Literary Output of Filipinos are not Book Lovers Essay

Introduction: Reading is an important study skill and an important tool for becoming a good person but Philippines is actually not a nation of book lovers unlike in Japan. In Japan, most bookshops seemed to be the most popular feature of practically every street block. Body: Reading a book is becoming an unpopular activity among Filipinos right now unlike before. The problem is Filipino writers are mostly not appreciated by us. We don’t even talked about them in our conversations. Compared to London’s Virginia Woolf, one of the most Popular author/writer, almost all of her works were sold out in every bookstore in London. And in some instances, her works were one of the best sellers ang being talked about in London. Here in the Philippines, you can count those Filipinos that will go to store just to buy a book and enjoy being alone reading a book. Filipinos hate solitudes. Reading a book requires patience, time and even endurance in order to understand every chapter and it will really take a lot of time finishing it . Unlike in watching a movie, it can be done for only an hour or two. But as you can see, reading a book is much better than watching it in movie because in movie not all the details from the book are there. Conclusion: We prefer watching cinemas and hanging out   with friends, instead of going to library and read a book. Like in our schools today, they used visual aids to catch our attentions like power point presentations. I can say that Filipinos love entertainment because for us, it is more interesting. Definition of Terms Book – a division of a literary work Commiseration – to sympathize Primitive – being the first or early of the kind Solitude – loneliness Horrid – extremely disagreeable

Ethical principles contribute to good business operations

Businesses that practice good ethics tend to succeed in the business world. Not only is it the right thing to do it is also proven to pay off in financial gains. To have good ethics a business must be legal for starters. Businesses must conduct themselves with integrity, be honest, and fair. Businesses should manage relationships in an organizational and ethical manner as well. This allows employees to address problems with other employees and management without fear of retaliation. Management must effectively convey with employees and not put pressure on them to act unethically. They should also have a zero tolerance for any kind of sexual harassment or discrimination in the workplace. There are factors that may seem touchy in practicing good business ethics such as giving gifts. This can be perceived as bribes to some but innocent to others. To avoid any problems companies should have a policy set in place stating what is acceptable and the value of the acceptable gift in detail. There are principles the make a business have respectable business ethics. Some of these principles include the following: being trustful, keep open mind, meet obligations, have clear documents, stay involved in the community, maintain account control, and be respectful. Businesses should understand that consumers want to do business with a company that they trust. This built strength and a growing client base. For continued growth the leaders of the cooperation should keep an open mind foe new and improved ideas that help them growth. Honor all your commitments as a business try everything in your power to keep your customers happy. Make sure all that you advertise or promise is correct not falsely or incorrectly isrepresented this leads to distrust so stay on top of what is actually represented by your company. Participating in community events or staying involved in local affairs shows you care which could bring in more business because customers might trust you even more. Finally, treating others with respect regardless of any differences goes a long way in practicing good business ethics. There is little difference between service and manufacturing business. Discuss I believe this is totally false according to the research that I have done on this topic. First, of all manufacturing businesses sell different than service businesses. Manufacturing businesses creates and sells a physical while a service business just sells a service. For example, Pepsi sells Pepsi products which are a physical product that comes from a manufacturing business. If a lawyer represents the Pepsi Company he is not selling any products but rather a service. Manufacturing and Service businesses also reside in different locations. Manufacturing businesses need to be close to their customers either retail or distribution. Service businesses have more latitude. This depends on the service that is being offered. Some service businesses are successfully ran out of homes or warehouses. In these cases most of the time the client never visits the business. Accounting is another way that these businesses are run differently. Manufacturing businesses have inventory to keep track of while service businesses do not. However, service businesses have to levy a cost on the hours their service provider’s work. Manufacturing usually uses the account method. This method counts an invoice as income. If any returns happen then the company has to make an offset of the income. Which can lead to further reduction by the costs of goods sold to eventually find the company net profit. Finally, there is a thing called forecasting that manufacturing businesses do differently than service businesses. In a manufacturing business they count inventory first. Then it estimates the number it can produce in a certain amount of time. This is dictated by the equipment that the business has as well as forecasted or predicted sales. Lastly, they add up the cost for all goods sold. Service businesses run completely different. They have no costs of goods to keep track of except the cost of overhead. Since there is no inventory there is no way economize equipment that helps determine efficiency gains. In the end, service businesses base their forecast entirely on what the service providers themselves can manage. It is all up to them not any product or any kind of equipment. In conclusion, It is definitely more profitable to run a business I believe with the best ethical standards set in place for a business. People trust a company more that has a strong background and a known image of being trustworthy. Not practicing good business ethics can end a business fast or cause bankruptcy. It is best to do the right thing at all times no matter if it is in business or just life in general.

Big Mountain High School Case Study Analysis Education Essay

In this instance survey analysis, I will give a brief sum-up of the instance and the jobs I found along with particulars. I will besides supply recommendations for the territory and school leading that will turn to the awaited barriers to alter. I will establish my recommendations on the needed readings for this class every bit good as other theoreticians and their research applicable to the instance survey. Big Mountain High School serves over 1450 pupils in grades 10-12. Large Mountain is the lone high school in the county, and besides the largest high school in the province. Its geographical location is known for its wilderness and beauty. Because of its location it is mostly a rural territory where many of the attending pupils commute more than 30 stat mis every twenty-four hours to have day-to-day direction. The population of the school ranges from diverse socio-economic backgrounds. As evidenced in the instance, 40 % of the pupils will travel on to go toing 4-year colleges, while 20 % of the pupils attend 2-year colleges. For pupils that are non college edge, as an excess educational option, the territory provides them with a vocational plan ( Smith & A ; Louis, Winter 1999 ) . The Superintendent of the territory is Mr. Bob Carpenter a indigen of the territory. He has been the overseer for four old ages and he is described as being magnetic, a individual who makes determinations and gets things done. He is extremely respected amongst the instructors and staff because he meets straight with the instructors and listens to what they have to state. Mr. Carpenter is besides described as utilizing a bottom-up leading manner doctrine. The chief Mr. Vogel has held the place for 15 old ages. He is known as being a dedicated manager, candid and carnival to his staff. Mr. Vogel besides adopted a bottom-up leading manner doctrine. Some nevertheless, see him to be â€Å" crusty and impersonal † and even unapproachable. He makes hiring determinations, nominates the section chairs, normally communicates with instructors in short staff meetings, and maintains that disposal has full authorization over the processs and policies in the school. The sections at Big Mountain high school were given entire authorization and liberty as how they distribute the instruction assignments, how course of study and direction is designed and they besides make the determinations on budget allotments. Meetings between the principal and section caputs are non regular events, they normally meet one time every three hebdomads and the meetings are normally really short. Finally, there are the instructors. The territory ranks the highest paid among other territories in the province, supplying the territory with a big pool of extremely qualified appliers. Teachers at Big Mountain command how they teach, have small or no treatments over learning methods, the type of direction, and have small or no input in the determination doing procedure that takes topographic point in the school. Faculty is divided and with really small interdisciplinary engagement. There are several leading issues present in the instance. The major issues revolve around the ability of the leading to expeditiously take the school during a much needed alteration. In the instance of the mandated course of study alteration as required by the province, the treatments of the new course of study raised personal and pedagogical differences amongst the module. If the end of the leading is to further growing and alter the way in which the school is traveling, it would be wise for the leading to take a human resource frame attack as discussed in Bolman & A ; Deal, where under the human resource frame, leaders provide and foster equal engagement in the determination devising ( Bolman & A ; Deal, 2008 ) . At Big Mountain, the caputs of section have a significant sum of influence and authorization, and are perceived by the module as decision makers and determination shapers. These differences in power have led to a deficiency of interdisciplinary engagement between section caputs and module members where Hargreaves & A ; Fink refer to as, traditional power blocks ( Hargreaves & A ; Fink, April 2004 ) . This deficiency of interdisciplinary engagement and the misinterpretation of a collaborative leading, as become a top-down hierarchy leading, instead than a sensed bottom-up leading as expressed by the chief Mr. Vogel. It is obvious that the principal in this school will non be developing meaningful relationships with the staff. His neglect for the sentiments of the instructors during his short module meetings, along with his important leading manner resemble what Fullan ( 2001 ) describes as coercive and bossy leading. As the freshly appointed caput for the Language Arts Department, Mr. Chester non merely appointed to the commission merely those who agree with him, he besides restricted the engagement from the instructors that will be implementing the course of study. By making so, he derailed Bolman & A ; Deal ‘s model attack, and the construct of the structural frame where the attempts of groups and persons are coordinated, and besides the human resource frame, where affecting others gives them a sense of belonging and ownership ( Bolman & A ; Deal, 2008 ) . Even though ab initio the principal shared the determination devising with the commission, he rapidly reversed that determination and decided to do the determinations himself. However, subsequently he decided to name Chester to take the new alterations commission to implement the new course of study. One once more his rushed determination was made without the engagement and the input from the instructors, go forthing it small room to win and showing the deficiency of communicating and alliance edifice, necessary when turn toing alteration ( Kanter, Summer 1999 ) . As the overseer, Bob Carpenter was non of much aid to the principal in set uping and developing a successful civilization of committed members within the organisation. Although important and magnetic, his strong interaction accomplishments, the ability to construct relationships while run intoing with instructors and listening to their concerns when the principal was non supportive, have earned him the regard of the instructors, minimising the authorization of the principal. As the overseer, Bob failed as a function theoretical account, and a wise man to the principal. He came across as holding his ain political docket, showing the deficiency of his leading qualities. Qualities required when constructing a successful organisation. Recommendations for ImprovementInspiring leaders have the ability to turn schools about. On the other manus mediocre leaders can alter the civilization of a school and hinder the patterned advance of successful enterprises that may be ongoing within an organisation driven by its members. â€Å" A civilization of alteration consists of great celerity and nonlinearity, on one manus and every bit great potency for originative discoveries on the other. The paradox is that transmutation would non be possible without attach toing muss † ( Fullan, 2001, p. 31 ) . It is obvious that muss is in the hereafter of Big Mountain. Changes are inevitable, and a complete restructuring of the school is recommended. From the overseer, to principal, to section leaders, and to instructors, all fail to develop a collaborative and cohesive work environment. In the instance, the prostration was initiated from the top-down where is lacked sustainable leading. Hargreaves ( 2009 ) describes five obstructions that impede effectual leading and should be addressed in the restructuring procedure of Big Mountain. The obstructions impede the successful execution of the restructuring when sequence is ill planned, sequence passages are severely managed, sequence is frequently on the incorrect frequence, sequence planning fails to see the emotional facets, and in conclusion sequence is non treated as a systemic job. Sequence in leading is an of import facet when reconstituting an organisation and it is frequently overlooked, weakening the long term alterations for a successful turn-around. Large Mountain could profit of an increased stableness in leading. It was evident that neither the overseer nor the principal were wholly dedicated to the school and its vision. The overseer and the principal could hold been more proactive in edifice and set uping a common vision for the school. Constructing a systemic leading is another of import facet that should be taken into consideration. The overseer should work on developing unfastened lines of communicating with other successful schools in the territory, and develop partnerships with the other schools where information is shared, and thoughts are exchanged leting schools to assist each other and ultimately addition accomplishment. Another recommendation involves the development of a distributed leading and the creative activity of managers for the new leading. Bolman & A ; Deal ( 2008 ) depict the human resource frame, where the overseer and the principal would put more accent on constructing personal relationships, and the s chool would profit from the constitution of an unfastened and true bottom-up leading manner doctrine. Because more and more disposal is comprised of first-time leaders, giving support to new leaders will relieve the emotional emphasis associated with the place. Supplying good back uping managers will assist the new leaders with the troubles that come with the new administrative function. A concluding option is to maintain the position quo of the school. However, without alterations in leading, the instability that exists amongst the staff will stay and will go on to decline. Leadership stableness can be improved by leading sequence, and this may be accomplished by administering successful leaders across schools in the territory and developing a support web that will help overseers, principals and instructors throughout the territory. â€Å" Successful sequence is about turning and linking leading throughout a system, non merely happening the right tantrum for single leaders. † And â€Å" Permanent betterment seldom exists without leading stableness or successful sequence. Effective sequence is a strategic challenge but non an unsurmountable 1 † ( Hargreaves & A ; Fink, April 2004 ) . MentionsBolman, L. G. , & A ; Deal, T. E. ( 2008 ) .Reframing organisations. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Fullan, M. ( 2001 ) .Leading in a civilization of alteration. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Hargreaves, A. ( 2009 ) . Leadership Succession and Sustainable Improvement.School Administrator, 66 ( 11 ) , 10-15. Retrieved from ERIC database. Hargreaves, A. , & A ; Fink, D. ( April 2004 ) . The Seven Principles of Sustainable Leadership.Educational Leadership, 61 ( 7 ) , 8-13. Kanter, M. ( Summer 1999 ) . The Enduring Skill of Change Leaders.Leader to Leader Journal( 13 ) , 15-22. Smith, B. , & A ; Louis, L. ( Winter 1999 ) . Case 2: Changes at Big Mountain High School [ Abstract ] .Journal of Cases in Educational LeadershiP, 2 ( 1 ) , 1-2.

