Developing a Perfomance Appraisal System Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Developing a Perfomance Appraisal System - Essay Example Federal and state laws have added to the complexity and difficulty of appraisal plans. Criteria for compliance with equal employment opportunity laws are stringent. Management needs to design and operate its appraisal systems carefully in order to comply with these laws. A generation ago, appraisal programs tended to emphasize employee traits, deficiencies, and abilities, but modern appraisal philosophy emphasizes present performance and future goals. Modern philosophy also stresses employee participation in mutually setting goals with the supervisor and knowledge of results. Thus the hallmarks of modern appraisal philosophy are as follows: 2. Focus on goals or objectives - as the discussion of MBO shows, employees need to have a clear idea of what they are supposed to be doing and the priorities among their tasks; as the saying goes," If you know where you want to go, you are more likely to get there." 3. Mutual goal setting within supervisor and employee - this is the belief the people will work harder for goals or objectives that they have participated in setting. Among their desires are perform a worthwhile task, share in a group effort, share in setting their objectives, share in the rewards of their efforts and continue personal growth. The (Theory Y) assumption is that people want to satisfy some of their needs through work and that they will do if management will provide them with a supportive environment. 4. Clarification of behavioral expectations - this is often done via a behavioral anchored rating scale (BARS), which provides the employee and the manager with concrete examples of various levels of behaviors. Brief descriptions of outstanding, very good, acceptable, below average and unacceptable behaviors are specified for each major dimension of a job, thuis cueing the employee in advance regarding the organization's expectations. BARS helps reduce manager's tendency to focus on attitudes, personality, and nquirks of an employee and shift emphasis toward productive behaviors. 5. Extensive Feedback Systems - employees can fine-tune their performance better if they know how they are doing in the eyes of the organization. Most organizational appraisal systems requires supervisors to assess employees on various aspects of their productivity, behavior, and or personal traits. Examples of these three dimensions include quality of work and quantity of output, attendance and initiative and general attitude. Many appraisal systems also point toward both historical performance and the individual's potential for growth and advancement. The actual forms and procedures used for assessing this information vary widely. Some organizations ask supervisors to write essays describing the employee's performance; others recommend that they accumulate a record of incidents both positive and negative; mant firms use various types of graphic rating scales that grade employees on A-B-C-D-E or 1-2-3-4-5 systems. Regardless of the system used, the assessment is then communicated to the employee through the appraisal interview. This is a session

Final Proposal Essay Example for Free

Final Proposal Essay In 2009 the Arena Football League ran into financial trouble. The league has since been purchased and now looks ready to reemerge as a more financially secure business. Some said the AFL tried to do too much too soon. With a large television contract on a major network, and eighteen game regular season and player salaries well into six figures, I would agree. The league couldnt control cost, so they couldnt make money. The problem wasn’t fan interest and low attendance; it was a league working outside of their means. By watching, and experiencing some of these mistakes I will help with a model to develop a second tier indoor football league. My model will not try and do too much too fast. I will attempt to find ways to reduce expenditures. There have been many indoor leagues and indoor league franchises that have folded or shut down operations. One way I will try and save on start-up expenses is approach these teams and leagues to try and purchase some of those assets. These assets may include equipment like helmets and shoulder pads or even the turf to lie down inside the arena with the dasher pads that cover the walls to protect the players. Finding these items at low cost will help in the long run. Arena football is perfect for many people. The hard core football fan will like the hard hitting, and quick scoring. Families like arena football, because its an inexpensive way to bring the family to a sporting event, and the players are more accessible then NFL players. Its a fun summer time activity that everyone can enjoy. I will make sure that merchandise and tickets remain at an affordable price so that many families can feel that they are going out for an affordable evening of entertainment and they can feel comfor table bringing the entire family. I will start ticket prices at seven dollars per single game. With a home schedule of six games we can begin marketing season passes at just forty-two dollars. The average cost for a family to attend an NFL game can cost hundreds of dollars. A single premium ticket to see the New York Giants in 2012 costs $ 464.75. However, Team Marketing Report bases its findings on average ticket prices, and in 2012 that runs at $78.38, or $313.53 for four. (Yahoo sports 2012) A family can purchase several season passes and  attend every home game with the family as opposed to purchasing tickets to just one NFL game. The average cost of just one beer is $7.28. Football fans are no longer limited to just Budweiser and Miller when they go to the stadium. According to Esquire’s â€Å"NFL Stadium Food Power Rankings,† many craft brews are available at NFL games, including Goose Island Honkers Ale and Red Bridge Gluten-Free beer. On average, NFL fans can expect to pay $7.28 for a small beer at the stadium. The most expensive are found at San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium and Buffalo’s Ralph Wilson Stadium, where the cost is $9. The study assumes two beers will be purchased, or $14.56. (Yahoo sports 2012) I will work out a way for vendors and the arenas to get those costs down. Some arenas and other venues do not allow a fan tailgate in order to get those paying customers inside. I will make sure the leagues venues allow a pregame atmosphere where fans can bring their own refreshments and not have to worry about high costs inside. The average cost of a hot dog is $4.84. There is no substitute for a good old fashioned hot dog. According to Team Marketing Report, that’s $4.84 or $19.36 for four. (Yahoo sports 2012) Parking fees are always a major concern when attending major sporting events like NFL games. Sports venues are often accessible by mass transit, but many will still drive to games. The average cost for parking is $27.35. (Yahoo sports 2012) We have to find a way to get these