How the World Trade Organization (WTO) Impacts Intellectual Property Essay

How the World Trade Organization (WTO) Impacts Intellectual Property Rights - Essay Example Finally, economics affects the governments by determining a nation’s financial resources needed in the sustenance of the country’s requirements. The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international body charged with the responsibility of regulating trade between the different countries engaged in trading activities. For example, the WTO standardizes trading policies by finding a common ground between the different domestic policies in existent, in the different nations (Kroll, 1999). Intellectual property rights are a crucial issue of contention between countries engaged in trading activities on an international level (Kroll, 1999). This is because of the differences in policies regarding the ownership and transference of this right from one person to another. The WTO continues to resolve disputes arising with regard to intellectual property rights by providing a standardized set of rules used in the judgment of these cases (Kroll, 1999). †¢Compare and contrast f ree trade and protectionist theories Free trade is a product of capitalism which replaced the once popular mercantilism (Craig, 1994). Through the recognition of individual rights to own and dispose of property, capitalism thrived. Capitalism allows for privatization of wealth and the subsequent reduction of restrictions on trade thus free trade (Craig, 1994). Free trade is an economic provision for exchange of goods and services without the intervention of the government especially in view of foreign trade. In this scenario, the traders utilize the principle of comparative advantage meaning both parties benefit from the trade interactions (Craig, 1994). Matters of guiding policies dictate that free trade ought to rely on supply and demand which governs the prices and availability of the goods and services (Craig, 1994). However, comparative advantage, demand and supply do not guarantee fair trade. Nonetheless, free trade is a charitable foundation on which competitive markets thriv e. It is easy for states and individuals to accumulate wealth and gunner profits from exporting and importing when they practice free trade (Craig, 1994). Protectionist theorists, on the other hand, criticize capitalism and the principle of free trade. Like mercantilism, protectionist theories hold that the government’s control on the importation, exportation and other forms of foreign trade is imperative and extremely beneficial to the nation and individuals (Craig, 1994). Through policies such as tariffs, import quotas export subsidies and exchange rates; the government controls the processes of importation and exportation. Some states even impose embargoes on individuals and firms (Craig, 1994). These protectionist principles have one significant benefit. They favor domestic trade through increased domestic demand and expansion of domestic industries. Elements of protectionism also protect a state against predatory pricing and may subsequently lower the chances of inflatio n in an economy (Craig, 1994). In view of international trade, firms, individuals and governments prefer the distributional effect to the aggregate effect of a policy or strategy (Craig, 1994). When it comes to free trade, the result will be a net gain. On the other hand, restricted trade encompasses net loss. Therefore, most economies prefer designer strategies to a strictly outlined one. Free trade is the â€Å"

Indian Ocean Region Essay Example for Free

Indian Ocean Region Essay Change and Continuity of Commerce in the Indian Ocean Region from 650 CE to 1750 CE. The Indian Ocean has always been a powerful trading region, between East Africa and China, that has caused religion, crops, languages, and people to spread. Through the rise and fall of powerful land and sea empires, trade routes shifted and control switched hands numerous times over history. The goods have remained fairly constant, compared to the traders and the powers behind them that changed from 650 C.E. to 1750 C.E. Spices, textiles, manufactured goods, and raw goods were staples on the many of the routes that led from the coast of Zimbabwe all the way to the ports of China. Early traders from Polynesia even traveled to Madagascar. With the rise of Islam and of the Mongol Empire, overseas trade slowed slightly because of the importance of the Silk Road as the main connection between China and Europe. However, as the Mongols declined, the Indian Ocean trade became more important to the empires o r kingdoms of China and the regional powers of India. The Chinese Ming Dynasty engaged heavily in foreign trade and they displayed their wealth with giant treasure ships and junks that sailed the day from China through the port of Malacca to the east coast of India. The ships carried silk and porcelain, goods that were in high demand in Europe and Arabia. The ships also picked up spices and hardwoods from Southeast Asian islands. In India, the majority of these goods were sent on dhows to the Arabian Peninsula, stopping at major important ports like Aden, and then continuing on to East Africa and the Swahili Coast states of Mogadishu, Kilwa, and Sofala. The ships sailed according to the monsoons, they then returned loaded with gold and ivory from Africa, to China where the cycle would restart. Eventually states like Gujurat and Calicut grew in importance in manufacturing and the textile production of cotton. The powers around the Indian Ocean remained in control, until the arrival of Europeans in the 16th century. While Silk Road trade with Europe was thriving, Europeans wanted to cut out the Arab middlemen and get direct access to Asian goods. As the tools of navigation developed and new nation-states sought after trade and exploration, Portugal led the continent in the race to Asia. When Vasco da Gama reached India in 1498 by sailing around the tip of Africa, he was greeted with a mocking laughter of people he needed to trade with and was turned down most of the goods he had to trade. The powerful merchants of Gujarat and neighboring states were used to the highest quality goods so they did not want to trade with Gama’s poor quality goods. However, before long, Portugal took over almost all trade in the Indian Ocean, establishing ports like Goa in India and controlling strategic areas with their imperialistic manner. Around the same time, Britain also began its expansion and joined with joint-stock companies like the Dutch East India Company. They proceeded to dominate the region as well, taking land they thought suited their purposes. The sea empires and the cut off of foreign trade by the Ming dynasty did not greatly change the products traded, but did affect the overall trade system. Goods were now produced for the success of mercantilist people in European countries, not for the enrichment of local powers. While the trade routes and the goods that passed through them may not have been greatly changed, the impact of the European trading empires and the decline of nations like India and China changed who benefited from Indian Ocean trade and who were mostly involved.

Ghost Multicasting :: essays research papers

Ghost Multicasting allows one computer, the Ghost Server, to download a Ghost image from the Server and then redirects the image to other workstations, the Ghost Clients, through the use of TCP/IP settings over the network. The main advantage of Ghost Multicasting is that the downloading time is extremely shortened as only one PC is downloading the image off the Server which dramatically reduces the risk of heavy network traffic. The only disadvantage is that the PC chosen to be the Ghost Server has to have enough free hard drive space to store the image which will then be redistributed. The Two Methods Of Ghost Multicasting. Manually Specified Ghost Multicast – Using this method you have to manually assign unique IP addresses for the Client PCs by using and configuring the wattcp.cfg file located on each Clients’ boot disk. Automatically Specified Ghost Multicast – This second method is by using Windows NT to automatically assign IP addresses to the Client PCs by the use of the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol, or DHCP, included in Windows NT ver. 4.00. Manually Specified Ghost Multicasting: Setting Up Ghost Server Disk 1. Prepare a boot disk that includes and loads the necessary network drivers and maps the disk images directory from the network. 2. Copy over the DOS Ghost Server program (dosghsrv.exe) to the same disk and add it to the autoexec.bat file. 3. Copy over the wattcp.cfg file to the disk and change the IP Address, Subnet Mask and Gateway according to network. (A special IP Address should be allocated for the Server PC) Setting Up Client Disks 1. Prepare boot disks in the same order for the server boot disk but copy over ghost.exe instead of dosghsrv.exe. 2. Edit the wattcp.cfg and add in a unique IP Address for each boot disk. (Usually IP Addresses would have been set up earlier for the specific use of identifying ghost client PCs) Ghosting Client PCs 1. Load up the PC which will act as the Ghost Server with the Server Boot Disk and load dosghsrv.exe from the DOS command prompt. 2. Type in a Session Name and select the Image File from the disk images directory on the network. 3. Start up Client PCs with the unique Boot Disks and load ghost.exe. From the Ghost Server, you should see the IP Addresses of the Clients appear in the window as each Client PC loads the Ghost program. 4. Once every Client PCs’ IP Address can be seen in the Ghost Server window, you are able to select them all by clicking on Accept Clients.

Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare Essay -- classic story, literar

Based on the classic Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Roman, Julie, and Friends displays a new theme on becoming friends with children of all genders, even if it is not expected or allowed by their friends. There were many changes made to create a story that resembled Romeo and Juliet but also changed the meaning to a more positive and age appropriate moral. For example some of the original characters are resembled in the remediation, while others were completely new for the purpose of the new plot. The classic play was changed to a children’s book to provide a positive message to children by using pictures and designs that would suit a child’s liking. The design of the book was happy and cheerful, with basic pictures that resemble the words but are similar to the other pictures in the book. The book also uses ethos, logos, and pathos to sell the moral of the story. Ethos is mainly used by the creditability of Shakespeare. While pathos is the ability for the rea der to connect with the characters personalities and stories. Logos is used by providing the child realize that friends can be any gender or personalities, but if given the chance a friend can be found in anyone. The target audience is for children around the reading level of 3, with the purpose being the idea that children can become friends with children of any gender. The target audience for this remediation is children around the ages of 5-8 at a reading level of 3. The purpose of this remediation is the idea that a classic story can be changed to suit the views of a child. This story tells about how children should not judge other children based on their gender, but on their personalities and similarities. The book mainly uses stereotypical versions of boys and... ... ethos from taking a classic, well-known play and changing some details while still keeping the overall credit of the play. While using also using pathos as the main element to convince the child reading the book that any relationship can be formed if given the chance, while also using logos by providing the child with the facts that each of the child found a similarity between them and became friends. The design showed accurate visual images of the words while the cover displayed a happy ending. All the changes were used to display the differences in others and how friendships can be made if there is no judgment but acceptance of differences and looked at the personality. Overall the changes were made to appeal to a child instead of an older audience like Romeo and Juliet. Works Cited Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. New York: Penguin Books, 1998. Print.

