Case Study: of Nike Company Ltd: Question 1

Question 1 a) In the late nineties Nike found itself in a serious situation with its manufacturing approach in Asia. -Select and apply ace of Porters models of strategy to explain wherefore Nike were manufacturing in Asia? Michael Porter, leading author on company strategy and agonistical advantage, has developed several generic strategies which, according to Porter, are the driving take in behind any given companys success. These strategies comprise of greet Leadership, Differentiation and Focus.It is Porters view that any company that positions itself in at least one of these categories or striving to achieve one of these strategies should be able to attain and maintain competitive advantage, ceteris paribus. Nike Inc. has enjoyed a nifty deal of success in the Global Sports and Clothing Industry. One whitethorn even go as far to imagine it is the cream of the clothe or a cut above the rest. One may also wonder if any of Porters strategies tail end be applied to explain or justify Nikes competitive advantage.The strategy of Cost Leadership is most applicable to Nike. It is also safe to say that this strategy was the deciding factor behind its manufacturing operations in Asia. Nike has no factories. It does not tie up cash in buildings and machinery. The evolving design and bolt of its products does not warrant this type of investment. Instead, it outsources labour. Nike has manufactured wherever it fuck capture exalted quality products at the lowest possible price.This makes a truly lean organization and paves the way for the achievement of ultimate cost effectiveness. If prices rise, and products can be made elsewhere at a cheaper rate, to the same or better specification, Nike go out move production. Porters cost leaders strategy concentrates on aiming to become the lowest cost producer in the industry through economies of scale. The cost leader aims to drive costs cut down while it targets a broad market, so sufficient sales can cover co sts. Figure 1. is a representation of Porters intercellular substance which has been applied to the Nike Inc. By manufacturing in Asia, Nike was able to capitalize, not only on the availability of cheap labor, but also the availability of a immense range of materials required for production. The abundance of raw materials would mean large quantities of high quality purchased at wholesale prices. This enabled Nike to have tremendous purchasing military unit in Asia due to the high value of the US dollar. Nike also benefited from the relatively low tariffs associated with leather olded footwear. Nike would have never enjoyed these luxuries if its manufacturing was conducted in its homeland another(prenominal) factor to consider is the size of the labor force. Nike, through contracts, indirectly apply thousands around the world. This would ultimately result in the manufacturing of massive quantities in right away time. The higher the product turnover, the higher the returns. All t hese ingredients are paramount and will inevitably yield a cost leader, a. k. a. , Nike Inc.

Someone I Admire

Among the teachers I have encountered through my school life, Mrs. metalworker is the one that I most admire. She was one of my incline teachers in minor(postnominal) high. In contrast to other teachers apathy, her vitality eternally refreshed the aureole in our classroom. Moreover, her enthusiasm and thoughtfulness warms my heart to this day. Mrs. smiths charisma won everyones taste sensation soon after she began teaching us. Since she was not our first side teacher, everyone had a skeptical eye on her in our very first class. feel our doubts, she began the class with a guessing-people game. She asked us to write down characteristics some ourselves on a small piece of paper, which was read aloud to the class as a clue to identify the person. We had great fun that day collectible to her ingenuity to grasp what we wanted. Afterwards, the contempt students used to hold toward her was nowhere to be found. The energy and passion Mrs. Smith possessed when teaching was unbelievable . The more eld she spent with us, the more I noticed a distinctive graphic symbol of hers that truly amazed me.No matter what the weather was like and how she was feeling, she was ever so in high spirits when she entered the classroom, as if she was ecstatic to see us. Besides, she further us to interact with her therefore, the class was by no means severe and tense, but very enjoyable and inspiring. Mrs. Smith used clever techniques to suggest our interest in learning English. Quizzes argon an indispensable element of a class, but Mrs. Smith added them with her own illustrations to make them more fascinating.She also printed umpteen handouts, adorned with her amusing drawings, to provide the information missing in the text for us. In short, she had the magic to transform something painstaking into something pleasurable. Furthermore she introduced lots of English songs to us in her class. Whenever we started a new lesson, she would come up with songs whose themes or lyrics w ere related to what we were learning. The songs were so fantastic that everyone took delight in listening to them and enhancing our verbiage from the lyrics.Through her instruction, my love for English that year was resurrected. The experimental condition Mrs. Smith showed us outside of the classroom was moving. The third year of subordinate high was tough to most of us, for studying was the only proper thing we could in target to prep atomic number 18 ourselves for high school. Exhausted from the schoolwork, some students were extremely depressed. Mrs. Smith comprehend their low spirits and boost students to go to her office and talk somewhat their problems. Incredibly, she became the spiritual pillar of the class.Moreover, she intervened in disputes among students and cheered for us in every tourney at sports meets. Another unforgettable thing she did was write a bank bill for every student at Christmas. I was close to tears when she transfer the panel to me, for no oth er teacher had ever treated me with the term that she did. Mrs. Smith has created the model of an excellent teacher to me. Her teaching skills and attentiveness are etched eternally in my mind. Now when I teach students, I strive for devoting the best of my patience and effort in honor of her. soul I AdmireAmong the teachers I have encountered through my school life, Mrs. Smith is the one that I most admire. She was one of my English teachers in junior high. In contrast to other teachers apathy, her vitality always refreshed the aureole in our classroom. Moreover, her enthusiasm and thoughtfulness warms my heart to this day. Mrs. Smiths charisma won everyones insight soon after she began teaching us. Since she was not our first English teacher, everyone had a skeptical eye on her in our very first class. detecting our doubts, she began the class with a guessing-people game. She asked us to write down characteristics about ourselves on a small piece of paper, which was read aloud to the class as a clue to identify the person. We had great fun that day collectible to her ingenuity to grasp what we wanted. Afterwards, the contempt students used to hold toward her was nowhere to be found. The energy and passion Mrs. Smith possessed when teaching was unbelievable. The more eld she spent with us, the more I noticed a distinctive shade of hers that truly amazed me.No matter what the weather was like and how she was feeling, she was always in high spirits when she entered the classroom, as if she was ecstatic to see us. Besides, she encouraged us to interact with her therefore, the class was by no means well(p) and tense, but very enjoyable and inspiring. Mrs. Smith used clever techniques to bestir our interest in learning English. Quizzes are an indispensable element of a class, but Mrs. Smith added them with her own illustrations to make them more fascinating.She also printed many handouts, adorned with her amusing drawings, to provide the information missin g in the casebook for us. In short, she had the magic to transform something painstaking into something pleasurable. Furthermore she introduced lots of English songs to us in her class. Whenever we started a new lesson, she would come up with songs whose themes or lyrics were related to what we were learning. The songs were so fantastic that everyone took delight in listening to them and enhancing our phraseology from the lyrics.Through her instruction, my love for English that year was resurrected. The consideration Mrs. Smith showed us outside of the classroom was moving. The third year of junior high was unvoiced to most of us, for studying was the only proper thing we could in pasture to prepare ourselves for high school. Exhausted from the schoolwork, some students were extremely depressed. Mrs. Smith perceive their low spirits and encouraged students to go to her office and talk about their problems. Incredibly, she became the spiritual pillar of the class.Moreover, she i ntervened in disputes among students and cheered for us in every tournament at sports meets. Another unforgettable thing she did was write a card for every student at Christmas. I was close to tears when she pass the card to me, for no other teacher had ever treated me with the consideration that she did. Mrs. Smith has created the model of an excellent teacher to me. Her teaching skills and attentiveness are etched eternally in my mind. Now when I teach students, I strive for devoting the best of my patience and effort in honor of her.

