Other People s Children By Jonathan Kozol - 862 Words

Jonathan Kozol, in the chapter entitled â€Å"Other People’s Children, discusses and justifies the kinds of limitations placed on children who must attend poorly funded, educationally inferior school. Kozol argues that children in the inner-city schools are not fit to go to college and that they should be trained in schools for the jobs they will eventually hold, even though these jobs are less prestigious, lowest-level jobs in society. Kozol’s argument is based on the fact that students from the inner-city or rather from the societies that do not have enough job opportunities are not supposed to learn much because their society cannot accommodate most of the courses that are often found in the urban settings. For example, there is a point where Kozol cites one of the businessman’s statement which says, ‘It doesn’t make sense to offer something that most of these urban kids will never use.’ The businessman continues to argue, ‘no one ex pects these ghetto kids to go to college. Most of them are lucky if they are literate. If we can teach some useful skills, get them to stay in school and graduate, and maybe into jobs, we’re giving them the most that they can hope for’ (Kozol 376). This statement clearly indicate that the society should accept the inequalities and exercise the same inequalities even in education. Despite the fact that Kozol could be right in some ways, this paper will argue that Kozol’s arguments are baseless, biased and that they should not be applied. In otherShow MoreRelatedEssay on Response to Savage Inequalities by Jonathan Kozol934 Words   |  4 PagesResponse to Savage Inequalities by Jonathan Kozol In Savage Inequalities, Jonathan Kozol describes the conditions of several of Americas public schools. Kozol visited schools in neighborhoods and found that there was a wide disparity in the conditions between the schools in the poorest inner-city communities and schools in the wealthier suburban communities. 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How Can People Have A Healthier Lifestyle - 1780 Words

More than 78.6 million of U.S. adults are obese, that is almost one-third of the whole U.S. population. The U.S. ranks 27th on the scale of most obese countries (out of 188). America is the only country where the poor are more obese than the rich or middle class. Today’s generation might be the first in which parents will outlive their own children due to obesity related problems. The lives of the 20th century differs from this generation because of lifestyles, eating habits, GMO’s and lack of exercise. These situations could be resolved, by making this generation realize the hardships one could possibly phase if not taken into action. Is it that people just have poor living choices? Is it the businesses fault? Is it the government’s? How can people have a healthier lifestyle? Every individual has a unique lifestyle and a story that unfolds as time goes by. 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Issues In Field Of Accounting Of Companies â€Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Issues In Field Of Accounting Of Companies? Answer: Introduction The present study provides a clear understanding about the contemporary issues in the field of accounting of the companies. In order to carry on with the study, two-major Australian companied from energy is taken into consideration. They are BHP Billiton and Australian Worldwide Exploration Limited. BHP Billiton is one of the major Anglo-Australian multinational energy companies that is headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. The major products and services of the corporation are iron ore, coal, petroleum, copper, natural gas, nickel, uranium and others (bhp.com 2017). On the other hand, Australian Worldwide Exploration Limited (AWE) is a major Australian dynamic company and the focus of the organization is to provide oil and gas opportunities. AWE is based in Sydney, Australia (awexplore.com 2017). Both BHP Billiton and AWE are listed in Australian Stock Exchange (ASX). Different stages of this report compare and contrast various financial aspects of these two companies. There are so me basic requirements that the businesses must fulfill, there are some basic rules, and regulations that the companies must complied with. This particular report has a significant role to play in highlighting all these areas for the companies. Compliance of Annual Report with AASB It is required for all the Australian companies to comply with all the principles and standards of Australian Accounting Standard Board (AASB). In case of BHP Billiton, it can be seen that the annual reports of the company is well complied with the rules and regulations of AASB. According to the annual report of 2016, the consolidated general purpose financial report of the company has been made in accordance with Australian Corporation Act 2001. All the financial and accounting works of the company has been done as per the norms and regulations of International Financial Regulatory System (IFRS) (bhp.com 2017). In case of AWE, as per the latest annual report of the company, all the consolidates financial statements and general purpose financial statements have been prepared as per the principles and standards of AASB. At the time of development of all these financial statements and reports, AWE uses to follow the standards of Corporation Act 2001. The consolidated balance sheet of the company has been developed with accordance to the principles and standards of IFRS. Thus, based on the above analysis, it can be seen that both BHP Billiton and AWE follows all the principles and standards of AASB, IFRS and Corporation Act 2001 at the time of preparation of financial statements (awexplore.com 2017). Prudence Prudence is a major accounting concept and it is also known as conservatism principle. According to the principles of prudence, the accountants of the business organizations needs to record the liabilities and expenses at the time of their occurrence; but they need to record the revenues only after their realization (Barker 2015). In the recent years, the concept of prudence has become vastly popular among the Australian companies. The main aim of prudence is to address the disparities that can be seen in the process of corporate reporting. Thus, prudence repair the corporate reporting disparities by taking into consideration accountability and true representation of the financial information. With the help of prudence, the accountants can increase the simplicity of various financial statements and reports as it implement better understandability of the financial statements (Bauer, O'Brien and Saeed 2014). In the present situation, disparities in the annual reports have become a majo r concern for the business organizations as it leads to accountability and fair representation of the financial information issues. From the latest annual report of both BHP Billiton and AWE, it can be seen that both the companies have addresses the issue of prudence in the effective way. As both the companies have been able to address the issues related with prudence, all the stakeholders of these two companies have been able to get true and fare financial information. The financial statements of these two companies include all the true and fair financial information (Mora and Walker 2015). Compare and Contrast the Annual Reports From the 2016 annual report of BHP Billiton, it can be seen that the company did not perform well in 2016. In the year 2016, BHP Billiton had revenue of $30912 million million as compared to $44636 million in 2015. Thus, it can be seen that there is a drop in the revenue of the company. This drop in revenue affected the profit of BHP Billiton. In the year 2016, the company had a loss after taxation from both continuing and discontinuing operation of $6207 million as compared to the profit of $2878 million in the year 2015. This indicates a massive drop in the financial performance of the company. Due to this, in 2016, BHP Billiton had a net loss of $6184 million as compared with the net profit of $2742 million in 2015. It shows the decrease in financial performance of BHP Billiton (bhp.com 2017). As per the 2016 annual report, AWE had annual revenue of $14509700 as compared with the revenue of $200297000 in 2015. Thus, a decrease in the revenues can be seen. From the annual report of AWE, it can be seen that the company has been facing financial problems for last two financial years. According to the 2016 annual report, AWE had a comprehensive loss of $371405000 as compared with the comprehensive loss of $137305000 in 2015. From this figure, it can be seen that the amount of loss has increased in 2016 as compared to 2015. It indicates the ineffective financial position of the company. This process has also affected the EPS of the company as the EPS of AWE in 2016 and 2015 were $68.94 and $43.84 respectively. Thus based on the above analysis, it can be said that BHP Billiton has a more stable and good financial position than AWE (awexplore.com 2017). Identification of Disclosure It is required for the business organizations of Australia to comply with all the accounting and financial rules and regulations. In this case, AASB and IASB have crucial roles to play. From the latest annual reports of both BHP Billiton and AWE, it can be seen that both these two companies aim to disclose all the details about directors remuneration report and employee benefits. According to the AASB guidelines and principles, all the ASX listed companies have to disclose the details employee benefits and employee compensation plan on the yearly basis. It is required for the Australian companies to improve the level of accountability and integrity in terms of corporate disclosure and financial information (Lawrence 2013). Conceptual framework helps to show the most important aspects of annual reports. Corporate disclosure takes into account the various aspects of AASB and IASB for the disclosure of financial information. According to the previous discussion, it can be seen that both BHP Billiton and AWE comply with all the principles and standards of AASB and IASB. For this reason, it is essential for these two companies to disclose all the financial information of their business operations. In the annual reports of these two companies, differ financial notes can be seen. All the financial notes include the small details related to the disclosure of the financial information. All these notes have important roles to play in the process of disclosure. Thus, based on the above discussion, it can be said that both these two companies disclose all the necessary financial information (Cai et al. 2014). Remuneration Report There are three major components of the remuneration of BHP Billitons senior executives; they are base salary, pension and benefits. Base salary is based on the specific roles of the directors. Apart from this base salary, there are Long-term Incentive and Short-term incentive plan for the directors. Incentives are provided based on performance of the directors. In order to measure the performance of the directors, the remuneration committee has adopted the strategy of Balance Scorecard. As a part of Short-term incentive, awards are provided to the directors (bhp.com 2017). In case of AWE Limited, there are three major factors of the remuneration structure of the directors; they are fixed remuneration, short-term performance benefits and long-term performance benefits. There are some specific components of fixed remuneration; they are base salary, fringe benefits and superannuation contributions. The performance bonuses are provided based on some specific KPIs (Key Performance Measures) of the directories. The performance of the directors are assessed or measured based on these KPIs. In case of the long-term performance bonus of the directors, the directors performance are measured based on the risk parameter. Thus, based on the above discussion, it can be said that both BHP Billiton and AWE have almost same directors remuneration structure (awexplore.com 2017). Inventories BHP Billiton AWE Limited Year 2016 $3411 million $14140 million Year 2015 $4292 million $7103 million Table 1: Inventories of BHP Billiton and AWE (Source: As Created by Author) From the above table, it can be seen that the inventory position of AWE is stronger than BHP Billiton as AWE has more inventories than BHP Billiton does. It is essential for the companies to manage their inventories in a proper way in order to manage shortage and excess of inventories. Accounts Receivable BHP Billiton AWE Limited Year 2016 $3155 million $16423 million Year 2015 $4321 million $58591 million Table 2: Accounts Receivable of BHP Billiton and AWE (Source: As Created by Author) From the above table, it can be seen that AWE has more accounts receivable that BHP Billiton. It indicates that AWE has more credit sales than BHP Billiton does. Thus, it implies that the liquidity position of AWE is better than that of BHP Billiton. Hence, BHP Billiton needs to take corrective measures to strengthen their liquidity position. PPE (Property, Plant and Equipment) BHP Billiton AWE Limited Year 2016 $83975 million $14080 million Year 2015 $94072 million $14540 million Table 3: PPE of BHP Billiton and AWE (Source: As Created by Author) From the above table, it can be seen that the PPE position of BHP Billiton is stronger than that of AWE Limited. It implies that return from assets is more to BHP Billiton than that of AWE Limited. Thus, it is recommended that AWE Limited needs to increase the property and assets base of the company. Total Liabilities BHP Billiton AWE Limited Year 2016 $58882 million $316086 million Year 2015 $54035 million $549705 million Table 4: Total Liabilities of BHP Billiton and AWE (Source: As Created by Author) From the above table, it can be seen that BHP Billiton has less amount of liabilities than that of AWE Limited. It is good for the companies to have fewer amounts of liabilities as it shows the efficiency of the companies. In order to be more effective, AWE needs to reduce the amount of liabilities. Share Prices BHP Billiton AWE Limited Year 2016 $18.65 $0.83 Year 2015 $27.05 $1.21 Table 5: Share Prices of BHP Billiton and AWE (Source: As Created by Author) From the above table, it can be seen that there is a huge gap between the share prices of BHP Billiton and AWE Limited. The share price of BHP Billiton is higher than that of AWE Limited. It shows the popularity of BHP Billiton to their inventors. Conclusion From the above discussion, it can be seen that both BHP Billiton and AWE Limited follow the principles and standards of AASB and IASB at the time of preparing financial statements. Apart from this, for the reporting of these financial statements, these two companies follow the principles of IFRS and Companies Act 2001. In addition, it can be seen that both BHP Billiton and AWE Limited use to address the issue of prudence in their various financial statements and reports. It helps to include accountability and integrity in financial reporting for the companies. It can be seen that both these two companies aim to disclose all the necessary financial information regarding the remuneration of the directors and employees compensations. After that, based on the comparison of the annual reports and financial statements of these two companies, it can be seen that BHP Billiton has more stable financial position that that of AWE Limited. Thus, it is recommended that AWE needs to take correctiv e measures to improve their financial position. References AWE, A. (2017).About AWE | AWE Limited. [online] Awexplore.com. Available at: https://www.awexplore.com/irm/content/about-awe1.aspx?RID=319 [Accessed 13 Aug. 2017]. Awexplore.com. (2017).Annual Report 2016. [online] Available at: https://www.awexplore.com/irm/PDF/2522_0/AWE39s2016AnnualReport [Accessed 13 Aug. 2017]. Barker, R., 2015. Conservatism, prudence and the IASB's conceptual framework.Accounting and Business Research,45(4), pp.514-538. Bauer, A.M., O'Brien, P.C. and Saeed, U., 2014. Reliability makes accounting relevant: a comment on the IASB Conceptual Framework project.Accounting in Europe,11(2), pp.211-217. BHP Billiton. (2017).BHP Billiton | Our Company. [online] Available at: https://www.bhp.com/our-approach/our-company [Accessed 13 Aug. 2017]. bhp.com. (2017).Annual Report 2016. [online] Available at: https://www.bhp.com/-/media/bhp/documents/investors/annual-reports/2016/bhpbillitonannualreport2016_interactive.pdf [Accessed 13 Aug. 2017]. Cai, Y., Dhaliwal, D.S., Kim, Y. and Pan, C., 2014. Board interlocks and the diffusion of disclosure policy.Review of Accounting Studies,19(3), pp.1086-1119. Lawrence, A., 2013. Individual investors and financial disclosure.Journal of Accounting and Economics,56(1), pp.130-147. Mora, A. and Walker, M., 2015. The implications of research on accounting conservatism for accounting standard setting.Accounting and Business Research,45(5), pp.620-650.