Psycho Shower Scene Symbolic Analysis Essay

Psycho has many memorable scenes and objects, from the skeleton in the basement, the dark and creepy house to the first horrific murder in fictional movie history which takes place in the infamous shower scene. The shower scene of Psycho was one of the most controversial scenes in the movie, the era and possibly of all time. The point of the scene begins as the protagonist, Marion Crane, decides to return the money the has stolen and mulling the thoughts over, has a shower. But at closer scrutiny it is revealed that the shower is washing away the darkness and guilt of her crime and seems that she is becoming her innocent self again. The shower is almost unanimously all white, except the bright silver tap, now the white symbolises Marion’s innocence and goodness and that the guilt and evil of her crimes are being washed away, Until half way through the scene, the audience feels that this scene will be a bright and happy scene, until a dark blemish appears on the shower curtain. If light represents goodness, than logically darkness symbolises evil, the audience feels this as a dark spot is revealed on the curtain, which slowly grows larger and larger, showing that the danger is increasing as does the size of the darkness, this is what builds the suspense as consciously the audience is seeing a dark figure approach while their subconscious minds register the symbolism causing twice the tension as would be caused without the rest of the scene. The bathroom light is also visible from this angle and causes the shadow to appear that it is approaching the light. Soon the darkness is large enough to make out the figure of a person. A dark figure trying to destroy the light, it stands there, just long enough to give the audience time to try and work out who did it but their attention is then wrenched back to the movie by the loud piercing sound of screeching violins with only half formed suspicions racing through their minds as they watch in horror as the protagonist is horrifically murdered before their eyes, and a feeling of uselessness as the protagonist squeals her agonized cries and the audience can do nothing but sit and watch. In her last moments, Marion seems to be reaching for something, perhaps she feels herself slipping from this world and needs to feel a material object to maintain her grip on this world, either that, or she also could be reaching for the audience as if she is trying to say â€Å"why didn’t you help me? † She then proceeds to slowly sink to the floor as low pitch, sombre music starts to play. Her hand finally manages to find the shower curtain and wrenches it from the rail as she topples over the edge of the bath. The scene than shows that the one part of the shower that wasn’t white, the tap, the symbol of cleanliness puts on a darker purpose, washing away Marion’s blood, this shows that the symbolism of cleanliness can be used to both purge darkness but also to scrub one clean of it’s life. (petty morbid when you think about it) The final part of this scene begins with an extreme close up of Marion’s un-moving, unseeing, unblinking eye. The fact that the audience realise that their staring into death is quite unnerving, along with the fact that there appears to be a single tear on her face, which shows the immense sadness of the scene, one of the main reasons of the sadness was because the audience had bonded with her and that she had died leaving so much left to complete. After all that was the first time that a movie had killed off the main character as of yet. At the end of the scene, the camera pans around to reveal the money, left unnoticed, never to be revealed to anyone or reveal the truth of Marion’s true intentions. This reveals a sense of loneliness and unfulfilled purpose. If you really scrutinise the scene, it almost appears like the symbology has a story of its own†¦ A grey woman, torn between light and darkness, she had once been white but was lured by temptation and grew darker, now here she sits, realising all she had done and decides to rid herself of the darkness. The lets the darkness drop off her body and begins to cleanse herself till she sparkles once more, she surrounds herself with light and silver and feels the darkness ebbing away. A shadow appears behind her, approaching the her, it pulls back the light and ends her life, the woman reaches for something to hold, an anchor to the material world, to feel for one last time before she departs but ultimately just drags it with her. Then darkness, at the time too weak to change the light manipulates the silver, darkening it and using it to leech away whatever life the white woman had remaining, and leave nothing but a husk, an empty shell that once contained the woman in grey. The body of the woman sheds a tear in the memory of what it had once been, as the tempter gloats, covered in light on the outside yet shady and dark underneath.

liquids essays

liquids essays In this chapter we will see how water and its three states of matter play a big role in our daily lives. Even though all the three of matter of water have the same molecule, they can be different at some point. For example it takes more energy to change liquid water to steam than to melt ice at 0 c. The liquid water state lies in between solid and gas, but not midway between. But liquid is more similar to solid than to ice. Solid states is in terms of closely packed, highly ordered particles in contrast to widely spaced, randomly particles of gas. The liquid states between both, with more disorder arrangement than for the solid state and with some empty spaces. Those are just some of the important properties of liquids and solids. There are many solids and also gases at the atmosphere, but the liquid we most see is water. It is one of the most important substances on earth. It is important for sustaining reactions in our bodies that keep us alive. One water phase change is when you heat liquid water, what happens? First the temperature of the water rises. Now the motion of the water molecules increase, then when the temperature reaches 100 c, the water starts boiling, the temperature remains at 100 c. Until all the water has change to gaseous state. That is how liquid water can change from liquid to gaseous state. Another water phase occurs when liquid water is cooled to 0 c where the water starts to freeze. But until all the liquid water has change to ice, then the temperature starts decreasing again. Now the water is no longer liquid it has change states to solid ice. At temperatures below 0 c liquid water freezes and above 0 c ice melts. But water expands when it freezes. That is because ice at 0 c has a greater volume than one gram of liquid water at 0 c. 13.2 Energy Requirements for the Changes of State Changes of state from solid to liquid and from liquid to gas ...

Peer Review of Authorship Ethics

Peer Review of Authorship Ethics The author demonstrates a fair understanding of the ethical issues associated with assigning authorship to a manuscript or scientific report. The author shows that establishing authorship is through building significant contribution to an article (Handyman 2011). The author also indicates that all authors named in a publication should play a substantial role in all the steps that are mandatory for publication of the work.Advertising We will write a custom critical writing sample on Peer Review of Authorship Ethics specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More However, the author does not mention the critical area of fictitious authorship. Fictitious authorship occurs when a non participant takes authorship credit; when articles include forged results or include previously published information (â€Å"The imagined author† 2000, p.31). Fraud in scientific authorship is an area worth mentioning. The author ought to discuss this issue and give probable solutions. Subjecting authors to anonymous interviews to determine who did and who did not partake of the research beats logic if the actual work is counterfeit. The author proposes all the problems concerning authorship and possible resolutions as recommendations to the Research Integrity Officer of Melbourne University. The author suggests that the solutions apply to other institutions as well and probably as global paradigms for recognizing authorship. In all these recommendations, the author mentions responsibility, accountability, and transparency as the fundamental themes. The article demonstrates scholarship. The author comprehends the conventions of the scientific world well, hence demonstrating that they read into the subject. The author gives feasible solutions on how to avoid listing non participants as authors through conducting anonymous interviews. The author uses relevant examples to support ideas. For example, the author uses a movie analogy to demonstrate t he assigning of authorship to scientific works and gives examples of various types of authors in the paper. The author also uses detailed examples of help given to scientists in coming up with scientific publications (general bench work and writing examples).Advertising Looking for critical writing on ethics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The author states their own opinions regarding authorship. They state that an author is the main person behind the design, subject, and conception of a paper and that anybody else who adds value to a paper should be listed only as a helper. The author, however, acknowledges that it is rational to recognize these assistants. Adding a helpers’ list stating the names of all those individuals who contribute to the research project on the first page of the publication helps achieve recognition of the helpers. This article is of good quality. The article is well written. The intr oduction and conclusion are succinct. There is a smooth transition of ideas from one paragraph to the next. The author uses straightforward lingo that is easy to comprehend. There are no typographical errors in the paper. However, the paper has a few mistakes in grammar. For example, the author writes â€Å"practises† (verb) instead of â€Å"practices† (noun) in the sentence containing the words â€Å"knowledge practises.† The author makes punctuation errors, for example, the introductory phrases â€Å"On one side† and â€Å"On the other side† do not have commas after them. There is unnecessary capitalization of words like â€Å"how,† â€Å"what,† and â€Å"who† in the paper. References Handyman, K. J. 2011, Research tips – Authorship ethics. Web. â€Å"The imagined author† 2000, in Jones, A. H. McLellan, F (eds.), Medical issues in biomedical publications, JHU Press, Maryland, pp 31-35.

