Monday, September 30, 2019

Of course women take care of men and are subordinate to male authority – True?

Men are known to be more aggressive, and independent, than woman. They are braver, more outgoing, and extroverted, confident in their own ability to control and manipulate the external environment. Most societies have traditionally regarded men as doers, warriors, hunters scientists artists writers captains of industry and politics. These generalizations apply to pretty much every known human society. Some sociologists and anthropologists believe that there is not and never has been a society in which women do not have an inferior status to that of men. If you were to ask others what they consider to be the most fundamental behavioral difference between males and females, most would likely say aggression – specifically, that males are more aggressive than females, because males secrete higher levels of the hormone testosterone. It assumes that men everywhere and at all times have been women's superiors and that work men do is more important or more highly valued than women's work. Sex, gender, sexuality. Chart,,,,, All 3 are interlinked. Feminine or masculine gender identity exists only with in the framework of experiences of a body sexed as female or male and within the context of sexual practices understood as expressing the feminine or masculine identity. Men and women maybe two halves of the same species, but they seem to live in almost separate worlds. Women have been the carers of men and their children. While a woman's has been in the home, A mans place has been in the jungle, the battlefield or the world of work. We describe ourselves in many different ways. One of the most fundamental ways is to say ‘I am a man' or ‘I am woman'. That is to describe us in terms of our sex. If you are a woman, people would not be surprised to see you wearing slacks, but they might expect to see you in a dress. Most also expect you to be rather emotional and given to cry easily. They will think of you as nurturing, preoccupied with romance, personal relationships, and your appearance, and inept with things mechanical. If you are a man though, people will expect you wearing slacks, and they would be shocked to see you in a dress. Most also expect you to be assertive and always in control of your emotions. They will think of you as ambitious and competitive. Preoccupied with your studies, work, sports, and mechanically inclined. Every society has rules about which activities are suitable for males and which for females. In western societies today, sex is an organizing principle of social structure, it plays a great part in determining social roles. Women were seen to reproduce and care for children. The basic family consists of a mother and child. Parsons characterized the women's role in the family as â€Å"expressive†, meaning that she provides warmth, security and emotional support for her husband and children. Parsons also argued that for the family to operate efficiently as a social system, there must be a clear cut sexual division of labor. Like a button and a buttonhole, they lock together to promote family solidarity. From this it follows that attempts to abolish gender roles and replace them with unisex roles may be in fact going against the will of nature. Women today rather than being passive and dependant, are instead likely to be active food providers as well as inventors and crafters of new material technology. How did we get here from there? Including population growth, increased environmental danger from ecological changes or warfare, the establishment of trade or exchange relations between societies, a change from a nomadic to a sedentary lifestyle, and technological advances allowing for the accumulation of a surplus of food and other goods. The available evidence indicates that specific gender relations appear to arise largely in response to external circumstances -economic, political, and social, not biological imperatives. In the workforce, the last ninety years have seen both the dramatic change and perhaps surprising continuity in the patterns of female labor in oz. In the 1st decade of the century, women moved into offices and shops in large numbers, transforming these jobs into predominantly female occupations. The professions of medicine law dentistry admitted increasing numbers of women from the turn of the century. * Last q. Even now many still think a womens place is at home, but the 20th century winks and her roles are scattered somewhere b/w tradition and total liberation. The 1980s and 1990s have brought women far reaching changes in almost all walks of life. History has not been kind to women as well as the determined pressure of womens group, and new attitudes have powered change and progress. Although women have more right these days then the past, there is still this discrete inequality that is taking place in society. At work and home. At work, women are concentrated in womens work. The service and caring industries, such as nursing, teaching, and typing. They get lower pay than men. Few women get into top professions and even fewer into top posts, even in their own fields. At home, some sociologists like Hannah Garron see modern marriage as a form of property relationship. An institution that ensures women continued subordination economically, financially, legally, and emotionally. Women at home experience frustration, stress and boredom. A modern housewife either faces life of loneliness and lack of reward, or goes to work and so has to face the demands of 2 jobs. 1) Why can a man lift a tone of bricks, but he cant lift up a mop? 2) Why is it that when it comes to education girls are smarter, yet men get the better paid jobs overall? 3) Society has been carrying this stereotype for thousands of years, what makes you think we can change it. Yes women have come far, but how long has it taken us? 4) Would World War have taken place if women ruled the world?

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Once Upon A Family Essay

In the book (Daley, 2007) â€Å"Once Upon A Family† by author Margaret Daley, we read about a character by the name of Sean Williams who is helped by his principal at Cimarron High, where he attends school, by the name of Peter Stone. Laura Williams was extremely nervous as she stands before the high school principal, who is tall, dark and handsome, as she worries so much for her oldest child who had always been a good student. Peter Stone explains that Sean wasn’t willing to talk very much about the fight that he took part in and wonders if the new move had anything to do with this sudden change in Sean’s behavior. Peter takes a special interest in Sean’s mother and realizes that he can help her, her family and himself in finding completeness in their lives. Peter Stone lives on a beautiful ranch and is a religious man who learns not only to care for Sean, but also for his mother; Laura and Sean’s siblings. The Williams family attend Peter’s church many times and learn that God has special intentions for their lives and also that all problems can be solved through prayer. Laura Williams is a good hearted, self-sacrificing widow, while Peter Stone worked at his job at the high school where he could make a difference in the lives of the young and attended church, faithfully to fulfill his religious needs, but he still needed the Williams family in his life to fill an empty void and just as desperately as they needed him. We learn from this book that God has a special way of bringing people together and he always knows exactly what we need.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Pump and Dump: The Rancid Rules of the New Economy Essay

                  Mr. CEO was very efficient when he requested a report on the study of organizational culture in the company. The shared knowledge in an organization concerning the rules, norms and values that shape the attitude, and the behaviors of the organization’s employees are termed as the organizational culture. Organization culture has its components in the business that helps the culture to be successful in its functioning. In addition, organization should have a strong culture and try its best ways to maintain the culture of efficiency in the organization business performance. An organization also develops different steps to ensure that the newcomers in the group will easily fate themselves in the organization culture. The study of organizational culture and change is discussed based on the theories in chapter14 of Wolf of Wall Street video.                  In this chapter, corporate culture has a number of facets that are derived from its definition, the key one being culture; that is the shared knowledge among the associates of the organization (Cameron11). Employees learn about the most vital aspects of the shared experience through other employees of the association. Moreover, culture being a common knowledge amongst the employees, this shows that members of the organization indeed understands and have a degree of consensus on the definition of culture. The second facet of the organizational culture is that culture informs the employees about the rules, norms, and values surrounding the organization and also helps the employees to answer some questions concerning the organization for instance; what kind of behaviors are appropriate or inappropriate at the workplace?                     The last facet of organizational culture is that it natures and reinforces confident employees attitude and acts by creating a structure of control over all the employees in the organization(Tillman18).Organizations have three chief components concerning their culture, and they include; observable relics, adopted values, and fundamental underlying notion. Group culture components are usually compared with the theory of an onion since some components are readily visible and apparent; these are denoted to be the skin of the onion since people can observe and make their understanding of the organization. While the other components that are inside the organization remains to be a mystery and are referred to be the inner part of the onion since it is until they peel off the cover in order to gauge the values and assumption that are beneath the organization.                  The first component that is the observable artifacts is manifested by the culture of the organization that the employees can easily see or talk about on their own. The artifacts supply the signals that are interpreted by the employees in order to gauge their personal behavior when working. In addition, the artifacts provide primary means of transmitting to the organization culture to its workforce. Artifacts are of different types that include; symbols that conveys the message to the people, physical structure; that are the buildings in the association and designs of the internal office. The last type of the artifacts is the rituals that are planned on weekly routines and practiced in the organization.                   The other component is espoused values, which include beliefs, philosophies, and norms. These values are explicitly stated by the great organization of companies, for example of an espoused value is the one found in the corporate constitution of Calgary-based EnCana Corporation. The last component is the basic underlying assumption which are the fixed beliefs and attitudes that are ingrained in order for the employees to act upon them rather than basing their questions on validity of their behavior in a specified situation. The assumptions represent the deepest and the minimum visible part of the acquired knowledge, and it may not be apparent even to the organizational veterans.                   The chapter14 of this movie describes organizational culture through its components and its culture along various dimensions (Harrison23). Organizations culture is characterized by two theories that are solidarity and sociability. The degree in which group members think and act similarly is termed as solidarity while sociability represents how employees show friendship to one another. On these two dimensions, lower organization experience both dimensions in a fragmented culture whereby employees are distant and disconnected from approaching each other. While, on that organization that has cultures in which employees think similarly, but they are unfriendly to each other, this culture is considered to be mercenary cultures and the organization are likely to be so political in nature.In addition, there is networked culture whereby employees are friendly to each other but thinks differently and does their work personally. The last organization culture is th e communal culture in which the organizational is built of the friendly employees who have the same thoughts in their actions.                  Not all organizations have high culture although most of the organization seems to strive for one culture. A high culture exists when its employees agree with the way things are supposed to run the organization, and their behavior should be subsequent to that expectation. Indeed, a high culture plays a role to unite and gives directions to the employees. Weak cultures originate due to disagreement among the employees on matters of how things are supposed to be done. This shows that it has nothing that it can add to the unity of the employees or even direct their attitudes and doings.                  In accordance to the chapter14 of the video, a culture is tested when the founders of the organization and the original employees start to novice and hire fresh members (Robbins9). If these new employees fail to fit in the organization, the culture weakens or differentiates. Two theories that can conspire to keep the culture strong that is through attrition or socialization. For example, in ASA framework, states that potential members will be fascinated by the organization whose cultures matches their character. This means that the some potential job candidates would not smear due to perceived dearth of fit. On the other hand socialization that is defined as primary process through which employees learn the social knowledge that higher them the understanding and adoption of the organization culture. This knowledge aids the employee to adopt quickly and specialize in the organization culture more readily than other new members.                After cultures are established and maintained in an organization, they tend to persist over a long time until bad news concerning the culture may occur (Lewis46). The bad news can lead to the culture failing to fit in the organization. In order to change a culture, there is the primary process that involves three phases that include, unfreezing; initiative can be amended, and refreezing. These steps would be based on the problems associated with the culture for example, if it is about unfreezing, the issues concerning the customer’s complaints on the product quality should be checked since it may trigger awareness about the company’s culture problems.                In assumption, according to the Wolf of Wall Street, organization acquired knowledge extremely contributes to the efficiency and effectiveness of the organization. Organization culture theories aid the people to understand the organization since it conveys signals that are easily interpreted by the employees on their socialization. It would recommend that the company’s organizations to uphold their culture system since it equips the employees with excellent knowledge on their relationship with others in the workplace. References Cameron, Kim S, and Robert E. Quinn. Diagnosing and Changing Organizational Culture: Based on the Competing Values Framework. San Francisco, CA: Josser-Bass, 2011. Internet resource. Harrison, J R, and Glenn R. Carroll. Culture and Demography in Organizations. Princeton [u.a.: Princeton Univ. Press, 2006. Print. Lewis, Michael. Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt. , 2014. Print. Robbins, Stephen P, Aletta Odendaal, and G Roodt. Organisational Behaviour: Global and Southern African Perspectives. Cape Town: Pearson Education South Africa, 2003. Print. Tillman, Robert H, and Michael L. Indergaard. Pump and Dump: The Rancid Rules of the New Economy. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers Univ Press, 2008. Print. Source document