THE MANY SIDES OF HAMLET Essay Example For Students

THE MANY SIDES OF HAMLET Essay Hamlet is a very complicated character with many sides and many faces, making him one of the most analyzed characters in all of literature. His emotions shift about throughout the play, some emotions true to our own, and others, more far fetched and wild emotions. Hamlets complexity makes it hard to put a finger on the exact motive to many of his actions. In the story of Hamlet, the question also comes up: What is the exact motive of his inaction? Shakespeare presents to Hamlet some very traumatic and unusual circumstances. Hamlets father, King Hamlet, is supposedly killed in his garden by a snake. Not two months go by before Queen Gertrude has married the former kings brother, Claudius. We will write a custom essay on THE MANY SIDES OF HAMLET specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now At this point Hamlet is not in a very healthy or happy state of mind, but just to add to his confusion, the ghost of his father appears. The ghost tells Hamlet that he did not die of snake poisoning, but rather of the poisoning of Claudius. Upon hearing news of your fathers murder, the natural instinct would be to want brutal revenge. Hamlet, however, in spite of his rage and anger, knows that a fast and furious killing of Claudius would do no good. He first had to have a plan devised to prove that this ghost was real and spoke the truth. This delay in action shows Hamlets strength in a controlled mind, and his ability to think rationally in an intense situation. If Hamlet listens to the ghost, and it turns out to be a demon telling a lie, or a figment of his imagination, he will have committed a sin and gone to purgatory for no reason at all. Hamlets main plan to trap the king comes when a group of players come to town. He asks them if they would enact a play titled The Mouse Trap, which, bottom-line, is a re-enactment of the murder of Hamlets father. Hamlet watches the King very closely for any signs of guilt or nervousness through the play. When the King finally catches on to whats going on, Hamlet gets a little more than just a hint of the Kings guilt. Claudius actually stands up and throws a fit for fresh air. Now Hamlet has the King caught, so Hamlet should be revenging his fathers murder at the first chance he gets, but are there still morals about killing and other lingering circumstances that will keep Hamlet from acting on his discovery? Hamlet gets his chance to stab Claudius in the back when he walks by the alter, and Claudius is openly crying to God and praying for forgiveness of his sins. The scene is set perfect for the once-and-for-all killing of the murderer, King Claudius. Something still stands in the way though. As Hamlet gives a soliloquy while standing behind Claudius, we gather that the reason he cant kill him now is that he is in confession and would go to heaven if he died clean of sins. King Hamlet was killed in sin and sent to purgatory, so Hamlet wants the same for Claudius. The decision to wait for a better time to kill Claudius was rationally worked out in Hamlets head, but that reason may have just been hiding some other feelings and moral implications. Killing another person is not an easy thing to do. There are so many things to think about when you take someones life away from them, that they may have gotten in the way, in Hamlets mind, of making the real right decision. So did Hamlet delay in acting once again because the time wasnt right like the first time, or did he simply chicken out of killing another person? These are the kinds of questions that arise when trying to figure out Hamlets many sides. In this case, Hamlet had a good reason to not kill Claudius at that very moment, but it was really just a good excuse to not have to go through with driving the sword through Claudius just yet. We can tell from other instances in the story, such as being the last griever of his fathers death, that Hamlet can be a feeler, and the type of person that would have a hard time killing someone. This decision, although justified from all sides in Hamlets mind, would prove to be a mistake that cost him the life of several other loved ones and his own life as well. .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a , .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a .postImageUrl , .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a , .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a:hover , .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a:visited , .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a:active { border:0!important; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a:active , .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .uc8619c9fdaa739f8736da0db0050ee8a:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Alcohol Abuse Essay Hamlet is finally driven to kill Claudius in a fit of rage after a sword match in which he, Laertes, and the Queen are all poisoned. These are all lives that could have been saved if Hamlet would have acted on his plan sooner. Hamlets delay in acting was justified in both cases, but the second time there were some morals and some fear that kept him from seeing that that was the right time. Hamlet has so many sides, and his so complex that he has the ability to have the right frame of mind in any type of situation, but when those different sides of him cross, then danger lies ahead.

