The impact of automation Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The impact of automation - Term Paper Example on on the society is an increase in the mechanical power available to an individual owing to the presence of new opportunities and the decreased demand for labour. The opportunities that arise from automation, especially with fabricators are participation in the development, use, repair, and distribution of fabricators, software, and related hardware. The other impact of automation on the society is the increased productivity 100 or 1000 times per machine operator reducing the demand for skilled labour at workplaces (Johnsen, 1976). The effect is an increase in the level of pervert since the extra workers have to be dismissed to pave the way for the machines and affecting the standards of living negatively. The level of unemployment in the society in the economy increases owing to the increased use of machines in completion of tasks previously undertaken by humans. Automation results in better product quality through reduction in human errors in the production process. Automated of inspection and assembly methods result in the improvement of the durability of manufactured products as exemplified with the production of cars, refrigerators, and televisions that have been shown to last longer than previous models owing to automation (Burns, 1993). Quality products from automation result in the value for money for the consumers and less money are spent on replacement and repairs. The standards of living in the society improve with the increased automation of production processes and methods. The other impact of automation has been the increased possibility of recycling of older products for new product models aiding in the reduction of wastes in the society (Burns, 1993). Examples are the introduction of recycling of used Apple products under the reign of Steve Jobs and the recycling of brake shoes and engine blocks in the automotive industry. Structural unemployment emerges and increases as a result of automation resulting in the reduction in consumer and disposal

An Evaluation of Academic Performance of Grade Essay Example for Free

An Evaluation of Academic Performance of Grade Essay Introduction â€Å"Bright minds make bright future! † Preparatory children nowadays are far  Ã‚  better than before they are more advanced in teaching and more capable of absorbing the methods of learning that used with them. Modern teaching accompanied with modules and analytical measures develop the  preschooler’s memory retention that serves as the foundation of their education. Kids today  are more willing and not afraid to  try to discover new ways and methods of learning. The value of preschool is a  hot topic these days. A small but growing number of  studies link enrolment in preschool or child care  centers (which typically include a  preschool curriculum) to higher cognitive and language scores on kindergarten-entry tests The early childhood stage is a  permanent learning stage. Whatever they learn now, they will take home. This preschool education is the provision of education for  children  before the commencement of statutory education, usually between the ages of three and five, dependent on the jurisdiction. The institutional arrangements for preschool education vary widely around the world, as do the names  applied to the institutions. Effective preschool education can help make all children ready to learn the day they start school and, more importantly, help close the  enormous gap facing children in  poverty. Preschool gives our kids the strong  foundation they need to be  successful in school and in life. Children who attend pre-kindergarten programs have bigger  vocabularies and increased math  skills, know more letters and more letter-sound associations, and are more familiar with words and book concepts, according to a number  of studies (Patson P. Opido 2010). The child is the ultimate concern in all educational processes. He is the beginning at the end of all educational efforts. The goal of education is to help every child grow up well-rounded; physically well-developed, mentally healthy, intelligently alert, emotionally secure and socially well adjusted. These can be truly achieved by giving attention to the child’s foundation. The first day of the children in school is a unique experience. It may be their first contact with big group of children. The difference among first grade pupils in their level of preparedness to grade one work may vary. The grade I teacher should be aware of the differences in the children’s readiness; some readiness is the springboard to do actions. Knowing pupil’s differences will guide the teacher on what to do to develop them to the fullest ( Lindberg and Swedo, 1995). A child born of a healthy, responsible and emotionally mature parents has a good foundation. His parents, especially the mother, guide him through the proper habits of eating, sleeping and cleanliness. An individual’s attitude toward himself and others, his behaviour either at work or at play, and his emotional roots in his early childhood experiences. What he learns at home constitutes the basis for future learning and adjustment. As the child develops social awareness, he needs to experience association with a larger group outside his home. Parents send their children to school simply because they want them to develop basic health habits and self sufficiency. Furthermore, this also includes the ability to use language patterns for simple and correct social attitudes in relation to the company of people around him, whether adults or other children and the appreciation of the aesthetic attributes of his immediate surroundings. Modern teaching accompanied with modules and analytical measures develop the preschooler’s memory retention serving as the foundation of their education. Kids today are more willing and not afraid to try to discover new ways and methods of learning. The value of preschool is a hot topic these days. A small but growing number of studies link enrolment in preschool or child care centers (which typically include a preschool curriculum) to higher cognitive and language scores on kindergarten-entry tests. The early childhood stage is a permanent learning stage. Whatever they learn now, they will take home. This preschool education is the provision of education for children before the commencement of statutory education, usually between the ages of three and five, dependent on the jurisdiction. Parents on the other hand, play a vital role in educating their children because they are their first teachers, which is the greatest contribution before a child ever begins his formal education in school. When a child enters the formal school, he carries out with him the acquired values from his parents. Just like the teacher’s task, if parents fail to perform their responsibilities, it may bring misbehaviour on their children which may directly or indirectly affect the child’s academic performance. In the Philippine public elementary schools today, inner tensions have been continuously affecting the learners going to grade one level, especially those who had never gone to any kind of schooling before. These learners entering grade one have many apprehensions. Most of them have no experiences in going to school. Parents are not capable of sending them to school especially those in remote and slum areas. Instead of giving their children a chance to study in Day Care Centers and Kindergarten in some public elementary schools, they ended up waiting for their to be accepted in Grade One. With these scenarios the pupils encounter difficulties in catching up with different skills like numeracy and literacy which are now the basic skills necessary in the first grade level of formal schooling. These children also suffer in relating themselves to their new environment, the school. In order to have a smooth transition from home to school and to prepare them socially and psychologically, the curriculum on the Early Childhood Experiences was recommended for adoption in all public elementary schools as included in Every Child A Reader Program ( ECARP). It aims to developing the reading readiness and developmental reading in Grade one as launched by the Department of Education. One of the major goals of the 2015 Education for All (EFA) is the expansion of the coverage and improvement of the quality of the Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) programs in the country. The present government administration in its Ten-Point Agenda has declared a policy calling for the standardization of preschool and day care centers. The Department of Education (DepEd) in support of this thrust will administer School Readiness Assessment Test to All Grade One Entrants, effective SY 2005-2006. The School Readiness Assessment (SRA) is a tool to determine the readiness of Grade One entrants in tackling formal Grade One work. The School Readiness Assessment Tool will be administered by Grade One teachers assisted by the Grade Two and Three teachers one week before opening of classes. The assessment shall not be treated as an entrance test or examination. No child shall be refused entry to Grade 1 based on the results neither of this assessment nor without preschool experience. To continuously determine the school readiness of all Grade One Entrants, the School Readiness Assessment (SReA) was administered. One of the objectives of SReA is to assess pupils’ readiness across the different developmental domains – gross and fine motor, receptive/ expressive language, cognitive domain and socio- economic domain. The result obtained was the basis for grouping the Grade One entrants. It was also used to guide Grade One teachers in providing appropriate instruction and assistance to address specific needs of the pupils. The result of the School Readiness Test in May 2011 identified that there were at least forty two point ninety eight percent of the school population of Grade One entrants were not ready. Children with No Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) has low average in pupils’ readiness across the different developmental domains – gross and fine motor, receptive/ expressive language, cognitive domain and socio- economic domain. Background of the Study The researcher is motivated by the above mentioned situation and this led to the conceptualization of this study. As an educator, the researcher is faced with the fact that there is an imperative need to strengthen and streamline the internal management of educational arrangements in order to achieve efficiency and responsiveness to trends and challenges of the next millennium. It is therefore the aim of this study to empower parents and positively influence them on affirmative effects of pre-school education in the holistic development of their children particularly on the advancement of their academic performance. The value of preschool is a  hot topic these days. A small but growing number of  studies link enrolment in preschool or child care  centers (which typically include a  preschool curriculum) to higher cognitive and language scores on kindergarten-entry tests. The early childhood stage is a  permanent learning stage. Whatever they learn now, they will take home. This preschool education is the provision of education for  children  before the commencement of statutory education, usually between the ages of three and five, dependent on the jurisdiction. The institutional arrangements for preschool education vary widely around the world, as do the names  applied to the institutions ( Bustos Alicia and Espiritu 1985). The Early Childhood Experiences Curriculum, hence all Grade One teachers are expected to implement it. Teachers are also encouraged to make use of local songs, games, dances and indigenous materials to enrich the curriculum. It is hoped that the Early Childhood Experience for Grade One will greatly benefit the children and strengthen efforts to make the schools child-friendly. Theoretical Framework This study is anchored on Edward Thorndike’s, Jerome Bruner’s, and B. F. Skinner’s Theories of Learning. These theories enabled the researcher in the conceptualization of this work. The Law of Readiness as advocated by Thorndike is associated with mind set. It states that when an organism is prepared to respond to a stimulus, allowing doing so would be satisfying while preventing him would be annoying. This law works well in this study because the