costs down and encourage our fans to drive to and park at the arenas. It’s hard for some NFL fans to leave the game without taking some merchandise home. Team jerseys and caps are popular choices. We definitely want our merchandise to be affordable so that our brand and logo gets out into the community. The report found that the average price for a cap is $21.38, and to keep the kids happy, two will be purchased for $42.76. (Yahoo sports 2012) There has to be a way to get these costs down. The averages add up to nearly 500 dollars for a family of four. This is a very expensive afternoon or evening out. That is a lot of money for the average family to spend in a single afternoon and discouraging for families working a tight budget. Arena football is fun, hard hitting and high scoring and must be an affordable venture for families to enjoy. In order for a franchise like this to be successful, the right people in the right places doing the right things is essential. The owners must place executives in the right positions to lead. The General manager is a position that has a lot of duties, they must make sure the marketing and sales staff is in place, they must also hire a director of football operations, this persons job could have many duties as well, in most organizations this person handles game day operations, scheduling, travel, and player relations. There is also the head coach, he oversees the coaching staff and delegates those responsibilities. A budget must be managed, the right coaching staff and player personnel must be in place, the right players have to be chosen, and the team must be marketed and advertised in a correct way. I will be presenting to the board the addition of a couple of programs and personnel important for an indoor football team that may get overlooked. That operation will be a Game Day Staff and Ops crew. We will need a game day staff to help coordinate half time and down time events in order to keep fans involved. We need this staff to help time out a game day script that will tell coaches and players when they can and can’t be on the field and will allow the sponsorship staff a guide to offering sponsorships as they can determine how much exposure they will receive. They will also coordinate with team sponsors on promotional events like a T-shirt toss or game day give away. Some sponsors will like their logo and name on noisemakers or small footballs that get tossed into the crowd. We will need an assistant to the equipment manager and trainer. There is equipment that needs to be transported from the team’s offices to the arena on every game day. There needs to be someone to help set up the locker rooms for the players and coaches as well as the referees and visiting teams. This will include handing out game day equipment and uniforms as well as making sure water coolers and bottles are filled for in the locker room and bench areas. We will need to hire a Director of Football operations who can oversee these areas, in addition to these responsibilities the director will be in charge of updating the website with stats and news as well as player transactions. The director will also handle travel arrangements for the team and hotel accommodations for the visiting teams as well as team meals for both. The  presence of a director of football acts as an intermediary between the general manager and the board and may relieve pressure on a manager by handling aspects away from day-to-day coaching, allowing a manager to focus on performance. In general, the director of football operations is not a shareholder in the club, or holds a nominal stake. This is opposed to other members of the board with whom the director of football will sit. This allows an impartial go-between that will not have biased views. The level of power and influence in the day-to-day and transfer operations of the club held by a director of football may vary considerably. In some cases, the position may be as a figurehead or as a club ambassador, with transfer dealings, team affairs, squad selection and day-to-day operations handled exclusively by the manager and his staff. Often, the position in this case is filled by a former famous player. Bobby Charlton at Manchester United is such an example. In such a case, the role of the director of football is more one of club promotion and marketing than that of actual control over footballing operations. Employing a well-known football personality in such a position may also be used to enhance the perceive d prestige of the club, improving the clubs position in the transfer market. (Wikipedia 2012) The director of footballs job is sometimes compared to that of a general manager in a North American professional sports organization, and often referred to as sporting director or some equivalent in continental Europe. Marketing the team can be a task. There has to be structures in place that will help the team succeed in getting noticed, gaining sponsorships, and selling tickets. Our book discussed a model. The principles that should be observed in a marketing program include: Customer principle, Competition Principle, Practice Principle, Cross-Functional Principle, Continuous Improvement Principle, and the Stakeholder Principle (Krotee Bucher, 2007, pp. 474-475). In the indoor football program that I currently work for, marketing is a big deal and it seems as if some of these principles are in place. We take into consideration what type of customers we will have, catering to middle-aged men and young kids. We understand what and who we are competing with; Florida Everblades are a minor league hockey team that occupies the same arena. We compete with them in the same market. There is  also minor league baseball in town, a group that has games sometimes on the same nights as us. The cross-functional principle works with the hockey team as well. During their games we are allowed to set up an information table and sale season passes and merchandise during their contests. The continuous principle is where we hand out surveys to season ticket holders asking questions about how we can improve. The stakeholder principle helps us as we continue to be the model franchise for the league and the one that other franchises would like to emulate. How the team is perceived in the public eye is vital for its success. The first task for a company is to decide that all forms of public relations will be based on current strengths and the overall mission of the company. We want to make sure our targeted group understands exactly what we want to accomplish in all areas. (Krotee March, 2007. p. 457). A company must also know who their audience is and how they can reach them. Ive mentioned before that the indoor football team I work for targets middle-aged men and school aged kids who can bring parents. We hand out ticket vouchers to kids at local events and schools. Each kid will only get one voucher. The reasoning behind this is that we understand these kids can’t get to the game alone. They have to have someone drive them whether it’s a parent or older sibling