ARCADIA GROUP -TOPSHOP Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

ARCADIA GROUP -TOPSHOP - Essay Example This paper examines the current strategic position, strategic audit and review systems within the firm. In addition, it also considers environmental influence by evaluating the political, economical, sociological and technological aspects that define the nature and scope of their operations. Introduction: Top Shop, as an international retailer, focuses on fashion clothing, cosmetics, shoes and other accessories. It has about 440 shops across 37 countries and online processes in a quantity of its markets. Top Shop was established in 1964 as Peter Robinson's Top Shop, in the Sheffield division of Peter Robinson, a now defunct British area store series. The first separate Top Shop store was established in 1970. It is the single largest supporter of rising design talent in the United Kingdom. The company has sponsored a scheme for New Generation at Fashion Week of London for a decade, one of the most globally accepted talent schemes of fashion designing, besides sponsoring Fashion East s ince 2003. This shop is also the only high street brand to demonstrate on schedule at London Fashion Week with in-house unique designs, thus it becomes clear that the firm is inseparable from London Fashion Week. ... Ranging from the petite and tall ranges to that of vintage treasure as well as boutique classics, the firm’s keen interest for scintillating design is what keeps it one step ahead of other competitors in the market. It is pertinent to quote â€Å"A formal education nowadays can make a difference when applying for and landing fashion design jobs† (My Five Goal Career Path to Becoming a Fashion Designer, n.d., p.2). Strategic Review: Aspiring fashion designers must use imaginative techniques to barge into the business, while getting citizens thrilled about buying their clothes. Soliciting online swapping and reviews links with like-minded traders are two of the well-liked strategies. Mission: The Mission of the Arcadia Group (Top Shop) is to provide business solutions, identify and execute management models for new business enterprises and create global connections for investors and innovators. Goals: Construct a strong basis of experience, skills and knowledge in fashion , stitching, and creativity. Build a solid system of citizens and companies in the industry. Enhance instructional supply funds. Secure software programs widely used in industry. Acquire financial support for upgrading and technology. Build up, expand and hold a consistent successful fashion design business. Objectives: Top Shop is a subsidiary company of the Arcadia Group. The particular objectives of a company are frequently not made public as it could help competitor companies. The Arcadia group though does have an obvious code of conduct which they follow. Dealers to the company are also inclined to obey this code of conduct. Construct Brand Presence in key metropolitan cities of the nation within 6 months to a year To start 8 outlets

IT Personnel Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

IT Personnel Management - Essay Example The job market is becoming more and more competitive as people are acquiring more skills and expertise making it a rat race for those who can perform the best (Jones and George, 2007) The human resource department is one of the many divisions of an organization that combine and integrate to work towards the organizational aims and goals. The main purpose of the Human resource department revolves around the process of recruitment, training and the most efficient utilization of the personnel in order to give out maximum productivity while achieving the goals and objectives of the organization. It is claimed that manpower and workforce of an organization is its most significant resource. As the world progresses and technology evolves day by day, gaining competitive advantage with the help of a focused and well-motivated workforce is imperative. In addition, there is more flexibility seen in the labor market around the world as well-qualified staff is moved between businesses. Hence, it is more pertinent to attract the most qualified employees in order to gain differentiation. Due to the importance of the people of the company it is equal important and difficult for the managers to manage these people. (Robbins and Coulter, 2004) This paper will discuss the It Personnel management and how it is different from traditional human resource management. It would elaborate over the various aspects of Personnel management and its implications. Moreover, it would compare and contrast IT management in different cultures and different countries including Saudi Arabia and India. Activities Associated with HR Management of IT Personnel Recruitment and Selection The recruitment of the right person to the right job at the right time is vital to the success of a company and is a key element of what the human resource department does.The process of recruitment of IT personnel is not very different from that of non-IT personnel. There are additional skills that the IT personnel shou ld posses. The process of recruitment can be divided into three core stages starting with the definition of requirements, then the recruitment and then the selection process. (Amit and Belcourt, 1999) It is important to define the qualities, competencies and general requirements sought from the potential employee. For an efficient selection process and to avoid future problems (including high staff turnover, lack of satisfaction and wastage of resources), it is necessary to have a preset profile of the skills and abilities of the candidate. The process of defining the requirements should start with an analysis of the job. Job analysis is the collecting, analyzing and setting out information about a job under the headings of overall purpose, content, accountability, performance criteria, competencies, responsibilities and more. Job analysis is for internal purposes and it is important in terms of job evaluation for pay purposes, for planning training programs and for efficient and ef fective recruitment. The analysis is used for drawing up the job description which is referred to a statement that defines the purpose, duties and the

Hrm Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Hrm - Essay Example Shifting of skills that permit completion of tasks in the organization can only be possible through training. This is an explanation of the fact that the employees are able to acquire new dexterities that increase their knowledge in business; thus, an expansion in their career expertise. If this happens to all employees, then it is worth arguing that the entire organization will be effective if training is well done. According to Caple &Buckley (2009), learning and development allows the organizations attain their goals and objectives since the employees have been properly directed on the dos and dons of the business. The human resource department, in this case, must take up the role of training very seriously by evaluating the key sectors of the organization that needs improvement. The most important aspect is to assess the business environment, and then come up with actions that will lead to the employees take part in learner-oriented programs. The HR must then devise strategies that will lead to the employees being ambassadors of change in the organization. These strategies must, however, be in line with the organization’s goals. In relation to the study conducted by John (2002), training and development in the workplace offers a great opportunity for the business to have a working environment, both internally and externally. In the course of learning, the employees are able to learn from their fellow employees on the requirements of the changing business environment. Externally, the HR manager exposes the employees to new skills in the business world by enlightening them on the new business requirements. This can be done by sponsoring the employees to workshops and seminars that boost their careers. In the long run, both the individuals and the organization benefit from the training programs. Though at times many businesses are

