Managing Human Resources in Health and Social Care The WritePass Journal

Managing Human Resources in Health and Social Care 1. Introduction Managing Human Resources in Health and Social Care ).The director has to focus on recruitment cost such as external and internal recruitment, time, experiences, numbers of employees, location, organisational structure, flexibility, quality and quantity of the job, the legislation, policies of the home, retention, roles and responsibilities. The two main factors are cost and time.The HR should plan the budget, in to how much money they have to spend in terms of managing the needs of the home and how to cut down on spending.The use of strategies by manager requires time planning for recruiting staff, as it takes time to arrange interviews and training, therefore planning time is important for the organisation as different aspects can be covered in a short period of time if planned correctly. Job Analysis includes collecting information necessary for the development of an organisation. â€Å"A job analysis is the process used to collect information about the duties, responsibilities, necessary skills, outcomes, and work environment of a particular job. It includes collecting as much data as possible to put together a quality job description, which is the frequent outcome of the job analysis. Additional outcomes include recruitment plans, position postings, advertisements, and performance development planning within an organisation’s performance management system (management concepts, 2014).Job Description entails roles, responsibilities, duties, reporting and structuring and Job Specification are skills, experience, qualification, salary, full time or part time. There are number of factors to consider before and during the recruitment selection, pre-selection, post selection and advertising.Advertising is the best way to reach the target mark for applicant for an organisation; some of the ways to advert are by newspaper, radio television, magazine and online.The purpose of selection is to identify the most suitable applicant for the job; this can be done by interview, presentations, short listing and aptitude testing, these are the most common methods that can be used to select the right candidate.In the interview, an employer would make a decision if the candidate has given more information in a standard way, and the most suitable applicant can be chosen from the short listing, interview, application form and references.Short listing allows managers to chose candidates from the pile of applicants that has been shortlisted for an interview, and should be the ones that the manager has gone through their application form and reading their CVs and covering letter to pick the best out of the rest to know if they have the qualification, skills and experience for the job that they applied for (Torrington at el, 2009).Interviews can be face to face where the manager will cross check with the individuals and decide if they have sufficient skills that will persuade the employer to make a decision of employing the individual (ibid).The references can be obtained from the individual’s previous job that the employer will use as an evidence to support the application. Also,aptitude testing can be done by assessing skills of the applicant such as numeracy skill and cognitive skills and other skills that job demands. Understanding the legislative framework which is relevant to the recruitment process will allow individuals in the St Patrick’s nursing home to empower and select leadership and co-workers that can develop effective teams that influence understanding to these policy which relate to the health and social care settings Armstrong (2006).The purpose of home country laws is to protect human rights of individuals especially in the care settings. Employers and supervisors have to understand the responsibility and must ensure that the workforce provides equal opportunity for different races, genders and religion.The Equal Act 2010 is suitable for the health and social care settings which cover Equal Pay Act 1970, Sex Discrimination Act 1975, Race Relation Act 1976, Disability Discrimination Act 1995, Employment Equality (religion or belief) regulation 2003, Employment Equality (age) regulation 2006, Equality Act 2006, Equality Act (sexual orientation) regulation 2007.In the case where St Patrick’s nursing home have a low pay facility, equal pay act 1970 can be considered; this act is an effective legal framework for preventing discrimination against low pay. In the area where the nursing home fails to provide a good atmosphere, poor working conditions and working long hours; this comes under the law of health and safety act 1974; this act is provision for securing the safety and welfare of the person at work and to protect individual against risk to health. The area of favouritism will come under race relation act 1976, it is unlawful to treat individual less favourably than another on racial ground and also it also covers colour, nationality and ethnic or national origins. The different approaches to be used when selecting the most suitable applicant for the job are interviews, application forms, presentations, references, CV and aptitude testing.Interview can be face to face which can be cross checking with the individual and this is how manager will decide if they have sufficient information that persuades them to make a decision of employing the individual (ibid).The references can be obtained from the individual’s previous job, which the employer will use as a form of evidence to support the application.During interviews, the candidates would be observed, aptitude test would be given, and candidates would have the 6 C’s, which is the Quality Care Commission Standard for Health and Social Care Setting: Care, Compassion, Commitment, Courage, Communication, and Competency.To select the best candidate after interview, it must be one or two candidate that clearly stand out, and to select one of the them, the manager should involve the depu ty manager to discuss the outcome in the interview of the candidate and also share the results of any comments from references, and other background checks, and this process can be repeated for each candidate; after all has been discussed, then the best can be listed, also vote can be carried out between the managers   to select the right candidate (Hunt, 2007), According to Tuchman’s (1965) theories, team communication is a method of development In a good team player, a good personality, self awareness, self development and motivation to carry out their responsibilities and roles perfectly and which is progressing are measure into 4 stage which are: In Forming, a leader will prepare to take their responsibilities, roles and read to build relationships and process with other member of teams and also be tolerant as the team will be meeting for the first time and they will be highly dependent on their leader for guidance and direction. The next stage will be Storming, this is where decisions do not come easily within a group as team member would want to use position to establish themselves which can bring challenging behaviour, conflict, uncertainties, disagreement from other team members and can ultimately result in some loss of focus on the goals or task. The other stage is Norming, this is where goals are clarified and accepted   by the leader and teams, here   decision are made and group members are strong and show commitment and unity. In the last stage which is the performing, this is where the team in St Patrick’s home could put in place as they will need to use strategic awareness, because at this stage they know clearly what to do as to improve in the area of working performance. In addition, group members’ disagreements should have resolved and achieved their goals. To met the performances and satisfaction of the organisation depends on collaborative team-working, it is a process of working together in a group in order to achieve a goal, put together their knowledge, skills and give accurate feedback and also able to manage their conflicts without affecting the job It is important to manage effective teams work in St Patrick’s Nursing home as staff members were often blamed for not communicating important messages to one another whilst on shift and also not handing over effectively at the end of their shift, and coming to work â€Å"just to do their shift and go home†.Building a team requires effort, knowledge, skills and it is an ongoing cyclical process. It is important as a group to lookout for things that could stop the members not to achieve their goals, for example, lack of clear goals can effect the team performance in the case where staff members fail to pass an important message to one another, this could cause problem in the case if an individual medication was changed during the shift and the staff was told to pass it on to the next person in charge, the