English class Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 6

English class - Essay Example Thus, the article finds that a general apprehension exists that video games cause violent behavior in children. However, the article challenges this contention as it does not seem tenable, though it concedes to the notion that to a certain extent, video games may impact children’s behavior. The article focuses on the premise that video games contain a lot of violence, bloodshed, objectification of females and sexual content. However, it emphasizes a more significant concern that viewing experience in the media, in terms of audio visual components, are â€Å"extraordinarily life like, and these effects can be particularly striking in violent games† (1). It also concedes to the fact that despite the existence of rating systems by the ESRB, children disregard the classification and even those below 13 years watch the content that is permissible to those in the age group of 17. The article also refers to research studies that â€Å"lend credence to concerns about the impact of violent video games† (3). However, this does not prove that games such as GTA cause violent behavior in children. The article, further, challenges this concept by arguing that there is â€Å"little or no evidence to support any of these theories† which purport that violence in th e video games such as GTA can provoke violent behavior in children (2). I believe that exposure to violent media or video games alone cannot make children to indulge in violent behavior. My research premise is based on the concept that many factors such as genetic framework, social circumstances, psychological reasons etc cause violent behaviors in humans. Therefore, children who possess any such specific traits or who remain exposed to any of the causative elements, stand the chance of displaying violent behavior. I do not agree with the evidence based on a study among 1254 students, which indicates that violent games cause aggression in children. It claims that those who play games are â€Å"more likely than their

Human Knowledge Essay Example for Free

Human Knowledge Essay Anyone writes at one point or another in his lifetime to share his or her experiences, ideas, perceptions, situations, and points of view. Some write everyday in their private diaries to capture their memories. Others write to give way to the expression of their emotions, sometimes, pent up, a fond memory, thoughts, or aspirations, even frustrations. If knowledge is knowing and learning gained through experience then personal essays become one of the rich sources, if not the fountainhead, of knowledge which brings us to the stance of this discourse. The personal and highly subjective approach of the personal essay is not merely entertaining but definitely, it adds much to the stock of human knowledge. There are two bases for the present argument. Firstly, important terms, as they have bearing on the issue, are explained or defined where this discourse attempts to build this position and view on the subjective approach of personal essays as a big contributor to the stock of knowledge. Secondly, Hs’s discussion on the sources of knowledge (Hs n. d. ) not only supplements the understanding of the terms but builds a strong working framework for this argument. On the overall, an understanding of the working definitions of knowledge and personal essays serves as the springboard for the discussion at hand. Subordinated to knowledge and personal essays are the words subjective and entertaining. Knowledge may be understood as defined in several ways but not limited to the following: ‘the fact or condition of knowing something with familiarity gained through experience or association; acquaintance with or understanding of a science, art, or technique; the fact or condition of being aware of something; the range of ones information or understanding; the fact or condition of having information or of being learned; the sum of what is known; and the body of truth, information, and principles acquired by humankind’ and ‘applies to facts or ideas acquired by study, investigation, observation, or experience’ (Merriam Webster n. d. ). Moreover, knowledge refers to the ‘state or fact of knowing; familiarity, awareness, or understanding gained through experience or study; the sum or range of what has been perceived, discovered, or learned; learning; and specific information about something (Houghton Mifflin 2000). The accumulation of all possible information in every discipline altogether makes up the â€Å"stock of human knowledge. † On the other hand, the personal essay is one where the writer speaks from his or her own personal perspective about just any thinkable or unthinkable, imaginable or unimaginable (such as fictions) topic – emotions, experiences, places, events, things, animals, etc. A personal essay is very personal to the writer in that it relates to one’s private life rather than anyone else. In this sense, it is to a high extent particular, intimate and maybe found peculiar, but highly subjective. To be subjective is to be biased and one-sided. In the case of a personal essay, the writer has some biases with reference to any particular topic because he or she writes from how he or she views things in the environment. That is what makes personal essays highly subjective and all along carrying that personal touch. These writings become amusing or enjoyable, or contextually, entertaining to the readers on account of an experience where they become vicariously involved. Knowledge (and the accumulation of it) as understood from its given definitions are functions well fulfilled by personal essays. Hs listed and explained the five sources and the ways by which knowledge is gained (Hs n. d. ) – people, books, experience, experimentation and observation, and thinking and pondering. All of these sources heavily point to or at least allude to the voluminous personal essays. First, â€Å"people,† Hs declares â€Å"are the biggest source of knowledge for anybody† because for one reason, many people’s varied experiences can make enough experience in that area from which others may derive lessons from as a consequence of reading them. Since personal essays are highly subjective dwelling on personal anecdotes, it is not surprising that they are saturated with the first person pronoun â€Å"I† in the process of the narration (Cavallari