Focus on the Learner Essay Example for Free

Focus on the Learner Essay Muftah, married with four children, is a pleasant student who is struggling in class. Muftah did not receive any English in secondary school or university. He worked as a Physical Education teacher for two years, and then was employed with the Ministry of Youth and Sports for twenty years. In his years of employment, Muftah never needed to speak or write in English until about two years ago, when he started attending International House. He says that he is now learning English because he has a lot of time on his hands. Muftah prefers to study at home, not with friends. He says that he does not focus on reading or writing; but, he enjoys practicing his speaking skills with his fourteen year old son because that’s where he feels he needs improvement. Muftah sees this as an opportunity to bond with, and encourage, his son because Muftah never got this chance when he was younger. When asked if he is interested in working in a company in the future to maintain his English, he said that he will think about it. Muftah joined International House around two years ago and has had no previous official English education. He studies English for fun and to bond with his children who are now studying English in school; so, he regards English as a social tool rather than one to grow career wise. Muftah is very cooperative in class and participates from time to time. He enjoys group work but prefers to work in pairs because he feels he learns more than when he is with a group of people. Muftah’s strengths are in reading and comprehension. In a scanning activity, he responded accurately when asked to read a letter for one minute and reply to three questions: who sent it, where was it sent from, whom was it sent to. In controlled practice of a reading text, he answers fairly accurately when working on column matching or multiple choice exercises. However, when reading longer texts, (e.g. a newspaper article on eating healthy) he finds difficulty in responding accurately and correctly, yet he seems to put things into context and tell briefly what the piece is about. His teacher says that he sometimes leans towards looking for the answer in Arabic from peers and is the least confident in class; so, he may need to be told to engage fully in English. In addition to his less obvious weakness in skimming texts, Muftah displayed mistakes which were typical to those of an Arab learner in pronunciation and grammar. When conducting a pronunciation exercise, his vowels were incorrectly placed most of the time; this may be due to interference from his L1 because Arabic has a different number of vowel sounds from English. Wednesday: /wenÉ ªzde/ scholastic: /skÉ’lstÉ ªk/ sporadic: /spÉ’rdÉ ªk/ Thursday: /teresde/ Shirt: /ÊÆ'eÉ ªrt/ socks: /sÊÅ'ks/ clothes: /klÉ’dÉ ªs/ Department: /dÉ ªpà ¦rtÉ™mÉ ªnt/ Management: /mà ¦nÉ ªÃŠâ€™mÉ ªnt/ January: /Ê’Ã ¦nu:wÉ™rÉ ª/ Also sounds such as /v/, /p/ and /Ê ¤/ were not accurate on the first attempt and replaced with a /f/ and /b/ and /Ê’/ respectively; this is due to the absence of these sounds in the Libyan dialect. In grammar, his auxiliary verbs are either lacking or placed incorrectly, for example: ‘Where you live?’ and ‘What you doing?’; however, if he is asked to repeat, he will acknowledge his mistake and self-correct it. Again, this is due to not having auxiliary verbs in Arabic, just question words. In an attempt to strengthen his skimming skills, Muftah may buy an English newspaper on his way to work (or borrow a magazine from the school library), pick an article, and try to summarize it with his son. At the end of the week, he may hand it to his teacher for homework to check, and attach a list of new vocabulary he learned from the article. That way he can develop his repertoire of vocabulary, and, at the same time, improve his reading and writing skills. If he hands in the homework three weeks in a row, he can have a break the fourth week to celebrate his accomplishment with his son. Another area I would focus on strengthening is forming the interrogative with auxiliary verbs. Divide a poster board into four (or more) categories: sports, music, animals, and history. Each category is colour-coded and should have four to five envelopes under it. In each envelope there is either a name of a personality, an important event, etc. On each envelope there is the number of points to be won, if participant answers correctly, e.g. 100, 200, 300, etc. To play the game, you will need three persons, player A, player B and a referee. The referee stands by the poster board to take out the card that the players choose. The player will then start to ask 5 questions (yes/no questions or wh- questions) to guess what is on the card. For example, in the Sports category, the card may hold Tiger Woods’ name (or another regionally familiar athlete), so player A will ask the referee: Is it a man or a woman? What game does he play? Where is he from? Does he still pay? If he guesses correctly, he gets the points if not; then, a chance is given to player B to gain the points. If neither player guesses correctly, no points are given and they can try again later.