ignorance to pass an important   message can put an individual health at risk.The interpersonal conflict and distrust can cause lack of trust, oppressiveness and comm unication and it can also slowdown day-to-day activities. It can stand in the way of resolving conflict that might arise as the group makes decisions. This can be overcome if the team focuses on the work and improve interpersonal skills in order to complete their task effectively; the team needs to appoint a team player that can be in charge to the supervisor and be accountable for the group performance, and this team player should be able to listen to members and be open to constructive criticism. In the area of handover, with good communication and cooperation, full details of all that happens in the shift must be discussed to the next person in charge to avoid risk to health. For example, giving proper handovers on each shift. In the handover, nurse in charge should give clear information and all members of staff should be present, and mandatory training for updating new skills on a yearly bases should be practices at at all times. (Armstrong, 2009). performance that can be monitored individual in the health and social care, can be managing team rate and performance of employees by meeting and improved target or goal that can meet in the area of team management, staff performance and individual care. Effective communication is seen   when team progress can be established through well decision making. The team that makes the right decision at the appropriate times will able to make the best decisions that can be of help. They must emphasise on advantages and disadvantages that will help   them meet their goals.Supervision can be seen when individuals assess their own personal effectiveness and line managers are closely involved in decision-making enabling them to have a clear target.Reflective is seen when a staff is able to reflect on its own thought; it the best way to develop the area that was not met. With this practice, staff is able to gain new skill and knowledge that they can be applied in their day-to-day work.An observation is where note will be taken into what has happened to the tasks that were given, whether it is going on the right direction or according to plan, in the case where the plan has not achieved the goals, there should be a feedback to strengthen the s tandard practice in place in order to enable self reflection and open dialogue between employee and management. .. Assessing individual training and development is an event that provides a learning and practice in order to prepare the workforce to motivate to jobs that will benefit the employees and employers. Training will help individuals understand their role, their responsibility in order to maintain skills and experiences in using the system, equipments and handling serviced users in the area of caring.Training and past experience can also help develop talent, capabilities and ability.To identify training and development needs, it can be information through colleagues or attitude on the responsibility on jobs role lack of ability to complete taskin the positive way the organisation can encourage employees by empowering them in the area of development to become independent, self motivating and self development. In order to promote continued development, it is the responsibility of the work place and it is an empolyees hard work in the organisation that can lead to increased performance and satisfaction and the ideal is to commit and creates a willingness that can build up exert effort for the organisation. An employer should create a way to encourage employee by providing learning aid and training to promote development (Armstrong and Baron, 1998). Leadership is a process of influencing the activities of an organised group in its effort towards goal setting and goal achievement† (Stogdill, 1950). Formanaging work relationship, it is important to have a good relationship with your boss and also colleagues.   Staffs need to communicate effectively and socialise with one another in the workplace. Communication is defined as the passing along of information and understanding from one person to another person or group, and this requires good listening which can sometimes be difficult as people intend to do the talking and to be a good listener, there is a need to look at the person face and body language. (Sussman, 1984). Making better relationship in St Patrick’s Nursing Home, the HR manager has to organise events such as christmas parties, staff meetings where they can discuss about work issues and socialise at the end of the meeting.  Ã‚   In most organisations, staff relationship affect the work as it is part of their life which makes them earn a living. (Lectures in Class). In health and social care setting, staff care about their clients and they still have to work home searching about illness or new information which they have come across or they phone their colleagues doing the same job communicating with them whether they knew this new information or they have heard about it.   If they find anything relating to this topic it would be passed on during handovers, or study days or staff meetings (Lectures in Class). Travers. W., A.   (1998), states that group meetings benefit employees as they would have better understanding of organisation and have greater influence on the decisions.A form of job enrichment and enlargement would improve morale and errors can be prevented My own development at my workplace has been influenced by management by actively participating in areas that will boost my confidence and skills at work: Effective communication is management-arranged training for all the staff based on improving communication skills among staff and clients under our care.   Also, documentation was made effective as a means to remind staff of their responsibilities and to create awareness of the need to communicate effectively. Reflective account empowered me to reflect on how effective my job role means and how to meet up with the work expectations.   It allowed to reflect on my strengths and areas of weaknesses that needs support from the management. Medication competency: This is the   gained knowledge during my studies and improved greatly working with others and management supports through training on medication competency. It includes how to minimise errors and undertake quarterly medication audit to make sure staff is working according to NMC and company guidelines. Supervision, this has been a great area for me to help and keep me on track with the company policies and procedures, awareness of my strength and weaknesses, to express my concerns regarding the job and most especially to discuss my personal development plans. These sessions had really helped me to improve my skills, Knowledge and awareness of changes for future development. In mydevelopment Plan, my goal is to excel from being a staff nurse to achieve a higher qualification in the future. With the aid of the management during supervision, I raised my concern and the management encouraged me to progress ahead.   I also had the opportunity to work flexible hours and source some information from the work place. Also he has to plan for recruiting and what are the reason for the expansion of St Patrick’s Nursing home and also to put in place plans for retirement, death, sickness holiday, termination, dismissal, materity. References Armstrong M and Baron A 1998, Armstrong’s Handbook of Reward Management practice improving performance through reward forth edition CIPDWelcome to smallbusiness.chron.com (online) Assessed 15/03/2014]. Welcome to leaders recruitment.co.uk (online) leadersinrecruitment.co.uk/ (Assessed, 14/03/2014). Oxford University Press 2014; Overview: behavioural observation scale Torrington .D. Hall .L. Taylor .S. Atkinson .c. (2009) welcome to hse.gov.uk (online) Available from hse.gov.uk/legislation/hswa.htm {Assessed, 26/5/2014} Lewis, C., 1985. Employee Selection. London: Hutchison, pp157 Beard, J., and Clayton, J., 2007. Human Resources Management 5th Edition. A Contemporary Approach.   Published in Great Britain 1994. Blundel, R., and Ippolito. , 2008. Effective organisation Communication. Third Edition.   Perspective, Principles and Practice. Published by Prentice Hall in 1996 in Great Britain. Cummins, T, G., and Worley, C, G., 2003. Organisation Development and Change. South Western Mason, Ohio. Sussman, L., and Deep, D., S COMEX: The communication Experience in Human Relations, Southwestern Publishing Co., Cincinnati, 1984 pp.3-4. Travers, A. W., 1998. Supervision Techniques and New Dimensions 2nd Edition.   Printed in the United States of America. Kolb, D, A., 1984. Experiential Learning. Experience as the source of learning and Development. Englewood Cliff N.J: Prentice Hall. Welcome manager menthelp.org   (online) Available http:/www.managermenthelp.org/staffing/hiring.htm#hire [Access,29/5/2014]