n. d. ). These experiences as expressed through personal essays may affect the lives of others either â€Å"giving inspiration or altering some of your core values and outlook of life† (Oz Essays n. d. ). The things to learn from these numerous people experiences include also their achievements, frustrations, failures, miseries, mistakes, and skills. Furthermore, personal essays make their writer ask themselves â€Å"what experience has taught them about themselves† (Editors for Students n. d. ). And that from the personal stories grows out the points of the experience (Composition Patterns n. d. ). The lessons in life are paramount to the increase of one’s knowledge. Second, reading as much as many books about any topic is another source of knowledge. Take for instance a particular example cited by the author, Hs. The same problem that one may be confronted with must have similarly confronted others. By reading how others dealt with the same problem might just instantly give the solution as used by others. Though not so related but contextually relevant is the old saying that â€Å"there is no frigate like a book† where the reader is able to â€Å"travel† and see the wonders of the world through the eyes of those who undertook the travels and wrote about them. Third, it is true that â€Å"experience is a great teacher† according to Hs because mistakes are corrected and achievements are gained through lessons derived from past experiences not just your own but others’ as well. No matter how rhetoric but it is undeniably true that the best lessons in past experiences tells us that the present must learn from the past to make the present better and plan out for the best future. Fourth, experimentation and observation add to the stock of human knowledge by attempting at finding out, through one’s efforts and those of others through their writings, which attempts succeed that readers might carry on and which attempts fail that they might avoid in their own ventures. Watchfulness and keen observation of others’ approaches to particular situations is a sure way to gain knowledge that can be applied when the situation arises that calls for appropriate actions. What best observations can be had than reading from the personal essays of many people that one cannot possibly physically do all? Fifth, by thinking and pondering on what have been read such as personal essays can lead to a deep understanding of any topic. Take the case of personal essays of uncountable number on â€Å"How To†¦Ã¢â‚¬  like â€Å"How to Become a Millionaire,† How to Study Effectively,† â€Å"How to Win an Election,† How to Deal with Stress,† and many more. They are generally taken from individuals’ own experiences and insights that are shared to the readers. From these personal essays are skills or strategies learned that might as well work for the readers’ own successes. They are not necessarily products of empirical studies worked out from sample populations. Are they not significantly contributing to the stock of human knowledge? The process and later the formation of the habit of writing makes the individual primarily knowledgeable in many ways and secondarily acquiring the appropriate skills in communicative writing. Writing from personal experiences and incidents is actually mirroring one’s self as the lesson emerges from life experiences. Then, they develop the skill to reflect on the intrapersonal and develop the skill to write which is in itself a knowledge earned usable at any point in time especially in the academe. The readers, on the other hand, learn to write and improve, in some cases, hone their skills on the styles of writing based on the personal essays of others. The teaching experience of Andrea Sarvady is an interesting case in point. In an interview with an educator (Sarvady 2007) in a school in Atlanta, Georgia, Sarvady emphasized that requiring and training her 7th and 8th grade students in writing personal essays makes them ‘become better writers †¦ and become better people’. Writing just about anything from fiction to non-fiction, Andrea believes that the two-year personal essay writing program she does with her students is to a certain extent therapeutic but more importantly, she claims ‘it helps a lot of kids look at their own life a little more closely at an age where impulse controls issues are so huge. † The process and the progress to becoming â€Å"better people† is no doubt a consequence of knowledge earned. It is easy to contradict the opinion that personal essays are simply entertaining but does not do much to add to the stock of human knowledge. On the contrary, personal essays have much to offer to the formation of the stock of human knowledge while certainly entertaining at the same time. The argument with focus on science as a discipline, (Crichton n. d. ) carries some truth when he said that the â€Å"personal and subjective approach to essay writing entertains the reader, which adds little in comparison to the attainment of human knowledge. † However, at the same time he was quite negating his position when he said that people’s understanding of the world when â€Å"it grows, expands and then adds to the collective work†¦ once accredited and accepted as plausible, it advances the stockpile of human knowledge through the dispersal of academic essays. † In effect personal essays, although a subjective view of an objective knowledge, cannot be denied that however little, they throw in to the stock of human knowledge. Going further to the argument, human knowledge as based on the five sources of knowledge being the framework for this treatise are largely derived nowhere else but from ‘people’ where many of their ‘experiences’ are captured through their written texts as in ‘books’ narrating their own ‘experiences and observations’ of others that they ‘ponder’ on bringing about a deeper understanding of any subject matter. As a consequence, experiences of people first handedly accumulate to significantly contribute to the stock of human knowledge. Personal essays are written experiences of individuals to share their thoughts, insights, points of view, emotions, skills and abilities, ideas, usually bringing home to a point usually a lesson as a consequence of the experience (Editors for Students n. d. ). People trying out new ways of cooking, through experimentations and observations, are collected into cookery books. Similarly, innovative