Decision of the House of Lords in Street V Mountford

Decision of the House of Lords in Street V Mountford â€Å"The decision of the House of Lords in Street v Mountford in 1985 represented a sea-change in the approach of the courts† (Smith R, Property Law 6th edition (2009) p. 354, Longman Press). Discuss in the context of the courts approach to the distinction between leases and licences. Introduction Many cases prior to Street v Mountford[1] had attempted to identify the difference between a right to ‘possess’ land and a personal right to ‘occupy’ land. Lord Denning explained the difference as ‘the nature and quality of the occupancy.’[2] In other words, ‘a legal right of exclusive possession of the land for a term’[3] would constitute a lease, and a mere permission to use land would amount to a licence. The ‘exclusive possession’ test established by the House of Lords in Street v Mountford, per Lord Templeman, was that an occupier would not be a tenant if he had no exclusive ‘possession’ for a ‘certain’ duration. This case has now been regarded as having marked a ‘sea-change’ in land law. The distinctions to be drawn between leases and licences There are certain reasons why the courts have sought to distinguish between licences and leases. Different statutory protections exist for both. The real problem, however, is in how the courts have attempted to draw the line between leases and licences, particularly in the light of the exclusive possession test[4]. The court’s first concern would be that the term ‘licence’ is too broad it covers almost all types of permission. When we use the term ‘licence’ in relation to land, however, we mean, not merely a personal right to occupy the land but also, a right to use the land in any way. However, such right can be distinguished from a proprietary right[5]. In licences, the individual holding the licence (i.e. the licensee) has, in general, no right to exclude others from the land (including the landowner). A difficulty therefore arises in circumstances where the licensee has the full right (including where s/he has been granted exclusive possession) t o occupy the land. In this context, as shall be discussed below, Lord Denning stated that exclusive possession does not necessarily equate to the grant of a lease, particularly if the parties did not intend to create a tenancy. Although the test in distinguishing between licences and leases does assist in practice, such test is not as straightforward (at least in theory) as one might first expect. Difficulties in distinguishing between leases and licences According to Lord Templeman, the exclusive possession test is conclusive: a person granted exclusive possession must have a lease. However, it does not necessarily mean that one has a lease even though the courts have tended to adopt this approach. Furthermore, it is not easy to apply the exclusive possession test in practice. The first problem for the courts to consider would be when the grant of a right to ‘occupy’ land should amount to a grant of a lease for ‘possession’. The same problem also arises in the definition of ‘certain’ duration. An underlying issue arising out of the first problem would be for the courts to distinguish between ‘possession’ and ‘occupation’[6]. The meaning of ‘possession’ and ‘occupation’ are not exactly the same. The inconsistent use of the term ‘occupation’ and the term ‘possession’ in the Street v Mountford judgment somewhat confused the understanding of the concepts of ‘exclusive occupation’ and ‘exclusive possession’. Lord Templeman also failed to distinguish whether those concepts were statements of legal entitlement or statements of fact. Nevertheless, according to the judgment read as a whole, the term ‘occupation’ should refer to the fact that an occupier merely enjoys the occupation of the land. The term ‘possession’ should refer to those situations where the occupier has the right to enjoy land and exclude all others (including the landowner) from the la nd. Lord Templeman sought to distinguish leases and licences in the following ways: ‘Occupation’ is not sufficient for the occupier to grant a lease; ‘exclusive possession’ is essential. No lease is granted when there is no exclusive possession. Even though an occupier has exclusive possession the landowner and the occupier may have no intention to create a legal relationship or the intention may be negatived by the facts of the case those occupations should not amount to the grant of lease. The latter factor is sufficient to distinguish between lodgers and tenants in circumstances such as renting a hotel room. In the absence of those negative factors, the possession held by the occupier should amount to ‘exclusive possession’. When the occupier has been granted ‘exclusive possession’ for a certain period and at a rent, the grant of a lease should be presumed. Although the occupier has exclusive possession and the right to exclude all others from the land, the right granted might be considered to be something other than a lease such as ‘fee simple ownership’. Prior Street v Mountford, the element of exclusive possession was not a necessary requirement to be considered.[7] However, Lord Templeman confirmed that the consideration of exclusive possession was necessary and conclusive. He further developed the principle expounded by Lord Denning: ‘the nature and the quality’ of occupation is essential to determining whether the occupation is a lease or a licence.[8] Lord Denning stated that although exclusive possession could be considered as the main element in deciding whether an occupier has granted a lease, it does not necessarily mean that an occupier who grants exclusive possession is not necessarily granting a lease. Nevertheless, a person in ‘occupation’ has no tenancy if he has no exclusive right in the land. Lord Templeman explained that the intention of creating a legal relationship is also important to distinguishing between a lease and a licence. However, the subjective intention between the occupier and landowner is irrelevant the court should look at the objective agreement, i.e. whether the parties intended to create a legal relationship. First, the parties cannot assume that the label attached to the agreement will be conclusive.[9] Secondly, the parties’ agreement cannot act as a device in order to disguise[10] the grant of a tenancy.[11] Thirdly, specific provisions within the agreement may be ignored by the court if the surrounding circumstances suggest that those provisions could not have been intended to form part of the agreement.[12] It has been held that a time limitation may apply (in this case between 10:30am to noon) in respect of exclusion of persons from a property.[13] Finally, if the occupier shares occupation with others, the court may read the relevant agreements together and treat those agreements as one transaction, even if the facts suggest that those occupiers’ relationships are interdependent.