Final Project Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Final Project - Assignment Example With the success of their product in the local US markets, they are thinking of catering to a wider region by penetration in the bigger markets of US and global markets too. In order to do so a major study has to be undertaken while deciding about the expansion of the market. A faulty expansion step can, not only account for a dip in profits but also be a threat for the whole existence of the business. Thus, a market plan is a serious necessity for market expansion. With the question of market expansion, the most widely used method used to analyze the decision aptly is that of SWOT analysis. It is majorly done to analyze the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the particular business proposal. In this case, SWOT analysis is required to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the organization with respect to the idea of global expansion and also the opportunities and threats it may face from the external resources while expanding their business in the global forum. Another study which would be quite handful in this project would be the Porter’s Five Force Model. The Porter’s Five Force Model mainly takes into the account the major forces which affect the functioning of the firm namely the suppliers, competitors, substitutes, barriers to entry and buyers’ powers. A thorough study is to be made regarding all these heads so that it could be well understood that whether the decision taken of expanding their business in the global markets is really viable or not (Kotler, 2009). With the progression of the case all such topics would be covered under different heads. Each and every essential detail for entering into a global market with relation to the case will be analyzed in details and probable solutions will be provided. The nature of the product is a determining factor while decision regarding market expansion is taken that too globally. In this case, the major product is that of

Islamic Insurance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Islamic Insurance - Essay Example When the insured event doesn’t occur the insured person loses the sum invested in the policy and if the insurance claims are larger than the contributions then the insurance company is in deficit. The above three factors make conventional insurance â€Å"Haram- prohibited† in Islam. However, since safety and security is the basic human need in today’s uncertain world, therefore Muslim society needed an alternative to conventional insurance in order to secure their business transactions and personal interests. Islamic â€Å"shariah - code of conduct† is based on Muslim’s Holy book â€Å"Quran† and the sayings and traditions of the Prophet Mohammed, which preaches brotherhood and mutual interest in order to establish â€Å"just and equitable social order† in the society. Therefore, Takaful insurance was introduced to minimize the risk by mutual agreement which doesn’t exploit the interest of any party. C. TAKAFUL INSURANCE:  "Takaful is an Arabic word, which means â€Å"joint guarantee† or â€Å"mutual co-operative agreement†. Tabarru is the basic pillar of Takaful insurance which means charity or gift†, (International Co-operative and Mutual Insurance Federation, 2005). Takaful insurance is based on the principles of Islamic brotherhood that promotes common interest and solidarity. Both parties share the responsibility with a sincere intention to help the other in his/her difficult time by paying the defined loss from the defined sum. D. CHARACTERISTICS OF TAKAFUL INSURANCE: 1. Both parties trust each other and contribute their money into a common pool. 2. The losses are divided so that the element of â€Å"gharar -uncertainty† is reduced and liabilities of each party under the losses are calculated... This paper explaines why the conventional insurance in not permissible in Islam, defines takaful insurance and further explores the problem by determining the key features of takaful insurance and its differences and similarities with the conventional insurance. â€Å"Takaful is an Arabic word, which means â€Å"joint guarantee† or â€Å"mutual co-operative agreement†. Characteristics of takaful insurance are as follows: 1. Both parties trust each other and contribute their money into a common pool. 2. The losses are divided so that the element of â€Å"gharar -uncertainty† is reduced and liabilities of each party under the losses are calculated according to the Islamic pooling system. 3. The policy should not contain terms and conditions aiming towards getting the benefits at the cost of risking other party’s interest. 4. Both parties subscribe to help the other through guaranteed compensation so that uncertainty is removed. 5. The insurance funds are invested in instruments that are interest free. The study concludes that the chances for the growth of the takaful business are very promising. Takaful products are available in many countries which meet the needs of the corporations and individuals. However, the biggest challenge is to overcome the shortage of resources especially, human resources, by providing training and development to employees about Islamic financial models and retaining competent employees who can contribute to the growth of takaful industry.

PRODUCT ASSESSMENT Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

PRODUCT ASSESSMENT - Term Paper Example Why, though, is dial-up Internet service in the decline stage along the product life cycle? According to the U.S. Census conducted in 2010, metropolitan areas experienced much faster growth than rural regions, by a rate of 4.9 percent (census.gov, 2011). This means that consumers are seeking opportunities to migrate to metropolitan or suburban areas at a much faster pace than those looking for rural living opportunities. It is in the urban regions of the United States where major, contemporary Internet providers have developed the appropriate technologies and support tools to sustain broadband Internet access as well as service providers along service networks that provide multitudes of options, today, for abandoning dial-up services. In essence, these migrating shifts away from rural locations gave consumers much more opportunities to explore faster and more efficient non-dial-up Internet service providers. Rationale for Explaining Dial-Up Decline According to Michael Porter (2011), a respected business theorist, threats to sustaining a product and ensuring longevity, thus avoiding decline, include threats of substitutes on the market. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, it was commonplace while Internet services were in the introductory and growth stages to maintain dial-up services due to limited providers and appropriate network developments across the country designed to support faster Internet services. Political de-regulation of Internet services, along with both private and public corporation investment into developing new Internet technologies, provided a foundation for the emergence of many service providers (such as Verizon and Comcast) to put substitutes into the market. With growth in competition, the economic-related benefits to consumers requiring Internet services began to witness various price competitions occurring, thereby providing more value to consumers to abandon dial-up Internet service providers. Up until just the last five years, it was common for dial-up Internet to range between $15 and $25 monthly. It was only upon development of appropriate Internet networks and mobile Internet technologies that dial-up service providers were forced to dramatically lower dial-up services in order to maintain competitiveness against major Internet providers now emerging all across the country. Shifts in social lifestyle also changed the dynamics that no longer made dial-up services viable to sustain busy lifestyle and professionalism. With the ability to now access the Internet using mobile devices (i.e. smartphones), consumers could access the Internet out of their bricks-and-mortar businesses and homes, making dial-up service both impractical and not nearly as reliable. Buyers, due to concentrated and saturated competitive markets, now maintained considerable buying power as switching costs from moving from one provider to another competitor were no longer high as they were in the day of growth of dial-up services. Change s in social lifestyle, as aforementioned, added a new type of pricing transparency for the many broadband and mobile Internet providers now on the market, giving consumers an advantage in choice and purchase selection opportunities. Recommendations for Potential Action The first recommendation would be for dial-up service providers to reposition dial-up services to maintain unique innovations not found with other broadband or mobile providers currently offering

Planning the Project (Topic in Instruction3) Essay

Planning the Project (Topic in Instruction3) - Essay Example The project plan could be used in the process of bidding, submission of proposal or as a request for raising funds. The activities to be undertaken as mentioned in the project plan provide a clear idea of the expectation levels on the deliverables of the project. The primary function of a project plan thus includes co-ordination, planning and communication of the project deliverables. The project plan helps the team members to co-ordinate among themselves on the areas of importance on project deliverables and how the overall plan could be improved for efficient project management (Kerzner 39). The project plan primarily serves as a planning tool that could be modified by the planners to envisage the goals and success of the project. By showcasing a similar project, the plan could serve the primary function of communicating to the team members and the client about the outline of actions to be undertaken in the project and the milestones that could be achieved in the process. Nine (9) categories of information needed in a project master plan The nine categories of information needed in a master project plan are given as follows. The master project plan should include a project guide in the first place that incorporates a checklist for the activities of the project. The project guide would guide the several tasks to be undertaken in the project in a sequential manner. The next information needed in a master project plan is a project definition. The project definition includes an explanation of the objectives of the project, description of the project activities, the cost and risk associated with the project, goals of the project and the timelines for completion of the project. The project definition includes a tentative plan for the completion of the project. The third information incorporated in the project master plan in analysis and evaluation of the project. The analysis of the projects in term of the focus areas of the project and the relative importance of t he focus areas in the project is analyzed. The evaluation of the project in terms of the goals and milestones to be achieved through the project work is described in this information. The requirements of the project work and the system requirements are the next information incorporated in the master plan (Carmichael 57). The system requirements of the project and the requirement of resources for undertaking the project are mentioned in a statement of work and system requirements. The fifth category of information is the information on the process to be undertaken for the project. The selection of vendors, outsourcing of specialized roles approval of several functions of the project are part of this information category. A technical evaluation of the project is the next information that is included in the project master plan. The expectations from the project and the desired results of the project are dependent on the technical expertise in the domain and thus technical evaluation is important for attainment of the desired benchmark results. The sixth information to be incorporated in the master project plan includes is an analysis of the budgeting and financial management of the project work. This information is crucial as the performance of the project work depends on the funding of the project, sources of funds and effective implementation of the funds in the areas planned