Conjugating German Modal Verbs Muessen, Sollen, Wollen

Conjugating German Modal Verbs Muessen, Sollen, Wollen How do you conjugate the German modal verbs  mà ¼ssen, sollen, and  wollen? See the different tenses and sample modal sentences and idioms. Modalverben - Modal Verbs PRSENS(Present) PRTERITUM(Preterite/Past) PERFEKT(Pres. Perfect) Mssen - have to, must ich mussI must, have to ich mussteI had to ich habe gemusst *I had to du musstyou must, have to du musstestyou had to du hast gemusst *you had to er/sie musshe/she must er/sie musstehe/she had to er/sie hat gemusst *he/she had to wir/Sie/sie mssenwe/you/they have to wir/Sie/sie musstenwe/you/they had to wir/Sie/sie haben gemusst *we/you/they had to ihr msstyou (pl.) must ihr musstetyou (pl.) had to ihr habt gemusst *you (pl.) had to * In the present perfect or past perfect tense with another verb, the double infinitive construction is used, as in the following examples: ihr habt sprechen mà ¼ssen you (pl.) had to speak ich hatte sprechen mà ¼ssen I had had to speak The old spelling with ß, as in ich muß or gemußt, is no longer used for forms of mà ¼ssen. For all  modals  with umlauts, the simple past (preterite/Imperfekt) has no umlaut, but the subjunctive form always has an umlaut! Sample Sentences With Mà ¼ssen Present: Ich muss dort Deutsch sprechen. I have to speak German there.Past/Preterite: Er musste es nicht tun. He didnt have to do it.Pres. Perfect/Perfekt: Wir haben mit der Bahn fahren mà ¼ssen. We had to go by train.Future/Futur: Sie wird morgen abfahren mà ¼ssen. She will have to depart tomorrow.Subjunctive/Konjunktiv: Wenn ich mà ¼sste... If I had to... Sample Idiomatic Expressions Ich muss nach Hause. I have to go home.Muss das sein? Is that really necessary?So mà ¼sste es immer sein. Thats how it should be all the time.   Sollen - should, ought to, supposed to ich sollI should ich sollteI should have ich habe gesollt *I should have du sollstyou should du solltestyou should have du hast gesollt *you should have er/sie sollhe/she should er/sie solltehe/she should have er/sie hat gesollt *he/she should have wir/Sie/sie sollenwe/you/they should wir/Sie/sie solltenwe/you/they should have wir/Sie/sie haben gesollt *we/you/they should have ihr solltyou (pl.) should ihr solltetyou (pl.) should have ihr habt gesollt *you (pl.) should have * In the present perfect or past perfect tense with another verb, the double infinitive construction is used, as in the following examples: wir haben gehen sollen we should have gone ich hatte fahren sollen I had been supposed to drive Sample Sentences With Sollen Present: Er soll reich sein. Hes supposed to be rich. / Its said that hes rich.Past/Preterite: Er sollte gestern ankommen. He was supposed to arrive yesterday.Pres. Perfect/Perfekt: Du hast ihn anrufen sollen. You should have called him.Future (in sense of): Er soll das morgen haben. Hell have that tomorrow.Subjunctive/Konjunktiv: Das httest du nicht tun sollen. You shouldnt have done that.Subjunctive/Konjunktiv: Wenn ich sollte... If I should...Subjunctive/Konjunktiv: Sollte sie anrufen... If she should (happen to) call... Sample Idiomatic Expressions Das Buch soll sehr gut sein. The book is said to be very good.Du sollst damit sofort aufhà ¶ren! Youre to stop that right now!Was soll das (heißen)? Whats that supposed to mean? Whats the idea?Es soll nicht wieder vorkommen. It wont happen again.   Wollen - want to ich willI want to ich wollteI wanted to ich habe gewollt *I wanted to du willstyou want to du wolltestyou wanted to du hast gewollt *you wanted to er/sie willhe/she wants to er/sie wolltehe/she wanted to er/sie hat gewollt *he/she wanted to wir/Sie/sie wollenwe/you/they want to wir/Sie/sie wolltenwe/you/they wanted to wir/Sie/sie haben gewollt *we/you/they wanted to ihr wolltyou (pl.) want to ihr wolltetyou (pl.) wanted to ihr habt gewollt *you (pl.) wanted to * In the present perfect or past perfect tense with another verb, the double infinitive construction is used, as in the following examples: wir haben sprechen wollen we wanted to speak ich hatte gehen wollen I had wanted to go Sample Sentences With Wollen Present: Sie will nicht gehen. She doesnt want to go.Past/Preterite: Ich wollte das Buch lesen. I wanted to read the book.Pres. Perfect/Perfekt: Sie haben den Film immer sehen wollen. They have always wanted to see the movie.Past Perfect/Plusquamperfekt: Wir hatten den Film immer sehen wollen. We had always wanted to see the movie.Future/Futur: Er wird gehen wollen. He will want to go.Subjunctive/Konjunktiv: Wenn ich wollte... If I wanted to... Sample Idiomatic Expressions Das will nicht viel sagen. Thats of little consequence. That doesnt mean much.Er will es nicht gesehen haben. He claims not to have seen it.Das hat er nicht gewollt. Thats not what he intended. See the conjugation of the other three German modal verbs  dà ¼rfen, kà ¶nnen, and mà ¶gen.

Vampire social fear 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Vampire social fear 2 - Essay Example In earlier times, vampires have been portrayed in mostly negative light mostly showing demonic themes, but currently, vampire and their fear has gradually disintegrated to the extent that they have become part of the modern society and rather than being viewed as monsters, they now even now inspire trends. Everything from fashion to the entertainment industry portrays vampires as sexy, mysterious entities, who feature in movies like Twilight as abnormally romantic beings. Science has also adopted the myth of the vampire to describe living things that exhibit similar characteristics to those famed to be of vampires. As an illustration, ‘Vampire’ is derived from the biological term, vampirism, which refers to living things that feed on the life matter (that is: blood) of other living beings, for example, the Vampire Bat. According to vampire legends people who are considered to be evil in their life will turn to vampires in their after-life. These people include, but may n ot be limited to: outcasts, people who died as a result of suicide, criminals, and any other type of person that is considered to immensely evil in his acts. This paper will discuss how the society has ingrained the fear of vampires in its activities and how such fears are associated with the supernatural and superstition. Also considered is the effect of these fears on perception about ‘liminal states of existence’ (living on the margins). Since vampires are considered undead (because they are logically already dead yet still live), this paper will illustrate how vampires might be exposed to both advantage and disadvantages of the modern society due to advanced technology (Williams 15). Vampires in Today’s Society The legend of the vampire has gone through transformations that have changed the dark former image of evil, crime and demonism to one that is simply a source of mystery and fascination. Today’s society has dismissed the phenomena of ‘undea d’ beings that awake in the night to look for blood and in the process, turn the bitten humans into vampires. All the former reasons used to justify the existence of vampires have been shown to be untrue. Myths have been argued out by juxtaposing them with real life facts, thus emphasizing their fallacy. The vampire persona has been described by scientific medicine enabling us to understand why ‘weird’ people act as they do. Vampires have acquired a new dimension in today’s society: they fulfill our fantasies through literary fiction like works like Stephen King's Night Shift collection of short stories. In his book, King gives a chilling encounter of how people come face to face with normal people turned into vampires in the short story: One for the Road. King shows how a normal out-of-the-way town became a horror spot. The story ends with the implied warning that anyone should not make a stopover at a town where it is rumored vampires reside, because you will be turned into one yourself (King 416). Vampires have also been used by psychoanalysts to describe the nature of man’s psyche. Analysts use the paradigm of a vampire to illustrate how people react when they are faced with challenges that go beyond the levels of manageable reality. A vampire is used to symbolize the ultimate fear that one can face in his life. Vampires have enabled psychoanalysts to determine the psyche behind people who commit hideous acts like homicide that is accompanied by excessively

Life of an American Slave in Early American History Essay

Life of an American Slave in Early American History - Essay Example Early American slaves were native Indians and a few exported from West Indies. During the later part of slavery, slaves were imported from the African continent in large numbers. The life of slaves was really pathetic. Atrocious behavior of the elite people made their life even worse. Slaves were put to work in the most heinous conditions in the plantations and domestic premises. The situation of slaves who worked in the plantations was really pitiable. They were not as educated or sophisticated as the domestic slaves. Domestic slaves were mostly women. Most of the men worked in plantations. Domestic slaves were well aware of the happenings in the whole household. They also had deep knowledge in the happenings in the political area. Majority of the slaves were concentrated in the upper south area. The native Indian slaves and the African American slaves tried to reconstruct their lost culture in America. This resulted and contributed in the development of the famous American culture that is unique with its racial diversity and ethnicity. This ethnic culture was later termed as popular culture. Slangs were introduced to the language and literature by the African slaves and their descendants. This enriched the literature and gave it a fresh outlook with more depth and broadness. Music was the passion of American slaves and they saw music as a source of entertainment and relaxation. Besides, they perceived music as a means of an outcry of the hurt feelings. Jazz music was introduced into the field of music by the slaves. Thus, the contribution made by the slaves to augment the modern American culture was enormous. The contribution of American leaders to develop and unify a culture that enjoyed wide diversity in religion and ethnicity is praiseworthy. Along with the struggle for freedom and emancipation of slavery movement, the American leaders also succeeded in building up a nation with multitude races that were unified and distinct from the rest of the world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Eve Kornfeld through the book, â€Å"Creating an American Culture† (Kornfeld par. 1) tries to expose the efforts made by the eminent leaders like Noah Webster, Benjamin Rush, Judith Sargent Murray, David Ramsay, Mercy Otis Warren and other intellectuals to develop an inimitable national literature that integrated a nation and reconstructed the concept of an exclusive nationhood. Most Americans have a static vision of slavery that existed in America. When we talk about slavery, the

The start of the parole system Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

The start of the parole system - Research Paper Example His release is conditional, contingent upon satisfactory behavior. He is under supervision and treatment by a person trained in parole work. Englands contribution to what later metamorphosed into parole was its program of transportation to the American colonies, a program motivated, not by humanitarian considerations, but by economic pressures. In the sixteenth century, Englands economy was in a decline. There was much unemployment. The labor market was overcrowded. In the colonies, on the other hand, there was need for cheap labor. The British government decided to grant reprieves and stays of execution to convicted felons physically able to work so that they might be shipped abroad and impressed into service. This system of deportation is part of the history of parole in that it involved mitigation of penal sentence and placement of the erstwhile prisoner in the free community. As in parole, the individual was not an altogether free person. The first English transportation law was proclaimed in 1597, authorizing deportation of rogues. In 1619 one hundred "dissolute persons" were ordered to Virginia. The government paid a contractor, usually the shipmaster, about five pounds for each prisoner so shipped. In Virginia, the offenders were put up at auction, the highest bidder winning them as indentured servants. The British government thereafter exercised no further responsibility for the welfare or control of the former prisoners, so long as they did not return to England. If they returned without authorization, they were subject to death. Boatloads of felons came over, but were not sufficient to meet the demand. Virginia thereupon began to import Negro slaves. The labor shortage eased, but the white exiles, despising their lot, fomented unrest among the blacks. This caused consternation among their masters, who could now get along without the transported convicts. Minus the white trouble-makers, they could keep the slaves