Writing to Friends and Family in French

Writing to Friends and Family in French Writing letters in French can be somewhat tricky because they require particular opening and closing conventions. Following some basic rules of French etiquette and grammar will help you find the correct expressions to use when writing to family, friends, or acquaintances. Following Conventions For personal correspondence, there are two important conventions in French letters: greetings and closings. The expressions you use depend on your relationship with the person you are writing to, particularly whether you know her personally. Also, consider whether to use  tu  or  vous- tu  is the familiar you,  while vous  is the formal greeting for you in French. Remember that these  French expressions do not always translate well into English. These are usable equivalents, rather than literal translations. Following are possible greetings and closings you can use, depending on whether you know the person. Greetings You can use these greetings either by themselves or with the salutation followed by the persons name. The greeting in French is listed on the left, while the English translation is on the right. French greetings can be particularly tricky. For example, the French title  Mademoiselle- literally my young lady- has long been used to distinguish between women, whether due to their age or marital status. Shopkeepers and bank clerks always greet female customers with a  polite  Bonjour, Mademoiselle  or  Bonjour, Madame. But in a letter, you have to assess  the womans age in order to choose the correct term, and that can prove challenging. You Do Not Know the Person​ MonsieurMonsieur xxx SirMr. xxx MadameMadame xxx Mrs. xxx MademoiselleMademoiselle xxx MissMiss xxx Messieurs Sirs You Do Know the Person​ Cher MonsieurCher Monsieur xxx Dear SirDear Mr. xxx Chre MadameChre Madame xxx Dear Mrs. xxx Chre MademoiselleChre Mademoiselle xxx Dear MissDear Miss xxx Chers amis Dear friends Chers Luc et Anne Dear Luc and Anne Chers grandsparents Dear Grandparents Mon cher Paul My dear Paul Mes chers amis My dear friends Ma trs chre Lise My dearest Lise Closings Closings in French letters can also be tricky, even in personal missives. To help you craft your closing correctly, the following chart uses the same conventions as the previous one: The closing is listed in French on the left, while the translation is on the right. To an Acquaintance​ Je vous envoie mes bien amicales penses Best wishes Recevez, je vous prie, mes meilleures amitis Yours sincerely Je vous adresse mon trs amical souvenir Kindest regards   To a FriendCordialement ( vous)Sincerely (yours)Votre ami dà ©vouà ©(e)Your devoted friendChaleureusementWith warm regardsBien  amicalementIn friendshipAmitià ©sBest wishes, Your friendBien des choses tousBest wishes to allBien vous, Bien toiBest wishes bientà ´t!See you soon!Je tembrasseLove / With loveBons  baisersLots of loveBises!Hugs and kissesGrosses bises!Lots of hugs and kisses Considerations These latter expressions- such as Bons  baisers  (Lots of love) and Bises! (Hugs and kisses)- might seem too informal in English. But, such closings are not necessarily romantic in French; you can use them with friends of the same or opposite sex.

Leadership and organisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Leadership and organisation - Essay Example Transformational leadership styles focus on motivation, team-building and collaboration with workers at different organizational levels to achieve for the better. Transformational leaders set incentives and goals to push subordinates to higher levels of performance, while offering opportunities for professional and personal growth for every worker (Hoyt & Blascovich, 2003). Transformational leadership concept is a very popular form of leadership. According to Burns (1985), transformational leadership is a process where leaders and followers rise together to higher levels of motivation and morality. A transformational leader is a model of fairness and integrity. They set clear goals, encourage others, possess very high expectations, offer recognition and support, encourage people to look beyond self-interest, stirs people’s emotions, and inspires other people to go for the improbable. According to Hoy & Miskel (2001), transformational leaders seek to recognize the need for change, concentrate on long-term goals, develop new visions and muster commitment to the vision, and mentor followers to embrace greater responsibility. Transformational leadership entails four essential components: idealized influence, which entails mutual trust and building respect through choosing the right thing rather than the expedient; inspirational motivation, which involves transmitting meaning via symbols and stories from which followers identify. It also helps followers to achieve the impossible through having high expectations; intellectual stimulation, in which workers are challenged to think and answer own questions; and individualized consideration, where people are recognized at their best when individual needs are considered, and accomplishments and efforts recognized and encouraged. These components make transformational leadership more effective

A Journal opinion article and address an economic issue of current

A Journal opinion and address an economic issue of current interest to Wall Street Journal readers - Article Example This has been faced by anti- austerity protests in these countries as common citizens suffer from the harsh effects of these measures (Navarro 345). This has left people wondering whether the austerity measures are really the way to go about the debts or whether does it just escalate the problem. Austerity measures were instituted in order to make it possible for the economy to recover in the long run. This comes with a major price: reductions of government spending results in increase in current unemployment rates, reduction in personal income and lowers the standard of living of the people. This is done with the hope that when the governments are able to overcome the debt problem and boost the economy, it will thus be possible to create more jobs and improve the standard of living of the people. The measures have been seen to work in some countries such as in Greece which has been able to achieve spending cuts of about 53% in the first half of this year. Although these measures may be seen to be working now in reducing spending their questions whether it will be possible for the countries to recover from the effect of these measures in the longrun. Experts say that the western economies have reached their peak of growth (Lynn, 345). If this is true, then it means that the economies are now on the down slope and it would not be possible for them to get back to the top. This means that the austerity measures would only make the living standards of the citizens of these countries deteriorate without any hopes for recovery. Take for instance the Greek strict measures that they have taken in the recent past. The Greek government has now announced that there will be no Christmas celebrations in this country (Anon, 230). This is based on the fact that peoples spending increases in times of celebration as people spend more on clothes, food and gifts rising the normal spending to

