Monday, September 30, 2019

Fiesta Celebration Essay

â€Å"Tan tanan tanan tanan tan tanan tan tanan†¦. VIVA APUNG KULAS!† Isn’t it nice to hear that sound every time we make our procession for the feast of San Nicholas of Tolentino here in Macabebe? We start celebrating our fiesta every August 31 with a mass and procession. People here in Macabebe usually complete their tradition of 9 days novena mass wherein different priest from other towns are heading the mass. Devotees really make it as their tradition. Celebrating San Nicholas feast day is really a big deal to Macabebe’s townsmen. They spend most of their time preparing for the main day or feast day of Apung Kulas which is on September 10. They do much preparation for their relatives out of town who is visiting them every fiesta.. It’s like a small gathering for them. A family reunion which is a bonding time for them. What is sad about Filipinos who celebrate fiesta is that, even if they don’t have enough money to celebrate they are still seeking for ways to do what they want to do. Fiesta-Mentality, one of the Filipino virtues in which we must change. In celebrating Fiesta, we should not forget the solemn part of it†¦the spiritual part of the feast†¦ What do you think is the main reason to celebrate feast days? Is it to be with other people? Is it to have many friends because they know you’re a happy go lucky person? No, it is because of the main person you’re celebrating to. Like here in Macabebe, We should not care if we don’t have money to deal with having fiesta. We should care on how we must provide satisfaction to God. We must satisfy God in giving or showing him what he want us to do. It is also not a good idea to celebrate this traditional custom for a certain reason if we know that we can’t afford it. God will never understand your excuse that you’ll borrow money from someone to celebrate it. There’s still other ways of celebrating it, like attending the everyday novena mass. You know, preparing is not a way of celebrating but prayers is the most effective way to express our thanks to that beloved saint. Yes, we can prepare, but first analyze the situation you’re taking. God wouldn’t want you to take risk you can’t do. We should know our limitations.. Yes, we must celebrate these feast days. But in prayers.. Like what I said recently, preparing is not important, prayers makes everything most important.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Animal Abuse Essay

The Greyhound is an ancient breed of dog. It is the only dog mentioned in the Bible, and has been depicted in many ancient Egyptian paintings, dating back over 4,000 years. Greyhounds were so revered, that the Greyhounds were allowed to share their tents. In ancient Arabic countries, the birth of a son was the most important event, the second was the birth of a Greyhound. The history of dog racing can be traced back to Queen Elizabeth I in the 16th century when Greyhounds were brought over to England from Egypt, where her majesty created the first formal rules of dog coursing, naming it the â€Å"Sport of Queens†. In the 18th century, England exported the sport to America, and soon the sport was comprised of racing and gambling. In 1912, the dog racing as it is known today, was established by Owen Patrick Smith, the man who invented the mechanical lure used in today’s dog racing. The first official dog track was opened in 1919 in California, and in 1931, wagering was legalized in Florida, paving the way for the development of the Palm Beach Kennel Club. The Palm Beach Kennel Club operated permits for dog racing, which officially started in America in 1932. Unfortunately, the once grandeur and majesty of the sport is tarnished with the unethical abuse these animals endure. The definition of animal abuse is â€Å"the crime of inflicting physical pain, suffering or death on an animal, usually a tame one, beyond necessity for normal discipline. It can include neglect that is so monstrous (withholding food and water) that the animal has suffered, died or been put in imminent danger of death. † (Hill, 2005). Many Greyhounds are the subject of abuse in the racing world. The Greyhounds are subject to horrible conditions. Many people enjoy watching a good race. The anticipation of the race and the thrill of their prized dog winning would make anyone want to attend a race. But it’s what happens before and after the race that has many people up in arms over the whole dog racing scene. When the dogs are not racing, they are kept in crates stacked one on top of the other. The dogs are not exercised regularly; the only exercise they get is from racing, and a race lasts for only a few minutes. If an Greyhound is injured during practice or during the race, the dog is killed and ground up for food for the other dogs. Many Greyhounds also die during the race due to exhaustion and dehydration. It is important to address this issue because animal abuse is a crime, and most people who commit these heinous acts are never brought to justice. It is also important to understand why someone could harm an innocent animal. According to the ASPCA, there are three main reasons why someone would be cruel to animals in their article titled, Why people abuse animals. The first reason is that some people abuse animals is that they do not know they are abusing the animal. Some people just don’t think about what they are doing to the animal, and others think excessive force is necessary to maintain control of the animal. A person who hits their dog when he or she does something wrong, like poop in the house, will use excessive force to show the animal that what he or she did was bad. Other people forget to roll down a window on a hot day with the animal in the car. The second reason a person would abuse animals is that the person will do it purposefully, but not for a continuous amount of time. Young kids who throw rocks at cats or kick a dog are an example of this type of abuser. Many young children can be taught through support groups and educational programs to show how an animal feels when it is abused in such a way, and many children learn to respect animals. The third reason a person would abuse an animal is the most serious form of animal cruelty. The third reason a person would abuse an animal is for power. Many of these types of people enjoy hurting the weak and helpless animals, as it makes them feel in control. Most of these people who intentionally hurt an animal have serious psychological issues that need to be addressed. If left unchecked, these issues may lead to more serious acts of violence. According the article, most people that were mentioned in the first and second reason for animal abuse can be educated through materials, counselors and educational classes. But even with the educational classes, what most people don’t understand is the psychological effects of the abuse has on animals. All animals want is to be loved and cared for, especially dogs. Humans have breed dogs to be our companions, and are the only animal that sets out to please us. When a human abuses an animal, we lose that trust that the animal places in us. The main psychological effect abuse has on dogs can be devastating. A dog may feel threatened by any human that it comes in contact with, and the dog can turn aggressive out of fear. Other dogs are fearful and maintain their fearfulness throughout the rest of their lives. These dogs may cower away from humans, shunning away when a human has an object in their hand or hide when they hear raised voices. L. Kalef wrote an article titled Psychological effects of animal cruelty, and in the article, he talked about the effects of animal abuse in Eastern Europe. For those who have traveled to Eastern European countries, it is not uncommon to be privy to packs of dogs roaming in some of the major cities, and sometimes being aggressive out of fear, hunger or abuse have led to provoke a similar reaction by the population by way of harm and abuse. Sadly, these neglected animals are under constant scrutiny and possible attack, which has become all too common. For years, welfare activists have been speaking up for the plight of the strays and the brutal inhumane abuse and killings; but no one until now has suggested that the constant exposure of this violence may instigate other and further violent activity within the community. In other words, growing up in a society being exposed to animal abuse causes further abuse and lack of compassion. (Kalef, 2012) But there are many people who argue that dog racing is not the only animal sport that has animal abuse and that it is part of the sport. Throughout the world of animal sports, there are some instances of animal abuse. In Mexico, bullfighting is a very popular sport, where the object of the game is to kill the bull or else the Matador will be stampeded or stabbed by the bulls horns. The bulls are starved and tortured, and they meaner the bull becomes, the more entertaining the sport. Also, horse racing has had its fair share of animal abuse cases. Many Thoroughbreds that receive an injury are killed, just like the Greyhounds, and made into meat that is sold for human consumption. J. Frater wrote an article titled 10 Debated acts of animal cruelty, which outlines a few instances that can be considered animal abuse. For those who have traveled to Eastern European countries, it is not uncommon to be privy to packs of dogs roaming in some of the major cities, and sometimes being aggressive out of fear, hunger or abuse have led to provoke a similar reaction by the population by way of harm and abuse. Sadly, these neglected animals are under constant scrutiny and possible attack, which has become all too common. For years, welfare activists have been speaking up for the plight of the strays and the brutal inhumane abuse and killings; but no one until now has suggested that the constant exposure of this violence may instigate other and further violent activity within the community. In other words, growing up in a society being exposed to animal abuse causes further abuse and lack of compassion. (Frater, 2010). But to most people, that is just the way the sport is. What is someone going to do with a prized race horse that has a broken leg and can no longer race? Why take the money to fix the injury, when the owner can make money off of selling the animal for food? It’s just part of the sport. But there is one question that needs to be answered. Which side is right? The truth is both sides are right. There will always be animal abuse in sports, as well as throughout the world. We as a people will not be able to completely stop the abuse, we can just diminish the amount of animals are abused. Through the use of stricter laws and more regulations, we as humans can help the voiceless. In conclusion, though there is no one way to solve animal cruelty in the world. There will always be animal cruelty in the sporting world, but as long as we humans can educate the younger generations, the amount of cases of animal cruelty will drastically decrease. Only one can hope that the â€Å"Sport of Queens† can return once again to the grandeur and majesty that the sport once was.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Compare and Contrast Home Depot and Umpqua Bank Essay