Consider the theme of loneliness in the novel. How does it affect friendships and relationships? Essay

John Steinbeck was born in Salinas, California in 1902. When proper a fictional writer this bea played an influential break dance in the settings of many of his saucys. This includes the great novel Of Mice and manpower. As a teen erar the depressing scenes of the rural Californian ranches he kick the bucketed on in the summer impressed on him deeply. Steinbecks best-known acidulates go into this scene precise intimately with the plight of desperately poor wanderers in search of work and m iodiney, who, despite the ferociousty of their circumstances, often triumph spiritu every(prenominal)y.Of Mice and Men is set in the years still after the great effect and stock market crash of the 1930s with the dust bowl idle in the southern states. Like a lot of Americans George and Lennie were searching for work on the ranches, in their quest to own their own land and pass off of the fat of the land. How incessantly, cruel and powerful forces beyond their control disap engineered their quest for land and their tragedy was marked, ultimately, by steadfast compassion and love. The novel is set in the farmland of the Salinas v all in alley. The ranch George and Lennie work on is simply outside Soledad, and the countryside surrounding the ranch is described in the beginning of the guard as On one side of the river the g aged(prenominal)en foothill slopes curve up to the strong and rocky Gabilan mountains, but on the valley side the piss is lined with trees go forthows fresh and green with every spring, the passage emphasises the beauty and public security of the area.George and Lennie were people known as Migrant Farm Workers. These travelled the countryside in the midst of the 1880s and 1930s harvesting wheat. They earned very diminished to individually one day, plus food and very basic accommodation in the outbuildings of the farms. Unemploy handst was very high in the 1930s so the govern manpowert set up agencies to organize and send farm proleta rians to where they were needed. George and Lennie were members of the agency Murray and Readys from which they got their work cards. They, exchangeable most of the migrant farm workers, were in search of The American Dream which was to own their very own petite house and a couple of acres.One of the outsizedgest themes in the book is devastation. Many of the characters ingest to suffering pro entrap loneliness. George sets the tone for these confessions early in the novel when he reminds Lennie that action on the ranches is among the loneliest of fails, Guys wish us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest qats in the worldly concern. They dont belong no spotlight. edulcorate has one companion and that is his mark, so when the dog is pour downed he has no one and at that clothefrom attaches himself to Georges and Lennies woolgather. He does this so that he doesnt conk an outcast and alone. dulcorate still privations to carry out the reverie pull down after Le nnie accidentally kills Curleys wife, even though he knows solitary(prenominal) too tumesce that Lennie cannot return to the life history he led before. Crooks feels that he would work for free, as long as he wouldnt be alone and could communicate with mortal A guy goes nuts if he aint got nobody.Dont make no dispute who the guy is, longs he with you Curleys wife is so overwhelmed by her loneliness that she seeks friendship from early(a) men. She intimidates all the new(prenominal) men except Slim because she is beautiful and because she is Curleys wife. She in conclusion makes friends with Lennie and confesses her loneliness to him make in mind I dont standardised to call down to somebody ever once in a while? Each of these characters searches for a friend, someone to succor them cope with life. In the end, however, companionship of this type seems unattainable. For George, the hope of untold(prenominal) companionship dies with Lennie, and true to his original esti mation, he ordain go by dint of life alone.The relationship between George and Lennie appears to be very unusual to the rest of the workers. It is clear that most of them are sole(a). They all have different ship canal of coping with it some remember wished-for friends with affection. Others be come some self comfortable and solo look out for themselves making them very selfish. Crooks insists on the justifiedly to be alone even though he dis wish wells it. Carlson is incapable of compassionate for new(prenominal)s and their feelings. This side of him is shown clearly when he bullies glass into allowing him to shoot his ageing, smelly, rheumatic dog, He aint no good to you, Candy. An he aint no good to himself. Whynt you shoot him, Candy?The core of the novel is formed by the relationship between George and Lennie. With us it aint like that. We got a future day. We got somebody to talk to that gives a anathematize about us. We dont have to sit in no bar room blowin in ou r jack jus because we got no place else to go. If them another(prenominal) guys lay down in jail they can rot for all anybody gives a damn. But not us. In Lennies view, George is the most expensive person in his life he is not just his scarce friend but too a role model and his guardian. every time Lennie does something wrong he immediately thinks how angry and disappointed George will be. He also has a child-like reliance that George will always be there for him.George, even though he cares about Lennie, sees him as a constant source of frustration and aggravation and frequently speaks of how much bump life would be without his care taking responsibilities God amighty, if I was alone I could live so easy. I could go get a job an work, an no troubleAn whatta I got, George went on furiously I got you You cant keep a job and you digest me ever job I get. withal George is obviously devote to Lennie. Georges behaviour is motivated by the desire to protect Lennie and, eventuall y, endure the farm of their dreams so they can live of the fatta the lan.Lennies other childlike faith is that he believes they are both going to eventually settle down on the farm told to him often by George. This faith enables George to actually believe this account of their future aswell Georges belief in it depends on Lennie, for as soon as Lennie dies, Georges hope for a brighter future disappears. Their companionship contrasts the loneliness that surrounds them the loneliness of the homeless ranch worker the loneliness of the outcast black man the loneliness of the subjected woman the loneliness of the old, helpless cripple and this arouses the curiosity in the characters that they encounter, even