Friday, September 27, 2019

Finance Analysis of McDonalds Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Finance Analysis of McDonalds - Essay Example D. Main products and services: McDonald's menu concentrates on five main ingredients: beef, chicken, bread, potatoes and milk, which account for 255 million of food expenditure. The company's main menu lists its basic food offering: the Big Mac, which still exists as a major seller; other standard product names come from the McDonald's convention of adding a 'Mc' to a particular item. So, a chicken sandwich becomes a 'McChicken' sandwich and chicken nuggets become chicken 'McNuggets'. This idea has been extended to their dessert range, with the creation of the 'McFlurry' ice cream5 (biz/ed, 1996-2008). E. Geographic area of operations: McDonald's is one of only a handful of brands that command instant recognition in virtually every country of the world. McDonald's began with one restaurant in the US in 1955 and today there are more than 26,500 restaurants in over 119 countries, serving around 39 million people every day - making McDonald's by far the largest food service company in the world6 (McDonalds). The business is managed as distinct geographic segments: United States; Europe; Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA); Latin America; and Canada. In addition, throughout this report we present a segment entitled "Corporate& Other" that includes corporate activities and non-McDonald's brands (e.g., Boston Market). The U.S. and Europe segments each account for approximately 35% of total revenues. France, Germany and the United Kingdom (U.K.), collectively, account for approximately 60% of Europe's revenues; and Australia, China and Japan (a 50%-owned affiliate accounted for under the equity method), collect ively, account for nearly 50% of APMEA's revenues. These six markets along with the U.S. and Canada are referred to as "major markets"... The paper describes the company's history from the beginning. It shows the full list of the products and services and gives the financial analysis of McDonalds. McDonalds is one of the world’s largest food chain and a key player in the restaurant industry. The company regards itself as the leading global food service retailer. The company has got over 30,000 restaurants all across the globe and is serving more than 47 million people in almost 121 countries each day. As part of this paper, the financial analysis of McDonalds has been carried out. The various financial aspects like the company’s sales and net profit, asset and capital structure, expense distribution have been observed and analyzed for a period starting from 2001 to 2006. Each of the above discussed calculation and analysis have been supported by a graphical representation. The overall performance of the company with respect to all these various calculations was very good except that there had been a dip in the overall sales of the company in the year 2002 which was eventually made up in the very next year. Also, ratio analysis of the firm has been done from diffe rent perspectives like liquidity, profitability, asset turnover, efficiency and market valuation etc, for two consecutive years i.e. 2005 and 2006. An important and yet notable figure with respect to the market valuation of the company is its price-earnings ration which actually exceeded the industry average in the year 2006 which clearly shows the efficiency of the firm in productive utilization of its resources.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

English Composition Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

English Composition - Essay Example I just don’t see how eliminating one particular part of your food supply, like carbs or protein, can be considered healthy. All it took was a little investigation to figure out those were bad ideas. But I hate jogging! That’s actually work. You run and run and run and get all sweaty and everyone sees you out there being sweaty and gross with your fat bouncing all over the place, which, by the way, is not comfortable at all. After circulating through my friends and their many suggestions, I didn’t find a single one that appealed to me. And then, the quiet guy in the corner looked up from his book and said, â€Å"Do you want to lose weight or tone muscle?† â€Å"Then you need to eat sensibly and get some exercise every day, at least 30 minutes,† he said. â€Å"It doesn’t matter what you do, just do something to get your heart rate going faster for 30 minutes a day. And it doesn’t matter what you eat, as long as you eat reasonable proportions of healthy or low-fat food.† Before I knew it, I was working out with a bunch of people who were much more out of shape than I am in a relatively easy program called Big Loser. The first week was really hard, the second week was not so hard and the third week, I added another show to my daily routine just to challenge myself. What made this so nice is that I could do it right in my own room, where no one had to see me looking all nasty and at the same time, every part of me was working out and getting in shape. I couldn’t see the changes every week, but I could feel them and that was

Analyze Film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Analyze Film - Essay Example Controlling one of the busiest airspaces in the United States is a major reason that gives Nick a lot of pressure hence his stressful life. The job is very stressing as indicated by the 50% dropout of new recruits. The new recruits are unable to cope with this pressure and quit the job at its earliest stages. Later, Russell Bell joins the air controllers. Nick is challenged such that he is envious of the power and endurance portrayed by a new recruit (Pushing Tin). The entry of Russell into the airspace controlling job becomes a reason to pressure Nick since he always thought that he was the best in the crew. It is something that he can do away with by just swallowing his pride but since his inner character shows him otherwise, he ends up being very stressed by everything Russell does in life. Nick is jealous of the power to handle stressful tasks at the workplace that is portrayed by Russell. He perceives him as his competitor in everything in life. He always thought that he would be the toughest man to cope with compromising situations at the work place and at home, but someone appears into his life and proves to be even better. No matter how good somebody can be at their workplaces, there is always someone out there who is even better (Bickerstaff, 4). Nick is fed up by the strength and wit shown by Russell. He thinks of ways to hurt him and ends up liking his wife Mary. He competes with Russell in physical battles including racing cars, basketball shooting contests and worse still competing on a basis of who has the better marriage. Surprisingly, it is Nick who becomes stressed by these contests. He feels that he is losing every battle against Russell who seems not to be bothered by the contests at all. Nick takes everything that Russell does to be a contest and tries to be better than him but ends up being a loser in his view of things (Parker, 27). Nick tries in every way to make

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

What was the ultimate importance of the Sino-Soviet split in the Essay

What was the ultimate importance of the Sino-Soviet split in the context of the broader Cold War . . . How may the Cold War have played out had this split not occurred - Essay Example t can be posited that had the split not occurred, the Cold War could have gone on for much longer, as the two big socialist countries could have presented a united front against their counterpart democratic, free-capitalist countries like the United States of America, Great Britain, France, and all the other countries belonging to the free world. Some historians assert the real cause of the split was the transfer of nuclear technology (Khoo 19) as Russia feared a nuclear-armed China, unsure what China will do with such a capability. The ultimate importance, significance, and also benefit of the split was an earlier end to the proxy wars between the communist and democratic countries, made the world probably a safer place as it allowed the two sides to reduce their nuclear arsenals. The split could have contributed to the bankruptcy and eventual collapse of the Soviet Union while it also allowed China to pursue another ideological alternative when it concerns its economic policies, which is now capitalist and enabled China to become an economic superpower itself. China is now the worlds second-largest economy with the biggest foreign currency reserves. If the split did not happen, the world could be still in Cold War uncertainties. The split made for a warmer and improved relationship between China and America possible (Arnold & Wiener

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Response Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 8

Response - Essay Example This is an editorial which appeared in Scientific American which is the oldest continuously published magazine in the United States. The editorial mainly discussed about the agricultural firms in America and its effect on health. According to the editorial, Agriculture has helped in the evolution of the Human population. The focus of the editorial however are the problems related with the crops being grown in America. These crops are infected with some kind of disease and they are being duplicated genetically which is further enhancing the spread of the diseas. This results in the crops being wiped out. As a result Plants and animals are not the only one being effected but evidence has been seen which shows that this approach to agriculture is directly leading to the spreading of various human diseases. The authors of this article are lecturers at the center for Population Studies at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. They have researched on various reproductive and sexual health issues in the regions of South East Asia. Out of them Aisse Diarra is an independent Consultant who has extensive experience with Women Health and Women Rights issues in Mali. The interesting thing about this article is the reversal pattern of their writing. They discuss the global issue of trafficking of women and children and after having discussed them they say that their view is erroneous and the information provided by them is mis-leading. The author of this article, Joe Becker is an M.A. in political science and has shown interest in the field of rights of childs. She has been actively speaking out in government and media forums on the case of Child soldiers and the abuse of Child Laborers in Sri Lanka, Nepal, Burma and Uganda. This article is also about Child Soldiers and it focuses on three Characters, Charles Taylor, Kony and Lubanga who are the

Monday, September 23, 2019

Throughput Accounting Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Throughput Accounting - Research Paper Example costing methods, Activity Based Costing (ABC), however a little amount of concentration has been provided towards the constraints and problems being faced by organizations. History has witnessed that the performance of organizations is largely challenged by the constraints and these are the factors that have really potential to influence the performance of the organizations. Thanks to the theory of throughput accounting that has largely focused to constraints being faced by organizations. Constraints could be a policy, a material constraint, time constraint and so on. By focusing on the different aspects of cost and performance of organizations, throughput accounting has become successful in attracting the attention of number of multinational organizations. In the subsequent parts of this paper, first theory of throughput accounting is defined and its basic foundations have also been discussed. Subsequent to that, steps involved in throughput accounting have also been elaborated and it is followed by the part comprising of the inherent limitations being faced by this concept. Before the summary part, analysis portion has been included. Hutchinson (2007) defines throughput as the rate at which the system generates money through sales (48). And throughput accounting has been defined as the sales price minus all variable costs (Noreen et al. 1995). And others define throughput as sale prices minus material cost. And, the concept of throughput accounting based on two components: First, every system must have at least one constraint (Rahman, 1998, p. 337). If it were not accurate, then a real system as a profit making organization would make uncountable profits. As a result, a constraint is anything limiting a system from achieving higher level of performance versus its objectives (Glodratt, 1988, p.453). Second, the presence of constraints provides opportunities for improvement (Rahman, 1988, p.337). Contrary to the conventional thinking, the concept of throughput

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Sexual Harassment in the Work Environment Today Essay Example for Free

Sexual Harassment in the Work Environment Today Essay Sexual harassment is perhaps best defined as unwelcome verbal, visual or physical conduct that is of a sexual nature. (â€Å"Sexual harassment in,†). According to the EECO website both the claims and monetary rewards associated with sexual have dropped drastically over the past decade.  What will you do to learn something new about this? I will begin by researching reliable web-site for further information on the subject. I will also use both the Kaplan library and my own local library for additional resources.   What will you do to provide the reader and yourself with new information?  I will convey to the reader all relevant information to the in both a logical and entertaining fashion. My paper will be interesting as well as factual, and will provide the reader with information which should enhance their knowledge of sexual harassment in the work place. How will you go about accomplishing this research paper? I will begin by doing extensive research on the topic of sexual harassment. I will cluster my ideas and begin to write my paper.  What is your plan to get this done?  Week one will consist of research gathering and clustering. By week to I will begin to write my paper which should be completed no later than week three. I will have at least two proof readers read my paper before it is submitted . References Sexual harassment in the workplace know your rights . (n.d.). Retrieved from https://careers.tcu.edu/sg../Sexual_Harassment_in_the_Workplace.pd