ways of doing interior home designs are collected into magazines and books on home designing shared by countless others. Landscaping and gardening are available in many books from the ideas of many creative individuals. Skills honing activities in any field of interest are available in books and magazines. Many researches utilize the interview instruments which are generally derived from interviews of real people eliciting from their own experiences. From this wide array of information, generalizations are made into principles, theories, and concepts. The amalgam of experiences and observations found and shared in personal essays accruing make up the colossal stock of human knowledge more than just entertain readers. List of References Cavallari, D. What is a Personal Essay [online] Available from http://www. wisegeek. com/what-is-a-personal-essay. htm [June 4, 2009] Crichton, A. A Subjective Look on Objective Knowledge[online] Available from http://philosopherzone. com/philosophy/a-subjective-look-on-objective-knowledge/ [June 2, 2009] Editors for Students â€Å"The Personal Essay – Essay Writing Tip #6† [online] available from http://www. editorsfor students. com/personalessay. html [June 3, 2009] Houghton Mifflin Company(2003). The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Languag, 4th ed [online] Available from http://www. thefreedictionary. com/knowledge [June 3, 2009] Hs, S. Sources Of Knowledge How To Gain Knowledge In Any Field [online] Available from http://ezinearticles. com/? Sources-Of-KnowledgeHow-To-Gain-Knowledge-In-Any-Fieldid=500120 [June 4 2009] Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary [online] Available from http://www. merriam-webster. com/dictionary/knowledge [June 3, 2009] Personal Essays in the Classroom (March 28, 2007) [online] Available from http://www. visualthesaurus. com/cm/teachersatwork/735/ [June 4, 2009] Interview Oz Essay Personal Experience Essay[online] Available from http://www. ozessay. com. au/personal_experience_essay. html [June 2, 2009] Composition Patterns The Personal Essay [online] Available from http://grammar. ccc. commnet. edu/GRAMMAR/composition/personal. htm [June 2, 2009]

Job Satisfaction And Its Importance In The Workplace Education Essay

Job Satisfaction And Its Importance In The Workplace Education Essay Job satisfaction is increasingly becoming important in the workplace. Employers now recognise that the happier their employees are, the better will be their attitudes towards the work, the higher their motivation and the better will be their performance. Job satisfaction in any field of work depends a lot on how conducive the work environment is. The work itself, the pay and the scope for promotion are only some of the factors which have an impact on job satisfaction. Educators job satisfaction is important as it has a direct impact on students achievement and their future career (Pitkoff, 1993). An educator who is unsatisfied with his/her job tends to be unmotivated and more likely to escape from his/her responsibilities. In these circumstances, we tend to see an increase in absenteeism among teachers. Such educators usually show little concern in school matters and this obviously has a negative impact on the performance of our children. Various studies have been carried out in the past to assess the impact of motivation and job satisfaction on employee productivity and performance (Vroom, 1964). Some of these studies have found a positive relationship between job satisfaction and job performance which leads to the conclusion that satisfied employees tend to perform much better than less satisfied ones. 2.1 Definition of job satisfaction Job satisfaction is one of the most investigated topics in the fields of organizational behaviour. The most-used research definition of job satisfaction is by Locke (1976), who defined it as . . . a pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from the appraisal of ones job or job experiences (p. 1304). It is now recognized that job satisfaction is a global concept that also comprises various facets (Judge et al., 2001) including pay, promotions, co-workers, supervision, the work itself, recognition, working conditions, and company and management. Job satisfaction has also been defined as the extent to which a staff member has favourable or positive feelings about work or the work environment (De Nobile, 2003). It refers to the positive attitudes or emotional dispositions people may gain from work or through aspects of work (Furnham, 1997; Locke, 1976). Ivancevich et al. (1997) defined job satisfaction as the feeling and perception of a worker regarding his/her work and how he or she feels himself well in an organization. Davis and Newstrom (2003) and Dessler (2001) describe job satisfaction as a set of favorable or unfavorable feelings for the employees to perceive their work and that determine the possibility of a major disposition to achieve higher performance. Therefore, job satisfaction refers to an individuals general attitude toward his or her job (Robbins, 1998). Jensen (2000) defines job satisfaction as: a sense of personal growth most often measured by the extent of new challenges and learning situations experienced (p. 1). On the other hand, job dissatisfaction refers to unhappy or negative feelings about work or the work environment (Furnham, 1997). There exist many factors which may result in job dissatisfaction. Some of them are poor working conditions, overwork, low levels of pay, no scope of promotion or career advancement and lack of recognition. But what is worst are the consequences of job dissatisfaction which obviously affect both the employees and the organization. It may result in loss of motivation, lack of interest, frustration, poor productivity, absenteeism and even high turnover rates. To sum up, we can say that job satisfaction describes how content an individual with his or her job and also implies doing a job one enjoys, doing it well, and being suitably rewarded for ones efforts. Job satisfaction further implies enthusiasm and happiness with ones work. 2.2 Factors affecting job satisfaction Job satisfaction depends on several different factors such as satisfaction with pay, promotion opportunities, fringe benefits, job security, relationship with co-workers and supervisors and communication within the organisation. (Nguyen, Taylor, Bradley, 2003). Job satisfaction may lead to cost reduction by reducing absences, task errors, conflicts at work and turnover. As work is an important aspect of peoples lives and most people spend a large part of their working lives at work, understanding the factors involved in job satisfaction is crucial to improving employees performance and productivity. 