Slim commented, It seems kinda funny a cuckoo like him and a smart little guy like you travellin unitedly.Their friendship goes back to when they were children leting up in the same town and when Lennies Aunt Clara died George took responsibility for him. They have been together for many years and as George says, have got kinda used to each other. Both of them bring different advantages to the relationship Lennies potential make them seem very attractive to potential employers who are desire labourers. Slim says of Lennie, I never seen such a worker in that respect aint nobody can keep up with him.Lennie is also a very handy person to have around if there is a fight. George is very intelligent and organizes both of their lives. He knows how to protect Lennie from other people and dangers, although this rarely happens from the time they meet Curley and his wife. From then on Lennie just seems to go from one confrontation to another. Another crusade why they stupefy together is that they enjoy travelling around the country with someone who cares for them. Lennie puts it well when he says I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you. by and by losing his dog, Candy becomes very withdrawn. Steinbeck paints him as the sad, stereotyped symbol of old age, a man whose life is void of friends and hope. When the dog is dead, he feels that he has zip fastener and no reason for existence. However in chapter three he overhears George describing their dream farm to Lennie and he interrupts them and asks You know wheres a place like that? At this point Candy reveals that he has quite a potato chip of money saved up which he could invest into the farm if he was allowed to. He asks George if he can come with them. After some deliberate thinking George agrees. Candy explains to George why he needs a place like theirs You seen what they done to my dog tonight? They says he wasnt no good to himself nor nobody else. When they can me here I wisht somebodyd shoot me. But they wont do cipher like that. I wont have no place to go, an I cant get no more jobs.In chapter 4 Candy is searching for Lennie one night while all the others have gone into town. He finds him in Crookss room and he is invited in to join them. He and Lennie virtuosot a communication about the farm. Candy is so excited that he cant stop himself heavy others. When Curleys wife tries to strike up a conversation with them, Candy reveals to her the dream of owning a farm. This only annoys George. When he returns, he tells them to leave immediately. In Chapter 5 the dream goes sour when Candy reveals the dead body of Curleys wife.He goes and gets George and returns to the body with him. George knows it was Lennie, as he had always feared this would happen. Candy conservatively asks George if they can still get their farm. George is silent, then says I think I knowed from the very first. I think I knowed wed never do her. He usta like to hear about it so much I got to thinking maybe we would. whole their dreams disappeared the mo Lennie killed Curleys wife. Georges only hope now is that maybe the other workers wont want to hurt Lennie. When George leaves, Candy speaks angrily to the corpse and his eyes are blind with tears. He is left only with t he reality of his solitary and single out existence on the ranch.Crooks is another character who gets easily sucked into Georges and Lennies dream of owning their own farm. When Lennie appears in the doorway of his room, Crooks turns him away, hoping to prove a point that if he, as a black man, is not allowed in white mens houses, then whites are not allowed in his, I aint valued in the bunk-house and you aint wanted in my room, but his desire for attach to ultimately wins out and he invites Lennie to sit with him. Once inside, Lennie and Crooks have a conversation in which both men seem to be public lecture to themselves rather than to each other. Lennie begins to talk about the rabbits but Crooks just thinks he is crazy and as Lennies dream unfolds Crooks is doubtful about it because he has seen this so many times I seen hundreds of men come by on the road an on the ranches, with their bindles on their back an that same damn thing in their heads every damn one of ems got a li ttle piece of land in his head. An never a God damn one of em ever gets it. Just like heaven. Everbody wants a little piece of lan. I read plenty of books out here.Nobody never gets to heaven, and nobody gets no land. When Candy enters the room and he and Lennie have a conversation about the rabbits and the farm, it is revealed to Crooks that they already have much of the money needed to demoralize it. He tells them that he will work for them without pay if they let him live there. Perhaps what Crooks wants more than anything is a sense of belonging, to enjoy simple pleasures such as the right to enter the bunkhouse or to play cards with other men. This desire would explain why, even though he has a reason to doubt George and Lennies talk about the farm that they want to own, Crooks cannot help but ask if there might be room for him to come along and hoe in the garden. Companionship and plentiful food are both parts of Crookss dream. However his dream comes to nothing and when Curl eys wife puts him in his place as a Negro, he knows nothing will change.Another character who turns out to be very lonely is Curleys wife. In the beginning of the book her purpose is to be the disgorgetartbitch that threatens to destroy male happiness and longevity. But subsequently in the novel her complex and interesting character is revealed. When she confronts Lennie, Crooks and Candy in the stable, she admits to feeling a kind of shameless dissatisfaction with her life. Her vulnerability at this trice and later when she admits to Lennie about her dream of becoming a movie star I met a guy an he was in pitchers. Went out to the riverbank Dance Palace with him.He says he was gonna put me in the movies. makes her much more interesting than the stereotypical tart that flirted with all the other men. However it also reinforces the novels grim view of the world. In her moment of greatest vulnerability, Curleys wife seeks out even greater weaknesses in others and directs her ange r towards Lennies mental disability, Candys old age and the colour of Crooks skin standin here talking to a bunch of bindle stiffs- a nigger an a dum dum and a lousy old sheep. As a result of this constant onslaught of insults it causes Crooks to reconsider his dream of going with the others and instead live out the rest of his miserable life at this ranch where he will be tormented by many, right up until he dies.In the next chapter when Lennie is in the b on his own and Curleys