[14] The House of Lords reaffirmed these principles in the latter case Burrows v Brent LBC[15]. In that case, the landowner granted a possession order against the tenant for unpaid rent. They agreed temporarily not enforce the order and to allow the tenant to remain in occupation if she paid a sum equivalent to the rent due. Applying those principles to this situation, it was held that the parties had not intended to create a legal relationship, and the tenant therefore was considered a ‘tolerated trespasser’. Lord Millett[16] also confirmed the principle that exclusive possession on its own is not sufficient for the granting of a lease, but that occupation with the identification of a legal relationship between the occupier and the landlord is an essential consideration. Lord Millett therefore regarded Street v Mountford[17] as a significant authority for the proposition that a person in ‘occupation’ or ‘possession’ may be regarded as merely a licensee if there is no legal relationship. Notwithstanding the fact that the debate about the definition of ‘legal relationship’ will be ongoing, the differences between leases and licences may be distinguished by the degree of ‘possession’. If someone who is purely holding a personal right to occupy land without a legal relationship, then such right will, in most cases, be a licence. Alternatively, if someone grants a right to exclude all others from the land in question, including the landlord, for a certain period of time, then such right may be called a lease. The ‘terminology’ problem of the words ‘possession’ and ‘occupation’ appear to have been solved by the cases which were decided after Street v Mountford[18]. The debate surrounding the meaning to be given to ‘certain’ duration, however, still remains alive. Lord Denning posed: what would the court do if the occupier has been granted exclusive possession of land without certain duration?[19] In law, if a landlord grants an occupier (who pays rent) exclusive possession of a property without certainty of duration, the occupier will have a periodic tenancy (demonstrated by the payment of a periodic rent) rather than a licence.[20] This case reaffirmed that the element of ‘exclusive possession’ is the most important consideration to the granting of a lease. Nevertheless, the distinction between the tenant (leaseholder) and the lodger (licensee) is very significant[21]. Case law has established that the distinction will arise from the fact that an agreement might allow a landowner to exercise unrestricted rights to use or access property, and not simply ‘from the provision that the landowner provides service to such property’.[22] An additional consideration for the courts, established by one particular case, was to examine the extent of the right which the landowner actually has to exercise.[23] By reference to that approach, it will become clear whether there is a tenant or a lodger to property.[24] Another significant impact which Street v Mountford[25] has made in the context of litigation has been in relation to the duties of local authorities to provide accommodation for the homeless under the Housing Act 1985 (now Part VII of the Housing Act 1996). The Court of Appeal has held that although an occupier has been granted exclusive possession, a local authority might have had provided accommodation pursuant to its statutory duties towards the homeless which will have the effect of negating the intention of creating a legal relationship between the parties.[26] However, if the accommodation was provided by a housing association or an organisation other than the local authority (even on referral from the local authority), the background of homelessness will not negative the intention of creating a tenancy as such an association or organisation does not exercise any statutory duty.[27] Therefore, the House of Lords affirmed that the duties of local authority were held to negative the intention of creating a lease even though the occupier was granted an exclusive possession of the property.[28] In the case Burton v London and Quadrant Housing Trust, since the agreement in question stated that the housing trust had no legal title to the property and the parties had attempted to create a licence rather than a lease, the Court of Appeal held that there was no lease because the housing trust had no legal title to the property. However, the House of Lords found that legal title was not relevant.[29] Nonetheless, the distinction between licence and lease in this context (under statutory duty) has been reduced by the Housing Act 1996, section 216(3), Schedule 17, para 3. Having regard to the Housing Act 1996, the Court of Appeal held that granting exclusive possession under the statute would not amount to the creation of a lease. This rule also applies to the relationship between beneficiaries and trustees the trustee has the power to grant the right, but the grant of a lease may intrude upon the trustees’ duties.[30] Conclusion Although the rules of Street v Mountford[31] apply in cases of residential occupation, certain principles deriving from it such as the distinction to be drawn between ‘lodger’ and ‘tenant’ may not be applicable in certain circumstances. The basic elements of ‘exclusive possession’ and ‘the nature and quality’ test will, however, be applicable in the commercial occupation context. Nevertheless, we should note that Street v Mountford[32] was a case of a single occupier. Multiple occupation may, therefore, lead to a more complicated situation, which Lord Templeman has not discussed. (2,333 words) Bibliography Texts Gravells N P, Land Law: Text and Materials (1999) Street Maxwell, London Dixon M, Principles of Land Law (2002) Cavendish Publishing Ltd, London Oakley A J, Megarry’s Manual of the Law of Real Property (2002) Street Maxwell, London Clarke A and Kohler P, Property Law Commentary and Materials (2005) Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Articles Wilkinson H, The lease licence distinction. Again? (2001) NLJ Pawlowski M, Contractual licences, personal tenancies and tenancies at will (2001) L T Review 2001, 5(6), 117-118 Colbey R, Detecting a sham (2001) NLJ Morgan J, The changing meaning of ‘dwelling-house’ (2002) CLJ 61(2), 312 Grundy N and Joss N, Landlord and tenant update (2006) SJ 805 Peachey L, Elements of a tenancy assured and assured shortholds (2007) HLM 14 5(5) Cases Errington v Errington and Wood [1952] 1 KB 290 Radaich v Smith (1959) 101 CLR 209 at 222 Marchant v Charters [1977] 3 All ER 918 Street v Mountford [1985] AC 825 Markou v Da Silvaesa (1986) P CR 204 Brooker Settled Estates Ltd v Ayers (1987) 54 P CR 165 AG Securities v Vaughan (1988) 56 P CR 168 Hadjiloucas v Crean [1988] 1 WLR 1006 Ogwr BC v Dykes [1989] 1 WLR 295 Aslan v Murphy (No. 1) [1990] 1 WLR 766 Antoniades v Villiers [1990] 1 AC 417 Duke v Wynne [1990] 1 WLR 766 Family Housing Association v Jones [1990] 1 WLR 779 Prudential Assurance Co. Ltd v London Residuary Body [1992] 2 AC 386 Westminster City Council v Clarke [1992] 2 AC 288 Burrows v Brent LBC [1996] 1 WLR 1448 Gray v Taylor [1998] 1 WLR 1093 Family Housing Association v Jones [1999] 3 WLR 150 Ramnarace v Lutchman [2001] UKPC 25 1 Footnotes [1] Street v Mountford [1985] AC 825 [2] Marchant v Charters [1977] 3 All ER 918 [3] Radaich v Smith (1959) 101 CLR 209 at 222 [4] The lease – licence distinction. Again? (2001) NLJ [5] Contractual licences, personal tenancies and tenancies at will (2001) L T Review 5(6), 116-118 [6] Elements of a tenancy assured and assured shortholds (2007) HLM 14 5(5) [7] Hadjiloucas v Crean [1988] 1 WLR 1006 [8] Errington v Errington and Wood [1952] 1 KB 290 [9] Duke v Wynne [1990] 1 WLR 766 [10] Detecting a sham (2001) NLJ [11] Ibid. [12] Aslan v Murphy (No. 1) [1990] 1 WLR 766 [13] Antoniades v Villiers [1990] 1 AC 417 [14] AG Securities v Vaughan (1988) 56 P CR 168 [15] Burrows v Brent LBC [1996] 1 WLR 1448 [16] Ramnarace v Lutchman [2001] UKPC 25 [17] Ibid. [18] Ibid. [19] Ibid. [20] Prudential Assurance Co. Ltd v London Residuary Body [1992] 2 AC 386 [21] The changing meaning of ‘dwelling-house’ (2002) CLJ 61(2), 312 [22] Markou v Da Silvaesa (1986) P CR 204 [23] Ibid. [24] Brooker Settled Estates Ltd v Ayers (1987) 54 P CR 165 [25] Ibid. [26] Ogwr BC v Dykes [1989] 1 WLR 295 [27] Family Housing Association v Jones [1990] 1 WLR 779 [28] Westminster City Council v Clarke [1992] 2 AC 288 [29] Family Housing Association v Jones [1999] 3 WLR 150 [30] Gray v Taylor [1998] 1 WLR 1093 [31] Ibid. [32] Ibid.

