these NGOs a number of projects are running for the empowerment of women in Dir Lower by different means i.e. by education, by political means, by vocational skills, by campaign for women rights, by social and economic services, by women welfare, etc. But due to militancy and talibanization in Malakand Division, the developmental activities become stand still and showing no actual progress. At large number their w orkers were targeted and threatened as well as, they are criticized by the local people because they are unaware about their actual role. Besides this the NGOs of Dir Lower are also facing a number of problems to play their due role in the empowerment of women, i.e. lack of experts, lack of guidance, lack of funds, lack of co-ordination and uncooperative behavior of the community etc. The women development department Khyber Pukhtoonkhwa was established as a separate department during 1995-96, attached with the social welfare department and was confined to provincial secretariat, having no field staff to look after the women related issues at the grass root level, although it is supposed to keep a close relation with various NGOs National and International agencies working in the province for women development. The women development department is also responsible for implementation of the national plan of action for women and Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEADAW). National policy for development and empowerment of women was formulated by the government in order to empower Pakistani women, irrespective of caste, creed, religion or other consideration for realization of their full potential in all spheres of life, especially, economically, socially and politically and in keeping without Islamic way of life. Research methodology The proposed work would be descriptive type and will be based on the extensive use of primary and secondary data. Interview schedule and questionnaire will be the research instruments for the collection of primary data and secondary data will be collected from books, news-papers, thesis and other published and unpublished materials. Dir Lower will be the universe of the research study and its population will be heterogeneous, consists of male, female, young, old, educated and uneducated etc. Theoretical frame work APA style will be followed in in-text and end note references. Tentative chapterization Introduction Ch: 1 Women status in pukhtoon society particularly in Dir Lower Ch: 2 the role of governmental and non-governmental organizations in the empowerment of women in Dir Lower Ch: 3 Statistical analyses of primary data Ch: 4 Conclusion and Recommendations

Gay Marriage and the Government Essays -- same sex marriage, political

In recent years, the debate over same-sex marriage has grown into a nationwide controversy, reverberating into the halls of congress, at the white house, in dozens of state and legislature and courtrooms, and in the rhetoric of election campaigns at both the national and state levels. As the debate rages on, the American religious community remains deeply divided over the issue, and over the morality of homosexuality. The debate has grown from an issue that occasionally arose in a few states to a national and even worldwide controversy. Moreover, the battle over whether or not gay and lesbians should be allowed to wed shows no signs of abating. In the last year alone, three states have banned same-sex marriage and four states have legalized the practice. Recently, both sides in the debate have scored important victories. In April 2009, Iowa’s Supreme Court ruled that the states constitution guarantee’s gays and lesbians the righto wed, the high court in Connecticut had issued a similar ruling back in May of 2008. Gay marriage advocates have also won important legislative victories in a number of states, beginning in April 2009 when Vermont legislature same-sex marriage. The Vermont law marked the first time gay marriage was legalized as the result of a statue rather than a court ruling. By the end of May 2009, two other state legislatures, those in Maine and New Hampshire, followed suit, bringing the total number of states that allow same-sex marriages to six. In June 2009, President Barak Obama granted family medical leave and certain other benefits to same-sex partners of federal workers. (The presidential memorandum did not include health insurance coverage, which would require congressional approval). Many supporters of ... ...gay marriage legal. Opponents of same-sex marriage note that whenever voters have had an opportunity to weigh in on the issue-even in a more socially liberal state such as California – they almost always vote against gay marriage. These opponents hope continue placing constitutional bans on the ballot and are targeting Iowa, among other states, in hope of reversing that states recent Supreme Court decision. To sum it all together, I believe that gays should have all the same opportunities and rights that heterosexuals have. It is nothing other than discrimination not only by society but by the nation’s government as well. I know that it’s supposed to be man and woman to wed, but I believe you can’t help who you fall in love with. References 1. Pew Research .org 2. World book (Ashford Online Library) 3. L.A Times 4. U. S. Congress 5. Pewforum.org