wife enters he tries to ignore her. All Curleys wife wants to do is strike up a conversation. She confesses how lonely she is because she intimidates all the other men, Why cant I talk to you? I never get to talk to nobody. I get awfully lonely. Eventually a conversation begins and she really opens up to Lennie telling him things she hasnt even told Curley Well I aint told nobody before. by chance I oughtn to. I don like Curley. He aint a nice fella Coulda been in the movies, an had nice clothes all of t hem nice clothes like they wear.. An I coulda sat in them big hotels, an had pictures took of me. When they had them previews I coulda went to them, an spoke in the radio, an iut wouldnt cost me a centime because I was in the picture. An all them nice clothes like they wear. Because this guy says I was a natural. In the end her dream is bust at the same point George and Lennies dream is shattered when Lennie accidentally kills her. almost of the characters in Of mice and Men admit, at one point to dreaming of a different and much better life. Candy confessing that he would like to grow old not alone and owning his own farm, Curleys wife absent to become a movie star and Crooks to be accepted in the social ladder that is life. What makes all of these dreams typically American is that they wish for unflawed happiness. Georges and Lennies dream of owning a farm is the perfect manikin of a typical American bringing close togetherl the dream offers them protection from the cruel an d ruthless world and enables them to sustain themselves. But the journey they take awakens George and introduces to him the savage reality he actually has.The story proves that the paradise, which the characters dream of, cannot be found on this earth. George and Lennie desperately cling to the notion that they are different from other workers who drift from ranch to ranch because, unlike others, they have a future and each other. But characters like Crooks and Curleys wife serve as cruel reminders that George and Lennie are no different from anyone who wants something of his or her own. Their perfect world is one of independence. Workers like George and Lennie have no family, no home, and very little control over their lives. This is exactly the opposite of what they want.They have to do what the head tells them and they have little to show for it. They only own what they can carry. Therefore, this idea of having such power over their lives is a strong motivation. The connection between the characters dreams and loneliness is very strong. All Curleys wife wanted to be was an actress, she missed her chance and married, as a result she became very lonely. Crooks cosmos Negro was always condemned to a life of loneliness but he still had a dream of what his life used to be like compared to the reality of what it was today. And Candy loosing his only true friend and companion his dog meant that if he didnt link himself to a dream he would add a life of loneliness. As it happened his dream like everyone elses was shattered by one fatal accident.When George tells Lennie to look across the river and imagine their farm, he lets Lennie die with the hope that they will attain their dream, and attain it soon. George, who must kill Lennie, is not allowed such comfort. He must go on sprightliness knowing the failure of their dream, as well as the sadness and guilt feelings of knowing that he killed his best and only true friend. George lets Lennie die with the come across of their farm in his mind and in a state of established mental happiness and calmness. But George himself must continue through life knowing that they will never reach it I think I knowed wed never do her.He usta like to hear about it so much I got to thinking maybe we would. The other men who come on the scene only see the half-wit who killed a woman and deserved to die. Only Slim understands Georges tragic loss. Carlson and Curley fit Slim lead George away from the riverbank their complete state of bewilderment is rooted more in ignorance than in heartlessness. Carlson and Curley represent the harsh conditions of a distinctly real world, a world in which the weak will always be vanquished by the strong and in which the rare, delicate perplex between friends is not appropriately mourned because it is not understood.

Developing nursing standards of practice Essay

The well-worns of practice for the RN atomic number 18 made up by the state bill of nursing that the nurse lives in. It is each nurses responsibility to know and protrude by their receiveds of practice for their state. Each state develops their standards of practice by by-line guidelines that the American Nurses Association (ANA) provides. The ANA has a committee on Nursing employment Standards and Guidelines that has a duty to clarify the role and relationships that be associated with regulation of all(prenominal) nursing practice (ANA, n.d.). The model recognizes the contributions of professional and specialty nursing organizations, educational institutions, credentialing and accrediting organizations, and regulatory agencies clarifies the role of workplace policies and procedures and confirms the individual nurses last-ditch responsibility and accountability for defining nursing practice (ANA, n.d.). There are 5 essential entities that are involved with developing a sta ndard of practice. They are knowledge, role validation, competency and skill, environment, and ethics (Klein, 2005). As a standard of practice is being developed, there are questions for each entity that can be asked. For exampleKnowledgeDid I complete a program that nimble me to see this population (family, adult, pediatric) of patients? (Klein, 2005) Role ValidationIs additional licensure or credentials required to do this skill on an ongoing or specialize basis? (Klein, 2005) Competence and SkillHow have I maintained competence? (Klein, 2005) EnviromentDoes the environment that I work in support this scope or practice through structures such as staffing, consultation, policies and procedures, protocols, and community standards? (Klein, 2005) EthicsWhat are the potential consequences of accepting treatment responsibility for this patient? (Klein, 2005) In conclusion, the board of nursing wants the practicing nurse to be fully competent in their work. This is a direction of how they determine the standards of practice that we follow.American Nurses Association. Determining Scope of practice session for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses.Retrieved August 6, 2014, from http//www.nursingworld.org/ScopeofPractice Klein, T. A. (2005). Scope of Practice and the Nurse practician Regulation, Competency, Expansion andEvolution. 1-2.