Media and Violence Essay -- Social Issues, Aggression

Introduction In this essay I will be analysing whether less visual violence within the media would mean less violence on the streets. Firstly, I will be questioning whether there is a connection between the viewing of media violence and actual acting upon it. To do this I will analyse the usefulness of the different methods used to approach such as complex issue. To illustrate this I will use examples of different media forms that seem to have been a catalyst for acts of violence. I will then attempt to come to a conclusion on whether less media violence could mean less acts of violence. Define Firstly, to begin to analyse the media effects of violence one must define the term violence. The fact that there are several different levels of violence means that it will be difficult to define (Gauntlett, 2001). For example using abusive language can been seen as an act of violent and aggression to some, but to others may not view it as actual violence as there has not been any form of physical contact. A researcher will also have to look at the context in which the act of violence is acted upon, for example a pillow fight and punching some are both forms of aggression, yet they are interpreted differently (Boyle, 2005). One way violence can be defined is an act when an individual intentionally uses aggressive behaviour physically or mentally to creates fear and harm upon others. The media usually displays most acts of violence using a variety of mediums and different forms. In the 21st century there has been a technology boom whereby new and more complexes forms of media have emerged. There has been an increase in immersion and interaction amongst mediums such as the video game, television and mobile phones. For example, by usin... ...luencing crime such as gross structural inequality, poverty, consumer culture and youth alienation (Gauntlett, 2001). To pin point the media as the root cause of streets crime prevents society from dealing with the real issue. To conclude, even if the media had stopped or limited crime being presented, crime would still exist in one form or another. The media is a powerful to for creating aware of crimes but can also cause irrational fear which could then lead to alienation of a particular group. It could then be questioned if the media should limit the amount of crime shown, however in this post modern era technology has become so advanced that visual crime will always be accessible. Therefore, it cannot be said that less crime in the media would mean less crime on the street as there is no rational link between the two and visual crime will always be present.

Admission essay for Christian school

I was born and raised in a Christian family.   I used to go to the Presbyterian Church but early in my life I was really not that interested in knowing God.   I was a so-called Sunday Christian, who merely went through the routines and never really believed.   My belief was different because I believed that I can do everything through my own efforts without God’s help because I was not a real Christian.I had too much confidence and pride.   Pride motivated me to do things that I know are not very Christ-like: the same way that it influenced Adam and Eve to try to become like God (Gen. 3:5).   This made it very difficult for me and presented itself to be my undoing at certain times.   When I prayed to God, crying, I was able to feel God’s love and I believed that tears are symbol of His love at that time.   After that, I heard that God’s voice.He asked me â€Å"why are you weeping† just like John 20:13.   Finally, I realized that I need to r econcile my broken relationship with God, and now I am proud to say that God loves me still.   I began to understand from this experience that God dwells in the heart of me and I am a very humble man in the world.   Only humility can please God and place my life in a position where God will listen to me.My basis for my assurance of salvation and eternal life is John 17:25-26.   It appeals to me because it is about our motivation of love.   The heavenly Father loved His son with an eternal love.   Everything in the heart and life of the Father was released to His son.   No human love could keep Him perfectly obedient to His Father throughout His life.   Only His Father’s love was powerful enough to compel Him to commit His life to the saving purpose of His Father.  It is true that it is impossible for a Christian to be filled with this measure of love and not to be on mission with God.   I will be incapable of ministering unless I have His love.   I have be en changed completely through this verse.   I am pretty much sure that Jesus was crucified on a cross because He loves us.People who received Christ will get eternal life through him who sent by God to save us as Savior.   Like Jesus Christ loved each of us, I should love others.   This is only way that I could appreciate Jesus and my ultimate reason that I become a Christian to reward God’s infinite love.I have been in the United States for around three years.   When I was in Korea, God gave me an assurance of His leading so that I came to the United States without any doubt.   I feel that this is similar to the way that the people God used mightily in scripture were all ordinary people to whom He gave divine assignments that they never could have initiated (Genesis 12:1).  As God sent Abraham to out of his country to fulfill His purpose, I came to the United States to accomplish His purpose.I had been taught discipleship and spiritual growth as well as English i n Intercultural & Missions Institute for two years.   When I was in ESL course in Concordia University, I had a Bible study course with a teacher who belonged to IMI (Intercultural &Missions Institute).   I read the Bible at least two page everyday and shared the verse with my teachers.   Additionally, we chose Christian books to learn about who God is exactly and I had a Bible lecture.I am confident to state that God has been building my character to match His assignment for me.   It was difficult at the start because I was impatient to begin my work and I still was not sensitive to sin.   Sometimes, it was really hard to keep my relationship with God strong.   Whenever I felt those emotions, I would pray to God, and He would tell me, â€Å"Deny yourself.†Ã‚  I seriously thought that if I can’t overcome sin, I may choose a standard other than God’s law on which to base my life and it devastates everything nearby me.   I am sure, however, that God will refine my character if I keep trying not to commit sin.The other thing that I realized is that God’s Word is plumb line and it is a dangerous thing to live my life without spiritual â€Å"plumb line†, or standard, by which I determine right from wrong.   After I had become a real Christian, I always called sin a â€Å"mistake,† a â€Å"bad habit,† or a â€Å"weakness.†   So I couldn’t escape its grasp so far.   That is why I always felt sin has robbed my joy and guilty.Sometimes, the image of God was not love but fear.   