or friend. They will be they paying customer bringing in ticket sales, which without having handed out the voucher, wouldn’t have been sold otherwise. The other catch is that the arena will only accept so many vouchers per night. We inform the voucher holder that it is wise to get to the box office in advance of the event to claim their ticket. Many don’t do this and by the time they get to the arena the allotted amount of free vouchers has been counted. This person is stuck having to now pay for a full price ticket as they will probably not opt to return home. There have been complaints about this program but it is stated by whoever hands out the voucher and on the voucher itself that there will be limited use. Another aspect of effective public relations is to find out what the customers are thinking, along with what they believe. The team has sent out surveys to season ticket holders with questions about how they can do better. There are also randomly timed questions that go out on social media like, what is your favorite night to watch arena football? This can help when scheduling home games as most people wouldnt want to come on a Monday night because of work obligations.  (Krotee March, 2007. p. 457). A fourth aspect of public relations work is deciding what services or programs to offer that will best suit the needs of the intended audience. We try and figure out if most people would rather purchase a hat or tee shirt or would they be more likely to purchase season passes at a discounted rate or buy game to game. (Krotee March, 2007. p. 457). Choosing a good PR representative is also key. Someone who understands the mission is important. All of these aspects will help a new league flourish and remain successful. One more important part to that would be landing some type of television or media deal. The younger, mostly male audiences at professional sporting events are an attractive crowd for advertisers, but pro sports can be an expensive buy as we have already mentioned. Advertisers and sponsors reach not only young men but also, because games are less expensive to attend than most pro sports events, families looking for cheap entertainment as well. Advertisers can also get more creative at AFL games than they can at other leagues such as the NFL. The league can handle its own advertising and sponsorship, and individual teams handle some promotions. Arena Football League games are played on 50-yard fields surrounded by padded dasher boards that look similar to those used in hockey. These boards create prime billboard space where companies that purchase sponsorship can place their name or logo. It would be more appealing to a company to purchase if they knew they would be exposed to a national audience. The season will run from March to August, so that it won’t interfere with the NFL season. There are a number of advertising options on and around the playing field, including ads on the boards, 6-by-9-foot turf squares on the field itself, and ads on the jumbotron scoreboards hanging from the center of the ceiling where highlights can be played and the score clock is displayed. Brands can also place patches on player uniforms, decals on helmets, graphics on game balls, or ads on first down markers. Anywhere that there is viewable open space can be covered in advertisement. Other options available in the arena are similar to those seen in other sports, such as signage, static and video ads on the scoreboard, on-field promotions during timeouts and stoppages in play, and  concourse booths that can be used for sampling and fan interaction. Some promotions that I have seen in the past that get fans involved is a football toss from a long way out attempting to win a car by throwing the ball through the driver’s side window. The league may also have a title sponsor. For example, the Indoor Football League presented by Bud Light. We could also title the championship game, the third annual Doritos Indoor bowl, similar to how colleges promote bowl games. On-field advertisers can get additional exposure on television. Games may also be televised locally in teams markets, giving on-field advertisers extra eyeballs. The only downer to this would be the argument that fans won’t come pay to see a game live when they can watch it in the comfort of their own home for free. We will continue to build in smaller markets like here in Fort Myers Florida or Rome Georgia. We will not compete in watered-down, saturated markets where local businesses have been bombarded with sponsorship sales and sports marketing teams. Game attendance will be tracked and TV ratings are also used to measure impressions. We will use sponsors relevant to our target market, they will include telecom, restaurants, insurance, athletic equipment and apparel, hotels, soft drinks and beer. Arena Football League fans are 72 percent male and 28 percent female, according to Scarborough Research. Sixty-two percent of fans are ages 18-49 and 33 percent are 18-34. Forty-six percent of fans have an annual household income below $50,000, with 33 percent between $50,000 and $100,000, and 21 percent above $100,000. The mean household income of AFL fans is just over $72,000. (League Attendance 2012) The success of an indoor football league and franchise is dependent upon having many working parts in place. There must be a realistic budget to work with so that these teams and leagues aren’t working outside of their means. Player and coach salaries must be realistic in order for these teams to stay alive. Ticket and merchandise costs for fans must be affordable in order to appeal to larger crowds. The venues must work with the individual teams to keep costs down. They must make parking costs and vending costs affordable so that fans and families will attend more than one event per year. There has to be a good marketing team that understands the mission is to not only make the team money, but appeal to fans and gain support from the local community. It will be the leagues  responsibility to broaden that market by adding television and media exposure. Finally, there needs to be a good PR program in place so that a good relationship between the team, league, and its fans remain. References Krotee, M., Bucher, C. (2007). Management of physical education and sport (13th Ed.). Boston: McGraw Hill. ISBN: 0072972920. Wikipedia: The free encyclopedia. FL: Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. Retrieved December 9, 2012, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Director_of_football Arena Football League Attendance Needs Some Help: Fan Opinion by Eric R. Ivie | Yahoo! Contributor Network – Wed, Apr 11, 2012 3:12 PM EDT, retrieved on December 9, 2012 from http://sports.yahoo.com/news/arena-football-league-attendance-needs-help-fan-opinion-191200000.html NFL game-day costs for fans By Daniel Bukszpan | CNBC.com – Thu, Oct 4, 2012 3:31 PM EDT retrieved on December 9, 2012 from http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nflnfl-game-day-costs-for-fans.html

Facilitation Theory Or The Humanist Approach?

