A Plea For MME. Loisel

Understanding Mathilde Loisel, the main character in Guy de Maupassant’s story The Necklace, is not simple.   Madame Loisel lived a humble life as the wife of a clerk; however, she desired the life of her rich friend Madame Forestier.   One evening Matilde’s husband came home with an invitation to an event at the Palace and Matilde responded with a disgusting displeasure to the invitation: â€Å"What do you wish me to do with that.†Nevertheless, Matilde and her husband found the money to acquire a dress and borrow a special diamond necklace from her friend Madame Forestier. At the Ball Matilde was the prettiest, most joyful, desired female of the evening. Upon returning home, Matilde realized she had lost her friend’s necklace. Matilde and her husband made up a lie and borrow money to replace the lost item. The fate Matilde found in replacing the necklace—ten years of hard labor— was to harsh.Her VanityWhat is the cause of Matilde’ s self induced punishment?   At first it appears to the reader that she is being rebuked for lying and losing the necklace.   But is this the case?   The cause of Matilde’s problem is not lying about the lost necklace, but her vain attitude towards the envy of a better life.   How does the reader know the cause of her punishment is vanity?First, Matilde will not attend the ball without the proper material possessions of a dress or jewelry.   Second, she is consumed by forming a lie to protect the necklace rather then telling the truth and taking responsibility for her fault.Third, Matilda is willing to sacrifice 10 years of hard labor to pay for her mistake.   In the end, Matilde over-reacted to the situation and her vanity caused her to cover-up a simple venial sin. Matilde’s over indulgence in her own self-interest is to blame for the creation of her elaborate lie.   The loss of the necklace is the result of her vanity.The PunishmentWhat price did Matil da pay for her attempt to cover up the vanity underneath the loss of the necklace and the lie to cover it up?   The reader knows that Matilde suffered ten years of drudgery in hard physical labor to repay the monetary value of the necklace.   Furthermore, Matilde’s husband worked extensive hours at his job and forfeited his inheritance to pay for the necklace.   Consequently, Matilde suffered the loss of her physical beauty while being impoverished as a slave to the households she cleaned.   In addition, Matilde and her husband were forced to resign any possibility of climbing the social ladder because the majority of their lives would be spent working to pay back the price of the necklace.   Matilde’s punishment was too harsh for simply being vain.The PleaMadame Loisel’s pride, which is a product of her vanity, has dealt her the cold hand of an ironic fate.   The ironic part in the story is that Madame Forestier’s necklace was not real to beg in with and Matilde’s perception of Madame Forestier and the upper class life turned out to be just as phony. Matilde should not have to pay the price she did for something that was not real to begin with.   In the end, Madame Loisel suffered an unjustified form of an ironic punishment in relation to the severity that her vanity should have caused.In a different set of circumstances, Matilde should have told the truth about the necklace from the moment she found out it was lost.   Had she done this her fate may have had a more positive result.   Nonetheless, the simple mistake of having too much self-importance does not deserve a life sentence of chastisement.Fortunately, Matilde ended up learning a lesson from her mistake and was able to tell the truth.     As a result, Matilde returned to her humble self and had the courage to approach Madame Forestier to find out the real truth.   The mistake Matilde made was that she borrowed a necklace to feel important for o ne night in her humble life and experience what rich people took for granted.   Matilde’s faults in her character should not inhibit her until death.   Madame Loisel did not deserve the unforgiving penalty of ten years of hard labor.   

Things Fall Apart Tragic Hero

The role of a tragic hero within a story line is essential in a dramatic film or written work. The hero has the standards of becoming a great character that can take charge of the story through courageous action and bold dialogue. However, since the character is deemed a â€Å"tragic† hero, his flaws will ultimately be his downfall, usually leading to the characters own demise. Nowhere is this ideal of a tragic hero more relevant that in Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart. The story is set in late nineteenth-century in a small village in Nigeria. The tragic hero in this case is a young man named Okonkwo.He is a dynamic growing character but is doomed from the beginning of the story with two major flaws that in the end will destroy his character. Okonkwo cannot physically display any of his emotions because he thinks it is a sure sign of weakness. His second flaw is that if and when he does show any emotion, it is an uncontrollable rage. Both of these flaws will get Okonkwo into trouble that he cannot handle. Okonkwo has been taught from a very young age that showing his emotions is a feminine characteristic, a sign of weakness within his culture.This is brought about because when Okonkwo was a child his father was not very involved with the community or with the elder counsel. The community is the most important aspect of everyday life for Okonkwo’s people. The village does not have a centralized government, but it is does have democratic ruling through the elder males (Ohadike xxii). Since Okonkwo’s father was lazy and drank too much, he did not receive any respect from the majority of the community. Okonkwo did not want this for himself so he always displayed a tough exterior so that he could have respect. This characteristic is clearly shown throughout the story.One such example is when Okonkwo becomes very fond of a boy that is in his care. Even though he likes the boy, Ikemefuna, he still treated him â€Å"as he treated ev eryone else – with a heavy hand† (Achebe 20). Even to a person who was considered part of his own family, he could not show the emotion of affection or graceful attention. In addition to not being able to show any true emotions, Okonkwo has trouble controlling his temper. His anger and rough treatment of everyone around him, particularly his wives, once again springs from the fact that his father was segregated from the community.Also, his short-temper towards his wives may have been fueled by the fact that women were beneath men within the village’s social ranking. Okonkwo thinks that the only way he can gain the village’s respect is through being bold and strong. It was also very important to show strength during this time of need because there was much change going on in the community itself with the coming of the white man and new traditions. He must absolutely display only anger and strength â€Å"when the institutions he had fought so hard to sustai n collapse in the face of European colonialism† (Gikandi x).The most infamous scene of Okonkwo’s irrational anger and lack of respect is when he beats his wife for not preparing the meal for their children during the Week of Peace (Achebe 21). This is just a single case of Okonkwo beating one of his wives, but the village punishes him more severely because it is during their Week of Peace in which everyone should be nice and kind to their neighbor. The village was shocked because no one ever breaks the rules of that week. â€Å"Even the oldest men could only remember one or two other occasions somewhere in the dim past† (Achebe 22).Another instance where Okonkwo’s disorderly behavior takes control of his actions is when he kills the boy he was fond of, Ikemefuna. Okonkwo’s clansmen are attacking the boy, so Ikemefuna runs to seek help from Okonkwo. However, since Okonkwo â€Å"does not want to look weak in front of his fellow tribesmen, [he] cuts t he boy down† (Ward 1). He lets his rage and pride take over and kills the boy whom he considered his own son. The characteristics of a tragic hero are clearly visible within Okonkwo. If his ideals were prevalent in someone during this day and age in the United States, it would be quite interesting.It is almost shocking to say, but someone with those characteristics would be very successful in the competitive and fast-pace market of the United States. They could take charge of their business career as well as not buckling under pressure due to the lack of physical emotions. Okonkwo’s manners are instinctual in most humans, no matter how primitive or modern. Wall Street brokers and fast-talking businessmen can be compared to primitive African men whose attitudes have â€Å"been masculine-based even before the advent of the white man† (Mezu 1).In a country based on the powerful business ethic of â€Å"only the strong survive,† there is no doubt Okonkwo could make it far. It can be easily concluded that Okonkwo’s flaws were the leading means of his character’s destruction. His lack of emotions and uncontainable anger were definite components for the deterioration of his character. However, the meaning in Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart would have been lost without Okonkwo as the dominant character. The tragic hero is still and always will be the stable character of any deeply meaningful epic novel or movie.