Using Conflicts in Decision Making to Make Effective Decisions and a More Cohesive Group Essays

Using Conflicts in Decision Making to Make Effective Decisions and a More Cohesive Group Essays Using Conflicts in Decision Making to Make Effective Decisions and a More Cohesive Group Essay Using Conflicts in Decision Making to Make Effective Decisions and a More Cohesive Group Essay Using Conflicts in Decision Making to Make Effective Decisions and a More Cohesive Group Conflicts arise between co-workers often and over many different matters. Mismanaged conflicts can damage relationships and stalemate group decisions. By learning conflict resolution skills, workers can seize opportunities for growth and open discussion. One can use conflicts that arise in group decision making to make more effective group decisions and a more cohesive group. Conflicts in Group Decision Making Tubbs (2007, p. 09), defined conflict management as The ability to manage conflict so that there is a healthy conflict of ideas without the unhealthy conflict of feelings. Conflict is often thought of as a completely negative event, when in fact it can have many positive effects. Without some form of conflict, problems would not ever be revealed or dealt with. Although there are many cost associated with conflict, there are also many benefits that are often overlooked. Personal Conflicts P ersonal conflict arises out of a sense of being wronged. The perception of inequality, scarcity, and moral or cultural differences gives rise to a emotional grievance (Brahm, 2004, para. 1). Acting out these conflicts is a way of addressing concerns. conflict can give rise to new norms and rules to govern conduct which can have long-term benefits conflict can lead to establishing new statutes meant to deal with the sources of conflict (Brahm, 2004, para. 8). Idea Conflicts Idea conflicts are a difference of opinion. People can have idea conflicts and have no personal conflict- as long as they respect other peoples point of view. Idea conflicts are necessary to create idea diversity. A homogenous set of ideas will not be as creative, comprehensive, or open to new ideas. Ideas conflict can also easily escalate into personal conflicts when workers become more loyal to an idea than to the group synergy. Make Effective Group Decisions With Conflict Building Collaborative Solutions, Inc. (BCS), defines conflict management as the opportunity to improve situations and strengthen relationships' (Tubbs, 2007, p. 315). By resolving disagreements before they turn into personal conflict, workers can keep their focus. Conflicts are often easier to handle when put into proper perspective (Sherman, 2011, p. 52). An open exchange of ideas can contribute to organizational health by valuing honorable conflicts of ideas. Group member should expect and respect differing points of view, while maintaining personal sovereignty of thought. Conflict Solutions conflict can initiate a process through which individuals realize they have common interests and common enemies (Brahm, 2004, para. 10). New bonds can be made in conflict, even as others are being broken down. Outside conflict can bond and energize group members (Tubbs, 2007, p. 315). The challenge is to realize the benefits of conflict in such a way so as to minimize the many costs also associated with conflict (Brahm, 2004, para. 14). If a company provides conflict resolution training to employees, they can reduce the intensity and frequency of future conflicts. Groupthink The term groupthink was coined in the 1970s to describe a situation when a group makes faulty decisions because group pressures lead to a deterioration of mental efficiency, reality testing and moral judgment within a board (Martyn, 2011, para. ). Groupthink can be effectively be mitigated by a healthy expression of the conflict of ideas. Members of a group guilty of groupthink are usually more concerned with group harmony than with effective decision making (Martyn, 2011, para. 3). When attention is drawn to the hazards of groupthink and benefits of idea diversification, then the group can focus on the best interest o f the organization. Cohesion When conflict resolution happens out of empowerment and collaboration, it allows for more growth and more positive opportunities to be presented. When personal growth is shared between team members it produces bonds learn positive ways of addressing conflict that will minimize hurt feelings, gossip, and a negative environment. Leaders should recognize that organizational level decisions can have an immense effect on both functional and dysfunctional conflict (Harris, Ogbonna, Goode, 2008, p. 453). Perspective be open to the other persons perceptions-instead of casting blame, explore how you both may have contributed to the situation (Freinkel,2004, para. ). Bringing the causes of conflict to the surface will allow for the root problem to be dealt with. No matter who youre dealing with, asking open-ended questions is a great way to create a dialogue (McCurdy, n. d. , p. 3). Discovering the best level of analysis requires a certain navigational skill, a nimble capacity to zoom in, out, and around to different perspectives (Sherman, 2011, p. 52). Conclusion A certain amount of conflict is inevitable, and it must be understood to be channeled. Conflict can be used as an opportunity to grow and improve group interaction. Conflict and resolution is not a zero-sum game; there are benefits when one looks for them. Group cohesion and decision making can certainly be enhanced through the conflict and resolution process. References Brahm, E. (2004). Benefits of Intractable Conflict. Retrieved April 26, 2011 from beyondintractability. org/essay/benefits/ Freinkel, S. (2004, July/August). can we talk? Health, 18(6), 135-138. Harris, L. C. , Ogbonna, E. , Goode M. H. (2008). Intra-functional conflict: an investigation of antecedent factors in marketing functions. European Journal of Marketing, 42(3/4), 453-476. doi:10. 1108/03090560810853011 Martyn, K. (2011, March). Governance groupthink. New Zealand Management, 58(2), 55-56. McCurdy, S. (n. d. ). 5 ways to resolve conflict at work. Retrieved April 24, 2011 from click2houston. com/money/24926751/detail. html Sherman, J. (2011, March/April). Zoom. Psychology Today, 52-53. Tubbs, S. L. , (2007). A Systems Approach to Small Group Interaction (9th ed. ). Ney York, NY: McGraw Hill.