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PORTFOLIO Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PORTFOLIO - Coursework Example Thus, I have always cherished the dream of pursuing an academic career in engineering with some orientation towards electrical engineering. On the other hand, I also value self dependency and supporting myself in my endeavours to the maximum extent possible without having to depend on my family. Therefore, immediately after completing high school, I sought out a job with HSBC Bank, Dubai, as a business development executive. In this position, I was responsible for marketing several products of the bank and I have been effective in this role. Since I had good connection in the region I was instrumental in bringing several new customers to the bank. During my tenure of six months with the bank, I was also able to learn administrative procedures apart from having here had also enabled me to become more organized in terms of settings goals, planning the achievement of targets as well as how to make good the short falls. However, I did not want to entertain the idea of getting strike to a job which did not entirely fit into the frame work of the carrier of my choice. In the meanwhile I realised that global aviation industry is poised for a sea change in the near future, in the aftermath of globalization. Even in Dubai, the developmental activities were in full swing. Similar was the case with Asian and European countries as well as the US. Travel and tourism industry was flourishing on an unfathomed manner. A realisation of the opportunity in aviation management, coupled with my inherent affinity towards a career in engineering, motivated me take up a course in aerospace systems. Thus, I joined Barry College, South Wales, UK, for a 3 year Diploma Course in Aerospace Systems Management. I selected this college because of its popularity as a premier institution in the field of aviation studies and over 9,000 learners pass out from there every year. They provide state of the art aerospace training and development programmes in maintenance, repair and overhauling and th eir courses are approved by the Civil Aviation Authority. Besides, they also have a vast network of institutions in partnership with several colleges that offer a wide range of aircraft engineering courses. The stint I spent in Barry’s campus was a major turning point in my life. The college had an excellent faculty supported by modern equipment and sophisticated infrastructure. It also provided a congenial environment for me to focus on my studies with full involvement both in terms of academic betterment and personal development. My peers and tutors in there were very supportive and encouraging, which helped me in my overall development not only in my academics but in the personal front also, by inculcating in me several values and ethics. My earlier work experience with HSBC had helped me in properly setting my goals and objectives, planning my studies appropriately as well as executing the plans as prescheduled. The main objectives that I set for myself were to achieve im provement in three subjects, which are: mathematics, electrical engineering and practical work (communication skills). Taking cue from my work experience as stated earlier, I was also able to integrate aspects of personal development into my academic schedule, focusing on values and ethics. Thus, I was able to organize my studies in a proper manner, aligning my plans with the objectives I set for myself and executing my plans as per the predetermined schedules. Besides, I had carried out

Oxaliplatin Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Oxaliplatin - Essay Example This was developed following discovery of cisplatin in an attempt to reduce the problematic side effects of cisplatin. This is administered intravenously, and till date, no commercially viable orally active agent has been reported to be accepted for therapy3,4. Like cisplatin, oxaliplatin is also associated with quite a few dose-limiting adverse effects, which include myelosuppression along with others5. These are neurotoxic side effects that include sensory peripheral neuropathy which can be dose limiting. The other side effects include gastrointestinal disturbances and ototoxicity, while renal function may be normally monitored during therapy6. In this assignment contemporary literature will be reviewed to address the effects of oxaliplatin genotoxicity on human lymphocytes by using various cytogenetic techniques. Oxaliplatin contains a cyclohexyl and a pentadilactone ring, which will be evident from its chemical structure in a later section7. This has been approved for treatment of metastatic colon cancer in combination with 5-fluorouracil and folinic acid8. Therefore, this is a diaminocyclohexane (DACH) platinum compound9. This was considered as a probable chemotherapeutic agent since it demonstrated preclinical activities in some cisplatin-resistant cell lines and xenografts10. Oxaliplatin is an important member of this DACH platinum group of compounds. Its preclinical activity against colorectal cancer has been studied in great detail. It has been suggested that oxaliplatin has a greater extent of cell kill in resistant cancers since therapy with this agent may result in greater resistance to repair mechanisms leading to affected recovery of cancer cells11. This has been attributed to the size of the DACH carrier ligands, resulting into a bulkier platinum-DNA adduct in comparison to that created by cisplatin12. The inhibitory effects of platinum compounds have been ascribed to formation of inorganic platinum compounds in presence

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PORTFOLIO Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PORTFOLIO - Coursework Example Thus, I have always cherished the dream of pursuing an academic career in engineering with some orientation towards electrical engineering. On the other hand, I also value self dependency and supporting myself in my endeavours to the maximum extent possible without having to depend on my family. Therefore, immediately after completing high school, I sought out a job with HSBC Bank, Dubai, as a business development executive. In this position, I was responsible for marketing several products of the bank and I have been effective in this role. Since I had good connection in the region I was instrumental in bringing several new customers to the bank. During my tenure of six months with the bank, I was also able to learn administrative procedures apart from having here had also enabled me to become more organized in terms of settings goals, planning the achievement of targets as well as how to make good the short falls. However, I did not want to entertain the idea of getting strike to a job which did not entirely fit into the frame work of the carrier of my choice. In the meanwhile I realised that global aviation industry is poised for a sea change in the near future, in the aftermath of globalization. Even in Dubai, the developmental activities were in full swing. Similar was the case with Asian and European countries as well as the US. Travel and tourism industry was flourishing on an unfathomed manner. A realisation of the opportunity in aviation management, coupled with my inherent affinity towards a career in engineering, motivated me take up a course in aerospace systems. Thus, I joined Barry College, South Wales, UK, for a 3 year Diploma Course in Aerospace Systems Management. I selected this college because of its popularity as a premier institution in the field of aviation studies and over 9,000 learners pass out from there every year. They provide state of the art aerospace training and development programmes in maintenance, repair and overhauling and th eir courses are approved by the Civil Aviation Authority. Besides, they also have a vast network of institutions in partnership with several colleges that offer a wide range of aircraft engineering courses. The stint I spent in Barry’s campus was a major turning point in my life. The college had an excellent faculty supported by modern equipment and sophisticated infrastructure. It also provided a congenial environment for me to focus on my studies with full involvement both in terms of academic betterment and personal development. My peers and tutors in there were very supportive and encouraging, which helped me in my overall development not only in my academics but in the personal front also, by inculcating in me several values and ethics. My earlier work experience with HSBC had helped me in properly setting my goals and objectives, planning my studies appropriately as well as executing the plans as prescheduled. The main objectives that I set for myself were to achieve im provement in three subjects, which are: mathematics, electrical engineering and practical work (communication skills). Taking cue from my work experience as stated earlier, I was also able to integrate aspects of personal development into my academic schedule, focusing on values and ethics. Thus, I was able to organize my studies in a proper manner, aligning my plans with the objectives I set for myself and executing my plans as per the predetermined schedules. Besides, I had carried out

Finance - write up a executive summary and recommendation Essay

Finance - write up a executive summary and recommendation - Essay Example These expenses are related to the land bought to expand business in future. The dilemma with the management of the company is what should be done with this land. They have two options; first option is that they can sell off this land for an impressive amount of $235,000 and also save the increasing annual maintenance expenses @3% which is $16,000 at the moment. The second option with the management is to use this land in expanding the existing business by setting up a new spray booth and workshop. This report provides an analysis and evaluation of these two options in hand for FBSR. We have used the capital budgeting tools such as Net present value (NPV), operating cash flow and sensitivity analysis in order to determine the feasibility of the options available at hand. The relevant calculations, with respect to each of the analysis technique used, can be found in the appendices. Our analysis is all depending on John’s assumptions which means our belief is the probability of a ssumption would range from NPV various. Within this analysis of the insurance project of the business, operation cash flow and profitability is the decide the feasibility of business. it’s the company’s choice of whether or not to take the insurance project in the business. Meanwhile, 10% increase or decrease in revenue and wages & maintenance fee of is under concern.