History and Development of St. Peter Lifeplan Essay

Francisco à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Tatayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Bautista had learned to deal with lifeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s hardship at an early age. He lived in a small farmland and worked as a carpenter and farmer in San Mateo and dreamt of a better future after a dayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s work sitting on top of a carabao. He grew up into a man fiercely determined to succeed. His triumphs over the impediment that he encountered and his immeasurable trust in God were his source of strength and guidance as he worked his way up making his dream a reality. B. Planning Stage Being the known carpenter in their place, the family members of the person who passed away asked him to make casket because during that time, only those who belong to well-known and wealthy families could afford to buy caskets from the casket manufacturing companies. Mr. Bautista saw the discrimination between those who belong to the poor and wealthy families with regards to the quality of funeral services they get when they die. So when he got a small capital to start with, he and his beloved wife Basilisa à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Nanayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Roque-Bautista founded St. Peter Life Plan, Inc. in Pampanga to cater to the needs of the the poor at the price they can afford. Upon the establishment of their business, they have the following information: VISION The St. Peter Group of Companies are Death Care Experts, the choice of every Filipino in the delivery of world-class Death Care services à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" a progressive partner in nation building. MISSION As Death Care Experts and responsible citizens, we commit to improve the quality of life of St. Peterians, their stakeholders and the Filipino people. VALUES The key to the long-term success of St. Peter is how well every member of the organization embraces their Corporate Values. * God-centered à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" As St. Peterians, they are prayerful, sincere, moral and committed in promoting the Word of God, enjoying, loving and consistently modelling a true St. Peterian way of life. * Excellence à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Equipped with a winning attitude and resolved to be the best, they commit to achieve peak performance and to stretch their limits through personal and professional development in order for them to offer all they do for the glory of God. * Teamwork – St. Peterians are supportive, assertive, reliable and open to diversity. They build enthusiasm and draw their energies from each other. Their sense of family unites them to become Death Care experts. * Integrity – They are committed to be honest, transparent, credible and to do what is right before God and the country. They are what they value. * Customer Service â₠¬â€œ They serve each other. They believe that everyone is a customer. It is their commitment to the plan holders, internal and external partners to be reliable-prioritizing their needs and to innovate their services. * Employee Satisfaction – Engaging their employees, associates, colleagues and partners to bring out the best in them. They are committed to care for their employeeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s welfare, growth and development for that brings about a solid sense of proprietorship and pride in what they do. * Professionalism – As St. Peterians, they are objective, disciplined, ethical, respectful, fair and just in all their dealings. They present themselves well in their appearance and words. II. GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT The incessant efforts and fortitude of Francisco Bautista bore fruit when he established another company which later on provide world-class Death Care Service- the St. Peter Memorial Chapels, Inc. The main location of the said business is located at No. 296 Quezon Avenue, Roxas District, Quezon City. St. Peter Life Plan, Inc. continued to grow until it became known nationwide. They established high-class buildings with complete facilities on different regions and provinces of the country in order to give the satisfaction-maximizing services to their customers. They hired more employees with higher salaries than before to manage their businesses and branches. With over 40 years of experience in Death Care on 2005, St. Peter Life Plan, Inc. had branches and mortuary tie-ups, or affiliations with funeral service companies in every major city and key areas all over the Philippines. It led the industry by ranking first in gross sales in the life plan category of the pre-need industry selling over 25,000 plans in 2003. On April 27, 2010, the St. Peter Mega Chapel in Cebu City was launched. It is the newest and one of the largest funeral complex in Visayas. It is strategically located at the New Imus Street near Ayala Cebu Centre. This Mega Chapel is a spacious and fabulous building with an ambiance which is close to a 5-star Hotel and features amazing architectural designs and a relaxing atmosphere. It features spacious and elegant viewing rooms, a caske showroom and a state-of-the-art crematorium that uses hi-tech and eco-friendly cremation machines. A room which can hold more than 350 visitors, St. Peter Mega Chapel can be an alternative reception venue for any occasion. With its excellent facilities and genuine customer service, ST. Peter Chapels is truly world-class. Since its inception in 2006, a total of two hundred ninety four St. Peterian Embalmers have passed the Embalmerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Licensure Examination through the Embalmerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Licensure Program of St. Peter Chapels. It aims to professionalize the embalming profession not only in every St. Peter Chapels but also in the Philippine DeathCare Service industry. III. THE PRESENT SITUATION St. Peter now operates three (3) elite memorial chapels in the heart of commercial district of Quezon City, Cebu City and Davao City which have been providing professional and traditional services to the public for over 42 years. Currently, there are more than 200 St. Peter Chapels ready to serve the public with superior quality memorial services nationwide. St. Peter Life Plan Inc. has also St. Peter Cremation Plan now with the office located at Quezon City. St. Peter Chapel is one of the seven distinguished winners of the 2012 Asian Funeral Expo (AFE) Awards, the premier award for the funeral industry across the Asia-Pacific region. Saint Peter Life Plan, Inc. continues to excel in its role in society as being The DeathCare Experts, by maintaining its leadership in the DeathCare industry and in product development in the market such as Customized At-Need and Pre-Need Packages, Death Event Management and similar Pre-Need Plans. On top of its superb DeathCare services, St. Peter Chapels is also known for its innovative value-added services collectively referred to as the St. Peter eServices, specially: 1. eBurol (online viewing), 2. eLibing (online interment)à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ 3. Timeless Tribute (life-story audio-visual presentation) and, 4. St. Peterà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Gate (memorial networking site). The St. Peter Group of Companies always strive to provide reliable and outstanding DeathCare services not just for the Filipino but also for any nationality who will be needing immediate services anytime and anywhere in the Philippines. The St. Peter Group of Companies continues to support its employees by providing them opportunity for their professional growth and development. The Management Development Program (MDP), dubbed as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Unlad Talentoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ , is designed to help St. Peter employees to better understand the business environment and further sharpen their knowledge, skills and attitude towards different areas of management. MDP is a ten-month long program of courses in the Masters of Business Administration curriculum and is facilitated by Mr. Albert Buenviaje, Dean of the Ateneo Graduate School of Business and also the St. Peter MDP Program Director. This year, fifty participants from various St. Peter Chapels and offices nationwide were carefully selected to undergo this learning opportunity. As part of the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s value for employee satisfaction, a new healthcare program was launched to respond to the needs of SPLPI employees to face family illnesses safely and with confidence. All employees will continue to receive exactly the same health benefits with the bonus of access to safe and affordable healthcare benefits for their qualified dependents. The company takes care of hospital bills. St. Peter Life Plan, Inc. is taking another step forward to help eliminate the effects of El NiÃÆ' ±o and greenhouse gases. St. Peter, with the support of Green Earth Foundation, Inc. (GELFI) launches à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢Soul Treesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ a carbon off-setting program which aims to plant new trees and save our environment. This program represents their care for Mother Nature with strong commitment to protect it. It aims to further provide public awareness on the importance of a holistic approach to agro forestry and community development through actively engaging in re-forestration most especially to areas most impacted by deforestation. St. Peter employees and officers take part in planting a total of 70,000 trees in Luzon as the Soul Trees Project begins. Another St. Peter initiative to reduce carbon dioxide emission is the conversion of their Suburban hearses from Petrol to Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) operated engines. ST. Peterians also actively advocate Earth Hour à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" a global event organized by World Wide Fund. It encourages households and businesses to turn off their non-essential lights and other electrical appliances for one hour to raise awareness towards the need to take action on climate change. IV. FUTURE PLANS The company dreams to continue their success and prosperity for decades to come. At this point in time, St. Peter Life Plan, Inc. plans to expand the business by adding more branches all over the Philippines to extend and further improve their services to every Filipino home. V. FINDINGS Basically, St. Peter Life Plan Inc. now has four kinds of business: The Life Insurance Plan; the Casket Manufacturing Business which is located in Pampanga; the St. Peter Chapels that provides funeral services; and the Crematory business. Based on the previous information, St. Peter Life Plan, Inc. began as a small business operated by a carpenter-farmer named Francisco Bautista. From a small business, it evolved into a larger business and became a company. It became known from the different places in the Philippines and became more successful and progressive.

(your opinion) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

(your opinion) - Essay Example The author points out the impact of advertising through a broader perspective allowing people to understand the ways in which business enterprises are making their way in the private lives of people. Most importantly, the author sheds light on the impact of advertising on the academic activity of students. Here, it should be noted that students are young and in the phase of exploring themselves. At this point, if they are attacked with attractive credit loans offer then it means that their future is in cruel hands. The author of the article discusses regarding the focus of brands on student. The reason behind this new approach of different companies is because they believe that young consumers can deliver the message of product more effectively. However, the fact remains that there are very few students who may have the time to watch all the advertisements through different channels but they are the ones who start word-of-mouth support for the advertisers. The author of the article has noted that students who are highly in demand or have a style statement are approached by the companies. For instance, athletes, musicians, grade holders etc (needs citation). are all considered as ideals or symbols for others. Students in the campus would like to know their ways of getting things done. It is due to multinational companies targeting them for their product. If these talented students would make use of the products being offered by these multinational companies then the product is likely to be cons umed by other students as well (Singer). This citation needs a page number In addition, these students are attracted towards the products with the help of perks including free clothes, laptops or supply of drinks. For instance, Red Bull is running an energetic marketing through the campuses. As stated by the author in the article, â€Å"Red Bull, which has student brand managers at 300 universities and colleges, sponsors

Development(history) of Transportation system in US(or California) Essay

Development(history) of Transportation system in US(or California) - Essay Example This essay stresses that transportation system development in the U.S. is concentrated on sustainability, economic contribution, environment, governmental efficiency and competitiveness of the nation. Benfield is of the view that efficiency is the only factor that one needs to develop a transportation system. Economic cost for transporting goods and passengers, fuel consumption implications, pollution, and urban sprawl and congestion are some of the factors that motivate the government to invest profoundly in developing the national transportation system. This paper makes a conclusion that the U.S. transportation system has undergone dramatic change processes spanning from the 18th to the 21st century. Its developmental journey started from waterways to mass transit systems of today. The emergence of such a complex transport system had come about through political, economic and social endeavors. From Red Indians during the 18th century to the Gold Rush consumers to the modern transit travelers, these consumers have paved the way for the U.S. transportation system. However, these developmental factors would not have achieved its objectives had it not been for the contribution of business community. Although, they had been motivated by their own interests, nevertheless they were the first "planners" who had literally paved the way for linking settlements, towns and metropolis. Regardless of the players and factors, the U.S. transportation system today is clearly one which deserves admiration.