15 Frequently Confused Pairs of Verbs

15 Frequently Confused Pairs of Verbs 15 Frequently Confused Pairs of Verbs 15 Frequently Confused Pairs of Verbs By Mark Nichol These similar-looking words below have dissimilar meanings. Make sure you’re using the write one in each pair. 1. Amused/bemused: To be amused is to be entertained; to be bemused is to be confused. 2. Appraise/apprise: To appraise is to evaluate; to apprise is to inform. 3. Ascribe/subscribe: To ascribe is to attach an idea to a source; to subscribe is to hold belief in an idea. 4. Attain/obtain: To attain is to reach; to obtain is to acquire. 5. Barter/haggle: To barter is to trade; to haggle is to negotiate. 6. Born/borne: To be born is to be brought forth; to be borne is to be carried along. 7. Borrow/loan: To borrow is to receive something for temporary use; to loan is to provide something on those terms. 8. Careen/career: To careen is to lean over to one side or to sway; to career is to hurry carelessly. (And to carom is to ricochet.) 9. Censor/censure: To censor is to ban; to censure is to reprimand. 10. Criticize/critique: To criticize is to judge harshly or in a negative manner; to critique is to evaluate. 11. Denigrate/deprecate: To denigrate is to defame or belittle; to deprecate is to disapprove or deemphasize (but can also, like denigrate, mean to disparage). 12. Differ/vary: To differ is to disagree or to be distinct from; to vary is to change (although differ can also refer to variation). 13. Espouse/expound: To espouse is to support; to expound means to state, explain, or defend (which is also distinct from the phrase â€Å"expand on,† which means to provide additional or digressive details). 14. Rebut/refute: To rebut is to argue in response to another argument; to refute is to deny an argument. 15. Wangle/wrangle: To wangle is to obtain by underhanded means; to wrangle is to wrestle. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:12 Signs and Symbols You Should KnowDriver License vs. Driver’s LicenseDrama vs. Melodrama

Innovation and change (Mobile phone industry ) Essay

Innovation and change (Mobile phone industry ) - Essay Example Government has always bended its brows on companies that have innovated in their technology and business practices but not provided for safe and eco-friendly disposal of parts and batteries (â€Å"Life Cycle Management: A business guide to sustainability†). Being responsible to the environment affects the product offering in the way that consumers make an image of unethical manufacturer in their minds. Nokia has been able to create a good image by providing for eco-friendly disposal of its handset parts across the world. Taxes are means of revenues for Government. A flourishing industry provides better prospects of high taxes to the government. Mobile phone industry has climbed up the ladder of evolution and growth in a very short span and has also been taxed heavily for latest technological innovations. These innovations sometimes help to curb emerging competition due to its monetary intensity and also help avoid malpractices which might take place under innovation disguise. Consumer protection laws and regulations also have a huge bearing on innovation taking place in mobile industry. Innovations are expensive and if the involved technology does not satisfy customer requirements, it has to be replaced abiding by consumer laws, which could be a means of huge losses for the innovator (Bonthron 2009). Technology reducing international distances every day, mobile manufacturers have to resort to efficiency in operational costs by rationalizing their supply chain through international trading. However, across borders, import and export charges and duties have much affected the growth of mobile phone innovation. There have been many cases where host government has denied entry of foreign players due to the fear of their market being captured by other telephony giant, thereby siphoning a major portion of their GDP. Competition has been very stiff in the mobile phone

Managing Construction Site Constraints Research Paper

Managing Construction Site Constraints - Research Paper Example   Geotechnical engineering is a field of study concerned with the behavior of rocks and soil present at any particular area. The features of geotechnical engineering are not just restricted to construction of buildings; rather it serves many other areas that include petroleum, military, and mining (Benny). Some of the main areas of study covered by geotechnical engineering include soil mechanics, rock mechanics, and design of foundations. Geotechnical engineering plays a key role in site development and, in particular, in designing foundations of a building. According to Rowe, geotechnical engineers study the behavior of soil and rocks in order to determine their physical and chemical properties that are necessary to be investigated at the earliest stages of building design (31). Based on investigations, engineers move towards the process of designing soil stabilization system in order to overcome the soil contamination problems.Working of Geotechnical EngineersThe first thing geot echnical engineers do in building design process is starting the design process by taking soil samples from the land where construction is to be started. The purpose is to determine the environmental impact on the soil of the site. Some other aspects of the site that geotechnical engineers study include chemical properties of soil, soil stability, and the presence of air pockets in the soil. The results of these tests determine the viability of the decision to start construction at the site or not.   The tests reveal the soil behavior at the site, as well as help the engineers in finding suitable solutions to the identified problems. The engineers use the results to design foundations for the building planned for construction. Here, an important point is that the complexity of the design of foundations depends on the condition of the soil. According to Day, if condition of the soil is normal, the design of the foundation will also be simple, whereas it will be complex in case the soil at the construction site shows atypical pattern or behavior (71). Geotechnical engineers not only provide feasibility report for the designing of foundations but also play an important role in the designing of earth support structures. The earth support structures play a valuable role in the construction of dams, roads, and tunnels. Some of the main tasks of