Religion and Identity Essay Example for Free

Religion and Identity Essay The question often arrived what is religion? There are more than one answer to this depending on one’s culture, identity, ethics and beliefs. Religion can be found in different cultures and throughout the whole period of human history. There is evidence that shows signs of religion such as animal spirits in art and human burials that suggest the belief in life after death. There have been many different answers and definition to what religion is (Van Voorst, 2013). According to Robert E. Van Voorst (2013), religion is â€Å"Pattern of beliefs and practices that expresses and enacts what a community regards as sacred and/or ultimate about life (pg.5). In addition to that, there is the separation of church and state. In America, the right to freedom of religion is very central to the American democracy that it was preserved in the First Amendment to the Constitution along with other rights such as freedom of speech and freedom of press. The country’s founders restrict the separation of church and state. This is due to the prohibition against government regulation or endorsement of religion. According to American Civil Liberties Union of Florida (2012), the standard of separation has been regularly tested. In early America, even after church establishment ended, some state legislators sought to revive the compulsory taxation of citizens to support religious institutions. In this century, public schools were once required to teach the biblical version of the earths and humanitys creation, while the scientific theory of evolution was prohibited. Throughout our history, sectarian advocates have tried to inject religious exercises, such as daily prayer, into the public schools. At times, religious minorities, including members of cults, have been discriminated against because of their beliefs. And today, many citizens in many communities disagree about whether a model of the infant Jesus in the manger, which officially promotes certain religious beliefs over others, should be displayed on the steps of City Hall. The courts must frequently consider where to draw the line that separates church and state ( ¶5). Religion is one of our most critical tradition and constitutional rights and must stand against anything that would challenge the standard of separation, which protects that freedom. Reid Temple African Methodist Episcopal Church was the group that I visited. Though it is not my own religious practice, it qualifies as a religion. Driving up to the church there is a sign that has the name of the church boldly written in LED lights. The welcome message display in red across the board says â€Å"All Are Welcome†. Inside of Reid Temple church they have a Cross as their symbol posted high where all can see. The service was nice with the choir singing praises to God and special prayer request were taken. After the service, I spoke with the Senior Pastor about his church and what exactly do they believe in. I was informed that their slogan is â€Å"Aiming to Please through the 5 E’s. This came from II Corinthians 5:9 which states â€Å"So whether at home or away, we make our aim to please Him. (RSV). The 5 E’s were described to me as â€Å"Evangelism which is sowing the seed of God’s Word in the hearts of all people. Empowerment which is bestowing love and guidance on believers to disciple them in fulfilling their purpose. Education which is knowing the will of God through study and obedience of His Word. Economics which is flowing in financial prosperity according to God’s wealth principles and Expansion which is growing in all ministry areas to reach the growing harvest of souls† ( Washington, L. Personal interview January 13, 2013). The cross is a reminder of their pledge and it also reminds them that Jesus died for their sins and to Him all praise is given. Buddhism also has a symbol such as the Dharmachakra which is the wheel of the law. The eight spokes on the wheel represents the eightfold path. The wheel is one of the most important Buddhist symbols because it symbolizes the teachings of Buddha. According to Thames Hudson (2004), The wheels motion is a metaphor for the rapid spiritual change engendered by the teachings of the Buddha: the Buddhas first discourse at the Deer Park in Sarnath is known as the first turning of the wheel of dharma. His subsequent discourses at Rajgir and Shravasti are known as the second and third turnings of the wheel of dharma. The eight spokes of the wheel symbolize the Noble Eightfold Path set out by the Buddha in his teachings. The wheel also represents the endless cycle of samsara, or rebirth, which can only be escaped by means of the Buddhas teachings. And some Buddhists regard the the wheels three basic parts as symbols of the three trainings in Buddhist practice: The hub symbolizes moral discipline, which stabilizes the mind. The spokes (usually there are eight) represent wisdom which is applied to defeat ignorance. The rim represents training in concentration, which holds everything else together ( ¶ 2 3). In the early days, the Dharmachakra not only symbolizes the teaching of Buddha but also Buddha himself. Today, it appears in the art of every Buddhist culture (para 5). Practicing religion can shape an individual and group identity. Take Buddhism for example that is followed by many Indians. This religion practices the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. The Four Noble Truths teaches that: 1. All life is suffering- this suggests that all beings experience suffering and that it can be ranged from great physical and mental pain to mild emotional unhappiness. Suffering originates from anger and sadness but then happiness is also suffering because it comes and goes. 2. The cause of suffering is desire- This suggests that humans want what they do not have and should not have. Humans’ personal desire for happiness is the cause of the suffering. 3. To end desire is to end suffering -which suggests that putting all craving and personal desires to an end will therefore end the suffering. This breaks the negative karma which leads to the 4th Noble Truth 4. To end desire- one must follow the Noble Eightfold Path. The Eightfold Path is : 1. The right to understanding which ends the concept of what one think is reality and see reality as it is. 2. The right to intention is where people must want to change before they can actually be change. 3. The right to speech which is speaking the truth at all times. 4. The right to conduct which means no killing, stealing, drinking, intoxicants and being sexual. 5. The right to livelihood which is working and living a life that does not cause others harm. 6. The right to effort which is developing a conscious free from craving. 7. The right to mindfulness which is to be aware and mindful and 8. The right to contemplation which is the deepening of mindfulness that leads to concentration and insight may be obtained (Van Voorst,2013). Practicing the Four Noble Truths and The Eightfold Path teaches and shape the followers of Buddhism. It is a way of life for them which teach them to take time to find out who they are and what they are all about. It is a guideline to ethical and menta l development. Shinto culture is another example of how practicing religion and shape individuals or groups. The people of Japan practices Shinto and is rooted in the people there and their traditions. The Shinto gods that are called kami are sacred spirits. These spirits can take form in things such as wind, rain, mountains, trees, rivers and fertility. Shinto religion believes that when a human dies they become a kami and is given back to their families and ancestral kami. There not a right from wrong in Shinto and their faith is based on being optimistic. The Shinto faith is blended with other beliefs such as that of Buddhism and Daoism. It does not have a founder, written documents, formalized ethics, system of beliefs, scripture or an organized system of theology but with the blend of Buddhism and Daoism, the Japanese culture now have a system of beliefs, written documents, founder, ethics and all that it was lacked before. It is still a central religion of Japan (Carroll, 2012). Shinto grounds are very sacred and behavior must be proper at all times. There are no food or drink allowed and there must be silence or hushed voices. Purity is important in Shinto and there is a certain procedure in washing your hands on mouth. Purity is important in pleasing the kami which brings a happy life. Van Voorst wrote that â€Å"Cleanliness in particular signifies a good character and freedom from bad external influences. In Western societies one hears the proverb â€Å"Cleanliness is next to godliness.† In traditional Japanese society cleanliness—of body, mind, and spirit, both ritual and practical—is godliness. To be in harmony with the kami, one must keep one’s person, home, and business clean† (pg 198). Religion has always been connected with government and politics. The Western world has a history of influence from Catholicism and Protestant rift. It is very similar to the history of some parts of Southern Asia that have been influenced by Islam. The interconnection of both religion and government is to be expected because both are regulating social behavior. During the past century, religion has been less influential. Modern governments have been influenced by Democratic philosophy which put importance of the average man and a sharing of the world’s resources. These ideas continue to shape modern society in different ways. For example, technology has drastically changed the nature of life and work. Traditional religious systems are gradually becoming less important. The trend towards secularism continues but has not been nearly as pronounced in the United States and regular church attendance started to decrease in the 1960’s and early 1970’s. It increased again post World War II period. There is only a small majority of Americans who thinks religion is of any importance in their lives (Federal Funding of Faith-Based Services, 2011). Many people know what religion is until they are asked to define it. Religion is a worldly thing, across many boundaries in human experience and so that makes it a bit hard to define. There are a few different definition of religion and many have different religious experience and understanding of Ultimate Reality. At Reid Temple, I asked the lady sitting next to me if she could tell what Ultimate Reality means. She said to her Ultimate Reality meant a personal relationship with God. In a different culture Ultimate Reality could mean spiritual growth or spiritual path. Not everyone is all about religion though. There are some cultures who prefer that their beliefs not to be subject as a religion but as a faith or teaching. There are some who argue that they are not religious but they are spiritual. References American Civil Liberties Union of Florida. (2012). Church and state. Retrieved from http://www.aclufl.org/take_action/download_resources/info_papers/3.cfm Carroll,B.J. (2012). Shinto basics. Retrieved from http://www.world-religions-professor.com/shinto.html Federal Funding of Faith-Based Services. (2011). Religion and public policy. Retrieved from http://www.newsbatch.com/religion.htm Thames Hudson. (2004). Reading Buddhist Art: an illustrated guide to Buddhist signs and Symbols. Retrieved from http://www.religionfacts.com/buddhism/symbols/wheel.htm Van Voorst, R.E. (2013). World relg. Student edition. Wadsworth, Cengage Learning. USA Washington, L.P. (2013). Reid Temple Senior Pastor. Personal Interview January 13, 2013.