Saturday, September 21, 2019

The Middle East And North Africa Mena Economics Essay

The Middle East And North Africa Mena Economics Essay Economic Integration is the elimination of  tariff  and nontariff barriers to the  flow  of  goods,  services, and  factors of production  between a group of  nations.  The purpose of Economic Integration is to allow the free flow of goods and service between nations that can benefit from the economic resources of partner nations. The Economic Integration Model used for this paper is MENA; commonly known as Middle East and North Africa. The countries and regions included in MENA are labeled in the map below http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/MENA.png The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is an economically diverse region that includes both the oil-rich economies in the Gulf and countries that are resource-scarce in relation to population, such as Egypt, Morocco, and Yemen. The MENA region includes the following countries: Algeria | Bahrain | Djibouti | Egypt | Iran | Iraq | Israel | Jordan I Kuwait | Lebanon | Libya | Malta | Morocco | Oman | Qatar | Saudi Arabia | Syria I Tunisia | United Arab Emirates | West Bank and Gaza | Yemen The MENA countries have signed a series of multilateral, regional, and bilateral trade agreements. Multilateral agreements are within the framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO), of which, with the exception of Syria and the West Bank and Gaza, all countries in the region are members or have observer status. Ten MENA countries have signed European Union-Mediterranean Association Agreements (EMAAs) with the E.U. These agreements replace the preferential access to European markets for goods from African, Caribbean, and Pacific countries with a reciprocal reduction in tariffs on many goods. However, these agreements generally exempt agricultural commodities. The MENA region is also an oil rich region and the regions economic fortunes over much of the past quarter century have been heavily influenced by the price of oil. During the recession of 2008 that effected global economies and the demand for oil, it led to increase uncertainty for the MENA region because of its high dependence on oil price in the international market. As an integrated unit MENA has been able to cope with global recession because of its combined trade policy. In the years to come, integrated regions similar to MENA might be the answer to future problems and hence makes it important to look at costs and benefits of economic integration in the light of MENA. The paper will firstly look at the current problems and challenges faced by the MENA region and then look at the benefits of integration to the region Challenges faced by the MENA region In order to understand the challenges faced by the MENA region collectively, it is important to divide the region into groups and look at these problems in a coherent segregated manner. According to a report by OECD titled Opportunities and challenges in the MENA region these classifications are: Resource-rich, labor-abundant countries are producers and exporters of oil and gas and have large native populations, which represent almost the totality of their residents. This group of countries includes Algeria, Iraq, Syria and Yemen. Resource-rich, labor-importing countries are producers and exporters of oil and gas and have large shares of foreign or expatriate residents, who represent a significant percentage of the total population, even the majority in some cases. This group of countries comprises the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates) and Libya. Resource-poor countries are small producers or importers of oil and gas. These countries include Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Morocco, Tunisia, and the Palestinian Authority. (OECD, 2003) Unemployment The challenges faced by MENA include high unemployment levels (in particular among youth); pervasive corruption and lack of accountability and transparency; bloated public sectors with state-owned enterprises that crowdout the development of private enterprise and investment; low levels of enterprise creation; and, for a number of countries, a high dependence on fuel and food imports generating extensive exposure to commodity price volatility. Given that these challenges are both structural and interconnected, they can be addressed only through a coordinated and comprehensive strategy that involves governments, the private sector, civil society, and the international community which I will show later in the essay. The chart below from the World Bank shows unemployment rates for 2000 and 2009 in the MENA region, indicating the change in unemployment over nine years. (World Bank, 2011) Arab Spring Revolution Immigration is expected to increase in those countries most affected by the Arab Spring. Immigration to GCC countries, which already host significant shares of Arab immigrants, is expected to rise. Numerous accounts have been reported of Immigrants fleeing from Northern Africa to Europe. Furthermore, a survey of Egyptian young people by the International organization for Migration found that the onset of protests and instability may have acted as a primary push factor for youth who reported prior intentions to migrate. The surveys results showed that two-thirds of respondents with migration intentions who were working prior to the start of the protests were negatively affected by the events: 26 percent lost their jobs, 20 percent were asked to take unpaid leave, and 19 percent witnessed a reduction in their working hours. (International Organization for Migration, 2011) Inflation Data from OECD indicated that high inflation which is the product of a high dependence on fuel and food imports represents a major challenge for resource-poor countries. For the MENA region; consumer price inflation has remained high since the oil and fuel price spikes of 2007-08. This is particularly the case in Egypt, which registered an inflation rate of 5 percent during 1996-2005 and a significantly higher rate of 11 percent during 2006-10. A notable exception to high inflation has been Morocco, which has kept consumer price increases below 3 percent. (OECD, 2003) Costs and Benefits of Economic Integration in MENA Although the MENA region has registered a relatively high economic growth during the last few years, However;the absence of a vibrant private sector which would have been able to create more and better jobs, has meant that economic performance has not been reflected in improved living standards for the majority. As discussed earlier, some factors causing this deficiency are rigid labor markets, skills mismatches, the crowding out of private enterprise by SOEs and high corruption. But there are also other economic and structural factors, such as low levels of competitiveness in manufacturing sectors, lack of export-market diversification, and low intraregional integration which still exists in the region. Furthermore, although the Arab Spring provides an important opportunity for economic reform, although its immediate effects will be negative for those countries most affected by social and political instability Transition examples from other regions suggest that the medium-run gains from moving to more open and accountable governments are sizable. Income growth tends to stabilize at a higher average rate in the decade after transition, and income volatility at a lower rate, as compared with the previous period. The results will depend on how swiftly and credibly governments can commit to reform. In the meantime, as investors wait for political uncertainty to be resolved in countries affected by political turmoil, it is inevitable that investment will be delayed and economic challenges will emerge. Evidence from earlier transitions shows that these difficulties tend to be limited; growth typically dips for only one year and then returns to or exceeds previous levels. Integration via Trade in Goods Regional trade agreements (RTAs) have proliferatedin the MENA region in the past two decades. Such agreements can make it possible to reap benefits from internationalintegration, while tailoring the provisions ofthe agreements to the particular needs and adjustmentcapacities of the countries involved. They canalso have beneficial indirect effects. Opening domesticmarkets to partner countries, for example, can increasecompetition in sectors with previously highlyconcentrated industrial structures. Such precompetitive impacts are particularly important for countriesthat have only a nascent domestic competition policy.Also, regional cooperation can be effective in harmonizingcustoms procedures and domestic regulations.Adopting common rules on investment, forexample, has the potential to encourage increased inflowsof foreign direct investment by enhancing thecredibility of FDI-related policies and providing a restrainton sudden policy reversals. According to the World Bank many MENA countries have recently seen the share of intraregional trade in total merchandise trade increase dramatically over the past two decades. Compared to this; the extent of intraregional trade remains lowerthan in all other regions of the world, except for South Asia. Though the ratio of intraregional trade to GDP exceeds 15 percent in the Syrian Arab Republic and Jordan, in most MENA countries the ratio remains in the low single digits. In particular, resource-rich, labor-importing countries generally show a very low level of intra-MENA exports in relation to GDP, despite high total export-to-GDP ratios. (World Bank, 2005). Integration through Services For an economy, services typically contribute a major portion to the GDP. Therefore, it is important to remove barriers to entryfor both domestic and foreign firms and increasethe efficiency of services. The current regional integration agreements inMENA generally do not cover services trade, and in areas where the agreements do cover services, it is in the terms of intentions and tacit agreements. Moreover, there still exist differences in regulations and at times limits on the physical movement of individuals. In these cases it is currently creating a situation in which it is often easier for MENA countries service providers to operate in countries outside the region than within. The chart below from the World Bank represents the service exports for selected countries in the MENA region. Integration through Labor reforms If we compare the regions integration through trade and labor we can see that the MENA region is more integrated in the globaleconomy through labor mobility than through tradeand investment. According to a report by the World Bank on the MENA region titled Economic Developments and Prospects it has outlined that the regions share of global trade flows is below 5 percent, andthe region receives an even lower share of globalFDI flows. However, about 16 percent of all remittancespaid out to migrants in the world originate inthe MENA region, essentially the GCC countries,and 10 percent of global remittances are received byresidents of MENA countries. (World Bank, 2008) They have also explained a recent trend where MENAs share in remittances has come down significantly since the 1990s, at atime when remittances to India, China, Mexico, andthe Philippines have increased exponentially. Thus looking closely at these huge labor flows in the past it becomes important to ask here if immigrations are entirely conflict-driven flows. This is not the case if we look at the chart below where the share of refugees as a portion of Migrants has decreased dramatically. One of the primary factors favoring the increase in immigration still appears to be demographics. According to population projections from the United Nations in context with labor force participation rates, show that, if there is no migration then the labor force in GCC countries will keep growing at 2.2 percent per yearbetween 2005 and 2010, but after 2010, this growth rate will decline. Thus, without additional migrant workers, two GCC workers would still have to supportthree inactive persons over the foreseeable future. This shows that if there are no drastic changes then underlying demographic factors will continue to favor more migration. Integration through Capital Flows Two developments frame the context for recenttrends in capital markets in the MENA region: countriessuch as Syria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisiahave begun to deepen structural and institutionalreforms, increasing the demand for capital The oil boom has generated massive liquidity in theGulf states, thus increasing the supply of capital. Compared with conditions in previous oil boomperiods, a higher amount of the surplus is now availableto the oil-exporting MENA countries and is beingchanneled into project-based investments in the region.GCC countries have already allocated over$1.3 trillion in infrastructure and manufacturing investmentsover the next 5 years according to the EIU outlook for 2007 (Economist Intelligence Unit, 2007) On the other hand, Project-based investments have recently been increasingespecially in Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, andTunisia. These intra-MENA investments are mostly basedon telecommunications, infrastructure, real estate,tourism, and banking. The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency has list of multibillion-dollar investment projects in MENA which is getting longer. According to them some recent investment projects include: A$9 billion tourism project by Dubai Holding and Emaar Holding in Morocco, Kuwaits Telecom Group (Wataniya) expanding into Tunisia, DubaiHolding acquiring 33.5 percent of Tunis Telecom ($2.25 billion), and the Bukhater Groups $5 billion City Complex project in Tunisia. To date, there are 15MENA national investment promotion agencies,most of which were established in the past decade.New investments are facilitated by private groupsand finance houses, and governments are closelymonitoring reform indexes published by internationalagencies to analyze the effects of greater investments intra-region. (Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, 2011) Integration through Infrastructure Investments In terms of Infrastructure investment recently, there have been cross-border infrastructure projects that are becoming more prominent in the region. Some of the examplesinclude cross-border electricity grids, gas pipelines,transport links, and telecommunication networks. However, there are still many regulatory and financial challenges.In the past, interconnection of power grids in theMENA region was primarily driven by governmentsconcerns about preserving power supply securityin their respective markets. On the other handother benefits,such as capital investments saving, are also considered,though these are not yet the main drivers fornetwork interconnection. The amount of exported and imported power still remains low in many cases. For instance reports from the World Bank show that only 12 percent of total capacity of theAlgeria-Morocco links is used, 17 percent in the case of the Algeria-Tunisia interconnection. (World Bank, 2011) With the exception of Yemen and Djibouti, transportsystems are well developed in MENA countries. Most countries have been able to develop extensiveroad networks, with high capacity in some areas, and modern facilities for air, sea, and railtransport. The key issue in the region is the quality of the transport assets as a result of the lack of appropriatemaintenance or of poor service operations due to institutional deficiencies. Cost-effectivetransport services, efficient facilitation, and transport infrastructure supplemented with good intermodalconnectivity are required to accommodate the growth in global and intraregional trade. However, regional integration initiatives still remain at an early stage of development in the transport sector.As a result of the closure of several borders in the region, land-based transport plays a minor role inintraregional trade in MENA. Conclusion In light of the recent developments and the challenges faced by the MENA region we can accurately see that there is still room for more substantial development in the region as a result of greater intra-regional economic region. Looking at results from the development of intra-regional trade and services we can see that the benefits outweigh the costs and it is important the reforms are taken at a governmental level to allow for greater de-regulation of markets and policies effecting trade flows between countries. Nevertheless, the recent oil boom and global commodity boom does leave tremendous room for development and growth in the region.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Division of labor in a Household Essay -- essays research papers

Division of labor in a Household   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The division of labor in the household hold depends on the environment. Society creates gender ideology that affects the roles women and men take on in the household. In The Second Shift by Arlie Russell, she states three different ideologies of gender. There is the traditional, transitional and egalitarian ideology that determines what sphere men and women want to identify with, home sphere or work sphere. However, it depends what kind on the time period and society you live in that determines the â€Å"norm† gender ideology, which affects the division of labor in a household. The society, which affected the Mendoza and Ortega family that I have observed and interviewed, constructs views of the appropriate roles for men and women in the family devotion schema. Historical   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  An important period of United States history that affected the division of household labor was during the earlier industrial revolution. Before the industrial revolution in America, men and women work in the farm; it was a private family farm that both men and women worked. So around the 1830’s these farms were taking over by corporation, and during this time there was a growth of factories, trades and business in the new cities of America, which attracted men and women away from the farm life. However, there was a transition in economy of America, which affected men and women, but it affected them differently. The jobs that men were receiving were different from what women were getting. â€Å"In 1860, most industrial workers were men.† While, men where working in factories women where working in more domestic jobs, but only 15% of women were working for paid. Hence, most women stayed at home to take care of the second shift, housework. When men star ted working in factories and women working in domestic jobs, this change the way people lived, especially family life. Now men are leaving their homes, where they use to work as farmers, to city to work, while women primary stay at home to work. During this time period, the lives of men where changing more drastically, but women identity was still identifying with the home, while men were identifying with his paid work.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nowadays, women’s lives have changed significantly due to the expansion of jobs that have gave women more opportu... ...n working, still the women were the one who did most of the housework. The placement of living also had an affect on their lives as well. As a native New York, the part of queens the Ortega family lives, would be consider as â€Å"suburbs† and the part of Brooklyn, the Mendoza family live in would be considered as the urban. Their surroundings affected their affirmation of their choice of gender ideology. In Queens, most women were stay-at-home mothers and expected the man to provides the finical needs. Sherry affirmed her notion of traditional mothers by giving examples of her neighbors to state that it’s the â€Å"norm† to take at home and take care of your children. On the other hand, Gen lived in an area where most of the mothers worked outside the homes. She stated that today, â€Å"women should not identify herself with only the home, but with the labor force as well.† Both families’ neighbor encouraged them to believe in their gender ideologies, which had some contradiction between what a person said they believed, their gender ideologies and what they actual did in the second shift. The Mendoza and Ortega family had one person, the wife/mother, doing more of the second shift, housework.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Theme of Inequality in The Subjection of Women by John Stuart Mill Essa

In the essay, The Subjection on Women, the author John Stuart Mill describes his views on the inequality between men and women. He gives his opinion on why men have so much power over women and why this occurs. John Stuart Mill describes a principle and system that regulates the social relations between women and men. The principle Mill proposes is the legal subordination of one sex to the other. He is referring to the dominance that men have over women. In 1869, the Parliament in Europe gave little rights to women that created a tremendous gap between men and women. Men would be given the final say on what women could and could not do. The system that regulates the social relations between men and women was the system of inequality. Mill wrote that inequality was not forced on women, but was the way of life since the start of society. Mill argued that even though women voluntarily accepted male domination the majority of women were against it. The only way Mill said that women living in the mid-nineteenth century in Europe could get their opinions known was through written works. The main argument women were trying to make was to be as educated and given the same opportunities that me n received. Women wanted to obtain jobs in high positions; jobs that required men to listen to women and follow the orders that women gave to men. According to Mill, men wanted women to tend to their needs without forcing them. A wife who seemed to be forced to serve their husband ...