2.2.1 Age Age is one of the factors affecting job satisfaction. Various studies carried out in this field have shown that job satisfaction tends to increase with age. That is older employees tend to report higher satisfaction and younger employees report the lowest job satisfaction rates (Warr, 1992). However, the study carried out by Oshagbemi (2003) in United Kingdom (UK), found that the relationship between job satisfaction and age was insignificant for employees of the UK universities. 2.2.2 Gender Several researchers have examined the relationship between job satisfaction and gender (Mason, 1995). However, most studies have shown contractions in the relationship between job satisfaction and gender of the employees. On one hand, some studies have found women to be more satisfied than men (Ward and Sloane, 1998), whereas other studies have found men to be more satisfied than women (Forgionne and Peters, 1982). 2.2.3 Working environment It is essential to provide employees with a work environment which is conducive to their overall development. They need an environment which is healthy and safe and which caters for both personal comfort and facilitates doing a good job. As mentioned earlier, people spend a high percentage of their lifetime at work. So we can say that employees expect more than money for the work they do. Hence, it can be said that having a friendly and supportive environment can lead to increased job satisfaction. Syptak, Marshland and Ulmer (1999) advise organisations to do everything they can to keep the companys equipment and facilities up to date. In their article, they also recommend organisations to avoid overcrowding and allow each employee his or her own personal space, whether it is a desk, a locker or even just a drawer (p. 1). 2.2.4 Fair policies and practices Individuals who perceive that promotion decisions are made in a fair and just manner are likely to experience satisfaction from their jobs (Witt and Nye, 1992). Very often employees are demotivated and dissatisfied with their jobs because unfair policies and practices prevail at their place of work. It is therefore of utmost importance for organization to have a fair and equal system in terms of practices and policies so that there is no discrimination and frustration. It is a fact that organization which follows the right procedures to promote employees creates a culture of trust, loyalty and beliefs in the whole organization. When an employee gets fair promotion, which is generally based on his true assessment, he gets a type of recognition, and hence, increases his job satisfaction. In other words, we can say that promotion provides opportunities for personal growth, more responsibilities, and increased social status. 2.2.5 Caring organization Taylor (2000) suggested that job satisfaction is directly related to a companys investment in its employees well- being. Arthur (2001) pointed out that employees want to believe their company really cares about them. Care can be shown in various ways, but generally it takes into consideration career development, adult treatment, being taken seriously and being appreciated for a job well done. (p. 221). When people feel that the organization for which they are working cares for them and takes actions in order to improve their work and lives, they are happy and this creates higher satisfaction. These employees furthermore become loyal and committed. Advantages of job satisfaction to the organisation The Frederick Herzbergs theory and job satisfaction To better understand what keeps job satisfaction high, it is important to recall Frederick Herzbergs theory. The latter put forward that satisfaction on the job depends on two elements: hygiene issues and motivators. Hygiene issues (dissatisfiers) Motivators (satisfiers) Organisational policies Work itself Kind of supervision Achievement Salary Recognition Interpersonal relations Responsibility Working conditions Growth opportunities Job security According to the Herzbergs theory, Hygiene issues cannot motivate employees but they can help to minimize dissatisfaction, if handled properly (p. 1). These issues are directly related to the employees working environment. On the other hand, motivators create satisfaction by fulfilling individuals needs for meaning and personal growth (Syptak, Marshland and Ulmer, 1999). The above theory can be very helpful in guiding organizations on how to maintain employee satisfaction. Job satisfaction and productivity Studies have shown that, only a few organizations believe that job satisfaction is a crucial element in their overall strategy and very little is being done to promote it. This can be due to the fact that many organisations fail to understand the link between job satisfaction and productivity. Should we not care about job satisfaction? Is it true to say that happy workers are productive ones? In fact, in the right conditions and settings, job satisfaction can to a great degree lead to higher productivity. If employees feel that their jobs are fun and interesting, they will be more willing to give extra effort at work for the benefit of the whole organization. Instead if employees have the feeling that their occupations are meaningless and boring, they will have a negative attitude which will definitely lead to a decline in productivity. Job satisfaction helps to create a better working environment When employees are enjoying a higher degree of job satisfaction they tend to be more helpful and friendly with their colleagues at work. This helps to promote teamwork where sharing of information and knowledge is enhanced. Moreover studies have shown that job satisfaction among employees may lead to a better and safer working environment with lesser negative conflicts which otherwise would impede the smooth running of the organization. Job satisfaction and absenteeism and turnover High rate of turnover has always been a great problem to many organizations. It obviously results in loss of potentials and talents and causes huge losses in terms of additional costs. According to