However, I realized that I should not allow pride to convince me that it is too humiliating to admit the sin in my lives.   That can blind me to its presence.   As a Christian, I know that it is hard to live just like Jesus.   I will never give my Christian life up. W hen He tells me what His plans are, I will trust Him and walk closely with Him just like I did so far.My ultimate goal is to be able to lead a life in the manner that Jesus taught us.   I am still looking for God’s purpose to begin His assignment.   The reason that I chose Biola University is that it is only this school that can help me to grow spiritually and decide my major.   Moreover, I heard that I have to take biblical classes to graduate from Biola University.   I really like that curriculum of Biola University.  I am not majoring in Theology, but I officially would like to learn Theology if I will be able to study in Biola University.   Whatever God wants me to be, I am always ready follow him.   I am sure that my spiritual growth will be better as long as I am attending Biola University.   So I can contribute to let people know God as I studied in this school.   I want to lead a life worth living to help other people as a Christian.My main philosophy in life is to lead by setting an example. I cannot expect others to do what I myself would be willing to do but that does not mean that I cannot hope that others will see the example that I have shown them.This philosophy is one of the many forces that drive me to pursue my dream of pursuing my career and of becoming so much more in life.   The chance to help those who are less fortunate in life, the chance to help those in need, the opportunity to be of service to humanity; these are the reasons why I have selected this as the profession that I will pursue; for, as Eleanor Roosevelt once said, â€Å"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams†¦Ã¢â‚¬ 

Experiential Leadership Project Progress Report Essay

This paper is an experiential leadership project whose subject is, Sandra Ussery, my direct supervisor at work. Sandra’s title is Pricing Systems Supervisor, under FedEx National LTL. At present she oversees nine direct employees. Sandra’s boss is Diane Lia, the Pricing Systems Manager for FedEx National LTL. Diane has two direct employees and nine indirect employees. The main reason I have chosen to focus on Sandra is because she is in a newly created position. Good supervisors are people who, even when they must correct someone, can â€Å"step on your toes without messing up your shine. They give people a shot in the arm without letting them feel the needle. People seem to need encouragement most when they sense that they have really failed. Perhaps they failed the boss, or the organization or just failed themselves. In any case, it is at that moment that the leader needs to show her character—how she is able to help them along with the healing process. My supervisor, Sandra Ussery, is that kind of a boss and many more. This paper aims to gather an evaluation of her from those people under her. It shall also provide a copy of the questionnaire which I used in gauging the kind of leadership she implements with her staff. The process of evaluating an individual’s performance contains elements of positive and negative reinforcement. How well people perform is largely determined by whether their performance is evaluated or rewarded. Many organizations, especially smaller ones, do not have formal evaluation programs because they have survived without them in the past and they see no benefit for them in the future. Yet, performance management is essential even among supervisors because they upgrade the level of the human performance of organizations. They identify problem areas in the workplace when it comes to human resources. Although the situation does not appear to be in need of full attention right now, the implications will be felt later on by organization if they do not act consciously on the issue. There are adjustments that include minimum and accessorial charges, including additional adjustments in select lanes and service areas. The FedEx Freight Segment accumulated annual revenues of $3. 6 billion in fiscal year 2006. This includes FedEx Freight, a leading U. S. provider of regional next-day and second-day and interregional LTL freight services. The company is known for its high performance and exceptional service and reliability. FedEx Freight extends its service to all U. S. ZIP codes. It is supported by its principle of no-fee- money-back guarantee on all eligible continental U. S. shipments. It gives service to Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Central and South America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia. Holding corporate office in Memphis, Tennessee, the FedEx Freight Segment also includes FedEx National LTL, a leading provider of long-haul LTL services throughout North America. Looking at this description, this paper maintains that every organization needs to start where it should be rightly so—the individual. The FedEx National LTL, is a leading U. S. provider of long-haul LTL freight services. Federal Express purchased original employer, Watkins Motor Lines last June. Prior to this purchase, the pricing systems department, which was called the auto rate department under Watkins, had no supervisor. The supervisor position was created to have someone to train new employees as they were added to that department. Prior to four others and myself moving to the department in the span of a year, there had been no new additions to that department for seven years. After the acquisition, the supervisor job was created so that the manager of that department could focus on working with managers of other departments at our location and at other operating companies to integrate our systems together. FedEx National LTL, which is the operating company that I work for, specializes in providing low-cost transportation to our customers with slower turn around times. Our partner freight company, FedEx Freight, specializes on one to two day turnaround times at a higher cost. The main reason we were purchased was to add the long haul, low cost service to FedEx’s already quick turnaround customers. FedEx National LTL operates in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico, but we can transport a shipment through the various operating companies anywhere in the world. The main factors affecting the companies operation at this time is the integration of our system into theirs. Our department takes pricing that is negotiated with our customers and we input it into our automated rating system. This system is designed to automatically apply pricing to freight bills so that no one has to manually rate them. This process is a huge cost saver to the company and is a highly focused on at FedEx. Federal Express has a mandate to input all pricing into this system, this way they have to pay few people to rate the bills. The problem we are