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Body Dysmorphic Disorder :: Body Dysmorphic Disorder

Northeastern University sophomore Terri* spends at least a few minutes a day critiquing her body in the mirror. â€Å"I have this extra fat on my stomach that I hate,† she said, squeezing her abdomen with both hands. Terri is an articulate, responsible, political science major and sociology minor who looks and sounds mature beyond her years. She is well-respected by peers and authority figures alike, and she recently landed a co-op job at a prestigious law firm in Boston. This girl has got herself together. Today, wearing a business-casual purple turtleneck, gray peacoat and glasses, this confident, capable woman points to the area under her chin. â€Å"I’ve just noticed this,† she said, running her fingers under her jaw, across a section of her neck that she believes is dangerously bordering on a double-chin. Like most people, she sees nothing unusual about her physical concerns. â€Å"Everyone worries about aspects of their appearance,† she said as she turns her attention away from the mirror and finishes getting dressed. Many people have concerns with the way they look, but some have obsessive, irrational concerns. Like most people, Terri has never heard of Body Dysmorphic Disorder. Although Terri’s body concerns may not constitute the disorder, there are people among us living with the secretive, shameful reality of BDD. WHAT IS BDD? Few people have ever heard of BDD, but virtually everyone has exhibited the characteristics of the disorder in its most basic form: a heightened concern with a particular part of their body that they deem â€Å"less than perfect,† something that they would like to improve upon and even something that they try to hide. Unlike normal appearance concerns, however, BDD is marked by an intense preoccupation with an imagined defect in appearance. A severe and debilitating psychiatric disorder, BDD is characterized by an obsessive fixation on one or more parts of the body that a person perceives as disgusting and unnatural. If a slight physical abnormality or inconsistency exists in a BDD sufferer’s physicality, their concern is excessive – even to the point of experiencing social withdrawal and suicidal tendencies. Dr. Roberto Olivardia is a clinical psychologist at the McLean Hospital in Boston and teaches psychology at Harvard Medical School. A specialist in BDD and Obsessive-Compulsive disorders, in general, he acknowledges that BDD symptoms are often mistaken as â€Å"normal† fears. â€Å"With BDD there are many, many people walking around in the U.S. who have it that you never know have it. For a lot of people, you don’t know what it is that you have, but you know that life is not normal,† said Dr.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Famous Manager

NAME: PHILLIP H. KNIGHT Position: Chairman of Board of Directors in NIKE, INC The Nike boss wasn't a big fan of advertising, but the company's flair for promotion launched an athletic-shoe revolution. â€Å"Play by the rules. But be ferocious. â€Å"-Philip H. Knight In 1993, the man whom The Sporting News voted â€Å"the most powerful person in sports† wasn't an athlete, a manager or a team owner. He was Philip H. Knight, the dynamic iconoclast who for nearly 30 years has shod the feet of sports legends and â€Å"weekend warriors† alike.In less than a decade, his marketing savvy and uncompromising competitiveness had transformed the athletic-shoe industry and made Nike one of the most successful and widely recognized brand names in the world. Knight first came up with the blueprint for what would become the world's No. 1 athletic-shoe company while working on his master's degree at Stanford University. Assigned to write a term paper on starting a small business in an area he knew well, the former University of Oregon track star naturally chose running.He outlined a plan for breaking the stranglehold Adidas had on the running-shoe market by using cheap Japanese labor to manufacture a cheaper, better-quality running shoe. Shortly after graduating in 1962, Knight decided to put his plan into action. He flew to Japan to visit Onitsuka Tiger Co. , manufacturer of an Adidas knockoff sold in Japan. Introducing himself as the head of Blue Ribbon Sports, a company which existed only in his mind, Knight told Tiger executives that his firm was the ideal choice to import their shoes into the United States.He convinced Tiger to send him some samples, promising to place an order after his â€Å"partners† examined them. Back in the United States, Knight borrowed money from his father to pay for the samples, and he sent a few pairs to his former University of Oregon coach, Bill Bowerman, who quickly became his partner. Putting up $500 each, Bowerman and Knight officially formed Blue Ribbon Sports and purchased 200 pairs of Tigers, which Knight began selling from his car at high school track meets throughout the Pacific Northwest.By the early 1970s, sales had reached $3 million, and Knight decided it was time for Blue Ribbon to break with Tiger and start designing its own shoes. In 1972, Blue Ribbon launched its Nike line, named after the Greek goddess of victory. Emblazoned with a â€Å"swoosh† logo Knight paid a Portland State art student $35 to design, the shoes featured a unique â€Å"waffle sole†-created by Bowerman-that offered better traction with less weight. Knight's marketing strategy was simple.Rather than rely on advertising (which he admittedly loathed), he would get top athletes to endorse his shoes, and then let his sales force sell the product. His strategy and the timing of the launch couldn't have been better. That summer, the Olympic track and field trials were held in Eugene, Oregon, with none othe r than Bill Bowerman as coach of the American Olympic team. Knight took full advantage of the opportunity, putting Nikes on the feet of several top finishers. When they made national television, so did the shoes they were wearing.One of the most visible runners to wear Nikes was American record-holder Steve Prefontaine. A cocky, anti-establishment type, Prefontaine became the first of a team of edgy athletes Knight recruited to endorse his shoes. As Knight had planned, athlete endorsements played a major role in boosting Nike sales throughout the 1970s. For instance, after tennis â€Å"bad boy† John McEnroe hurt his ankle and began wearing Nike three-quarter-top shoes, sales of that style leapt from 10,000 pairs to over 1 million. And the sudden popularity of jogging combined with Nike's canny marketing created a demand where none existed before.No longer would any old pair of shoes do for that jog around the block; people wanted to wear what the best in the world were wearin g. and that was Nike (as Blue Ribbon was re-christened in 1978). Nike experienced continued success throughout the early 1980s, thanks mostly to the tremendous sales of its Air Jordan line. Commercials glorifying Michael Jordan's high-flying, slam-dunking antics made the gaudy black and red sneakers a hot item, selling more than $100 million worth in the first year alone.By 1986, total sales hit $1 billion, and Nike surpassed Adidas to become the No. 1 shoe manufacturer worldwide. Amazingly, Knight stumbled only once in his stellar career. In the late 1980s, Nike's strategy of focusing on hard-edged, hard-core athletes ignored the growing market for aerobics shoes. When British shoe manufacturer Reebok pitched their leather shoes as a fashion item for the trendy aerobic workout crowd, they quickly overtook Nike in the top spot. Between 1986 and 1987, Nike sales dropped 18 percent.Knight was forced to face the fact that while Nike technology appealed to sports professionals, other co nsumers might rank appearance over function. In response, Nike came up with Nike Air-a multipurpose shoe with an air cushion in the sole. The commercial produced to unveil the new line featured the Beatles' song â€Å"Revolution. † (The rights to which cost Nike $250,000. ) Nike Air may or may not have been a revolution in footwear, but it certainly revived sales. Nike regained the lead from Reebok in 1990 and has remained there ever since.But as Nike has grown into a huge multinational enterprise, it has become a magnet for controversy. In 1990, it came under fire from Jessie Jackson, who maintained that while African-Americans accounted for a large percentage of Nike's sales, Nike had no black vice presidents or board members. Jackson launched a boycott that led to the appointment of Nike's first black board member. That same year, stories of teenagers being killed for their Air Jordan's sparked outrage at what was perceived as Nike's overzealous promotion of its shoes.More recently, Knight has been accused of exploiting factory workers in Asia, some of whom are paid less than $2 per day by the subcontractors who manufacture Nikes. But despite this negative publicity, Nike sales have remained strong. Philip Knight, now in his late 50s, has come to be viewed as one of the master marketers of the age. When asked by a reporter how he achieved such fame, in a veiled reference to the Reebok torpedo that forced him to rethink his marketing strategy, Knight replied, â€Å"How did John Kennedy become a war hero? They sunk his boat. † Retrieved from www. ntrepreneur. com on April 10, 2013 As I can see on this article , we can obviously state that Phillip Knight became a good leader or manager. The qualities he have are (1)Perspective – he have the vision of what he wanted or desires for the company to be better (2) able to inspires, encourage and motivate other employer to do job proper and positive (3) able to communicate with his other co-membe r to produce more effectively plan (4) able to lead and control the company’s operation (5) Good in making effective decisions. Retrieved from www. entrepreneur. com

Monday, September 16, 2019

Scenario of the Internal Community:

A leadership marked by both personal integrity and value-driven vision, it is needless to argue, belongs to one of the most fundamental aspects of a truly effective organization. And as the new principal of a K-6 elementary school, whose composition consists in 450 students, 24 teachers, 15 office personnel and 1 custodian, I would do my best to build a legacy of strong leadership, vision and integrity. To my view, the challenges which the school currently faces all take cue from effective leadership, or its unfortunate lack thereof. If I may correctly surmise, teachers resort to â€Å"power cliques† only when circumstances make room for it; i. e. , when they feel that they can fill up the power vacuum stemming from a system’s the lack of able headship. Just the same, an educational institution begins to suffer from unfriendly atmosphere when a sensible lack of checks and balances within the system is tolerated. Change is therefore a key benchmark at the onset of my assumption of duties. But before making any administrative decision, I shall first circumscribe the nature and scope of the problems at hand, by paying close attention to the concerns of parents, teachers and other members of the community. Come August 1, I shall waste no time in gathering as much pertinent information as possible to figure what is wrong. After briefly introducing myself to the teachers and community, I shall initiate a campus-wide survey that would enable all stakeholders to vent their take on the current school system. The results shall become objects of inquiry during the brainstorming and deliberation of the school’s working vision – an activity which shall be participated in by the entire school’s staff, and shall be held a week before the school year formally commences. During the meeting, I shall be employing a â€Å"non-directive† or â€Å"democratic† approach to the affairs of the deliberation periods. I would empower my staff to brainstorm and deliberate among themselves – under my guidance – the practices that need serious alteration, if only we can work for the greater good of the struggling school community. In this approach, I am borrowing the idea propounded by Jonathan Rix and Kathy Simmons: effective learning institutions, they contend, needs â€Å"to alter† prevalent cultures so as to realign its vision towards maximal learning (2004, p. 67). By August 25, my mission is to communicate the new vision of the institution – collectively discerned, as they were, by the entire school administration and staff – to the parents and custodians concerned and, surely, to the students. On top of such vision, I would also propose the idea of frequent classroom visitations, as well as thorough reviews of all extant instructional objects and learning materials. And since I find inclusivity and involvement as necessary factors for effective learning communities, I shall propose to set convenient but â€Å"non-compromise-able† dates for regular updating, participated in by administrators, parents, students, as well as by some representatives from community organizations. Furthermore, I shall communicate to them the telling importance of mid-year evaluations, by way of school surveys, so as to rectify the seeming lack of checks and balances which the school once suffered from. The rest of the year shall be dedicated to a relentless effort in bringing about concrete fruition to the goals of the institution which has been set for the year. Goal-redefinition, if necessitated, can be accommodated during the mid-year. Critical to this continuing effort is my goal to meet all teachers and staff individually during the year. Personally, I would like to work on concepts that find their concrete correlation with reality. The effort is, obviously, onerous on my part. But I am a firm believe that no great things can be achieved overnight. If I want my educational organization to succeed, I have to undergo the painstaking process of brainstorming and implementing goals, as well as leveling honest reviews in respect its relative success, or lack of it. Running a school entails the continued appreciation of the systems that work, a courage to change what does not work, and the wisdom to know the difference between them.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Roller Coaster Physics