Government Fiscal Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Government Fiscal Policy - Essay Example One of the segments of the economy that benefited the most was the banking industry. The banks in the United States had been acting unethically giving out loans to people that did not quality in order to boost their profits. A lot of Americans lost their homes in the middle of this fiasco. The stimulus package helped save over 3.5 million jobs in America particularly jobs in the manufacturing and construction sector. The Big 3 Auto makers also received financial help from the federal government. The reduction in taxes helped put more money in to the hands of American citizens. Classical economy theory states that the economy is always capable of achieving natural level of real GPD or output (Cliffnotes, 2013). I do not think that classical economy theory would have applied to the economic issues the nation was facing. The United States needed governmental intervention back in 2007-2009 to recover from the recession it was facing. The impact of the economic stimulus package on the governmental budget was that it increased the national debt in the long run and in the short run it increased the yearly budget of the

Discussion 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Discussion 2 - Essay Example From Dr. Kenny Handelman’s blog (2012), most users claimed they suffered increased heart rate and increased blood pressure. One patient in particular, Lori’s eight year old daughter, is said to describe the medicine as cardiac medication because it makes her heartbeat go fast. Another patient, Donna, says she suffers vomiting and headache after a few days of taking the drug. Other side-effects that the drug gives are anxiety, decreased or loss of appetite, diarrhea, dizziness, dry mouth, irritability, trouble sleeping, upper stomach pain and weight loss. It is important for patients to inform their doctor about any other medications or even food supplements taken because there are certain reactions of the drug to other medications and vice versa that may cause further health problems. There may also be side-effects that may be caused when the drug is simultaneously taken with vitamins, supplements or medications. With the side-effects specified earlier, precaution must be taken by patients with heart problems, heart defects, high blood pressure, mental problems such as psychosis, tits or Tourette’s Syndrome and seizures. The physician must be informed about the medical history of the patient to make sure there would be no adverse side-effects to the medication (fda.gov,

How did a major religious, intellectual, or political transformation Essay - 1

How did a major religious, intellectual, or political transformation affect feminist ideas and demands Answer with an that focuses on one such transition - Essay Example ance from 600 BCE to Present to illustrate the historical underpinnings of feminist thought, with a special focus on the underlying political transformation. Marlene LeGates states that the events and circumstances surrounding the French Revolution of eighteenth century provided crucial political transformations which were later manifest fully during the feminist movement. The French tradition of ‘querelle des femmes’ served as an open forum for both men and women to freely express their political opinions. At these gatherings, members of both sexes were known to express their discontent with the then prevailing religious, political and intellectual culture. This forum allowed women to question the â€Å"authoritarian, hierarchical and patriarchal† social order that most considered the natural and only social arrangement possible. It also has to be remembered that the preceding century was also the time when two crucial breakthroughs were achieved in the intellectual realm. These were the discoveries made by Galileo Galilei about the cosmos surrounding earth and the physical laws of nature purported by Isaac Newton. T he significance of a forum such as ‘querelle des femmes’ should be seen in light of the way these parallel scientific developments were treated by the religious and political Establishment of the day. The fact that women freely argued and expressed their opinion with men at a time when Galileo was being persecuted by the Church for expressing scientific truths, says something about the advanced status of women in the period immediately preceding the French Revolution (LeGates, p.121). It is then apt to infer that the political transformation that is effected by the French Revolution of the late Eighteenth century is induced by and later absorbed into notions of gender equality during the feminist movement. In the preceding century, equally important political developments took place across the English Channel, namely the establishment

Women Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Women - Essay Example The first feature, common for all these women, is their masculinity, interwoven with typically female manner of control. Queen Dido rules Carthage, Margot is a member of the Damned Few, the secret council of the Women's country, and Athena is a deity, a goddess of war, wisdom and knowledge, adored in the Ancient Greece. In order to understand Margot's roles and functions, let's look briefly at the organization of the Women's Country. "Within Women's Country, all the cities are walled and each city has, outside its walls, a garrison of male warriors to protect them from other male warriors protecting other cities" (Tepper, 1988, p.21). In exchange for this defense, the women have to give their male children to his father at the age of five. Warriors are allowed to enter Women's Country under two circumstances. First, they can visit it biannually for 'Carnival', a social event which encourages men and women to have intimate affairs in order to have children. Second, the warriors, who wish to change their life and turn it to more peaceful side, can return to the Women's Country as the servitors, who perform the women's commandments, but enjoy civilized life without any weapon, cruelty and violence. The ordinances and instructions made by the women are directed to day-by-day guidance for the inhabitant s, who want to lead healthy and productive lives. Furthermore, the Damned Few's policy is close-knit with the total abolishment of gender inequality and with making women independent. Margot is one of those who try to improve the lives of the citizens, who really long to construct, not to destruct.In spite of her great power, Margot hasn't become cruel, like many tyrannical political leaders. Margot is an elder and physician in Marthatown (ibid, p.43). Margot is a person, whose life is an example of righteousness in terms of women's country. She has to develop new the values of gender equality (or even of female dominance to some degree) in the Country, so she does not allow herself such trivial things as love while solving problems of great importance, such as problem of violence. Using the power her knowledge and wisdom, she rejects the power of her emotions and brings up her daughter Stavia in a similar way (ibid, p.82).Queen Dido is one of the first female characters of western literature. It is possible to say that she is a female parallel to Aeneas. Queen Dido experiences a loss, when her brother betrays and kills her husband Sychaeus. Nevertheless, she is actually a person who founded a new city, having led her people from the motherland as exiles. She has no intention to fall in love with Aeneas, but Cupid traps her with his arrow. Thus, diving into the love, Dido looses her masculinity and moral stability, and her city begins to weaken.Once Aeneas leaves her, she becomes anxious and gets a fixation on her feeling, and needs a child in order to comfort herself. Having broken her promise of fidelity, given to her husband's soul, and feeling completely desperate, she commits suicide but not without bothering the Trojans and predicting the wars between Rome and Carthage.Dido does not represent the typical woman of classical