Linguistics Plus Essay Example for Free

Linguistics Plus Essay A. The Backround Of Study In the preceding chapters , linguistics has been discussed mainly as the scientific study of languages. According to this view, linguistic is a theoritical, abstract, academic subject. It describes the nature of human language activity in scientific terms and linguistics are see to belong to different schools of thought and to hold competing linguistic theories. We have seen what this view of linguistics has to contribute to language teaching. There is another view of linguistics which cuts across all schools of linguistic thought and is common ground among all linguistics. In this view,linguistics is abody of attitudes and knowledge which result from the study of things like nature of language as a communicative, social activity : language in the individual , his speech mechanism and mental capacities for language : language in society : varieties of language , the rigorous description of particular languages , etc . This common ground the linguistics is immediately relevant to whole field of language teaching . B. The Formulation Of Study Based on the backrgound of study that explained, we formulate some problems that will be explained in this discussion, there are : 1. What is the meaning of psycholinguistics? 2. What is language acquisition? 3. is the first language learning the same as first language acuisition? 4. What is the interference from L1 in learning L2? C. The Perpose Of Writing To obtain a focused, it is necessary to tell the purpose of this paper. The purposes of writing this paper are: 1. Make the readers know about Psycholinguistic , language acquisition , First and second language, Motivation in L2 learning , and Language Interference. 2. Knowing the different between First and Secong Language D. Research Of Methodology. There are many methods that can be used in educational research, such as historical method, descriptive method, experimental method etc. We use the description method in order to meet the purpose of the research. CHAPTER 2 LINGUISTIC PLUS (CHAPTER 6 IN BOOK) A. PSYCHOLINGUISTICS PSIKOLINGUISTIK As its name suggests, psycholinguistics is a field study that combines psychology and linguistics. The term itself was coined in 1951. Though the study had been going on eveb in the nineteenth century in the form of the study of language development. It includes a great variety of topics that are of interest to language teachers. Some of these are: how language is received and produced by language user : our memory span of language: motivation in language learning : how L1 Habits interface with L2 learning billingualism and mental development : the use of language in concept formation; and language acquistion or development. Seperti namanya, psikolinguistik adalah studi lapangan yang menggabungkan psikologi dan linguistik. Istilah itu sendiri diciptakan pada tahun 1951. Meskipun penelitian telah terjadi bahkan pada abad kesembilan belas dalam bentuk studi perkembangan bahasa. Ini mencakup berbagai macam topik yang menarik bagi guru bahasa. Beberapa di antaranya adalah: bagaimana bahasa diterima dan dihasilkan oleh pengguna bahasa: memori kita rentang bahasa: motivasi dalam belajar bahasa: bagaimana Kebiasaan L1 antarmuka dengan pembelajaran belajar L2 dan perkembangan mental: penggunaan bahasa dalam pembentukan konsep, dan akuisisi bahasa atau pembangunan. B. LANGUAGE ACQUISTION TRANSISI BAHASA The last mentioned topic is currently being much investigated by TG grammarians because their linguistic theory makes such on the language producing ability of human beings. It is therefore of interest to them, as it is to teachers, to find out how language is acquired. ( it may be noted at this point that they make a distinction between language acquisition or development and language learning . The first language or mother tongue is acquired, while the second language is learned. ) Topik terakhir yang disebutkan saat ini sedang diselidiki oleh banyak tatabahasawan tradisional grammar karena teori linguistik mereka membuatnya seperti bahasa dapat menghasilkan kemampuan manusia. Oleh karena itu sangat menarik bagi mereka, terutama untuk guru, untuk mengetahui bagaimana bahasa diperoleh. (Mungkin terdapat pada bahasan ini bahwa mereka membuat perbedaan antara penguasaan bahasa atau pengembangan dan pembelajaran bahasa asli atau bahasa ibu yang langsung diperoleh, sedangkan bahasa asing harus dipelajari. ) There are two theories of language acquisition: the cognitive-code learning theory f-voured by the transformational generative linguists and the habit-formation theory of the structural linguists. The habit-formation theory is in effect the aplication of learning theory to language acquisition. It involves conditioning and reinforcement to shape a response until it is like the model . An example mat make the process clear. An infant may accidentally produce what sound like â€Å"mama† ,on his babbling and the mother reinforces this by smiling , kissing, cuddling him.. This encourages him to produce the sounds again and the nearer they approach the word â€Å"mama† , the more pleasure the mother shows until the child learns to say the word correctly every time with reference to her. The whole process is described as â€Å" shaping† the response and strengthening it by selective reinforcement. The response is encouraged to recur or strengthened by the smile or nod , or whatever is reinforcing to the child. Repeated occurences of the response from habit. Imitation plays as important a role as repetition in the theory. The child imitates the adults he hears and is again reinforced for correct responses. This theory of language acquisition is based on the view that language is behaviour that results from habits and habits are formed by practice and repetion. Ada dua teori akuisisi bahasa: teori belajar kode kognitif mempelajari teori f-voured oleh ahli bahasa transformasi generatif linguistik dan teori-kebiasaan hasil pembentukan ahli bahasa struktural. Teori formasi kebiasaan yang pada kenyataannya aplikasi dari teori belajar akuisisi bahasa. Ini melibatkan pengkondisian dan penguatan untuk membentuk respon sampai seperti model atau contoh yang ada, misalnya sebuah kaset untuk membuatnya sebagai contoh. Contoh lain adalah Bayi yang dapat menghasilkan sebuah kata yang terdengar seperti mama, saat mengoceh dan ibunya memperkuat ini dengan memberikan senyuman, mencium,atau memeluk dia . Hal ini dapat mendorong dia untuk menghasilkan suara lagi dan semakin dekat dengan kata mama yang sebenarnya, respon senang yang ditunjukan ibunya itu terus ditunjukan hinngga anak belajar mengucapkan kata kata dengan. Seluruh proses yang digambarkan sebagai pembentuk respon dan penguatan dengan penguatan selektif. Respon yang didorong untuk muncul kembali atau diperkuat oleh senyum atau anggukan, atau apapun yang dapat memperkuat kepada anak untuk melakukan sesuatu. Kejadian yang diulang dari respon dan dari kebiasaan. Permainan meniru sama penting peranannya sebagai teori. Anak meniru orang dewasa, ia mendengar lagi dan diperkuat oleh respon yang diberikan orang disekitarnya. Teori pemerolehan bahasa didasarkan pada pandangan bahwa bahasa adalah perilaku yang dihasilkan dari kebiasaan dan kebiasaan yang dibentuk oleh praktek dan pengulangan. The cognitive-code learning theory states that language is rule-governed behaviour and that in language acquisition, the infant learns the set of rules that will produce the sentences of the language. How does he arrive at the set of rules? TG grammarians say human beings are born with a language acquisition device (LAD), which enables the child to form a series of hypotheses about the language which he hears , as he grows up. At each stage in his language development he tests his hypothesis (the set of rules he has formulated so far) against what he hears ( the language data) and revises it accordingly , until he reaches adult competence. But what does the LAD consist of? The theory is that it consists of those linguistic universals to be found the deep, deep structure of all languages. There is no agreement or certainty yet about what these universals are apart from the  fact that they must be certain abstract syntactic and semantic categories and relationships, though there may be a neurophysiological basis in the brain. Examples of such relationships which have been postulated are: those between noun and verb as in case grammar; that between subject and predicate; and catagories like NP , VP , Adv. These universals are said to be present in the structure of all languages but each language realises them in different way in surface structure and language learning consists in learning how it is done in that particular language . The linguists are making cross-cultural studies of language acquisition in order to get evidence of linguistic universals, but the data collected so far are still sketchy though certain features in language appear in about the same sequence and at about the same age all over the world. Teori Kode kognitif belajar menyatakan bahwa bahasa adalah aturan aturan perilaku dan bahwa dalam akuisisi bahasa, bayi mempelajari seperangkat aturan yang akan menghasilkan kalimat bahasa. Bagaimana ia bisa sampai pada seperangkat aturan? Tatabahasawan TG mengatakan manusia dilahirkan dengan perangkat penguasaan bahasa (LAD), yang memungkinkan anak untuk membentuk serangkaian hipotesis tentang bahasa yang ia dengar, saat ia tumbuh. Pada setiap tahap dalam perkembangan bahasa, ia menguji hipotesis tersebut (seperangkat aturan yang telah dirumuskan sejauh ini) terhadap apa yang ia dengar (data bahasa) dan merevisi (menerjemahkan artinya), sampai ia mencapai kompetensi dewasa. Tapi apa saja penyusun LAD itu ? Tidak ada kesepakatan atau kepastian tentang apa saja penyusun LAD tersebut dan tak ada yang terlepas dari kenyataan bahwa orang orang universal linguistik harus memastikan kategori sintaksis dan