Individuals love to go to the amusement parks and try out the rides that are available. The most common and thrilling ride is the roller coaster. An amusement park is not an amusement park if it does not contain a roller coaster. What makes these roller coasters so fun that every amuse parks has one. A lot of people would say it is their extreme high speeds that makes it very exciting. That is a valid answer, but it is the wrong answer. The speed has nothing to do with the excitement. It is more than likely that most people travel faster on their ride along the highway on the way to the amusement park than they would in a roller coaster. Basically the thrill all comes from the acceleration and the feeling of weightlessness that they produce. Roller coasters thrill people because of their ability to accelerate them downward one moment and upwards the next; leftwards one moment and rightwards the next. How does this thrill machine work? There are two ways that this question will be answered. First, through the basic principles and then through a more advanced explanation. Roller coaster rides involve a great deal of physics. The ride often begins with a chain and motor which exerts a force on the train of cars to lift the train to the top of a tall hill. Once the cars are lifted to the top of the hill, gravity takes over and the rest of the ride works on energy transformation. There is no motor or engine that takes a train around the track. The law of physics is basically the engine of the train. At the top of the hill, the cars possess a large amount of potential energy because they are elevated very high above the ground. The potential energy depends on the mass and the height of the object. As the cars are released they lose a lot of their potential energy but they gain kinetic energy because all of the potential energy is transferred into kinetic energy. The kinetic energy depends on the mass of the object and the speed of the object. As the cars lose speed, they also lose kinetic energy, but that does not stop the whole thing, inertia is what keeps the cars moving. While the cars might slow down when they approach a new hill, it is inertia which moves it forward. Once cars go through loops, turns and smaller hills, the only forces that act upon the cars are the force of gravity, the normal force and dissipative forces such as air resistance. The force of gravity is an internal force and any work done by it does not change the total mechanical energy of the train of cars. The normal force of the track pushing up on the cars is an external force and it always times acts perpendicular to the motion of the cars and it is unable of doing any work to the train of cars. Air resistance if a force capable of doing work on the cars and taking away a bit of energy from the total mechanical energy which the cars possess. Due to the complexity of this force and the small role that it plays on the large quantity of energy possessed by the cars, it is often neglected. By neglecting air resistance, it can be said that the total mechanical energy of the train of cars is conserved during the ride. That is to say, the total amount of mechanical energy possessed by the cars is the same throughout the ride. Energy is not gained or lost, only transformed from kinetic energy to potential energy and vice versa. Now that the basics are understood, we can get into more complex things, such as the physics of making a roller coaster amusing. We have said that it is the acceleration that makes it exciting. The most exciting part of a roller coaster is when it approaches the loops, and centripetal acceleration occurs within those loops. The most common loop of a roller coaster ride is the loop that looks like a tear drop, it is not a perfect circle. These loops are called clothoid loops. A clothoid is a section of a spiral in which the radius is constantly changing, unlike a circle where the radius is constant. The radius at the bottom of a clothoid loop is much larger than the radius at the top of the clothoid loop. As a roller coaster rider travels through a clothoid loop, he/she will experiences an acceleration due to both a change in speed and a change in direction. A rightward moving rider gradually becomes an upward moving rider, then a leftward moving rider, then a downward moving rider, before finally becoming a rightward-moving rider once again. There is a continuing change in the direction of the rider as he/she will moves through the clothoid loop. A change in direction is one thing of an accelerating object. The rider also changes speed. As the rider begins to climb upward the loop, he/she begins to slow down. What we talked about suggests that an increase in height results in a decrease in kinetic energy and speed and a decrease in height results in an increase in kinetic energy and speed. So the rider experiences the greatest speeds at the bottom of the loop. The change in speed as the rider moves through the loop is the second part of acceleration which the riders experiences. A rider who moves through a circular loop with a constant speed, the acceleration is centripetal and towards the center of he circle. In this case of a rider moving through a noncircular loop at non-constant speed, the acceleration of the rider has two components. There is a component which is directed towards the center of the circle (ac) and relates itself to the direction change and the other component is directed tangent (at) to the track and relates itself to the car's change in speed. This tangential compo nent would be directed opposite the direction of the car's motion as its speed decreases and in the same direction as the car's motion as its speed. At the very top and the very bottom of the loop, the acceleration is primarily directed towards the center of the circle. At the top, this would be in the downward direction and at the bottom of the loop it would be in the upward direction. Inward acceleration of an object is caused by an inward net force. Circular motion or curved path such as a clothiod requires an inwards component of net force. If all the forces which act upon the object are added together as vectors, then the net force would be directed inwards. Neglecting friction and air resistance, a roller coaster car will experience two forces which I have mentioned earlier. The normal force is always acting in a direction perpendicular to the track and the gravitational force is always acts downwards. We will discuss the relative magnitude and direction of these two forces for the top and the bottom of the loop. At the bottom of the loop, the track pushes upwards upon the car with a normal force. However, at the top of the loop the normal force is directed downwards because the track is above the car, it pushes downwards upon the car. The magnitude of the force of gravity acting upon the passenger (or car) can easily be found using the equation Fgrav = m*g where g = acceleration of gravity (approx. 10 m/s2). The magnitude of the normal force depends on two factors which are the speed of the car, the radius of the loop and the mass of the rider. The normal force is always greater at the bottom of the loop than it is at the top. The normal force must always be of the appropriate size to combine with the force of gravity in a way to make the required inward or centripetal net force. At the bottom of the loop, the force of gravity points outwards away from the center of the loop. The normal force must be sufficiently large to overcome this force of gravity and supply some excess force to result in a net inward force. Basically the force of gravity and the force of normal are playing a tug of war and force of normal must win by an amount equal to the net force. At the top of the loop, both forces are directed inwards. The force of gravity is found in the usual way using the equation Fgrav = m*g. Once more the normal force must provide sufficient force to produce the required inward or centripetal net force.