Compare and Contrast Home Depot and Umpqua Bank - Essay Example Different companies have different cultures, which will be discussed here in the light of the Hofstede’s dimensions. Masculinity When both managers of home depot and Umpqua bank took office, their first initiative was to change organizational cultures so as to make the companies more competitive. This was a common goal and therefore each of the company took an initiative to ensure that its culture is transformed. Both companies gave the mandate to different individuals who are males thereby indicating the gender biasness in the two banks. Home depot hired Dennis Donovan while Umpqua hired David from Ziba to research and therefore come up with a solution. Low Uncertainty Avoidance Both of the company embarked on an environmental creation mission because they are change oriented and are ready to take risks. Umpqua ensured that it cleaned all its surrounding as this had a bad image on the company. It also refurbished its structures to ensure that the image of the company changes completely and becomes more user friendly to all customers (Freeze n.d). They did this by changing the structures to become open door one so that each customer can feel free to get in. This is because offices that are regarded as of higher standards keep off lower ranked employees and even customers who refer them as out of their reach. On the other hand, home depot structures such as low light in its orange store houses gave it a new look. Others included cluttered aisles and sparse signage (Charan, 2006). These changes in structures, which are part of organizational culture, saw great improvement in the performance of both companies. There was a major difference on how both companies implemented their policies of changing the organizational structure. Umpqua set aside a budget while home depot company just implemented the policy silently without interrupting the companies program. This played a major role in ensuring that the performance of the company is maintained even in the pe riod of transformation. Low Power Distance Language and relationship between the company officials is another important aspect that both companies undertook. Relation between the members especially the attitude in communicating plays a major role in ensuring that organization work together in achieving the set goals and objectives. Home depot ensured that it installs a good discipline among all members of the organization and all those who were not ready to comply with the new condition were swept out of the company (Charan, 2006). This showed how this aspect of culture was important to the whole performance of the company. Home depot applied an important tactic to ensure that cultural change does not get much resistance from the employees. This was through making the employees understand the benefits that the company will accrue from the change. It did this by holding various meetings with all stakeholders while the project was made clear to all people. On the other hand Umpqua cha nged its philosophies of which the employees came to uphold. It also did this by changing the features of its brand which signaled a new change in the company which was welcomed by the employees (Edger, 2010). Both companies ensured that they install a positive belief on their employees and workers. This gave both companies an upper hand as it changed the mindset of the customers towards the companies’

Friday, September 27, 2019

Historical & Contextual Studies in Fashion Essay - 1

Historical & Contextual Studies in Fashion - Essay Example For women, the corset was worn to support the breasts and to develop a curved figure, narrowing the waist. In 1500s, the corset was introduced in France by Catherine de Medici. At that time, the corset was worn as an undergarment. It was a tight elongated bodice worn by Women of the French court in the 16th century (Davies, 1982). In this period, the women of the French court embraced the corset because it was considered as a necessary garment for the beauty of a female figure (Tortora and Eubank, 1989). It was worn with a farthingale in order to hold out the skirt and form a stiff cone. The corsets in this historical context also turned the upper part of a human torso into an inverted cone shape (V&A, 2015). The corset was also made of shoulder strap and had flaps at the waist. In order to form a good shape for the woman body, the corset flattened the bust. As a result, it pushed up the breasts. The corsets were made of layered fabric fastened with glue and tightly laced (Tortora and Eubank, 1989). A busk was used to stiffen the forefront of the bodice. It was made of wood, metal, whalebone, ivory or metal (V&A, 2015). The steel busk of the corset was spoon-shaped, and was wider at the bottom than at the top in order to exert pressure on the abdomen (Davies, 1982). This shape made the corset wearable and more restricting in order to tighten the waist. During the Victorian era, the busk was made of steel. As fashion changed, the corset also changed. In 1870s, the corset changed it shape, becoming longer so that it can cause the fashionable long and slender silhouette (Takeda and Spilker, 2010). The corsets also became more rigid in order to hide the layers of the underwear. They were heavily boned, and were cut from different pieces and toughened with leather. Whalebone was used because it was strong and flexible, achieving the shape of the corset and the body

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Genetic Screening Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Genetic Screening - Essay Example Genetic testing does not reveal if you have a disease. It can only show that you are predisposed to getting an ailment. Barring a worker because they may one day develop a fatal disease is like throwing someone in jail because they may someday steal a car. There is no certainty that the disease will ever develop just as there is no way to profile who may become a thief. According to the American Medical Association (AMA), "Genetic tests alone do not have sufficient predictive value to be relied upon..." ("Genetic Testing"). Our limited knowledge of the complex interactions of numerous genes and our environment makes this new science little more than guesswork. If employers begin guessing who may have a genetic marker for a physical ailment, it won't be long before they look at brain scans for a predisposition of a personality trait. Medical ethics would dictate that, "Genetic privacy, like medical privacy in general, involves notions of the dignity and integrity of the individual" (Bereano).

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Dimensions of national culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Dimensions of national culture - Essay Example As human beings evolve so does their culture (Marcus, 1995). People are always striving to improve their state of living for the better. This is done by improving their clothing to fit in better with the weather conditions, while at the same time coping with the need to make them fashionable and easy to keep to hygienically clean. Music, theatre, fine arts, language and literature are developed in order to add some color and entertainment in everyday living, as well as improve on communication. Sports and educational syllabuses are also developed for entertainment and improvement of skills. All these facets of life among others keep on changing from one form the other thus enriching culture (Marcus, 1995). All of these developments are recorded for future references in different symbols including writing, drawings, cave paintings or passed from one person to another orally. As this culture is passed on it is modified through innovation, borrowing from others. Elements like language t herefore constantly improve and diversify as time goes by (Cohen, 1985). This paper sets out to analyze the development of national culture and to explain why people within a certain nationality or region typically develop traits that are unique to themselves. The paper looks at how different cultural backgrounds affect persons working within an organization. It also explains the effects impede or support the realizations of the objectives of the said organization. Elements of Organizational Culture Every nation is renowned for certain things. For instance the vast majority of people of Britain enjoy association football [also known as soccer] whose rules were founded in that country in 1863; very much. This is different when compared to Americans who prefer their own version of football which is closer to the Rugby that is also loved a lot in Britain (Maccambridge, 2004). This same case applies to organizations. According to Hofstede (1980), national culture directly influences org anizational culture. Organizations exist within countries and are therefore influenced by the prevailing culture within them. In his study of national cultural influences he identified four dimensions of culture. These he classified as power distance, uncertainty avoidance, collectivism vs individualism and masculinity vs femininity (Hofstede, 1980). The first dimension, power distance, refers to the difference of power allowed by the society between the highest and lowest echelons of power. A high power difference score means that there is a great difference between the power wielded and the privileges enjoyed by people high ranking individuals and their lower ranking counterparts within the organization (Schein, 2005). A low score on the other hand means that everybody in the organization enjoys almost equal rights to anybody else (Schein, 2005). The measure of power distance in different nationalities revealed that countries such as Australia, Austria, Denmark and Israel had some of the lowest power distance levels while sub-Saharan African and Malaysia among others had the highest (Hofstede, 1980). The second one uncertainty avoidance refers to extent of anxiety about the unknown in a society. In cultures where there is strong uncertainty avoidance, people prefer operating with explicit rules and laws that govern labor and social relations. Employees in this system tend to keep the same job for long since they feel less

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Report1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Report1 - Essay Example Even though 85% of the group is not of legal age and probably do not have a stable source of income, they continue to be of great influence to those who finance them into buying skatingboarding products. According to Chris Simpson, a return customer on Freebord.com, all the purchases of Freebord (our brand name) and other skatingboarding products have been financed by his parents. Chatting from our online platform, Chris admits that his parents have their worries on how safe skateboarding is. To cater for such worries, we also sell high quality protective gear such as helmets, elbow pads, wrist guards and knee pads. We also have a body armor kit which involves all the latter three protective gears sold as a bundle and at a discount. This keeps our customers safe and thus making us have high rates on return customers. The quality of our skateboards and other accompanying accessories is the greatest motivation for those who demand our products. Quality and safety are the key demand dri vers for our product here in USA. Turkey is our future market for our Freebord product. Generally, Turkey has had good business relations with the USA. Turkey has USA as one of its leading import source after the EU. In Turkey, wealth and status are the major determinants of social status. The basic categories of class are; the rural population, the large rural landowner class, the urban lower class, the urban middle class and the wealthy urban educated class. Social organization includes the online community which has further segments of subdivisions according to interests. Twitter, Facebook are the popular social sites from which groups with young people are further categorized (Ergener 40-43). Social clubs and groups in which our business is likely to benefit from are those involving students in middle school, high school and universities. An online group by the

Monday, September 23, 2019

Event Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Event Management - Essay Example The industry has also experienced numerous world fairs visibility and major sports events, during the recent century as Goldbatt (2000) asserts. Moreover, the events industry is developing and transitioning from a growth into maturity. The economic effects of an event may differ because developed event type and the market appealed to that particular event. A scale of event has a direct correlation with the impact level. Events fixed length encourages visitors to attend. The extra experience acts as a form of indirect marketing for a region altogether. This provides a chance to grasp a market that was previously untapped. The incoming guests bring with them money, further expanding the market. Subsequently, both real and potential generation of revenue is increased. These events are an attraction that has both the power of drawing and holding. This means that they not only marshal in new tourists, but also assist to keep them in a region longer. It shows the significance of gauging the economic effects of events of tourists who specifically came to the event and those that did not stay longer because of the event. This means that they are not only ushering in new guests, but they also assist in keeping them in the region longer. Consequently, this portrays the significance of gauging the economic effect of those that come to the event and those that did not and extended their stay because of the event (Janeczko, Mules & Ritchie 2002). In addition, even though, they may have numerous other objectives, events in regional destinations aid the growth of tourism and the subsequent economic development. Traditionally, economic impact of the event industry has centered on spending of visitors and multipliers that extended this spending to other segments of the economy. They may be linked to job creation or income. Nonetheless, because of variation in formulas, the event industry has faced hitches in paralleling how they