semantik abstrak, meskipun mungkin ada dasar neurofisiologi di otak. Contoh hubungan tersebut yang telah disebutkan adalah antara nomina dan verba seperti dalam tata bahasa, bahwa antara subjek dan predikat, dan kategori seperti NP, VP, Adv. Itu dikatakan terdapat dalam struktur dari semua bahasa, tetapi setiap bahasa menempatkan mereka dengan cara yang berbeda dalam struktur permukaan dan pembelajaran tertentu. Para ahli bahasa membuat studi lintas-budaya , untuk mendapatkan bukti yang umum tentang linguistik, tetapi data yang dikumpulkan sejauh ini masih samar meskipun fitur tertentu dalam bahasa muncul di sekitar urutan yang sama dan pada sekitar usia yang sama di seluruh dunia . The teacher of second language needs to take of these two theories of language acquisition since they have given rise to schools of thought on language teaching. If language acquisition is a matter of habit formation, then the language teacher must concentrate on performance. Let the pupils imitate a model and give them plenty of pattern drill to establish habits of behaviour. Reinforce them gor correct responses and elimitate wrong responses by a lack of reinforcement. Let them learn inductively, inferring the rules for themselves after much practice rather than receiving the rules for explanations at the begining. If, on the other hand, language acquisition is a matter of learning a code, then the language teacher must ensure that the pupils internalise the rules yhat will enable them to produce sentences. Explanations of the sentences structures and explicit knowledge of the rules must then play a larger rule in language teaching. Para guru bahasa kedua perlu mengambil dari kedua teori pemerolehan bahasa karena mereka telah melahirkan aliran pemikiran pengajaran bahasa. Jika akuisisi bahasa adalah masalah pembentukan kebiasaan, maka guru bahasa harus berkonsentrasi pada kinerja. Biarkan siswa meniru model dan memberi mereka banyak bor pola untuk membangun kebiasaan perilaku. Memperkuat mereka tanggapan gor benar dan elimitate tanggapan yang salah oleh kurangnya penguatan. Biarkan mereka belajar induktif, menyimpulkan aturan untuk diri mereka sendiri setelah banyak latihan daripada menerima aturan untuk penjelasan di awal. Jika, di sisi lain, penguasaan bahasa adalah masalah belajar kode, maka guru bahasa harus memastikan bahwa siswa menginternalisasi yhat aturan akan memungkinkan mereka untuk menghasilkan kalimat. Penjelasan dari struktur kalimat dan pengetahuan eksplisit aturan kemudian harus memainkan aturan yang lebih besar dalam pengajaranbahasa. How is the language teacher to decide between the two theories of language learning? What grammatical theory is most useful to language teachers? To answer these questions, i would just like to refer the reader to the paper by J. B Carroll that i cited in chapter 1. In that paper he says. â€Å"it would be pretentious to try to express an opinion on which of the various grammatical theories is most vailed. Different grammatical theories have somewhat different goals in general. I believe that language teacher should evaluate grammatical theories in terms of the degree to which they comform to the linguistic habits that actually enable a language user to speak and understand the language†. Bagaimana guru bahasa untuk memutuskan antara dua teori pembelajaran bahasa? Apa teori tata bahasa yang paling berguna untuk guru bahasa? Untuk menjawab pertanyaan ini, saya hanya ingin merujuk pembaca untuk kertas oleh JB Carroll yang saya dikutip dalam bab 1. Dalam kertas yang katanya. Itu akan sok mencoba untuk mengekspresikan pendapat yang dari teori gramatikal berbagai paling vailed. Teori tata bahasa yang berbeda memiliki tujuan yang agak berbeda secara umum. Saya percaya bahwa guru bahasa harus mengevaluasi teori tata bahasa dalam hal sejauh mana mereka comform ke kebiasaan linguistik yang benar-benar memungkinkan pengguna bahasa untuk berbicara dan mengerti bahasa . As for theories of language learning. Carroll suggest a synthesis of the two. I am inclined to agree with him that neither a pure â€Å"audiolingual habit theory† nor a pure â€Å"cognitive-code learning theory† can be comprehensive and correct. Each of the theories contains elements of truth, and each therefore to some degree wrong or incomplete. We need to extract what is valuable for each theory and put them together. Carroll calls the synthesis â€Å"cognitive habit-formation theory†. Adapun teori belajar bahasa. Carroll menyarankan sintesis dari dua. Saya cenderung setuju dengan dia bahwa baik murni kebiasaan teori audiolingual atau murni kognitif-kode teori belajar bisa tidak lengkap dan benar. Setiap teori mengandung unsur kebenaran, dan masing-masing karena itu untuk beberapa derajat yang salah atau tidak lengkap. Kita perlu untuk mengambil apa yang berharga bagi teori masing-masing dan menempatkan mereka bersama-sama. Carroll menyebut sintesis kognitif kebiasaan-formasi teori. The audiolingual habit theory is correct in that language behaviour is partly a matter habits. The audiolingual method with its emphasis on pattern practice and formations of habits fell out of favour because the theory made the wrong assumtions about that kinds of habits to form and how to form them. Instead of forming habits that have to do. For instance, with substituting words in sentences or with changing one kind of sentences into another. teacher sould form functional habits. The diffferent between the two is that the former takes no account of language ude in actual situations (where is the occasion for substitution for tables in real life outside the classroom?) while the latter does. For example, in teaching commands and requests, it is not enough to present the learners with statements to be changed into commands or requests. The stimulus is the sentence in the case. In forming fumctional habits the stimulus is the situations, the intentions and the listener. In situation A, if you need help you just shout â€Å"help! † ; in situation B, you may say, â€Å"please help me† or â€Å"could you helm me? † ; in situation C, you may say, â€Å"would you mind helping me? † and so on. Teori Kebiasaan audiolingual benar dalam perilaku bahasa adalah kebiasaan sebagian materi. Metode audiolingual dengan penekanan pada praktek pola dan formasi dari kebiasaan jatuh dari nikmat karena teori membuat assumtions salah tentang hal itu jenis kebiasaan untuk membentuk dan bagaimana membentuk mereka. Alih-alih membentuk kebiasaan yang harus dilakukan. Misalnya, dengan mengganti kata-kata dalam kalimat atau dengan mengubah satu jenis kalimat menjadi lain. Guru arwah membentuk kebiasaan fungsional. The diffferent antara keduanya adalah bahwa mantan tidak memperhitungkan bahasa ude dalam situasi yang sebenarnya (di mana merupakan kesempatan untuk substitusi untuk tabel dalam kehidupan nyata di luar kelas?) Sedangkan yang kedua tidak. Sebagai contoh, dalam mengajar perintah dan permintaan, itu tidak cukup untuk menyajikan peserta didik dengan pernyataan yang akan diubah menjadi perintah atau permintaan. Stimulus adalah kalimat dalam kasus ini. Dalam membentuk kebiasaan fumctional stimulus adalah situasi, maksud dan pendengar. Dalam situasi A, jika Anda memerlukan bantuan Anda hanya berteriak membantu! , Dalam situasi B, Anda mungkin berkata, tolong bantu saya atau bisa Anda helm saya? , Dalam situasi C, Anda mungkin berkata, bisakah kau membantu saya dan sebagainya?. Carroll also points out that the audingual habit theory wrongly assumed that practice and repetion were crucial factors in the formation of habits. Although practice and repetition have certain roles to play, they are not crucial in learning. Succesive repetition of the same response is, in fact, generally the wrong way to â€Å"stamp in† a habit; there are few kinds of learning where this is effective. Evocation of the response on a number of aperiodic, widely-spaced occasions, with interpolation of different material in the intervals, is a much more effective method has been insufficiently employed in pattern drills. Carroll juga menunjukkan bahwa teori kebiasaan audingual salah diasumsikan bahwa praktek dan pengulangan adalah faktor penting dalam pembentukan kebiasaan. Meskipun praktek dan pengulangan memiliki peran tertentu untuk bermain, mereka tidak penting dalam belajar. Pengulangan berturut dari respon yang sama, pada kenyataannya, umumnya cara yang salah untuk cap di kebiasaan, ada beberapa jenis belajar di mana ini efektif. Kebangkitan dari respon pada sejumlah aperiodik, luas-spasi kesempatan, dengan interpolasi dari bahan yang berbeda dalam interval, adalah metode yang jauh lebih efektif telah kurang digunakan dalam latihan pola. The element of truth in the cognitive-codelearning theory is that a knowledge of the facts and formal rules of the language can really be of help in guiding the learner to form the right language habits. However, knowledge of the rule alone is of on avail unless the learner is given opportunities to form the habits in the way suggested above. Forthermore, the facts of the language should be presented in a form easy to understand, and appropriate to the learner’s age and ability. Abstract rule should be illustrated with a number of concrete examples. Unsur kebenaran dalam teori kognitif-codelearning adalah bahwa pengetahuan tentang fakta-fakta dan aturan formal bahasa benar-benar dapat membantu dalam membimbing peserta didik untuk membentuk kebiasaan bahasa yang tepat. Namun, pengetahuan tentang aturan saja dari pada berhasil kecuali pelajar diberikan kesempatan untuk membentuk kebiasaan dalam cara yang disarankan di atas. Forthermore, fakta bahasa harus disajikan dalam bentuk yang mudah dimengerti, dan sesuai dengan usia peserta didik dan kemampuan. Aturan abstrak harus diilustrasikan dengan sejumlah contoh konkret. C. FIRST AND SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING PEMBELAJARAN BAHASA PERTAMA DAN KEDUA A question often discussed with regard to second language learning is whether