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Ict in School Education

Information and Communication Technology for Education in India and South Asia Essay II ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 Executive Summary The essay on use of ICTs in school education provides a study of trends and dominant features of the use of ICTs for school education as profiled in different initiatives captured in the country reports. The essay highlights the spectrum of experiences from high-end technology solutions to low-end TV/radio-based initiatives that have been successful in different countries at the K12 level.The paper also examines the key issues and challenges in the effective implementation of ICTs in school education and provides suggestions to address these challenges and aid the implementation of ICTs in school education. An observation of international trends in application of ICTs in schools indicates that it is directly related to the development of schools and the teaching and learning envir onment. It is observed that new and emerging technologies are being integrated with the older technologies to make ICT applications in education more effective.Educators are also showing an increasing tendency to use mobile technology to enable access to education. There is a great deal of effort being expended around the world on the development of systems that will standardize the development of resources, catalog them, and store them. These include learning objects, which are digital Web-based resources created to support learning and can function as discrete entities or be linked in order to relate to explicit concepts or learning outcomes.Repositories are libraries where these digital resources are stored and provide teachers, students, and parents with information that is structured and organized to facilitate the finding and use of learning materials regardless of their source location. ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) The United Nations’ Millennium Deve lopment Goals (MDGs) two and three are about achieving universal primary education and promoting gender equality, respectively.The MDGs in education are defined in terms of participation and completion of primary education by all children and the elimination of gender discrimination in education. Despite the continued efforts of the various Governments on universalizing the primary and elementary education, through a wide range of programmes and schemes, access to quality education continues to be an obstacle in the achievement of the education goals. For instance, in India, during 2004 – 05, while the Gross Enrolment Ratio for children enrolling in classes I to VIII was 97 percent, the Drop-out Rate for the same classes was as high as 46 percent.The situation is more worrying at the secondary education level (classes IX and X), where the enrollment is recorded at 53 percent and the Drop-out Rate is as high as 60 percent1. Efforts so far have addressed to a considerable degre e, the concerns of equity as well as that of regional parity, however concerns of quality have not received adequate attention. Recognizing this, the Government of India’s flagship education programme at the primary level – the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) – has streamlined its focus on ‘quality’. The situation is similar across the South AsiaSelected Educational Statistics 2006 – 07; Government of India, Ministry of Human Resource Development, New Delhi 1 2 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 region. With the target timelines for universalizing of primary and secondary education nearing, there is a sense of urgency in accomplishing the goals set therein. As is being increasingly articulated, if after spending large sums of money on programmes and schemes, countries have not become fully literate, it is time that innovative and cost effective methods be put in lace to address the problem of education in these countries2. While this is a larger problem and points to the need for reform in the educational systems of these countries at various levels – pedagogical, curricular, as well as institutional, the emergence of various Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and their increasing acceptance and adoption by society provide unique opportunities and could potentially promote education on a large scale.While there is no conclusive research to prove that student achievement is higher when using ICTs in the education space, either in the developed or developing countries, there is a general consensus among practitioners and academics that integration of ICTs in education has a positive impact on the learning environment.It is understood that in diverse socio-economic and cultural contexts ICTs can be successfully employed to reach out to a greater number of students, including those to whom education was previously not easily accessible, and help in promoting learning, along with exposing students to the technical skills required for many occupations. ICTs act as and provide students and teachers with new tools that enable improved learning and teaching. Geographical distance no longer becomes an insurmountable obstacle to obtaining an education.It is no longer necessary for teachers and students to be physically in proximity, due to innovations of technologies such as teleconferencing and distance learning, which allow for synchronous learning. 3 ICTs in schools provide an opportunity to teachers to transform their practices by providing them with improved educational content and more effective teaching and learning methods. ICTs improve the learning process through the provision of more interactive educational materials that increase learner motivation and facilitate the easy acquisition of basic skills.The use of various multimedia devices such as television, videos, and computer applications offers more challenging and engaging learning environment for students o f all ages. 4 A study conducted by the International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) indicated that 80 percent of its participants felt more aware and empowered by their exposure to ICT in education, and 60 percent stated that the process of teaching as well as learning were directly and positively affected by the use of ICT. Twenty-first century teaching learning skills underscore the need to shift from the traditional teacher-centered pedagogy to more learner-centered methods. Active and collaborative learning ‘Using Technology for Education’, Guilherme Vaz, IL & FS Educational Technology Services, Discussion Paper on National Policy on ICT in School Education 2 Victoria L. Tinio, ICT in Education (New York: UNDP-APDIP, 2003). Wadi Haddad and Sonia Jurich, â€Å"ICT for Education: Potential and Potency,† in Technologies for Education: Potentials, Parameters, and Prospects, eds.Wadi Haddad and A. Drexler (Washington, D. C. : Academy for Educat ional Development), 28-40. 5 International Institute for Communication and Development, ICTs for Education: Impact and Lessons Learned from IICD Supported Activities (The Hague: IICD, 2007), http://www. iicd. org/files/icts-foreducation. pdf (accessed March 14, 2009). 3 4 3 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 environments facilitated by ICT contribute to the creation of a knowledge-based student population.Education leadership, management, and governance can also be improved through ICT by enhancing educational content development and supporting administrative processes in schools and other educational establishments. 6 ICT in School Education in the Developed World In the developed countries, and the urban elites of advanced economies, twenty-first century education integrates technologies, engaging students in ways which were not previously possible, creating new learning and teaching possibilities, enhancing achievement and extending interactions with local and g lobal communities.Students live in a world that has seen an information explosion and significant and rapid social and economic changes. ICT in School Education in the Developing World In the developing world, ICTs are used largely to increase access to and improve the relevance and quality of education. ICTs have demonstrated potential to increase the options, access, participation, and achievement for all students. The unprecedented speed and general availability of diverse and relevant information due to ICT, extends educational opportunities to the marginalized and vulnerable groups, among the other disadvantaged.ICTs in the developing world have the potential to enhance the education experience for children who: ? ? ? ? ? live in rural and remote-rural locations have special learning needs have physical disabilities constraining their access to schools have dropped out and/or have kept themselves out of school for various reasons. aim for excellence and fail to get satisfied in the current system Teachers and learners in the developing world are no longer solely dependent on physical media such as printed textbooks which are often times outdated.With today’s technology, one even has the ability to access experts, professionals, and leaders in their fields of interest, around the world at any given time. 7 In India, various ICTs have been employed over the years to promote primary and secondary education. These include radio, satellite based, one-way and interactive television, and the Internet. However, there have been enormous geographic and demographic disparities in their use.Some states in the country currently have an enabling environment in place that allows for a greater use 6 7 Haddad and Jurich, â€Å"ICT for Education: Potential and Potency† Ibid 4 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 of ICTs for education, whereas other states lack such an environment making the use of ICTs for this purpose very sporadic. 8 It is a lso important to keep in mind that ICTs in education are a potential double-edged sword— while ICTs offer educators, tools to extend education to hitherto naccessible geographic regions, and to deprived children and empower teachers and students through information, there is also the danger that such technologies may further widen the gap between the educational haves and havenots. However, technology is only a tool and the success of ICTs in enhancing the delivery of quality education to the needy, without widening the gap, will depend largely on policy level interventions that are directed toward how ICTs must be deployed in school education.The Governments in each of the countries in the South Asia region are now keen and committed on exploring the uses of ICTs for school education. Therefore, Government policies lately reflect their realization of the importance of integrating ICT use and the promotion of quality education enabled through ICTs. The creation of educational networks offer substantial economies of scale and scope, when attempting to improve the quality of education and seek to standardize quality across the system.Hence, Governments are investing in infrastructure facilities that link schools/educational institutions and resource centers. However, despite administrators and experts alike recognizing the potential of ICT in improving access to quality education, the utilization of ICTs in school education in the South Asian countries is still not at a very advanced stage. The following table classifies countries in the Asia Pacific region based on their appreciation of ICTs and the availability of ICTs. It shows that while appreciation of ICTs is high in the South Asia region, their actual availability for utilization is low.Countries Appreciation of Availability of Technology Technology Afghanistan Low Low Australia High High Bangladesh High Low Bhutan High Low Cambodia High Low China High Low Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, High No available data Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan) Democratic People’s Republic of High No available data Korea India High Low Indonesia High Low Iran High No available data ‘Promoting the Use of Information and Communication Technologies for Primary and Secondary Education: The Case of the States of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Karnataka in India’ Discussion Paper by Amitabh Dabla, Educational Development Centre, Bangalore India. 8 5 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) Countries Japan MalaysiaMaldives Mongolia Myanmar Nepal New Zealand Pacific Islands Countries Lao PDR Republic of Korea Sri Lanka Thailand Vietnam Appreciation Technology High High High High High High High High High High High High High of Availability Technology High High Low Low Low Low High Low Low High Low Low Low 2010 of Source: Strategy Framework for Promoting ICT Literacy in the Asia–Pacific Region, UNESCO Bangkok Communication and Information Unit, 2008 http://www2. unescobkk. org/elib/publications/188/promotingICT_literacy. pdf South Asia is yet to harness the potential of ICTs in creating, constructing, capturing, managing, and sharing information and knowledge. India is rated high on appreciation because it has gone beyond policies that merely recognize the strategic role of ICT for growth and development and is already institutionalizing concrete measures that support ICT initiatives.However, it has been rated low on availability of technology due to data reporting that access to computers is â€Å"limited,† the cost of Internet connections is relatively high, ISPs are described as â€Å"limited,† and the ratio of number of computers per student stated as â€Å"insufficient. †9 These observations point to the need to frame appropriate policies, build adequate infrastructure, and set aside adequate funds in order to support the deployment of ICTs in furthering the education levels of the country. Although ICTs do offer m any beneficial opportunities for education, they are no substitute for formal schooling. The role of technology is to support school education and not replace it, though the technology may play an appreciable part in meeting the needs of children who cannot go to a conventional school.Access to ICTs ensures enhancement of traditional or formal education systems, enabling them to adapt to the different learning and teaching needs of the societies. ICTs in school education initiatives that focus on the following areas are most likely to successfully contribute to meeting the Millennium Development Goals10: ? Increasing access through distance learning Strategy Framework for Promoting ICT Literacy in the Asia Pacific Region, Elena E Pernia, UNESCO Bangkok Communication and Information Unit, Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education, Thailand 2008. 10 The World Bank. 9 6 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010ICTs can provide new and innovative means to bring education al opportunities to greater numbers of children of all ages, especially those who have historically been excluded, such as populations in rural and remote-rural areas, girl children facing social barriers, and children with disabilities and other compulsions. In almost all the developing countries of South Asia, distance learning has been an important component of the education policy of these nations. It is probably in this domain that traditional ICTs like radio, television, and audio cassettes were first deployed in the education space. In India, distance learning offered by institutions like National Institute of Open Learning (NIOS) and Indira Gandhi National Open University have used a combination of print and audio-visual material as well as traditional face-to-face interactions to deliver their content. Enabling a knowledge network for students With knowledge as the crucial input for productive processes within today’s economy, the efficiency by which knowledge is acq uired and applied determines economic success. Effective use of ICTs can contribute to the timely transmission of information and knowledge, thereby helping education systems meet this challenge. ? Training Teachers Large numbers of school teachers will be needed to meet the MDGs for education. The use of ICTs can help in training teachers to accomplish the targeted tasks on a mission mode. Moreover, ICTs provide opportunities to complement on the job training and continuing education for teachers in a more convenient and flexible manner. The use of ICTs for teacher training has been recognized by the governments of most South Asian countries and eacher training programmes like Intel Teach across India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka; Microsoft Shiksha in India; and several other initiatives in Nepal and Bhutan are focused on using ICTs for training teachers. This includes training in applying ICTs in their teaching practices as well as using ICTs as a mode of delivery for these trainings. ? Broadening the availability of quality education materials Development of relevant, good quality content is perhaps the biggest challenge and opportunity in the educational technology space. While infrastructure, capacity building, monitoring, and evaluation are critical support structures without quality content, the learning experience of students will not be significantly improved by the mere presence of ICT.To that end content development is being focused on in many of the focus countries in our study. In India, several initiatives are ongoing for creating digital repositories and learning objects; the Sakshat Portal of Government of India, initiatives like National Program of Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL), the Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning & Online Teaching (MERLOT) seek to create quality digital content for different levels of education. 7 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) ? 2010 Enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of educational a dministration and policy New innovative technologies can help schools’ improve the quality of administrative activities and processes.The Government of Afghanistan’s articulation of the policy for ICT in education focuses on the need to provide access to ICT for all Ministry of Education administrative staffs, teachers, and students. The policy further envisages that through the use of information management systems, ICT will be extensively used to automate and mechanize work such as human resource management, financial management, monitoring and evaluation, the processing of student and teacher records, communication between government and schools, lesson planning, assessment and testing, financial management, and the maintenance of inventories. The Ministry of Education has developed GIS-based spatial data with detailed maps for better management of the education system in the country.More than 35 maps have been produced showing the location of schools all over Afgha nistan, including the number of students and teachers by province. The Government of Delhi, in India, has been a pioneer in using ICTs for better administration of the education system. The Department of Education, Government of Delhi, with 40,000 employees, 928 schools, and more than 120,000 students under its administrative jurisdiction has developed a comprehensive and functionally effective Web-based and GIS-based Management Information System (MIS). All the schools, zonal offices, district offices, regional offices, and various branches at the headquarters can share information using the Web-enabled software.Information for all stakeholders—students, teachers, and administrators—is available online through the Directorate’s Web site (edudel. gov. in); this includes information on admissions, mark sheets, teacher attendance, transfers, pay slips, and so on. International Trends in ICT in School Education An observation of international trends in application of ICTs in schools indicates that it is directly related to the development of schools and the teaching and learning environment. For instance, changes to pedagogical practices in classrooms require that teachers should have access to infrastructure and are given the opportunity to develop the expertise to use the machines and software tools.The trends also indicate policy-makers, administrators, and teachers are using a variety of tools and strategies to improve access to learning opportunities, improve the teaching and learning experience for teachers and students, and make effective use of limited resources. This section presents a select few international experiences that have been observed in ICT applications in primary and secondary education across the globe. 11 Integrating New Technologies with Existing Technologies in Use A discussion on global trends in ICTs and Education in 2010 can also be found at the Education Technology Debate Forum of the World Bank http://edutechdeb ate. org/2010-ict4e-trends/10-global-trends-in-ict-andeducation-for-2010-and-beyond/. It highlights trends like Mobile Learning, Cloud Computing, Gaming, Ubiquitous and Personalized Learning. 