children is mentally ready to learn. The Law of Exercise states that the constant repetition of response strengthens its connection with the stimulus, while disuse of response weakens it. The exercises given to the children using a modifiable connection like instructional materials enables them to acquire the learning easier and faster because the responses will be utilized, the stronger the connection to be developed. Thus, when a modifiable between a stimulus and a response has been made, it is strengthened if its results in satisfaction as the Law of effect proves. Jerome Bruner’s (1915) theory of Instrumental conceptualization is also applied as it involves (3) three simultaneous processes as: Acquisition, Transformation and Evaluation. This theory of learning believes that the acquisition of whatever form of knowledge acquisition, who selects structures, retains and transforms information. Teaching without the use of proper strategic plans will result to failure. Through School Readiness Assessment Test (SReA), pupils will acquire knowledge through different techniques used by the researchers. Hence, learning to read is facilitated by Skinner’s Theory. Conceptual Framework This study focused on the evaluation of academic performance of Grade One pupils with and without Early Childhood Experience of Sto. Nino Elementary School. The independent variable consist of School Readiness Assessment Test (SReA) for children with and without Early Childhood Experience while the dependent variable is the academic performance of the respondents in terms of the following: Sensory Discrimination, Concept Formation, Numeracy, Reading Readiness and Construction and Visual Motor Integration. Research Paradigm Independent Variable Dependent Variable Figure 1 The above figure shows the relationship of independent variables to dependent variables of the study. Statement of the Problem This study intended to evaluate the academic performance of Grade One pupils with and without Early Childhood Experience (ECE) at Sto. Nino Elementary School, Division of San Pablo City. Specifically, this study sought to answer the following questions: 1. What are the mean pre-test scores of the two groups of pupils in terms of the following: a) Sensory, b) Concept Formation, c) Numeracy, d) Reading Readiness and e) Construction and Visual- Motor Integration? 2. What are the mean post-test scores of the two groups of pupils in terms of the following: a) Sensory Discrimination, b) Concept Formation, c) Numeracy, d) Reading Readiness and e) Construction and Visual Motor- Integration? 3. Is there a significant difference in the mean scores between the pupils with and without Early Childhood Experience (ECE) and their performance? Hypothesis The hypothesis stated below was tested in this study. There is no significant difference in the mean scores between the pupils with Early Childhood Experience (ECE) and those without Early Childhood Experience (ECE) and their performance in terms of the following: i. Sensory Discrimination, ii. Concept Formation, iii. Numeracy, iv. Reading Readiness and a. Construction and Visual- Motor Integration? Significance of the Study This study is of importance to the pupils, teachers, principals, parents and other researcher for the following reasons: Pupils are primary group which the study would benefit. They are the central point to be given much consideration because they are the recipients of this study. They will be assessed and it would be a big help for them to improve their academic performance. Teachers are the facilitators of learning. They may be able to undertake possible teaching alternatives that may be facilitate, enhance and improve their teaching skills to cater the needs of the pupils with and without Early Childhood Experience in order to improve their academic performance. They will specifically take cognizance of their status at present in terms of the problem arising in their own classroom. Likewise, they could assess definitely where the problem lie and thus, make remediation to solve them. Therefore the learners’ needs would be taken into considerations. The results of this investigation will also help other teacher in the field since the problems raised here may have also help them to improve the academic performance of their pupils. Principals are the ones who initiate support for every change that happens in the school. Good management and supervision of the school and the teachers, respectively, are the responsibility of the principals. Results which this study reveal may enable the school heads to plan out better and more effective ways to evaluate the academic performance of Grade One pupils with and without Early Childhood Experience. It is very important to take in consideration the needs of Grade One pupils because it is the foundation year for them. In that case the principal ought to have a plan to cater the individual needs of the learner to improve their academic performance to elevate the quality of education in the country. Parents are stakeholders of the school. The findings of this study are important to parents because they need to be informed about the performance of their school children in school. Through this, they will know the importance of Early Childhood Experience (ECE) for their children. For this reason, they will send them in preschool. So that their children will not be shocked with their new environment. The parents will work hand and hand with the teacher in facilitating strategies to evaluate the academic performance of the learners. They may also help influencing their children to have a good study habits. Their support to their children and school is important so that the goals will be attained. Other researchers who would be interested with this problem may gain further insights in developing their own research work. The data that will be revealed by this study may be used by other researcher to enhance their own studies. They may also use it as related study or augment data that they have to come up with a more comprehensive knowledge about the problem presented here into. Scope and Limitation of the Study The focus of the study to be conducted is An Evaluation of Academic Performance of Sto. Nino Elementary School, Dapdapan, District, Division of San Pablo City. It limits its coverage on the result of School Readiness Assessment (SReA) which includes the following areas – Sensory Discrimination, Concept Formation, Numeracy, Reading Readiness, and Construction and Visual Integration; the Pre test and Post test of School Readiness Assessment (SReA) and the instructional module being devised to answer the needs of Grade One pupils. The respondents of the study will be eighty (80) pupils of Sto. Nino Elementary School, forty (40) pupils with Early Childhood Experience (ECE) and forty (40) pupils without Early Childhood Experience (ECE). Definition of Terms For the interpretation of the study, the terms used are defined in order to avoid vagueness or ambiguousness meaning. Therefore, provide the reader a common point of reference. Public Elementary SchoolsThese are school managed, operated and maintained by the national government. It offers curricular programs for Grade One to Six children. Sensory Discrimination These refer to exercises in discriminating simplest form of mental operation that was clearly intellective. It includes exercises on identifying same and different shapes. Concept FormationThese refer to exercises that requires the learner to construct the properties of the object from the definition. It includes exercises on completing statements showing simple analogy. Numeracy The term refers the ability to learn the specific tasks in Mathematics like counting, arranging, sequencing sets of objects. The numeracy skills are designed to help with the more advanced levels of mathematics that pupils will encounter during the school lives and also into their adulthood. It includes exercises pointing out which has more or less sets. In this study, it pertains to the level of achievement of the Grade One pupils in different learning skills in Mathematics as perceived by their Grade One teachers. Construction and Visual-Motor Integration These skills refer to the smooth coordination of the eyes and hands working together. Sto. Nino Elementary School Public Elementary school situated in Brgy. Sto. Nino, San Pablo City where the present study is being conducted. Grade One Pupils. Refer to children entering the formal school in the primary grades as prescribed by the Department of Education, whose ages ranges from six (6) years old and above. Chapter II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES This chapter presents literature and studies which are related to the problem. The materials found in local and foreign books, educational journals and magazines, documents, guidelines and reports by Department of Education provided references. Related Literature Philosophy and Goals of Elementary Education. Philosophy of pre-school education as stated in DECS Memo no. 107 s. 1989 considers the child, the school and the teacher with the support of the family in the maximizing the child’s potential. Pre-school education is based on the knowledge that each child is unique individual with his own biological make up, interest, capacities, and ways of viewing the world. He has a tremendous capacity for learning. He is active and understands the world differently from adult. His language has developed with acquisition of wide vocabulary making him capable of communicating his ideas and feelings. A pre-school child is always on the process of becoming, and therefore if properly developed can become a critical thinker and a socially sensitive, directed, creative, responsible and caring individual. Pre-school education must aim to develop children in all aspects physical, social, emotional and cognitive so that they will be better prepared to adjust and cope with life situations and the demands of formal schooling. By doing so, learning gaps and dropouts may be reduced or avoided to the maximum. Objectives of Pre-School education is founded on the following objectives; (Inc.DECS Memo No. 45 1995). They are as follows: To develop the child in all aspects ( physical, social, emotional and cognitive) so that they may be better prepared to adjust and cope with the life situations within the context of his experience. To maximize the child’s potential through a variety of carefully selected and meaningful experiences considering his interests and capabilities, and; To develop the child in all aspects so that he becomes a self- propelling, thinking and contributing individual able to make decisions which all prepare him more complex demands for future life. DepEd Order No. 10, s. 2004 is the legal basis in the implementation of the Enhanced Eight-Week Early Experiences for Grade One. Its main thrust is development of academic skills among learners. It is because most Grade One entrants have not gone through pre-school experiences. Hence, the Early Childhood Experience has been enriched and aligned with the BEC making it’s integral part of the Grade 1 Curriculum. In 1995, Early Childhood Experiences for Grade One was institutionalized at the same time as the official age for entry into the primary school was dropped to six years of age. All Grade One teachers were requested to implement the Eight-Week Curriculum and gradually move to the regular Grade One curriculum. Pursuant to DepEd Order No. 15, s. 2005, which calls for the administration of School Readiness Assessment for All Grade One Entrants, all incoming Grade 1 shall undergo a school readiness assessment using the revised tool. The School Readiness Assessment (SRA) will be administered by Grade 1 teachers to be assisted by Grade II, III and master teachers of their respective schools. This assessment shall be administered twice. The first assessment given on May. The second shall be administered after the children have undergone 8-week curriculum, focusing on the competencies not manifested by the child during the first assessment. The SRA will determine the level of progress of Grade 1 entrants across different developmental domains that are critical in tracking Grade 1 learning competencies. The result shall be the basis for grouping the Grade 1 entrants. It will be also used to guide Grade 1 teachers in providing appropriate instruction and assistance to address specific needs of the pupils through the utilization of the 8-week