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Ethnicity and Education Essay Example for Free

Ethnicity and Education Essay Most studies found that overall ethnic minorities tend to do less well than other members of the population when it comes to educational achievement. The government sponsored â€Å"Swann report† found that â€Å"Asians† did almost as well as â€Å"Whites† however not as well, one Asian group in particular the â€Å"Bangladeshi’s† did particularly badly and â€Å"West Indians† preformed considerably worse than â€Å"Whites†. Many factors which occur inside the school are the cause of educational achievement however other factors contribute. The expectations of teachers on ethnic minorities have caused differences in educational achievement. Bernard Coard believes that teachers expect â€Å"Black† children to fail therefore labelling the child as a failure. Interactionalists are concerned with how teachers â€Å"pidgeonhole† students this is the labelling theory, this is where the teacher makes a judgement of the child based on the child’s appearance, behaviour, previous family members and relationships with other students. However most labels are based on stereotypes rather than evidence, the reality is that once a label starts it is difficult to get rid of and this can cause problems for a student’s educational achievement. Teachers will discuss the students label in the staff room and other teachers will attach the same label to the child and this can lead to the child not being allowed to attend school trips. If a student is labelled as a failure by a teacher then the teacher is likely to put the student into a lower tier exam thus the pupil can only achieve a maximum of a grade C and can’t achieve to the best of their ability. When a student is labelled as a failure the student can begin to believe that the label is true and begin to make it part of their part of their identity, become a failure this is known as the self-fulfilling prophecy thus creating ethnic differences in educational achievement within the school system. David Hardgreves argues that anti school sub cultures can be formed as a result of negative labelling. However Maureen Stone and Swann both indicate that those who are labelled may not accept their labels. Institutional Racism within schools can lead to educational achievement and the differences it causes within ethnic minorities. The â€Å"Swann report† found that a small number of teachers are consciously racist however there are a great deal of teachers who are â€Å"unintentionally† racist. Bernard Coard states that the British educational system makes children become educationally subnormal he states that â€Å"West Indian children are told that their language is second rate and unacceptable† he states that within the British educational system the word â€Å"White† is associated with â€Å"good† and the word â€Å"Black† with evil. Coard also states that the attitudes portrayed in the classroom are reinforced by the pupils outside of the classroom. Many sociologists would also argue that the mispronunciation of student’s names and not learning them can be classed as racism within the school system. Cecile Wright found that majority of staff are committed to ideals of equality but despite these ideals there are still considerable amounts of discrimination in the classroom. Asian children were often excluded from discussions and teachers expressed an â€Å"open disapproval of their customs and traditions†, these comments from teachers made Asian children feel more isolated from other pupils. Martin Hammersley found that racist comments in the staffroom did not lead to racism in the classroom. J. Taylor found that â€Å"most teachers are concerned to have a fair policy towards the treatment of black pupils†. Mac an Ghaill studied 25 afro Caribbean and Asian students studying A levels. He found that â€Å"although they disagreed over the extent of racism within education, this did not directly determine their attitude to education and their levels of academic success. The way that students responded to schooling varied and this was influenced by their ethnic group†. This could eventually lead to the formation of anti-school sub cultures. These are pupils who have rejected some or all of the values and rules set down in the school ethos. Peter Woods identified 8 different groups ranging from Ingratiation total conformity to Rebellion outright rejection of school rules and values. This can cause ethnic differences in educational achievement within the school system. The Ethocentric curriculum can cause ethnic differences in educational achievement this is the school being biased towards one particular culture. Many sociologists argue that the curriculum is geared towards white middle class students. The curriculum is set in place for white middle class students and this means that ethnic minorities will not understand the curriculum and will fall behind and not do well thus leading to educational underachievement. Parents from ethnic minorities may not be able to afford or have the right experience to make an informed choice on the best school to suit their children’s needs whereas middle class parents have the money and correct experience to make an informed decision on the best school for their child. Ethnic differences in educational achievement are the result of school factors however other factors have significance. Material Deprivation is the effect poverty has on educational achievement. Poorer parents from ethnic minorities may not be able to provide their children with the educational toys needed such as computers. Cramped housing means less space to study. High rate of illness can lead to missing days of school. Children from poorer backgrounds may need to contribute to the financial running of the home thus getting part time jobs which will affect their studies and will leave school at the earliest opportunity to start work. Harker states that overcrowding causes a negative effect on educational achievement which can cause differences in ethnic minorities which can cause bullying and truancy. Cultural Deprivation is the term used to describe serious inadequacies in the socialisation process and its effects on educational achievement. Poor parenting means children underachieving in education. Many sociologists argue that ethnic minorities tend to be more fatalistic meaning that parents tend to have low aspirations and expectations for their child meaning less emphasis is placed on doing well in education. Whereas â€Å"White† middle classes would have high aspirations and high expectations. Socialisation focuses on the values, expectations and norms transmitted from parents to children. Children from Ethnic tend to focus on immediate gratification where they try to reep their rewards at the earliest opportunity such as leaving school at 16 to earn money. Whereas â€Å"White† middle class children aim for a bright future described as deferred gratification which is putting off short term rewards to gain better rewards in the future. Cultural Deprivation can affect the way parents prepare their children for school. Working class children would sit and watch T. V. whereas middle class parents would take their children to museums. Driver and Ballard state that high achievement in Asian groups may be linked to the fact that they live in close knit families that can help each other. Price highlighted a high rate of single parent families in black Caribbean communities which may explain high underachievement. Linguistic Deprivation is the ability to use appropriate language which is an important factor in educational success. Bernstein came up with two codes of language Restricted and Elaborate codes. The Restricted code is used in casual situations. This is limited vocabulary and Simplistic grammar which can only be understood if you are aware of this topic. The Elaborate code is used in formal situations. This is sophisticated grammar and vocabulary and can be understood if aware of the topic. Bernstein found that White middle class children had the ability to switch between the two codes whereas children from ethnic minorities were limited to using the restricted code. This means they are severely disadvantaged in education where the language is all formal. In conclusion, it is probable that a number of factors work together in producing the lower levels of achievement found in some ethnic groups. The Swann report concluded that racial discrimination inside and outside school along with social deprivation were probably the main factors. Others would add that cultural factors also play some part in explaining the differences.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Internal Customers Essay Example for Free