11 8ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 Older technologies such as print, radio, and television are more common in most part of the world, unlike the recent technologies such as Internet, e-mail, and wireless communications. This is largely due to the state of infrastructure development that had not allowed the adoption of newer technologies as extensive as the older technologies. In recent times, however, it has been noticed that these newer technologies are gaining prominence and are being integrated with the older technologies to make ICT applications in education more effective. Radio Sagarmatha in Nepal is one of the first community radios in South Asia.It is a radio-browse model wherein Internet is broadcast over the radio. It discusses public issues, conducts training fo r public radio journalism, and provides a venue for local ideas and culture. In 2000, the station added a weekly 25-minute Internet radio programme featuring local and international ICT-related news, and ICT glossary, radio web browsing, and interviews with relevant ICT resource persons. This program has been successful among the rural areas of Nepal. Increased Use of Mobile Technology In the developing countries of South Asia given the almost ubiquitous presence of mobile phones in some geographies, there is an increasing interest in the opportunities offered by this technology.Several initiatives using mobile phones for English language learning, for facilitating educational administration tasks, and other support informational and educational services are being widely offered. In India, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), one of the largest telecom service providers with the widest reach in the country has launched â€Å"Learn English,† a spoken English mobile learning pr ogram. The program aims to teach spoken English through common everyday stories and situations that are familiar to most people. It is currently available in nine regional languages for two levels, namely basic and advanced. The service can be subscribed to at a nominal cost of Rs. 0 per month and a call browsing charge of 30 paise per minute. Other service providers have also entered the arena. IL&FS Education & Technology Services Limited (IL&FS Education) in collaboration with Tata Indicom have launched an â€Å"English Seekho† Program, which uses the mobile phone to teach English through simple 5 minute lessons that can be accessed at the learner’s convenience. Another common usage of mobile phones is also found in support services for education, such as providing alerts and retrieving and sending EMIS reports. The Virtual University in Pakistan makes use of SMS to provide updates to students, schedule appointments, and so on.However, as articulated by educationist s and experts, the small screen size, limitations on the amount of data exchanged, and so on are problems that limit the usage of mobile phones (the models most commonly available) in actual content delivery in education. 12 Content Development through Learning Objects and Repositories 12 For a debate on the use of Mobile Phones vs PCs in Education refer to Edutech Debate at http://edutechdebate. org/mobile-phones-and-computers/ 9 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 Learning technologies have been evolving over the last many years, starting from early mainframebased programmed learning systems, microcomputer software packages, bulletin boards, CBT systems, authoring systems, and more recently after the Internet explosion, Web-based systems and Learning Management Systems.Development of content has largely been done on an individual basis, resulting in a scenario where the content software is not compatible with the latest technology. Moreover, there is no establishe d system for cataloging and classifying virtual learning materials, leading to many excellent online learning materials remaining underutilized. This scenario calls for the need for a standardized system for cataloging, storing, and retrieving content in ways that enable users to access and organize resources for their particular purposes as well as sharing it institutionally, nationally, and internationally. There is a great deal of effort being expended around the world on the development of such systems—ones that will standardize the development of resources, catalog them (metadata) and store them.Learning objects are digital assets that can be as diverse as a chapter in a book, a piece of text, a video or audio clip, or visuals on an overhead transparency or PowerPoint slide, and can be used in a variety of teaching settings, by course designers, managers, trainers, content writers, and learners. 13 Learning objects can be identified, tracked, referenced, used, and reused for a variety of learning purposes. They are developed to function as discrete entities or to be linked in order to relate to explicit concepts or learning outcomes. Content requirements are determined through communication with educators across the target audience and then the learning object is developed by independent contractors.Learning objects may be self-contained, reusable, and capable of being aggregated. Repositories may be described as libraries where learning object databases are stored and provide teachers, students, and parents with information that is structured and organized to facilitate the finding and use of learning materials regardless of their source location. Most repositories contain a Web-based user interface, a search mechanism, and a means of retrieving a learning object. While the initial leadership for learning object repositories has tended to come from the university sector, the interest and activity in the school sector is increasing rapidly. An Over view of Developments and Trends in the Application of Information and Communication Technologies in Education’; Glen M Farrell, Commonwealth of Learning; UNESCO Meta-survey on the Use of Technologies in Education, October 2003. 13 10 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 Open Learning Exchange, Nepal: E Pustakalaya and E Paath OLE Nepal is engaged in creating content at two levels. The E Paath consists of interactive learning modules, mapped to the topics in the curriculum as prescribed by the Curriculum Development Centre (CDC) of Nepal. Subject matter experts work closely with the OLE Nepal developers to create these interactive learning activities. This easy to use software, rich in multimedia elements including text, audio, video, and animations is then used by teachers and students to understand concepts as prescribed in the curriculum.The content contains lessons, exercises, as well as assessment tools to enable teachers to effectively teach and evaluate students. E-Pustakalaya is an electronic library which is a repository of reference material for the students, consisting of full text documents, images audio, video clips and software that are relevant for students. E Pustakalaya deploys a simple child friendly user interface that allows children to navigate, search, and link different documents including reference materials, courserelated content, magazine, and newspaper content. Students can download the content as well as read it online. The repository is also accessible on the Internet to other users at http://www. pustakalaya. org.Content creation in the E Pustakalaya is an ongoing activity and OLE Nepal has collaborated with several national and international organizations to source materials, these include Room to Read, Rato Bangala Foundation, Madan Puraskar Library, Save the Children, World Education, ELearning for Kids and Azim Premji Foundation. OLE Nepal continues to work with other organizations to supplement this data base. (www. olenepal. org/) eGyankosh, Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), India eGyanKosh, developed by IGNOU and launched in 2008, is a National Digital Repository created to store, index, preserve, distribute and share the digital learning resources developed by Open and Distance Learning Institutions in India. The repository contains all course material of IGNOU in print and video format and allows users to download this material free of cost once they have registered themselves. www. egyankosh. ac. in/) As learning repositories are developed, there emerged a need for international standards for these repositories, with the aim of achieving interoperability among various learning repositories. The development of easily accessible and sharable learning repositories is perhaps the most significant trend of all because of the potential it holds for reducing one of the largest single costs in the use of ICT in education—the cost of developing content. This develop ment offers not only the economy and flexibility that comes with reusability but also allows content to be developed independently from the form of its delivery.It offers benefits across the spectrum of learning venues, from the remote learner in some form of distance education, to the teacher and learners face-to-face in a classroom. 11 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 Teachers and Online Learning Activities ICT is an important source, which teachers may use to keep themselves abreast of emerging issues, share knowledge, and reach out to students. Several portals are being developed where teachers can network and share information including best practices. In India, the Sakshat portal developed by the Government of India provides teachers an opportunity to connect with each other and share experiences.The Teachers of India, an online portal developed by the Azim Premji Foundation and the National Knowledge Commission, was created with the objective of providing a forum for teachers to freely interact with each other across languages, facilitate the sharing of insights and best practices of teachers across the country and provide access to resources, information, and new experiments in education from all over the world in all Indian languages. Key Issues and Concerns There are many challenges in implementing ICTs effectively in existing schools. Policy-makers need to give ICTs adequate priority and attention so as to reap the benefits of deploying ICTs in school education.Students from rural locations or impoverished communities often tend to slip under the radar so that they do not have even basic access to ICT. Given that a number of schools still do not even have appropriate classrooms, computers, telecommunication facilities and Internet services, ICT continues to be a distant dream. The existing shortage of quality teachers further compounds the problem. In developing countries, budgetary allocations for deploying ICTs in school educat ion are typically limited, and given the high initial costs of setting up ICT systems, the cost factor works as a further deterrent. Shifting the existing focus from traditional educational models to an ICT-based education system is bound to be met with constraints and roadblocks.Some key issues and concerns that need to be addressed in order to create an ICT friendly environment in schools, especially in countries in the South Asian region, are identified later. Availability of Infrastructure to Support ICT A country’s educational technology infrastructure sits on top of the national telecommunications and information technology infrastructure. Availability of adequate infrastructure to support the deployment of ICTs in schools is a tremendous challenge that schools in the region currently face. Apart from the high initial cost of purchasing and setting up the requisite infrastructure, the maintenance and upgrade costs, as well as the cost and effort of supporting such infra structure are also roadblocks to the successful usage of ICTs in schools, especially in poor and remote areas.Before any ICT-based programme is launched, policy-makers and planners must carefully consider the following: ? In the first place, a basic requirement is whether appropriate rooms or buildings available to house the technology? In countries where there are many old school buildings, extensive retrofitting to ensure proper electrical wiring, heating/cooling and ventilation, and safety and security would be needed. 12 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) ? 2010 ? ? Another basic requirement is the availability of electricity and telephony. In countries within this South Asian region, large areas are still without a reliable supply of electricity and the nearest telephones are miles away.Power situation in rural and remote-rural areas even in some advanced countries in this region is undependable, and this affects the functioning of any ICT initiative. Power cuts wi th different power cut schedules each week play havoc with the timetables. Power outages and fluctuations add to the high maintenance costs of computer hardware. Policy-makers should also look at the ubiquity of different types of ICT in the country in general, and in the educational system (at all levels) in particular. For instance, a basic requirement for computer-based or online learning is access to computers in schools, communities, and households, as well as affordable Internet service. Insufficient access to computers is one of the main obstacles to the spread of ICT usage in school education.This is more so in the case of rural areas where the school is often the only access point for computers. Moreover, system software is expensive and prone to upgrades and requires resources put aside for new versions and upgrades. Operating System (OS) itself adds to the cost burden of the hardware. Although this will require massive investments in the infrastructure, it is nevertheless essential in order to guarantee equal access and to overcome the digital divide. 14 Strong, sustainable partnerships between the Government, private sector and civil society must be built to offset costs and mitigate the complexities of the integration of ICT in education systems (refer Annexure II for details on Public-Private Partnerships [PPPs]).Availability of Funds to Implement ICTs Given the current budgetary and resource constraints of various Governments, a widespread investment in ICTs in education is probably not possible in most developing countries. It is, therefore, critically important to better understand the cost-benefit equation of the wide range of ICT options and uses in order to effectively target-spend the scarce resources. Economies of scale are achievable in distance education, although such Programmes typically require large up-front investments. Some of these costs may be shifted from the public sector to the individual users, but this in itself raises sign ificant equity and access issues.Capacity Building of Teachers In most of schools in the subcontinent, the teachers are overloaded, less motivated and inadequately trained, and often deal with inconvenient working conditions. The use of ICTs in the classroom or in distance education does not diminish the role of the teacher; neither does it automatically change teaching practices. In such an atmosphere, building the capacity of teachers so that they are equipped to deal with using ICTs in classrooms is a challenge. Resistance to Change International Institute for Communication and Development, ICTs for Education: Impact and Lessons Learned from IICD-Supported Activities. 14 13 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010Resistance is commonly witnessed while attempting to introduce ICTs into schools, very often from the teachers themselves, since they may be of the opinion that they shall become redundant once technology comes in or due to their perception that it is too lat e for them to adapt to a new environment. Educators themselves may be skeptical about the effectiveness of using ICTs in school education. Lack of Awareness There is a general lack of awareness about the utility of ICTs in education, as well as about the ICTs at our disposal and how they can be accessed and utilized economically and effectively. This lack of awareness and knowledge about ICTs and their use in education, even on the part of policy makers, administrators and educators, makes it particularly difficult to deploy ICTs in the field of school education.Another critical issue with the usage of ICT in schools is the implementation of new technologies without having analyzed their appropriateness, applicability and impact on various environments and contexts. In most countries, particularly the least developed ones, they must learn from the experiences of others, but must also use technology to respond to their own needs and not just follow trends. 15 Internet Usage While the Internet contains tremendous potential for education, as described in the sections earlier, it also has its own pitfalls. For one, providing all the students with Internet access is a very expensive proposition for most Government schools. This is more so in the case of rural centers and remote areas, where Internet connections are bound to be erratic, if available at all.A different challenge altogether when it comes to Internet usage is the effort involved in monitoring the students usage of the Internet to ensure that they do not visit educationally irrelevant and socially undesirable sites, thus detracting from the intended objective. Language Barriers English is the dominant language of the Internet. An estimated 80 percent of online content is in English. A large proportion of the educational software produced in the world market is in English. For developing countries in the South Asian region where English language proficiency is not high, especially outside metropolitan ar eas, this represents a serious barrier to maximizing the educational benefits of the World Wide Web.Monitoring and evaluation Many of the issues and challenges associated with ICTs in education initiatives are known by policymakers, donor staff, and educators. However, data on the nature and complexity of these issues remains limited because of the lack of good monitoring and evaluation tools and processes. Where evaluation data is available much of the work is seen to suffer from important biases. Another Patti Swarts, â€Å"Main Issues, Possible Solutions and Opportunities for ICTs,† Global e-Schools and Community Initiatives, http://www. gesci. org 15 14 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 problem in this area is the lack of a common set of indicators for ICTs in education.And, where data has been collected, it is often quantitative data related to infrastructure (number of computers, for example) rather than data that can help policy-makers gauge the impa ct of ICT interventions on student learning. 16 If ICTs are to become effective and integral tools in education, and if accountability is to be demonstrated to donors and stakeholders, monitoring and evaluation must be a priority area of focus (refer Annexure I for details on Monitoring & Evaluation). Key Learnings Although there is great opportunity for improvement in school education at many levels through the use of ICTs, the road to achieving it is not easy. It will take continued commitment from all stakeholders involved to make any kind of substantial and sustainable change.The following broadbased suggestions may act as a basis for building a long-term roadmap to bringing ICTs to schools, and students at large in the South Asia region. A key to succeed in this endeavor is to adopt a comprehensive, end-to-end, systematic approach, with a phased and learn-as-you-go strategy for implementation, that can be adjusted to adapt to the specific needs and a changing environment. Gover nment Support Government cooperation is necessary for ICT programmes to have substantial impact and be sustainable. In the attempt to reevaluate the education delivery system and curriculum of countries to include ICT, Governments have to consider the social context in which they are implementing this new phenomenon.The realities of individual countries and the disparities within and across their geographies, including their limitations say, the language barrier, should be considered and the availability of ICT should be made according to the needs and desires of the countries in order to facilitate appropriate learning and local ownership of knowledge. 17 As discussed in the essay on policy coherence, governments need to adopt a coherent national policy framework, an effective ICT for education ecosystem, not just within the education field but also encompassing other complementing and enabling domains, which could ensure a child’s overall development and the Country’ s larger objectives. Government policies must demonstrate political will and champion the integration of ICT purposes and be in line with national development goals and frameworks.In countries where implementation capacity is weak and misuse of resources can be a major problem, ICT can further enable the country to enhance its capacity building efforts and reduce the opportunity for corruption. 