Assessment Of Learning Essay Example for Free

Assessment Of Learning Essay Assessment of learning refers to strategies designed to confirm what students know, demonstrate whether or not they have met curriculum outcomes or the goals of their individualized programs, or to certify proficiency and make decisions about students’ future programs or placements. It is designed to provide evidence of achievement to parents, other educators, the students themselves, and sometimes to outside groups (e. g. , employers, other educational institutions). Assessment of learning is the assessment that becomes public and results in statements or symbols about how well students are learning. It often  contributes to pivotal decisions that will affect students’ futures. It is important, then, that the underlying logic and measurement of assessment of learning be credible and defensible. TEACHERS’ ROLES IN ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING Because the consequences of assessment of learning are often far-reaching and affect students seriously, teachers have the responsibility of reporting student learning accurately and fairly, based on evidence obtained from a variety of contexts and applications. Effective assessment of learning requires that teachers provide †¢ a rationale for undertaking a particular assessment of learning at a particular  point in time †¢ clear descriptions of the intended learning †¢ processes that make it possible for students to demonstrate their competence and skill †¢ a range of alternative mechanisms for assessing the same outcomes †¢ public and defensible reference points for making judgements Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind †¢ 55. The purpose of assessment that typically comes at the end of a course or unit of instruction is to determine the extent to which the instructional goals have been achieved and for grading or certification of student achievement. (Linn and Gronlund, Measurement and Assessment in Teaching ) Reflection: Think about an example of assessment of learning in your own teaching and try to develop it further as you read this chapter. 56 †¢ Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind Chapter 5 †¢ transparent approaches to interpretation †¢ descriptions of the assessment process †¢ strategies for recourse in the event of disagreement about the decisions. With the help of their teachers, students can look forward to assessment of learning tasks as occasions to show their competence, as well as the depth and breadth of their learning. PLANNING ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING The purpose of assessment of learning is to measure, certify, and report the level  of students’ learning, so that reasonable decisions can be made about students. There are many potential users of the information:†¢ teachers (who can use the information to communicate with parents about their children’s proficiency and progress) †¢ parents and students (who can use the results for making educational and vocational decisions) †¢ potential employers and post-secondary institutions (who can use the information to make decisions about hiring or acceptance) †¢ principals, district or divisional administrators, and teachers (who can use the information to review and revise programming). Assessment of learning requires the collection and interpretation of information about students’ accomplishments in important curricular areas, in ways that represent the nature and complexity of the intended learning. Because genuine learning for understanding is much more than just recognition or recall of facts or algorithms, assessment of learning tasks need to enable students to show the complexity of their understanding. Students need to be able to apply key concepts, knowledge, skills, and attitudes in ways that are authentic and consistent with current thinking in the knowledge domain. What am I  assessing? Why am I assessing? Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind †¢ 57 Assessment of Learning In assessment of learning, the methods chosen need to address the intended curriculum outcomes and the continuum of learning that is required to reach the outcomes. The methods must allow all students to show their understanding and produce sufficient information to support credible and defensible statements about the nature and quality of their learning, so that others can use the results in appropriate ways. Assessment of learning methods include not only tests and examinations, but  also a rich variety of products and demonstrations of learning—portfolios, exhibitions, performances, presentations, simulations, multimedia projects, and a variety of other written, oral, and visual methods (see Fig. 2. 2, Assessment Tool Kit, page 17). What assessment method should I use? Graduation Portfolios Graduation portfolios are a requirement for graduation from British Columbia and Yukon Senior Years schools. These portfolios comprise collections (electronic or printed) of evidence of students’ accomplishments at school, home, and in the community, including demonstrations of  their competence in skills that are not measured in examinations. Worth four credits toward graduation, the portfolios begin in Grade 10 and are completed by the end of Grade 12. The following are some goals of graduation portfolios: †¢ Students will adopt an active and reflective role in planning, managing, and assessing their learning. †¢ Students will demonstrate learning that complements intellectual development and course-based learning. †¢ Students will plan for successful transitions beyond Grade 12. Graduation portfolios are prepared at the school level and are based on specific Ministry criteria and standards. Students use the criteria and standards as guides for planning, collecting, and presenting their evidence, and for self-assessing. Teachers use the criteria and standards to assess student evidence and assign marks. There are three major components of a graduation portfolio: 1. Portfolio Core (30 percent of the mark). Students must complete requirements in the following six portfolio organizers: arts and design (respond to an art, performance, or design work); community involvement and responsibility (participate co-operatively and respectfully in a  service activity); education and career planning (complete a graduation transition plan); Employability skills (complete 30 hours of work or volunteer experience); information technology (use information technology skills); personal health (complete 80 hours of moderate to intense physical activity). 2. Portfolio Choice (50 percent of the mark). Students expand on the above areas, choosing additional evidence of their achievements. 3. Portfolio Presentation (20 percent of the mark). Students celebrate their learning and reflect at the end of the portfolio process. ( Portfolio Assessment and Focus Areas: A Program Guide) 58 †¢ Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind Chapter 5 Assessment of learning needs to be very carefully constructed so that the information upon which decisions are made is of the highest quality. Assessment of learning is designed to be summative, and to produce defensible and accurate descriptions of student competence in relation to defined outcomes and, occasionally, in relation to other students’ assessment results. Certification of students’ proficiency should be based on a rigorous, reliable, valid, and equitable process of assessment and evaluation. Reliability  Reliability in assessment of learning depends on how accurate, consistent, fair, and free from bias and distortion the assessment is. Teachers might ask themselves: †¢ Do I have enough information about the learning of this particular student to make a definitive statement? †¢ Was the information collected in a way that gives all students an equal chance to show their learning? †¢ Would another teacher arrive at the same conclusion? †¢ Would I make the same decision if I considered this information at another time or in another way? Reference Points Typically, the reference points for assessment of learning are the learning  outcomes as identified in the curriculum that make up the course of study. Assessment tasks include measures of these learning outcomes, and a student’s performance is interpreted and reported in relation to these learning outcomes. In some situations where selection decisions need to be made for limited positions (e. g. , university entrance, scholarships, employment opportunities), assessment of learning results are used to rank students. In such norm-referenced situations, what is being measured needs to be clear, and the way it is being measured needs to be transparent to anyone who might use the assessment  results. Validity Because assessment of learning results in statements about students’ proficiency in wide areas of study, assessment of learning tasks must reflect the key knowledge, concepts, skills, and dispositions set out in the curriculum, and the statements and inferences that emerge must be upheld by the evidence collected. How can I ensure quality in this assessment process? Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind †¢ 59 Assessment of Learning Record-Keeping Whichever approaches teachers choose for assessment of learning, it is their records that provide details about the quality of the measurement. Detailed records of the various components of the assessment of learning are essential, with a description of what each component measures, with what accuracy and against what criteria and reference points, and should include supporting evidence related to the outcomes as justification. When teachers keep records that are detailed and descriptive, they are in an excellent position to provide meaningful reports to parents and others. Merely a symbolic representation of a student’s accomplishments (e. g. , a letter grade or percentage) is inadequate. Reports to parents and others should identify the  intended learning that the report covers, the assessment methods used to gather the supporting information, and the criteria used to make the judgement. Feedback to Students Because assessment of learning comes most often at the end of a unit or learning cycle, feedback to students has a less obvious effect on student learning than assessment for learning and assessment as learning. Nevertheless, students do Ho w can I use the information from this assessment? Guidelines for Grading 1. Use curriculum learning outcomes or some clustering of these (e. g. , strands) as the basis for grading. 2.  Make sure that the meaning of grades comes from clear descriptions of curriculum outcomes and standards. If students achieve the outcome, they get the grade. (NO bell curves! ) 3. Base grades only on individual achievement of the targeted learning outcomes. Report effort, participation, and attitude, for example, separately, unless they are a stated curriculum outcome. Any penalties (e. g. , for late work, absences), if used, should not distort achievement or motivation. 4. Sample student performance using a variety of methods. Do not include all assessments in grades. Provide ongoing feedback on formative  performance using words, rubrics, or checklists, not grades. 5. Keep records in pencil so they can be updated easily to take into consideration more recent achievement. Provide second-chance assessment opportunities (or more). Students should receive the highest, most consistent mark, not an average mark for multiple opportunities. 6. Crunch numbers carefully, if at all. Consider using the median, mode, or statistical measures other than the mean. Weight components within the final grade to ensure that the intended importance is given to each learning outcome. 7. Make sure that each assessment meets quality standards (e.g. , there should be clear targets, clear purpose, appropriate target-method match, appropriate sampling, and absence of bias and distortion) and is properly recorded and maintained (e. g. , in portfolios, at conferences, on tracking sheets). 