Case Study on Pregancy Pain :: essays research papers fc

Case Study #7 A pregnant (5 mo.) woman is reporting pain and an enlargement in her lower right quadrant comes to seek advice on different ways of imaging the area without endangering her baby. What do you explain and advise?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I would also ask questions as to whether or not she is suffering from any other symptoms. Ordering blood and urine work on her is also an excellent idea. In Amanda’s case study she suggested the pelvic ultrasound. I would take it even a bit further. It is called a â€Å"transvaginal ultrasound†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I would explain to her the benefits and/or risks of using this remarkable device. The ultrasound has been around since the 1950s and is considered safe and non-invasive. However, a transvaginal ultrasound is. (3) Transvaginal ultrasound is a method of imaging the genital tract in women. The ultrasound machine sends out high-frequency sound waves, which bounce off body structures to create a picture. With the transvaginal technique, the ultrasound transducer (a hand-held probe) is inserted directly into the vagina and is, therefore, closer to pelvic structures than with the conventional transabdominal technique (with the probe on the skin of the abdomen), providing superior image quality. This test can be used during pregnancy. A transvaginal ultrasound takes it a bit further than a regular pelvic ultrasound. In this way, it rules out things like ectopic pregnancy, ovarian cysts, fibroid tumors and other abdominal/pelvic diseases like PID (pelvic inflammatory disease). The transvaginal ultrasound is even better than the pelvic ultrasound. Doing her ultrasound this way will better pick up any potential problems too small enough for the pelvic ultrasound to catch. I would prefer it this way myself. Ovarian cysts occur when there is a lot of fluid swelling inside the ovary. However, they usually will dissolve on their own. If an ovarian cyst does not dissolve after the next 1-2 menstrual cycles, the doctor would usually try to monitor their activity. If it enlarges, the doctor may suggest removal of the cyst(s). (1) Fibroid tumors are usually benign (non-cancerous) tumors found, most often, in the uterus of women in their 30's and 40's, although they occasionally develop on other organs which contain smooth muscle cells. Fibroid tumors are solid tumors, which are made of fibrous tissue, hence the name 'fibroid' tumor. Most often fibroids occur as multiple tumor masses, which are slow-growing and often cause no symptoms. The size of fibroids varies immensely among women and some are so small that a microscope is required to see them.

Debate Against School Uniforms Essay

Have you ever played Wheres Waldo? By issuing students school uniforms, finding a problem child would be a lot like playing that game in a real life situation. Just like any other argument you will have your pros and cons of the idea, but in my opinion and many others, the cons highly outweigh the pros of wearing school uniforms. Many intelligent individuals will lose their motivation to excel and be prevalent because they are used to being ordinary like everyone else. School uniforms shout conformity in many ways and to me that isnt the way to get your students to prevail in the classrooms. Individuality is a huge factor for school age children and their chance to grow among their peers. School uniforms will do nothing but cut down on a students individuality. A uniform is not the way to cut down on school violence. The only thing that will cut down on school violence is if parents would pay attention to their children and keep their children out of trouble and give them consequences when they disobey and not to let them run wild. Uniforms cause regularity. We need free thinking children to become the thinkers of tomorrow, not drones who will continue making the mistakes of previous generations. When we argue against school uniforms we argue against an education system that seeks to produce workers and for an education system that seeks to produce open-minded all-around human beings. One major argument of school uniforms is that they will save money for less fortunate families. This statement can also be battled very easily. There are just as many experts who believe that the cost of school uniforms is a negative factor as those who see it as a positive factor. Some experts believe that it increases the amount of clothing parents will have to buy for their children because the children will still want and need clothing for the hours they are not in school. Uniforms can be more expensive for a family who buys from second-hand stores or who relies on hand-me-down clothing from friends and family. Some experts believe cost is a negative aspect of school uniforms because there is no use for them outside of school. Ultimately school uniforms will likely cost equal to higher amounts of money than buying regular clothing for a child. Everyone wants to be comfortable in what they are wearing and school uniforms limit that option significantly. Many people say that different types of clothing feel comfortable to different people. Some children are more comfortable in a specific material or style of clothing. Uniforms reduce ones ability to choose clothing that fits individual comfort needs. Experts believe that children need to feel comfortable in order to maximize learning, and that uniforms can therefore prevent academic success. Another problem would be if the school was required to wear ties. Wearing a tie would put an enormous damper on childrens ability to pay attention. Most students would spend a majority of their time situating and loosening their tie to the desired fitting. The sad part is that by the time it feels comfortable it is against the dress code and they find themselves in trouble. Identification is one of the biggest factors ruled in against school uniforms. Many people state that you could easily site outsiders of the school, and it would also eliminate gang colors. If you have a school full of children with the same clothing on you would find it nearly impossible to identify a child who was causing trouble. One example is if someone caught a glimpse of a child stealing and then tried to give a description. The description would most likely fit a majority of the students in the school. As for eliminating gang colors, there are better ways to take care of that. If you can tell a gang by its colors and the ones affiliated with it, why not send the gang member to a school away from the other children. Any group that will endanger the life of the other students doesnt deserve to learn with them. Instead of taking away their ability to recognize each other by colors they should be sent off to boot camp or somewhere alike. In conclusion school uniforms can easily be avoided by making the right judgments and by working harder to keep our children away from conformity. Each factor for uniforms can also be backed by an even better reason not to put them in action. Our countrys children need to be able to form an individual personality and ability to learn and progress through adolescents. Each area of discussion shows that children would fair more successful without the statement of a school uniform in hand. Works Cited :1)http://www.daytondailynews.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/dayton/education/entries/2006/07/29/the_case_agains_1.html2)http://www.communityonline.com/local/educational/schools/uniforms/uniforms.htm3)http://www.geocities.com/school_uniforms/abstract98.html