Why I Joined the Marine Corps Essay Example for Free

Why I Joined the Marine Corps Essay In this paper I will illustrate the fallowing two points: â€Å"why I joined the United States Marine Corps and how as an anti tank guided missileman with the billet of driver; I can be useful to not only TOW platoon but the current second section. I will begin by explaining chronologically the events that led me into making the life altering decision to join America’s finest fighting force, the tip of the spear, those who run not away from but towards the sounds of the gun; The United States Marine Corps. I shall than thoroughly and objectively examine the billet of driver within an infantry platoon; and elucidate on how this billet (job) is useful. I will then proceed to illustrate as one who hold the hence forth mentioned billet how it is or can be useful to tow platoon. My decision to join the military in general I believe subconsciously started when my older brother returned from Army basic training. While my brother was a pretty smart guy he had never really been to apply himself nor did he have the drive to, but whatever had happened to him during army basic training had made a change in him; a change for the best. He came back and the transformation was evident in every single one of his actions and thoughts. He had a drive to accomplish all of his goals dreams and aspiration, not only that he had the discipline necessary to stay on his new found path. I went on to college in the fall fallowing his return from basic training not sure if these new traits and strength I saw in him would continue or disappear. When I returned home that fall after my first semester and talked to him and I saw the changes had stayed with him and grown even further. With all that he had used the tools he had been given to accomplish so much in already so little of time. All that stayed in my head, but it did not become relevant to me until my sophomore year of college. I realized that while I was doing well, I was simply just going through the motions. That’s when I made the decision to join the military. I first though I would join the army like my brother, however through a series of events and a need to surpass my brother I decided to join the few the proud The United States Marine Corp. I joined with the fallowing goals and mindset. I wanted to use the Marine Corps to not only further my education but focus it. I joined with the idea that once I got in I would have the drive and tools necessary to not only continue my education but just as my brother had done; I would strive to accomplish my dreams goals and aspirations with even more passion. Whether or not this has happened, is still to be determined. I think I’m still at the eve of my Marine Corps, wherever this institution will be able to help me accomplish what I hoped it would do career so that is all still up in the air. Now onto the subject of what I can contribute to tow platoon as driver. The job a driver within tow platoon as I understand it is to: â€Å"Know all the vehicle formation, all mounted IA drill, be able to maintain and upkeep the vehicle(s) assigned to him as to lessen the load of the vehicle commander; he should also know and understand the job and knowledge of one billet above and below (in this case only above)†. As such those would be my contribution to the platoon as a driver in town platoon second section. In summary I joined The united states Marine Corps with the purpose of furthering my education, and canalizing my energy and thoughts towards my aspirations, and work. Currently it seems like all of that will have to be at a standstill until the opportunity arises to forge forward with the aforementioned plans. On the subject of my contributions as a driver, I must maintain and increase my knowledge of what the driver is suppose know and be able to do; thus I will be able to contribute to tow platoon and second section by simply doing factions of the billet assigned to me.

Essay on Global Warming Essay Example for Free

Essay on Global Warming Essay Global warming is the term used to describe a gradual increase in the average temperature of the Earth’s atmosphere and its oceans, a change that is believed to be permanently changing the Earth’s climate. Even though it is an ongoing debate, it is proved by the scientists that the planet is warming. The 29th century is experiencing a continued increase of Earth’s mean atmospheric temperature by about 1.4 degrees F and about two thirds of it occurring since 1980. This is global warming is affecting the nature’s balance and has a huge impact on life like continued heat waves, and sudden occurrence of storms and floods. Don’t we see time to time the epidemics that are devastating to human life and the flooding of the farmlands that puts economy in a deep hole? Scientific evidence indicates that since 1950, the world’s climate has been warming, primarily as a result of emissions from non -stop burning of fossil fuels and the razing of tropical forests. Since the industrial revolution till this day, there is a constant emission of the carbon into the atmosphere, everything we do we leave carbon footprints. It is a man made cause of the global warming. The global emissions jumped 3 percent in 2011 and are expected to jump another 2.6 percent in 2012, researchers reported. The greenhouse effect is a process by which the greenhouse gases absorb thermal radiation; these are then reradiated in all directions. But when some of these radiations come back to the surface and lower atmosphere, it causes increase in the average surface temperature leading to global warming. Global warming Causes The causes are many of which the main culprit is the increase in the greenhouse gases that is produced by burning fossil fuel and deforestation, thus intensifying the greenhouse effect leading to global warming. The four main contributors of the greenhouse effect are, water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane and ozone. Mining for coal and oil releases methane in the atmosphere. More ever the leakage from natural gas fields and landfills are additional source of methane. Excessive cutting down of the trees is another factor causing global warming. When deforestation happens the efficiency by which carbon dioxide is stored and oxygen released by the green plants are decreased to a huge rate in turn causing increased concentration of carbon dioxide that leads to increased greenhouse effect. The nitrous oxide from fertilizers, gases used for refrigeration and industrial processes are other factors that cannot be forgotten as the cause of Global Warming. Another source of methane is methane clathrate, a compound containing large amounts of methane trapped in the crystal structure of ice. As methane escapes from the Arctic seabed, the rate of global warming will increase significantly. Ice caps and glaciers reflect sunlight, bouncing high temperature sun -rays back into space away from the Earth. When these icecaps are removed the earth gets warmer as the dark oceans absorb much thermal radiation from the sun. Some regions may be wet with rain and some areas will suffer drought due to global warming. The climatic changes happen due to global warming. Seasonal changes are unpredictable unexpected thunderstorms might result as mentioned earlier. The burning of wood (should be reduced to a greater extent) releases oxidizable carbon to the atmosphere whose presence in greater amount causes the elevation of temperature. There is strong evidence that emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were the major cause of the recent abnormal warming. Like carbon CFC do not trap heat but in the presence of UV rays the chlorine gets detached from CFC, drifts up into the stratosphere and these unattached chlorines catalytically convert Ozone molecules into Oxygen molecules depleting the ozone layer.

Use of Moral Hazards in Workplaces

Use of Moral Hazards in Workplaces The use of the term moral hazard has a history of more than 200 years. As Dembe and Boden (2000) showed that, since the 1600s, the term moral hazard is used in the discussion about the possibility of incentives for people under insurance to be less careful to protect themselves or insured goods and the tendency of fraud for obtaining financial benefits from insurance. It first appeared in the economic literature in the 1960s in terms of decision-making under uncertainty. Arrow (1963) and Pauly (1968) are two frequently quoted papers. Arrow (1963) considered moral hazard as one of the problems in the insurance market and pointed out that the assumption that insured events are taken place out of the control of insured individual is not really true in the real life and, therefore, there is not complete insurance market if the uncertainty exits. Pauly (1968) also explained that the moral hazard problem can be analyzed by orthodox economic tools in different kinds of insurance. In the economic literature nowadays, moral hazard is studied in various fields. Dembe and Boden (2000) concluded that there are two major categories of researches on moral hazard. One is originated from the early literature about insurance market; the other is about economic decision-making, such as finance, banking, accounting and management. In the current financial crisis, moral hazard is more frequently discussed and blamed as one of the causes of the banking problem. Summers (2007) claimed that the problem of moral hazard is overrated and warned people be aware of moral hazard fundamentalism. Dowd (2009) disagreed and believed that the problem is underrated and should be taken seriously. Dowd discussed the policy failures in the US financial industry in regards of moral hazard. Dow (2010) analysed the concept of moral hazard in relation to the financial crisis and concluded that there is immoral behaviour in financial market but the problem should go further than conventional understanding. The rest of the essay is organised as follows. In the second section, the definitions and nature of moral hazard are discussed. In section three, examples will be provided and analysed. I will also describe the ways to overcome these problems in the fourth section. 2. What is Moral Hazard? Moral hazard is defined in various ways in different aspects. The earliest explanation is from the perspective of insurance sector. Marshall (1976) provided the definition as any misallocation of resources which results when risks are insured with normal insurance contracts and only with such contracts. Briefly, moral hazard as the risky behaviour an insured individual may act because of the insurance cover. There are two kinds of moral hazard in insurance field. One of them is ex ante moral hazard, which is the risky behaviour itself. In this situation, the insured will act risky, which results in more payment by the insurer for the negative consequence. The other one is ex post moral hazard. This is the type of behaviour that people change their reaction of risk when insurance is provided or enlarged to cover their cost. Moral hazard can be also explained in terms of agent-principle problem. Dowd (2009) defined moral hazard as the potential behaviour that one party who is in the behalf of another party puts his own interest first. This definition is often used in management area. It is considered as the consequence of asymmetric information. Michael Parkin (2010) explained this as follows: In some markets, either the buyers or the sellers- usually the sellers- are better informed about the value of the item being traded than the person on the other side of the market. Information about the value of the item being traded that is possessed by only buyers or sellers is called private information. And a market in which the buyers or sellers have private information has asymmetric information. Asymmetric information causes two problems: adverse selection and moral hazard. Moral hazard is the tendency for people with private information, after entering into an agreement, to use that information for their own benefit and at the cost of the less-informed party. 3. Examples of Moral Hazard There are many cases about the moral hazard problem in insurance market. An example provided by Stiglitz (1997) is about the auto insurance in New Jersey. In the 1980s, New Jersey was considered to have the worst problem on auto insurance. It had no upper limit on the medical costs that could be claimed from any accident and the state even provided auto insurance, Joint Underwriting Authority (JUA), to drivers who are too risky to get insurance from private companies at a similar rate for the less risky drivers. The state suffered a big loss by its insurance policy. The traffic accident rate and car theft rate were much higher than most of other states. Drivers took more risky behaviour when they are insured against medical treatments and car theft. The JUA had accumulated a $3 billion deficit at the end of the 1980s and extra taxed were needed to cover the loss which brought big problem to the government. In finance and banking industry, moral hazard also can be found in various cases. Too big to fail banks speculative investment banking activities are guaranteed by the government, because their failure will influent the whole economy. The belief that they will always be rescued from collapse causes these big banks to take greater risks in their lending policies in search of higher returns. Another example of moral hazard problem in banking industry is that bankers encourage borrowing which is not in the customers best interest. In many business, bankers act as both lenders and financial advisors for their customers because of their financial expertise. Cases such as bankers provide advises in their own best interest rather than customers can be found. In many banks incentive systems, bankers can get bonus by lending more to customers, but will get no or an insignificant amount of penalties when the lending is not beneficial to customers or the debt cannot be collected. This would pro bably result in customers or banks losses which has little impact on the bankers individual benefits. Similar examples can be found in management area. Managers who act on the behalf of shareholders to operate the companies would take risky and short-term oriented strategies which could maximise their own benefits at the cost of shareholders. Managers whose payment is related to the companys profit would possibly carry out operation policy which would increase the profit within his employment period but might not create shareholders wealthy in the long run; some managers who hold the companys stock option might try to boom the stock price by fraud. These are all considered as moral hazard problems which come from the agency problem and the asymmetric information. The most famous example is probably the fall of Enron in which not only the governance and incentive of management were involved, auditing, fund management and financial analysts also played a part which can be considered immoral in this case. 4. Some Further Discussion In this section, after taking examples of moral hazard problem from different aspects, what they have in common are discussed. The question why moral hazard is considered as a problem will be analysed and possible solutions to these examples are also be provided. (1) Common features and negative consequence of moral hazard First of all, at least two parties are involved. In the examples of insurance, the two parties are the insurer (insurance companies or the state) and the insured party. In the banking examples, the problem is between banks and the state or bankers and customers. And in terms of management, it comes to agent (managers) and principle (shareholders). Secondly, one partys interest is guaranteed, which encourages taking higher risk. The loss of the insured party can be partly covered by the insurance no matter how risky his behaviour is. Similar feature is showed in the cases of banking and management, although they do have some risk management system to limit the risk within certain extent. Additionally, the highly risky behaviour of one party is difficult to or cannot be controlled by the other party. An auto insurance provider is impossible to control every insured drivers driving speed. Not all customers of banks and shareholders of companies have a clear view of what their agent (bankers and managers) are doing because of lacking private information and professional knowledge. Whats more, these moral hazard problems result in the cost of others and could lead to misallocation of social resources. The case of New Jersey auto insurance in the 1980s, the fall of Enron in 2001 and the recent banking crisis all caused huge social costs and brought economy problems. (2) Can these problems be overcome? Dowd (2009) suggested that measures that limit and eliminate moral hazard should be welcomed to reduce excessive risk-taking practice; and those create moral hazard should be avoid. Generally, a risk management system should be built. For example, insurance companies insure ones property up to a certain percentage of its replacement cost rather than fully cover it. Therefore, even if a big part of the risk is taken over, the insured party will still be worse off if bad thing happened. And this will encourage them to reduce their risk-taking behaviour. In Pauly (1968), deductibles and coinsurance are suggested to reduce the moral hazard. Deductible is an insurance in which an amount should be paid by the insured before the insurer will cover any expenses. Coinsurance is a sharing of risk between insurer and insured. Both methods aim to splitting and spreading the risk among the two or more parties involved in moral hazard problem. In Dowd (2009), he argued that the state support should be removed from banking and banks should survive on their own strength in order to remove the moral hazard. However, this would not be possible in practice. More essentially, the size of too big to fail banks should be cut down or controlled at a limited level. Moreover, better performance measurement and incentive system should be introduced. Credit rating by bankers should be carried out more effectively and bankers should bear the risk of their behaviour and get penalties for bad debt at an amount that is high enough to warn them to avoid the excessive risk. In terms of management, long-term performance measurement should be taken from the shareholders perspective; regulations that require more transparent disclosure are also highly required. Conclusion In this essay, definition of moral hazard and examples from insurance, banking and management perspectives are discussed. The commons of these examples include the parties involved in the moral hazard, the uncontrollable risky behaviour of one party whose benefits are guaranteed and the social costs which the problem brings. Risk measurement and control system should be built to reduce moral hazard problem. Solutions such as risk-sharing insurance, significant penalties of bad debt and long-term performance measurement are suggested.