curriculum. The assessment shall not be treated as an entrance test or examination as children may be anxious about passing or failing. No child shall be refused entry to Grade 1 based on the results of this assessment. â€Å" Educating our children at an early stage will give more chance for young Filipinos in the future to compete for jobs and opportunities in the new world order in which better educated and highly skilled persons have become the most valued resources. † Giving access to free quality early childhood education will bridge the gap between the rich and the poor that will give our less privileged countrymen a strong foundation for the challenges in the next millennium. (Eduardo J. Angara, 1997) The Early Childhood Care and Development ( ECCD ) Law, enacted in 2000, recognizes the importance of early childhood and its special needs, affirms parents as primary caregivers and the child’s first teachers, and establishes parent effectiveness, seminars and nutrition counselling for pregnant and lactating mothers. The law requires the establishment of a National Coordinating Council for the Welfare of Children which: (a) establishes guidelines, standards, and culturally relevant practices for ECCD programs; (b) develops a national system for the recruitment, training, and accrediting of caregivers; (c) monitors the delivery of ECCD services and the impact of beneficiaries; (d) provides additional resources to poor and disadvantaged communities in order to increase the supply of ECCD programs; (e) encourages the development of private sector initiatives the Republic Act 6972 known as â€Å" Barangay (village) Level Total Protection of Childen Act† has a provision that requires all local government units to establish a day-care centre in every village ; the law institutionalized the features of day-care programme that provide for young children’s learning needs aside from their health and psychosocial needs. The universalization of early childhood education and standardization of preschool and day care centers was established though the Executive Order No. 658 of 2008 (Expanding the Pre-School Coverage to Include Children Enrolled in Day Care Centers). (PTFE 2008). According to Clark (2002), in her article First Grade Readiness, there are signs one can look for, to know if a child is a ready for first grade. In the physical realm, the first grade child’s limbs are now proportion with the body and head . There is a loss of baby far and greater definition in the face. In the emotional realm, the young child who once expressed strong emotions through sudden outburst now has a feelings that begin to deepen. A child will talk of â€Å"hurt feelings† and being sad. Socially, the first grade ready child begins to form friendships which go deeper than before. The child feels loyalty for friends and often expresses the desire to be with them. In the mental realm, there is the birth of free memory. This is different than the memory of a four year old. The younger child’s memory must be triggered by a sight, smell, or rhythmic verse when the memory and recall it will. Kagan (2000) stated that the concept of school readiness has been defined and redefined over the years resulting in differing viewpoints. Several theories of child development and learning have been used to explain the term. In fact, there appears to be two types of readiness: readiness to learn, which involves a level of development at which the child has the capacity to learn specific materials, and readiness for school and readiness for school which involve specific set of cognitive, linguistic, social and motor skills that enable a child to assimilate the school’s curriculum. According to Quinto (2001) the lowering of entrance to six years old for grade one pupils in the Philippines public elementary schools have created inner tensions, especially to those who had never gone to any kind of school before. So, in order to have a smooth transition from home to school and to prepare them socially, psychologically, the curriculum on the Early Childhood Experiences was recommended for adoption in all public elementary schools. Studies show that child’s mind is almost full developed before he reaches the age of five. This presents a need for an organized early childhood education. Pre-elementary or preschool education is one of the latest trends in childhood education which gives equal opportunities to all children at the lowest step of educational ladder. Preschool education holds a prominent place, being that level in the school system wherein children are trained to be better prepared for grade one. For the development of the child, the curriculum focuses on these areas of development: physical ( gross and fine motor coordination through play and manipulated activities like games, simple work); cognitive ( communication skills, sensory-perceptual concepts, numeracy skills); personal social (health habits and independence in dressing, eating, sleeping, toileting; relating with teachers, peers and other people through group play and interaction; follow rules and routine. Groark (2006) stresses that the school and district administrators, as well as policymakers are increasingly recognizing that early education and intervention services for young children have a direct and positive impact on later school performance and quality. Soliven (1999) stated that an authority on child development, underscores the significance of pre-primary education to the mental development of children citing the results of research which showed that pre-primary education is important to the child, she pointed out the intellectual capacity of the child is most susceptible to reaches a substantially higher rate of intellectual development of Early Childhood especially in a favourable environment. It is apparent that intelligence is best developed in the first six years of life, if the child is exposed to a favourable environment for development during this formative period. Vittetow (1994) former Education Expert of International Cooperation Administration (ICA) in his Educational Series Bulletin for the Bureau of Public Schools gave growth characteristics of Pre-school Filipino children, which are true to all children at this level of growth and development. Said development and growth includes: 1) Physical Characteristics, 2) Mental Characteristics, 3) Social Characteristics, 4) Emotional Characteristics, 5) Spiritual and Moral Characteristics and 6) Aesthetic Characteristics. According to Kats (2001) what the children learn, how they learn, and how much they learn depend on many factors. Among the most important factor’s are the child’s physical well-being, and his emotional and cognitive relationships with those who care for him. The school readiness goal reflects two concerns about the education of young children. The first is that the increasing numbers of young children in poverty, in single-parent households have limited proficiency in English are affected by the drug abuse of their parents have poor nutrition, and receive inadequate health care. The second area of concern involves such matters as the high rates of retention in kindergarten and primary grades, delayed school entry in some districts, segregated transition in classes in others and the increasing use of standardized tests to determine children’s readiness to enter school. Standardized tests used to deny children entrance to school or place them in special classes are inappropriate for children younger than six. These trends are due largely to the fact that an academic curriculum and direct instruction teaching practices that are appropriate for the upper grades have gradually been moved down to the kindergarten and first grade. These two areas of concern suggest that reaching the school readiness goal will require a twofold strategy: one part focused on supporting families in their efforts to help their children get ready for school, and the second on helping the schools to be responsive to the wide range of development levels, backgrounds, experiences, and needs of children to bring them in school. Watson (1985) pointed out that groups of children of higher economic status have higher level of intelligence than those favored economic status, the higher their average IQ’s on Standford Binet or similar verbal test. The mismatch between the schools and children from low income working class families had led to concerted attempts to involve parents from these families in the schools. When the school can involve low-income parents, their children’s school attendance increases, the children are less disruptive in class and less aggressive on the playground, their classwork improves, and they are more likely to complete their homework. If they are raised in emotionally secured homes they tend to be emotionally secured children. If they are raised in homes which lack happiness and have little emotionally security they may in time tend to be unhappy and insecure. However, these differences between higher and lower socio-economic groups may be due to non-intellectual factors. Some of these factors serving to depress intelligence test scores among the lower socio-economic groups could be greater resistance to taking test, the effect of nutritional deficiencies, different attitudes towards education, suspicion, lack of support and the like. Although any or all of these factors seem reasonable, there are no definite research to establish the answer conclusively. It has been observed that most elementary teachers do not have the necessary educational background to teach visual arts. University of Hawaii’s Professor, Dr. Stephanie Feeny (1986); stresses the importance of the arts in the development of the thinking process in children.

Impact of the Alliance of Maersk and Msc on Freight Rates

Impact of the Alliance of Maersk and Msc on Freight Rates Analysis of the impact of the alliance of Maersk and MSC on freight rates on the Asia-Europe route Yixiang Zhang Content Abstract  (Jump to) 1. Introduction 2. Market share and structure of container shipping market 3. Alliance of Maersk and MSC 4. Impact of freight rate by 2M 5. Conclusions References Abstract The economic crisis took place in 2008 resulting in a great depression in shipping market. The demand in container shipping market declined rapidly and the overcapacity made the freight rate much lower which may not compensate the operation cost of the shipping companies. The three biggest shipping alliances(CKYH Alliance, Grand Alliance and CKYH Alliance) took series of solutions such as decrease of the capacity and in number of services routes to reduce the loss in their best effort. In this recession circumstances, ML(Maersk Line) and MSC(Mediterranean Shipping Company) which were known as 2M formed co-operation agreement on VSA(Vessel Sharing Agreements) on Asia-Europe route and this agreement last for 10 years. ML will devote 1200,000 TEU which counts for 55 percents of its overall capacity in the alliance and MSC is going to devote 900,000 TEU which counts for 45 percents of its overall capacity. Through the co-operation, 2M intended to promote the efficiency of operation and p rovided reliable shipping services to consumers on a lower price by sharing shipping network, infrastructural equipment and provide more straight service lines and the number of ports of call. In this way, other medium or small shipping companies who cannot achieve the economics of scale or better quality services as 2M managed to do will become uncompetitive and then have to exit the market when there is overcapacity in the shipping market. In this strategy, 2M will gain much more market share and consumer loyalty to make more profit although there is monopoly restriction. 