Drug offenders sdmitted to prison Essay

The unity greatest force behind the growth of the U. S. prison house house house system since the mid-1980s has been the home(a) war on medicates. 45 Spearheaded by major federal official medicine policy initiatives that significantly increased punishableties for do medicines offenses and markedly increased federal funds for verdant anti- do do dosess efforts, federal and assert measures to combat do do medicinesss mystify laborious on criminal law enforcement rather than prevention and treatment.46 An estimated 400,000 great deal al approximately genius-quarter of the summate incarcerated population in the U. S. are confined in local jails and state and federal prisons on drug charges. 47 Citing the rare number of drug offenders in U. S. prisons, General Barry McCaffrey, has decried the creation of what he termed a drug gulag. 48 Policies adopted to battle the use and sale of drugs have led to marked increases in arrest range, in the likelihood of passing game to prison, and in the length of sen xces for drug offenders. Between 1980 and 1997, the number of annual drug arrests tripled to a high of 1,584,000. 49 The rate of drug arrests per 100,000 residents rose from 288 to 661.50 The rate of commitment to state prison per drug arrest quintupled amid 1980 and 1990, emanation from 19 prison commitments per 1,000 arrests to 103 per 1,000. 51 The estimated time served by drug offenders in state prisons increased a full year amongst 1987 and 1996 federal drug moveences doubled. 52 As of 1997, there were an estimated 285,009 men and women in state and federal prisons on drug charges, a twelvefold increase since 1980. 53 Relative to the adult population, the rate of incarceration of drug offenders hasincreased almost tenfold, rising from less than 15 inmates per 100,000 adults to 148 per 100,000.54 In 1980, drug offenders comprised only sixsome component part of state prison populations. By 1998, they constituted 21 percent. In federal pris ons, drug offenders now comprise 59 percent of all told inmates, whereas they represented only a quarter of federal inmates in 1980. 55 do drugs Offenders Admitted to Prison Between 1980 and 1998, the number of new admissions of drug offenders to state and federal prison soared, exceeding 1. 5 million in total (Figure 5). In recent years, about one hundred thousand drug offenders have been admitted to prison annually. Nationwide, 31 percent of all admissions to state prison in 1996 were drug offenders.Among the states, the proportion of drug offenders varied between a unkept of 10 percent in Maine to a high of 46. 6 percent in New Jersey and 44. 7 percent in New York (Figure 6). In three quarters of the states, more than one in five persons sent to prison was convicted of a drug offense. In contrast, flushed offenders accounted nationwide for only 26. 8 percent of new state prison admissions. Rate of Admission of Drug Offenders There is a remarkable roll up in the extent to whic h states subject their populations to incarceration on drug charges (Table 8).The rank of admission of drug offenders to prison per 100,000 adult residents vary from a low of 6 per 100,000 in Maine to a high of 91 in California. The ten states that have the highest rates of drug offender admissions telling to population are California, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington. Nationwide, drug offenders are sent to prison at a rate, relative to population, that is 13 percent higher than the rate for angry offenders (Table 9).In one half of the states reporting to NCRP, the admission rates for drug offenders exceed those for persons convicted of violent crimes. Six states Arkansas, California, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, and Virginia send drug offenders to prison at rates that range from 50 to 100 percent higher than the rates for violent offenders. Drug Offending and Prison Admissions The gigantic range in admission rates for drug offenders across the country cannot be ascribed simply to variations in drug use and sales in different states.Table 10, covering twenty six states, presents federal estimates of the helping of the population over 12 in those states who were current illicit drug users in 1991-1993. 56 Although some drug users may cross state lines to purchase drugs, we assume that relative rates of drug use in each state also roughly reflect relative amounts of drug sale activity. Comparing drug use rates with calculations of the rate relative to population at which drug offenders in those states were sent to prison reveals the neediness of a consistent correlation between drug offending and the impounding of drug offenders.First, the percentage of the population that used drugs varied among states from 4. 1 to 8. 2 percent, compared to a range in drug offender admission rates that extended from 8 to 91. Second, the states with higher rates of drug use were not necessarily the state s with higher drug offender admission rates. Oregon, for example, had the third highest percentage of drug use, yet it had one of the lowest rates of drug admissions. In contrast, California had both the highest rate of drug use and the highest rate of drug offender admissions.Third, lower drug use did not necessarily gibe with low drug offender admissions rates. The percentage of Illinois population that used drugs was quite a low, yet the statehad the second highest rate of drug offender admissions. Similarly, Louisiana had a relatively low rate of drug use yet it had one of the highest rates of drug admissions. Obviously, no definitive conclusions can be wasted from a comparison of these two rather crude sets of figures.Nevertheless, the entropy designate the explanation for the different rates at which people are sent to prison for drug offenses must lie in different penal policies and priorities among the states, including different law enforcement resources and strategies , prosecutorial charging preferences, and sentencing laws, as well as structural and demographic factors, e. g. , degrees of urbanization, rather than rates of drug offending. Drugs Involved In Offense The NCRP data does not permit reliable calculations about the extent to which different solid drugs (e. g. , cocaine, amphetamines, heroin) were involved in drug offenses.The data is somewhat better with assure to the identification of marijuana offenses, which were identified as the drug involved in 4. 3 percent of all drug admissions. 57 In cardinal states marijuana offenses accounted for more than ten percent of drug admissions Alabama (16. 09), Iowa (17. 22), Kentucky (12. 4), multiple sclerosis (14. 50), New Hampshire (28. 83), North Dakota (43. 02), South Carolina (11. 25), South Dakota (18. 3), and West Virginia (20. 63) (Table 11). Type of Drug Conduct People are sent to prison for both drug possession and sales-related conduct.In 1996, the simple possession of drugs (exclu ding possession with intent to sell) was the most serious conviction offense for 28 percent of all drug offenders admitted to state prison (Table 12). Fifty-six percent of drug offender admissions were for drug sales, and the rest for other drug-related offenses (e. g. , fraudulent prescriptions and unlawful possession of syringes). In golf-club states (Alabama, Colorado, Georgia, Minnesota, Mississippi, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Virginia) more than 50 percent of drug offenders sent to prison were convicted of simple possession.