Facilitation Theory Or The Humanist Approach? Teaching and learning today are completely different from yesterday because we are facing the challenges of changes in higher education for the future prosperity with todays young students and their readiness to take up these challenges to face up to the coming centuries. Understanding teaching and learning is not easy, not something that can be based on the representation of what has been perceived or limited to a few methodological prescriptions. In this chapter, we are going to go back and shed light on some theories of learning to understand better to what extent teaching is related to learning and how they can impact in society. 1.1 languages Teaching and Learning Language teaching and learning still requires much effort to be stored in individuals mind perfectly. It should have acquired an appreciation of the values of a broad range of intellectual disciplines such as linguistics, sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics and mainly applied linguistics as well as general detailed knowledge. So, how can language pass on these disciplines to become dynamic and pragmatic in use? To answer this question, let us see what Campells theory depicts, in figure 1 below, about the relationship between three disciplines: linguistics, applied linguistics and pedagogy. Campbell ( 1980:7) says: The relation between the language sciences and language teaching has emerged as one of the key issues in the development of a language teaching theory à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦For him: Applied linguistics is the mediator between the practitioner and the theorist.. See Fundamental concepts of language teaching book of H.H.Stern,(1983:36) Linguistics Applied linguistics Pedagogy Theoretician Mediator Practitioner Figure1 Campells model of the relationship between theory and practice According to Campells theory starting from linguistics, the scientific study of language, alone is not enough to get an effective relation between pedagogy and linguistics. The latter requires much practice to relate theory to practice and make language more effective. For that reason, to consolidate the three disciplines, Campell included three extra elements to his conceptual framework. These elements are psychology, sociology and anthropology. Campells model of the relationship between theory and practice made Spolsky( 1980:72) argued and then modified Campbells theory .For Spolsky, sociolinguistics discipline is very interesting to achieve a good result in the relation between theoreticians and practitioner. He divided language teaching into three main sources: Language description: General Linguistics Language teaching: psychology for the theory of learning and psycholinguistics for the theory of language learning Language use in society : sociolinguistics What we can understand from Sposkys theory language teaching is an interesting amalgam of disciplines, each one contributes to educational language in practice and the focus here is on the educational language. Pragmatically speaking, according to many people the understanding of language is not only learning theories but it is also our reflection and thinking of knowing to what extent can be these theories impact on the teaching of language. The theories are different of how we learn, and they are useful and ready for how students learn and also how teachers teach. Each one of them, student and teachers, has own way of thinking of own different way of learning. So who are we in these theories? And what are these theories? To answer these questions let us see some fundamental theories of learning: 1.2.1 Reinforcement Theory This theory was developed by the behaviourist school of psychology, notably by B.F. Skinner (Laird 1985, Burns 1995). Laird (1985) sees this aspect of behaviourism not relevant to education. It is about some positive and negative tasks the learners made in his daily life. This theory requires much Competency Based Training ( henceforth, CBT), It is useful in learning repetitive tasks like multiplication tables and those work skills that require a great deal of practice but higher order learning is not involved in it. The criticism of this approach is that it is rigid and mechanical (Burns 1995). 1.1.3 Cognitive-Gestalt Approaches The focus in this theory is on the importance of experience, meaning, problem-solving and the development of insights (Burns 1995, p 112). Burns notes that this theory has developed the concept that individuals differ from one to another, they have different concerns at different times with different subjective interpretations in different contexts. This theory is very close to learners to get themselves in learning language by knowing to what extent they are different from each other. It is also very close to the learners characteristics of today (for more details see chapter 3) 1.1.4 Holistic Learning Theory The basic understanding of this theory is that the focus is on the composition of the individual personality which consists of many elementsspecifically the intellect, emotions, the body impulse (or desire), intuition and imagination (Laird,1985, p 121) that all require activation if learning is to be effective. This theory is about a complementary theory to Cognitive-Gestalt approaches. 1.1.5 Experiential learning In this theory, Kolbs research found that people learn in four ways in learning (McGill Beaty 1995). The ways are as follows: Concrete experience Testing implications of Observations and Reflections concepts in new situations Formation of abstract concepts and generalization Figure 1 the Experiential Learning Model (Kolb, 1981) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Learning through concrete experience à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Learning through observation and reflection à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Learning through abstract conceptualization à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Learning through active experimentation In discussing these theories, we confirm from the educational researchers concept that learners are different in their way of learning. Kolb, one of these educational researchers whose interests are involved in proving that learner, individually, can choose any style and way of learning which reflects his behaviour to act in learning which is the link between him and his society through actions and reflective process (McGill Beaty 1995). This theory confirms Spolskys argument ( 1980:72) 1.1.6 Facilitation Theory or the Humanist Approach Carl Rogers and others have developed the theory of facilitative learning. The basic introduction to this theory is that learning will occur by the educator acting as a facilitator, that is by establishing an atmosphere in which learners feel comfortable to consider new ideas and are not threatened by external factors (Laird 1985). Other characteristics of this theory include: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Human beings must be eager to learn (prompt willingness) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Human beings must be curious to learn (curiosity) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To change on selfs concept we must be involved in a significant learning. ( flexibility and readiness). Carl and Rogers see that: The Characteristics of Facilitative Teachers are: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ They are not more protective of their beliefs than other teachers à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ They are affectionate they are all listening to learners, especially to their feelings à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ They are much attentive to their relationship with learners in the classroom. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ be open-minded and apt to accept feedback, whether positive or negative and to use it as a reflective and constructive insight into themselves and their behaviours. Some of these characteristics do fit our changes into innovative and modern teachers but others still to be modified according to our readiness for being autonomous teachers. In this work, we are going to focus on the changes from the traditional, affectionate and facilitative teachers into modern teachers. The characteristics of learners: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Must be courageous, autonomous and responsible for their own learning à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Must care and provide much information (input) for the learning which occurs through their deep perception (insights) and experiences. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ are encouraged to evaluate themselves before their teachers and to be aware of their learning needs to focus on what factors may contribute to achieving significant results. These characteristics are mandatory and required in the new systems implementation. To understand better this theory which impacts strongly our work we must understand the relationship between teachers and learners or in another words between learning and teaching as well as the strategies made to enhance this relationship. So what is learning and what is teaching? And what is the relationship between them. Teaching is to get and pass on knowledge while learning is to acquire this knowledge by studies; it is also the process where knowledge is created through transformation of experience (see page 3 David Kolb 1981). It seems that the relation between them is very strong and interrelated. From these definitions, we can also understand that the relationships between teaching and learning lead to the best academic achievement for students having the desire to acquire learning language which represents an individuals receptive cognition to learning different tasks depend on the context (Peterson, et al., 2009). It is an input which differs from one individual to another depends on the teachers in regard to what type of information is most effective. The concept that students and teachers have different competence that vary from one to another to learning and teaching language in different styles and ways lead theoreticians and practitioners, those who are responsible for curriculum control and revision, to think of the curriculum framework, i.e. how to be in charge of approaches and systems to structure teaching language and planned in the curriculum frame work. The curriculum is now very interesting to empower both learners and teachers to develop their potential in knowledge. So, what is Curriculum? Who are responsible for planning it? And what is it for? To respond to these questions we need first understand the curriculum meaning. 1.2 What is Curriculum? The curriculum is concerned with two terms teaching and learning, i.e. what is given in learning and teaching, and how they take place. What teachers teach or learners learn comprises aims, strategy, knowledge, skills and outcomes of learning students are intended to make obvious. The how of the curriculum concern teaching/learning methodology, teaching strategies and media resources. The curriculum has been changed due to changes in systems implementation such as CBA, LMD and ICTs integration in the classroom. The latter needs some cases of the invention of new technology to modify the content and enlarge knowledge to make a good curriculum. The systems , CBA, LMD and ICTs integration, in many ways can be seen to be affecting the curriculum both in terms of content and methodology. Further, we mean by the word curriculum run a Course, i.e. it describes a series of steps in teaching and learning specific contents. It is also considered as a sequence of learning experiences; the fact of these definitions that without curriculum none can control the individual students experiences. Thus through curriculum students can be provided with opportunities to learn a specific content. From the latter, we can understand also that the suitable definition to the curriculum is a sequence learning opportunities given to students in their study for specific purposes. A sequence of learning opportunities cannot be seen but it can be planned and made through the classroom activities. Thus, curriculum appears in different aspects which exist in textbooks for specific contents to facilitate teaching and make teachers efficient to pave this sequence of learning opportunities for students. It is actually made to develop learners competence; herein we are speaking about the importance of curriculum development 1.3 The Importance of Curriculum Development The importance of curriculum development appears in its focus on knowledge transmission and skills development in regard with competency based language teaching (henceforth CBLT) or learning outcomes. That is to say, working on the four skills (reading, speaking, writing and listening), knowledge and attitudes make effective teaching strategies. In relation to CBLT, Docking says that: CBLT [Competency-Based Language Teaching] is designed not around the notion of subject knowledge but around the notion of competency. The focus moves from what students know about language to what they can do with it. The focus on competencies or learning outcomes underpins the curriculum framework and syllabus specification, teaching strategies and assessment. (Docking, 1994: 16) From the above quotation basing on what have been already said, we can understand that Competencies focus on four main parameters appears in the following: Learning outcomes Curriculum Syllabus Teaching strategies (a course) Assessment Figure 1: The Main Parameters of Learning Outcomes or Competencies Figure one represents the relationship between curriculum and its aspects (syllabus, teaching strategies and assessment) in regard with learning outcomes. These four fundamental concepts help theoreticians and practitioners to define the context in relation to the students needs about the curriculum framework which is clearly related to students learning needs. To respond to learning needs and CBLT the curriculum planning must take care of the following points: Setting: Students number, age, gender, purpose, education Aim: Type and purpose of course, mandatory and required tests . Materials needed or available: text, books, e- books, magazines, articles or computers, laptops with their connection to the net and so forth. Time: How many hours, day of week, time of day. These four points can also be viewed as part of syllabus. The latter is very important to design a course that must focus on the needs of learning outcomes. Herein, to understand more the concepts given let us have a look at what is a course in regard with syllabus or vice versa. 1.3.1 Course A course is an integrated series of teaching-learning experiences, whose ultimate aim is to lead the learners to a particular state of knowledge. (Hutchinson and Waters 1996: 65) The distinction between a curriculum and a course is important because some of the areas of concern in curriculum development as: societal needs analysis, testing for placement purposes or program wide evaluation may be out of the hands of teachers who are developing courses (Richards, 2001). 1.3.2 Syllabuses Syllabus is a more detailed and operational statement of teaching and learning elements which translates the philosophy of the curriculum into a series of planned steps leading towards more narrowly defined objectives at each level Dubin Olshtain, (1997: 28), Syllabus is essentially a statement of what should be taught, year by year through language syllabuses often also contain points about the method of teaching and the time to be taken (Lee 1980:108). Another opinion is that that Syllabus is a more detailed and operational statement of teaching and learning elements which translates the philosophy of the curriculum into a series of planned steps leading towards more narrowly defined objectives at each level Dubin Olshtain, (1997: 28). Syllabuses are more localized and are based on accounts and records of what actually happens at the classroom level. Given these definitions it is suggested that it seems helpful to define a curriculum and a syllabus as separate entities. To conclude we can now ensure that we can see syllabus design as part of course design, they are complementary and parts of curriculum whose importance appears also in the following: The educational purpose of the program. The content teaching procedures and learning experience which will be necessary to achieve this purpose .