Spacial-Temporal Continuum of Civilization and Man :: Science Scientific Essays

Spacial-Temporal Continuum of Civilization and Man ABSTRACT: Space and time are considered as attributive features of matter's social form movement that allow to incorporate structure into the world political processes. The notions of wholismatic time and space are established to determine world's entering into planetary interconnected condition. Social space and time are considerate in unity being as coordinates of man and civilization's existence. Methodological approaches to East and West civilization cooperation are defined through varieties of spaces being specified in different types of human activity. Man and civilization interaction is shown in context of future social time as well as choice of development type and modernization of society. A tendency of forming of united, whole world was clearly discovered in the late twenties century. Humanity has risen up to the development stage on which local connections between separate societies, nations and civilizations have grown into global interconnection on a planetary scale. Events that happen in any part of the planet have its direct or indirect influence on people's actions on all other continents. A number of scientists give interpretation that this phenomena is the beginning of new world civilization. Nevertheless, such hypothesis rather seems to be an aspiration for taking what you wish for what actually is. Genuine world civilization is a subject of a distant future. The actual level of social science does not let forecast on what basis it will exist and develop. The fact should be stated on a current stage of social process, that civilization today is not only limited social borderline, or one or several socio-ethnic communities living by themselves, but rather social bodies incorporated into united world process of peoples', states', and their communities' interaction. For purpose of selection of this stage inside of historical process, the terms of "wholismatic time" and "wholismatic space" might be proposed. (Originated from Greek "olos" that means "whole"). This application toward conceptions of time and space is not fortuitous. These allow giving order to complicated picture of changing world. It should be noted here that minded is not a natural time and space (they stay life conditions for man as a biological unit) but display of these attributive features of matter's movement on a social level. Social time and social space are connected with human activity and social relations. They exist in real human life and consequently reflect into people's consciousness. It looks important to distinguish the actual, perceptual and conceptual meaning of social time and space. Spacial-Temporal Continuum of Civilization and Man :: Science Scientific Essays Spacial-Temporal Continuum of Civilization and Man ABSTRACT: Space and time are considered as attributive features of matter's social form movement that allow to incorporate structure into the world political processes. The notions of wholismatic time and space are established to determine world's entering into planetary interconnected condition. Social space and time are considerate in unity being as coordinates of man and civilization's existence. Methodological approaches to East and West civilization cooperation are defined through varieties of spaces being specified in different types of human activity. Man and civilization interaction is shown in context of future social time as well as choice of development type and modernization of society. A tendency of forming of united, whole world was clearly discovered in the late twenties century. Humanity has risen up to the development stage on which local connections between separate societies, nations and civilizations have grown into global interconnection on a planetary scale. Events that happen in any part of the planet have its direct or indirect influence on people's actions on all other continents. A number of scientists give interpretation that this phenomena is the beginning of new world civilization. Nevertheless, such hypothesis rather seems to be an aspiration for taking what you wish for what actually is. Genuine world civilization is a subject of a distant future. The actual level of social science does not let forecast on what basis it will exist and develop. The fact should be stated on a current stage of social process, that civilization today is not only limited social borderline, or one or several socio-ethnic communities living by themselves, but rather social bodies incorporated into united world process of peoples', states', and their communities' interaction. For purpose of selection of this stage inside of historical process, the terms of "wholismatic time" and "wholismatic space" might be proposed. (Originated from Greek "olos" that means "whole"). This application toward conceptions of time and space is not fortuitous. These allow giving order to complicated picture of changing world. It should be noted here that minded is not a natural time and space (they stay life conditions for man as a biological unit) but display of these attributive features of matter's movement on a social level. Social time and social space are connected with human activity and social relations. They exist in real human life and consequently reflect into people's consciousness. It looks important to distinguish the actual, perceptual and conceptual meaning of social time and space.

Blackfeet: Native Americans in the United States and Blackfoot Tribe Essay

The Blackfeet or Blackfoot is a Native American tribe that was originally located in Canada, Montana, and Idaho. The majority of the tribe is located in Alberta, Canada, where three of the four Blackfeet bands are established. The Blackfeet can be found in the Great Plains, around many rivers and mountains. Some of these rivers include the Yellowstone River and the Missouri River. Also, just east of the Rocky Mountains, a major boundary in the past, members of the Blackfeet have been spotted. Although the area did not get much rainfall, the climate was relatively warm. Presently, a Blackfoot reservation can be located in Montana, east of the Glacier National Park. In the past the population was around 5,200 people, but has now grown to about 32,234 members. The Blackfeet took their weapons and the topic of warfare very seriously. They were the best hunters, fighters, and raiders in the Great Plains and often times found themselves at war with their rivals, the Shoshone. Regarding weapons, the Blackfeet traditionally used 3-foot long bows made of horn and arrows held in otter skin quivers. Other weapons included war clubs, guns, and buffalo hide shields. During a raid or battle, the Blackfoot warriors were honored for taking a horse or a scalp, but it was even better if they stole a gun. Before a battle, the Blackfoot tribe would do a variety of things, such as calling upon spiritual powers, singing war songs, and using face paint, lucky charms, and war medicine. People of the Blackfoot tribe wore a certain type of clothing. The woman donned long deerskin dresses, while the men clothed themselves in buckskin tunics with breechcloths that had leggings sewn into them. Most of the people wear feathers in their hair, but only for special occasions, like dances or festivals. Blackfoot dresses and war shirts were often decorated with porcupine quills, elk teeth, and beads. The entire tribe wore moccasins and buffalo hide robes in the winter. However, chiefs of the tribe wore a different type of clothing, sometimes tall feather headdresses and decorated robes. Today, the Blackfoot tribe can be found wearing modern clothing, like jeans. In order to feed their families and survive the Blackfeet had to hunt for their food. Buffalo meat was a staple in their diet. They prepared it by either boiling, roasting, or drying it. If dried, the buffalo meat was stored in rawhide pouches. Another staple was pemmican, a mixture of ground buffalo meat, service berries, and marrow grease. The Blackfeet used pemmican in the winter when live buffalo were scarce. While the Blackfeet men were out hunting large game, like deer, elk, moose, mountain sheep, antelope, and buffalo, the women could be found collecting roots, turnips, and camas bulbs. To supplement their diet, the Blackfeet preferred to use berries. The history and culture of the Blackfoot tribe provides valuable insight into the tribe’s peoples’ diet, warfare, clothing, and location. Through studying this tribe, present-day people are allowed to learn more about the importance of this particular tribe.

I Really Enjoy Family Time.

Griselda Soto English 99 Dennis Pearson 04/16/13 I really enjoy family time. Family is not an important thing, it’s everything. There are people who put work first, or anything else before their family. I personally think there is nothing more important than family. Because, what is the purpose to live just to work? In the end of our lives, we are not going to be able to take anything with us. There is nothing else I enjoy more than spending quality time with my daughters.I believe that by spending quality time with them, I can take advantage of the situation and teach them good values. Even I learn a lot from them because they always teach me the importance of appreciating little things in life. One of the things I love the most from them is that they always remind me that I have to live life to the moment. Unlike most adults, children find joy in almost everything as riding a bike, reading a book, or even by drawing a picture. That is one of the main reason I enjoy so much s pending time with my daughters. They always give me joy.When I see My daughters smile it's when I know they are having fun, for me that worth more than all the money in the world. My daughters always amuse me and fill me with joy. They taught me that no matter what you do, as long as you use your imagination everything could be fun. So I always do my best to put in first place what really matters in my life because life goes in the blink of an eye. That's why I put first what is truly meaningful in my life. I have learned a lot from my daughters, for example: To always take advantage of any situation.