How We Are Teaching Children to Think Inside the Box Essay

When children come home from work snip, pargonnts usu on the wholey sit down with them, go through their homework folders and ask their child, so, what did you learn at inform now? Twenty twelvemonths ago, the child may nourish commented on what they learn in art, harmony, social studies or geography. Now, a child forget comment only on what they learned in their reading circle or in their mathematics book. The fault for this lies within the No nipper left hand bum (NCLB) Act. Standardized testing has turned t apieceers into test proctors and schools into testing facilities. Students be no longer receiving a broad reproduction that covers many an(prenominal) subjects instead, their erudition is streamlined to fit the content that is on the convertible tests.The NCLB Act is non working as it was int cobblers lasted, and as a result the American children atomic number 18 f in alling even further behind other developed demesnes. In fact, American students argon ranked 19th bulge of 21 countries in math, 16th in science and last in physics (DeWeese 2). The No squirt left Behind Act needs to be tossed stunned before we do irreversible damage to the training system. It is non similarly late we can turn everything around by getting ease up up of costly convertible tests, break students receive a broad education that includes classes in arts and music, which will better prep ar them for advanceder education, and give control rump to the individual separates.In 2002, the No Child Left Behind Act was enacted by Congress, which was int hold backed to close the learning crevice between flannel students and minority students. The NCLB promised to promote accountability amongst teachers and school administrators, as soundly as assuring that all children would be proficient consort to standards rope by the individual states in reading and math by the end of the 2013-2014 school grade (Ravitch 2). In addition, NCLB stated that by the e nd of the 2005-2006 school-year every classroom in America would have a highly qualified teacher (Paige 2). The most reliable elbow room that the drafters of No Child Left Behind proposed collecting the data that they needed in club to keep track of accountability and progression was by mandating that each state issue theirstudents in grades 3 through 12 a standardize test yearlyly that covers the subjects of reading, writing and math (Beveridge 1).The test that is issued is given to all students, whether they atomic number 18 Caucasian, African American, Hispanic, disabled, etc. and schools argon graded based on the proficiency of their students. Each state countersinks a yearly goal that increases each year based on the mandates of the NCLB Act, in which all students will be degree Celsius percent proficient in those three subjects by the year 2014 (Ravitch 2). On paper, the NCLB Act looked kindred a blessing to schools that be situated in plains of diminished-incom e, minority areas and advocates for children with learning disabilities because these tests were meant to highlight the schools that are doing gravely and ensure they receive funding and training in order to turn the score around (Darling-Hammond 1).In a letter that is addressed to parents on their website, the U.S. division of learning explains that the NCLB Act provides more resources to schools through funding and allows more tractableness when allocating the gold (3). According to Linda Darling-Hammond, a Professor of pedagogy at Stanford University, the funding allocated by NCLB less than 10 percent of most schools budgets does not hurt the needs of the under-resourced schools, where many students currently get by to learn (2). Another way schools get their funding is through the taxes that we pay. It commences sense that schools located in an area that has higher income would receive more funds than schools located in a low-income area. What happens is that with t he limited funding, schools in low-income areas need to prioritize funding to raise the standardized test lots of their students because once a school fails to show profit in their standardized test heaps, they are placed on probation the second base year and parents are given a choice to leave the failing school, taking their child and the funding attached to that child to a school that is rated better.In the third year of a schools failure, students are entitled to free tutoring after school according to Diane Ravitch, a explore professor of education at New York University (2). The funding provided by NCLB is say to help pay for the free tutoring, barely, like was stated before, the funding provided is not enough. What happens when a school is mandated by law to provide resources, but it cannot take care room in their budget? Thats justifiedly, they cut funding elsewhere. In an article written by Angela Pascopella, the Austin Independent School district superintendent P ascal D. Forgi superstar explains that NCLB also requires that schools in need of mendment set aside 10 percent of their local Title 1 funds for professional development this creates no flexibility in budgeting (1).When schools need to reconstitute their budget in order to pay for tutoring and retraining teachers, the arts and music programs are the ones that suffer most. NCLB places so overmuch emphasis on the endpoint of the standardized tests. Can you really blame the school districts for re-emphasizing the importance of standardized tests when their funding relies on it? States were rig in charge of providing their own sagacity tests in order to provide a more focused education to their students and ensure that the students meet the states standards of proficiency. Tina Beveridge explains that in 2007, the Washington perspicacity of Student Learning (WASL) cost the state $113 million and many districts eliminated commandment positions as a result, despite the use of sti mulus money. As budgets are cut nationwide, the funding for nontested subjects are affected first (1). The fact that the dissemination of funds is based on the outcome of the standardized test scores means that we are blatantly failing the inner-city schools. A school will be placed on probation if they fail just one kinsperson ranging from proficiency of Caucasian students all the way down to the proficiency of the students who are just learning the English language.Schools located in higher income areas hold outt really have to worry as much close budget cuts because those schools are located in areas that are predominately white and with parents who are active in their childrens education. On the other hand, schools in low income areas have to provide tutoring and other mandated actions in order to improve their proficiency rates, all the age their students are learning in crumbling facilities, overcrowded classrooms, out-of-date textbooks, no science labs, no art or music v ar.s and a revolving entry of untrained teachers (Darling-Hammond 2). After a few historic period of a school not showing improvement through their test scores, their entire statement staff could be fired. We just saw this happen last year in Providence, Rhode Island. The school board terminated 1,976 teachers because of insufficient results and the need to make budget cuts (Chivvis 1).The turnover rate forteachers is already extremely high, as much as 50 percent leave within 5 years in urban areas (McKinney et al 1) and the pressure of working in a low-income school district where schools are lacking basic training necessities is not all that appealing. The inability of low-income schools to offer teachers incentives because of funding, and with the added stress of job security, it makes one interrogate how any highly qualified teachers are in the classroom. On net of that, the curriculum for students has gotten so narrow that it has taken a lot of the creativeness and indi vidualization that once attracted the best of the best to the teaching profession. Susan J. Hobart is an example of one of those teachers who used to love doing her job because she was leaving her mark on her students, in a positive way. In Hobarts article, she tells of a letter she stock from one of her students prior to the NCLB Act. The letter explained that Hobart was different than other teachers, in a good way. They didnt learn just from a textbook they undergo the topics by jumping into the textbook. They got to construct a rainforest in their classroom, have a fancy lunch on the Queen Elizabeth II, and go on a sa off the beaten track(predicate)i through Africa (3).The student goes on to explain that the style of teaching she experienced during that time is what she hopes she can do when she becomes a teacher too. Unfortunately, that students dream will most likely not come true because the fact is that when schools are placed on probation, like Hobarts school, they teach te st-taking strategies similar to those taught in Stanley Kaplan prep courses and spend an exuberant amount of time showing students how to bubble up (1). With all the time and energy macrocosm placed on teaching children to read and write, you would cerebrate that they would be proficient by the time they record in college, right? Wrong. 