(the means) Some means for assessing whether or not the educational ends have been achieved. ( Richards, Platt and Platt 1993: 94) From these most significant points Allen sees that: Curriculum is a very general concept which involves consideration of the whole complex of philosophical, social and administrative factors which contribute to the planning of an educational program. (Allen quoted in Nunan, 2000: 6) Thus, it is the change of instructions in teaching and learning in all over the world. For that reason, most developing countries institutions among them Algerian institutions have amended and revised their curricula in another words their syllabuses, methods, approaches and systems to respond to the world requirements, taking into account the various factors( external or internal) that influence learning process. To understand more this policy of education we must understand its basic notions in the structural education such as competencies or learning outcomes, syllabus, course, assessment and curriculum. Today, there are many of teachers and students who think that curriculum is syllabus; in fact, syllabus is a part of a curriculum. It describes the content of a course .i.e. It shows the content of what is going to be taught including a set of knowledge and skills. Herein, the importance of presenting the basic notions education is to go over the global changes and structures of the various disciplines to learn from others and to be apt to know what others think of us. In addition to curriculum development made by policy makers which enables learning to take place, during the course of study, in terms of knowledge and skills, teachers should highlight the main syllabus to present the main learning and methods and to provide the learners with resources and equipments to support the effective teaching of the course. In this case the teacher notion must focus on how to structure the knowledge to be well received by learners. The following quotation ensures our saying the learning structure through teaching. Teaching is knowledge transmission, management of learning. The teacher is a decision maker, provider of learning structure, collaborator, and resource. (Adapted from Graves 2000: 31) Our aim from understanding the curriculum development and its importance is to ensure a successful and effective teaching of the language through official curriculum delivered by policy makers to be implemented in schools and universities. Implementing such curriculum requires much effort to respond to the learners needs and competence. Algeria as one of developing countries and a multilingual schooling is in the process of growing out of its historical roots run riot to make changes in educational policy encouraging the education ministry to revise, modify and update the curriculum for basic education, particularly in basic education programs. Speaking about changes in educational programs and organizing content lead us to think of the CBA approach and LMD system that are the fundamental concepts, today, of the curriculum whose interests are in organizing and exploring learners competence (knowledge and skills). They both work on input (data/ knowledge) and outcomes. The question to be raised here what are these implementations? These systems implementations are CBA approach in primary and secondary schools and LMD system in universities. 1.4 Historical Background about CBA In 1973, the word competency was introduced to psychology literature when David McClelland argued in his article Testing for competence rather than for intelligence that neither job performance nor success can be got through old and traditional tests of academic discipline. Thus, the search for theory and tools that could unfailingly see coming effectiveness in the workplace began (McClelland, 1973). In1982 it was Boyatzis who first drew together comprehensive data that had been collected inthe USA using the McBer Company Job Competence Assessment method. Since then, competency has become a significant factor in HR development practices (Simpson, 2002). The word competency comes from a Latin word meaning suitable (Bueno Tubbs, 2004). Boyatzis (1982) defines a competency as an underlying characteristic of a person which results in effective and/or superior performance in a job (p. 97). According to Boyatzis (1982) a job competency represents ability. An individuals set of Contemporary Management Research 49 competencies reflect their capability or what they can do. A job competency may be a motive, trait, skill, aspect of ones self-image or social role, or a body of knowledge that an individual uses, and the existence and possession of these characteristics may or may not be known to the individual. Similarly, Mitrani et al. (1992) state that competencies could be motives, traits, self-concepts, attitudes or values, content knowledge, or cognitive or behavioral skills. A competency is an individual characteristic that can be measured or counted reliably and that can be shown to differentiate significantly between superior and average performers, or between effective and ineffective performers. Meanwhile, competency can be described as a set of behavior patterns that an incumbent needs to bring to a position in order to perform its tasks and functions in the delivery of desired results or outcomes (Bartram, et. al, 2002; Woodruffe, 1992). Spencer and Spencer (1993) viewed competency as an underlying characteristic of an individual that is causally related to criterion-referenced effective and/or superior performance in a job or situation (p. 9). They recognized five types of competency characteristics consisting of motives, traits, self-concept, knowledge and skills. First, motives are the things that an individual consistently thinks about or wants that stimulate action. Motives drive, direct and select behavior toward certain actions or goals and away from others. Second, traits are physical characteristics and consistent responses to situations or information. Third, self-concept is an individuals attitudes, values or self-image. Fourth, knowledge is the information that an individual has in specific content areas. Finally, skill is the ability to perform a certain physical or mental task. Knowledge and skill competencies tend to be visible and relatively surface characteristics, whereas self-concept, traits and motive competencies are more hidden, deeper and central to personality. Surface knowledge and skill competencies are relatively easy to develop and training is the most cost-effective way to secure those employee abilities (Spencer Spencer, 1993). Figure 1 illustrates central and surface competencies. Knowledge Attitudes, Values Trait Motive Surface: Most easily developed Core Personality: Most difficult to develop Skill Knowledge Self-Concept Trait Motive T Skill Knowledge Self-concept Trait Motive tr The Iceberg Visible Hidden Figure 1 The Iceberg Model and Central and Surface Competencies Source: Spencer and Spencer (1993: 11) In other words, visible competencies such as knowledge and skills may be somewhat technical competencies basically required by the job, whereas hidden competencies such as self-concept, traits and motives are behavioral competencies that drive an individuals performance in the job. Boyatzis (1982) states that motive and trait competencies have the most direct impact on self-concept and also have an impact on skill. The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO, 2002) defines competency as a set of skills, related knowledge and attributes that allow an individual to perform a task or activity within a specific function or job. If an individual possesses these three elements of competency they can effectively perform duties as required by the specific job. From the wide range of related literature, the definition of competency can be summarized as an underlying characteristic of an individual that is causally related to criterion-referenced effective and/or superior performance in a job or situation. Job competency is a set of behavior patterns that a job incumbent needs to bring to a position in order to perform its tasks and functions with competence. A job competency can be a motive, trait, skill, self-concept, body of knowledge or an attribute that allows an individual to perform a task or activity within a specific function or job. 1.4 The Implementation of the CBA Approach in the Algerian Classroom The CBA approach has been adopted by the Algerian education ministry to be integrated in the primaries and secondary school to improve teaching and learning. It is imposed on both teachers and learners to explore their competence and roles in lifecycle. A competency based approach is a new reform contributes to better the learners knowledge situations that may varied in a range of skills. The CBA is closely related to a context-of-use. In other words, students will be good learners to use language effectively in their lifecycle by drawing a map to master what they have learned in schools. 