1. Introduction With the rapid development of the international economy, the amount of export and import grew fast in the past few years. Shipping companies play essential role in the worldwide trade by providing satisfactory services to consumers. Shipping companies attempt to be more competitive than the others and reduce the risk which is considered high in maritime transportation by co-operate with each other or form an alliance. The ocean shipping industry is among the first to apply alliance to make their profit. Before the demotion of the conference system in 1998 (Shashi Kumar, 1999), maritime transportation market can be regarded as monopoly because the operation of a shipping company is at high risk and governments want to induce more firms involve in maritime transportation. However, with technology improvement and fast growing of shipping industry, the exemption from anti-trust rules was issued by the EU in 2008. Shipping companies have to set up new kinds of alliances to gain advantage and share risk in this dynamic market (Fusillo,2006). It is obvious that in present shipping alliances vessel sharing agreements and slot sharing agreements are widely used. The vessel sharing agreements or â€Å"VSA† can make container companies co-operate with each other to share their space on their container ships to acquire higher capacity to fight their lower capacities in certain trade lanes. The agreements allow for the shipping lines to keep freight costs lower since they do not need to account for empty spaces on their ships (source: http://www.containerquote.com/vessel-sharing-agreement). Slot sharing agreement require a fixed percentage of vessel capacity to be exchanged between the carriers over a given time period. This type of arrangement may be beneficial when two patner companies have vessels deployed on the same route with different departure time schedules (Panayides Wiedmer, 2011). Shipping alliances become a trend especially during the recession when the advantages that alliances can bring to us are clear. Even the top two large liner companies ML and MSC who used to act as â€Å"soloists† also choose to co-operate with each other, which can be regarded as a great move in shipping industry because together they count for nearly 30 percents of the whole market share. The paper aims at analyzing the impact of the alliance of Maersk and MSC on freight rates on the Asia-Europe route step by step as below, Section 2 will give a description of the whole shipping market. Section 3 focuses on ML and MSC alliances about the strategies they use. Section 4 will discuss about how the strategies 2M use will influence the freight rate. 2. Market share and structure of container shipping market This section shows who are the main players in the game and what are the connections between them. Table 1 illustrates the characteristics of top 20 shipping companies including total capacity, vessels operated in the market and actual market share. Table 1 Container fleet characteristics of Top 20 liner shipping companies Operator TEU Ships MS Operator TEU Ships MS 1 ML 2078507 556 15% 11 MOL 383042 99 2.5% 2 MSC 1683723 421 13.3% 12 NYK 365304 95 3% 3 CMA CGM 1096622 384 7.6% 13 OOCL 347988 77 2.4% 4 APL 591306 148 4% 14 Hambrg.sud 336811 108 2.3% 5 Hapag-Lloyd 582520 133 3.4% 15 K Line 324441 80 2.5% 6 Evergreen 567636 156 4.1% 16 Zim 322989 97 2.2% 7 COSCO 512060 134 3.3% 17 Yang Ming 315798 77 2.3% 8 CSAV 502619 135 2.4% 18 Hyundai M.M. 279446 54 2% 9 Hanjin 461087 100 3.2% 19 PIL 231941 127 1.4% 10 CSCL 455328 127 3.3% 20 UASC 206940 52 1.4% Source: Alphaliner.com, as of 28/06/2010 It is clear that ML together with MSC count up for 28.3% market share which is less than the monopoly restriction 30%. New World Alliance whose main partners are APL, MOL and HMM counts for 8.5% market share. Grand Alliance whose main members are NYK, Hapag-Lloyd and OOCL counts for 8.8% market share. CKYH whose main partners are Hanjin, Yang Ming, K Line and COSCO counts for 11.3% market share. In this way, there are four cartels whose market share counts up to 75.6%, which indicates the fact that the container shipping market on the Asia-Europe route is oligopoly. As a result, a decision made by any of these four alliances could bring an enormous influence to the others. That is also the reason why I would like to discuss about the impact on freight rate by 2M, because they have the market power to influence others. 3. Alliance of Maersk and MSC From the above analysis of container shipping market, it is clear to tell that ML and MSC have the top 2 capacity on Asia-Europe route. However, when focusing on the efficiency that both of them perform, the situation changed somehow. Table 2 presents the market share based on the vessels operated in the market. Table 2 Market share in different regions based on number of vessels operated Geo AF ANZ AS CA FE ME MiE ML 26.5% 20.1% 3.5% 19.5% 12.9% 22.3% 18.2% MSC 12.7% 15.4% 5.8% 17.1% 8% 20.7% 23.1% GEO NA NE SA TOTAL MS Delta ML 16.1% 15.4% 13.1% 15.6% 15% 0.57% MSC 11.9% 20.6% 14.1% 13.3% 10.9% 2.39% Abbreviations: AF Africa; ANZ Australia, New Zealand, South Pacific; AS Asia; CA Central America; FE Far East; ME Mediterranean; MiE Middle East; NA North America; NE North Europe; SA South America; MS Market Share; DELTA difference between company’s share of world-fleet minus actual market share. Source: Alphaliner.com, as of 28/06/2010 Depending on Tabke2, it is clear that Delta of both ML and MSC is positive which indicates that their shares of vessels operated in the market are both higher than their actual market share. This phenomenon can be explained in this way. Suppose all the other shipping companies except for ML have their vessels loaded up to 80% on average and ML only can load their ships around 60%, ML need to devote more vessels into the market to keep the same market share with other companies. In this way, it can be inferred that both ML and MSC have not fully taken advantages of their ships in the market. They have to find a way to promote their efficiency of their carriers. From the analysis above, it should be clearly explained that the motivation of ML and MSC the Top 2 giants in the shipping market to become alliance. Shipping alliance indeed brings series of advantages to both of them. The most important agreement between ML and MSC is vessel sharing agreements known as â€Å"VSA† which means that the collaborating companies work together to fulfill demand and also try to fully load their ships. Actually once â€Å"VSA† performing well, ML and MSC could devote some of their ships on another route because fewer ships can fulfill the demand due to the high utilization of container ships. In this way, the operation cost of vessels in the market can be reduced. 4. Impact of freight rate by 2M As discussed above, vessel sharing agreements enable ML and MSC largely promote their ships utilization to reduce the operation cost. It can be imagined that the total cost to provide satisfactory services as before becomes a little bit lower after 2M established. From author’s aspect, 2M can take advantages in two different ways as below: First strategy is to remain the same price as before but provide better services to their consumers. In this way, 2M could gain more consumer loyalty and attract more consumers to accept their services. However, in author’s opinion, other alliances such as New World, Grand Alliance and CKYH will not stay at where they are and do nothing. They may choose to reduce freight rate to attract consumers in order to not lose market share. Somehow to what extent they decide to cut freight rate depends on how well 2M performs and also the loss they are able to bear. Second strategy is to lower the freight rate but remain the same services quality as before. In this way, 2M can attract more consumers with their low price of freight rate. It is illustrated about how it works as below Figure 1. Figure 1 It can be easily inferred that when 2M choose to low their price, their initial supply curve S1 will shift right to S2 and D1 stays the same if no strong fluctuation occurs. So the quantity which can be seen as the number of consumers who choose 2M service increases from Q1 to Q2. In this way, 2M will get more market share to make much more profit when the global economy recovers from the crisis. Furthermore, the second strategy also has large influence on other shipping companies on Asia- Europe route. It will result in the shutting down of some shipping companies on Asia-Europe route whose average variable cost is lower than the freight rate 2M set. In the short run, the shipping companies’ supply curve is their marginal cost curve. If the freight rate is below P1, they have to shut down because the revenue they make cannot compensate their cost which means they are losing money all the time. In this way, 2M will gain this share of market by lower the freight rate. The way it works is illustrated in Figure 2. Figure 2 The second strategy can also force some companies not only shut down but also exit the market in the long run aspect. The way it works is illustrated in Figure 3. Figure 3 From the figure above, if 2M reduce the price below P1, shipping companies whose average total cost is higher than P1 will exit market because they will never take back their initial investment if freight rate continues to stay low. 5. Conclusions As the alliance between ML and MSC has been taken into practice, vessel sharing agreement is vital to improve their service quality and the efficiency of ships operation. So with vessels utilization optimized, together with the economies of scale, 2M is able to reduce their operation cost in a large extent because there is indeed a big gap to be improved which is explained in the analysis of difference of actual market share and total capacity. It has to be clear that high efficiency operation of ships as well as the strategies 2M may use can be regarded as a way of increasing supply in the market, which in turn will make the fright rate on Asia-Europe route drops. References Photis, M.P. Robert, W. (2011). Strategic alliances in container liner shipping. Research in Transportation Economics 32 (2011) 25-38. Shashi Kumar, N. (1999). The US OSRA of 1998: an analysis of its economic impact on carriers, shippers and third parties. In proceedings of the IAME 1999 Halifax conference (pp. 7-29). Halifax, Canada: Centre for International Business Studies, Dalhousie University. Fusillo, M. (2006). Some notes on structure and stability in liner shipping. Maritime Policy Management, 33(5), 463-475.

Immorality in The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells :: H.G. Wells, The Invisible Man

     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In The Invisible Man, H.G. Wells both demonstrates and criticizes man's tendency to become moral or immoral with the acquirement of power. Like many books of the same era, he uses science as the instrument of retribution for the social crimes that have been committed.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Through invisibility, the Invisible Man gains triumph over science and from this, great power; he can steal, kill, and abuse anybody without fear of being caught, as he describes, "It's useful in getting away, it's useful in approaching. It's particularly useful, therefore, in killing." He also acknowledges the shortcomings of his invisibility, such as making sound and being easily imprisoned once caught, vulnerable qualities which eventually lead to his downfall.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Invisible Man breaks into many people's homes, stealing money, and leading eventually to physical abuse and killing. When faced with power, such as invisibility, man becomes immoral and is willing to do anything for personal gain and enjoyment. The Invisible Man's nemesis, Kemp, brings up the immorality by saying, "But-! I say! The common conventions of humanity." The Invisible Man just reinforces his arrogance by rebutting with, "Are all very well for common people." He believes there is nothing wrong with doing anything for his own survival since he is superior. He also brings the situation one step further with his reign of terror, which he describes as, "Not wanton killing, but a judicious slaying." He now wants to have complete control over everybody through terror and wants to start "the Epoch of the Invisible Man." This shows his complete thirst for power.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The use of science to give man superpower can likewise be found in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.   Man should not create the invisible man or the invincible man since they are too powerful and this gives them the role of creator which, according to the society of the day, should only be a god's role.   He shows how science can accomplish great things and also how it can cause great harm.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The harm that the Invisible Man's exploitation of power causes does not go unpunished. Wells demonstrates the social need for a sense of justice, as the Invisible Man is eventually captured and beaten to death for the terror he both created and wanted to create.