Internal Customers Essay The people in this department need to know what deliveries are to be made and what products are to be delivered.  Staff Office  The Human Resources department need to know hours worked by employees and if there are any positions to be filled.  Staff Training  They need to know which members of the department will need training and which areas need to be covered in the training exercises.  Cash Office  The cash office needs to know what transactions were made at all the tills in the department and how much money there is in the tills at the end of the working day. This is so they can tally up the stores figures and see how well the shop has performed on that particular day. CCP (Customer Collection Point)  Many goods are collected from the shops CCP such as microwaves. The people at the CCP need to know what is being collected and the transaction number so they can tie up the paperwork, customer and the goods.  Service Desk  When customers have a problem with an appliance they have to go through the service desk so the large electrical department has to get information from the service desk regarding the outcome for instance an appliance may have to be replaced. The large electrical department already employs a number of different customer service techniques to help improve the running and efficiency of the department, which also importantly improves the relationship with the customers. There are however occasions when these strategies dont work the way that they should and customers can become dissatisfied with the level of service that they feel they are receiving.  Here are some examples of techniques that have recently been introduced in the department to help improve customer services. When staff join the Large Electrical Department the must complete questionnaires to ensure they understand procedures that are carried out in the department. A copy of which can be found in appendix 1. The Introduction of Ticketing system for waiting customers  The department recently introduced a fairly simple but effective ticketing system so that customers are served at the correct time instead of customers just grabbing a selling Partner when they see one that is free. When a customer enters the department they are now greeted by the customer service manager who stands at the Customer Service Podium. The Customer Service Manager gives the customer a ticket with a number on it and records down on the copy of the ticket that the manager keeps some details.  These are:  The customers name.  This creates a personalised service when the sell partner approaches the customer  What they want help on. This is so the Customer Service Manager can send over the right Selling Partner with the right knowledge.  A brief description of the customer.  The description helps the Selling Partner identify the customers easily.  When a selling Partner becomes free they must report back to the podium where the manager will hand the Partner the ticket of the next customer to be served.  This system is much improved from the previous queuing system, which involved the Customer Service Manager patrolling the floor and recording customers name down on a list. This meant that the Manager was never in one place and people may not have been put on in the correct order that they arrived in the department. When speaking to the Customer Service Manager of the Large Electrical department to enquire how successful the new system had been I was also informed of the one major problem there had been with it.  The problem was that when a customer took a ticket they would ask how many people there were before them. If the number was fairly high, for instance five people then it would put people off waiting. It was then up to the Customer Service Manager to reassure the customer that it wouldnt be too long. I also learned that on leaving the department previous customers who were used to the old system commented on how much better they thought the new system was.  The Introduction of Electrical Telesales at Watford  About two years ago the Branch opened the Electrical Telesales Department, which is part of the Large Electrical Department. The team is based at the branches warehouse, which is down the road from the store at Greatham Road. It is all linked telephonically and by computer to the main store. Customers can phone telesales and place orders for large electrical appliances over the phone by calling the store on 01923 244 266 and connecting to extension 4880. This service is very handy for many customers as they will often come into the store and get information on various appliances and then go home to check that it will fit in the desired space. They can then phone up and order it over the phone by credit or account card to save them making another trip into the store. Some people that have done research on the internet or another media will also use telesales to save them having to come into the store at all, especially people that have very busy lives. It is also designed to take some of the pressure off the actual department so that more time can be spent with each customer in the store. On average there are six partners manning the phones down at telesales. Which isnt really enough as they are also share with the Television and Audio department. So customers are put on hold, which can be for quite a long time, which frustrates the customers. Pre recorded messages are randomly played to the customers to reassure them that their call is important and will be answered by the next available partner. The telephonists can tell how long a customer has been waiting, and they will answer in a way that will reflect the length of time the customer has waited. Other problems with the telesales team are that there is a weak communication flow between the actual department and telesales. This means that mistakes can be made by telesales as they havent received information on changes made in the Large Electrical Department which in turn can have an affect on the customers.  An example of this was when EU legislation can into place saying that the collection of old refrigeration can not be continued because of the gasses inside. Telesales werent informed of this and continued to arrange for refrigeration to be taken away. When the deliverymen told customers that they couldnt take away the old refrigeration this angered customers who had prepaid the 9 collection charge. These mistakes are usually dealt with by offering a goodwill gesture for inconvenience and where appropriate a refund.  On the whole this venture has proved to be a major success as figures shown in the Annual General Meeting showed an increase in Large Electrical Goods with a major percentage going through the telesales team.  This is the information flier that is handed out to customers when visiting the Department if the wish to order over the phone. It give the phone number and extension number as well as a little information on the different services that they offer such as the 2 year warranty and Never Knowingly Undersold motto. Ways of paying at John Lewis  The use of credit cards at John Lewis  Until recently John Lewis didnt accept payment for goods by any credit card. This was to avoid paying the transaction fees to the banks that is added on when a customer pays using EFT (Electronic Financial Transaction). Apart from this customers were quite prepared to pay for any goods purchased using a John Lewis or Waitrose Account card that offers a low rate of interest. However to give the customer more flexibility John Lewis introduced the use of Credit cards in the Partnership. One of the main reasons for allowing this take place was because of where the transaction fee would go.  From 5 November 2001, all card payments with the exception of the John Lewis and Waitrose Account Card, are processed for you by John Lewis Card Services Ltd for a 2.5% fee included in the cost of your purchase. The balance is paid to John Lewis plc. The total amount you pay is the same regardless of the payment method. Source taken from http://www.johnlewis.com  The transactions fee that would normally have to be paid to the bank on any transaction that take place in either the department stores or Waitrose using EFT is retained by John Lewis. This means that John Lewis dont loose 2.5% of the sale that they have made but keep it as profit.  This move has meant that more customers are attracted to coming into the stores and paying by plastic, which many people prefer to do.  However there is one card that John Lewis still doesnt accept and that is American Express. This is because of the extremely high level of interest that is associated with this form of payment. John Lewis would still have to pay part of transaction fee if this card was used. These methods of payment can also be used to purchase over the phone using the stores telesales teams and via the Internet. This has all been designed to help create an easier way of shopping for it customers and improve customer services.  Computerised Ordering System  The introduction of the computerised ordering system a year ago has changed the face of the department and the way things are done, within the department. It was also a major turn around for the standard of customer services offered by department. The new system meant that orders could be processed a lot quicker as paper work didnt have to be sent via the post and orders we received at the warehouse instantly. A lot more options have been opened with this new system, all to the customers advantage, as well as making the whole ordering process a lot easier for the Selling Partner.  Customers can now reserve goods for longer periods of time, place an order for delivery in another part of the country and a lot more. Queries and problems can also dealt with by keeping record of points raised on the on the notepad of the actual order on the system so issues are dealt with much more effectively. Each customer gets a reference number when they place an order so information can be recalled instantly from the system should the need arise.  The quicker service makes buying Large Electrical goods less stressful meaning customers go away from the department happy with the level of service they have just received.  There have, however been a number of occasions when the system has gone down causing absolute chaos in the department as all orders have to be placed manually which is much more time consuming than using the computers. This angers customers who expect a reliable system then works quickly and effectively. With these events the need for the Customer Service manager pays off, as they are someone who can defuse difficult situations. All selling Partners are also trained in dealing with problems but the CSM is there as someone with higher authority.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Coca Cola Analysis | SWOT and PESTLE