Sattler and Mullen, generally, the more productive people are, the more satisfied they tend to be and when employees feel satisfied they are less likely to leave the organization. (2007). From this, we can say that in order to retain talented people in the organisations, managers need to devise strategies in order to bring about job satisfaction. Once employees are happy and satisfied at work, the rate of absenteeism and turnover will be lower. Achievement and responsibility According to Herzberg theory, achievement and responsibility are two important motivational factors which can be used to create job satisfaction at work. Noe (2005) suggests that learning can be facilitated by providing employees with specific challenging goals and objectives (p.111). In this context, managers need to set clear and achievable goals to their employees. This will help to provide employees with a sense of achievement on completion of tasks and may bring about more satisfaction. Furthermore organisations need to empower and encourage their employees to take more responsibility. Such strategies do help to bring more satisfaction in employees and make them more loyal, committed and will have ownership interests in their jobs. Employee satisfaction can lead to customer satisfaction Numerous studies have been carried out to look at the link between customer and employee satisfaction. Many of them have shown a relationship between employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction and profitability. For example, a study carried out at Sears Roebuck Co. showed that a five-point improvement in employee attitudes led to a 1.3 rise in customer satisfaction which, in turn, generated a 0.5 increase in revenues. Brooks (2000) reviewed the relationship between financial success and customer and employee variables (e.g., customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, etc.) and found that, depending on market segment and industry, between 40 and 80 percent of customer satisfaction and customer loyalty was accounted for by the relationship between employee attitudes and customer-related variables. Similarly, Vilares and Cohelo (2000) found that perceived employee satisfaction, perceived employee loyalty, and perceived employee commitment had a sizable impact on perceived product quality and on perceived service quality. In other words, when our staff is happy, our customers will be too. At the heart of these endeavors is a strong belief that todays employee satisfaction, loyalty and commitment influence tomorrows customer satisfaction, loyalty and commitment-and, ultimately, the organizations profit and growth. Job satisfaction is a matter of great significance for employers. As shown above, organizations benefit a lot from satisfied employees in the following ways: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Lower staff turnover à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Higher productivity à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Reduction in conflicts and complaints à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Punctuality (reduced lateness) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Better worked morale Therefore, we can say that job dissatisfaction affects both the organisation and the employees negatively. If job dissatisfaction prevails, the organisation is likely to be affected through poor customer service, quality production and profitability. It is a clear and obvious that employees lacking loyalty and commitment will show very little original thinking and will absent themselves very often from work. All these put together will clearly result in poor performance and low profitability for the organisation. Job satisfaction in the primary educational sector It is known to everyone that reward and recognition are very scarce when it comes to the primary educational sector. Numerous studies carried out by sociologists have confirmed this. Moreover, as most of the teachers work is being carried out within the walls of closed classrooms, teachers often find themselves isolated from others without any support from peers and superiors. Due to such organisational structure, teachers do not receive appropriate feedback from others and often find it hard to work together so as to improve their work. According to Frase, 1992, many teachers leave teaching within the first three years of employment as a result of these conditions. Decision makers therefore need to find ways to retain teachers in the profession and keep them motivated and at the same time promote satisfaction. Studies have shown fairly convincingly that teachers are motivated more by intrinsic than by extrinsic rewards. Pastor and Erlandson (1982) Carried out a survey which found that teachers identify their needs and measure their job satisfaction by factors such as participation in decision-making, use of valued skills, freedom and independence, challenge, expression of creativity, and opportunity for learning. In a survey conducted by Brodinsky and Neill (1983), a majority of school administrators (and teachers) cited three policies that effectively improved morale and motivated their staffs: shared governance, in-service education, and systematic and supportive evaluation. New Theories of Teacher Motivation Frase, 1992 identified two sets of factors that affect teachers ability to perform effectively and therefore derive job satisfaction. These two factors are 1. Work context factors 2. Work content factors. Work Context Factors Work context factors are those which meet the basic needs such as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ the class size à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ discipline conditions à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ availability of teaching materials à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ the quality of the head masters supervision and his/her leadership style According to Frase, 1992, the above context factors do not bring job satisfaction as such. However, during their absences or if not well handled, problems which might affect the teaching and learning process might crop. They may thus lead to job dissatisfaction. Work Content Factors According to Frase, once again, work content factors are intrinsic aspects related to the work itself. They include opportunities for à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ professional development such as further on job training leading to personal growth à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Recognition of hard work à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ challenging and varied tasks à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ increased responsibility and empowerment à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ achievement and authority. Studies carried out by the National Center for Education Statistics in the United States (1997) have clearly shown that teachers who do not feel supported in the above fields are less motivated to do their best work in the classroom. Their data confirm that staff recognition, parental support, teacher participation in school decision making and control in the classroom are the factors most strongly associated with teacher satisfaction. Difficulties educators face in the classroom As an educator, it can bring much satisfaction to see students develop new skills and competences and achieve success in terms of knowledge. However, it may be frustrating when one is dealing with unmotivated or disrespectful students. Very often, teachers must cope with unruly behaviour and violence in the schools. Teachers may experience stress in dealing with large classes, heavy workloads, or old schools that are run down and lack many modern facilities. Accountability standards also may increase stress levels, with teachers expected to produce students who are able to exhibit satisfactory performance on standardised tests in core subjects. Many teachers are also frustrated by the lack of control they have over what they are required to teach. Working Conditions It takes a decent work environment to teach well. Art 8 or the 1966 ILO/UNESCO Recommendation states that, we must improve the working conditions and school environment so as to best promote effective learning and teaching, and enable teachers to concentrate on their professional tasks. Workload has to be fair to be able to carry or tasks effectively and must not have a negative impact on the health and safety of teachers. Also, the authorities must devote equal teaching resources to all educational institutions. School climate The values, attitudes, expectations and behaviour more or less shared by the members of a school community are generally referred to as school climate. A positive school climate plays an important role in fostering teachers performance, academic achievement of students and school motivation. A positive school climate nurtures an atmosphere of trust and mutual respect between each and everyone in the school. Teachers would like to work in schools where they can feel comfortable with their colleagues and the school leadership. Therefore, creating a healthy school environment for everyone begins by supporting healthy relationships among the staff. Healthy relationships produce a climate conducive to honesty, open communication, and risk-taking (Ames Miller, 1994). In a true learning community, cooperative learning and mutual respect are expected of faculty as well as students. Establishing a supportive school environment increases self-esteem and achievement (Cantwell, 2003). Leadership Teachers are more satisfied when their head teachers are good and model leaders. This includes motivating employees to do a good job and striving for excellence. Effective head teachers create structures in which it is clear that teachers have a certain authority. In certain schools some head teachers empower their teachers to work on certain tasks like creating a media and audio visual room, or creating other structures for the benefit and welfare of students as well as for staff members. Such kind of empowerment and trust in employees yield commitment, loyalty and higher performance at the place of work. Such leaders motivate subordinates to do more than originally expected. They raise the consciousness of subordinates about the importance and value of designated outcomes and ways of reaching them and, in turn, get subordinates to transcend their own immediate self-interests for the sake of the mission and vision of the organization. (Yammarino, Spangler and Bass,1993). Teachers performance Educators job is one which does not produce tangible goods whose quality could be measured quantitatively. Their jobs consist of preparing pupils of 5-11 years old academically and help them in their overall development. As a matter of fact, it is difficult to measure their performance. A few years back, with ranking system at the CPE level, inspectors and school head teachers used to assess the performance of their staff by analyzing the performance of students in the final exam. However, this is not an ideal way of measuring performance as there are other factors apart from the CPE pass rate which are linked to the teachers performance. Training After completion of a two year diploma course at the Mauritius Institute of Education (MIE), the educator is posted in a given school and is assigned the responsibility of a class. The MIE together with the Ministry of Education offer supplementary courses so as to upgrade the standards of educators and at the same time keep them abreast changes occurring in terms of methodology, contents and curriculum. Some of these courses are: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Certificate in Educational Management à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Diploma in Educational Management à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Advanced Certificate in Educational Management After the completion of these courses, educators are eligible for a rise in their salary and furthermore are eligible to postulate for jobs like Deputy Head Teacher and Head Teacher. It is a fact that the more positive the perceptions employees have concerning the usefulness and scope of advancement the training sessions will provide to them, the higher will their job satisfaction. Promotional prospects Promotion in the primary sector is based on seniority. It is only after about twenty five years of service that a teacher will be automatically promoted to Deputy Head Teacher. From there, the latter will have to wait for some five more years to aspire to become the head of a school. As a matter of fact, the promotional scope is rather restricted and this is a real demotivating factor to many educators in the field.