EDU 330 Special Education Foundations and Framework Benchmark Assessment Essay

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has granted that placement options be available to better meet the needs of students. (Classroom Leadership, 2001) To better meet these requirements, educators have strived to make every effort to place students with and without disabilities in environments where they can learn, grow, and be successful. Each student is placed according to their individual needs, abilities, qualities, and level of services needed. Placing students in their correct environment is essential for obtaining a quality education. Today, there are many resourceful classrooms that are aimed at the specific abilities and disabilities of students. In these types of classrooms, students are better equipped to get the help they need. There are also related services within the school and the community that are aimed at offering support to families with disabilities. When students are placed in the correct environments, teachers can strategically help connect students and their families to these resources, and also integrate assistive technologies into the curriculum to support student learning abilities. When it comes to effectively placing student’s collaboration is key to assessing the type of environment that is presumed to be best for students. Educational environments affect teaching and learning, therefore the classroom environment must be designed to support the individual needs of students. A few types of classroom environments used in K-12 education include inclusion, self-contained, and resource rooms. The inclusion model allows students to participate in regular educational settings, and receive supported help by the inclusion teacher therein. The inclusion model is essential for increasing social  networking skills, developing behavior and academic skills through peer role-modeling, improving student achievement of IEP goals, and helping students acquire skills with the general education curriculum. The inclusion model is great for students who have mild learning disabilities, and those who are progressing consistently to a degree, where little or no help is needed. Based off of the student’s unique needs, the inclusion model is a great teaching environment, along with the self-contained education environment. In the self-contained classroom environment, students with disabilities are granted the  ability to receive much more one-on-one help given their unique disabilities. In this type of setting, educators receive additional specialized training to be able to aid students in making learning a success for students with disabilities, who are not able to participate in regular educational classroom settings. Students who learn at a slower pace, as a result of a learning disability, or uses modifications to lessons to acquire learning, a self-contained classroom may be beneficial. Nonetheless, resource educational environments may aide this same situation. In many cases, If a student is not mobile (using a wheelchair), have  severe disabilities like severe cerebral palsy, it may be beneficial to the student to participate in a resource classroom environment. Resource classroom environments focus on the student’s direct disability based on their IEP. They are potentially designed to be smaller for students to be able to get the one-on-one help they need yet still experience the social interaction with peers. Given the types of educational settings that were previously discussed, in the case of Gabriel, a kindergartener who battles cerebral palsy and has limited mobility it is necessary to place Gabriel in a resource room, to receive exceptional academic  training. Because, Gabriel is tub fed and has to use a diaper it is easier for instructors of a resource room to provide him his necessary needs, as they focus directly on the direct disability of students. Furthermore, it is concluded that Gabriel may not succeed in a regular educational setting, or a self-contained classroom setting because of his verbal inability. Although, he is able to communicate through a few eye movements, it is not enough to gain the benefits of a self-contained classroom, a regular education classroom, even though inclusion models. It is the  opinion of the author that Gabriel will better succeed in a resource room, where he will receive additional resources as physical therapy, to help him gain muscle strength to grasp things and even a speech therapist to help him gain control over his vocals. When it comes to exceptional education, there are many different related resources for students inside, and out of the school system. As for Gabriel, cerebral palsy or CP can mean life-long treatment. Generally, CP patients require 24-hour care. Therefore, in Gabriel’s case, eating, breathing, and moving freely can be a  challenge especially when trying to live independently, or study independently in an inclusion classroom, or self-contained environment. For this reason, educators may want to consider other related services, or services to assist their students with severe disabilities. Although, student have disabilities educators are still required to utilize these related services in order to provide those students with the best education possible. Most services are available to children in the public school system. While others can be accessed in the local community. However, there are related services abroad for students in public,  private, early education and head start school systems. Related services, in the terms of the educational setting of choice, calls for the special education classroom to utilize resources as assistive technology devices like wheelchairs, much physical therapy, and speech and language pathology services. Individuals who work to develop speech abilities in students who have communication impairments can effectively provide treatment to students like Gabriel, by showing them how to communicate with others. Furthermore, it is also beneficial to provide students like Gabriel with a physical therapist, who can work  through movement to help gain muscle control and movement. Nonetheless, teachers strive to develop independency in students of this type of educational setting, by providing assistive technology to encourage independent learning. Assistive technology for advancing communication with nonverbal students is made possible through devices, such as the DynaVox. This device can also be used to assess students like Gabriel to ensure they are understanding simple communication skills. Given the student’s abilities, it is necessary for educators to plan lessons and activities using a student’s IEP goals as guidelines. Then, during instruction time use many visuals and demonstrations, and even prompt the students for feedback. Moreover, in situations like Gabriel’s it is essential to students to use the co-teaching model To conclude, each type of educational setting discussed have significant roles in providing exceptional educational outcomes for students with disabilities. Whether a student is receiving training through inclusive model learning, self-contained strategies, or resource models of learning students are capable of receiving exceptional learning abilities and skills to build off of. It is a given, that all  types of educational settings has its pros and cons. However, it is believed that each type of environment has is benefits to support students in individual development. References Classroom Leadership (2001) Resource vs. Inclusion Classrooms; which is best for Students? Retrieved 8/17/14 from http://www. examiner. com/article/resource-vs-inclusion-classrooms-which-is-be st-for-students Council for Exceptional Children, (2014). Special Education Professional Ethical Principles and Practice Standards. Retrieved from http://www. cec. sped. org/Standards/Ethical-Principles-and-Practice-Standards.