42 percent of community college freshmen and 20 percent of freshmen in four-year institutions enroll in at least one sanative course 35 percent were enrolled in math, 23 percent in writing, and 20 percent in reading, according to the Alliance for comminuted study (1). Schools are so reliant on the standardized tests in order to gauge how students are understanding material that they have slacked-off in other areas like teaching basic study skills and critical thinking skills.When most of these kids graduate from high school and enter into a college setting, especially the ones who need to take remedial courses to catch-up to wherethey should b e when they graduate, theyre taken completely off guard with the course load and they will either succeed in managing it or struggle for the first few semesters, but the majority will drop out without a degree (Alliance for Excellent Education 1). High school is meant to countersink students for higher education or to enter the workforce, but the government is expenditure millions of dollars in order to remediate students and doing what high school teachers were meant to do (Alliance for Excellent Education 3). So, who is to blame? The supporters of No Child Left Behind greet that there are some faults to the Act, but those like Kati Haycock believes that although NCLB isnt perfect, the scrubbing administration and Congress did something important by passing it.They called on educators to contract a new challenge not just access for all, but achievement for all there are no more inconspicuous kids (1). Supporters feel as though benefits such as holding teachers responsible for all students, including those with disabilities, and weeding out the schools that have a long history of doing poorly outweighs the negatives and that with time, the NCLB Act can be reformed to work as efficiently as it was enacted to work. Ravitch disagrees, stating that Washington has neither the knowledge nor the capacity to micromanage the nations schools (3). We have to agree with her as concerned citizens and parents. While the NCLB Act meant well when it was passed, its time to acknowledge that the government has spent billions of dollars trying to improve the education of Americas youth, yet 10 years subsequent American students are still falling behind the mark set by other industrialized nations and the 2013-2014 school year is quickly attack upon us.Not only are we falling behind spherically, but minorities are still struggling behind Caucasian students. The gap between Caucasian students and minority students, that was intended to close through the NCLB Act, has remained just as far apart. E.E. miller elementary School, located here in Fayetteville, NC, just released their annual report card to parents. The chart below shows the break-down of students who passed both the reading and math tests provided at the end of the 2010-2011 school year. African American children, Hispanic children, and children with disabilities are still lagging far behind their Caucasian peers. African American children passed at 49.4 percent, 25.5 percent of students with disabilities passed and Hispanic children passed at rate of56.9 percent. Remember that the NCLB necessitates this school, on with every other school in the Nation, to be at 100 percent proficiency by the end of the 2013-2014 school year.SourceEducation First NC School Report Cards, E. E. Miller Elementary 2010-11 School Year, in the public eye(predicate) Schools of North Carolina State Board of Education, Web, 26 Oct. 2011.In order to put this chart more in perspective, below is the 3-year tr end for E.E. Miller. picSource Education First NC School Report Cards, E. E. Miller Elementary 2010-11 School Year, domain Schools of North Carolina State Board of Education, Web, 26 Oct. 2011.While math scores are steadily improving, reading scores (the solid line) are declining. E.E. Miller has been on probation for at least 3 years, having provided tutoring to children who were struggling last year. even so with those efforts, the end of the year test suggests those students are still struggling in reading. These mandates are not working. States are spending millions of dollars per year to fulfill all of the required obligations without any fruition. We need to put education spending back into the hands of the states with more substantial federal funding. The federal government cannot expect every public elementary school, middle school and high school in this nation to fix a problem that has been prevalent for many, many years with this one-size-fits-all approach to learning. It will not happen with No Child Left Behind, and it definitely will not happen by the end of the 2013-2014 school year. We can no longer sit and watch while students in America struggle to compete on a global level in nearly all subjects. teachers are not educating our nations students to think critically and to form their own ideas or opinions instead, teachers in failing schools are stuck teaching a curriculum that directly corresponds to what is being tested, and we are failing to prepare them for higher education. The future citizens we are mold will be of no use to society if they cannot think for themselves, which will happen if they remain in the current system. We need to undo this one-size-fits-allcurriculum and re-broaden our childrens education to include subjects that will teach them think distant the box.Works CitedAlliance for Excellence in Education. Paying Double wretched High Schools and Community College Remediation. Issue Brief August (2006). All4Ed.Org. Web. 3 0 Oct. 2011.Beveridge, Tina. No Child Left Behind and Fine Arts Classes. Arts Education Policy Review 111.1 (2010) 4. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Web. 20 Oct. 2011. Chivvis, Dana. Providence, RI, School Board Votes to Lay tally All Teachers. AOL News (2011). Web. 28 Oct. 2011.Darling-Hammond, Lisa. No Child Left Behind is a Bad Law. opposing Viewpoints. Web. 14 Oct. 2011.DeWeese, Tom. Public Education is Failing. Opposing Viewpoints. Web. 14 Oct. 2011. Education First NC School Report Cards. E. E. Miller Elementary 2010-11 School Year.Public Schools of North Carolina State Board of Education. Web. 26 Oct. 2011.McKinney, Sueanne E., et al. Addressing urban High-Poverty School Teacher Attrition by Addressing Urban High-Poverty School Teacher Retention Why Effective Teachers Persevere. Educational Research and Review Vol. 3 (1) pp. 001-009 (2007). Academic Journals. Web. 28 Oct. 2011. Paige, Rod. No Child Left Behind A Parents Guide. U.S. Department of Education (2002). PDF File. 28 O ct. 2011.Pascopella, Angela. Talking expound on NCLB. District Administration 43.7 (2007)22. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Web. 28 Oct. 2011.Ravitch, Diane. Time to Kill No Child Left Behind. Education Digest 75.1 (2009) 4. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Web. 20 Oct. 2011.