Coca Cola Analysis | SWOT and PESTLE Organisations face massive challenges everyday ranging from human resources to production which apparently declines productivity. Coca Cola is one of the biggest multinational companies with presence in about 200 countries however, intend to adopt Coca Cola as my case study. The invention of Coca Cola can be traced back to 1886 in new york Habour, workers were constructing the statue of liberty. Eight hundred miles away, another great America symbol was about to be unveiled. Like many people who change history, John Pemberton, an Atlanta pharmacist, was inspired by simple curiosity. one afternoon, he stirred up a fragrant caramel-coloured liquid and when it was done, he carried it a few doors down to Jacobs pharmacy put it on sale for five cents about 3p a glass. Pembertons bookmaker, frank Robinson, named the mixture Coca Cola, and wrote it out in his distinctive script. To this day, Coca Cola is written the same way. In the first year, Pemberton sold just nine glasses of Coca Cola a day. A century later, the Coca Cola company has produced more than 10 billion gallons of syrup. Over the course of three years, which is between 1888-1891, Atlanta business Asa Griggs Candler secured rights to the business for a total of about 12 300 about 1500pounds. Candler would become Coca Cola first president, and thec first to bring real vision to the business and the brand. Until the 1960s both small town and big city dwellers enjoyed carbonated beverages at the local soda fountain drug store on April 23, 1985, the trade secret New coke formula was released, today products of the Coca Cola company sell than one billion drinks per day. However, even with the above achievements of Coca Cola and the foundation of Coca Cola which has been since years back, the company has its own strength, weakness, opportunity and threats SWOT which are to be considered to be able to compete with the market and adapt to changes. SWOT analysis is a strategic planning method used to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats involved in a project or in a business venture. It invades specifying the objective of the business venture or project and identifying the internal and external factors that are favourable and unfavourable to achieve that objective. The technique is credited to Albert Humphrey, who ked a convention at Stanford University in the 1960s and 1970s using data from fortune 500 companies. S Strengths; attributes if the person or company that are helpful to achieving the objectives. W Weakness; attributes of the person or company that are harmful to achieving the objectives. O Opportunities; external condition that are helpful to achieving the objectives. T Threats; external condition which could do damage to the objectives. Identification of SWOTs are essential because subsequent steps in the process of planning for achievement of the selected objectives may be derived from the SWOTs. The SWOT analysis is particularly helpful in identifying areas for development. The aim of any SWOT analysis is to identify the key internal and external factors that are important to achieving the objective. The usefulness of SWOT analysis is not limited to profit-seeking organizations. SWOT analysis maybe used in any decision making situation when a desired end-state (objective) has been defined. SWOT analysis may be also used in pre-crisis planning and preventive crisis management. SWOT analysis may also be used in creating a recommendation during a viability study/survey. . The purpose of SWOT analysis is to gather, analyze and evaluate information and identify strategic options facing a community/organization or individual at a given time. SWOT Analysis is a very effective way of identifying strengths and weaknesses, and of examining the opportunities and threats one tends to face-carrying out a analysis using the SWOT framework helps to focus activities into areas where one is strong and where the greatest opportunities lies. This knowledge id then used to develop a plan of action. The analysis can be performed on product, on a service, a company or even an individual. if doneProperly SWOT will give the big picture of the most important factors that influence survival an prosperity as well as a plan to act on. SWOT Analysis is a tool which guides one to see where one stand in terms of job prospects and career growth. In many competitor analysis, markets build detailed profiles of each competitor in the market, focussing especially on their relative competitive strengths and weakness using SWOT analysis. Porters reffered to these forces as the micro environment, he said SWOT consist of those forces close to a company that affects its ability to serve its customers and make a profit. A change in any of the forces normally requires a business unit to re assess the market place given the overall change in industry information. The overall industry attractiveness does not imply that every firm in the industry will return the same profitability. Firms are able to apply their core competencies, business model or network to achieve a profit above the industry average. Porters five forces include three forces from horizontal competition threat of substitute products, threat of established rivals and the threat of new entrants and two forces from vertical competition, the bargaining power ofcustomers. Profitable market that yield high returns will attract new firmsThis result in many new entrants, which eventually decrease profitability for all firms in the industry. unless the entry of new firms can be blocked by incumbent, the profit rate will fall towards zero. Rivalry is likely to be based on dimension such as price, quality, and innovation, technology advances protect companies from competition. This applies to products and services. companies that are successful with introducing new technology are able to change high prices and achieve higher profits. While PESTEL analysis is the macro environment or external environment, they are the factors which are external that will affect the organisation it can be new laws, trade barriers, demographic change and government policy changes, etc. The following can be categories using PESTEL model which are as follows POLITICAL FACTORS: these can be said to be government policy such as the degree of intervention in the economy, for example what goods and services does a government want a particular organisation to [provide?what are the piorities in terms of business support?political decision can impact on many vital areas for business such as the workforce, the health of the nation and the quality of the infrastructure of the economy such as the road and rail system. ECONOMIC FACTORS: these can include interest rates, taxation changes, economic growth, inflation and exchange rates. economic change can have a major impact on a firms behaviour for example, higher tax rate may deter investment because it cost more to borrow, inflation may provoke higher wage demands from employes and raise costs and also a strong currency may make exporting more difficult because it may raise the price in terms of foreign currency. SOCIAL FACTORS: any changes which occur in social trends can impacts on the demand for a firms product or any organisation services and also the availability and willingness of people to work. for example demand for sheltered accommodation and medicines has increased where as demand for toys is falling because in the United kingdom now we have alot of older people. TECHNOLOGY FACTORS: new technology creat new products and new process, mp3 players, ipods, ipad, online gambling and high definition television are all new markets created by technology advances, online shopping, bar coding and computer added design are all improvements to the way we do business as a result of better technology. Technology can reduce cost, improve quality and to innovation. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS:these includes weather and climate change. changes in temperature can impact on many industries including farming, tourism andinsurance. with major climate changes occurring due to global warming and with greater environmental awearness this external factor is becoming a significant issue for various firms to consider. LEGAL FACTORS: these factors are related to the legal environment in which firms operate. legal changes can influce the decision of an organisation and even the costs of their products and servicesthey different categories of law which falls under legal which are as follows. consumers law, employment law, health and safety law. By using PESTEL framework we can analyse the many different factors in an organisation external environment, in some cases particular issues may fit in several categories for example the categoriesexample the creation of monetary policy committee by tye labour government in 1997 as a body that was independent of government but had the ability to set interest rates was a political decision buthas economic consequencies, if such occursmanagers have tomake decision of where they think it best belongs. Using PESTEL managers needs to think about which factors are mostlikely to change and which ones will have the greatest impact on them which means each firm must identify the key factors in their own environment. It is also important when using PESTEL analysis to consider the level at which it is applied especially with the big companies who produces different goods and servicessuch organisation like COCA-COLA, may also want to differentiate between factors which are very local, other which are National and those which are global. Coca Cola company is been affected by so many external factors(PESTEL)like economic, social factors, technological factors, environmental factors, and it is also been affected by legal factor to some extents. THE ECONOMIC FACTORS: when any country economic is poor maybe due to inflation, credit crunch etc, it can affects the price of Coca Cola products because during this period people will not be abl to affor it, they will preffr to put their money on some more important needs, like food, clothing, accommodation, etc. and this will affects the return of the company because they would not be earning as much as they use to. Technological factors, this can affect the companys decision because there are different technology i the bussiness world now for example the design on the can or bottle of the different Coca Cola products may need to be changed due to new technology so as to make the packaging attractive to the consumers of the product and also potential consumers that even if they are not thirsty they will still be attracted to the product in such a way that they are ready and willing to buy so this improvement in technology in the area of packaging can affect the decision of the comp any and so also social factors which really affects the selling of the products, reaonable number of people in the country population right now falls under the age where by beverages drinks like coke are no more good for their health and people who usually buy the products are advice by their doctors not to consume goods like that again which can really affect the sales of the company. Environmental factors or climatic conditions for example during winter so many people do not consume anything cold so as not to affect their health and vis visa during summer which is mostly hot people consume alot of drinks and this help increase the sales the sales of the products, so the weather condition of various countriescan determine the level at which people take cold drinks like Coca Cola. Legal factors which can be said to be laws of a particular country cant the sales of Coca Cola for example tax payments in the united kingdom, the Coca Cola fo example pay tax in the country and this tax some times affect the price of the product, and some times before you can sell a product in the uk is sometimes different from the way its been package in other country that Coca Cola erxist in sothis affect the packaging of Coca Cola products for example some flavours of the different products of the company which is sold in the uk may not be found in other countries which Coca Cola exist in, and also the law of the country can affect the decision making of the company in some specific areas. Apart from the above external factors that affects the decision making of the company they are also the internal factors which affects the company, some of the internal factors or micro environment which can affect the company(Coca Cola)or which the company operates on can also be categories under external. The internal factors which is the SWOT analysis as to dowith the strength, weakness, opportunity,, threats. The Coca Cola company which have been in existence since decades ago have its own strength, weakness, opportunity and threahich affect the decision making process of the company. Strength:Â  Coca Cola company is a multinational company which have over two hundred company in different part of the world, they are the largest maker of beverages around the world today, the company have been able to achieve a customer base with different kind of products and they produce for every one, the company produce different products which any body of any age can take from coke, fanta, ginger coke, eva water, juice, etc they are existing in countries that some of their major competitors are not existing in countries that some of their major competitors are not existing in. Apart from the above strength they also have their own opportunity which they also use againts their competitors one of which is that they have been producing a lot and have been creative no matter your health difficulties there is at least a brand of Coca Cola that you will be able to take, and also this company make their bottle them selves which gives them a edge over other companies who produce similar products like the company. Threats of the company is that the company have massive competition, the market today is filled with product of similar brand, and little mistake by Coca Cola company will be seen as opportunity for their competitor which will affect their status in the market, the weakness of Coca Cola company is more of internal that is within the organisation which can late payments of staffs or employees salary, conflicts among employees of the company which can affect the productivity of the company and if their is no team work in any organisation it will be difficult to achieve what the organisation as set out to achieve on time. In conclusion, carrying out a SWOT and PESTEL analysis of a particular organisation no matter how big or small the company, is very important because it helps company to know the status of their company in the market and it also enables companies to work on the area of their weakness and it helps in the decision making of the organisation so that they would not make decision that will have negative effect on both the organisation and the customers or consumers of such organisation. SUMMARY By using SWOT and PESTEL framework, the organisation is able to analyse the many different factor in organisation micro and macro environment. and it is not limited to just profit making organisation, SWOT and PESTEL analyses can be used in any decision making situation when a desired end state has been defined. Company like Coca Cola need to do both SWOT and PESTEL analysis to help in decision making and to help to compete with the mass competitors that the company has

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Beowulf Attacks the Dragon Essay -- English Literature Essays

Beowulf Attacks the Dragon. Beowulf makes his final boast. He says that, even though he is old, he shall â€Å"still seek battle, perform a deed of fame† by killing the dragon. (Norton59) He doesn't know how to grapple with the dragon, like he did with Grendel, so he will use a sword and shield. He tells his men that the outcome will be â€Å"with us at the wall as fate allots, the ruler of every man.† (59) He tells them to let him fight the monster alone, â€Å"By my courage I will get gold, or war will take your king, dire life-evil.† (60) *These three quotations indicate pagan elements of glory, not Christian.* eowulf approaches the barrow. From the stone arch, he feels the dragon’s fire emanating from within. He shouts at the dragon. The dragon knows he is there and breathes fire. Beowulf hits the dragon with his shield and draws his sword, â€Å"the old heirloom.† (60) The dragon comes forward, â€Å"hastening to his fate,† (60) and breathes fire, but Beowulf is protected by his iron shield. But, â€Å"for the first time, the first day in his life, he might not prevail, since fate did not assign him such glory in battle.† (60) Beowulf strikes the dragon so hard with his sword, that the â€Å"edge failed.† (60) The â€Å"war blade had failed, naked at need, as it ought not to have done, iron good from old times.† (60) *The sword is given living qualities* The poet reminds the reader that â€Å"every man must give up the days that are lent him† (60), an elegaic theme that runs throughout the poem. Beowulf and the dragon come together again. The dragon breathes fire again and, for the first time in the poem, â€Å"he who before had ruled a folk felt harsh pain.† (60) Meanwhile his men flee to the woods, except for one. Wiglaf, s... ... writes; a draughtsman; a writer for another; especially, an offical or public writer; an amanuensis or secretary; a notary; a copyist. 2. (Jewish Hist.) A writer and doctor of the law; one skilled in the law and traditions; one who read and explained the law to the people. The most famous Old English scribe was a monk named Bede Scylfing: 1: the member of a Swedish Links: British Library Board: www.bl.uk Pace University Grendel Site: csis.pace.edu/grendel Beowulf Site: www.lone-star.net/literature/beowulf/index.html Beowulf Book: www.alcyone.com/max/lit/beowulf Bibliography: Dictionary: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary1913, C. & G. Merriam Co. Internet: http://www.dictionary.com Text Source: "Beowulf" The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Sixth Edition. Vol. 1. Ed. M.H. Abrams. New York: Norton 1993

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Worldwide Education :: essays research papers

Around the world, education is funded in different ways, yielding different outcomes. In Europe, the state typically still pays for the institutional costs of instruction; students pay little or no tuition, but are responsible for living costs; and most universities are public. In many Asian countries (such as Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and the Philippines), most students attend private universities and colleges and pay the full cost of their education. Tuition is also charged in the small and relatively elite public higher education sector. In the United States, a mix of public and private institutions exists; 80 percent of students attend public colleges and universities, where they pay tuition amounting to something like a quarter or more of the actual cost of instruction, with public funds and other resources covering the rest. The remaining 20 percent study in private institutions, where students pay the bulk of the cost of education. Many people scowl at the idea of reforming to a European model of school funding, believing that the taxes would be exponentially higher. However, this is not necessarily true. In most EU countries, the standard rate of tax is 20%. The higher rate is 42% for those whom earn over a certain variable gross yearly income. Employees pay tax, similar to the U.S. system under the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system. This means that tax is deducted by the employer weekly or monthly depending on how frequently you are paid. If you make more than the variable gross yearly income, tax is paid at the standard rate (20%) up to the cut-off point. Any income over the cut-off point is taxed at the higher rate of tax (42%). Unlike the U.S. system or taxation, this system seems more fair, especially because you are not paying tax on any wages that are paid towards healthcare or Old Age Pension (similar to social security). One nation that set the standard for the tax outline currently used in most countries is Ireland. In Ireland, the healthcare tax is about 2% taken out of your paycheck, unless you make under â‚ ¬400 (January 2005) per week – or self-employed people with income of â‚ ¬20,800 or less per year. Also, most employers and employees (over 16 years of age) in Ireland pay social insurance contributions into Ireland's national Social Insurance Fund. In general, the payment of social insurance is required. The social insurance contributions in Ireland are referred to as PRSI (Pay Related Social Insurance).