facing is to integrate our automated rating program with theirs. Also, their operating systems are different than ours, but based on the same platform, so all the managers of the IT, IS, and Pricing Application departments are focused on integrating these systems. There is a comprehensive network of nearly 330 service centers and advanced information systems, FedEx Freight provides service to virtually all U. S. ZIP codes, including Alaska and Hawaii. The carrier’s regional and interregional LTL service is supported by a no-fee money-back guarantee on all eligible continental U. S. shipments. It gives service to Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Central and South America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia. Holding corporate office in Memphis, Tennessee, the FedEx Freight Segment also includes FedEx National LTL, a leading provider of long-haul LTL services throughout North America. In general, the company offers customers and businesses worldwide with services in transportation, e-commerce and business services. The annual revenue is a staggering $34 billion. It is known worldwide as having trustworthy and admired employers. It has more than 275,000 employees. Contractors employ positive safety with a high ethical and professional standard. As I said before, what I want to do with my project is collect feedback from my fellow coworkers, some of which have been there less than a year and others who have been there ten years or more. I have already discussed this project with my manager, supervisor, and coworkers and all of them have agreed to provide information and feedback, as I need it. Since, most of the senior people have worked with Sandra for at least five years, I will be able to get their impression of her and her leadership abilities. Sandra did not train many of the seasoned people, so I will discuss with the four new people how effective they feel she was as a trainer. I also plan to evaluate her based on the leadership styles I learned in the course. I want to see if Sandra tends to focus on one style or varies in styles and approaches depending on the employee and the situation. She has agreed to let me observe her a few times a week during the course of this project so that I may see her leadership style at work. I believe the best way to determine a particular style is to observe her actions towards me and other members of the department. I have contacted Human Resources to see if I can get a Job Description for her position in order to see what is required from her and her assigned tasks. While I am observing her I will use these criteria to see if she is confident in completing these tasks. I will use these criteria to evaluate her leadership ability and her ability to meet the needs of the company. I plan to be as objective as I can with this report, especially since I have only been with the company for two years, and in this department for about seven months. I plan to use the leadership styles outlined in the book as a guide to determining her style or styles of leadership. I want to gather as much data from coworkers and my manager on Sandra, since I have spent little time working with her. I want to see how the perceptions of those employee’s that have worked with her for a long time differ from those of us that are new. I believe that using the information outlined in our book, the job description qualifications and expectations, and the observations and information collected from coworkers and myself will help to determine if she is an effective leader. According to Dennie Carey, senior vice president, marketing, FedEx Freight, â€Å"Whether operating fast cycle logistics or planned distribution, shippers have told us they require a high degree of certainty, shipment integrity and actionable information. † The company meets customer needs by continuing to invest in their people, equipment, facilities and technologies. FedEx Freight has improved service in 3,000 lanes. Add to this is the safety features to its tractors and this ushered the easy access to its regional and long-haul service via the internet. It has also taken over the operations of Watkins Motor Lines in September, FedEx National LTL. It now focuses on the market with a highly engineered network. Sandra Ussery is a manager with faith in her staff. Part of any working day is given over to tracking and checking the progress that has been delegated throughout her staff. This is not about looking over the shoulders of her staff, but about monitoring the progress of the given program of the moment. Most people need reminders and her staff finds her as the ultimate â€Å"reminderer† in the organization. The people who most enjoy working with her are those who are self-starters, self-disciplined individuals who bring her the results of their projects before she ever has a chance to check on their progress. After a while, she learns whom she needs to remind and whom she can count on to follow through without reminders. She is able to encourage empowerment of all staff since she recognizes that this is very important in making changes more effective. The more involved people are in the process of change, the more effective the change will be and the more lasting it will be for the company (Coyle and Kossek, 2000). Definitely, Ussery enhances her staff’s ability to influence other subordinates in order to facilitate efficient decision making process within the organization. Those directly under her like and who worked with her within a year or so like Jessica, Jane, David, Daniel, Jerri, Sheila find that she exercises authoritative leadership ith them. This may be so because she trained them directly and she knows that these people would understand her when she wants things done perfectly. Authoritative leadership is the most effective in terms of generating changes for the company. Authoritative leaders as she is, she is very clear on what she wants to accomplish. She also has the ability to invoke to her staff the significance of their job in the accomplishment of the company’s goals. This means therefore, that employees or the team knows their roles in the grand goal of the company. Through the strategic positioning of a vision, an Ussery provides standard on which the results of the team can be evaluated. The other staff like Scot, Cathie, Penny, and Diane, who is also Sandra’s manager, find her diversifying her leadership style to ensure that they are applied appropriately to certain situations. These people say that Sandra balances her authority and democracy in her leadership styles. They evaluate her as having the sensitivity and emotional capacity to recognize what would be the most appropriate leadership strategy that is being called for by the situation. In many cases using just one strategy cannot generate effective results. One of the important components in leadership is also recognizing the potential of an assigned leader. Characteristics of the leader have been known to be very important in the achievement of