A comparison between cardiac CT scanning and cardiac digital subtraction angiography (DSA)

Abstract Coronary artery disease affects nearly one tenth of the UK population and remains the leading cause of death in the western world. To investigate and provide interventions for coronary artery disease, imaging of the coronary arteries to enable visualisation of atheromatous plaque is required. This review looked at the techniques of cardiac computed tomography scanning and cardiac digital subtraction angiography, and their contribution to the investigation of coronary artery disease. Comparison of the procedures considered technique, radiation exposure, contrast agent, clinical indications and efficacy in diagnosis of coronary artery stenosis. On comparison of the effectiveness of the techniques, both were shown to have been effective non-invasive procedures that may be used to rule out diagnoses and avoid inappropriate use of invasive angiography. The research shows mixed evidence for cardiac computed tomography angiography as a test of high specificity, however sensitivity and speci ficity of cardiac digital subtraction angiography is high, and therefore suggest that the techniques may be useful in low risk patients. Introduction Coronary artery disease remains the main cause of death in the UK and western world (Hacker, 2013; Liu et al., 2002) and contributes a substantial disease burden, affecting 7% of men and 5% of women in the UK in 1999 (Liu et al., 2002). Coronary artery disease results from the build up of atherosclerotic plaque within the arteries supplying the myocardium. This plaque limits the flow of blood through the arteries, and can cause ischaemia of the heart muscle. If the plaque becomes unstable and ruptures, this may lead to thrombus formation and the complete occlusion of an artery, resulting in a myocardial infarction (McClure et al., 2009). Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is a sub-classification of coronary artery disease and encompasses unstable angina, non-ST elevation myocardial infarction and ST elevation myocardial infarction. ACS represents a range of conditions that result from thrombus formation in coronary arteries, and if untreated has poor prognosis and high mortality (NICE, 2010). To investigate and provide information for interventions for coronary artery disease and ACS, visualization of the coronary arteries and any lesions caused by atherosclerotic plaque is required. Advances in technology have given rise to several sophisticated perfusion analysis techniques, which provide greater prognostic value than morphological imaging (Hacker, 2013). Perfusion analysis allows the blood flow through the coronary vessels to be observed and any abnormalities in the perfusion can be interpreted as a functional consequence of atherosclerotic changes within the vessels (Hacker, 2013). Currently, UK guidelines (NICE, 2010a) recommend coronary angiogram as first line management for patients presenting with ACS. This enables imaging of the coronary arteries to assess perfusion. It is important to assess the circulation as arteries can be affected from the earliest stages of endothelial dysfunction to high-grade coronary artery stenoses (Hacker et al., 2010; Bugiardini et al. 2004; Kaufmann et al., 2000), and this provides the information necessary for prognosis and intervention. With the advances in technology, there are now various diagnostic tests available to assess coronary artery disease, including coronary angiography and computed tomography (CT) scanning (Gorenoi, Schonermark & Hagen, 2012). This review aims to review the literature on coronary CT scanning and digital subtraction angiography, their clinical applications, techniques and comparative value in coronary artery assessment and diagnosis. Cardiac Digital subtraction angiography Coronary angiography is the conventional diagnostic procedure used in coronary artery disease. It is a minimally invasive technique, whereby a catheter is placed into the radial or femoral artery and is advanced through the arterial system to the coronary arteries. A contrast agent is then injected at the aortic root and allows visualization of the arteries using x-ray in real time at up to 30 frames per second. This allows a view of the extent, location and severity of coronary obstructive lesions such as atherosclerosis and enables prognostic indication (Miller et al., 2008). Coronary angiography also enables catheter placement either side of the lesion to assess pressure changes and determines the degree of flow obstruction (Miller et al., 2008). . Digital subtraction angiography (DSA) again works by introducing a contrast agent into the coronary arteries and taking x-rays in real time, however a pre image is taken by x-ray. This allows for the post images to be subtracted from the original mask image, eliminating bone and soft tissue images, which would otherwise overlie the artery under study (Hasegawa, 1987). Unlike conventional angiography, it is possible to conduct DSA via the venous system, through accessing the superior vena cava via the basillic vein (Myerowitz, 1982). This removes the risks associated with arterial cannulation (Mancini & Higgins, 1985). The procedure can also be performed with a lower dose of contrast agent and be done more quickly therefore eliminating constraints of using too much contrast during a procedure (Myerowitz, 1982). Whilst DSA is the gold standard in arterial imaging of carotid artery stenosis (Herzig et al., 2004), the application of DSA to the coronary arteries is limited due to motion artefacts associated with each heartbeat and respiration (Yamamoto et al., 2009). There are numerous cardiac clinical applications of DSA, it can be used to assess coronary blood flow (Molloi et al., 1996), valvular regurgitation (Booth, Nissen & DeMaria, 1985), cardiac phase (Katritsis et al., 1988), congenital heart shunts (Myerowitz, Swanson, & Turnipseed, 1985), coronary bypass grafts and percutaneous coronary intervention outcomes (Katritsis et al, 1988; Guthaner, Wexler & Bradley, 1985). However, others have suggested that the coronary arteries are not visualized well due to their small size, movement, their position overlying the opacified aorta and left ventricle, and confusion with other structures such as the pulmonary veins (Myerowitz, 1982). Cardiac CT Scanning Development of CT scanning in the 1990s enabled an increase in temporal resolution that was sufficient to view the beating heart, and they now provide a non-invasive technique for diagnostic and prognostic purposes. Cardiac CT scans have clinical applications that go beyond perfusion investigation, and can be used to assess structure and function of the heart (for example in electrophysiology disorders or congenital heart disease) due to its ability to provide anatomical detail (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010). CT scans can be used to assess coronary artery disease with and without injection of contrast agent (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010) by calcium scan or CT angiography. Coronary calcium CT scanning uses the evidence base that coronary artery calcium is a correlate of atherosclerosis (Burke et al., 2003) and is a strong prognostic predictor of the future development of coronary artery disease and cardiac events (Arad et al., 2000; Budoff et al., 2009; Achenbach & Raggi, 2010). Calcium is easily depicted on CT scan due to its high CT attenuation, and is classified according to the Agatson score, which considers the density and area of the calcification (Hoffman, Brady & Muller, 2003). Coronary CT angiography (CTA) allows visualization of the coronary artery lumen to identify any atherosclerosis or stenosis within the vessels. Patients are injected intravenously with a contrast agent and then undergo a CT scan. There are limitations regarding the suitability of patients for coronary CTA due to prerequisites of sinus rhythm, low heart rate and ability to follow breath-holding commands. Additionally, obesity presents a problem for patients that cannot fit into the scanner and affects the accuracy of the procedure. (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010). Comparison of cardiac DSA and cardiac CT scanning The technical differences between cardiac DSA and cardiac CT scanning give rise to differences in the clinical indications for the procedures, their diagnostic efficacy and also different risks or relative benefits to the patients. Due to the nature of the images produced by coronary CTA and DSA, each lends itself to different indications for use. Whilst coronary DSA provides imaging of all aspects of perfusion, CTA used with contrast agent also provides this however has the additional advantage of being able to assess structure and function of the heart. Coronary CTA has been shown to have a high accuracy at detection and exclusion of coronary artery stenoses (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010). In a multicentre trial conducted by Miller et al. (2008), patients underwent coronary calcium scoring and CT angiography prior to conventional invasive coronary angiography. The diagnostic accuracy of coronary CTA at ruling out or detecting coronary stenoses of 50% was shown to have a sensitivity of 85% and a specificity of 90%. This showed that coronary CTA was particularly effective at ruling out non-significant stenoses. Additionally, coronary CTA was shown to be of equal efficacy as conventional coronary angiography at identifying the patients that subsequently went on to have revascularisation via percutaneous intervention. This was shown by an area under the curve (AUC), a measure of accuracy of 0.84 for coronary CTA and 0.82 for coronary angiography. Miller et al.’s (2008) study included a large number of patients at different study sites , and additionally represented a large variety of clinical patient characteristics. The author’s claim that these factors contribute to the strength and validity of the study findings, and suggest that in addition to using patients with clinical indications for anatomical coronary imaging, should be used as evidence that coronary CTA is accurate at identifying disease severity in coronary artery disease. Miller et al. (2008) did however,, find that positive predictive and negative predictive values of coronary CTA were 91% and 83% respectively and therefore suggested that coronary CTA should not be used in place of the more accurate conventional coronary angiography. A low positive predictive value (in relation to the prevalence of disease) was proposed to be due to a tendency to overestimate stenosis degree as well as the presence of artefacts leading to false positive interpretation (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010). Other research providing comparison between coronary CTA and conventional coronary angiogram has highlighted variability in results. A meta-analysis conducted by Gorenoi, Schonermark and Hagen (2012) investigated the diagnostic capabilities of coronary CTA and invasive coronary angiography using intracoronary pressure measurement as the reference standard. The authors found that CT coronary angiography had a greater sensitivity than invasive coronary angiography (80% vs 67%), meaning that coronary CTA was more likely to identify functionally relevant coronary artery stenoses in patients. Despite this,, specificity of coronary CTA was 67%, compared to 75% in invasive coronary angiography, meaning that the technique was less effective at correctly excluding non-diagnoses than invasive coronary angiogram. This research appears to contradict the power of cardiac CTA at excluding diagnoses of coronary artery stenosis as suggested by Miller et al. (2008), he study did combine evidence from over 44 studies to provide their results and therefore had a large statistical power. The authors interpret the results in light of the clinical relevance of cardiac imaging, suggesting that patients with a higher pretest possibility of coronary heart disease will likely require invasive coronary angiography for revascularisation indicating that coronary CTA may be a helpful technique in those patients with an intermediate pre-test probability of coronary heart disease that will therefore not require invasive angiography. Goldberg et al. (1986) investigated the efficacy of DSA in comparison to conventional coronary angiography in 77 patients. They found that the two angiograms agreed within one grade of severity in 84% of single cases and 90% of multiple cases, identifying both patent and lesioned arteries. The results led the authors to conclude that there was no significant difference between the two methods and that DSA could be used in selective coronary angiography to find results comparable to that of conventional angiography. In addition to being a small study into the efficacy of DSA, the study also had several sources of inherent variability that should be considered when interpreting the results. These included differing sizes of digital imaging screen and non-use of calipers, meaning that the interpretation of the images could vary throughout the study. The authors also suggest that whilst showing strong support for the use of DSA in coronary artery disease, the technique may not actually p ermit better prognostic determinations or clinical judgements that are better than conventional angiography, and therefore the further implementation of the techniques may not be founded or necessitated. More recently, there has been further research looking at the effectiveness of DSA as a way of measuring coronary blood flow. Whilst motion artefacts have proven a problem in lots of past research (Marinus, Buis & Benthem, 1990; Hangiandreou, 1990), recent research has developed methods to minimise these. Moilloi and colleaues (1996) showed that using a motion-immune dual-energy digital subtraction angiography, absolute volumetric coronary blood flow could be measured accurately and thus provide an indication of the severity of any arterial stenosis.This may provide further suggestion for clinical implementation of DSA. Although these studies provide evidence for the efficacy of cardiac DSA and CTA, they often