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Describe Some of the Ways That the Person-Centred Approach

Describe some of the ways that the Person-Centred Approach differs to Cognitive Behavioural and Psychodynamic Approaches to Counselling. The good life is a process, not a state of being. It is a direction, not a destination. (Rogers, 1961, p. 186) The Mental Health Foundation (2012, Talking Therapies) refers to certain therapeutic approaches as talking therapies. These therapies include: Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Psychodynamic Therapy and Person Centred Therapy (PCT).The Foundation says, ‘Talking therapies give people the chance to explore their thoughts and feelings and the effect they have on their behaviour and mood’. In attempting to describe some of the ways that the Person-Centred approach differs to Cognitive Behavioural and Psychodynamic approaches to counselling it may be helpful to acknowledge that that binds them. The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) identifies that, ‘there is evidence that the relationship between the counsellor and the client is more important than the approach the therapist uses.BACP (2011). This does not presuppose that counsellors working within differing paradigms practice in an entirely different way to their counterparts or that those working within each approach operate in exactly the same way either. Indeed, it is within the relationship between the counsellor and the client that many of the differences in the therapeutic approaches can be identified. Nelson – Jones (2011, p1) warns us to, ‘be careful not to exaggerate the differences between counselling and therapy schools since there are similarities and differences among them. Worsley et al. (2011, p. 25) believe that, ‘the Person Centred Approach is a basic philosophy of living, and not a technique for therapy’. Worsley’s view does highlight a potential schism between the Person Centred model and the Psychodynamic and CBT approaches; that of, ‘feeling over process’ (B owyer 2011). Mearns and Thorne (2008, p. 9) provide some welcome professional credibility to this viewpoint by identifying a link between the experience of living out the tenets of the Person Centred approach (on both a philosophical and professional level), with the counsellor’s own ability to ‘grasp a hope that seems to lie beyond despair’.This raw awareness helps translate towards a natural realisation of some of the therapeutic conditions (namely: empathy, congruence and unconditional positive) regarded by Person Centered practitioners as critical to achieving positive change. Branch and Dryden (2008, p. 33) see this as the most significant point of divergence between the Rogerian (Person Centred) and CBT therapeutic approaches, in that Rogers considered the Core Conditions (Rogers 1957, pps. 95 – 103) to be both necessary and sufficient whilst CBT purists recognise the conditions as desirable and necessary but not sufficient to bring about client chan ge.In purist terms therefore, it can be seen that CBT, ‘focuses on eliciting and restructuring maladaptive goal-impeding thinking (Branch and Dryden 2008, p. 24) whilst the Psychodynamic approaches are sometimes called the ‘uncovering’ therapies (Dryden and Mytton 1999, p. 42) which, ‘aim to take the lid off that seething cauldron and bring the contents of the unconscious into conscious awareness. CBT and psychodynamic therapies may therefore be regarded as being focused on identifying and challenging behaviours and beliefs, whereas from the counsellor’s perspective, the Person Centred model assumes no such prescriptive agenda.Dryden and Mytton (1999, p. 203) acknowledge that the Psychodynamic approach focuses on the client’s past experience ‘whereas the Person Centred approach focuses on the here and now. Care must be taken not to assume that this is a one size fits all definition. For some counsellors and therapists working within each therapeutic paradigm may well ‘borrow’ methods and strategies from other approaches in order to help effect positive change. There is one tenet however which differentiates Person Centred therapy from the two other approaches; control.Whilst there is a communality of approach insofar that relationship is critical to all approaches, it is the hierarchy within the relationship which acts as differentiator. Within the Person Centred relationship, the client retains control; determining where and at what pace the relationship develops and what is explored and what remains unsaid. The non- directive approach taken by the counsellor allows the client freedom to hold his ‘comfort blanket of self-structure’ intact (Bowyer 2010) until such time that he feels able to begin a journey towards eventual self- actualisation (Goldstein 1940, p. 258). Tolan (2010, p. ) sees self- structure as being everything a person holds about herself and about the world. Following on fr om the concept of non-directive client control, the Person Centred practitioner does not consider himself to be the expert, the client is. The division between the three approaches is further widened by the atmosphere in which the counselling session takes place. Russell and Jarvis (2003, p47) identify a difference between humanistic (e. g. Person Centred) and other therapies (including CBT and Psychodynamic), in that the former refers to ‘clients’ whereas the latter regard those in therapy as ‘patients’.This reinforces the view of humanistic based therapies (including Person Centred) that regard the therapist and client as equal partners. On the client’s journey towards personal fulfillment therefore, Dryden and Mytton (1999, p. 89) feel that the counsellor or psychologist ‘acts as a companion, not a guide’. In the absence of a professional ‘expert’ comes a dynamic shift of personal responsibility. Within the psychodynamic and CBT approaches, the therapist, albeit somewhat tacitly does seek to effect positive change and sees this as a professional responsibility and not one which the client is capable of undertaking on their own.To this end, it is the practitioner who assesses the need and determines the outcome(s). CBT is based on finding solutions to issues or problems identified by the counsellor. In turn, the Psychodynamic approach assumes long held conflict between the conscious and unconscious state and sees its role as ‘bringing the unconscious thoughts and feelings into conscious awareness to help individuals make sense of their current problems, of past memories, and of dreams (Dryden and Mytton 1999, p. 4). These somewhat presumptive approaches when coupled with a’ fix it’ mentality (particularly prevalent within the time to cost driven NHS/CBT approach) seem somewhat at odds to that of Person Centred Therapy which works in the immediate and holds true the belief that â⠂¬Ëœall clients have within themselves vast resources for development’ (Mearns and Thorne, 1988, p. 16). Mearns and Cooper (2005, p. 60) provide a meaningful insight into a comparison of therapeutic approaches, ‘While inexperienced therapists tend to differ widely and are easily identifiable by their adopted approach, experienced therapists tend to become more close in their working and are not so easily identified by approach†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. it probably means that therapists are learning from their clients and are gradually being shaped by their clients to offer a relationship that is meaningful. I have so much to learn.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Social Welfare in Australia

Social Welfare in Australia Social security in Australia is a system of social welfare payments provided by the Commonwealth Government of Australia. These payments are administered by the Department of Human Services. Most benefits are subject to a means test.Payments are made to a variety of groups of people; Indigenous students and New Apprentices, age pension, assistance for isolated children (families with a child who lives a fair distance from school), carers, disability support pension, foster families, maternity payment, people who are looking for employment, parenting payment, special benefit (financial hardship) and youth allowance. 7. 1 million Australians were â€Å"customers† of Centrelink, many of which claimed from child care.The payments are paid for through general taxation. In Australia only citizens may claim these benefits. Centrelink is the agency which manages social security. Australia gives out social welfare payments to ensure more equal dispersion of wealth and to assist the lower socio-economic population. In many people’s view in Australia it is the government’s responsibility to look after the less well off, whereas in other countries, for example China, people might rely on their immediate family, for instance to look after the elderly.Australia is the most â€Å"efficient† at reducing inequality of any rich country. In Europe, the United States and Japan, social security is financed by contributions from employers and employees, with benefits related to past earnings, therefore the higher income workers received more generous benefits if they become unemployed, disabled or retire. The rationale for Australia’s approach is that it reduces poverty more efficiently by concentrating the available resources on the poor and minimises adverse incentives. The extent to which the Australian welfare state redistributes to the poor is determined by the interactions between the tax and social security system s, both in terms of the size of taxes collected and the distribution of these taxes. This is calculated by estimating the level of spending on social security benefits as a percentage of household disposable income and then taking account of how much of this goes to the poorest fifth. The same procedure is used to calculate how much tax is paid by people in that group, which is then subtracted from the benefits received to give â€Å"net redistribution to the poor. †1 â€Å"The main objective of social security systems in most countries is to provide insurance against risks like unemployment, disability and sickness, and to redistribute income across the life cycle. †2 There is also the â€Å"Robin Hood† motive; take from the rich and give to the poor, which Australia is a strong example of because our system relies heavily on income testing and directs a higher share of benefits to lower income groups than any other country. Australia has the most â€Å"target efficient† system of social security benefits. Some examples of social security payments given out are:ABSTUDY is the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Study Assistance Scheme and is for Indigenous Australians undergoing some form of study. All Indigenous students at secondary or tertiary institutions and primary students 14 years and older. The student must be of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent and be a current Australian citizen. The Disability Support Pension provides income support for people who suffer a long-term disability which they will not recover from in the next two years, which will determine them unable to work. The average person will receive $385. 0 monthly. The Parenting Payment is for those who are carers of dependent children under the age of 8. These customers are able to collect this payment until their youngest child turns 16. The Parenting Payment uses an individual and a partner income test to determine the rate of payment. Means and a ssets tests are applied to reduce the incidence of welfare fraud and contain social security spending, so as not to â€Å"rip off† the taxpayers. In 2012-2013 the Australian Government contributed $132 million towards social security and welfare, this made up 34. % of total government expenditure. In Australia, welfare is the largest component of public spending and therefore is the main determinant of how much tax income needs to be collected. Bibliography: Wikipedia, Social Security Australia, 2013, http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Social_Security_(Australia), Retrieved 20 February 2013. Whiteford, P. , Inside Story, 2013, http://inside. org. au/how-fair-is-australia’s-welfare-state/, Retrieve 20 February 2013. Riley, T. , 2013, Year 11 Economics, Sydney, Tim Riley Publications.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Whilst Lady Macbeth