Illegal Immigrants and Criminals Essay -- students, education, famil

With the need of workers with a high dreger who can we be letting people with the education and patient not work. Why do so may find the need to keep the american dream out the reach of many who worked hard for it. The story of so many high school student not be able to attend the school of their dream because they are not ligalal. This is a story I hear often one of a student who has worked so hard and has been able to get good grades be the first in their family to graduates and have no where to go. Some do make it to college, community college that is where they have to work and study because they don't get the help they deserve. There are so many opsicale for students that are labeled illegal, undocumented,and AB540 all words to describe a person without a social security number. The story of families who come to the US illegally with young children looking for a better future, a life with opportunities, the goal is to have the best for their children. Have your children graduate at top of their classes as well as ably and willingness to do something with their lives. The idea that your parents risked it all for nothing is many teens are forced to face this problem when it comes to college and job applications beuces of the fact that they have no social security number. The idea that it is illegal to come to the usa for a dream and be deported when you are close to your goal because you chose to speak up, you chose to sharker your experts to help other while endangering your own future. To me it makes no sense, but as a mexican american I feel that this problem is my own. I may be a citizen but seeing that my neighborhood are being put down because we are good for nothing and do anything for the community.We are seen as a... ...ed as criminals in order to get them out of the country.The fac that families are getting separated should be a wake up call to the house of representatives to what to make the suffering stop. The long waits and the unknowing is what take it toll on people and can affect the youngest of the family. I feel that people now more than ever have the power to fight for what they want, it is not going to be easy, but the fact that many have tried has gatten us this far. The need for educated people to better the economic is a great one but we are not taking advantage of what we have, which is all the immigrant college graduates that can use their degrees and not have to work in job where they are treated unfairly and have no need for their major. All the work that is put into their futures by their family is gone to waste because they are unable accomplish their goals.

Top 10 malware of 2004 :: essays research papers

The top 10 malware threats of 2004 as taken from McAfee and defined by Symantec are as followed: Adware-180, Adware-Gator, Exploit-ByteVerify, Exploit-MhtRedir, JS/Noclose, W32/Bagle, W32/Mydoom, W32/Netsky, W32/Sasser, W32/Sdbot (family including sdbot, gaobot, polybot, spybot). The majority of these threats enter into our system under a different alias’ or by hitching a ride on programs we download online.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Adware-180 is a spybot that monitors the activity its infectee’s do while online. This program will open up affliated sites when it sees a certain keyword while searching online. When adware-180 is downloaded it creates a name for itself in the Microsoft registry, this registry then can fix itself it only partial parts of the adware are removed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Adware-Gator is one that I am ooooh to familiar with. This adware drives me crazy! I will be searching online and all of a sudden down by my time and date a little box will pop up giving me alternative vacation prices or prescription prices. Gator (or gain as it says in my registry) gets downloaded onto the computer either manually or by sneaking itself in with another download. With this adware on the hard drive it allows websites to upload their content to your computer without your knowledge enabling them to display advertisements at the strangest times.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Exploit-MhtRedir is a file that is considered â€Å"a malicious website to download and execute programs on your computer†. It’s file type is a Trojan horse, which disguises itself in order to promote unwanted HTML on your computer. This Trojan only affects Microsoft internet explorer.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  W32/Mydoom comes in an assortment of different subcategories ranging from category 1 to 2. The majority of the Mydoom worms are a category 2. The mass mailing worm that uses its own smtp to send emails to people listed on the infected computers. It allows unauthorized remote access. Once it finds the addresses of people it sends itself in attachments that say things like read the following attachment, please confirm, please read immediately etc.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  W32/Sasser is one I think we all remember hearing about. This one gets onto your computer and scans IP addresses to find vulnerable computers. It’s wild threat is medium, the damage it causes is low but the distribution level of this worm is very high. The main threat of this worm is the fact that even though it is unable to infect Windows 95/98/ME it does take up a lot of space making it difficult for such programs as the Symantec removal tool to run.

Who Do We Think We Are? :: essays research papers fc

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   1 Who Do We Think We Are?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Capital Punishment is the penalty of death for a crime. The most common criminals who are executed are convicted murderers. What message is that sending? The use of capital punishment sends the message that murder is okay, as long as it is applied to the right person. The application of capital punishment in our society is hypocritical. It has no place in the judicial system.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The way we handle the punishment of capital crimes is pathetic! There are other ways to punish criminals outside of taking their lives, but we, for some reason, feel the need to play the exterminator. The people who commit capital crimes are not animals to be exterminated. They are human. They deserve the same breath that everyone else takes. If a person commits a heinous crime then that person is obviously not normal. That person is obviously in need of mental help and, we should help these criminals instead of hurting them (religioustolerance.org).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Criminals have families and friends who care about them. Why should the innocent bystanders be punished because of another's actions? Killing anyone, for any reason, only brings on more pain and suffering than is necessary. We should recognize the problems in   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2 our society and heal those problems instead of placing a temporary fix on a permanent problem.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Capital punishment is excessive and unnecessary. Killing a criminal only solves one problem and causes many more. The one problem it solves is the criminal is no longer walking the streets. Encarceration would serve the same purpose. If the criminal is encarcerated then he/she no longer poses a direct threat to society, so killing him/her would be overkill (pardon the pun). It causes other problems because the criminal was executed merely out of retribution. Sort of an eye for an eye. Actions like this only keep hatred and condemnation flowing in society (progress.org).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A punishment can only be called a deterrent if it is performed consistantly and promptly. There are three reasons why capital punishment cannot be performed with any consistancy or promptness. 1) The number of convicted murderers sentenced to death are small, and of that number, an even smaller number are actually executed 2)Manditory death sentences are unconstitutional (Woodson v. North Carolina, 1976). 3)A considerable time between the imposition of the death sentence and the actual execution is unavoidable.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  If a person is going to premeditate a capital crime, he/she is not going to be