Messages of George Orwells Animal Farm Essay examples -- George Orwel

Messages of George Orwell's Animal Farm Though Animal Farm can be considered nothing more than a charming animal fable depicting a doomed rebellion, its origin is actually of a more serious and political nature. It is not only the tale of Napoleon and Animal Farm, but a satire and commentary on that of the Russian Revolution, Stalin and Communism. For a person to gain a true understanding of Orwell's meaning in Animal Farm, it is best that he or she has an understanding of the political parties and history surrounding Communism, Stalin, and the upheaval and fear that followed Stalin's rise to power. Orwell did not write Animal Farm simply as a bed time story for children, or for a work to be studied by students in their classes. As Alok Rai stated, "Orwell's Animal Farm was a calculated outrage, a deliberately provocative affront to the contemporary admiration for the Soviet Union, whose armies were fighting with epic heroism against Hitler's dread war machine. This background is crucial to a correct understanding of Orwell's brilliantly serious jest" (113). To draw the similarities between Napoleon the pig and Stalin, or Snowball the pig and Trotsky is part of what makes this book so interesting, and to do so one must have some knowledge of the political issues Orwell was writing about at the time. As stated, it is helpful for a person who is reading Animal Farm to have some knowledge of history to fully appreciate the novel. What was the political situation that was taking place during the time in which Orwell wrote Animal Farm? For one, World War II was occurring, though by the time the novel was published it was close to the end of the war. Stalin was in control of the Soviet Union, under a Communist rule, though th... ...ther and, to whomsoever power was entrusted, it was almost certain to be abused. For power was itself corrupting" (147). This can, of course, be one of several different messages that are taken away from the novel by a reader. Does one, then, have to be a political history student to understand all that goes on in Animal Farm? No. History student or not, there are several messages to be found within the novel, which anyone is capable of finding, if it is read properly. However, to fully appreciate all that Orwell attempted to accomplish with Animal Farm, or to see the parallels between the novel and the turmoil of Orwell's reality, it is important to have some grasp of the politics and history of that time. Otherwise, though not all the messages he intended within the pages of Animal Farm will be lost, the majority of ironies and parallels most certainly will be.