In this essay I am will be analysing how Shakespeare and Duffy present madness in â€Å"Macbeth† and â€Å"Havisham†. Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare. It starts off with three witches who tell Macbeth that he will become the king. Macbeth kills the king and becomes king. Macbeth is beheaded by Macduff who was born by Caesarean section which was not considered to be born of a woman. The play was set in the Jacobean era. The Jacobean Era refers to the time in English and Scottish history that concurs with the reign of King James VI of Scotland, who also received the crown of England in 1603. Havisham† is a poem written by Carol Ann Duffy. This poem is spoken by Miss Havisham, a character in Dickens’ Great Expectations. Jilted by her scheming fiance, she continues to wear her wedding dress and sit along with the remains of breakfast for the rest of her life, while she plots her revenge on all men. She hates her spinster state – of which her unmarried family name constantly reminds her. In this section, I will tell you the similarities in Lady Macbeth and Miss Havisham. Lady Macbeth and Miss Havisham share some similarities in their madness. For example, Lady Macbeth shouts, â€Å"Out damned spot! Out I say! † This quote indicates that she sense that she is responsible for the murder of the king so she hallucinates and imagines that the king’s blood is still on her. Also Miss Havisham says, â€Å"Beloved sweetheart bastard. † This quote shows that she still cares for him but she also hates him. This Language device that is used is called an oxymoron. Another Similarity is that metaphors are used in both texts. For example, Lady Macbeth says, â€Å"will these hands ne'er be clean? † This quote suggests that she cannot get rid of her guilt like she cannot get rid of the blood on her hands. Miss Havisham says, â€Å"Ropes on the back of my hands†¦ † This quote represents her aging, as well as the years spent ‘wringing her hands’ with emotion, anger and nerves. In this section, I will tell you the differences in Lady Macbeth and Miss Havisham. Lady Macbeth and Miss Havisham also share some differences in their madness. For example, Lady Macbeth deserves her madness whilst Miss Havisham didn’t. You can see this when Lady Macbeth says, â€Å"What need we fear who knows it, when none can call our power to account? † This quote shows that she is feeling anxious about the killing of the king and is afraid that someone might challenge her authority. Whilst Miss Havisham says, â€Å"the dress yellowing, trembling if I open the wardrobe. † This quote indicates that time has passed and that she literally trembles when she looks at the clothes of her past as she was an innocent victim. Another difference is Lady Macbeth’s madness is rooted from her guilt of murder and repentance whilst Miss Havisham’s madness is rooted from revenge and the pain and sorrow she has felt. This can be seen when Lady Macbeth says, â€Å"Yet who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him† This quote shows that Lady Macbeth has become delusional over the sin she has committed and is losing her mind and is going on a psychotic rant. Whilst Miss Havisham says, â€Å"Not a day since then I haven’t wished him dead. This quote shows that Miss Havisham is being tormented by a memento from her wedding dress which reminds her of the betrayal of her fiance. Havisham also uses enjambment to show the feelings of her past are ongoing and is reflected through the use of the run on lines. In my opinion, I think that Miss Havisham deserves more sympathy than Lady Macbeth as Havisham was jilted on her wedding day and I think that having your lover leave you on the most special day of your life can leave you traumatised and upset. I think that Lady Macbeth as an evil lady as she actually decided to kill Duncan when she saw Macbeth’s letter even though Macbeth didn’t decide to kill him and wasn’t ready to do it either. Lady Macbeth deserves to go mad since that is like her own punishment for her crime In conclusion, Shakespeare and Duffy both present madness in Lady Macbeth and Miss Havisham in a number of ways, both similarly and differently. Readers are bound to feel more sympathy for Havisham then they are for Lady Macbeth due to the fact that Havisham is the victim in her story whilst Lady Macbeth is portrayed as the villain. Havisham is seen as the victim because she has been left by her fiance on the day of her wedding and then was left to suffer the rest of her life alone. Lady Macbeth is seen as the villain as she killed King Duncan with absolutely no remorse in her actions whatsoever at the time, she has just shown remorse after falling ill and ranting about the blood from the king being irremovable. It is common psychology that we feel more sympathy for Havisham as she has done no wrong and was betrayed. We view Lady Macbeth as evil as she killed a man out of greed and for her own gain.