make comparisons to conventional angiography. This is useful as a baseline comparison, however it is difficult to make comparisons between the two procedures directly due to less available evidence making direct comparisons. Lupon-Roses et al. (1985) conducted a study investigating both coronary CTA and venous DSA. The study looked at the efficacy of both techniques at diagnosing patency of coronary artery grafts compared to the control conventional angiography. CT was shown to diagnose 93% of the patent grafts and 67% of the occluded grafts whereas DSA correctly diagnosed 98% and 100% of patent and occluded grafts respectively. Interestingly, the DSA picked up the 11 grafts that were misdiagnosed by CTA and the CTA picked up the 2 grafts misdiagnosed by the DSA. This data may suggest that individually, DSA has a better profile for diagnosis of coronary artery occlusion, however if the two procedures are used in combination exclusion of patent arteries and diagnosis of occluded arteries would be effective (Lupon-Roses et al., 1985). Coronary DSA and CTA are both non-invasive procedures (unlike the conventional coronary angiography where a wire is placed in the coronary vasculature). With the only invasive part of the procedure being the injection of the contrast material into a vein. This presents a significant advantage to both procedures over that of conventional angiography, and may even permit investigation on an outpatient basis (Meaney et al., 1980). Similarly, both DSA and coronary CTA are favoured because of their intravenous approach, eliminating the risks of bleeding or arterial injury from an intra-arterial catheterization and being able to be used in those with limited arterial access. However, although the intravenous approach used in cardiac DSA makes it favourable, it does lead to difficulty with visualisation of the coronary arteries due to the overlying iodinated pulmonary and cardiac structures (Mancini & Higgins, 1985). Therefore,, intra-arterial DSA is also sometimes used (Yamamoto et al., 20 09). As with all CT scanning, coronary CTA carries with it a dose of ionizing radiation (Brenner & Hall, 2007). Studies have estimated that for diagnostic CT scanning, patients are on average exposed to 12mSv of radiation during the procedure, the equivalent of 600 x-rays (Hausleiter et al., 2009). Estimates of radiation doses associated with conventional coronary angiography are lower than that of coronary CTA at 7mSv (Einstein et al., 2007). Additionally, DSA technique reduces the radiation dose from that of conventional coronary angiography as the vessels are visualised more clearly (Yamamoto et al., 2008). The dangers of radiation exposure are increased risk of developing cancer, skin injuries and cateracts (Einstein et al., 2007). It is therefore important that the benefits of conducting the procedure greatly outweigh the risk of radiation exposure. CT calcium scanning provides a low radiation dose at around 1mSv (Hunold et al., 2003). Cardiac CT calcium scanning does not require administration of a contrast agent, unlike in coronary CTA and DSA that use iodine based contrast agents. The risks associated with contrast agent include nephrotoxicity and risks of hives, allergic reactions and anaphylaxis (Maddox, 2002). The amount of contrast agent used is partly dependent on the length of the procedure and how clearly the arteries can be visualised. For this reason, both cardiac CTA and DSA use less contrast agent that conventional coronary angiography (Brant-Zawadzki, et al., 1983). CT calcium scanning of the coronary arteries is therefore recommended in those with less likelihood of coronary artery disease (NICE, 2010). Both coronary CTA and DSA require interpretation by trained physicians, and the importance of training and achieving intra-rater reliability should not be underestimated (Pugliese et al., 2009). Conclusion Overall, both coronary CT and DSA have been demonstrated as effective procedures for the imaging of the coronary arteries in CAD (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010; Miller et al., 2008; Moilloi et al., 1996; Goldberg et al., 1986). Whilst cardiac CT scanning does provide a wider range of clinical applications, allowing assessment of perfusion as well as cardiac structure and function (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010), coronary DSA has many applications that allow assessment of coronary blood flow (Molloi et al., 1996; Katritsis et al, 1988; Booth, Nissen & DeMaria, 1985; Guthaner, Wexler & Bradley, 1985; Myerowitz, Swanson, & Turnipseed, 198). Both cardiac DSA and CTA procedures have their advantages. As non-invasive procedures, these techniques pose less risk to patients, and enable the possibility of outpatient investigation, to be used to rule out diagnoses and to avoid inappropriate invasive coronary angiogram (Gorenori et al., 2012). Additionally, intravenous access is preferential to arterial cannulation for the contrast infusion, removing the risks associated with bleeding or intra-arterial injury. Cardiac DSA exposes the patient to a lower dose of radiation that coronary CTA (Hausleiter et al., 2009; Yamamoto et al., 2008; Einstein et al., 2007), which is beneficial at reducing the risk of genetic mutations and cancer. Cardiac CTA and DSA also have their common disadvantages. The use of contrast agent may present side effects for the patient including kidney damage and risk of allergic reactions and anaphylaxis (Maddox, 2002). For this reason, calcium CT scanning can be useful in patients that are not at high likelihood of coronary artery disease (NICE, 2010b). Additionally, both cardiac DSA and CTA are subject to motion artefacts from respiration and heart beats, which can cause difficulties with interpretation (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010; Yamamoto et al., 2009). In the case of cardiac CTA, this excludes a subset of patients that are unable to follow commands and those who have high heart rates. Overall, cardiac CTA and cardiac DSA are effective, non-invasive imaging techniques for assessment of coronary artery disease. Whilst they are not the gold standards in cardiac monitoring, they can provide important diagnostic information without exposing patients to the risks of invasive angiography. Due to this, their use should be weighted against clinical need, the risks of the procedures, and the suitability of the patient. Interpretation of cardiac CTA and DSA imaging should be by trained individuals. 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Direct non-invasive techniques for assessing coronary bypass graft patency. The International Journal of Cardiac Imaging, 1(3), 181-188. Maddox, T. G. (2002). Adverse reactions to contrast material: recognition, prevention, and treatment. American family physician, 66(7), 1229. Mancini, J. G. B., & Higgins, C. B. (1985). Digital subtraction angiography: a review of cardiac applications. Progress in cardiovascular diseases, 28(2), 111-141. Marinus, H., Buis, B., & Van Benthem, A. (1990) Pulsatile coronary flow determination by digital angiography. International Journal of Cardiac Imaging, 5, 173-182 McClure, K. H., McGivern, J. P., Stultz, M. R., & Whitehurst, T. K. (2009). U.S. Patent No. 7,481,759. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Meaney, T. F., Weinstein, M. A., Buonocore, E., Pavlicek, W., Borkowski, G. P., Gallagher, J. H., †¦ & Maclntyre, W. J. (1980, August). Digital subtraction angiography of the human cardiovascular system. In Application of Optical Instrumentation in Medicine VIII (pp. 272-278). International Society for Optics and Photonics. Miller, J. M., Rochitte, C. E., Dewey, M., Arbab-Zadeh, A., Niinuma, H., Gottlieb, I., †¦ & Lima, J. A. (2008). Diagnostic performance of coronary angiography by 64-row CT. New England Journal of Medicine, 359(22), 2324-2336. Molloi, S., Ersahin, A., Tang, J., Hicks, J., & Leung, C. Y. (1996). Quantification of volumetric coronary blood flow with dual-energy digital subtraction angiography. Circulation, 93(10), 1919-1927. Myerowitz, P. D. (1982). Digital subtraction angiography: present and future uses in cardiovascular diagnosis. Clinical cardiology, 5(12), 623-629. Myerowitz, P. D., Swanson, D. K., & Turnipseed, W. D. (1985). Applications of digital subtraction angiography in cardiovascular diagnosis. The Surgical clinics of North America, 65(3), 423-437. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. (2010a). Unstable angina and NSTEMI: The early management of unstable angina and non-ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction. CG94. London: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. (2010b). Unstable angina and NSTEMI: Chest pain of recent onset: assessment and diagnosis of recent onset chest pain or discomfort of suspected cardiac origin. CG95. London: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Pugliese, F., Hunink, M. M., Gruszczynska, K., Alberghina, F., Malago, R., van Pelt, N., †¦ & Krestin, G. P. (2009). Learning curve for coronary CT angiography: what constitutes sufficient training?. Radiology, 251(2), 359. Yamamoto, M., Okura, Y., Ishihara, M., Kagemoto, M., Harada, K., & Ishida, T. (2009). Development of digital subtraction angiography for coronary artery. Journal of digital imaging, 22(3), 319-325.

Charity fundraising. Common solutions

Charity fundraising. Common solutions Charity fundraising. Common solutions To reach out to the community and make people talk about you, one can launch an advertising campaign. However, this attitude is not always true with charity, where you have to encourage large corporations to invest for the future. We understand the value of such gatherings and want you to know what you can do to gather fundraisers for an event. Businesses that operate on a local level often reach out to clients to cover the costs for the social event, and if it happens to be charity, it will only increase their chances to support their name and maintain reputation. If you haven’t found the right sponsor yet, we are going to provide you with a few tips on how to do this:   Ã‚  Ã‚   Use your connections. Talk to people you know and communicate with the members of the board. They may personally know business owners, who are interested in funding the charity event and receiving additional bonuses for hosting it on a high-end level. If you are lucky, you will be introduced to some very influential individuals, who can be of great help whenever it comes to a charity event.   Ã‚  Ã‚   Plan the event ahead. Every time we talk about raising funds, we should remember that it is an opportunity for the sponsor to make an association with their names. In other words, when larger businesses facilitate your budget, they hope to receive their fair share of advertising in return, even if it is charity. These are the rules of the game, and by creating a scenario of the future venue in your head, you make it easier for sponsors to follow your thought.   Ã‚  Ã‚   Think of the assets. Before the event takes place, make a small excursion around the area to identify the best places for the brand name of the company. Like any other venue, charity organization demands time and effort. You should search for all potential spots where the commercial banners can be placed so that they catch the guests’ eye immediately. However, you should not make your advertising tacky, as the objective of the venue does not represent commerce alone.   Ã‚  Ã‚   Provide the goody bags. We all need encouragement, so do not forget to present your guests with a memorable gift. It does not necessarily have to be a luxury item or a golden piece (after all, we are talking about raising money for a good cause – they don’t call them goody bags for nothing). However, you can opt for a notebook with the company’s initials and basic information about the aim of venue. Frequently, guests are presented with the bags at the entrance, but you can do this throughout the party to produce an impression.   Establishing the relationships If you think that your venue details are in order, it is time to manage relationships between the sponsors. You should be as diplomatic as possible, and remember to stick to the original plan. In case you are on a limited budget and the local businesses cover all the costs, you should still be ready to provide an outlay of the future event. Once you know your sponsors are going to be with you, you should delegate someone on your team to ensure friendly relations throughout the entire campaign. This is done in order to secure future meetings: in case you plan to organize similar events in a couple of months, you want your sponsors to keep coming back to you no matter what.   Venue recap Delegate people who are good at communication and are excellent conversationalists. Assisting a charity event is no easy job, and you will need as many helping hands as you are able to find. Discuss the event prior to its start in order to clear up the details and make sure you found a mutual agreement in terms of finance and logos. In case you have contrasting opinions or your views differ on the objective of the event, share them with your colleagues and members of the board, so that you can come to similar conclusions together. After the event is over, do not forget to send a letter of gratitude to all your sponsors, indicating the number of the guests that attended the party, the money raised and the general impressions of the public. It would be a wise gesture to thank your fundraisers for the opportunities provided. We always think of a charity event as a duty, but there is a side to this issue you probably never knew, especially if you are the head of the group, responsible for the venue and everything, related to it. Do not underestimate the importance of recapping an event and highlighting the details, as you inform your sponsors of the press coverage. Their name should be associated with the event, and the goody bags we mentioned in the beginning will help the guests remember the organizers. Local businesses are no exception to the rule when they want to give feedback to their customers and deliver the best performance, whether it is an advertising campaign or a charity issue.