18 16 Trucano, Michael. 2005. Knowledge Maps: ICT in Education. Washington, DC: infoDev/World Bank. Available at: https://www. infodev. org/en/Publications. 8. html K. Toure, M. L. Diarra, T. Karsenti, and S. Tchameni-Ngamo, â€Å"Reflections on Cultural Imperialism and Pedagogical Possibilities Emerging from Youth Encounters with Internet in Africa† in ICT and Changing Mindsets in Education, eds. K. Toure, T. M. S. Tchombe, and T. Karsenti (Bamako, Mali: ERNWACA, 2008). 18 Muwanga, â€Å"High Cost of Internet Connectivity in Africa: How Do We Achieve Mobile Telephony Success Story? à ¢â‚¬  17 15 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010Not only are national policies necessary but the Government also should assist in building organizational and institutional capacity to effectively deal with the complexities of integrating and implementing ICT in school education. Ministries of Education need to reconsider how they institutionalize positions of responsibility for ICT. The ICT unit’s roles relate directly to improvement of teaching and learning using ICT, and the mix of skills required differs substantially from that of a traditional IT unit, providing infrastructural systems support. Therefore, appropriate considerations have to be taken to establish the right kind of institutions and positions to take the mission forward. In the longer term, the active participation of the Government is essential to ensure the sector-wide introduction of ICT4E.Government involvement is critical to source additional investments in the ICT infrastructure, to int egrate ICT in the curriculum, and to facilitate the widespread diffusion of materials. 19 Creating Community-Based ICT Facilities In 1999, the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) undertook an initiative to improve rural communities’ access to ICT facilities. This involved selecting 800 Gonokendros (multipurpose learning centers) and equipping them with computers so that rural communities become familiar with usage of ICT and have access to a wide range of reading materials and resources, educational and non-educational. The concept of community-based ICT facilities may be expanded at the school level to increase school students’ access to ICT-based materials. For example, one ICT centre may be created for every ive schools in the village/block, and this centre may be equipped with computers, television, radio, or other technologies. A timetable may be allocated so that each school has access to the ICT centre for one day of the week. Within each school again, different classes may be allocated different periods for accessing the ICT centre. The challenges with implementing such a scheme, is that the distance of the centre from the various schools that warrant the need for firming up the mode of students’ mobility and the frequency of such mobility to access the ICT facility and others. Moreover, the cost of renting or buying land and a building for setting up the ICT centre is another deterrent.However, this concept of school communities using common ICT facilities is a feasible way in which to introduce students from rural communities to ICTs. Prioritizing and Planning Access to Remote Areas Special consideration should be given to ICT connectivity and accessibility for educational purposes. Bandwidth and spectrum of radio and television wavelengths should be allocated for education. Planning for connectivity infrastructure and regulations should promote and facilitate educational use of ICT. The trends toward convergence and ne w mobile platforms for InternetInternational Institute for Communication and Development, ICTs for Education: Impact and Lessons Learned from IICD-Supported Activities. 19 6 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 connectivity need to be fully exploited through innovative policies and partnerships that can help lower cost and expand access. Regional networks of collaboration among countries where language and cultural context are similar could serve as a platform to promote educational quality and equality in an effort to bridge the digital divide. Greater exchange and collaboration in the production and management of educational resources would lower expenses in the development of materials as well as increase the amount of educational content available to teachers and students across the region. 0 Adopting ICTs Suited to the Context Given that Internet access is a problem for most schools, especially in rural areas, educators and administrators needs to consider the p ossibility of establishing Local Area Networks (LANs) in schools. Content could be hosted on school LANs, instead of trying to make them available on the Internet. A digital library on a server on the LAN would be a valuable asset, as it can store all types of digital content. Interactive multimedia material can also be hosted on the LAN at a much lower cost than on the Internet. This also has the added advantage of enabling students to access Programmes at their convenience, instead of having to adhere to a scheduled telecast.Given that India has invested significantly in educational television and already has a commendable satellite television infrastructure, schools should focus on leveraging this technology. Some Indian educational channels are planning to switch to DTH soon, and it is very practical for them to do this. Due to the rapid fall in the cost of servers and storage, it is possible to record thousands of hours of TV programmes in digital form onto a server and make it available on demand from every PC on the LAN. 21 Focus on Capacity Building The use of ICTs in education calls for a fundamental shift in the way content is designed and delivered, as well as for teamwork and collaborative practices.New technologies cannot be imposed without enabling teachers and learners to understand these fundamental shifts. Ongoing training is necessary for the trainers in institutions and organizations who are engaged in the design of curriculum, teaching materials, and delivery of ICT-enabled education. At the same time, middle-level managers, both in the public service and the NGO sector, need to understand the pedagogy of learning through ICT and the management models that are required. Given that teachers themselves are not comfortable using ICTs for teaching purposes, it is critical that there is a focus on capacity building of teachers so that they are equipped adequately to use ICTs in the classrooms.A locally-accessible instructor/trainer may be hired to provide training to the teachers on the usage of computers and Internet, and other ICTs that are proposed to be used in ‘Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in Education for Development’, Global Alliance for ICT and Development, White Paper July 2009. 21 Srinivasan Ramani, International Institute for Information Technology, Bangalore, e-Discussion with Community of Practitioners at UN Solution Exchange (Communities of Education and ICT for Development). 20 17 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 the school. Further, the contracts of procurement of ICT products could include among other, a short-term handholding feature with respect to familiarization and effective usage of the facilities.It is also suggested that the Teachers Training Institutes (TTIs) shall ensure ICT-based teaching and learning methodologies be integrated into the educational streams and build capabilities to the next-generation teachers with the capacity to handle ICT facilities with ease. Support of school administrators and, in some cases, the community, is critical if ICTs are to be used effectively. In addition, teachers must have adequate access to functioning computers (or other technologies) and sufficient technical support. Shifting pedagogies, redesigning curriculum and assessment tools, and providing more autonomy to local schools all contribute to the optimal use of ICTs in education.Creative Solutions to Computer Shortages Computer-based ICT interventions require significant investment in hardware. In addition, the expected active life of a computer is about 5 years, and as the hardware industry develops more sophisticated products, the software adapts to the top-of-the-line products. Computer recycling is an ecologically sound alternative to this problem. A growing number of not-for-profit organizations are dedicated to the tasks of collecting, refurbishing, and finding new homes for old computers. 22 In most South Asian countries, i t has been found that computer usage is most cost effective when placed in common areas such as cyber cafes, community resource centers, and so on.Alternative Power Sources Given the situation of power shortages in rural areas, and the effect of power shortage on the usage of computers and other technologies in schools, the Governments should actively promote the usage of alternate sources of power. This ecologically friendly solution will also ensure a steady power supply to schools in rural areas. For example, the Bangladesh National ICT Policy 2009 highlights the imperative of providing access to ICTs to all schools and using alternate sources of energy such as solar panels if required. Financing ICT Investments Financing mechanisms for ICTs in education initiatives are quite varied. Due to the high up-front costs and large recurrent costs, countries and communities typically employ varied models of financing and cost recovery mechanisms.Public-private partnerships and user fees are important components of financing ICTs in education in many countries, although more research is needed to determine the impact and effectiveness of these mechanisms (refer Annexure II for details on PublicPrivate Partnerships [PPPs]). Wadi D. Haddad and Sonia Jurich ‘ICT for Education: Prerequisites and Constraints’, ‘Technologies for Education: Potentials, Parameters and Prospects’ UNESCO and AED 2002. 22 18 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 Conclusion A carefully thought-out, integrated approach to introducing computers and the Internet into learning environments in developing countries can have a significant impact on teaching and learning.In countries where learning resources are limited and teachers never dream of having a fully stocked library, let alone the Internet, teachers and students have been introduced to a new world of learning. As a result, those with access to ICTs have been greatly empowered, and now believe they ca n compete in a global knowledge-based economy because they know that their knowledge, ideas, culture, and passions are as valuable as any in the world. In order to more effectively prepare students to participate in ICT-driven education, greater commitments and willingness to share and adopt innovative solutions are needed from all aspects of society—from Governments, the private sector, communities, donors, parents, and students.Schools should be transformed into active learning environments open to their communities; telecommunication and power infrastructure policies should focus on schools as starting points for rural transformation; teachers and students must be empowered to be creative agents for change in their schools; and leaders must embrace a vision that will prepare their youth for tomorrow’s challenges. 23 Despite the challenges outlined in the paper, ICTs are being increasingly used in education in both the developed and developing world, in order to reac h out to children from poor and remote communities, provide them with a quality education, and in general equip both teachers and students with a wider range of educational resource and enable them with greater flexibility. However, the growth and success of ICTs in education depends on the extent to which the issues and challenges outlined in this paper are addressed.There is a critical need to document every effort for the benefit of the various stakeholders— decision-makers, institutions, NGOs and civil society. It is necessary to know what works and what does not, and what the implications are for policy making, planning, and implementation. Specifically, it needs to be understood that any new technology comes not merely with hardware and software, but with a learning and teaching style and grammar of its own, and that management practices need to be adapted in order to use the technologies effectively. ICTs are, ultimately, only physical tools, which by themselves cannot bring benefits to students, teachers and communities at large.Therefore the unique contextual realities of this region, including, primarily, the initiative and impetus of the various countries and its constituents, the involvement of private companies and NGOs, and the level of infrastructure, play determining roles in creating enabling environments promoting the use of ICTs for primary and secondary education. 23 Robert J Hawkins ‘Ten Lessons for ICT and Education in the Developing World’, World Links for Development Program, The World Bank Institute. 19 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 Bibliography ? Center for Knowledge Societies (2003), Rapid Assessment of ICTs for Education. EDC. Education for All: National Plan of Action, India http://portal. unesco. org/education/en/file_download. hp/9a2c6bbea059f70c23fd46a 98ae9096bEFANPAIndia. pdf Information and Communication Technologies in Educational Management: The Missing Link in Developing Countries http://unpan1. un. org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/APCITY/UNPAN012316. pdf Integrating ICTs into Education: Lessons Learned http://www. unescobkk. org/education/ict/v2/info. asp? id=16158 Meta-survey on the Use of Technologies in Education in Asia and the Pacific 2003-2004 http://www. unescobkk. org/fileadmin/user_upload/ICTs/Metasurvey/COMPLETE. PDF Needs Assessment of ICTs in Education Policy Makers in Asia and the Pacific http://www. unescobkk. org/fileadmin/user_upload/ICTs/ebooks/ICTs_needassessmen t/assessmentfull. df New Technologies for Literacy and Adult Education: A Global Perspective http://ncal. literacy. upenn. edu/products/wagner_kozma. pdf ? ? ? ? ? 20 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 Annexure I Monitoring and Evaluation in ICT The use of ICTs for school education as a result of the various programmes and projects implemented in the South Asia region has had an impact on educational access and quality, yet there are major issues pertaining to the measurement of these indicators. Monitoring and evaluation of learning gains, teaching practices, classroom environments, students’ participation, and other activities are required and necessary for addressing ICTs-enabled educational quality and access.However, one of the major hurdles in assessing these indicators was that the majority of the programmes and projects implemented did not have adequate quantitative or qualitative monitoring or evaluation activities. Further even if any monitoring and evaluation activities were conducted they did not adequately measure indicators pertaining to ICTs enabled educational quality and access. Monitoring and evaluating of programmes and projects are critical to ensure projects achieve their intended impacts and become sustainable in the long run. Appropriate indicators must be identified for every ICT project that can be monitored in order to effectively track progress.Stakeholders at all levels must be part of this process to e nsure transparency and to avoid potentially corruptive practices throughout the projects. Together with Aptivate, a UK-based NGO providing IT services for international development, Camfed, a NGO improving girls’ education in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Ghana and Tanzania, has tested the efficiency and quality of personal digital assistants (PDAs) as a tool for monitoring and evaluation. This method is extremely time efficient. Data can be calculated within hours rather than weeks and through its ability to connect to the Internet it can be transmitted directly from the worker in the field to the headquarter. 4 Supply-side based development models which are based on centralized designs and make â€Å"top down† assumptions of people (â€Å"teachers are resistant to change† or â€Å"lethargy of management†) have been tried several times and have not been found to be successful. Hence, a â€Å"monitoring and evaluation† theme that does not situate itself on the needs for professional development of the teacher, based on principles of autonomy, an agency can end up emphasizing centralized databases that seek to â€Å"control† teachers work based on quantitative assessments of children performance, which can be counterproductive to meaningful education. 25 This is not to deny the importance of â€Å"infrastructure† or â€Å"content† or â€Å"capacity building,† except o state that these perspectives appear to reflect an dominant â€Å"ICTD† kind of thinking which is mostly â€Å"supply based. † â€Å"We have ICTs so let us see what we can do with them† such ‘Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in Education for Development’, Global Alliance for ICT and Development, White Paper July 2009. 25 Gurumurthy Kasinathathan, IT for Change, Bangalore, Solution Exchange for the ICT for Development Community, 31 July 2008. 24 21 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 201 0 approaches do not proceed from the identifications of the objectives to be met, or critical challenges to be faced, from the respective domain’s perspective.They seek to thrust some overarching technological world views on development domains whose enormous contexts and complexities, challenges, and goals are not given the prime positions as drivers of the policy. Some suggested evaluating parameters that may be applied to monitor the effective implementation of the policy on ICT in school education are as follows26: ? Are the ICT-based methodologies in sync with the existing traditional teaching? ? Does ICT facilitate the teacher in teaching better? ? Does ICT help in explaining abstract concepts? ? Does ICT make learning more exciting? ? Does ICT prod the student to know more, beyond the classroom? Does ICT make the student understand better and recall lessons taught during his absence or in manner alien to him or her? ? Does ICT make learning more participative and encou rage group learning? ? Does ICT support interaction? ? Does ICT ensure continued progress through enhanced learning? ? Is the ICT-based solution a textbook page turner and contains too much of textual content? ? Is there an excess on animations and cartoons? ? Are the animations too trivial or too complicated? Annexure II Public-Private Partnership in ICT Collaborative initiatives in the manner of PPP, to promote ICT for education may be most relevant at the implementation level, where select key roles and responsibilities may be outsourced in order to make them more viable and efficient.However, one needs to be vigilant about partner-institutions, which may have direct business interest in the value chain while the outsourced role on which they are inducted might enable performance of roles that may conflict the overall interest and purpose of the initiative. Moreover, there is also skepticism about the degree to which the ability of such partnerships under PPP arrangements will wo rk to reach interior rural areas and conduct operations on the scale required. 27 If the Ministry of Education has to solely take on this task of equipping the schools with ICT facilities, it would be an enormous task and will require funds in large sums.Therefore, M. V. Ananthakrishnan, Developmental Informatics Lab, KreSIT, IIT Bombay, Mumbai, Solution Exchange for the ICT for Development Community, 31 July 2008. 27 Binay Pattanayak, National Technical Support Group, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), New Delhi, Solution Exchange for the ICT for Development Community, 31 July 2008. 26 22 ICT in School Education (Primary and Secondary) 2010 Governments will invariably need to form appropriate strategic partnerships in order to succeed in this endeavor of implementing ICT in schools. The most common type of agreement is â€Å"seeding fund† partnerships with emphasis on front-end costs and mostly capital costs.However, such an approach tends to underestimate the total cost of owners hip (TCO) of computers and other ICT equipment, which includes recurrent costs such as ongoing hardware maintenance and upgrades of hardware and software in addition to initial capital outlays. Also, teachers have to devote additional time and effort to lear