it is the same as first language acquisition. The answer depends on the stage at which the second language is learned. If it is learned at an early age before the first language is thoroughly mastered, or almost simultaneously with the first language then second language learning parallels first language learning. If it is learned at a later stage in the formal school setting, there are several observable differences. First of all, the child is exposed to the first language all his waking hours while he probably hears the second language only during the class hour. Secondly, there is a big difference in motivation. A child learning his first language is strongly motivated because his needs and wishes are satisfied by the use of language and his control of his environment and himself increases with his increasing mastery of his mother tongue. Not only this, but emotional and social ties are created by his use of the first language. The second language seldom fulfils such function when it is learned as a subject in the curriculum. Thirdly, as the child learns the first language he is also learning the concepts, while in learning the second language he seldom has to form new concepts except where these are foreign to his own culture. Finally, the habits established in first language learning tend to inhabit and interfere with his learning of the second language. It is also claimed that there is a critical period for language acquisition which extends up to puberty. But according to Carroll: â€Å"the evidence for a ‘critical period’ and decline in language acquisition ability during the middle school years is not strong, however, and even if there is some decline. I am not persuaded that one must appeal to biology to explain it. † (p. 109) Krashen has since confirmed Carroll’s view. Suatu pertanyaan yang sering dibahas terkait dengan pembelajaran bahasa kedua adalah apakah pembelajarannya sama dengan akuisisi bahasa pertama. Jawabannya tergantung pada tahap di mana bahasa kedua dipelajari. Jika dipelajari pada usia dini sebelum bahasa pertama benar-benar terkuasai, atau hampir bersamaan dengan bahasa pertama, maka pembelajaran bahasa kedua sejajar dengan pembelajar bahasa pertama. Jika dipelajari pada tahap berikutnya dalam bentuk sekolah formal, ada beberapa perbedaan yang diamati. Pertama-tama, anak terkena bahasa pertama selama dia terjaga sementara dia mungkin mendengar bahasa kedua hanya selama jam sekolah. Kedua, ada perbedaan besar dalam motivasi. Seorang anak belajar bahasa pertamanya sangat termotivasi karena kebutuhan dan keinginannya terpuaskan dengan manfaat bahasa dan kendali lingkungannya dan dirinya sendiri meningkat dengan meningkatnya penguasaan â€Å"bahasa ibunya†. Tidak hanya itu, tapi hubungan emosional dan sosial terciptaka oleh penggunaanya terhadap bahasa pertama. Bahasa kedua jarang memenuhi fungsi tersebut bila dipelajari sebagai subjek dalam kurikulum. Ketiga, ketika anak belajar bahasa pertama dia juga belajar konsep, sedangkan dalam mempelajari bahasa kedua jarang ia harus membentuk konsep-konsep baru kecuali konsep-konsep itu asing bagi budayanya sendiri. Akhirnya, kebiasaan-kebiasaan pada pembelajaran bahasa pertama cenderung menghuni dan mengganggu pembelajaran bahasa kedua. Hal ini juga menyatakan bahwa ada periode kritis bagi penguasaan bahasa yang meluas sampai masa puber. Tetapi menurut Carroll: bukti untuk periode kritis dan penurunan kemampuan akuisisi bahasa selama pertengahan masa sekolah tidak kuat, bagaimanapun, dan bahkan jika ada beberapa penurunan. Saya tidak yakin bahwa seseorang harus menarik biologi untuk menjelaskannya (hal. 109). Krashen sejak mengkonfirmasi pandangan Carroll. There is one respect in which learning a first language is similar to learning a second language: it is in the process itself. Just as the young child makes generalisations and says â€Å"foots† or â€Å"goed†, so the Malay learner of English as a second language may over-generalise and say â€Å"foot of the sky† when he means the horizon. In second language learning there is also imitation and modelling, just as there is in first language learning. Ada suatu kecocokan dimana pembelajaran bahasa pertama mirip dengan belajar bahasa kedua: yaitu dalam proses itu sendiri. Sama seperti anak muda yang membuat generalisasi dan mengatakan foots atau goed, begitu pula pelajar Melayu yang belajar Bahasa Inggris sebagai bahasa kedua mungkin over-generalisasi dan mengatakan foots of the sky ketika ia bermaksud mengatakan â€Å"the horizon†. Dalam pembelajaran bahasa kedua ada juga imitasi dan modeling, seperti yang ada dalam pembelajaran bahasa pertama. D. MOTIVATION IN L2 LEARNING MOTIVASI DALAM PEMBELAJARAN L2 It was mentioned above that there was a difference in motivation between first and second language learning. It is the lack of motivation that produces little or no difference in student performance in response to improved teaching methods or materials. This problem of motivation in second language learning has been studied and two kinds of motivation have been distinguished. One is called instrumental motivation: this is when the student learns the second language for instrumental purposes. For example, it may be a compulsory school subject or it may be required for post –graduate work, for his career or for travel abroad. There is no desire on his part to go beyond the language as a tool to fulfil rather limited purposes. The other kind of motivation is called integrative. In this case, the student learns the second language with the desire to identify himself with the native speakers and to enrich his life by contact with another culture. It was found that students with integrative motivation have greater success at learning the second language than those with merely instrumental motivation. Telah disebutkan di atas bahwa ada suatu perbedaan dalam motivasi antara belajar bahasa pertama dan kedua. Ini adalah kekurangan dari motivasi bahwa motivasi menghasilkan sedikit atau tidak adanya perbedaan terhadap prestasi siswa dalam menanggapi metode pengajaran atau materi. Masalah motivasi dalam belajar bahasa kedua ini telah dipelajari dan dua jenis motivasi telah dibedakan. Satu disebut motivasi instrumental: yaitu ketika siswa belajar bahasa kedua untuk tujuan instrumental. Sebagai contoh, mungkin suatu subjek sekolah yang wajib atau mungkin diperlukan untuk tugas pasca sarjana, untuk karirnya atau untuk perjalanan ke luar negeri. Tidak adan keinginan pada bagiannya yang melampaui bahasa sebagai alat untuk memenuhi tujuan yang terbatas. Jenis lain dari motivasi disebut integratif. Dalam hal ini, siswa belajar bahasa kedua dengan keinginan untuk mengidentifikasi dirinya dengan penutur asli dan memperkaya hidupnya dengan kontak dengan budaya lain. Ditemukan bahwa siswa dengan motivasi integratif memiliki keberhasilan yang lebih besar dalam mempelajari bahasa kedua dibandingkan dengan motivasi instrumental. E. LANGUAGE INTERFERENCE GANGGUAN BAHASA Another aspect of psycholinguistics that is directly relevant to second language teacher has been touched upon in discussing contrastive analysis. That is, the study of interference from L1 in learning L2. The theory is that in learning L1 certain habits of perceiving and performing have to be established and the old habits tend to interlude and interfere with the learning, so that the student may speak L2 with the intonation of his L1 or the word order of his L1, and so on. We noted in the last chapter that though such interference does occur, not all errors in L2 learning can be accounted for by interference from L1. L2 learning like L1 acquisition appears to proceed by stages when new bits of the language are imperfectly learned, giving rise to what has been called interlanguage. Aspek lain dari psikolinguistik yang secara langsung relevan dengan guru bahasa kedua telah disinggung dalam pembahasan analisis kontrastif. yaitu, the study of interference from L1 in learning L2. Teorinya adalah bahwa dalam belajar L1 kebiasaan dalam mengamati dan performing harus dibentuk dan kebiasaan lama cenderung selingan dan mengganggu pembelajaran, sehingga siswa berbicara L2 dengan intonasi L1-nya atau urutan kata L1-nya , dan seterusnya. Kami mencatat dalam bab terakhir bahwa meskipun gangguan tersebut tidak terjadi, tidak semua kesalahan dalam pembelajaran L2 dapat dipertanggungjawabkan oleh gangguan dari L1. pembelajaran L2 seperti akuisisi L1 muncul untuk melanjutkan secara bertahap ketika bit baru dari bahasa tidak dipelajari secara sempurna, sehingga menimbulkan apa yang disebut interlanguage. CHAPTER III CONGCLUTION From chapter 2 in this report , we make some point : 1. Psycholinguistics is a field study that combines psychology and linguistics. The term itself was coined in 1951. Though the study had been going on eveb in the nineteenth century in the form of the study of language development. It includes a great variety of topics that are of interest to language teachers. 2. theory of language acquisition is based on the view that language is behaviour that results from habits and habits are formed by practice and repetion. 3. If the second is learned at an early age before the first language is thoroughly mastered, or almost simultaneously with the first language then second language learning parallels first language learning. If it is learned at a later stage in the formal school setting, there are several observable differences. different motivation. Emotional and social ties are created by his use of the first language. Meanwhile, The second language seldom fulfils such function when it is learned as a subject in the curriculum. When we Learn first language, we also learn the concepts, while in learning the second language we seldom has to form new concepts except where these are foreign to his own culture. 4. The old habits tend to interlude and interfere with the learning, so that the student may speak L2 with the intonation of his L1 or the word order of his L1, and so on.