buy custom The American Public University System essay

buy custom The American Public University System essay The American public university system is an online institution that offers a number of degrees to the greater American population. Based in Charles town, West Virginia, it is composed of the American military university and the American public university. It encompasses both the academic and the corporate affairs in its efforts to provide quality education. It is owned by the American public education incorporated and is publicly traded on the New York stock exchange. It was founded in 1991 and began it operations in January 1993 as the military university with the main purpose of meeting the necessary educational requirements for military persons needing specified courses and training. As the American military university with an enrolment of 18 graduate students when doors opened, learning was conducted by correspondence but this was changed and it began to offer online learning to its students in 1998. The university developed over time and in the year 2002, grew to become the Amer ican public university and established the American public university a move that was aimed at providing education to civilians in various courses especially to those who could not afford to leave their jobs and put themselves through school (Bonk, 2001). Currently the school plays host close to eighty thousand students undertaking various courses within it. However, as far as prestige goes the university is not considered as being in the top of the academic league. Although this is the case, the university enjoys regional accreditation which is basically the highest form of accreditation as does the likes of Harvard, Yale, and so forth. Any degree from this university is guaranteed to get you a job or a promotion in your given field of choice. However, should you choose to take a teaching position in any of the countrys colleges or universities, this may pose a challenge. The school offers very exciting courses that may prove fitting for various career paths. Such include arts, business, education, management, counter terrorism, military intelligence, and so on.Like many other online universities, there are challenges and positive feedback all in one package. Studying using the America public university system gives you a flexible schedule that works to your advantage. Enrolling for an online degree works around your schedule in a way that allows you to keep working at your job and even spend time with your family for those who cannot take the time off. It is also relatively cheaper than a regular course. This is because you do not have to pay for such amenities such as commuter fees, texts books since most can be accessed online. Since you study from the comfort of your home you are able to do a myriad of things. This type of learning works around your schedule and you may change it to your satisfaction. You may slow it down or have it at a much faster pace as per your understanding. This is not something that can be done in a normal class setting were the teacher decides the pace at which the lessons move. Normally online courses are accelerated and therefore this means that you spent less time completing your studies than you would at a regular university setting. It is also possible to revisit previous lessons and take notes on points you may have not understood. Enrolling at the online university means that you can take your class with you if you happen to be out of town and not in your house since all you need is a good computer and internet connection. This means that it is almost impossible for you to miss classes since their flexibility allows for you to have your lessons practically anywhere in the world. Due to the diverse nature of students at the American public university and the American military university through the American public university system are able to interact among themselves and forge relationships that enrich their education experience as they are able to learn from one another different cultures. The introduction of online learning system as opposed to the more conventional correspondence means that now it is easier for students to be in constant communication with their teachers and lecturers. Communication is primarily through the use of email. In a normal face to face kind of class, the teacher may not have time to speak to all the students, but with the online learning, you have the undivided attention of the lecturer for the duration of the class. As opposed to the correspondence, the email provides for real time communication which therefore means faster response and communication. Perhaps another attractive feature of the American public university system is the fact that financial aid is given to students. This factor is made possible by the fact that the university is accredited by the commission of higher learning for the North Central association of colleges and schools. This is one of the six regional accreditors. Financial aid offered goes a long way in ensuring that the common citizen has access to education and a chance at bettering themselves and their futures. Another great aspect about the university is that you are not constrained by geographical barriers (Shakar and Neumann, 2003). Online education means that you can take the lesson form a different state and not necessarily where the university is situated. For example you can take a course form the academic location of the American public university which is based in Charles town awhile you reside in California. The type of learning offered also means that you can continue to work as you pursue your education. In this regard, you are able to put your course work into practical use. This gives you a better opportunity at obtaining a promotion at work since you are now able to incorporate new thinking into your job area. It also means that you can interact with fellow students about what pointers work and which needed more work. This puts you ahead of students at a regular university setting who have to wait until the completion of a school semester to find a job opportunity to put their course work in to use. This learning is also adequate for those people who are not comfortable around crowds of people. Online learning at the university is done at your own comfort and privacy to your satisfaction. There are those who express themselves easier through writing rather than vocally, this is ideal for them. It also discourages more outgoing students from dominating the class. It gives equal opportunity to all. Unlike regular class setting where lessons are essentially led by the lecturer, here it is based on the participation of the students. Therefore this gives an opportunity for students to make their contributions and not feel intimidated by either the lecturer. Another underlying factor is that your scores are based on merits alone. It is less likely to be discriminated upon for your color or ethnic affiliation. Everyone is as equal as the next person. The constant use of the internet and other computer based software allows you to be more accustomed to new technology and gives you the chance to acquaint yourself with the changing times. It also improves your work and gives you more confidence around your work place. Constant use of the internet for research and so forth means that you have a better opportunity at being informed to those that are not as exposed. It gives you the opportunity to learn how to maneuver various operating systems that you may also find at your work place. This will go a long way in earning you an edge over the rest of your colleagues. The university offers an opportunity for those who live in rural setting a vast array of information which they may not have been able to experience on their own due to a number of challenges. The university system is also very adequate for those wishing to supplement their current courses. You are able to gain more exposure in a shorter period of time. With so many positive attributes there also has to be challenges that accompany such a learning system. There have been a number of challenges surrounding the American public university system. As a for profit institution, many have been quick to discredit the merits with which students are made to pass their examinations. For most people they say that the students papers for assignments and examinations are not properly read or assessed. A report by the Government Accountability Office (de Vise, 2010) had it that seven out of 12 for profit universities violated various policies such as cheating, standards set for grading, and offering counselling for financial aid for the students. Many employers have said that these for profit universities are proving inept at preparing their students for the job market. A survey conducted at the American military university showed service men that were enrolled and were using the American public university system had many challenges to overcome before they could complete their given courses. The military is an outfit that revolves around rules and regulations that are followed to the letter. About 50% had difficulties working around and within their military obligations. With so much to be done within a very short period of time, it was difficult for many to give their undivided attention to their studies. For about 35% they had constant interruptions of internet access and due to financial constraints some could not afford the more costly services and so had to seek alternative methods to access and keep up with their lessons. The other almost 32% did not have any access to internet services. Some due the constant relocations at times to remote places, finances, and many other factors that contributed to lack of internet access. For others, they complained that due to various securities on the internet, at times information was not easily accessible and so this greatly ffected their learning process. Such needs need be addressed in order to ensure that they realize their various goals as they strive to protect our country (Torres, 2011). Among many challenges that affect students who undertake online learning at the American public system are the sameinterruptions of internet connection and in return your lessons. At times you may find that your service provider is having maintenance problems and so you cannot access your lessons. This becomes a problem to you and a taxing job of finding alternative means to secure a reliable provider or getting it fixed and you end up losing on the days lessons. Such occurrences are common and the students suffer as a result. For one to be able to smoothly complete an online course, you need an above average knowledge of the computer and many of its workings. Your skills need be up to date since it involves a lot of software and internet usage. For a person who is not skilled enough to keep up with the workings of a computer, an online course can be a hectic struggle. They may be better of enrolling at a regular institution. Since online learning revolves around an individuals sched ule, procrastination is a factor that many students face. Students are required to be highly motivated since this is the only way they will be able to swiftly complete their lessons. Other challenges include the loads of work that is given to the student. For many they have to juggle between jobs and school and even at times family. Sometimes they may not have adequate time to go through many of the assigned work load and may result in alternative measures just to complete the work. Some are also barely able to keep up with the work loads. In other circumstances, the students may not be able to understand the documentation and the time allocated for the lessons may not be enough to communicate in length for them to understand exactly what is required of them in their lessons. Another challenge that faces students I the fact that lectures use the cottage industry approach. This is where they apply the same modes of teaching for regular learning and use this for online learning. They need to understand that this cannot be the case since this is a different class of students that they are engaging. In as much as internet connection poses a threat to students, there is also the threat of technical failure. While your machine may be workin g, the server that enables for the lessons can crush and this leads to loss of lessons. There may be an overload on the number of users at a particular time and this will make service slow down and inhibit the smooth flow of lessons. While the university may offer exciting courses, some of them require field work and practical sessions that some of the students may not be able to tend. Thus knowing the theoretical part of a concept may not help you a lot since you cannot be of any help out on the field. For such reasons it becomes imperative for the student to be aware of the course work and arrange on how to find a suitable lab and so on should there be any allocation for a practical session. There comes into play the challenge of time. You need to be aware the time zones that your classes are in so that you can effectively adjust your schedule and ensure you are in line with the program. While financial aid can be a plus and an attractive incentive, it may in itself cause some problems as has been the case for some students. They end up paying than they thought was th e case. Many bloggers have termed the university as a scam that provides quantity education and is after profits without a thought about the kind of harm they are causing unsuspecting enrolees (Parry, 2010). A number of solutions can be offered to the challenges that face the students who are undertaking online courses. It has been certified that online learning needs so level of self-motivation. Students need to be aware that will not be like ordinary learning and that it will require some sacrificing on their part in order for them to ensure they get the kind of education that is helpful in their quest for better jobs and pay. It needs to be put forward that online learning needs an independent student. This is the type of student that does not require constant pushing and reminder to get work done. These kinds of students are a bit sharper and so a little guidance is usually what they need. For dependent students this may not be ideal since they may require face to face time with the lecturer in order to understand. There are those that need to physically see the teacher for them to be fully engaged in the class. The teacher must create an environment where the students feel comfortab le especially since there is the lack of physical space. The instructor must ensure that there is an atmosphere in which lessons can be learnt without any hitches. Failure to this, there will be tension during the lessons and this is of course not a conducive environment for learning. The