1.5 The reasons of the CBA Approach Implementation in the Classroom The reasons why the Algerian authoritarians those who are responsible for educational policy implement the CBA approach in the primary and secondary school classrooms is to develop students linguistic and problem-solving capacities that will make students to deal with different tasks cognitively and pragmatically challenging any difficult situation in the classroom. It will also make learners autonomous and see learning as an essential process for both their studies and their future. So it is implemented in schools because it is a productive approach basing on what the learners are expected to do rather than on what they are expected to learn about. 1.6 The Characteristics of the CB Approach The CBA approach enables learners to check their capacity to overcome obstacles and problems; it is problem- solving approaches that make learners think of well doing. It is a creative use of a newly constructive knowledge. Moreover, it characteristics can be listed as follows: It makes students challengers to endure and encounter all kind of complexity and ambiguity in learning. It is about reflection, self-assessment, and performance review are fully integrated into the exercise. As a result, challenge becomes success. Collaboration in teamwork is essential to the effective learning experience. It enables students competence to affect the world beyond the classroom and to make contributions that are valued by professional and experts. It provides learners with information based on assessment tasks. It is based on authentic language proficiency across sociolinguistic context. It reveals the learners innateness. It is usable for instruction and curriculum adaptation to the learners needs. It is based on the outcomes as in Schencks saying: It is outcome-based and is adaptive to the changing needs of students, teachers and the community à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ competencies differ from other students goals and objectives in that they describe the students ability to apply basic end other skills in situations that are communally encountered in everyday life. Thus CBE (Competency Based Education) is based on a set of outcomes that are derived in life role situations. Schenck (2001:14) To reinforce what has been said about CBE let us see some extra definitions of Competency Based Education to understand better from where does CBA come from? Richards and Rodgers (2001) says: Competency Based Education focuses on outcomes of learning. CBEaddresses what the learners are expected to do rather than on what they are expected to learn about. CBE emerged in the United States in the 1970s and refers to an educational movement that advocates defining educational goals in terms of precise measurable descriptions of knowledge, skills, and behaviors students should possess at the end of a course of study. Richards and Rodgers(2001) To reinforce Richards and Rodgerss definition of CBE Savage see that CBE is a functional approach to focus on skills depends on the learners needs and competence. He sees in his definition the following: Competency Based Education is a functional approach to education that emphasizes life skills and evaluates mastery of those skills according to actual leaner performance. It was defined by the U.S. Office of Education as a performance-based process leading to demonstrated mastery of basic and life skills necessary for the individual to function proficiently in society. Savage (1993: 15) For Mrowicki, referring to skills only is not enough in speaking about CBE because competency is an interesting amalgam of knowledge and attitudes for more effective results. Thus he sees in his definition the following: Competencies consist of a description of the essential skills, knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors required for effective performance of a real-world task or activity. These activities may be related to any domain of life, though have typically been linked to the field of work and to social survival in a new environment. Mrowicki (1986: 144) It is very interesting to understand what we have presented as most significant definitions of CBE regarding the Communicative Approach which is at the basis of the Competency Based Approach, the educational system applied in Algeria, and which can be also considered to be at the basis of the LMD system applied at the level of the University, next section is devoted to the presentation of the latter, i.e. of the LMD system, to see in what way is the LMD system a continuation of the CBA. 1.7 What is LMD? The LMD system, introduced in the Algerian universities by 2003-2004, is a current issue that specialists in Algeria and elsewhere are interested in. The LMD system (Licence, Master and Doctorate) is the latest reform applied in the Algerian universities. It aims at bringing the Algerian diploma to the universality and to bring the Algerian student to a higher level of learning on the one hand and to the world of job on the other hand. The introduction of LMD in the Algerian universities should be accompanied by these new ideas for innovative teaching practices to improve the performance of the university system but also lead to greater employability of graduates. 1.8 The Characteristics of the LMD System In practice, we observe that the formalization of thes

The Urban Legend of Tommy Hilfiger :: essays research papers fc

The Truth about the Rumor of Tommy Hilfiger A big controversy happened, the well-known Fashion Designer Tommy Hilfiger was on the Oprah show. She asked him if it was true if he said he did not make clothes for Blacks and Asians, his clothes were intended for upper class White people. When he admitted he said those things, she asked him to leave. This E-Mail is an Urban Legend. Juicy Emails like these are simply for entertainment purposes only and should not be taken seriously. Like junk mail it should be emptied into the recycle bin. People assume if an E-mail is sent to them or if a friend mentioned the incident then it must be true. How could someone write something so mean and cruel and spread it through emails? Thomas Craughwell explains that â€Å"fear, paranoia, envy and suspicion of unfamiliar† are reasons why urban legends such as Tommy Hilfiger are passed around (Craughwell 10). People read newspapers such as the Inquirer and read junk E-mails at work to make the day go by. Richard Roeper describes people as â€Å"today’s information consumer†, who are â€Å"savvy, jaded and cynical† (Roeper 10). It’s no secret that people can be gullible when it comes to interesting news. Roper states that people are as â€Å"willing as ever to believe stories that happened to best friend’s brother’s accountant† (Roper 11). People have gotten too lazy to look up information for themselves and look for quick fixes, instead of facts. The Tommy Hilfiger Rumor has all of the signs of the urban legend. As Defined by Craughwell â€Å"urban legends are usually passed by word of mouth and by E-mail†. Urban legends have many variations (Craughwell 9,13). David Emery from About.com has two of the most common variations of the E-mail in his article. Before there were any rumors of him on the Oprah Show, It was a â€Å"news article† in a â€Å"Philippian tabloid in 1996† as Barbara Mikkelson explains in her article. According to Barbara Mikkelson, the rumor was altered again with him being on the CNN style show with Elsa Klensch . In this rumor he did not comment on black people. He commented about â€Å"Asian people not looking right in the clothes† (Barbara Mikkelson). Although the rumors are being shown to be not true, they are still being passed around to this day (David Emery). People who are in the know about rumors made inquiries to the Anti Defamation League.