My Philosophy change is a challenge Essay

I. Introduction Man needs philosophy in order to be able to think, act and live accordingly. It is a basic blueprint of a man’s actions from thinking, to interacting with others. The only thing that is constant is change. This saying is indeed true especially in the Philippine Education System. For every change implemented lies challengers on the part of the classroom teachers who portrays varied roles. The rapid changes in the world have made curriculum design even more difficult. to be globally competitive II. Aims of my Philosophy chosen There is a need to revise the curriculum from time to time for us to suit the needs of time. We should go on with the flow of life and we should revise it now because curriculum in the past is not anymore very effective or suited for today’s generation As pro active individual I consider Change as a challenge and not a threat. Meeting new challenges require the opportunity to take risks and try new ideas. As a learning individual change is inevitable to meet the needs of society. In a fast changing society education is one way to connect oneself to the past and to project into the future and therefore aims in Philosophy should be considered. III. Role of Philosophy chosen to Education Education and philosophy are closely tied together; both are associated with teaching, learning, and discovering. Philosophy is more of an all-encompassing part of life, though; education is a more specific form of it. Due to the contributions of philosophers over the centuries, education has developed into the powerful tool that it is today. Without philosophy, education would essentially not exist. That said importance of philosophy in education is in fact the foundation in which all academic teaching and intellectual learning is built off. IV. Role of Philosophy to the content development 1. It guides everyone to plan collaboratively for school change to meet the learner’s diverse needs 2. It serves as a vehicle to open new ideas for positive outcomes 3 It strengthens the goals on meeting challenges for a fully functional learner. Language is dynamic as well as the curriculum. We have different curriculum in the past and in the present. We are now in a globally competitive world. A world that also needs competitive teachers and students. So, how will you become competitive if your curriculum is traditional? And is not aware of the new trends of teaching today? Students now are fond of using computers. They will probably choose going to the computer shop than going to school. As a teacher, what will you do? Don’t be a boring teacher! An effective way of solving this kind of phenomena is that the teachers must use technology in teaching. Make it as your partner in delivering a lesson so that the students will not get bored. Make a teaching-learning process lively and meaningful. Teaching and learning give life and meaning to the curriculum because this is the process wherein the teacher and the students interact with each other interchangeably or vice versa. If there is an effective teaching-learning process, it’s really a big help to the curriculum. It’s a big honor because each complements and supplements each other. The value placed in teaching will reap the same value in learning. Thus, a good curriculum can be judged by the kind if teaching and the quality of learning derived from it. The most important thing to keep in mind about strategic content development is that it’s truly an improvisational process. The reason why you want to identify as many viable options for potentially remarkable content is simple: You’ll almost certainly need to make adjustments on the process, and it’s easier to do that when you’ve already identified alternatives. So, the final aspect of strategic content development is to constantly evaluate what happened along the way, and why. The most valuable lessons are often found in the things that didn’t work, so treat it all as a learning experience that keeps your content constantly fresh and worth talking about. V. Significant effect of this curriculum development to the current trends in attaining universal truth in Educational Process In 2012 Deped’s K 12 Program goes full blast. Brother Armin Luistro has described the implementation of the universal primary or pre-school education in the Philippines as the â€Å"defining moment† in the administration of President Aquino as it seeks to implement reforms with deep impact on the welfare of Filipino children and the youth. DepEd’s enhanced curriculum aims to meet the overall objective of preparing children for productive work, either as employees or entrepreneurs, while maintaining its current academic thrust It seems that the President is rushing this program before his term ends. If this program is not implemented well, we might not achieve our real objectives. And all we have done is to disrupt the whole system. Changing programs and implementing new ones is not cheap. Will the next President change the system again? In a survey conducted by SWS from Aug. 24 to 27 last year showed growing acceptability of the key features of the K-12 program compared to survey results in March 2012. About 72 percent of Filipino adults believe that K-12 will give students more sufficient knowledge and preparation for work and college compared to those who finished 10 years of basic education, garnering a net rating of +48, up from +35 last March. The percentage of Filipinos who believe that more students will be encouraged to finish the two-year SHS because it is equivalent to two years of college hit 69 percent, or a 10- point increase from 59 percent in March. The results showed that 68 percent of Filipinos with a net rating of +39 believe that more students will finish SHS even with the additional cost and number of years because K-12 graduate will be better prepared for work, higher education, and business. The results of the survey did’nt even reach 75% which means some are not amenable to the new program. Although the selling point of K to 12 is the assurance that graduates of Senior High School will be able to work immediately, even before or without seeking a college degree Under certain circumstances, it is possible to revise only the high school curriculum. Even in this case, we have to wait until those already in First Year have finished Fourth Year (under the present system). After drawing up a curriculum on paper (including such things as expected competencies, prerequisites, qualifications, learning areas, scope, coverage, and outcomes), curriculum designers have to think about the textbooks and other instructional materials that will have to be created for the new or revised subjects. Although teacher training is a separate process, curriculum designers also have to give pointers on how teachers should be trained to handle the subjects. There also has to be some way to determine if and when the curriculum needs to be revised; this is called program assessment or evaluation. Because of abrupt implementation teachers are really having a hard time coping with the changes not to mention the lack of classrooms, instructional materials and the real physical situation of the learners. If the government can financially sustain the program without adding too much burden on parents, it’s worth giving it a try. However, nowadays, most of the students are the happy-go-lucky types who do not regard education as their priority. They’d rather bum around in malls or stay glued to computers. As a result, most graduates are half-baked, who can’t even write or speak good English, unlike the students of yesteryears. Before, a Grade 6 pupils then could already teach. An additional two years to the basic education curriculum could spell two more years of burden to poor parents who could hardly send their children to school. Before full implementation, there usually is a year-long pilot to debug the curriculum, as well as a longer transition period within which some students will be following the old curriculum and some following the new. Curriculum should not only focus on the tools necessary to develop reasoned and logical construction of new knowledge in our various fields of study, but also should aggressively cultivate a culture that nurtures creativity in all of our learners. This point seems particularly important.

Low Income Students Barriers

RANIA ZOUHAIR SOC 101 Children living in poverty have many home and community factors that Contribute to performing below their potential in literacy achievement. This background Knowledge and experience of low-income students begins a literacy â€Å"achievement gap† That compares their literacy knowledge to that of children who do not live in poverty. Understanding social class diversity enhances the learning of all students. And Class differences in child-rearing practices may sound alarming or oversimplified.Lower-class children are more likely to have unstable family situations. Their parents typically have low-wage jobs and are more frequently laid off, causing family stress and more arbitrary discipline. This paper explains how language and attitudes of low income families act as barriers to success in education. And what types of programs or interventions are most useful in overcoming those barriers. The environment where a child develops has influences on language deve lopment. Success at school depends very heavily on language for reading, writing, speaking and understanding.The children exposed to extensive vocabulary and complex grammatical structures more quickly develop language and also have a more accurate syntax than children raised in environments without complex grammar exposed to them. Low income household uses informal, simple language, sometimes ungrammatical and with limited explanation and vocabulary which is used between friends or family member. Unlike middle class household who uses formal language, when explanation and details are required and they uses a wider vocabulary They often have had fewer words spoken to them, with shorter utterances.They hear only the most commonly occurring words. By age 5, the child of a parent who is language focused has heard 50,000,000 words spoken as opposed to the child of a parent who is not language focused. That child has only heard10,000,000 words (Hart and Risley, 1995). At the same time, t he fact that poor children are geographically concentrated in neighborhoods that are segregated by race and social class presents special challenges for education policy, given that children have traditionally attended neighborhood schools. Another enormous factor that affects low income student achievement is their parent’s attitude towards education. ow income parents do not value education in the same way, that middle class parents do, and their children are more likely to drop out of school early low income parents are more likely to work long hours, so it is difficult for them to visit schools, and they might also see education as of less importance because they might have found their own education had little relevance to their jobs. That’s why some low income students are less motivated in school and thus they have lower level of achievement Contrary to Middle class people who highly value education, and begin promoting its value to their children at a very young age.For instance, middle class people will generally teach their child to read before reaching school age. As the child progresses through school the parents will promote education to their child by encouraging reading, homework and extra-curricular activities. The effort put forth by parents has a bigger impact on their children’s educational achievement than the effort expended by either teachers or the students themselves. The content of parents’ conversations with kids matters too. While the conversations parents have with their children change as kids grow older, the effect of these exchanges on academic achievement remains strong.The â€Å"No Child Left Behind† Educational law Act of 2001 (2002) was created as a means for, student learning to close the achievement gap between low income and middle-income students, and to make sure that all students become academically proficient in their grade level. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) has stringe nt accountability measures and includes the Reading First initiative, which focuses on five areas of literacy for beginning readers: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.Reading is fundamental to this legislation Among the programs that were set to overcome the low income student’s achievement gap, and to enforce the â€Å"No child left Behind† law, we quote the KIPP schools and the ACE program The KIPP schools the Knowledge Is Power Program, is a national network of free, open-enrollment, college-preparatory public charter schools designed for low income families, with a track record of preparing students in underserved communities for success in college and in life.They build a partnership among parents, students, and teachers that puts learning first. By providing outstanding educators, more time in school learning, and a strong culture of achievement. , KIPP is helping all students climb the mountain to and through college. The Knowle dge Is Power Program (KIPP). chools seek to actively engage students and parents in the educational process expand the time and effort students devote to their studies, reinforce students’ social competencies and positive behaviors, and dramatically improve their academic achievement Students in KIPP schools spend more time on learning, both in academics and extracurricular activities, each day, week, and year to improve their skills, and to decrease the achievement gap between low income students and middle class student.The KIPP schools tend to prove that low income students can also succeed since they got the attention and care they need. There is no arguing that making transition to college can be challenging for many students. The ACE program has proven to help participants face problem during the first semester The ACE program (achieving a college education) is a nationally recognized program that targets students who may not consider going to college and attaining a ba ccalaureate degree to be an achievable goal.Upon graduation from high school an ACE student may earn up to 24 transferable college credits The ACE Program Is designed to help students make a smooth transition from high school through the community colleges on to a university and completion of a bachelor’s degree.Recruits high school students in their sophomore year to participate in the program in their high school junior and senior years Ace students are enrolled in concurrent college courses as high school juniors and seniors Students attend college classes during the summer and on Saturdays during the fall and spring semesters Students can earn up to 24 college credits by the time they graduate from high school.The ACE program tends to first, to increase the number of students graduating from high school, second, to increase the number of students continuing on to college, and third to increase the number of students earning a degree or certificate. .Poverty impacts child development. Families have little income; are not able to afford many educational and school activities, which are vital to the development of the children’s learning skill.In addition the influence of the home environment and school environment on a child’s performance is pronounced. Family characteristics predict early reading skills, and Low-income students often have home environments with material hardships and resource-related disadvantages that affect their family dynamics. Children from low to income households are at a disadvantage. They are twice as likely to be held back and more likely not to graduate from high school.