Project Management Plan

Project Management Plan Free Online Research Papers Project Management Plan Paper There will be several things that will be identified within this paper. The companies that are involved in this paper are American Bank of Indiana (ABI) and the First American Financial Services group (FAFS). The two banks are going to a merger and some of the risks that have came up during this time is how they can merge in a timely manner and how to avoid any risks that are going to be involved at that time. Something that will be explained in this paper is how the changes will be managed by the management team and how these risks can be avoided from happening. Management is looking at coming into this merger while there is a project already being worked on at this time. I will explain how the management team is going to work through this situation. Within this paper it will be explained how management will measure the project risks and also explaining how the project closure should take place when completed. ABI currently is headquartered in Indiana and employees over 1,800 employees. They currently have over 500,000 customers, with 28 branches and over 80 ATM’s located throughout Indiana. ABI has become one of the most successful banks and has been currently working on a project called â€Å"Project Integra.† This project consists of putting all of there current services on a financial software. The project is currently being outsourced to FAFS. The project team also consists of outside contractors that will be involved with the project. The merge between the two companies will take over six months to take place and may be hard for this project team to retrieve the necessary resources to complete the project. Management Responses Identification FAFS needs to have involvement during this project, along with making sure that there is enough on the job training for their current team members. FAFS is also working on other projects so it is necessary that management should not expect them to be available when it comes to this project. Something that needs to be discussed with the management team right away is that FAFS should let the management team from ABI know that they are not always available right away, because of this fact of working on other projects. Something that needs to be done is that there has to be communication between the two management teams. Anything that needs to be discussed should be brought up when it comes to the commitment of ABI’s project. Something that has been an issue is the network equipment that belongs to ABI. The company is already above the cost and with the issues with the network costs this is adding more costs to the budget that was not figured in for the project. In order for ABI to avoid this management team should have created a â€Å"Change Control Board.† This would have evaluated any cost increases and there would have been a reserve within the budget for such issues. The database personnel have had a weak commitment to this project and the project manager needs to deal with this first. Management had requested for help from the database specialists and now they need to deal with how to help fix the problems that have risen from these specialists not having the commitment to the project. In order for the project to move forward on this project they need to be able and plan and they can not do this without the commitment that is needed from everyone involved. If the project manager arranges meetings this can help reorganize the processes and then they can decide on how they will complete the project. With having these meetings this can also help with commitment in the project and coming to a completion of the project. Project Schedule Define Scope Define Requirements Hold a meeting with all necessary parties and discuss project and schedule Get approvals for the project from the correct parties Develop a staffing plan Develop the schedule Develop the project budget Develop a communication plan Review the content of the project for quality Conduct a post-project review These are the main points that should be done when it comes to the project schedule. The management team should look at these things and decide what else they may need to add to the schedule as they are working through the project. There should be timeframes for everything when it comes to the project schedule and when each category will be completed. Weighting Perceived Risk There are going to be several risks involved with planning a project management plan. A major source of risk in project management is inaccurate forecasts of project costs, demand, and other impacts (Flyvbjerg, 2006). Several risks that were established during this simulation are: resource constraints, skills and competency, dependency on FAFS for design inputs, availability systems and standards, legacy systems and standards, infrastructure problems, natural or manmade disasters, technology obsolescence, change in management priorities, lack of team synergy and commitment. The risk management plan that I have included is something that management should look at in order to avoid risks during the implementation and completion of the project. Since the company is looking at the future of both ABI and FAFS, these companies have been looking to outsource this project due to not have commitment of the database specialists. There have been risks so far and there is a chance of more risks if the companies outsource the project to another company. If they would happen to outsource there is the chance of overtime that was not anticipated, delays in the schedule, or even the chance of the costs going over budget. This is something that the project manager needs to look at and then assign the correct staff to the project. He could assign the IT staff to make sure that they are monitoring the project and also help the outsource company where needed. They can also assist in retrieving any reports that the outsourcing company may need. An example would be that management may be able to split up these things to be able to satisfy the constraints. In any case, management must be aware of the constraints before any of these alternatives can be considered, and cost effective decisions made (Just Murphy, 1994). Project Integra could hold several risks for these companies. Management needs to look at these risks to avoid them. The types of risks that they could possibly be looking at are things such as not addressing these skills and competency gaps with their internal and external customers when changing to the new systems. They should make sure that their customers have been informed of this change and provide the necessary resources for training and any knowledge base issues they may have with the new system. Future Risks There is the chance that with the new system that more risks may arise over time. Having everyone up to date on the system and providing necessary training is important when to businesses such as ABI and FAFS are merging into one. Customers will be concerned with these changes and should be informed how this new system may affect them when it is completed. Management needs to make sure that everyone understands the processes and how it is going to fixed when an issue does happen. The management team needs to be prepared for any unforeseen issues. There is the risk of losing customers if they are not informed in advance of what is going on and this could possibly have an impact on the company’s reputations. Measuring Project Risk The project manager needs to make sure that he is directing them In order to complete the efforts of Project Integra the project manager needs to make sure that his employees are being directed in the correct direction. The performance of this project is important and that it is recognized along with all of the elements of the project. Changes as such can be implemented, but there has to be knowledge of the project and the information needs to be provided. Some that is not a major concern is that performance management and the collection of any data that is needed or associated with the project, which is predefined within the performance goal. There are two things that should be looked at when it comes to this project and that is the delivery and the quality of the project in the end. The standard measures should have some impact on the project goals. These measures should be defined in the beginning before the project has been started. The person that is leading this project should be able to obtain what the actual results should be from this measure. With this process these things will be done through increased efficiency and effectiveness of the processes and the product enhancement. The projects outcome is going to come from the performance management of the project. The companies goal is to be able to manage the outcome along with making sure there is reduced or no variance in the work product or process. The project manager is the person who will be in charge. He/she will be making sure that there is output from the staff managers and that the project is progressing as it should. The project manager will also help the employees get involved in the project and help them understand the goals and why it is important for them to achieve these goals. The project manager will be the one to explain why these changes need to be done, how the company will complete the project and what will be the impact in the end from the project. Process performance may be an early warning signal of downstream problems in a project’s quality, time, or productivity (Syamil, Doll, Apigian, 2004). The performance elements and standards should be considered SMART which stands for: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. These are critical elements in which employees should be held accountable for their work. Performance plans should be done for all employees that are involved on the projects and should be flexible so that there can be adjustment or changes made if needed. Feedback should be available from all employees. This feedback will help these employees are achieving their goals and how to work in groups. A project manager should be able to look at the project performance indicators and then make a decision on how he will make things better when it comes to the customer’s satisfaction, developmental costs and the manufacturing profits of the company. Each link in this product concept to economic value chain is pivotal to the economic value of the project (Syamil, Doll, Apigian, 2004). Without monitoring these things and doing this continually, the manager will then be able to identify if there is unacceptable performance during the project and will then be able to provide assistance where needed. The project manager will also be able to increase training if needed and also introduce new skills for the higher level of responsibilities. There are several things that the project manager can do when it comes to the qualifications of the employees and by providing them with skills that will strengthen their ability to work on the project. In order to have effective management the behavior of employees should be controlled, if it is not then there should be consequences in the end. These can be formal, informal or even positive or negative with the employees. Project Closure Approach There are many things that project managers need to do especially when it comes to project closure. They may have all of the things when it comes to starting a project and also when it comes to working through the project. How often do they look at things when it comes to closing the project? The following things should be looked at when it comes to closing the project. These few points are important because the two companies need to understand the way that they do proper synchronization of their companies while merging. A project manager needs to look closely at the completion of the project, the post project analysis, the releasing resources, but something that is very important is that they need to make sure that they close out the work orders. This needs to be done for financial reasons to help the company be stable in their financial status. â€Å"Project success or failure often depends on management’s ability to handle personnel issues properly during this final phase. If job assignments beyond the current project look undesirable or uncertain to project team members, a great deal of anxiety and conflict may develop that diverts needed energy to job hunting, foot dragging, or even sabotage. Project personnel may engage in job searches on their own and may leave the project prematurely. This creates a glaring void that is often difficult to patch (Kerzner, 2003).† The management team needs to encourage their employees to learn this new software once it is implemented within the companies. Often leadership does not do these things and this will help everyone to accept the changes especially if management is there when they use hands on training for their employees. This will help the employees along with their people in customer service because they will understand what is expected of their job. With the development of this software there will be a schedule of events and changes. These changes and events will help employees appreciate what is coming of the new software. Conclusion With this project and making sure that it has been implemented successfully, this is something that ABI has made sure that has happened. ABI is making sure that both themselves and FAFS are prepared when it comes to the changes and how they will be successful they will be in the end. Management has stepped up to the plate to make sure that all of their employees are up to speed on the software and how it will impact their jobs and what will also be expected of them in the end. With this project if the correct steps are followed the merger of these two companies will be successful along with the implementation of the software being a success for both companies. This will help these companies grow as one in their future. With this project the project manager is looking at a lot of things that need to be done. If these things are not done this project could become to be a failure for the company especially as these companies are merging into one. Being prepared for implementation of this project is very important to the manager and this is going to help the company in the future be successful. This will not only be when the merger happens, but in years to come. The company needs to do what is going to be best for their reputation and how they are going to be the number one company in the nation. References Flyvbjerg, B. (2006). From Nobel Prize to Project Management Getting Risks Right. Project Management Journal, 37(3), 5-15. Retrieved February 12, 2010, from ProQuest database. Just, M.R., Murphy, J.P. (1994). The effect of resource constraints on project schedules. Transactions of AACE International: Transactions, 1994, DCL2.1. Retrieved February 12, 2010, from ProQuest database. Kerzner, H. (2003). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling, 8e Chapter 11: Planning: John Wiley Sons, Inc. Syamil, A., Doll, W.J., Apigian, C.H. (2004). Process performance in product development: measure and impacts. European Journal of Innovation Management, 7(3), 205-217. Retrieved February 12, 2010, from ProQuest database. Research Papers on Project Management PlanThe Project Managment Office SystemAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaResearch Process Part OneMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceTwilight of the UAWDefinition of Export QuotasBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfOpen Architechture a white paper