8. Discuss and involve students in grading at the beginning and throughout the teaching and learning process. (Adapted from O’Connor, How to Grade for Learning ) Resource: Marzano, Transforming Classroom Grading 60 †¢ Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind Chapter 5 rely on their marks and on teachers’ comments as indicators of their level of  success, and to make decisions about their future learning endeavours. Differentiating Learning In assessment of learning, differentiation occurs in the assessment itself. It would make little sense to ask a near-sighted person to demonstrate driving proficiency without glasses. When the driver uses glasses, it is possible for the examiner to get an accurate picture of the driver’s ability, and to certify him or her as proficient. In much the same way, differentiation in assessment of learning requires that the necessary accommodations be in place that allow students to make the particular learning visible. Multiple forms of assessment offer multiple pathways for making student learning transparent to the teacher. A particular curriculum outcome requirement, such as an understanding of the social studies notion of conflict, for example, might be demonstrated through visual, oral, dramatic, or written representations. As long as writing were not an explicit component of the outcome, students who have difficulties with written language, for example, would then have the same opportunity to demonstrate their learning as other students. Although assessment of learning does not always lead teachers to differentiate  instruction or resources, it has a profound effect on the placement and promotion of students and, consequently, on the nature and differentiation of the future instruction and programming that students receive. Therefore, assessment results need to be accurate and detailed enough to allow for wise recommendations. Reporting There are many possible approaches to reporting student proficiency. Reporting assessment of learning needs to be appropriate for the audiences for whom it is intended, and should provide all of the information necessary for them to make reasoned decisions. Regardless of the form of the reporting,  however, it should be honest, fair, and provide sufficient detail and contextual information so that it can be clearly understood. Traditional reporting, which relies only on a student’s average score, provides little information about that student’s skill development or knowledge. One alternate mechanism, which recognizes many forms of success and provides a profile of a student’s level of performance on an emergent-proficient continuum, is the parent- student-teacher conference. This forum provides parents with a great deal of information, and reinforces students’ responsibility for their learning. The Communication System Continuum: From Symbols to Conversations (O’Connor, How to Grade for Learning ) Grades Report cards (grades and brief comments) Infrequent informal communications Parent-teacher interviews Report cards with expanded comments Frequent informal communication Student-involved conferencing Student-led conferencing Reflection: What forms do your reports of student proficiency take? How do these differ according to audience? Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind †¢ 61 Assessment of Learning An Example of Assessment of Learning. Elijah was interested in assessing student mastery of both the modern and the traditional skills required for survival in the Nunavut environment where he teaches. The overarching theme of survival is taught in the early grades and culminates at the senior level in a course delivered in Inuktitut. Students learn how to take care of themselves and others, and how to adapt what they know to the situation at hand. Survival requires not only skills and knowledge, but also a concept the Inuit people call qumiutit, or the ability in an emergency situation to pull out of stored memory information that will enable a person to cope, not panic. Traditionally, this was learned in a holistic manner, grounded in Inuit traditional guiding principles that were nurtured and developed from birth, and taught and reinforced in daily living. Throughout the term, Elijah took his students to an outdoor area to practise on-the-land survival activities, using both traditional and modern methods. He always took with him a knowledgeable Elder who could give the students the information they needed to store away in case of emergency. The students watched demonstrations of a skill a number of times. Each student then practised on his or her own, as Elijah and the Elder observed and assisted. Elijah knew that students need to have a high level of expertise in the survival skills appropriate for the northern natural environment. Elijah assessed each student on each survival skill (e. g. , making fire the traditional way, tying the knots required for the qamutik cross-pieces on a sled). What am I assessing? I am assessing each student’s performance of traditional and modern survival skills. Why am I assessing? I want to know which survival skills each s tudent has mastered and their readiness to s urvive in the natural environment. 62 †¢ Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind. Chapter 5 Elijah knew that the best way to determine if students have mastered the skills is to have them perform them. When students believed they were ready, Elijah created an opportunity for them to demonstrate the mastered skill to a group of Elders, who then (individually, then in consensus) determined if the performance was satisfactory. A student’s competence in a survival skill is often demonstrated by an end product. For example, competence in knot tying is demonstrated by a knot that serves its purpose, and competence in fire building is demonstrated by a fire that is robust. As the Elders judged each student’s performance of the skills, Elijah recorded the results. He shared the information with each student and his or her parents in a final report, as shown here. Ho w can I use the informatio n from this assessment? Now that I know which skills each of the students has mastered, I can report this information to the s tudents and their parents. I can use this information to identify a learning path for each s tudent. How can I ensure quality in this assessment process? Ensuring quality with this approach involves clear criteria: either the student performs the skill s uccessfully or does not. I need to provide adequate opportunities for the s tudent to demonstrate the skills under various conditions and at various times. What assessment method should I use? I need an approach in which students can demonstrate the traditional survival skills that they learned. The method I choose should also allow me to identify which skills they did not master. Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind †¢ 63 Assessment of Learning Shelters: †¢ emergency shelters †¢ igloo building4 †¢ qamaq5 †¢ tents Transportation needs: †¢ making the knots required for the qamutik cross pieces on a sled †¢ building a kayak/umiak. †¢ fixing a snowmobile (spark plugs, repairing track, drive belt) †¢ keeping a boat seaworthy Navigational issues: †¢ reading the land †¢ reading the sky †¢ understanding seasonal variations †¢ reading inuksuit †¢ using GPS †¢ map reading Preparation for land travel: †¢ packing a qamutiq (sled) †¢ load, balance †¢ necessities: snow knife, rope, food, water, heat source †¢ letting others know where you are going †¢ necessary tools, supplies, snowmobile parts, fuel †¢ using communication devices Food sources: †¢ plants and their nutritional properties †¢ hunting, skinning, and cutting up seal, caribou, etc. †¢ kinds of food to take on the land,  and their nutritional properties ____________________ 4. Expertise in igloo building includes understanding of types of snow, the shape and fit of blocks, and the use of a snow- knife. 5. A qamaq is a rounded house, built of scrap wood or bones, and covered with skins, cardboard, or canvas. Report on Survival Skills Student: _______________________________________________ Date: _______________________ Traditional Survival Skills Modern Survival Skills Adaptability to the Seasons Attitude Success Next Steps 1) Skills Building a fire / means of keeping warm: †¢ fuel sources †¢ getting a spark †¢ propane heaters, stoves †¢ clothing. 2) Relationship to the Seasons Assessing conditions / recognizing danger signs: †¢ seasonal changes †¢ land changes †¢ water changes †¢ wind changes †¢ weather changes Climatic changes: †¢ weather changes and how this affects the land and water †¢ knowledge of animals and their characteristics and behaviours 3) Attitudinal Influences (Having the right attitude to learn) †¢ respect for the environment (cleaning up a campsite upon leaving, dealing with the remains of an animal, not over-hunting/fishing) †¢ respect for Elders and their knowledge †¢ ability to learn from Elders 64 †¢ Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind Chapter 5. Elijah’s report identified which of the students had mastered the specified skills required to survive in the Nunavut environment. It outlined other areas (such as adaptability to the seasons and attitudinal influences) about which peers, parents, and family members would need to provide input before a comprehensive assessment could be made. The assessment also identified those students not yet ready to survive in the natural environment. But the Elders did not stop working with the students who did not reach mastery. Elders see learning as an individual path in which skills, knowledge, and attitudes are acquired along the way. If a particular skill was beyond the capability of a student, the Elders identified other areas where that person could contribute to the common good of the community, and was accepted for the gifts he or she brought to the group. In this way, the Elders helped Elijah differentiate the learning path for each of his students. SUMMARY OF PLANNING ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING Assessment for Learning Assessment as Learning Assessment of Learning Why Assess? To enable teachers to determine next steps in advancing student learning to guide and provide opportunities for each student to monitor and critically reflect on his or her learning, and  identify next steps Assess What? each student’s progress and learning needs in relation to the curricular outcomes each student’s thinking about his or her learning, what strategies he or she uses to support or challenge that learning, and the mechanisms he or she uses to adjust and advance his or her learning. What Methods? a range of methods in different modes that make students’ skills and understanding visible a range of methods in different modes that elicit students’ learning and metacognitive processes Ensuring Quality †¢ accuracy and consistency of observations and interpretations of student learning  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ clear, detailed learning expectations †¢ accurate, detailed notes for descriptive feedback to each student †¢ accuracy and consistency of student’s self-reflection, self-monitoring, and self-adjustment. †¢ engagement of the student in considering and challenging his or her thinking †¢ students record their own learning Using the Information †¢ provide each student with accurate descriptive feedback to further his or her learning †¢ differentiate instruction by continually checking where each student is in relation to the curricular outcomes †¢ provide parents or guardians with descriptive feedback about student  learning and ideas for support. †¢ provide each student with accurate descriptive feedback that will help him or her develop independent learning habits †¢ have each student focus on the task and his or her learning (not on getting the right answer) †¢ provide each student with ideas for adjusting, rethinking, and articulating his or her learning †¢ provide the conditions for the teacher and student to discuss alternatives †¢ students report about their learning Rethinking Classroom Assessment with Purpose in Mind. †¢ 65 Assessment of Learning to certify or inform parents or others of student’s proficiency in  relation to curriculum learning outcomes the extent to which students can apply the key concepts, knowledge, skills, and attitudes related to the curricular outcomes a range of methods in different modes that assess both product and process †¢ accuracy, consistency, and fairness of judgements based on high-quality information †¢ clear, detailed learning expectations †¢ fair and accurate summative reporting †¢ indicate each student’s level of learning †¢ provide the foundation for discussions on placement or promotion †¢ report fair, accurate, and detailed information that can be used to decide the next steps in a student’s learning.