Night World : Spellbinder Chapter 15

Thea.† Dani was shaking her arm. ‘They're talking to you.† The visions were gone. Thea was standing in Gran's workshop, seeing everything as if through a distorting lens. People's faces seemed to stretch; their voices seemed to drag. â€Å"I asked, how did you learn the invocation for summoning spirits?† Gran said slowly. Eric. He won't wait; he'll start without me. Or will he? I told him not to. But he'll be worrying about the party†¦. The party. All those kids†¦ even little kids. Humans, but people. like baby chicks with a hawk up above. How many of them will end up like Kevin? â€Å"The invocation for summoning spirits!† Gran was shouting, as if Thea were hard of hearing. â€Å"I†¦ we†¦ I heard you at Samhain two years ago. In Vermont. I saw the summoning the Inner Circle did.† Even her own voice sounded weird and distorted. â€Å"We saw you. Both of us. We were hiding behind the trees and you never even noticed,† Blaise said clearly, and the bells rang again. Dimly, Thea felt appreciation. But most of her mind was reeling from horrible thought to thought. Eric†¦ but if I try to get to him, if the Inner Circle finds out he's involved†¦ that will get him killed. A human who knows about the Night World. Immediate death sentence. But Suzanne. If he burns those dummies, Suzanne will kill him the way she killed Kevin. No matter what happened, Eric was going to end up dead. Unless†¦ â€Å"Which†¦ of the spirits†¦ did you call?† Gran was shouting, as if Thea was now not only hard of hearing but slow of understanding. Unless†¦ â€Å"That's what I want to tell you,† Thea said. She could see the way. It would mean the end for her, but she might possibly save Eric. If there was enough time, if they would let her alone, if Eric wasn't right now trying to be a hero†¦. â€Å"I want to tell you about it,† Thea said again. And then the words were tumbling out in a rush, faster and faster, as if some dam had broken inside her. â€Å"And I'll tell you everything-but please, Grandma, please, you have to let me go out now. Just for a little while. There's something I have to do. You have to let me go, and then I'll come back here and you can do whatever you want to me.† â€Å"Hold on a minute,† Mother Cybele said, but Thea couldn't stop. â€Å"Please-please. Grandma. I've done a terrible thing-and I'm the only one who can take care of it. I'll come back-â€Å" â€Å"Wait, wait, wait. Calm down,† Gran said. She looked agitated herself. â€Å"What's this rush all of sudden? Try it slowly. What do you think you have to do?† â€Å"I have to put her back.† Thea saw that she was going to have to give some explanation. She tried to speak dearly and slowly, to make them understand. â€Å"The spirit I let out, Grandma. Her name is Suzanne Blanchet and she was burned in the sixteen hundreds. And she's out, out there, and she's already killed a human.† Everyone was listening now, some leaning forward, some frowning. Thea looked around at the circle of faces, talking to all of them. She was still terrified, but what did that matter? Eric mattered. â€Å"Last week she killed a boy at my high school. And tonight she's going to kill more people, at the high school Halloween party. I can't explain how I know-there isn't time. But I do know. And I'm the only one who can stop her. I called her; I'm the only one who can put her back.† â€Å"Yes, but unfortunately it's not that easy,† a low voice said. Thea turned and identified Rhys, a wiry man in a white lab coat. â€Å"If the spirit's at large-† â€Å"I know about that, but I have a way to trap her. It's all set up, and I†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Thea hesitated. â€Å"I've tricked somebody into helping me,† she said slowly. â€Å"And he's in danger right now. Which is why you have to let me go, let me take care of this. Please.† â€Å"You want to go to the high school, where the party is,† Aunt Ursula said. Although her lips were as thin as ever, she didn't sound angry. More-astute. Thea opened her mouth to say no, and then stopped, confused again. The party-or the desert? If Suzanne was really killing people at the party, she should go there. But only if Eric wasn't doing something to attract Suzanne to the desert. He was still more important to her than anyone else. But if he wasn't doing something-and if Suzanne was at the party-she might kill before Thea and Eric could lure her†¦. I'm going crazy. She felt, literally, as if she might faint. Her head was swimming. There were too many possibilities. It all depended on where Suzanne was right now, and there was no way to know that. Thea began to shake violently, black dots dancing in front of her eyes. I don't know what to do. â€Å"I'm sorry†¦ could everybody listen for a moment? I'm seeing something.† It was Aradia's voice, quiet and gently self-possessed. Mature, even though she was only a little older than Thea. Thea tried to see her through the black dots. â€Å"I think it's something important, something about what we're talking about,† Aradia said. Her beautiful face, with its smooth skin the color of coffee with cream, was turned toward Thea. Her wide brown eyes looked straight ahead without focus, the way they always did. Aradia couldn't see with those eyes-but then she didn't need to. She saw with her mind-and saw things that were hidden to most people. â€Å"I'm seeing a boy-he's dressed in some old-fashioned costume. He's beside a fire, inside a circle of stones.† Eric†¦. â€Å"He's got a stick-an ember. He's looking around. Now he's going to†¦ it looks like a scarecrow. I can't see it well. There's a pile of sticks underneath it. He's bending. He's lighting the sticks.† No. â€Å"I have to go,† Thea said. She wasn't asking permission anymore. Aradia was still speaking. â€Å"Okay, the sticks are catching fire. Now I can see better†¦ and it's not a scarecrow; it looks sort of like a witch. A doll.† She stopped, her lovely blind eyes widening. â€Å"It's-and it's moving-no, there's something moving it. I can see it now-a spirit. A spirit is moving the doll. It's coming out now-toward the boy-â€Å" â€Å"I have to go,† Thea said. And then she was moving, pushing her way between Rhys and Old Bob, breaking out of the circle. The beads of the curtain struck her face, clattering as they fell back behind her. â€Å"Thea, wait a minute!† â€Å"Thea, come back here!† â€Å"Ursula, you go get her-â€Å" The jeep. My backpack's in the jeep. I have to get it first. The keys to the Lincoln were hanging on a nail by the back door. Thea grabbed them. She pushed the back door open just as three or four people came hurrying through the bead curtain. She slammed the door in their faces. Get to the car. Fast. Now drive. She backed out of the alley, tires squealing. She could see light spill as the door to the shop opened, but by then she was turning onto Barren Street. She found herself driving at some new level, squeezing through the tail end of yellow lights, recognizing shortcuts in the dark. In just a few minutes she was at the Night World club with the jack-o'-lanterns on the porch. There was no place to park the Lincoln. She left it in the middle of the street, with the keys still in the ignition. She pulled the key to the jeep out of her belt and jumped in. Hurry. Hurry. She burned rubber again getting the jeep moving. Hurry. The freeway. Just let me get to him. And let it not be too late. That's all I ask, after that I don't care. Would you give up everything? The voice didn't seem like a stranger this time, didn't seem menacing. Just curious. And Thea had an answer. Yes. If I can just get there, in time, I can send him away. I can tell him some story, make him go somehow. Make him hide. I'll tell the Circle I tricked him or enchanted him into helping; I won't even tell them his name. They can't make me. Whatever they do to me, he'll be safe. That's all I care about. That's all I'm asking. But even that was a lot, and she knew it, so she kept her foot mashed down on the gas pedal. Freeway off ramp. Side road. She drove crazily fast. The pounding inside her head kept saying hurry, hurry, even as she was careening off curbs. Desert. Now the road was bad. It was hard to see; the moon was almost down. The jeep lunged over bumps and lurched into potholes. Eric, be doing something. Be talking to her, be running. You're so smart, please, please, be smart now. Keep her distracted, keep her hair away from your neck. How strong was a spirit? Thea didn't know. Please, I see everything so clearly now. I've been selfish, only thinking of me, what would make me happy. All that â€Å"encased in ice† garbage. I should have been dancing in the street. As long as Eric is all right, I don't care if he lives on Mars, I don't care if I never see him again. As long as he's well I'm happier than anybody has a right to be. A jolt rattled her teeth. She was off the road now, driving by landmarks. Through forests of dead yuccas that looked like skinny gray Cousin Its. It's taking so long, it's too long. Hurry. Hurry. She could see red sandstone in front of her. Pillars in the headlights. That's it! Go, go! The jeep rocketed over clumps of blackbrush. She could see fire in the depression between the pillars. She drove straight toward it. Fire-movement-the top of a silhouette†¦ â€Å"Eric!† She was yelling even as she slammed on the brakes. The jeep ground to a shuddering stop a few inches from a misshapen sandstone tower. â€Å"Eric!† She had the backpack in her hand. She tore the door open and jumped out, running. â€Å"Thea! Stay out of here!† She saw him. The light of the fire cast an eerie glow onto the already lurid sandstone. Everything seemed red, as if this place were bathed in blood. The roar of the jeep's engine and the roar of the fire merged to sound like the flames of hell. But Brie was alive and fighting. Fighting it. Thea threw herself at it, even as her brain was registering impressions. A wraith shape that looked at one second like a woman, and the next second like tattered clouds. Part of it seemed to be coiled around Eric, and he had both hands at his throat. Bits of the pine-needle amulet Thea had made for him were scattered around his feet. Useless. â€Å"Get away from him! I'm the one who set this up!