Which AP Classes Should You Take Planning Guide

Which AP Classes Should You Take Planning Guide SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips So you’ve decided you want to add an AP class to your schedule. Maybe you want to take even more than one! Good for you – taking AP classes is a great way to start challenging yourself in high school. Now comes the hard part: choosing which AP class (or classes) you should take. This guide will walk you through different factors to consider and help you decide on the best AP classes to take. What Steps Should You Take When Deciding on AP Classes? There's a lot more to choosing AP classes than just choosing a course that sounds interesting or that your friends are taking. AP classes can have big benefits, like strengthening your college applications and earning you college credit. However, if you don't choose your AP classes wisely, you could end up in a class that is overwhelming, boring, and/or drags down your GPA because you can't get a high grade in it. By carefully considering which AP classes to take, you can maximize the benefits you get from them while minimizing the drawbacks. Below are six steps you should take to ensure you've considered all the major factors needed for choosing the best AP classes for you. #1: Consider Your Strengths Before you even look too closely atyour school’s available classes, start by thinking about what topics interest you and which subjects you tend to do well in. AP classes can be very difficult even if you're interested in the subject material, so it would be especially challenging to get yourself to study for something you really dislike, even if you think taking a particular AP class will look good on a college application. Instead, you should aim for AP classes that you are interested in and think you can do well in. Explore our list of AP classes to get started. Also think about your favorite classes so far in high school or even back in middle school. Classes you enjoy are a good predictor of the type of AP class you will like and do well in. #2: Learn What Prerequisites You Need Once you have considered your own personal strengths, also think about classes you have taken that could prepare you for an AP class. You shouldn’t jump into an AP class unprepared! Often your school will mandate prerequisites anyway, like requiring pre-calculus before you can take AB or BC Calculus. Some schools even require you to take a placement test to get into certain AP classes! If your school doesn’t have prerequisites, or if you’re having a hard time deciding between classes, think about all of your past preparation. It can be more than just one prior class. For example, if you’ve taken honors English each year since seventh grade and also write on the school newspaper, you would likely be well prepared for AP English Language or AP English Literature. Conversely, say you took Honors Biology last year and didn’t do too well. AP Biology will probably be challenging for you, even though you technically have the prerequisite under your belt. So unless you like biology and are up for the challenge, you shouldn’t force yourself through AP Bio just because you think it will look good on your transcript. In short, consider both your school’s mandatory prerequisites and your own broader preparation. Try and aim for classes you think you are very prepared for, especially if this is your first AP class! Since in an AP class, you will also have to learn how to study for a cumulative exam – in other words a single test that covers a year of material – you should make sure your first AP class is in a subject you do well in. Don’t underestimate the added challenge of the AP exam. #3: Consider Other Skills Certain AP Classes Will Require In this discussion about prerequisite courses, you might be wondering about AP courses like Human Geography, Economics, Computer Science, Psychology and Statistics, which often don’t have direct prerequisites. When considering those classes, think about the skills you have built up – because again, even if your school doesn’t have a prerequisite for those AP classes, you still shouldn’t walk in unprepared. Learning to code in Java for AP Computer Science will likely be a brand new experience, so you should come prepared with strong logic and problem-solving skills! For example, if you want to take Computer Science, Statistics, or Economics, a strong math background is important. Even though you won’t spend tons of time in those classes solving equations, the logic and skills you learn in math classes are necessary to take on CS or Economics. For Psychology, think about how well you do in science and social studies, and also consider how good you are at memorizing things, since you’ll have to master the structure of the brain. For Human Geography, consider how well you do in geography and history courses and whether you enjoy them. Also consider your ability to take a broad idea and apply it to a concrete case study – as an example, are you able to pick out patterns in historical events? This is a skill you will need for Human Geography. To learn more about individual AP courses and the material they cover, see the AP student website. As you read course descriptions, think about how they relate to other classes you have taken and the skills you have. #4: Learn What Specific AP Classes Are Like at Your High School You should also consider which classes are offered at your school and what their reputations are when choosing AP classes. For example, at my high school in Salt Lake City, AP BC Calculus was known as a challenging class with lots of homework. During the second semester, you had to take it for two class periods! In contrast, AP Physics was seen as laid-back, and students were expected to manage most of the studying on their own. Students who needed structure thrived in Calculus, while others who liked to work more independently did well in Physics. But the reverse was also true – some students got burned out by BC Calc, and others didn’t have the motivation to study for Physics and so even though they passed the class, they failed the AP test. That AP Physics class was also famous for building trebuchets and testing them out during school hours. In short, teachers approach AP courses differently. Some expect their students to manage their own studying, like in a real college course. Others make sure their students are prepared by assigning a ton of work. As you choose AP classes and learn about their reputations at your school, think about your own study habits and what kind of classroom environment will help you do your best. There are many other school-specific factors to consider: who teaches the AP classes? What are their pass rates? How hard are the classes themselves to pass? How many students take the class each year? These are questions you can take to your guidance counselor, the AP teachers themselves, teachers who teach the prerequisite classes, or even upperclassmen friends. (Though don’t rely just on student word-of-mouth, since it can be biased!) If your school is adding an AP class for the first time this year, think carefully before taking it – it’s always tough teaching a class for the first time, especially an AP class. There might be some growing pains that first year as the teacher works out the curriculum. Veteran AP teachers are often a safe bet, because they will have strategies for preparing students for the exam. Often they will be involved in AP grading as well, so they will have lots of insight into how to pass the test. #5: Think About How Busy You Are AP classes are big time commitments, especially in the spring (see our post on test dates for tips on dealing with the spring time test crunch). Some teachers require extra study sessions, including on the weekends, to give you time to take practice tests. So before signing up for a slew of AP classes, think about the other commitments you already have. Especially if you have a very time-consuming sport or extracurricular activity, taking more than two or three AP classes could overload your schedule. Even if