Eriksonian Perspective Essay Example for Free

Eriksonian Perspective Essay Greene (1991) described Eriksonian perspective on human development from the idea of epigenesis, in which each developmental stage depends upon the resolution and completion of the previous one. This idea proposed that anything that growth has a concrete map, from which it is understood that each stage has its time of passing. The Greene’s description advocates that human development is biopsychosocial and it is present throughout the human life. It is driven by a biologically set plan with the social identity being conditioned by a social factor. Erikson argued that the human ego strives to improvement that is toward mastery of its environment. Thus personal effectiveness being promoted by the social organization becomes the driven mechanism behind the progression of each stage. Erikson derived eight developmental stages with each the pitcome of the resolution serving as the first step toward the next progressively superior stage (Greene, 1991). Although each and different culture resolves the unique requirements for the development differently, such progression is said to be universal in all cultures and human organizations. Thus we can observe a common denominator that according to Erikson (Greene, 1991) is a biological program toward improvement. Baltes, Lindenberger Staudinge (1999) supported Greene’s view but attempted to view the stages of development from the practical perspective. They saw the personality’s progression through the life stages as adaptive mechanism formed and guided with the needs and pressures of the environment. In other words, they inclined more to the point of view in which the environment rather than biology was the major player in the human development. Based on this assumption, the authors suggested to view at lifespan psychology from the individual’s standpoint suggesting that two different people would develop differently even under exactly the same environmental stimuli. Ontogenesis or the study of individual development (Baltes et al. , 1999) appears to be more practical and functional. It considers the individual’s concern of â€Å"acquisition, maintenance, transformation, and attrition† (Baltes et al. , 1999) adaptive processes throughout the lifespan. However, such â€Å"Westernized notion† is not eagerly shared by some researchers (Coughlan Welsh-Breetzke, 2002). They, in particular, suggested that Eriksonian perspective is male-dominated and was presented in the Westernized context thus making individualized and masculianized human development as the blanket for the theory. According to them, such propagation of â€Å"individuality, competition, self-interest, comparative judgment, and value imperialism† devalues other life systems and steps away from the diversified views of human development. As Erikson argued (Greene, 1991) the child’s personality is first affected by the mother and then transformed through the developmental stages within and by small groups, large groups, organizations, governments, religions, and the mankind at large. The child in infancy was thought to obey inner laws of development; the inner drives that lead the child toward realization of the full potential through interaction with the environment. Such interaction with the environment causes inner restructuring of personality traits, which, through integration and synthesis, leads toward the full and complete realization of that particular stage. From Greene’s work (1991) we learn that stage 1 which is called â€Å"Basic Trust Versus basic Mistrust† lasts through two years of age and involves the establishment of trust by the infant toward the members of the family. The most illustrative of such can be little Michelle, the character from the Full House. Her interactions constantly bring the development of new personality that can be characterized by newly developed psychosocial strength (i. e. higher degree of confidence in her communications). The second stage, â€Å"Autonomy Versus Shame† is characterized with developing of self-control and not loosing the â€Å"face† in the process. Such emphasis on self-esteem is important because the children of this age easily become shamed and can develop psychosocial issues of holding on and letting go (Christiansen Palkovitz,1998). The successful resolution of this stage manifests in the child’s ability to become more independent, with some gender differences. For example (Christiansen Palkovitz, 1998) argued that male infants on his stage of development are more individualistic than their female counterparts. Coming back to Full House characters, we indeed, see that the little Michelle (once she became a little older) tends to gravitate toward her sisters and continuously seeking their approval. The child on the stage three, Initiative Versus Guilt, develops the sense of purpose, especially noticeable during the playtime. The sense of purpose drives the child toward the active exploration of the environment and according to Erikson (Greene, 1991) brings her to the discovery of the lack of a penis. Contrary to the Freud, Erikson believed that such and inevitable (in some societies) discovery of â€Å"inequity† is driven more so socially than biologically (Greene, 1991). The successful resolution of this stage is uninhibited involvement in play with other playmates. The children on the stage four, Industry Versus Inferiority, start school. This is a major transition in their lives and involved changing of perspective from the small family-based group to the larger social groups. According to Eriksonian perspective, the main drive for children on this stage is to become industrial which involves developing skills and competence through meaningful performances. The crisis on this stage may occur when the child’s self-efficacy is undermined. Learning collaborative skills and experiences can be critical at this stage of development. Stacy in Full House was often intimidated by collaborative involvement trying to achieve the performance of tasks independently. Her father and uncles often taught her that learning how to collaborate and contribute would make things easier and more effective. Almost each episode suggested how Stacy (and her sisters) put a lot of effort toward performing any task. The child experiencing successes at creating and producing some value together with his or her peers (or parents) is critical toward the stage resolution (Greene, 1991). From the age of 12 through 22, the adolescent experiences Identity Versus Identity Confusion. This is the stage when adolescent develops into the young adult and is seeking personal and unique identity. The stability of self-representation is crucial and is manifested in the desire to develop autonomy from parents, individuality of opinions, acceptance of his or her sexual preferences, and commitment to the career choices. The struggling with the issue of selfness often causes to name such stage as the most difficult. During the stage, the influence of peer groups become most consuming and focuses of interaction. The ability to sustain loyalties is the desired outcome of the resolution for this stage. Either polarity we can see in characters of the movies like Girl Interrupted, Mean Girls, Even Stevens, and others. It is an uninterrupted parade of searched identities and strive for the independence in opinions and attitudes. When the young adult enters stage six (22 through 34) he or she enters Intimacy versus isolation. The focus of his or her life becomes developing of the meaningful relationships and seeking the intimacy experiences. This is the stage when most adults develop meaningful relationships to start a family. Becoming a loner and shutting down others is a crisis to compare to a resolution of this stage. Many film features exhibit important characteristics of selfless love, on one side, and ruined families on another as picturesque illustration of this stage’s characteristics. One of the features that come to mind is Click, in which the main character is taught a lesson that commitment to family is more important than personal comfort. Even the legendary Casanova in the feature with the same name shows that final offering of commitment to start a family was an only choice. When a person advances in years and through the stages of development on to the stage 7, Generativity Versus Stagnation, he or se is concerned with teaching and guiding the next generation. The proficiency of this stage is usually takes in an ability of taking care of others (Christiansen Palkovitz,1998). The crisis may result when the person feels stagnated without being able to share personal expertise to others, especially the younger generation. This is tremendously visible in Full House as the father of the girls is trying his best to teach and guide his children. He is visibly content and happy when his instructions and guidance are accepted. The final stage, starting at about 60 deals with Integrity Versus Despair. This is when the person is concerned of personal usefulness to others during his or her lifetime. As Greene wrote in his book, â€Å"Integrity is achieved by individuals who have few regrets, who have lived productive lives, and who cope as well with their failures as they do with their successes. † There is an appreciation of the life as the whole and a content of the life well lived. People with full resolution of this stage are not afraid of death, thus develop what we call wisdom. The feature Bicentennial Man shows that quite vividly. The android becoming a human develops wisdom through the personal choice of growing old and dying in the course of the old age, although as android he could live forever. In conclusion, it is worth noticing that despite the fact that the study examines the idea of epigenesis, one can find that the transition from one developmental stage to another is not always exactly predetermined by age. For example, fro Erikson’s argument, each stage has a certain age limit. However, we are aware that not everyone fits exactly in to such age limitation and depending upon the unique characteristics of personality, micro-culture (i. e. family), group culture (i. e. school), and macro-culture (i. e. government) the age boundaries for each stage might be different. The idea that everything that growth has a concrete map from which it is understood that each stage has a certain time of passing has been observed empirically on many living species. However, we cannot claim that each species has exactly the same time passing for each stage of growth. There will be some differentiation. In such, experimental results that examine the life cycle of one species will weaken the above-discussed theory due to the fact that it is very difficult if not impossible to determine the exact age boundaries between the developmental stages from one representative of the species to another. My personal opinion lies in parallel with this conclusion. Observing my own developing in contrast with Eriksonian perspective, I find that stage four, for example, and in my case, extended before age six and way after age 12. My stage five began at age 14 rather than according to Erikson’s perspective, age 12. Many a time, the stage six begin after the age of 24 (not 22) and continues through early 40s (at least with my acquaintances). Thus, the exact map of stage development is not so exact, after all, and depends upon numerous factors I already have mentioned. Penuel (1995) in his article put the focus on identity formation. According to him, although this research primarily was based on Eriksonian perspective, there is a clear notion that each and single individual develops his or her identity not necessarily in agreement with concrete time schedule of Erikson’s stages of development. Penuel made a point that despite the fact that Vygotsky offered theoretical foundation of identity formation, the specific guidelines behind sociocultural influence on identity were not set. Penuel urged not to replace Vigotsky’s view on the identity development by Erikson’s theory but to integrate both. Thus, the main study point in Penvue’s article would be strong but not mechanistic influence of sociocultural processes on the identity formation. The discussion presented in this work strengthen my ideas that the development of an identity is more affected by external factors, like micro-culture, group-culture, and macro-culture and is not always follows the strict age-set boundaries. Observing my own and my friends’ identity formation support this notion. Stevenson-Hinde (1994) looked at human development from the different perspective. It is more systemic as in the behaviors are interconnected within the specific system, and in thus if one component is affected others are affected as well. Such perspective deviates even more from he straightforward Erikson’s theory. It is not anymore the stage development but the systemic organization of behaviors, according to Stevenson-Hinde. This study weakens the theory and my idea about the identity formation. Although and without argument some behaviors are interrelated, this fact is not necessarily the cause of identity formulation. The effect comes from the external environment thus the sociocultural characteristics affect the identity development more than the resulting set of behaviors. This conclusion s supported by self-observation. Examining my own interrelated behaviors I clearly see that those are the effect not the cause of the environmental influences. Thus environmental influences affect my behaviors that in turn help in identity formation. Horst (1995) argued with the general notion that the Erikson’s perspective did not consider accurate depiction of development through the lenses of gender. According to her claim, contrary would be more accurate. Careful study of Erikson’s stages of development does consider the gender identity in which gender is relational to components of identity formation. The point of her article is thus, to consider that the gender has an influence on identity formation. This study strengthens my views on the theory in its notion of the gender influence. Certainly, male and female would not develop equally and would not manifest the same identity formation. The differential depends upon their own perspective of self as either male or female. Even more so, how their external environment views them on the gender scale: from less feminine to more feminine and from less muscular to more muscular. Thus, their identity is formed not only from the point of view of being a human but also being a male and female and its specific location on the gender scale. My personal observations support this viewpoint. External attitudes, first from my immediate family and then from my friends) confirmed and helped me develop my identity IQ and specifically my gender identity IQ.