Concepts of Organisational Culture

Concepts of Organisational Culture What is organisational culture? Organisational culture is often referred to as something which tells us more about the organisation. This something may be the personality, philosophy, ideology or even the overall climate of the organisation. Organisational Culture is therefore an element which differentiates each organisation from the other and gives it a unique identity (Buchanan and Huczynski, 2004). The managerial writers vs. the academic social scientists The debate arises when theorists try to define culture. The management academics and consultants perceive this culture as a collection of values and beliefs, myths, symbols, heroes and symbols that possess a uniform meaning for all the employees. Whereas, the academic social scientists see it as a subjective reality of values and beliefs, artefacts, myths, symbols etc. They believe that organisational culture is formed through the social interactions of the organisations members and hence it is produced and reproduced continuously (Buchanan and Huczynski, 2004). This essay takes up both these contrasting perspectives separately in the light of various theoretical models and the examples of real life organisations. Organisational culture: following or adopting? The Managerial writers such as ouchi,1981; Deal and Kennedy,1982; Pascale and Athos,1982; Peters and Waterman,1982 and Schien,1985; believe that culture being an attribute of the organisation is given to its members who do not participate in its formation and accept or tolerate it as the organisation has it (Buchanan and Huczynski, 2004). Thus it is a collection of some basic assumptions that all organisational employees share and hence if these assumptions are changed, the culture will automatically be changed (Schien, 1985 Cited in Buchanan and Huczynski, 2004). Schien (1983) in his three levels of culture points out one of the sources of organisational values as those values which were the idea of a single person (founder) and are later modified by the companys current senior management. In contrast, Buchanan and Huczynski (2004) argue that if such is the case then these values may not be adopted by employees but only followed by them. And if senior management are the source of creating organisational values then these value may cause chaos when mergers and acquisitions take place. Then it will be a question of which of the older companies value will be followed in the newly formed organisation. Organisational culture as a means of unification and control The managerial writers suggest that if the basic assumptions are integrated amongst members and the organisation has a unified culture, then employee control will be possible and this will lead to greater productivity and profitability (Buchanan and Huczynski, 2004). On the other hand, the academic social scientists argue that a unified culture is never possible as organisational culture is pluralistic in nature due to the different subcultures present in every organisation. (Buchanan and Huczynski, 2004). Where managerial writer talk about extending the same unified culture to all the employees Brown (1995) argues and states the following facts that influence culture: Even if the employees are enthusiastic and intrinsically motivated as suggested by McGregors theory Y, most of them only give a fraction of their time to the organisation. They are members of other variety of clubs, societies and unions and hence they may not accept the culture whole heartedly and without any question since their demands and constraints are also influenced by these other bodies Part time or temporary workers are less likely to adopt the culture and some of them are actually working part time to avoid cultural control systems. Large numbers of people perform relatively unrewarding and undemanding jobs just for the sake of the financial reward. These workers may be only loosely attached to the organisation and may even go against a dominant culture in the organisation Contractual workers who are hired by organisations are actually members of separate organisations and it will be extremely difficult to make them feel part of the organisation. Therefore, the changing patterns of employment and organisational forms are actually impacting many of the very strict and cohesive cultures. The managerial writers believe in symbolic management of employees i.e. the use of organisational culture and selectively applying rites, ceremonials, myths, stories and legends to direct the behaviour of employees. The academic social scientists argue that since people enter organisations with different expectations, experiences, values, beliefs and motivations hence these factors also influence their behaviour in different directions In the practical world, we see companies using both these ideas, some try to reconsider their values and beliefs; and under the banner of changing culture try to come up and introduce new values and beliefs. It is argued that such attempts at changing culture may change behaviour of employees but not their deep rooted value and beliefs which do eventually have an impact on some of their behaviours (Thompson and Findlay, 1999). A simple example would be of the recent importance to corporate social responsibility. In such a case an employee may differ on his value and belief for a certain ethical issue, say the employee may not believe in child labour but what will he/she do when the company may have to outsource its manufacturing to a third world country (where majority of children are used as cheap labour) in order to cut down cost. Here, the employee may be convinced to change his behaviour and he/she may do so to save their job but at the end of the day their value and believe rema ins unchanged. On the other hand, some companies increase their employee interactions in a way that changes employee behaviour automatically. An example would be of an organisation that increases employee interactions with the customers and through this the employees are better aware of what behaviours please the customers. The changing nature of culture Another argument against the managerial writers would be that since they see organisational culture as something that has been pre determined and cannot be changed, how would they take into account the several changing factors that influence culture generally. An organisations culture may be influenced by its history, primary function and technology, its customers, its goals and objectives, size, location, top executives, strategy, structure and its environment (Mullins, 2007). The argument therefore is what happens to the culture when either of these factors changes. What will happen if there is new top executive in the company who may modify the founders ideas as per his values and beliefs? What happens if the organisation steps into a dynamic industry and requires a new structure and strategy, will its culture not automatically change or will the whole process of laying down new basic assumptions (values, beliefs, myths, stories and artefacts) will have to be put into action to ma ke the culture change? What happens if an organisation makes an international move and faces a new national culture? How will it now rely on its old stories, myths, legends and artefacts to induce a change in this new national culture? This argument is supported by the academic social scientists who consider culture to be produced and reproduced through different interactions. A fairly new concept is the learning organisation which was conceived by Peter Senge as a place where people at all levels are in a continuous state of learning and individual learning results in organisational learning (Mullins, 2007). Although it may seem as a utopian concept but it strengthens the academic social scientists view of the is culture which is in a state of continuous re-production. Therefore one can agree that the culture of the learning organisation would be one which would continuously change with every new organisational learning. At the learning organisation the has culture would be seen as one which would bound learning and may not appeal to the intrinsic sense of the employees to challenge, learn and achieve. On the contrary critiques like Harrison argue that the sum of the learning of individuals does not necessarily equal organisational learning (Mullins, 2007) Pixar is one such organisation which believes in creativity and learning at not only the artistic level but the technical level as well. The underlying reason for such a belief is that a movie contains many ideas all of which do not necessarily come from the producer or the creative head, but these ideas come from people dealing with cameras, characters, lightening etc. Pixar follows a peer culture where they have open discussions and exchange of ideas over any piece of ongoing work. They also have peers who look at and analyse daily motion work, unlike Disney where only a small senior group has the responsibility to do so. Therefore, at Pixar learning occurs from all directions and all employees which is due to its belief that everyone should have the freedom to communicate with anyone and it must be safe for anyone and everyone to offer ideas. That is how they foster collective creativity and learning (HBR, 2008). Organisational culture and the psychological contract The psychological contract of employees is another component which may be viewed in the light of the two perspectives of organisational culture. If the has culture is considered the psychological contract may be seen as the same for all employees as all share the same basic assumptions and clear controls are in place and hence the employer and employees may be contracting with each other on the same set of expectations. On the other hand the is culture will produce many different psychological contracts of employees and it will become very hard for the organisation to manage them, as each individual on the basis of their different interactions and interpretations will have a different set of expectations. (Herriot and Pemberton, 1995). The dilemma in cultural practice A major problem for an organisation can be sticking to any one of these cultural ideologies. This is due to the fact that an organisation on one hand may have an espoused culture i.e. how its senior management describes it and on the other hand it may have its in-practice culture i.e. the culture as it is experienced and lived by its members. Therefore even if it claims to be following a certain ideology it will always have more than one culture running in the organisation. Organisations rarely possess just one unified culture. One culture that superimposes the organisation culture is the stitched together patch of sub cultures in an organisation which may be overlapping and conflicting as well. (Brown, 1995) We see this conflict in the organisational culture of Nokia where on one hand it claims to nourish new ideas and innovation amongst employees (http://www.nokia.com/careers/nokia-as-an-employer/nokia-way-and-values) where as on the other hand it seems to have lost a head start at touch screen technology. This was when its stifling bureaucratic culture killed the idea of a smart phone with internet and touch screen technology and the management reasoned it to be a development Nokia would not be interested in. (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/news/hardware/Nokias-bureaucratic-culture-troubles-new-CEO/articleshow/6637291.cms).However, recently we see that Nokia is struggling to compete in the same market. If the management would have actually maintained the culture they claim, and would have fostered idea growth, they would probably have been ahead of apple today. The concept of Organisation Socialization The managerial writers believe that a process of organisation socialization has to be followed with new employees of the organisation in order to make them learn the culture so that they can follow it and survive in the organisation. (Edgar schien, 1979 Cited in Buchanan page 650). It must be remembered that these writers believe that culture must be tolerated as it is something an organisation has. But when organisations like Disneyland are considered, it may be argued that the organisation socialization process consists of two parts. One is the formal socialization where the new recruits attend the University of Disneyland on an apprenticeship programme. This is where they learn the history, philosophy, language and values of the company. The other is the informal socialization mechanisms which are also very well developed at Disney land. New recruits at some point learn through their peers that the job they are assigned, the costume they wear and the area of the park they are allotted are actually determinants of their social status at work. At the same time they also learn about Getting back at misbehaving guests by tightening seat belts, slamming breaks suddenly and drenching people standing at river banks (Brown, 1995). Now, this informal socialisation is actually another sub culture within the organisation which is limited to the employees. Hence, this reinforces the ideo logy that culture may not necessarily be taught but may be born through social interactions. Organisational Culture and Motivation When discussing motivation and culture, one may argue how a culture of motivation may be left to be developed by the social interaction of organisational members. In such an area, the organisation may have to provide a cohesive culture which can offer employees both extrinsic rewards and intrinsic rewards such as bonuses, promotions, and stories, rites and ceremonies which create feelings of belonging. An organisation may also have to employ threats of punishments such as unwanted transfers, demotions and salary decreases to deal with certain cases of lack of motivation (Brown, 1995). Here we see that the views of managerial writers are more practical of providing a certain has form of culture to keep motivation in place. Bringing about Cultural Change The managerialist writers believe that culture can only be changed by changing the basic assumptions by the senior management (Schein 1979) we see that these writers specifically Schein are also compelled to believe and have written that when an organisation is in the last stage of its development i.e. maturity where it may also see declining profitability and loss of key people and outsiders have to be brought in to manage the organisation, such an influx of outsiders may induce cultural change. (Brown, 1995). Although, Schein states that such a change occurs due to change in the stage of organisational development (from birth and early growth to organisational midlife to organisational maturity) but it may be argued on the basis of the academic social scientists that such a change was induced by the change in key people and new social interaction induced a change in culture. Change is therefore viewed as intentional, predictable, pre-determined and brought about after careful planning, thus it follows a rational step-by-step procedure to effectively manage change(e.g. Kotter, 1996). An argument for cultural change is that changing only one factor as suggested by managerial writers such as a basic assumption may not be enough to bring about a cultural change. Ram Charan gives the example of cultural change at Home Depot involves multi-directional changes in the ways people worked to support the business model. A change was made to four main dimensions: Behaviour expectations were clarified and identification and measurement methods were put across. Metric such as data quantifying customer perceptions of the home depot experience clarified the expectation of accountability. Processes of how work was done were changed to fit the new culture e.g. instead of the old memos a video cast went out to all stores which focused on the upcoming promotions, new product lines and sales targets and bonuses for the week ahead.of new product lines, the revenue needed in the last week. Specific Programmes were put into place to support the cultural change e.g. competitive simulation and role-playing exercises where employees had to act out situations which clarified to them why the huge changes were made. Changes in the organisational structure made it easier to follow the new culture e.g. changes were made in purchasing processes to lower costs. Cultural change management takes place in an open system where the organisation has to simultaneously react to external needs and demand. In the recent years, factors such as globalisation, diversity, equality, increasing number of immigrants and avoiding discrimination have had a vast impact on how organisations manage cultural change. Is cultural change manageable? Cultures are a complex social phenomenon produced as a result of interactions. Therefore they are a product of humans, created by humans, sustained by humans and therefore can also be changed by human intervention. Therefore even if it is not planned to be changed, it will change as the social interactions change (bate, 1994) page 137 The main question is whether cultural change is manageable? i.e. whether persons can change culture deliberately, intervene by will and change the path of development of culture. This is where cultural change programmes fail to succeed since they do not take into account studying in detail the culture that has to be changed. An in-depth knowledge of the current culture is the basis for managing cultural change. (bate, 1994) page 137-138 Organisational Culture, Structure and Strategy What we notice and experience as cultural change depends directly on how we conceptualize culture (Meyerson and Martin, 1987 cited in Bate, 1994) page 9 The supporters of the has culture see culture as a component of an organisation which is no different to the other components such as structure, strategy, staff and so on. (Bate, 1994) page 11 One such model which details this is the Mckinseys 7-S framework which puts culture i.e. shared values at the centre of all the other components (Structure, Strategy, Systems, Style, Skills and Staff) (Peters and Waterman 1982 cited in bate,1994)page 11 Hence culture in this framework is treated as a variable which influences and is influenced by all the other organisational components. Hence Culture has an influence over organisational effectiveness in two regards, firstly its strength and secondly how well it is aligned with the other components (e.g. the structure-culture fit).Therefore from this perspective, changing culture is equivalent to a mere tasking of removing a faulty component and inserting a new one. (Bate, 1994 page 11-12) On the contrary, the supporters of the is culture conceive culture as synonymous with organisation i.e. an organisation is culture. They see culture as a paradigm which is defined by interpersonal organisational life. Therefore they see cultural change to be the same as organisational change. Since there is no bifurcation between organisation and culture therefore change in one will automatically lead to change in another and thus no separate strategies are required for each. (Bate, 1994)page 14 Another argument against strong cultures is that they have a development strategy for culture but no change strategy and so they are more likely to get trapped in their own culture. An example of such is the Hewlett Packard case where its ideology of doing things the HP way offered some form of comforts to the employees which backfired and employees were so busy being nice to each other that they avoided making commercial decisions which went against any other employee (such as laying off or relocating people). HPs intense humanistic ways lead to the employees viewing their privileges as rights e.g. refusal to relocate to other divisions made some divisions less competitive (bate, 1994) page 127 -128 On the other hand the has perspective which reinforces the importance of a strong culture is attractive from the view point that organisations can easily audit their cultures and be proactive in changing or strengthening the shared basic assumption and they can even bring about intentional change through the process of reculturing (Stoll, 1999). The has culture takes culture as, a separate component in an organisation and hence deals with issues such as strategy culture fit and so on. Weick (1985) and Hennestad (1991) argue against such a perspective stating that culture and strategy are substitutable for one another and culture is a strategic phenomenon and strategy is a cultural phenomenon. This implies that from such a perspective formulating a strategy of any kind is actually a cultural activity which will bring about engagement in a cultural change (Bate, 1994). A real life example of such a scenario would be when a company changes its strategy from a production oriented strategy to a market led strategy, this actually brings about a cultural change where a culture encouraging market research and up-to-date market knowledge is born. Further, the perspective implies that cultural change is actually strategic change where moving from one culture to another actually moving from one strategy to another. (Bate, 1994). A real life example of this perspective would be when a company like Disneyland in its organisational socialization stage declares to its employees that customer is king , this is in itself a strategy of being customer oriented. Pg 17-23 Limitations of the two cultural perspectives The managerialist perspective of organisational culture has a number of limitations. However, arguably it limits a deeper understanding of organisational culture and analyses only surface cultural factors such as taken-for-granted values and basic assumptions held in unity by the organisational members as described by Schein (1985). Secondly, it does not take into account the impact of the external environment on organisations which may play a role in determining change processes. The social perspective on the other hand gives a detailed insight into organisational culture, it opens up to dynamic areas of culture. But it requires the collection of very rich qualitative date which may not necessarily provide a clear pathway for action and interpretation of the data becomes a tedious task (Prosser, 2007) The management of organisational change is therefore understood from an open systems perspective in the organisations reaction to external forces and its adaptation and responsiveness to external needs and demands. Conclusion There is a lack of a definite way to define, control and change organisational culture. This may be due to the fact that researchers who work on this topic themselves come from different cultures and consider different elements to be part of organisational culture. The early researchers took a more philosophical approach to the topic. A reason for this might have been the unproven influence of culture on management and organisational practices. Later the academic social scientist gave a more externally-oriented approach which may have been due to the evolution of organisational culture and its impact on organisations (Stefan and Liz, 2000). The essay, based on various theoretical arguments, suggest that there is a broad scope for debates relating to whether culture can be changed or influenced, depending on how culture is defined. Most of the authors unite on the notion that culture can be changed but they differ on how and to what extent this can be done. They also differ on the fact if culture is only followed on the surface or adopted whole-heartedly. Another area covered was the debate about unification of employees on the basis of a unified culture. Cross relations of organisational culture with other concepts such as strategy, structure, motivation, psychological contract and socialization have been discussed. The essay ends with mentioning the limitations of the two approaches to organisational culture which reveal that these concepts are also influenced by the open and closed systems that an organisation may operate in.