you have friends who are taking several AP courses, don't feel like you have to keep up with them. Keep your own strengths and limitations in mind. It’s better to pass two exams than to fail four! If you’re not sure if you’ll have the time to take on an AP class, talk to your parents/guardians (or a guidance counselor or teacher if you have a good relationship) for advice. Also find out if you will be able to switch out of the course mid-year if you realize you don’t have enough time for it. #6: Think About Which APs Best Fit Your College and Career Goals AP Exams are a great way to begin exploring future college and career options. They are also a great way to signal on your college applications that you are considering what you want to study in college and are developing the skills for college classes. When I was in high school, I was positive I wanted to study political science or international relations in college. So in addition to activities like Debate and Model United Nations, I also took AP classes like Statistics, World History, US History, US Government, Human Geography, and Environmental Science. All of these courses helped me explore topics and issues that college political science courses tackle, and also gave me skills – from the ability to analyze a poll to being able to break down an article’s viewpoint and bias – that prepared me for political science. Remember to keep your end goal in mind! On my college applications, I was able to show my interest in political science with both my extracurricular activities and the advanced classes I was taking. In addition to my test scores and GPA, being able to show colleges I was serious about what I wanted to study helped me be successful during the application process. In short, think about your future goals and how your class choices now can support them. AP classes are a concrete way to demonstrate on your applications that you are serious about a certain major and have the skills to pursue it. To take another example, if you want to be a doctor, tackling AP Biology and AP Chemistry can give you a taste of what the pre-med major will be like, and you can get a sense of whether you would be up for it. It will also show college admissions officers that you are serious about pre-med. If you’re stuck between two AP choices that otherwise seem good (you’ve taken the prerequisites and they have good teachers), go with the one that you think will be more relevant to your major or future goals. Also keep in mind that taking an AP Language exam, if you’re ready, is a great way to show second language proficiency to colleges. Many colleges offer credit for AP language, so it can free up time for other classes. Summary: The Best AP Classes for You We've covered a lot of important factors in determining which AP courses are the best for you to take. You should first look to your strengths and prerequisites to see what you naturally have a good shot at doing well in. Then, you should look at your personal schedule and find out the reputation of AP classes at your school to figure out which classes you can handle, and which ones are out of reach. Finally, you should consider what kind of applicant you want to appear as to colleges. This will help you plan your coursework to support your goals. What’s Next? Learn more about how AP exams are scored to help you choose. Also check out our post about how many AP classes you should take for advice on an AP schedule for the most selective schools. If you’re serious about APs, you should also be thinking about the SAT and ACT. The first step is deciding which test to tackle, which you can do with our guide. Once you’ve chosen between the ACT and SAT, come up with a target score to help you study! Use our guides for the SAT and ACT to come up with a score based on your top choice schools. If you're shooting for the Ivy League, learn more about the kind of scores you will need. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Democracy and human rights in asia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Democracy and human rights in asia - Essay Example As far Asian and Western culture is concerned, it can be studied in two ways along wise that is dogmatic or communal (Bell, 2000, pg. 67). If one has to pen down the social uplifts in both these cultures, then morally and ethically Western culture is far behind in moral norms as compared to Asian averages. West has by far with an approach being not keeping abreast of religious medians in political implementations. Religious medians are more expressive and demanding regarding the human uplifts and hominid elevations. Although West has totally defined human rights and since by far trying reach the best of its output but the limitations and boundaries set by such Western liberalism is not apprehend able by a nonprofessional. Western democracy is somehow a kind of dictatorship where only those can survive easily who are in relation to those liberal rights designers from the perspective of religion. Western liberal democracy does not render a true platform to followers of a certain minority religion holder to apply their values openly while living in such states. Roseau stated that the big the state is; the more difficult it would be to run it with democracy where rights and thoughts of every person are valued. Asian democracies in political perspectives although not very successful in certain countries of the world but their values for upholding a pure socially upgraded and esteemed are far fruitful than those of Western ones. Liberal democracies are true pictures of autonomy, copious, supremacy, and genuine build-ups. Therefore, simply if these attributes are existed in any democratic state either western or eastern that state would be more appropriate in building up a pure social and human rights building state. Asian democratic sates are individual value based set ups with power of legitimate enactments. There is a conflict in human rights and societies dimensions in both cultures because as far the individual is satisfied and pro-active the more that society

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

Rabies - Research Paper Example Different health organizations define rabies according to their respective perspectives. The Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDCP, 2010) define rabies as a â€Å"preventable viral disease of mammals most often transmitted through the bite of a rabid animal† (par. 1). The World Health Organization (WHO, 2010) states its meaning as â€Å"a zoonotic disease (a disease that is transmitted to humans from animals) that is caused by a virus† (par. 1). While the Mayo Clinic (Mayo Foundation, 2010) avers that â€Å"rabies is a deadly virus spread to people from the saliva of infected animals. The rabies virus is usually transmitted through a bite† (par. 1). Integrating these definitions, rabies is found to be a deadly but preventable disease caused by a virus transmitted to humans through the saliva of infected animals. The animals clearly identified to contain the dreaded virus range from raccoons, bats, skunks, foxes, cats and dogs, among others. As indicated in the definition, rabies is caused by a virus (of the genus Lyssavirus and family Rhabdoviridae) contracted through a bite from an infected animal. According to Fisher (2008, par. 9), â€Å"when the rabies virus enters muscles, it replicates locally and is then transported through peripheral sensory nerves to the spinal ganglia, where it replicates and travels up the spinal cord to the brain. The virus migrates to the gray matter of the brain and predominates in the neurons of the limbic system, midbrain, and hypothalamus. Efferent nerves transport virus to the acinar glands of the submaxillary salivary glands, where it achieves high concentration†. People who live in rural areas are most at risk in contracting rabies. Children, most especially, those who play in the streets are at a higher risk of being bitten by stray dogs. Further, medical practitioners, such as veterinarians and wildlife researchers or specialists, need to be vaccinated to