Strategic Workforce Planning and Employment Decisions

Strategic Workforce Planning and Employment Decisions Strategic Workforce Planning involves analyzing and forecasting the talent that companies need to execute their business strategy, proactively rather than reactively, it is a critical strategic activity, enabling the organization to identify, develop and sustain the workforce skills it needs to successfully accomplish its strategic intent whilst balancing career and lifestyle goals of its employees. Strategic Workforce Planning is a relatively new management process that is being used increasingly to help control labour costs, assess talent needs, make informed business decisions, and assess talent market risks as part of overall enterprise risk management. Strategic workforce planning is aimed at helping companies make sure they have the right people in the right place at the right time and at the right price Through Strategic Workforce Planning organizations gain insight into what people the organization will need, and what people will be available to meet those needs. In creating this understanding of the gaps between an organizations demand and the available workforce supply, organizations will be able to create and target programmes, approaches and develop strategies to close the gaps. Steps in Workforce Planning 1. Environment Scan ENVIRONMENT ÂÂ  SCANNING ÂÂ  is a form of business intelligence. In the context of Workforce Planning it is used to identify the set of facts or circumstances that surround a workforce situation or event. 2. Current Workforce Profile Current State is a profile of the demand and supply factors both internally and externally of the workforce the organization has today. 3. Future Workforce View View is determining the organizations needs considering the emerging trends and issues identified during the Environment Scanning. Future View is often where the different approaches identified above are applied: Quantitative futuring: understanding the future you are currently tracking to by forecasting; Qualitative futuring: scenario planning potential alternative futures in terms of capabilities and demographics to deliver the business strategy. 4. Analysis and Targeted Future Qualitative and quantitative futuring creates the content for an organizational unit to analyse and identify critical elements. As the critical elements are identified the Targeted Future begins to take form. The targeted future is the future that the organization is going to target as being the best fit in terms of business strategy and is achievable given the surrounding factors (internal/external, supply/demand). 5. Closing the Gaps Closing the gaps is about the people management (human resources) programs and practices that deliver the workforce needed for today and tomorrow. The process is about determining appropriate actions to close the gaps and therefore deliver the targeted future. There are 8 key areas that Closing the Gaps needs to focus on Resourcing, Learning and Development, Remuneration, Industrial Relations, Recruitment, Retention, Knowledge Management, Job design. Strategy Development Develop strategies for workforce transition. Basic Information to Include in the Workforce Plan: List specific goals to address workforce competency gaps or surpluses (may include the following): Changes in organizational structure Succession planning Retention programs Recruitment plans Career development programs Leadership development Organizational training and employee development Understand how the legal and organisational frameworks for employment of staff Evaluate the current legal requirements influencing a HR plan Describe a process for recruitment and selection of new staff (external candidates) that complies with current legislation and organisational requirements Ans2 Human resources are the participants as also the beneficiaries of economic development process. In that, human resources figure on the demand as well as the supply side of production of goods and services in the economy. On the demand side, goods and services produced are used by the human beings to alleviate poverty, improve health, generate better living conditions, enhance general educational levels and provide better facilities for training. Utilisation of goods and services thus leads to an improvement of quality of human resources. On the supply side, human resources and capital form essential ingredients of production systems which transform natural and physical resources into goods and services. Complementarily between human resources and capital is so close that optimal increases in output and hence optimal economic growth is not possible through increases in one of them either human resources or capital at the cost of the other. ÂÂ  Some growth of course can be had from the increase in more conventional capital even though the labour that is available is lacking both in skill and knowledge. But the rate of growth will be seriously limited. It simply is not possible to have the fruits of modern agriculture and the abundance of modern industry without making large investments in human beings. There is an optimal ratio of human resources to capital which has to be maintained to reach the attainable rate of economic growth. Given the endowment of capital and other material resources, human resources could accelerate the production process and hence economic growth. At the same time, unprecedented growth in human resources, disproportionate to the pattern of accumulation of capital and other material resources could hinder development. Rate of growth in human resources, in turn, is determined by the two dimensions of human resources: Quantity and Quality. Quantity of human resources is determined by variables such as: population policy, population structure, migration, and labour force participation. Quality of human resources, on the other hand, is influenced by the status of variables like: education and training health and nutrition, and equality of opportunity. In this Unit we will take into account the two dimensions of human resources: Quantity and Quality in context of HRP in general and also in tourism. 1. QUANTITATIVE DIMENSIONS OF HUMAN RESOURCE PLANNING Human resources viewed as the productive power of human beings constitute only one of the two parts of population of any economy. The other being the human beings without any productive power. Population Population of a country, in a generic sense, is taken as constituting the totality of all human beings of the country. The concept of population, viewed in this manner, appears to be very simple. However, in reality, the definitions used vary not only from country to country but even within a country depending on the purpose of enquiry. Broadly, the definitions of population used may be categorised into de facto and de jure. A de facto (or present-in-area) concept involves complete count of all persons residents and non-residents alike physically present in the country at the time of enumeration. A de jure concept necessitates complete count of all persons considered to be normal residents of the country, irrespective of where each person is located, at the time of the census. Strict conformity to either of these concepts is not possible because of difficulties in enumeration like: nationals living abroad, nomadic population, inhabitants in extremely remote areas, and population in disturbed areas. Added to this, are the administrative difficulties logistic, financial and human of recording everyone at the same time. There is thus a degree of inaccuracy in the census of population of any country. The greater the number to be counted and/or the larger the area to be covered the larger is the degree of inaccuracy. Human resources being an integral part of population, growth of human resources is naturally dependent on the growth of population. Population growth, in turn, is determined by three factors: Population policies, population structure and migration. a) Population Policies In terms of State intervention in population planning, it is useful to distinguish between population influencing policies and population responsive policies. The former are anticipatory in nature and operate through the demographic sub-system by influencing factors primarily responsible for population growth such as fertility, marriage and mortality. The latter are essentially reactive in character which are often implemented through the socio-economic sub-system to accommodate or adjust to observed demographic trends with the help of programmes like health, nutrition, education, housing, transport network expansion and employment promotion. In an over-populated economy, sufficiently robust population influencing policies along with appropriate population responsive policies (complementary in nature) might be the optimal population policy framework. In any case, understanding the structure and pattern of growth of population is essential for evolving an appropriate combination of population influencing and population responsive policies towards achieving an optimal population policy framework. b) Population Structure Population is a dynamic concept. Consequently, structure or composition of population at any point of time reveals two things: First, it is the result of interaction in the past among factors causing population growth. Second, it reveals the potential for future growth in population. In so far as population growth is concerned, there are two aspects of population composition which are most important: Sex composition and age composition: i) Sex Composition The principal measure of sex composition is the sex ratio defined as the number males per 100 females. In other words: Number of males in the population Sex ratio = ÃÆ'- 100 Number of females in the population One hundred is the point of balance between males and females. A sex rate above 100 denotes an excess of males. Likewise, a sex ratio below 100 indicates an excess of females. In general sex ratios tend to range between 95 to 102. Heavy war losses, heavy migration and local social considerations such as female infanticide may upset the sex ratio. In any case a sex ratio outside the range of 90 to105 is to be viewed with suspicion. Starting point for all population projections is the projection of female population on whom crucially the number of births will depend. Higher the female population, higher will be the number of births and hence the higher will be the population growth. Sex composition thus indicates the potential future growth in population. ii) Age Composition Age composition is the distribution of population by age groups usually five year age groups. Age composition at any given point of time is the result of past trends in fertility and mortality and is also the basis for establishing future trends. In the computation rate of growth of population, future births are usually computed by applying five year age specific fertility rates to the women of child bearing age (10 to 49 years) at the midpoint of each five-years time interval. Data on age composition is also useful in the computation and analysis of labour supply. Economically active age-group is considered to be 15 to 65 years. Population in the age group crucially determines the extent and composition of labour force. c) Migration Age and sex composition are indicative of only the natural growth in population. Another factor which causes changes in population is the net migration. If the net migration is positive, the population grows at a rate faster than that indicated by natural growth. On the contrary, if the net migration is negative it causes decline in the rate of growth indicated by the natural growth. Movements from and to other regions within the country are termed as out-migration and in-migration, respectively, and these movements together are known as internal migration. Data on internal migration are useful, when it is intended to analyse population changes at provincial level or some other administrative level. Internal migration is a function of the inter-regional and inter-sectoral rates of growth and wage differentials. Movement across national boundaries causes changes in the population at the national level. The effect of international migration on the national population is measured by the rate of net-migration defined as: Total immigrants Total emigrants Rate of net migration = ÃÆ'- 1000 Mid-year population Rate of population increase at any point of time equals the rate of natural increase plus the rate of net migration. Labour Force Participation Population change as such do not cause changes in human resources. Rather it is the change in the economically active component of population which affects growth in the human resources. In terms of economic activity classification, population may be divided into workers and non-workers. Worker is defined as a person whose main activity is participation in economically productive work by his or her mental or physical presence. Work involves not only actual work but also effective supervision and direction. Workers thus defined, others in the population are considered as non-workers. For the purpose of elaboration non-workers may be categorised as: full-time students, persons engaged in household duties, infants and dependents doing no work, retired persons and renters living on rent on an agricultural or non-agricultural royalty, beggars, vagrants and others with unspecified sources of income, inmates of penal, charitable and metal institutions, unemployed but available for work, and others. Labour force or economically active population is that segment of the population whose function is to produce goods and services demanded by the whole population. Usually, those aged 15-64 years are considered to be in the productive age-group. However, not everyone in the productive age-group is effectively in the labour force. According to the accepted definition, labour force comprises all persons of either sex who furnish the supply of labour available for the production of economic goods and services including: employers, employees, self-employed persons, and those engaged in family enterprises without pay. In other words, labour-force may be defined as comprising workers and non-workers in the productive age-group who are unemployed but available for work. Labour-force participation rate is then defined as Labour force Labour force participation rate = ÃÆ'- 100 Total population Tourism In the case of international or domestic tourism it is not just the labour force that participates in the production of goods and services but the entire host population of the destination has a role to play. This is because besides the economic activity, attitudes of the host population matter a lot in creating an environment which is tourist and tourism friendly. There are destinations where the population plays host to tourists numbering four times more than its own numbers and each and every member of the population has some role in this regard a friendly smile too has a role. Many