Workplace Observation Essays -- essays research papers

The organization I work for is DBS, it is a world leader in the development and manufacture of compact, professional infra-red electronic testing tools. The company was founded in 1940, it has more than 2,000 employees around the world. DBS products are used by technicians and engineers in service, installation, maintenance, manufacturing test and quality functions in a variety of industries throughout the world. I have only worked for DBS for 4 months and I am proud to be part of the organization. The work environment is wonderful, educational and enjoyable. Organizational Policies In DBS, the policies are an important management tool. Policies reflect the rules that control the performance of the organization processes. Every company that my organization has around the world are subject to follow through the company policies. All employees are responsible to understand every policy no exemptions. They have to sign a document, which states that they read the companies policies, and understand that they need to follow them and will be liable if they do not. The policies in my organization helps employees understand the expectations about the work environment, communicate standards of action and behavior as well as helping new hires get up to speed about how things work in the organization. In addition, it helps increase professionalism and efficiency in the organization as well as to protect the company from possible legal actions. The policies also help management attai...

Richard Nixon :: essays research papers

Reconciliation was the first goal set by President Richard M. Nixon. The Nation was painfully divided, with turbulence in the cities and war overseas. During his Presidency, Nixon succeeded in ending American fighting in Viet Nam and improving relations with the U.S.S.R. and China. But the Watergate scandal brought fresh divisions to the country and ultimately led to his resignation. His election in 1968 had climaxed a career unusual on two counts: his early success and his comeback after being defeated for President in 1960 and for Governor of California in 1962. Born in California in 1913, Nixon had a brilliant record at Whittier College and Duke University Law School before beginning the practice of law. In 1940, he married Patricia Ryan; they had two daughters, Patricia (Tricia) and Julie. During World War II, Nixon served as a Navy lieutenant commander in the Pacific. On leaving the service, he was elected to Congress from his California district. In 1950, he won a Senate seat. Two years later, General Eisenhower selected Nixon, age 39, to be his running mate. As Vice President, Nixon took on major duties in the Eisenhower Administration. Nominated for President by acclamation in 1960, he lost by a narrow margin to John F. Kennedy. In 1968, he again won his party's nomination, and went on to defeat Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey and third-party candidate George C. Wallace. His accomplishments while in office included revenue sharing, the end of the draft, new anticrime laws, and a broad environmental program. As he had promised, he appointed Justices of conservative philosophy to the Supreme Court. One of the most dramatic events of his first term occurred in 1969, when American astronauts made the first moon landing. Some of his most acclaimed achievements came in his quest for world stability. During visits in 1972 to Beijing and Moscow, he reduced tensions with China and the U.S.S.R. His summit meetings with Russian leader Leonid I. Brezhnev produced a treaty to limit strategic nuclear weapons. In January 1973, he announced an accord with North Viet Nam to end American involvement in Indochina. In 1974, his Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, negotiated disengagement agreements between Israel and its opponents, Egypt and Syria. In his 1972 bid for office, Nixon defeated Democratic candidate George McGovern by one of the widest margins on record. Within a few months, his administration was embattled over the so-called "Watergate" scandal, stemming from a break-in at the offices of the Democratic National Committee during the 1972 campaign.