Book Summary

Book Summary s block off-off chapter one with citing one of the ten pedagogys, Thou shall not steal, Wayne Grudem sets the stage of what is about(predicate) to come a black and white analysis on how having stemma success does not necessarily make you fall short of beingness a good Christian. As a well-known, very(prenominal) credible Christian theologist, one whitethorn wonder why Grudem would venture out to mature a restrain solely about business. communication channel for the Glory of God, spirits at business ownership, profitability, money, contention, and borrowing and lending, just to name a a couple of(prenominal) topics.This seek will take a look at a few of the controversial topics, and sh be insight of why they may or may not be oper equal arguments for why business is, a bribe from God. When Grudem speaks of the commandment that states, Thou shall not steal, he uses this as evidence that by stealing, one must have their own possessions, and if we did not ha ve possessions, this commandment would make no sense. This is a reasonable assumption, thitherfore it thunder mug be a good way to begin discussing how ownership is not so bad on the contrary, if Grudem is unable to offer clear, factual information, his credibility may waiver.Chapter one continues with Grudems discussion of how ownership is not synonymic for greed, and if one is selfless and realizes that God is the real business owner, he has not sinned. The points that Grudem makes are kind of valid, and are very simple, and to the point the issue with this, is that these may seem wish simple subjects, however the responses are more analytical than what is given. When speaking of ownership, the solo vantage point is one attempting to prove that business ownership is not a repellant act without overcoming specific objections that this may be a diabolic act.While the generator makes valid arguments, he tends to only cater to what he believes, kind of of being philosophical on the subject. This can lead to the reader inquiring the content being read, and frankly can lead to distrust in the content overall. A similar argument would be, The world was created in sise days overall, because the Bible said so. Though this may be feasible to mortal who ac experiences that the Bible is accurate, it is not a proper argument for those who look for a deeper understanding of the matter.Chapter fours focus is commercial proceeding the beginning of the chapter reads, Buying and selling are fundamentally good and return many opportunities for glorifying God, yet also many temptations to sin. On the topic of get and selling, Grudem discusses how selfish motives can easily lead to a sinful nature. When a business or individual is making a profit from their company, and they do not share the profits accordingly with their partners, they have encountered a sinful nature. Also, when a business begins focusing on their profits only, they have idolise money, and f orgotten their original business promises.Grudem speaks of many good points on how buy and selling is essentially trading, so that we can get what we need. This is obviously what makes our economy, and allows us to provide for our families accordingly. Unfortunately, an unaddressed concern would be price gouging. For a typical, set class American, there are a lot of products and services that are necessary that are outrageously expensive due to circumstances. One exemplification of an unethical, non-Christian business practice would be pricing generators at a higher(prenominal) price due to power outages.This is unfair to the consumer who needs the product, and demonstrates the sellers greed. Profits allow businesses to succeed if there was no money pull in for ones labor, a business would be unsuccessful. Reasoning as to why profits are not against what Christianity stands for, is because if we make something and sell it for a higher price, we are generally selling the value th at we have added to a product. Mass merchandisers, such as Wal-Mart, have the ability to sell items at low prices, because they can financially order items in very greathearted quantities.The discounts that they receive on their merchandise are evidential to the buyer, who chooses to buy their items because they are the cheapest. It becomes a pattern and being that consumers are primarily focused on the cost point, Wal-Mart has become somewhat of a monopoly. There is no sensible value added to purchasing things from Wal-Mart, but there is value in livery a dollar or two. Due to the fact that privately possess supermarkets barely stand a chance against a mass merchandiser, ma and pop places are forced to close, with the inability to compete.Though price is a consumers primary concern, if there were lower costs of living, small businesses would have a lower overhead cost, and would not be forced to raise their prices for consumers. This is not insinuating that mass merchandisers are being sinful with their low prices this simply demonstrates how the organisations involvement in protecting small businesses can set about the economy. In chapter eight, Grudem discusses competition this is probably one of the most controversial subjects environ ones idea that businesses are synonymous with greed and corruption.contention can be defined from several different view points, and can be either positive or prohibit. One example of friendly competition would be a childrens basketball game. Children are encouraged to be aggressive, and to win, however, they realize that the game is to be played fairly, and friendly. Teams know that at the end of the year, the best teams win, and are awarded accordingly, which is another motivator for friendly competition. Competition takes place through all business standpoints, and sometimes goes without notice. In my workplace, there is friendly competition amongst employees who are selling phones.Being that our pay is based on w hat we sell, this friendly competition can turn ugly very chop-chop it just depends on your mindset. Being a Christian, I do not participate in unethical behavior that can hinder someone else, or me. I always make an attempt to treat for each one associate fairly, and I refrain from using foul or negative language. The unfortunate part is that not all associates will feel the comparable way about this, and this can lead to a tense environment, and at last employee remorse. This example demonstrates the positive and negative aspects of competition from a Christian viewpoint. passim his very short, theological password, Grudem tends to make a black and white analysis of topics pertaining to business. Throughout my reading, I found that his points were very valid however, they could be contradicted very easily. To a common reader who may not have much knowledge on Christian theology, it would be feasible that they search for further explanation. This book would benefit from the au thor having more of a philosophical mindset, and sharing some(prenominal) views on the matter with conclusive evidence as to why his viewpoint is correct. In this instance, the reader yearns for more information and ultimately, a better argument.The writer begins each chapter with stating that all can lead to sin if you let it, but he does not elaborate enough. For my educational purposes, I found this book very helpful in its attempt to shed light on a commonly overlooked topic in the Christian world. I was able to see Grudems points very clearly, and more importantly, I was able to gain information that can help me in my profession. WORKS CITED Grudem, Wayne. Business for the Glory of God The Bibles Teaching On the chaste Goodness of Business. Wheaton, IL Good News Publishers/Crossway Books, 2003