countries and destinations have earned a brand image in hospitality. Hence, human resource planners lay stress on creating tourism awareness including dos and donts vis-Ã  -vis tourists for the entire host population. Moreover, there are destinations where, quantitatively speaking, the whole population is involved in tourism both, directly as well as through indirect employment. But beyond a point, i t is the qualitative dimension that matters and converting quantity into quality is the real challenge in HRD. While the quantitative dimensions assist in the analysis of human resources in terms of numbers, qualitative dimensions facilitate assessment and analysis of the productive power in human resources. For example, four hundred drivers may be available to a tourist transport operator but he may find only 20 out of these which meet the quality standards in relation to driving skills required for handling tourist coaches. i) Education and Training Education and training are the most dominant dimensions affecting quality of human resources in terms of knowledge and skills. Education and training serve both individual and social ends. To an individual, it has both vocational and cultural significance in achieving economic emancipation and social up gradation. To the society, education and training are means which make possible to take advantage of technological changes as well as furthering technological progress. Depending on the methods of imparting knowledge and skills, education and training may be classified into two types: Formal and Informal. Formal education and training, which is imparted through schools and colleges, emphasises transfer of knowledge. Informal education and training such as on-the-job training and hereditary training lays stress on transfer of skills, i.e., practical application of knowledge. Education and training as a means of human resources planning involve critical choices, as no country can have all education and training. Rather, it is essential to identify priorities in education and training, emphasise programmes which have high priority and tone down or even discard programmes with a low priority. As far as development of education and training is concerned there are six choice areas which are critical: Choice between levels of education such as primary, secondary and higher education. Choice between quality and quantity in education and training. Choice between science and technology on the one hand, and humanities and liberal arts on the other hand. Choice between market forces and incentives to attract people into some occupations. Choice between the aspirations of individuals and needs of the society. ii) Health and Nutrition Health and nutrition status constitutes one of the most important indicators of quality of human resource, as they contribute significantly to building and maintaining a productive human resource as well as improving average expectation of life and quality of life. There are three determinants of health status: Purchasing power of people. Public sanitation, climate and availability of medical facilities. Peoples knowledge and understanding of health hygiene and nutrition. Education, health and nutrition are inter-linked and they complement each other in the process of human resources development. iii) Equality of Opportunity Investments in human resources development do not always ensure proportionate development of all sections of population. In the absence of deliberate policy intervention, there are bound to be discriminations. We can say that there are three distinct forms of discriminations which are relevant to developing nations: Social discrimination may take either the form of sex discrimination or discrimination among different social groups or both. For example, a few years back the air hostesses of a particular airlines petitioned in the court because their retirement age was earlier than of their male counterparts. The court upheld their petition and now the retirement age of both male and female air hostesses is same. Economic discrimination takes place largely among groups of population belonging to different economic strata classified in terms of either income generating assets. Regional discrimination can be in the form of either discrimination between rural and urban population or discrimination among population belonging to different regions. These three forms of discriminations individually and/or jointly lead to inequality of opportunities of varying degree among different sections of population. Discrimination of any form causes differential access to education and training, and health and nutrition. This in turn leads to differences in quality and productivity of human resources belonging to different segments of the population with the privileged benefiting the most and under privileged being deprived of their due share in the development process. Opportunity costs of discrimination are very high, as it leads to many social and economic evils apart from retarding the pace of economic development. It has been demonstrated that the national output can be further expanded by improving the average level of productivity of each individual through appropriate social and economic policies directed towards equality to opportunity in the fields of education and health. Tourism has long been recognised as a tool for economic growth and development. However, it can be beneficial to the host economies when it creates jobs for the locals. Here qualitative dimensions of HRD become an important factor for education and training of local population as per the requirements of responsible tourism development. The dimensions, attributes and distribution of population the product of whose labour adds to national wealth constitute human resources. They are thus, the participants and beneficiaries of economic development. The demographic profile, migration and mobility and participation patterns in economic activity determine the quantitative aspects of actual and potential human resources. Investments in education and training, health and nutrition, and social welfare and quality promote quality of human resources through enhanced labour productivity. While quantitative and qualitative dimensions only regulate supply of human resources, the other aspect of human resources planning namely the demand for human resources crucially depends on the functioning and flexibility of labour markets. Labour market analysis is a principal instrument of human resources planning, as it helps identify skill shortages and also enables a diagnosis of market failure to match labour supply with demand. To facilitate labour market analysis, there is a need for a comprehensive and regularly updated labour market information system. 1) The variables for determining the quantitative and qualitative dimension of human resource planning are: Quantitative Population policy, Population structure, Migration, and Labour force participation. Qualitative Education and training, Health and nutrition, and Equality of opportunity Understand the effect of the organisation environment on staff Discuss Assess work life balance issues and the changing patter of work practices Importance of HR PLANNING in ÂÂ  organizations. Each Organisation needs personnel with necessary qualifications, skills, knowledge, experience aptitude . Need for Replacement of Personnel ÂÂ  Replacing old, retired or disabled personnel. Meet manpower shortages due to labour turnover Meet needs of expansion / downsizing programmes Cater to Future Personnel Needs Nature of present workforce in relation with Changing Environment helps to cope with changes in competitive forces, markets, technology, products and government regulations. Shift in demand from ERP to internet programming has increased internet programmers i) quantify job for producing product / service ii) quantify people positions required ii) determine future staff-mix iii) assess staffing levels to avoid unnecessary costs iv) reduce delays in procuring staff v) prevent shortage / excess of staff vi) comply with legal requirements In organisational development, succession planning is the process of identifying and preparing suitable employees, through mentoring, training and job rotation, to replace key personnel within an organisation if they leave. All employers need to consider the issue of succession planning to ensure that no part of the business is at risk should a particular member of staff leave the organisation. With good succession planning, employees are ready for new leadership roles as the need arises. Moreover, when someone leaves, a current employee is ready to step up to the plate. In addition, succession planning can help develop a diverse workforce, allowing decision makers to look at the future make-up of the organisation as a whole. Develop a succession plan for internal replacements, and if you will need to hire, think about the type of person or skills you will need so that if the situation arises you have already done some of the groundwork. In your succession plan you may wish to consider: staff interchange where employees swap jobs within the organisation in order to have experience in multiple positions; formal or informal mentoring ÂÂ  arrangements; coaching of staff; identification of suitable professional development activities for high-performing staff; making agreements to introduce flexible working arrangements; creating forward-thinking internal promotion policies; supporting staff to take increased responsibility; the allocation of higher-grade duties or assignments. Understand the grievance, discipline and dismissal process Identify the process to be followed in a grievance situation Describe the stages of a discipline issue that results in dismissal Explain the role of ACAS, Employment tribunals and other external agencies that could be involved in grievance, discipline and dismissal processes Process Steps There are four main grievance process steps: discovery, conciliation, internal review and arbitration. A summary of what happens at each of these step appears below. Click on a link here, or at the bottom of the page, to see a full discussion of what happens at that step in the grievance process. Discovery The date when the grieving faculty member (grievant) discovered, or reasonably could have discovered, the circumstances leading to the grievance. Conciliation The informal, confidential effort to resolve the grievance between the faculty member and the Board at the lowest possible administrative level before a formal grievance can be filed. This effort is normally assisted by a FA-appointed campus conciliator. Internal Review Hearing An informal meeting scheduled by the college president, or the presidents designee. The president listens to the grievant, the responding administrator and their representatives as they address the allegations contained in a timely Notice of Grievance that has been filed with the District. The president writes an Internal Review Hearing decision regarding the Notice of Grievance allegations. Arbitration Hearing A formal hearing before an arbitrator chosen from a list of seven possible candidates supplied by the State Conciliation Service. Legal counsel represents both parties and all testimony by witnesses is under oath. After reviewing evidence, testimony and argument briefs from both parties, the arbitrator renders a written decision that is binding on both parties. Disciplinary and grievance procedures provide a clear and transparent framework to deal with difficulties which may arise as part of their working relationship from either the employers or employees perspective. They are necessary to ensure that everybody is treated in the same way in similar circumstances, to ensure issues are dealt with fairly and reasonably, and that employers are compliant with current legislation and follow the Acas Code of Practice for handling disciplinary and grievance issues. Disciplinary procedures are needed: So employees know what is expected of them in terms of standards of performance or conduct (and the likely consequences of continued failure to meet these standards). To identify obstacles to individuals achieving the required standards (for example training needs, lack of clarity of job requirements, additional support needed) and take appropriate action. As an opportunity to agree suitable goals and timescales for improvement in an individuals performance or conduct. To try to resolve matters without recourse to an employment tribunal. As a point of reference for an employment tribunal should someone make a complaint about the way they have been dismissed. Grievance procedures are needed: To provide individuals with a course of action should they have a complaint (which they are unable to resolve through regular communication with their line manager). To provide points of contact and timescales to resolve issues of concern. To try to resolve matters without recourse to an employment tribunal. The legal position The statutory procedures for handling discipline and grievance issues introduced in October 2004 were widely criticised andÂÂ  were repealed in their entirety with effect from 6 April 2009. (Those in Northern Ireland should note that the Employment Act 2008, which repealed th statutory procedures, is not applicable there the Department for Employment and Learning has published detailed guidance From 6 April 2009 the important provisions governing discipline and grievances at work are to be found in: The Employment Act 2008 The Employment Tribunals (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) (Amendment) Regulations 2008. Numerous other pieces of legislation cross refer to discipline and grievance issues. Some important examples include the: The Employment Rights Act 1996 as amended The Employment Rights Dispute Resolution Act 1998 The Employment Relations Act 1999 The Employment Rights Act 2004. Employers own disciplinary, grievance and dismissal procedures and the Acas Code of PracticeÂÂ  are essential to ensure that good dispute handling behaviour is adopted. The role of the Acas Code of Practice The Acas Code of Practice Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures was revised to reflect the removal of the statutory procedures andÂÂ  a new version1 came into force on 6 April 2009. CIPD endorses the Code. Following it is crucially important for employers: an employment tribunal will consider whether the employer has followed the Code and, if they have not, then the tribunal may adjust any awards made by up to 25% for unreasonable failure to comply. In situations where the trigger event occurs on or after 6 April 2009, an employment tribunal will considerÂÂ  whether the employer has followed the Acas Code and, if they have not, then the tribunal may adjust any awards made by up to 25% for unreasonable failure to comply. CIPD members can find out more on the content of the Code, the legal aspects of this topic and likely future developments from our FAQ on Discipline and grievances procedures in the Employment Law at Work area of our websi