A Response to Kant’s First Analogy of Experience

Leibniz, one of the famous philosophers, once wrote, â€Å"I believe that the consideration of a substance is one of the most important and fruitful points in philosophy. † Kant expressed his agreement for this statement in the way he presented the â€Å"First Analogy of Experience†. In this analogy, he proposed the schema of substance beyond physical appearance. In this part, Kant’s primary objective is to explain the conditions for the applicability of a category to appearances: the schema of substance cannot be determined without considering the relevance between its appearance and criteria for a certain category. Therefore, Descartes’ representation of a ball of wax as a substance as perceived by the mind alone is not sufficient for Kant. In contrast, he believed that the ball of wax, before it should be considered as a substance, must meet certain criteria set by a sensible perception. Thus, the schema of substance defines the fact that all changes occur in some substance. To illustrate it further, there are two instances mention below. In a certain situation which occurs in the workplace, employment process has criteria to come across whether an applicant is qualified or not. Furthermore, the qualification of a person may not be suitable for every job description. It is a proof that one substance’s representation varies and not consistent. Another specific example is the fact that an individual person is more describable if put in comparison or a specific category. X is smarter than Y. However, Y is more engaged in sports than X. There are lots of categories to consider. In every category, it is possible that the capacity of an individual is different from each category. In the present time, Kant’s philosophy towards substance is undoubtedly discernible. It has a great impact in today’s time. In fact, it is more applicable to the modern world than any other conflicting philosophies. The outcome of his belief provides evidence of how strong it is.

Gender’s Role: Criminal Justice Essay

Since the time that laws came to exist their purpose was to set the standards for common citizens to follow and abide by. In this gender has always played a vital role whether it was good or bad it changed our criminal justice system as a whole and helped develop it. In this paper it will explain the issues using data on male and female offenders in the past as well our present today. Before I begin this essay the differences between men and women are most often divided into two groupings: gender differences and sex differences. Gender differences are those that are ascribed by society that relate to expected social roles whereas sex differences are biological differences. Most of the differences recognized by society, between men and women, are gender differences that are not biologically determined. Unfortunately these socially constructed differences are entrenched largely in inequality. In fact most, if not all organizational structures, including the United States criminal justice system is gendered, meaning that they are rooted in discrimination between the sexes. More often than not, if an organization or any other analytical unit is gendered, then gender is not simply an addition to ongoing processes that are gender neutral. Fundamental in this distinction between sex and gender are the notions of patriarchy and sexism. Sexism refers to the oppressive attitudes and behaviors directed at either sex; it is discrimination or prejudice based on gender. However, these discriminations, prejudices and negative behavior and attitudes based on sex and gender have been historically aimed at women. Patriarchy on the other hand refers to a social, legal and political climate that values male dominance and hierarchy. Central to the patriarchal ideology is the belief that women’s nature is biologically, not culturally, determined. What many may identify as gender differences, such as the idea that women are natures and mothers, are often defined as sex differences by the patriarchy. Although the modern day patriarchal social structure is not as powerful as it once was, the state still operates from a man’s standpoint. The laws are consistent with men’s experiences and viewpoints. Men are often the ones studied as non-gendered subjects, in criminology, as in other disciplines, it is men, not women, who supply the essential standard case. Men, themselves, are not compared with others to see what makes them specific and different. Patriarchy then remains as part of a defining quality of culture and society and thus criminology and criminal justice. This patriarchal oppression is causing many, feminists and otherwise to advocate for â€Å"feminist or woman’s law in order to â€Å"describe, explain and understand women’s legal positions, especially for the purpose of improving women’s positions in the law and society. Now that we have a better understanding we can continue on with this persuasive essay. Treatment through criminal justice can have it pros and cons for male and female. The good point of views can be looked at in multiple ways in the eyes of the beholder. Statistics indicate that men are more likely to commit crime than women. For example, in 2002 80% of known offenders 481,000 were men. As there are a number of problems with the reliability and validity of statistics, an alternative to information are self-report studies. Sex role theory: this theory argues that boys and girls are socialized differently, therefore resulting in boys becoming more delinquent. There are different versions of this theory. Edwin Sutherland 1949 stated that there are clear gender differences when it comes to socialization. Firstly, girls are more supervised and more strictly controlled. Secondly, boys are encouraged to take risks and to be tough and aggressive. Therefore, boys have more of an opportunity and an inclination to commit crime. Talcott Parsons 1995 believes that there are clear and obvious gender roles within the nuclear family. The father performs roles which show him to be more of the leader and provider, whilst the mother performs the expressive role of giving emotional support and socializing children. These roles are rooted from the birth of their children as mothers have to give birth and nurse children. Girls have a readily available female role model at home (their mother) whereas boys have less access to their male role model as traditionally the father was out at work for most of the time. Boys will be socialized largely by their mother and will tend to reject behavior that is seen as feminine as they compulsively pursue masculinity. Because of the emphasis on toughness and aggression this encourages anti-social behavior and delinquency. I believe that gender should not play a significant role in treatment through criminal justice. I say this because we live in a world were male and female should be equal. It has changed since back in the day of the 1900th were mostly men has more power than women. There are certain things that women can do that men can’t that is why women are put in some places were men might seem too assertive or might not be so compassionate and vice versa. I think this is why women can be elected and have great careers that they didn’t have before. Now I do think it is unfair that women sometimes get a smaller sentence then a man when it comes to committing a crime. I think this the case because women possess certain things that a man doesn’t so does that make it right I think not. This can be looked at many different views but if we are created equally and are equal why should this be. In conclusion through this essay we can interpret how gender should not play a role in criminal justice process. It is so that we do not have to relate to the past or anything that a man has that woman doesn’t. This so because we all are created equal and have the same rights so why should gender matter.