Flaws with Utilitarianism Essay

Among the most glaring problems that I see with Utilitarianism is its inclusion of animals under the umbrella that blankets this theory. It seems irrefutable that there exists an inordinate number of cases where the consequence that is against the best interest of an animal is favorable to humans, yet that dictating action is one that has been continually taken and condoned by the general public. This is a fundamental challenge, as the Utilitarian philosophy decrees that the pleasure and pain experienced by all individuals, including animals, has equal worth and must be considered when determining the net benefit of an action’s consequences. The most drastic and prevalent of examples that one could provide to illustrate this contradiction would be the practice of using animals to provide food. It cannot be argued that it is in the best interest of a cow, a chicken, or another animal to be slaughtered to serve the dietary needs of mankind. Accordingly, Utilitarian reasoning suggests, in direct opposition to the intuition of humanity, that it is morally impermissible to kill the animals. While a Utilitarian philosopher might provide the counter-argument that such is natural order of the world that there exist a hierarchical food tree. Further they would insist that the greater good is that humans be nourished and provided for by the meat, for our pleasure is superior in quality to that of the beast. This reasoning, however, is flawed in two ways. Initially, the method by which meat finds its way to grocery stores for our purchase and eventual consumption is not one governed by the ways of nature, but rather is one engineered for efficiency by humans. Animals are bread forcibly, then nourished with specific intent of managing fat content, meat flavor, and healthiness, each of which discounts the Utilitarian claim that nature makes our carnivorous methods ethically permissible. Secondly, and perhaps more fundamentally, such a claim is in direct contradiction to the Utilitarian tenet that each individual has equal value regardless of identity or stature. Because humans could be sufficiently nourished without the killing of animals, it cannot be argued that the consequence of causing death to an animal is equivalent or less substantial than that of feeding a man. Conversely, there exist equally as many challenges to raise had the ethicist taken the alternate position that animals have equal value and accordingly that their pleasure is impermissibly infringed upon when they are killed for human interest. Arguments could be presented for a bevy of actions taken on a daily basis by society as a whole. One might address the fact that using animal testing for the advancement of medicine has benefits that outweigh the pains. Similarly, while the development of land effectively kills the previously animal inhabitants, it is an accepted result that society has displayed it is willing to disregard. In each of these cases, the majority of society condones such behavior, as evidenced by their existence as common public practice. While it is undeniable that opposition to each behavior does exist, the magnitude of this resistance is far outweighed by those in finding the long term benefits worthy of the negative consequences. In the end, it grows apparent that while it may be valuable to consider the interests of animals when calculating the net benefit of a given action, neither their pleasure nor their pain should be equated to ours. Such a principle has been introduced through the ethical thought experiment The Dilemma of the Swine. Resultantly, human existence constitutes higher pleasure that does that of an animal and we are often better served by making such a distinction through intuitive analysis rather than applying â€Å"Hedonistic Calculus. † The fact that Utilitarianism can be forced into contradictions regardless of the stance they choose makes the inclusion of animals under their ethical umbrella a significant problem.

Issues Facing Medicare

Issues Facing Medicare Medicare plays an important role in the United States system of health care by providing more than 45 million American citizens with insurance cover. Medicare is a program established to provide health insurance to individuals regardless of the status of health and income level. Although it is mainly established to cater for health needs of the elderly (65 years and above), the program caters for the needs of about 7 million permanently disabled adults.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Issues Facing Medicare program established to provide health insurance. specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Registered members contribute a certain amount of money throughout their working life so that together with their spouses, their health needs are catered for after they have retired. In order to meet the financial obligations faced by the Medicare system, funds have to be sourced from beneficiaries, revenues from the federal governm ent and tax. At present, nearly all people aged 65 and above are insured by Medicare. Although it is a popular program, Medicare is currently faced with many challenges and issues. Issues Facing Medicare The greatest challenge facing Medicare is lack of sufficient funds to cater for health needs of the future generation. This is because of the high cost of health care and the increased number of baby boomers in the United States. Annual increase in the cost of health care has in turn increased expenditure. Studies conducted in 2010 show that the number of Medicare beneficiaries is likely to rise from 47 to 78 million by 2030. For instance, the estimated population of Baby Boomers expected to join Medicare in 2011 (individuals born between 1946 and 1964) was 77 million. To handle this number, Medicare needs some improvements. According to the Medicare Board of Trustees, if changes on the Medicare program are no put in place, the likelihood of the program being insolvent/bankrupt by 2 024 is high. The following measures have been suggested if the Medicare Trust Fund is to be financially stable beyond 2024. The salaries of physicians should be reduced by 40% and payments made to other companies providing services to the programs will also be deducted. According to government experts, available funds in Medicare Part A Trust Fund will not be enough to cater for full benefits of the large population. The experts also argue that the program requires additional revenue if it is to maintain the current benefits. This implies that beneficiaries will be forced to bear the burden of increased premiums. Today, 30% of the cost of healthcare comes from the pockets of the beneficiaries. These costs increased annually. Like health care expenditure, increased spending in Medicare is caused by the high cost of services offered in health systems, new technologies, and increased utilization of services.Advertising Looking for essay on health medicine? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The increased amount of funds utilized in the Medicare program influence smooth running of other programs. For instance, annual expenditure is expected to increase to about $3 trillion in 2030. The federal government will be forced to adjust the budget to accommodate the requirement of the program. This will affect funding of other important sectors like education and defense. Because of the increased number of retirees, Medicare will lack funding because the workers will be few. This is because Baby Boomers include the largest percentage of employees in the United States. The economy of United States is largely determined by Baby Boomers because they are innovative. In addition to lack of funds, the program will need to hire more professionals to cater for the large number of retirees.