The Introduction To What Is Learning?

The Introduction To What Is Learning? Philosophy is taking a theory on what one believes and why s/he believes, and these beliefs are based on ethics. It is also based on how and what one thinks about something. In short, philosophy is ideas that create reality and makes ones view clear. In this paper, in order to address my philosophy of education with regard to the Zambian education system, the purpose of education, what learning is, and what teaching is, will be discussed. Thereafter, my educational philosophical statement shall be discussed to summarize my final paper on Teacher Education. In the first place, this paper will look at the purpose of education for Zambia, at its different stages of development to what it is and serves at the moment. Purpose of Education: Education, in the Zambian scenario, has moved from indigenous, pre colonial, colonial, post colonial and after independence to the present times. It has also continued to move through the three political republics and economic phases the country has experienced. In all these periods, the school system and the education at large have tried to answer to the demands of the prevailing trends and were tailored to satisfy the needs of society at that time. This is because political changes define the purpose of education when a particular party is in power or leadership. From time immemorial, before formal education came into existence, Africans and Zambians in particular, had their indigenous form of education, which usually stressed on communal and social aspects of life rather than on individual and competitive aspect. This was true as everyone in the community took responsibility in making sure that certain values in the community were preserved. This was also part of each community members social responsibility for the common good of all. This, therefore, made this kind of education meaningful, unifying, holistic, effective, practical and relevant since it was meant to address immediate social and communal concerns. In todays education system, these characteristics can still create meaning though with a broader view of addressing both immediate and long term problems. The education offered must possess the above characteristics if it has to promote healthy democratic societies of this century. Indeed this kind of education is relevant as it addr esses the whole human being in his/her entirety. During pre colonial and colonial times, schools did not take into consideration various needs of the people, especially indigenous locals. Colonial masters and settlers gave minimal education to Zambians, which later proved to be a source of economic inequalities and social stratification, as well as an instrument of imperialism. This kind of education was not just inadequate but was also largely irrelevant to the needs of the locals (Kelly, 1999). On the other hand, missionaries introduced some kind of formal education to Zambians. This education condemned the African indigenous ways of teaching and learning to the strongest terms and labeling it as paganism or worship of idols. In their quest to introduce some form of western education, missionaries faced difficulties converting the elderly Africans. This made them target young people so that they could teach them how to read in order to help spread the gospel messages to the locals. However, this formal education given to Zambians was also just limited to learning literacy and numeracy, while other missionaries tried to develop locals skills in the vocational type of education, that is, Agriculture, Carpentry, Black smith, and many other skills. This was said to be a better way of improving the living standards of the African locals. To the contrary, the skills imparted in young Africans were meant to serve the colonial masters and missionary interests. With all the efforts missionaries put in to bring some form of formal education, colonial masters did not support the idea. Instead, the Northern Rhodesia government pursued an education policy designed to foster a rural school system biased toward education of the masses, preparing them to work in a rural setting and consolidating a conservative social order, based on tribal authority, in the interest of a settler class (Camody, 1992). This type of school system was meant to keep the Zambian locals under developed even when natural resources, such as Copper, earnings and taxes were being collected form Northern Rhodesia. The colonial government made sure that if education was to be provided, it did not go beyond primary or elementary level. It was believed that locals with this kind or level of education would carry out clerical and vocational kind of jobs for the white settlers and colonial masters with less difficulty. After independence, Zambia realized the importance of formal education to its locals. This had to be done by constructing more Primary and Secondary schools. From that time to the present, most locals look at schools as liberators and a stepping stone to a brighter and better future life. During pre colonial and colonial times, locals that received good education also got some good jobs. With good education and good jobs, living standards of some people was seen to be changing for the better as they could afford basic necessities when they got their pay. With this clear view of what education could do, Zambians realized the need for their children to go to school and get jobs that they could not get before independence. The school today is seen as a window toward economic independence for a family as one member gets a good paying job. It is believed that going to school is the best chance Zambian children have to take control of their lives. This is because an educated population wi ll help tackle the overwhelming problems of poverty. For a Zambian child today, the opportunity to stay in school and obtain a secondary education can mean the whole world to a young student. This is surely the chance to keep learning, developing and dreaming, as the gift of education is one that really never stops giving. As Young (1971) stated that, for children from disadvantaged homes, active participation in school may be the only opportunity that they have to acquire powerful knowledge and be able to move, intellectually at least, beyond their local and the particular circumstances. Most schools in Zambia have provided this service to many as they have rekindled the urge to learn and abilities imbedded in most people who might not have realized their potential without the current school system or education. The current Zambian government has developed a policy of universal free primary education. This has allowed enrollment of about 95% primary school age children with about 2 0% continuing to secondary school level and 2% of the 20 to 24 age group in tertiary level (www.unicef.org/zambia/children). This shows that drop out rate is very high and only about one third of children enrolled at first grade reach the anticipated levels at grade six. Without schools, Zambia would not have seen the current development and economic growth. The school system has helped tap talent and skill in most young Zambians who have in turn contributed to the economic and social being of our country. For sure the knowledge acquired in school may not have been acquired at home. So, we see that the purpose of education is to make sure that learners gain access to different specialist fields of knowledge, thus uplifting their social economic status in life. However, the school in Zambia needs to do more as many reasons why it existed in pre colonial and colonial times are still evident that only a few rich are able to access high and tertiary education. The poor have had difficulties realizing their dreams as they cannot afford the expensive education, which can easily change their social economic status in a short time once acquired. Only a selected few and their families achieve or attain this purpose. The curriculum seems to promote the interests of the rich and powerful citizens of our time. Politicians and ministers send their children to good schools, which are well funded and with qualified teachers while the poor people will send their children to mostly public schools, which are also poorly equipped and lack teachers. Higher education is equally very expensive making it only accessible by the few rich people. It is like a school is not, truly, just a place where everyone is special. Therefore, it is important that education is given to all regardless of their social and economic status. Government must provide equal access and same conditions to all public schools. Boyer, in his book The Basic School says that, a school is a place where everyone comes together to promote learning. If everyone is allowed to come to any school of choice in terms of specialty, then sharing of ideas will cater across all sections of life. These ideas put together would bring about national development for the good of our country. Above all, the purpose of education for the future of Zambia should be to create democratic citizens. Democracy is mentioned and stated in various forums and is documented but is also less practiced or not put into practice at all. The effective democratic principles need to be imparted in each and every learner so that the political climate and values are protected in our nation. Since the school is a disciplined place, students begin to understand that everyone lives within limits, along with free dom, and that the rights of others must be sensitively respected. Therefore, it is true to say schools have a unique role to reproduce human societies and in providing the conditions which enable them to innovate and change. Society must change as times change and try to be innovative with new ideas to ease human conditions of survival, in order to be at par with latest demands and changes in the education system. Without schools, life would have been as difficult as the world would have been fragmented and underdeveloped. Without schools, each group of people would have had difficulties to begin doing things, thus making life for each generation difficult. This is because education is there to assure coherence or continuity from one generation to the next. Schools are important for each generation as we live in a world of new developments. However, this education can only be meaningful if the learning that goes on the schools has meaning. So, what students learn, help in defining what the purpose of education is for a country like Zambia to develo p, but the question may be asked as to what really is learning? What is Learning? Learning is a wider term that may not have one specific meaning. However, it can easily be defined as the acquisition of knowledge or skills through experience, practice, or study or by being taught. This knowledge acquired is usually new or the modification of existing knowledge, behaviors, skills, values, or preferences and may involve synthesizing different types. Websters Dictionary also defines learning as the act or experience of one that learn; knowledge of skill acquired by instruction or study; modification of a behavioural tendency by experience. Basically, from an educators perspective, learning involves helping people along the learning process, and learning includes all of the things that we do to make it happen. As an end result, we know that learning occurs when people take newfound information and incorporate it into their life. Munsaka (2011) defines learning as a relatively permanent change that happens to behaviour and/or knowledge due to experience. So, learning m ust bring some form of change in one in order to be meaningful and qualify as learning. Children learn in many ways, as can be confirmed through the many theories of learning that notable scientists and researcher have devised, such as Humanist, Behaviorism, Social Learning, Cognitive, Critical Reflection and/or Constructivism. Humanists believe that learners will naturally progress toward increased competence, autonomy, freedom, and fulfillment, while Behaviorism emphasizes on changes in observable behaviors. Social learning theorists explain that most of what children learn is through observation and interactions with other learners in a social context. Cognitive learning is a process occurring inside the learner in an attempt to make sense out of the world and give meaning to experiences, while Critical Reflection refers to learning that is deeper, more fundamental, relating to values, philosophical, and worldview and the nature of knowledge itself. Constructivists look at the importance of active involvement of learners in constructing knowledge for themselves. Cons tructivism, therefore, emphasizes top-down kind of learning, that is, begin with complex problems and teach basic skills while solving these problems. In todays learning, how children learn is just as important as what they learn. They are taught the basic skills in all the fundamental areas and also to be active seekers of information and constructors of knowledge. This is accomplished through learning activities that emphasize problem solving, communication, collaboration, seeking connections, technology, and engaged learning as children are actively involvement in the learning process. This is opposed to the current system where it is expected that learning goals should be achieved by a certain age, (Medina, 2008: 67). So, one of the first things a teacher must do when considering how children learn is to acknowledge that each child does not learn in the same way. This means children develop at different rates even when they are of the same grade or at the same age. Therefore, un derstanding the learners before they learn is inevitable. Because of this, some will learn better by modeling others, while some learn better when either positively or negatively reinforced or motivated. On the other hand, many children will learn well when they do things for themselves. This has not been the case in many instances as children are usually viewed as blank slates, meaning people who do not know anything until the teacher has imparted something in them. Since learning refers to changes in the learners knowledge that arise from experience, learners should not be viewed as passive receivers of information, but rather as active participants in the process of generating knowledge (Munsaka, 2011). Learning can, therefore, be viewed from the perspective of the changes that take place in behaviour and/or the changes that take place in knowledge through learners own initiative to create their own content or information to learn. Our role as teachers is to make sure that as ch ildren learn; they gain knowledge in the learning process and actually implement the new skills over a long period of time. For learning to take place, learners must be actively involved in the learning process. Some interaction of some kind between a learner and his/her environment should happen. This means the learner determines the course of learning as s/he tries to solve problems and constructs ideas to answer to the questions at hand. In this case, the teacher acts as a guide who assists the learners to make sense of the information recorded in order to create meaning through correct interpretation. Resnick (1989: 2), states that, learning occurs not by recording information but by interpreting it. It is very true that learning occurs when the students are confronted with something new or different from what they already know. Learners learn when they respond by incorporating new ideas, adapting to the new environment or even rejecting what is new. As learners attack or respond to new ideas, it is the duty of the teacher to help out as learners are not the sole players in the constructivist learning process. Other players, such as tutors, lecturers, and friends are very important if meaningful learning is to take place. Since learners are allowed to build their own understanding from various sources and make this learning a very personal