goals. This is very important in the context of the FedEx where implementations of projects are assigned to specific leadership and utmost excellence is needed. According to many psychological studies, which aim to recognize the character behind some of the effective leaders in successful organizations, emotional intelligence is very important for many leaders (Goleman, 2000). This has been widely reviewed in many literatures. According to Goleman (2000) this emotional intelligence can be reflected on the ability of leaders to have the necessary social skills. This means that they must be able work well with their people under different circumstances to ensure that there are no barriers to communication. This would help the problem to be resolved immediately and for improvements of the programs be initiated efficiently. They must also have high levels of motivation, which would allow them to do things through initiative and exceed the expected results. These are all seen in Sandra, as evaluated by her people and they especially find that she is really flexible as well to the call of the times and the moment. Finally she knows her limitations and admit that she cannot possibly do everything without the able help of her staff likewise. Ms. Sandra Ussery is a good manager because she taught me through her example how to get the job done. I started taking notes and wondering what I would do if I were in charge. I looked and listened and collected a catalog of what people liked and disliked and collected a catalog of what people liked and disliked about management. She would often come up to me and say, â€Å"Here’s what we are going to do,† and made us believe we could do it. From that moment on, I was ready. Are you ready? You’ve got to take stock and honestly answer the question. It requires huge amounts of time and effort. Not everyone is willing to make the commitment and the sacrifices. She often would say that she gets a high watching people succeed. Making people’s actions visible by publicizing and recognizing their work strengthens others. It opens doors to potential new relationships because people are more aware of one another’s contributions. Success is an attractive magnet for pulling people together and increasing their attachment to the project. Ms. Ussery points out that building stable political coalitions is often based on making certain that participants’ involvement is publicized. She notes that good press is an essential political currency. While publicizing other people’s actions heightens people’s sense of personal power. It builds commitment because it makes it more difficult for people to dissociate themselves from the actions and activities that they were recognized for. There is also a rising literature today on leadership that emphasizes the need to inspire collaboration. This is the emerging mainstream form of leadership where power in the process of decision making is more decentralized. There is now a present emphasis on the ability of group collaboration to actually facilitate the achievement of the goals. Collaborative leadership is practiced by Sandra as an effective means of communication that could actually imbibe greater productivity and greater creativity for the achievement of the goals of the department she is in.

Nursing Research Utilization Project: Section C Essay

Several articles have been reviewed as a research base for this project. Identification of appropriate research is critical to the successful implementation of nurse-led evidence-based practice protocols. Each article was carefully selected for what it could contribute to the quality of the project. Using the evidence in this research will help with the development of an implementation plan. Article #1 Adams, D., Bucior, H., & Day, G. (2012, January). HOUDINI: make that urinary catheter disappear-nurse-led protocol. Journal of Infection Prevention, 13, 44-48. This article discusses the use of 7 criteria that must exist in order to keep an indwelling urinary catheter in place. According to Adams (2012), the average daily risk of developing a bacteremia with an indwelling urinary catheter increases by 3%-7% for every additional day the catheter remains indwelling. The study uses the acronym HOUDINI to demonstrate the criteria. The acronym stands for Hematuria, Obstruction, Urologic surgery, Decubitus ulcer, Input and output measurement, Nursing end of life care, and Immobility. In the absence of these aforementioned indications, according to the study, the catheter should be removed to decrease the risk of catheter-associated bacteremia. Article #2 Bernard, M. S., Hunter, K. F., & Moore, K. N. (2012). A Review of Strategies to Decrease the Duration of Indwelling Urethral Catheters and Potentially Reduce the Incidence of Catheter- Associated Urinary Tract Infections. Urologic Nursing, 32(1), 29-37. This article discussed different strategies to decrease the incidence of indwelling urinary  catheter times. It was a retrospective study that analyzed data obtained from hospital databases. The study supports nurse-led or electronic chart reminders every 24 hours to assess the need for indwelling urinary catheters on a daily basis. The conclusion lists timely removal as one of the main factors affecting the incidence of CAUTI. Article #3 Clarke, K., Tong, D., Pan, Y., Easley, K., Norrick, B., Ko, C., & †¦ Stein, J. (2013). Reduction in catheter-associated urinary tract infections by bundling interventions. International Journal For Quality In Health Care: Journal Of The International Society For Quality In Health Care / Isqua,25(1), 43-49. doi:10.1093/intqhc/mzs077 This article reviews the affect on incidence of CAUTI by bundling interventions. Also a retrospective study, this research reviewed the effectiveness of bundling four interventions for patients with indwelling urinary catheters. The bundle consisted of 1) Using a silver alloy impregnated catheter 2) Using a securement device to limit the catheter movement 3) Repositioning of the catheter tubing if it was found to be kinked or on the floor 4) Prompt removal of the catheter on post operative day one or two. Implementing this bundle of care for patients resulted in a significant decrease in CAUTI for these study participants. Pre implementation of the bu ndle the CAUTI incidence rate was 5.2/1000. Seven months post implementation the CAUTI incidence rate was 1.5/1000. The authors have proven with statistical significance that the four-intervention bundle will be successful in reducing the incidence rate of CAUTI in indwelling urinary catheter patients. Article #4 Levers, H. (2014). Switching to an antimicrobial solution for skin cleansing before urinary catheterisation. British Journal Of Community Nursing, 19(2), 66-71. This study suggests that switching to an antimicrobial cleaning solution for the area prior to insertion of a urinary catheter will reduce the incidence of CAUTI. The research recommended using Octenilin solution for cleansing the meatus prior to catheterization. The case studies