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Globalisation Drivers

Explain what is meant by the term globalisation. Identify and analyse the key drivers of the process of globalisation over the last twenty years. During the mid 1990’s the International Monetary Fund has defined globalisation as: ‘The growing interdependence of countries world-wide through the increasing volume and variety of cross-border transactions in goods and services and of international capital flows, and also through the more rapid and widespread diffusion of technology’ (Turner, 2006).Over the years, this interdependence of countries worldwide has increased dramatically. An indication of this has been the increase in the number of domestic and foreign strategic alliances by six times during the period 1989-1999 (Nam-Hoon Kang, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2001). This change clearly indicates how companies from all over the world interact with each other and form partnerships in response to the phenomenon of globalization.The mai n drivers that have helped globalization to expand and deepen over the past years have been technological revolutions such as the widespread use of Internet and the ease of trans-boundary travelling, the creation of international institutions that encourage free trade by removing trade barriers, the establishment of multinational corporations which seek to increase their profits by taking advantage of what globalisation has to offer (Economics for business 5th edition John Sloman p. 498) and last but not least the change of governments’ policies towards deregulation and privatisation (Development in Practice Taylor & Francis p. 24). This study aims to outline and examine these key drivers that made it possible for globalisation to evolve. The study will also focus on the magnitude of the drivers with relation to globalisation. â€Å"Globalisation is both a result and a force of modernisation and capitalist expansion, entailing the integration of all economic activity (local, national, and regional) into a ‘global' market place: that is, a market place that transcends geopolitical borders and is not subject to regulation by nation states. (Development in Practice Taylor & Francis p. 524) Technological revolutions are viewed by many as one of the key drivers of globalisation. (Bradley 1993, Dicken 1992). Firstly, the reduction in transportation costs and the ability to communicate freely and easily due to the advances in technology have caused tourism to rapidly grow over the years (Tourism in the age of globalisation Salah Wahab, Chris Cooper p. 320). Most importantly, not only individual people as passengers were benefited by the lower transportation costs.In the last half of the twentieth century, the price of transporting products worldwide has fallen dramatically due drops in the cost of air travel, the containerization and increasing ship size (Chrystal, 2007, p. 11). Containers have the ability to move non-fragile goods at the cost of 1% of retail value to any place. In the past years, when the transportation of goods was done through shipping before containers were invented, the cost involved used to be around 10%-20% of retail value. by BCRA) The striking difference in cost indicates the new potential for transfer of goods at increased quantities at a faster and cheaper rate from one place to another. In addition to this, the rapid grow of communications, especially through Internet has added significant strengths to globalization (Economics of globalisation By Partha Gangopadhyay, Manas Chatterji). The Internet has provided a powerful and cheap tool for sharing of information on goods and services through the form of advertising. This helped firms to boost their sales since they can target a bigger range of potential customers at a very low cost.The trends clearly show a constant increase of Europeans e-commerce sales from 2006 to 2011, reflecting a similar increase in the corporations that are investing in the e-bu siness (ELECTRONIC COMMERCE AND THE GLOBALISATION ERA). Furthermore, internet enables free, fast and easy communication of ordinary people from all around the world which also serves as a factor that promotes globalisation and exchange of views and ideas on new products and services (Economics of globalisation By Partha Gangopadhyay, Manas Chatterji).In the recent years, technology is undoubtedly an enabling driver of globalisation but the latter is also influenced by economic motives. This actually means that globalisation is also driven by the economic motives of people. These motives have to do with shifting patterns of production and consumption from one place in the world to another (Tourism in the age of globalisation p. 321). More specifically, businesses seek new opportunities to lower their costs, to achieve savings of scale and to establish a competitive global position by gaining a greater global market share (Economics for business 5th edition).As a result of these motiv es, the foreign direct investment over the years has increased substantially and inevitably the number of cross-borders mergers and acquisitions has also increased. Corporations are trying to lower production costs by shifting the production to countries with cheap labour as well as to countries with abundant resources such as raw materials. China, India and Eastern Europe have been in the recent years the targets of FDI since they possess a production comparative advantage because of abundant and low wage labour force (By Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Treasury Committee).Furthermore, the reduction in trade barriers, the lower transportation costs and the development of stock markets, increased the corporations’ ability to trade and invest at a global scale. For example, stock markets have served as mechanisms for important inflow of capital for corporations since they can go public and raise significant capital that can be used for FDI (http://www. globaldesig nandbusiness. org). Someone can easily distinguish that while benefiting from what globalisation is offering the corporations are themselves driving the phenomenon through their innovations on technology and their overseas activities.The corporations’ economic activities, which are mentioned in the previous paragraph, are also related to the trade institutions that are world widely formed. The world trade institutions are associations that aim to the liberalisation of trade and encouragement of transnational economic actions. Such institutions are namely the WTO, NAFTAA and EFTA. These institutions have similar goals ie to increase competition and economic efficiency through the reduction of trade barriers and the governments’ regulations over trade within the members of their organisations.These organisations are having their members agreeing in reduction of tariffs and other policies (such as antidumping and subsidies) in order to make the governments transparent. Th e organisations are also setting special committees with the task of making sure that the pre-agreed policies are followed and that no member gets out of line. Because of the establishment of such institutions and the clear increase in their membership with ascending time the world trade has increased dramatically (http://www. wto. org, http://www. nafta-sec-alena. org).A good indication of that is the fact that the United Kingdom’s imports and exports contribution to its GDP has increased from 45% to 57% over the period of 1950 to 2005 ( Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Treasury Committee). Consequently, as the world institutions become stronger more active and more influential, globalisation is strengthened due to the improved and amplified interactions of corporations and countries as a whole. The governments as the years pass are trying to create a more competitive environment so that they can become attractive for foreign inflows of capital and investment.Fur thermore, they want to minimize the outflows to less regulated countries (Global public policy: governing without government: Wolfgang H. Reinicke p. 15). In order to achieve these goals, they have been converting their policies towards a more economically favourable manner. Inevitably they have been trying to reduce their trade barriers and accelerate economic growth by joining the world trade institutions (e. g. WTO) as well as the free trade blocks such as the E. U and ASEAN. The trading blocs have a large number of objectives that bring the country-members closer to each other.Some of these objectives demand that the members cannot practise anticompetitive behaviour such as high tariffs, quotas and anti-competitive taxation whereas additionally peace, mutual respect and cultural acknowledgement are also promoted (http://www. aseansec. org, http://europa. eu). Looking at another aspect in the chapter of the governments’ policies that is driving globalisation, someone could identify the remarkable example of the transition countries. The transition countries are suggested to be China, the former Soviet Union, ex-communist Europe countries and third world countries such as India (http://en. ikipedia. org). Over the past 20 years these countries have undergone various economic and political changes that have substantially shifted the countries from the previously central planned economies towards free market economies. As a result liberalisation and privatisation have been encouraged (Privatization in transition countries: By Oleh Havrylyshyn, Donal McGettigan p. 7 and 8). Because of those changes, globalisation has been favoured through its inherent characteristics to become stronger and deeper with modernisation and capitalist expansion. (Taylor &Francis). Looking back to the key drivers of globalisation we have presented in this study, they have all been relatively important since they are all favouring globalisation correspondingly. It is clear that the technological advances and the governments’ policies and behaviours separately and distinctly are really adding to the increasing pace of globalisation. However, the interesting thing that someone could safely say, it is that these drivers are interrelated which suggests that one driver is driving the other and both of them are driving globalisation. References: 1.European Business 2nd Edition Debra Johnson Colin Turner p. 59 2. Nam-Hoon Kang, Organisation For Economic Co-Operation And Development, 2001 3. Economics For Business 5th Edition John Sloman p. 498, Development In Practice Taylor & Francis p. 524 4. Tourism In The Age Of Globalisation by Salah Wahab, Chris Cooper (Bradley 1993, Dicken 1992) p. 320-323 5. Economics By Richard G. Lipsey, K. Alec Chrystal p. 11 6. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE AND THE GLOBALISATION ERA by STUPARU, DRAGOS, VASILE, TOMITA (article) 7. Economics of globalisation By Partha Gangopadhyay, Manas Chatterji p. 191-193 8.Globalisation: prospects and policy responses, fourteenth report of session †¦ By Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Treasury Committee p. 7-12 9. http://www. globaldesignandbusiness. org 10. http://www. wto. org 11. http://www. nafta-sec-alena. org 12. Global public policy: governing without government: Wolfgang H. Reinicke p. 15 13. Privatization in transition countries: By Oleh Havrylyshyn, Donal McGettigan p. 7-8 14. Monetary Policy under Uncertainty Proceedings of the 2007 Money and Banking Seminar – BCRA p. 86 (report) 15. http://www. aseansec. org 16. http://europa. eu 17. http://en. wikipedia. org

Friday, September 13, 2019

Amis Icy Creams

Describe the service organization culture at Amy’s Ice Cream. Amy’s Ice Cream culture is rather laid back. The atmosphere in the parlor is cheery and everyone exhorts a friendly and happy attitude. Amy encourages employee empowerment by allowing the employees to dress as they wish and to interact with customers in a way that is more suitable to their personality. The customers’ attitude is very important to the management as well as the employees so they make sure that customers are always satisfied and receives a high quality consistent product. The store service is conducted in a highly autonomous manner and so far it appears to be not only successful but efficient as Amy’s ice cream has been in existence for a number of years. 2. What are the personalities attributes of the employees who are sought by Amy’s Ice Cream? Amy’s Ice cream has a few specific criteria which future employees must fit. These criteria are not however rigid. Employees should possess a personality that is suitable to a service industry that interacts with customers on a daily basis. They must also feel comfortable expressing themselves with confidence and finesse. One of the most important attributes is the ability to recognize the different types of customers that come into the store and how to deal with them. 3. Design a personnel selection procedure for Amy’s Ice Cream using abstract questioning, a situational vignette, and/or role playing? * Abstract questioning: * Which flavor of Ice Cream best describes your personality? * What kind of customers would you find annoyed? How you would handle it? * What do you know about Ice Cream? * How your past job’s experiences can influence you? * A situational vignette: * How would you face a situation where a customer faint while being serviced? What would you do if the store is being robbed * What would you do if the customer doesn’t have money? (i. e. forgot his/her wallet) * A customer complaining about a hair in the purchased Ice Cream after it’s finished * Role playing: * A particular customer has the habit of always showing up about two minutes before closing and staying late. Often this occurs on the night when weekly store meeting are held after closing time. This delays starting the meeting and furthermore employees are on the clock waiting for the customer to leave. What would you do?

Faisal Mosque in Pakistan Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Faisal Mosque in Pakistan - Research Paper Example The mosque was built as an attribution to the late King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. Its symbolism was based on the fact that it was to portray the hopes and aspiration of Pakistani people (Archnet Digital Library, â€Å"Faisal Mosque†). According to Serageldin, the Muslim culture values the symbolic portray of the architectural building. Some of the most important symbolic structures in Muslim architecture include the minaret, dome, gateway and mihrab. These parts communicate a message to everybody, Muslims or non-Muslims. Vedat Dalokay implemented this symbolic meaning into the Faisal Mosque and, that is why it has become a landmark. According to Mandour, Islamic culture includes art, design, education, science, religion and sport, which has a specific meaning. The design architecture by Vedat Dalokay symbolized and implemented art, beliefs, values and customs in the Pakistani people. The architecture of the mosque was based on a new design that was not related to the usual and t raditional mosques that had been previously built. As a tribute to King Faisal, it was to have a unique architecture and that was why Vedat Dalokay was chosen to make it a state of the art construction. Some of its characteristics were that it was looking like a desert tent where its height was approximately 40 m, and it had girders that supported its concrete walls. The surface was pure white, and its interior design was decorated with mosaic designs and a Turkish chandelier that was strategically placed by its architect, Vedat Dalokay. Its space was big to accommodate a total of 10,000 worshippers in the main prayer hall, and it had four minarets, each measuring approximately 90 m, and they were slender and sharply pointed. Lastly, it was a people’s mosque, meaning it was a contribution to the people of Pakistan by King Faisal, and thus it also accommodated the mausoleum of General Zia-ul-Haq, who was the President of Pakistan from 1978 to 1988 (Archnet Digital Library, â⠂¬Å"Faisal Mosque†). Thesis Architecture is one of the most prestigious arts that can be portrayed in form of a structure. The King Faisal Mosque is one of the best-designed mosques in Pakistan and in the world. This research paper will seek to analyze the architecture of the Faisal Mosque, its symbolism, the color of the mosque and its design and some of the quotes from the founding architect Vedat Dalokay. The paper will also seek to discuss the possible symbolism of the mosque and its historical and cultural concept. Analysis of the design Dalokay was a great architect whose designs were based on the 20th century designs. The mosque's architecture is modern and unique. The mosque was also constructed with the twist of Turkish design as well as Islamic designs. The modern mosque lacked the traditional dome shapes design, as compared to other mosques that are located in the world. The traditional shapes for the olden mosques were related to the historical religious designs th at were dated back then to the olden days of the Islamic culture. The mosque’s design also includes a triangular prayer hall that can hold up to 10,000 people, and in addition to that, it has four minarets that depict the classical shapes of modern architecture. The minarets are also said to have been designed with regard to the Turkish tradition because they are sharp-pointed. It has an eight-sided shape, which was inspired by the famous desert Beduoin's tent and the cubic Kaaba in Mecca and whose architect was Vedat Dalokay, according to Rengel. Speaking to students, the architect, Vedat Dalokay later explained his acute and unique architectural design to design school students commenting that: I tried to capture the spirit, proportion and geometry of Ka'aba in a purely abstract manner. Imagine