construct, I believe constructivism is the way to go if learning has to be relevant to learners. For instance, in my teaching of Art and Design, learners are at liberty to determine what they want to know and how they want to learn, especially with their practical learning, which requires them to produce artifacts. At the moment, the students use sketch books to draw and come up with artworks of their choice and ideas. However, to design effective environments, one needs a very good understanding of what learners know when they come to the classroom. Constructivism views learning as a process in which the learner actively constructs or builds new ideas or concepts based upon current and past knowledge or experience. In other words, learning involves constructing ones own knowledge from ones own experiences. (Devries Zan, 2003) Constructivist learning, therefore, is a very personal endeavor, whereby internalized concepts, rules, and general principles may consequently be applied in a practical lesson. Regardless of the variety of content, constructivism promotes a students free exploration within a given framework or structure. Learners have to construct and do what they want to learn since Constructivism demands that learning be an active, contextualized process of constructing knowledge rather than acquiring it. This knowledge is constructed based on personal experiences and hypotheses of the environment and learners continuously test these hypotheses through social negotiation. Each learner has a different interpretation and construction of knowledge process. The learner therefore is not a blank slate (tabula rasa) as other theories might suggest but brings past experiences and cultural factors to a situation. The teacher acts as a facilitator who encourages students to discover principles for themselves and to construct knowledge by workin g to solve realistic problems. Aspects of constructivism can be found in self-directed learning, transformational learning, and experiential learning. I strongly believe that learning makes sense when learners determine what they want to learn. Learning also brings meaning when learners discover for themselves and can learn from even unexpected sources. If all teachers can give room for learners to decide what and how they want to learn, then learning will make meaning, be exciting and also relevant to the learners. This, however, does not rule out the importance of teaching. A teacher remains important in the learning process, thus the need to look at what teaching really is and what it does to complete the whole process of learning. Though learning can take place without a teacher, guidance is cardinal in order to be systematic in the learning process of students. What then is teaching and what role does it play in the education of students? What is Teaching? Teaching is a term that one may not be so clear if in its definition learners are not mentioned anywhere. Most importantly, the two cannot be separated as they go hand in hand. Teaching, in my view, is learning, challenging, trying in great ways, and is caring for the learners as it involves helping them. Anderson and Burns (1989) defines teaching as an interpersonal, interactive activity, typically involving verbal communication, which is undertaken for the purpose of helping one or more students learn or change the ways in which they can or will behave. So, we see that teaching is a process which is designed and performed to produce change in behaviour of students. It is however important to realize that the purpose is not to teach students how to memorize information, or how to know all the correct answers, but it lies in getting students to truly understand the concepts being put across for their benefit. If well handled, teaching is a profession that can produce something amazin g when the right ideas and beliefs are implemented in the classroom. Therefore, teaching refers to the teachers construction of environments for the students that are intended to foster changes in the learners knowledge and behaviour. (Gagne, 1974) As a strong supporter and believer of constructivist theory, I always acknowledge that no one learner learns the same way as the other. Each learner learns in his/her own way and understands things differently. Hence, careful selection of styles or methods of teaching would be of help for better comprehension in learners. This means if a teacher chooses just one style of teaching, the students will not be maximizing their learning potential. However, in my style of teaching, I have in many times believed that students can construct their own learning and that all students have something to contribute to the classroom environment. By connecting students learning to something they know, they get involved in their works with the seriousness it deserves and are motivated more than ever before. My job solely remains as a facilitator, where I clearly guide and assist the students through their tasks and their own discoveries. As a guide, I provide access to information rather than acting a s a primary source of information. This allows students to search for knowledge through the artifacts they make, thus answering to the questions on their minds. So, for students to construct knowledge, they need the opportunity to discover for themselves and practice skills in real situations. Providing students access to hands on activities and allowing adequate time and space to use materials that reinforce the topic being studied creates an opportunity for individual discovery and construction of knowledge to take place. I take learning in a direction relevant to students interest by asking them to come up with their own practical projects. In this way, students generate ideas and set goals that make for much richer activities than I could have created or imagined myself. Therefore, I view teaching as a process of encouraging students to make links between their real world experiences and the subject being studied. In Art and Design, it is important to provide students with hand s on activities because it makes students have ownership in the project or activity. They are motivated to work hard and master the skills necessary to reach their potential and/or goals. Being clear, however, about my expectations and communicating them clearly helps my students to learn more and perform better. Teaching is not just telling and supplying students with facts and information in much the same way that an empty glass is filled or a plain paper is filled with writings or even as though they were blank slates, as convinced by most of the behaviorists. These educational practices have been successful at producing proficiency in the lower order skills measured on many tests, but have generally met with little success in developing the kind of knowledge and abilities that students need in real life situations (National Assessment of Education Progress, 1981). Newer understanding of how people learn present a formation of teaching that focuses on developing thinking students who understand and can use what they learn. This idea is what is termed as constructivist because it sees learning as an active internal process in which learners actively create knowledge by connecting new information to what they already know, rather than as a process in which learners are passive recipients of information transferred to them from external sources. Teaching in this way emphasizes on developing students capacities for analysis and problem solving, rather than on having them cover the curriculum in the most efficient manner possible. It is rooted in the assumption that all human beings have a deep drive to make sense of the world (Carini, 1987). Constructivist classrooms function on the basis that learning in school should not be different from the many rich natural forms of learning that students have experienced before they have ever entered the school. Real life situations form the basis for learning and teaching is based on the confidence that in the course of trying to solve practical problems, students have continual opportunities to organize and reorganize their understandings and to develop various access routes to their knowledge. In my teaching, students are allowed to do practical activities, which are mainly hands on type of artworks. My teaching style, based on the constructivist theory of learning, allows students to use their own imaginations and personal experiences to come up with artifacts. As students interact socially, their learning is supported by multiple exposures since they bring into one place various experiences. In this way, they determine their course of learning. They are also allowed to copy and learn from other prominent artists and craftspeople in the community. This gives them an opportunity to learn from other people other than the teacher or lecturer and peers. This kind of learning remains natural as it does not alter the usual form of learning, which the community has always embraced. Although in most cases the choice of a teaching strategy depends on the topic being covered and the availability of teaching resources, the use of materials and tools is definitely inevitable in order to motivate the learners to develop their manipulative skills and to be creative students. Lessons guided by constructivist understandings provide opportunities for the students to actively explore, inquire, discover, and experiment with the materials provided. The learning and teaching materials, which are so essential in the teaching of Art and Design, provide students with insights and practical realities of concepts and theories they are learning. On the other hand, some students l earn well through observation and curiosity. They are able to reproduce artworks of others after learning by observation. In my teaching, I emphasize on the use of a critical eye, asking students to go beyond just looking at things but to see things with an extra eye. Some students learn faster while others learn slower, but the fact is they are able to use their curiosity to learn and do well on what they see. As a teacher who is always there to facilitate teaching and learning, I give more time to the students so that they can perfect their curiosity. Above all, I should know how to employ the most effective teaching and learning strategies to enable students make progress. The whole process of teaching using the constructivist ideas, as a teacher, is to help the students learn as much as their potential permits (Travers et.al, 1993). Using the four practical starting points in Art and design, the teacher makes sure that performance based teaching provides opportunities for real world experiences in which the student can apply prior knowledge, create new understandings and extend their skill in practical ways. Perkinson in Muzumara (2011) also emphasizes that as teachers we need to involve our pupils in the lessons we teach through practical work where they can use their knowledge, manipulative skills and apply their different senses to learn new ideas and develop knowledge and understand. Much of the art lessons are practical, where students usually learn by doing, which helps to enhance and promote the development of processes, manipulative skills, attitudes, as well as the acquisition of knowledge. The available literature, however, reveals that there is not any theory of teaching at all. There are only models or paradigms of teaching. Teaching theory takes a wider viewpoint. Thus, teachers and students are the major variables of teaching theory. It is based upon learning theory, learning conditions and learning mechanisms. Constructivists, therefore, provide students with flexible schedules and lots of time to explore a variety of issues and topics. This gives them the opportunity to temporarily shift their attention, if they want, and their work to focus on other studies and to return, at later dates, to previously unfinished projects or interests. Even if this theory is integrated around a theme and generally consists of more active assignments than written tasks, the ideas in it are developed and organized by someone other than the student, who in this case, is the lecturer or teacher of Art. In contrast, curricula developed through constructivist teaching are not only driv en by students pursuits of their own questions but also are built to include opportunities for students themselves to connect, organize, and integrate their understandings from the information they encounter in the course of their various experiences. As a teacher or lecturer, I act as a guide, a mentor, and an advisor, building bridges between my students individual interests and understandings and the common skills and knowledge society expects them to acquire. Falk (1994) affirms to this fact that constructivist teachers help students understand that there is a place for everyone in the classroom and the school. My philosophy of Education In order to define the purpose of education, what learning is, and indeed what teaching is, it is important also to state my philosophy of my involvement in education, thus my philosophy of education. In my teaching of Art and Design to the students, I have come to believe that my students have something to offer in my art classes. In order to foster critical thinking in my students, my teaching philosophy is to make sure students learn by discovery, do things with their own minds and own creativity. I believe this kind of teaching and learning brings true meaning of what education must be like or is like. By doing things for themselves and directing their learning, students truly understand the concepts for each topic under study. Art and design is a practical subject. In its practicability, it allows me as a lecturer to give guidance and facilitate students learning as they discover relevant information. The practical nature of the subject I teach allows every learner, slower or faster, to give in their best abilities even as I give guidance. Through encouraging students in what they do practically, students are connected to the real world as they produce things they see in the environment through hands on activities. I also believe that as a guide and as an educator, I must accord a fertile ground for my students to meet their fullest potential in their construction of knowledge through the artworks they make. I do this well by providing access to relevant knowledge that will help them develop emotionally, socially, physically, and intellectually. The use of a variety of strategies due to a number of topics which require diversity in teaching will be/is considered but students do more of discoveries and construct their own knowledge, thus constructivist theory. A variety of material used in Art and design accords my students a chance to improve their manipulative skills and creativity. As I provide these materials, the students take this opportunity to experiment and discover answers to the questions that puzzle their minds. With the materials provided, students discover information relevant and of interest to their lives, thus self motivation in their own course of study. This also creates ownership of the artifacts for the students. As an educator, my role is to instill the desire to find out more by students as they discover and re discover new information and knowledge through their various artworks. My role as lecturer is to give students the tools with which to cultivate their own gardens of knowledge. To accomplish this goal, I will teach to the needs of each student so that all can feel capable, competent and successful. I will present the curriculum that involves the interests of the students and makes learning relevant to life. This is easily done when students are directly in hands on learning in order to make them active learners. This ensures learning is tied into the world community to help students become caring and active members of the society, who will also function effectively in a dynamic world. The acquisition of knowledge for long life skills is d