† Thea screamed. She reached Eric and grabbed wildly at the wraith, at the part of it around his throat. Her hands felt Eric's hands, felt cold air. â€Å"No-Thea, watch out-â€Å" She saw the thing come free of Eric, who staggered. She saw it re-form, gather, then dive straight for her. â€Å"Thea!† Eric knocked her sideways. Cold air rushed by. She and Eric fell in a heap. She gasped â€Å"Eric, go,† even before she got up. She tried to shove at him, looking around for the wraith. â€Å"Go-get out of here! The jeep's running-get in and just drive. I'll call you later.† â€Å"Stay back to back,† Eric said breathlessly. â€Å"She's incredibly fast.† He added through his teeth, â€Å"You know I'm not leaving.† â€Å"This is witch stuff, you jerk!† she snarled, standing back to back. â€Å"I don't want you. You'll just get in my way!† It was a valiant effort. She even managed to inject something like hatred into her voice. And Eric wasn't perfect. He turned around, grabbed her by the shoulder, and yelled, â€Å"You know I'm not going, so don't waste any more time!† Then he shoved her sideways again and freezing wind streaked by her cheek, leaving her ear numb. â€Å"Sorry,† he said in his normal voice. â€Å"You okay?† Thea spun and looked behind her. The wraith was bobbing there. It was shaped like a woman made of vapor, with arms and legs only suggested, but with a long tail of hair that whipped around. â€Å"I've got the stuff,† Thea muttered to Eric. Admit- ting she knew he'd never leave. â€Å"But it'll take a few minutes to do the spell. We'll have to keep out of-† She was watching the lashing tail, but she wasn't fast enough. There was a sound-something between the snap of a whip and the crackle of electricity- and the tail flashed out. It was around her neck. At first it just felt cold. Insubstantial but icy, like a scarf of subzero wind. But then the wraith gave a jerk and it tightened and it did have substance. It felt like metal, like a pipe full of supercooled liquid, like the tentacle of some alien creature with ice for blood. It was choking her. She couldn't breathe and she couldn't get her fingers under it. It squeezed tighter, hurting her. She could feel her eyes start to bulge. â€Å"Look at me!† Eric yelled. He had a stick that was blazing at one end and he was dancing up and down like a crazy person on the other side of the fire. â€Å"Look! Suzanne! I'm going to get your little sister!† He poked the burning stick at the dummy Lucienne, not at the wood piled around her, but at the actual doll. â€Å"There! There! How do you like that?† He jabbed at the doll. A ring of fire blossomed in the black clothes. â€Å"Confess you're a witch!† Thea felt something slide away and her neck was free. She tried to shout a warning to Eric, but all that came out was a croak. He was already diving to one side anyway. That must be what he's been doing all this time. Dodging. â€Å"Eric, keep it up!† â€Å"Okay, but work fast!† He threw himself the other way. She forced herself to turn her attention from him. Her backpack was at the edge of the circle where she'd dropped it. She grabbed it and dumped the contents out on the ground. She had to do this right and she had to do it faster than she'd ever worked a spell before. Oak and ash. She threw them on the central fire, then scooted toward it, dragging the other materials close with a sweep of her arm. She ripped open a plastic bag and grabbed the quassia chips. They were light, and she had to thrust her hand into the flames to make sure they actually went in the fire. Blessed thistle was powder; she threw it. Mandrake root was solid, she threw it, too. She had just grabbed the ounce vial when Eric shouted, â€Å"Thea, duck.† She didn't look up to see what she was ducking. She fell flat instantly. It saved her. Icy wind blew her hair almost into the fire. â€Å"Suzanne!† Eric was yelling. â€Å"I've got your brother! Look!† There were fires at all three stakes now, and Eric was dashing between them, poking at one figure after another. Thea pulled the plastic cap off the vial with her teeth. She shook it into the fire, her hand in the flames again. One, two, three. The fire roared up, louder than ever, and pure blue. Thea fell back from it. â€Å"Suzanne! Over here!† Eric's voice was faint beyond the roar. Tears were running down Thea's face, her nose and eyes stinging from the acrid smell. She fumbled for the last object necessary for the sending-back†¦ the bag of residue from the bronze bowl. She took a handful in her left hand and dropped it between two charcoaled logs at the edge of the fire. Then she stood up-and saw that Eric was in trouble. He'd lost his burning stick. The wraith had him by the throat and it was whirling him around, changing shape every second. His mouth was open, but Thea couldn't hear any sound. â€Å"May I be given the Power of the Words of Hecate† She screamed it, into the roaring fire, toward the wheeling, changing spirit shape. And the words came, rolling off her tongue with a power of their own: â€Å"From the heart of the flame†¦ I send you back! Through the narrow path†¦ I send you back!† She put all her own power into the words, too, screaming them with an authority that she'd never felt in herself before. Because the wraith was fighting. It didn't want to go anywhere. â€Å"To the airy void†¦ I send you back! Through the mist of years†¦ I send you back!† Eric staggered, was jerked sideways. He seemed to be lifted off his feet by the wraith. â€Å"To beyond the veil†¦ I send you back! Go speedily, conveniently, and without delay!† Eric's feet were kicking in the air. This is how Kevin died, Thea realized suddenly and with absolute certainty. She found herself yelling words she'd never heard before. â€Å"By the power of Earth and Air and Water! By the power of Fire on this night of Hecate! By my own power as a daughter of Hellewise! Go speedily, conveniently and without delay, you bitch!† She had no idea where that came from. But the next instant Eric fell. The wraith had dropped him. It shot toward Thea-but then it stopped as if it had slammed into an invisible brick wall. It was directly over the fire. Caught. The blue flames were belching smoke-but sideways. Thea could see the wraith dearly above them. And for the first time, it didn't look like a cloud shape. It looked like a woman. A girl. Older than Thea, but still in her teens. With long dark hair that floated around her and a pale face and huge sad eyes. Her lips were parted as if she were trying to speak. Thea stared. She heard herself whisper, â€Å"Suzanne†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The girl held out a pale hand toward her. But at the same moment the fire flared up again. It seemed to turn the girl's hair to fire, too. Dark fire was burning all around her and there was an expression of infinite sadness on her face. Thea reached out a hand instinctively- The fire roared- And there was a flash like lightning. Suzanne had been drawn to the heart of the flame. And now the lightning formed a cone: the narrow path. Plastic bags and other debris whipped around the circle as if caught in a whirlwind. Suzanne and the cone of white lightning disappeared into each other. To the airy void. Through the mist of years. The fire flared up above Thea's head, and then sank down. The blue seemed to fall to the bottom. The flames turned yellow, like ordinary fire. It was as if a curtain had been drawn. To beyond the veil. That was where Suzanne was now. At the edge of the bonfire, where the residue had been, there was a lump of soft clay. Thea knelt and picked it up. She looked into the center of the flames-and saw a coil of long hair, the color of mahogany. The ends were starting to blacken and shrink in the fire. Thea reached in to grab it. She folded the hair over and quickly pressed the clay around it. It was a clumsy job, Blaise would have done much better, but the hair was enclosed. She groped on the ground for the wooden seal, found it, punched it into the clay. Suzanne's symbol, the cabalistic sign for her name, was printed. It was done. The amulet was restored, Suzanne was trapped again. She'd stay where she belonged unless somebody else was stupid enough to summon her. Thea dropped the amulet without looking at it, got up, and staggered around the fire to where Eric was lying. Her vision was strangely gray. After all this†¦ he has to be all right†¦ oh, please, let him be†¦ He moved when she reached him. â€Å"Eric, we did it. She's gone. We did it.† He grinned faintly. Said in a scratchy voice, â€Å"You don't have to cry.† She hadn't realized she was. Eric sat up. He was terminally mussed, his hair wild, his face dirty. He looked wonderful to her. â€Å"We did it,† she whispered again. She reached out to smooth his hair, and her hand stayed there. He glanced at the fire, then back at her. â€Å"I kind of hated to say those things to her. I mean, no matter how bad she was†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He touched Thea's neck, stroking gently. â€Å"Are you okay? I think you've got a bruise.† â€Å"Me? You're the one who really got it.† She put her free hand to his throat, fingers just barely touching. â€Å"But I know what you mean,† she whispered. â€Å"I felt-sorry-for her at the end.† â€Å"Don't cry again. Please. I really hate that,† he whispered, and he put his free arm around her. And then they were just kissing madly. Deliriously. Laughing and kissing and holding each other. She could taste her own tears on his lips, warming with his warmth, and she was trembling like a bird in a thicket. A few moments later a noise broke in. Thea didn't want to move, but Eric looked, and then he stiffened. â€Å"Uh, we've got company.† Thea looked up. There were cars just outside the sandstone pillars. Parked cars. They must have driven up sometime during the fight with Suzanne, while the roar of the fire blocked out the sound of their engines, while Thea's attention was focused on the wraith trying to Ml her. Because the people were already out of the cars. Grandma Harman, supported by Aunt Ursula. Rhys in his lab coat. Dumpling-shaped Mother Cybele, with her hand on Aradia's arm. Old Bob, Nans Buruku. Most of the Inner Circle was here.