are ongoing and no results were mentioned in the study except for to say the change was cost neutral and the practice change is promising. This study failed to show a statistically significant decrease in CAUTI post  implementation. Article #5 Meddings, J. A., Reichert, H., Rogers, M. M., Saint, S., Stephansky, J., & McMahon Jr., L. F. (2012). Effect of Nonpayment for Hospital-Acquired, Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection. Annals Of Internal Medicine, 157(5), 305-312. This study reviewed the Centers for Medicare Services (CMS) recent (2008) initiative to hold or eliminate reimbursement for costs associated with hospital acquired CAUTI. This study alluded to the misuse of coding in failing to identify CAUTI when it actually did exist, therefore claiming the financial impact on health care organizations is low for non-payment of hospital acquired CAUTI. Even when the researchers included all urinary tract infections catheter associated and otherwise, the loss of reimbursement to healthcare organizations would have been less than 1% due to improper coding. Conclusion In conclusion, the prevalence and incidence of CAUTI is affected by many factors. First health care workers need to be aware of the significance of CAUTI and be compliant with new practice guidelines to decrease risk. Second, adherence to inclusion criteria for indwelling urinary catheters and their placement using the HOUDINI protocol (Adams, Bucior, & Rimmell, 2012). Lastly, implementation of a bladder bundle to decrease the incidence of hospital acquired CAUTI. Each factor focuses on a unique evidence-based prevention, reduction, or eradication strategy to address the problem of CAUTI. Health care workers, who possess an awareness of the need to decrease this preventable infection, will add to the forward trajectory of solving this problem, and implementing this project. References Adams, D., Bucior, H., & Day, G. (2012, January). HOUDINI: make that urinary catheter disappear-nurse-led protocol. Journal of Infection Prevention, 13, 44-48. Bernard, M. S., Hunter, K. F., & Moore, K. N. (2012). A Review of Strategies to Decrease the Duration of Indwelling Urethral Catheters and Potentially Reduce the Incidence of Catheter- Associated Urinary Tract Infections. Urologic Nursing, 32(1), 29-37. Clarke, K., Tong, D., Pan, Y., Easley, K., Norrick, B., Ko, C., & †¦ Stein, J. (2013). Reduction in catheter-associated urinary tract infections by bundling interventions. International Journal For Quality In Health Care: Journal Of The International Society For Quality In Health Care / Isqua,25(1), 43-49. doi:10.1093/intqhc/mzs077 Levers, H. (2014). Switching to an antimicrobial solution for skin cleansing before urinary catheterisation. British Journal Of Community Nursing, 19(2), 66-71. Meddings, J. A., Reichert, H., Rogers, M. M., Saint, S., Stephansky, J., & McMahon Jr., L. F. (2012). Effect of Nonpayment for Hospital-Acquired, Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection. Annals Of Internal Medicine, 157(5), 305-312.

Adults with learning disabilities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Adults with learning disabilities - Essay Example A learning disability is defined as a neurological disorder. It is the result of a difference in wiring in some adults and children.Those who experience a LD may be as intelligent,or even smarter,than their cohorts,although they have difficulty with an activity/s such as; reading, writing, spelling, recall and reasoning Interventions to aid adult learners with LD have changed dramatically over the past century (D'Amato, Crepeau-Hobson, Huang, & Geil, 2005). This paper will critically review the development of the present day approaches to intervention to demonstrate the benefits of the social-model. Firstly, a historical perspective will be given to illustrate the growth of LD service delivery from a medical-model approach, labeling theory to a social-model approach. Secondly, person-centred planning shall be critically discussed. Next issues of anti-oppressive practices with regard to gender will be outlined. Finally, a conclusion shall synthesise the main points of this paper to id entify the advantages that social-model based interventions can have. It is anticipated that this paper will inform research to aid adults with LD to be encouraged in their strengths, aware of their weaknesses, and to better understand health and social care systems approaches to providing care. In the early 19th century the leading model of care for adults with a LD was grounded in the broad system of health care (Young, 2006). Following the industrial revolution and the mass migration of the rural population to the cities those with a LD tended to be among those living in poverty and performing enforced labour. In the mid-19th century many concerned citizens debated the humanity of the conditions of those living in poverty, and who were experiencing ways of being such as a LD. The medical-model approach at the time considered the people housed within asylums as 'having a problem' that was not able to be worked with. The patients were often treated as children and robbed of their d ignity and seen as not able to make the correct choices for them to ensure good health. According to the medical-model those with a LD were a threat to the 'contamination' of the UK gene pool. Hence, this later medical-modal approach continued with the view of a biological condition alone, that could not be altered in any way by 'nurturing'. And by taking a rigid 'nature' view of LD saw the person experiencing the condition as beyond hope of social interventions, and that wider society (i.e., environment) had no responsibility as to how those with LD experienced life and well being. Dramatic changes came following the Wars, when the atrocities of Nazi experiments highlighted the need for more thought into what it means to be human, issues of dignity, welfare, protection and human rights. The dawn of ethical research and treatment had come. Whilst the medical-model remained focused on diagnosis, treatment and monitoring for effect, the idea that living experiences for those with LD could be improved took hold. The new version of the medical-model emphasised the possibility of treatment by identifying and strengthening cognitive abilities of those with LD (arrowsmithschool.org, 2007). "When the weak areas of the brain are strengthened.the learning disability is reduced or removed." (Steinberg, 2007, p. 1). In 1946 there was the introduction of the National Health Service in the UK and with it came the creation of the term 'mentally handicapped' and the institutions developed into hospitals with a focus on caring for patients. Society had shifted from seeing those who were LD as dangerous and a potential infectious threat, to people in need of interventions and treatment. Labeling theory (Tannenbaum, 1938), grew in popularity as those with LD who adopted deviant behaviors, such as drug use and or crime, were considered to be the 'victims' of social