instructor needs to ensure that the students interact freely with each other and have equal participation from all the students. This gives the students a sense of belong and allows for easy flow during discussions. The lecturers need to understand that the lack of a physical presence will always be limiting factor to all online programs and so need to do everything in their power to ensure that they make the most out of the situation. The challenge that is faced by lack of internet access in parts of rural and semi urban parts of urban America is an issue that the Apus need to look into. For many people in these parts they are forced to spend a lot of money to enrol in regular schools when they could do so at the comfort of their homes. The university ad ministration should make efforts to have Research carried out in this parts where education can be accessed and go a long way in eliminating poverty and ignorance. Parts of the country that do not have adequate internet connection need to be addressed since the more people that do not access means loss of consumers for them, this being from an administrative point of view.. The university needs to expand its accessibility to educate Americans. At such a time where jobs are not in plenty, the university needs to have affordable programs that allow for interested parties to enroll and learn a thing or two to aid in their job search. This may also aid parents who may not be able to afford high costs that are associated with regular schools and have their children who are attending college take up online learning and thereby minimizing costs on both ends.As affordable as online learning is, it may prove expensive for those that do not have the necessary skills to effectively maneuver around an online class (Salmon, 2000). For this reason, the university as part of implementing its equity stand should have an entrance exam to certify how well versed the potential student isto take part in an online lesson. Such a case will ensure that before the student takes the mode of learning they are qualified both in academic and computer skills. The university needs advocate for user friendly programs and maybe even suggest to its users to use similar programs. This will make the instructors job easier to be able to guide a student where they are stuck. A case where a student uses a different program that maybe the instructor is not familiar may end up with confusion within the class and loss of lesson time. The University also need be certain that the servers they use to facilitate lessons are in top shape. Where repairs are to be undertaken, they need to ensure that they give adequate notice to the students. This is so that students do not feel wasted where there was an opportunity for them to make alternative arrangements. The university also need ensure that the facilitators they bring in are well versed in the technicalities of a virtual classroom. The success of this university has largely been due to the fact that they are catering to a vast market in which the demand exceeds the supply. But this can be compromised if the profits take center stage as opposed to fulfilling the need for education to those not able to access it through conventional means. The facilitators need to be skilled to handle an online class. They need to understand that this is not a regular class and need to employ the intricacies that aid in making the experience as accomplishing as possible. As the university has moved from the correspondence days to the email era, they also must ensure that they keep up with the dynamic world of virtual gadgets. They may want to incorporate the use of video conferencing or Skype where this makes up for the lack of physical space (Salmon, 2002). An instance where the students are able to see the facilitator may improve the participation and success. However there are a number of factors that come of such a move both positive and negative, this should be addressed at length and weighed before approval. The university needs also to be able to have an administration that is pro change and not reluctant to make necessary changes to the system of education. Educators who do not seem to be in tune with the dynamic changes in the world of computersdo not have a place in the computer world. There is the challenge of dropouts from the online degree courses. As a facilitator, you need to be able to know which of you students has not been attending classes. The most common causes of these are the lack of socialization among the class members. In such a case, you need to encourage group participation and you may slowly draw the said student out of their shell. Since online learning lacks the brick and mortar theory of learning the facil itator need to ensure that the students interact amongst each other as they strive to create a conducive learning environment. Another way to overcome challenges posed by online learnning is through the use of technology. In this case you can have presentation in the form of graphs, pie charts and so forth. This engages your students to provide their feedback on an individual level (American Federation of Teachers, 2001). The point is to make the discussions as lively as possible so that the tension between the students is broken down. Interaction for humans is veryimportant. We cannot live by ourselves. He facilitator should strive to ensure that the students do engage each other on an intellectual level and learn from each other since online learning brings together diverse culture of people we can learn from each others experiences. This goes a long way in breaking social barriers that may have come up due to one reason or another. As an instructor you need to be quick about how you handle your work, in this regard, ensure you give feedback in good time and where not possible give reasons as to why this is so. Online learning is all about student participation, when this fails then the class will not proceed forward as it should. As a facilitator create an environment where your students are at ease withone another and at the same time the respect the other persons thinking and point of view, help out where possible. The lack of access to material becomes a drawbackto many students. Due to various forms of security around information found on the internet, it becomes difficult for students to access information. This is a major setback to them especially since they are not in a position to but books. Such a situation calls for the facilitator to look for alternative means of information sites which does delay times pent for lessons. There have been suggestions being floated around for online facilitators to author their own books for use by the students. Though any outcome is yet to come of it, the university could see to it that it goes into partnership with those who are in charge of distribution of books and have a deal where students can access the books for given amount or for whatever deal is agreed upon. Since many of the lessons offered are in the English language, to some this may not be their first language. And hence they may fail to understand the course work due to this. It can be suggested that the university either offers an English class for thos e who are not fluent with the language. At times, the students cannot understand the documentation of the course and so does not know what to expect as faras other lessons go. It is recommended that the facilitator takes the time to carefully explain the contents of the lessons ahead including the examinations and all other relevant to the course. This will enable the student to have to have time to pose questions and prepared for the lessons ahead through planning around their schedule. The most difficult task of all is the implementation stage. It is said that actions are louder than words. As an online university, it must walk the talk. Since they claim to advocate for quality education this should be reflected in their studentsscore cards although traditional learning will always be preferred to online learning, there has not been a significant gap when the scores are tallied. The university is regionally accredited and so should strive to gain special accreditation for its various programs especially business. The university should also put into consideration the military personnel enrolled with the online system of learning, these are people who work to protect our borders and guard our nation. For this reason, they should revise the methods of learning that allow for maximum period of learning when they are able to. They should have the obligations revised so as to suit the needs of the students in a way that they are able to complete their educationaland be of help to their fellow soldiers. Due to the dropout situation the university has a tsk of ensuring thatthey can retain the focus of the students. This can be done in a number of ways. They have inplace some counseling sessions in the same way they learn, and here they may be able to share their problems. It may not be comfortable doing it at first but through a facilitator can ease the situation along. When a student sees that a person in the group is concerned about them, they may feel appreciated and be nudged enough o for a social bond with the rest to the group. Such a situation builds bonds with members of the class rather than remain strangers. Still in the same line of thought, this is why smaller classes are r ecommended since the facilitator is able to focus maximum attention on the students as opposed to regular classes where they hardly know but a handful of students (Vise, 2010). To ascertain the continuous success of the university, there has to be involvement of the staff. They are major service providers and dedicate much of their time to the educative welfare of the students. By involving them in the matters of the university, they feel appreciated rather than as mere means for the growth of the institution. They are best placed to give advice on the direction the students should head since they are the ones who interact with them on a daily basis. As the university strives to maintain quality, it is also a business venture so it should look into making both the taxpayer and the student satisfied with the services. You need to carefully assess each course and see which has the most gains versus those that seem not to be as popular among the students. Again here you may need the assistance of the facilitators who can provide insight on how to go about this. As the university strives to attain its goal of offering quality education, it should also remember that these students belong to a real world with people with emotions, wants ad, needs. They will need life skills and interpersonal communication techniques. The university admin is mandated to do so in order to produce a well-rounded student who is able to efficiently able to conduct themselves in a given setting. The facilitator as part of their lesson can give incidences that we face on a day to day basis and ask members of the class to give their views. Such sort of interaction will bring up the various personalities of the students and engage them on a personal level. As a way of implementing transparency within the university, they recently put up a website that is intended to answer any queries that potential students and other concerned parties may have. It contains such information as how credits are given and distributed to students for them to end up with the marks they are awarded and so forth. This is meant to quell any rumors that surrounds the university and the fact that it is a for profit organization. A major boost to the implementation process in institutions of higher learning was brought about by the creation of the seven principles of good practice (Chickering, 1996). It provided that in the changing world, if we are to embrace the ultimate force that is new technology we must do it in ways that complement these seven principles. The first advocates for good practice which in turn encourages contact between staff and students. Technology has enabled for the staff members to be within the reach of the students. Association with a member of the staff gives the student a sense of fulfillment and have and avenue for joint problem solving and intellectual talk. It is usually sometimes better and easier to have words written down rather than spoken. This is appropriate for shy students to have an opportunity to give their contribution. Good practice develops in better concentration and cooperation among students. In this regard learning is made more engaging when it is a team effort than when it is done by one person. The use of the email in the online classes allows for constant communication without the use of physical space. Good practice uses active techniques of learning.Students have diverse needs. It needs to encompass a variety of other techniques of learning otherthan sitting in a regular or virtual class setting. We need to engage in other things as we learn from different experiences. The university for example could encourage the students to apply whatever knowledge they take for their lessons to their places of work and see how compatible they are. They are able to develop insight into what works and what does not. Good practice results in efficient feedback. When coming into the virtual class we already have a sense of prior knowledge, each on their given levels (Allen and Seaman, 2005). However, when in the class setting we are faced with tasks of putting our knowledge into use. In the regard, we want to receive feedback concerning the level of understandingwe show. By being interactive, the facilitator is able to gauge our level of understanding. Good practice lays emphasis on time. We are able to accurately plan our time properly and effectively. As such we can get the most out of our days due to the effective time management skills we learn and complete our tasks in good time. Good practices communicate high expectations. This does not happen to those who are ill prepared. You need the motivation to be able to attend you lessons. The more motivated you are. The satisfaction you get after doing a good job becomes yourself drive to achieve even higher performances. Good practice will respect diverse talents and modes of studying. Students will come from all walks of life and have variouscapacities going on for them. We learn how to accommodate each other for a common goal. We form learning communities where the main focus is academic excellence. With such a foundation, the university can be a model of excellence to other universities striving to breach the gap and engage in the system that is online learning.As online learning itself becomes increasingly accepted as a legitimate learning format, the question of its advantages and disadvantages, pros or cons may also become moot. Buy custom The American Public University System essay