Progeria Essay -- miscellaneous

Progeria Progeria is one of the least known genetic disorders. There are two types of Progeria, the only difference being the age group that it affects. The Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome is commonly called Childhood Progeria. The second type of Progeria is Werner’s Syndrome, which is the adult form of Progeria. What basically happens in this disorder is that age is accelerated seven times faster than that of a normal person. For example, for Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome, a child could look like he is fifty when he is actually five years old. A twenty year old with Werner’s Syndrome could look similar to a sixty or seventy year old person. There is, even now, not much information known about this genetic disorder because of the scarcity of people with this disorder, not to mention the short life period that they have. The gene for Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome was discovered quite recently on April 16, 2003. Researchers confirmed that the gene, HGPS, is not an inherited disorder because neither parent carries or express the mutation. The mutations to the gene LMNA, which encodes for the Lamin-A protein, causes Progeria. The Lamin-A protein is what provides the framework that holds the nucleus together. Researchers believe that an unstable nucleus caused by a faulty Lamin-A protein brings about Progeria. This gene is located in chromosome 1, but the exact locus has not been announced yet. Researchers say that Progeria is point autosomal point mutation. This misspelling among 25,000 base pairs causes the shortage of the protein made by Lamin-A. This is also a dominant mutation because it is expressed equally in girls and boys. As in other dominant gene mutations, there is a â€Å"paternal age effect†, meaning that the mother is, on the average, four or five years younger than the fathe r at the time of conception. The symptoms of a child with the HGPS gene are very noticeable. Although they appear normal at birth, their age begins to accelerate by they time they are 18 to 24 months old. Bones soften and become more fragile, and the even the skin takes the appearance of the very old because it becomes thinner. If the bones break, they usually do not heal properly. Children with Progeria often have a crinkled and beaklike nose, and fat under the skin is nonexistent to them. The muscles becoming flaccid, hips being dislocated, and joints... ...es, Venezuela, and Vietnam. What has also been noticed of those with Progeria, is that the progeriacs are born with abnormally short telomeres, which are caps of the chromosomes. By they time they turn five, these are as long as a very elderly person. Telomeres reach a certain point of division before they began shortening, making the person old. Currently, there are no cures for this genetic disorder. Dr. Francis Collin who is the head of the National Human genome Research Institute said that the â€Å"the next step is to find a drug that corrects the mutated LMNA gene, and it may be possible to correct the gene itself,† as stated by the Washington Post. Furthermore, mutation in a yeast protein that is similar to the human WRN protein called SGS1 causes the yeast to have a shorter lifespan than the yeast cells that are devoid of the mutation. Another fact that was noted was that nucleolus was enlarged and fragmented in the cells with SGS1, which are typical signs of aging in yeast. Yeast could be a helpful model for human aging because it may give the means to be knowledgeable about more about Werner’s Syndrome, Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome, and other related diseases.

Keats’ grandfather Essay

I liked ‘Death of a Naturalist’, although it wasn’t pretty and it wasn’t nice. Sometimes it wasn’t even like a poem, more like a story that I can relate to, for I used to gather frogspawn and watch the small tadpoles develop into frogs.  I like the fact that it is a modern poem, that Heaney lived in N. Ireland and that this is probably a personal memory. It makes it interesting for me; I often wonder where that flax-dam is, or if it is still around, or if it looks as I imagine. I like the way there are no specific rules followed by this poet, that Heaney doesn’t allow them to rule his poem, and that we get that precious bit of child information. That is what makes the poem different, unique and special. Then the change in atmosphere alters the poem, makes it frightening, and I can laugh at the child here because that never happened to me.  Comparison of Keats’ and Heaney’s different attitudes and techniques  Keats lived in 19th century England and Heaney lived in 20th century N. Ireland, so their outlooks on life are bound to be different, reflecting on their poetry. Keats lived at a time when ‘poets were born, not made’, and those who were poets tended to be upper class gentlemen who did not need to earn an income. So the odds were stacked against him from the start. He was born in 1795 and came from a lower class family and when he was ten the first of many tragedies struck him, changing his personality forever. His father was thrown from his horse, killing him, then Keats’ mother remarried, and almost immediately after Keats’ grandfather died. While Keats and his siblings moved in with their grandmother his mother disappeared, and then reappeared a few years later, ill with tuberculosis. Keats nursed her until she died and after that his attitude to the world changed. He then trained to be an apothecary and passed the exam in 1816  It was at this time that Keats started to write poetry. Although Keats was considered a Romantic poet Romanticism at that time was a rebellion, the lead figures being Coleridge and Wordsworth, who were under heavy criticism. In 1818 the tuberculosis that would kill Keats showed itself, probably contracted from his brother Tom who Keats had nursed. While under the strain of his illness he met Fanny Brawne, with whom he fell in love with, and in September 1819 Keats wrote many odes including ‘Ode to Autumn’, despite his sickness.  He died in 1821 when he was just 26. Keats had a short, intense life, and his poetry reflected that. He was passionate, and never did anything by halves; he put all his effort into it. In ‘Ode to Autumn’ Keats writes fervently about his autumn as he sees it. However Heaney was born almost 145 years after Keats in 1939. He lived at the family farm in Mossbawn. In 1961 he took a first in English at Queen’s College, and two yr. later took up a position as an English lecturer there.  His poetry began under the guidance of Philip Hobsbaum, an English poet whose work involved his interest in natural imagery, with occasional violence filtered through. Heaney used these ideas in his work, and was also influenced by Ted Hughes, a personal friend and fellow poet. Heaney’s poem is about nature turning nasty, and at time Heaney had already lived through World War II, so the world seemed like a dark place at that time. This poem may be Heaney echoing this thought.  Keats and Heaney both see things passionately, and paint a vivid intense picture of it, they microscope what they see, like that they are similar, but the similarities end there as what they do see is very different. Keats sees the beautiful cover of nature and Heaney to the bare basic of nature. The most obvious differences in these two poems are the techniques, as Keats and Heaney are far apart in years their language and various techniques differ. Keats uses old language, which was probably common in those days, while some of Heaney’s words are very close to speech. Keats language accompanies his classic English style of poem, uses the traditional metre in conjunction with that customary style of English poem. Heaney’s poem uses the metre along with alliteration, assonance, onomatopoeia, punctuation and scatological words to get his message across; Heaney’s often strong words mean that your throat even moves like a frog. In ‘Ode to Autumn’ Keats writes as if he is removed from the autumn scene, watching from afar. An air of calm detachment surrounds it, and it is more of an expression of ‘This is how it is’ than ‘I feel’. Keats’ autumn is a picture frozen in time, beautiful and undying; ageless for him. He sees it as it is then, and not the decay, which will eventually take over. Keats refuses to see that, and is an idealist, thinking that things stay as you see them, but in a way they do for Keats because we see it in the poem and he sees it in his head the same forever, and the poem is a way of forever preserving it. Heaney’s nature has a darker meaning, beneath the surface there is many layers to nature, this is just one, one of the many. However the same is not true for Keats as his nature is more simple and idealistic. Heaney chooses to show us that nature is splendid, but underneath the cover it is also frightening. He is looking for answers because we only ever see part of the story (like in the poem, we only ever see the story from the child’s point of view), because we don’t know everything. We have to grow and learn from our experiences, and this is Heaney’s experience, and there is a change in the child from being a child emotionally and being protected from things like that, and being an adult, as he grows and learns. Heaney allows us to feel and see the full force of nature, the horror, and see that we cannot control it, but that the decay can. The decay equals the change in nature, and is a metaphor for the change in the child. We are part of nature and while we are not controlled by the change caused by decay what we see and feel and thus learn from changes us.  Keats’ nature is a divine force, nothing, not even decay can change it for Keats. The power of this poem is supposed to bring alive for us autumn as Keats sees it. That’s what Romanticism is about, turning something that an ordinary person would see as perhaps disgusting, into something beautiful and wonderful. For Keats art cures everything, it didn’t matter that he was dying of tuberculosis but it did matter that he wrote this poem. I think Heaney is trying to show that maybe we are taught to see things by society, and nature is the untamed truth e.g. the child is taught at school about the frogspawn but not how it is made, not mentioning the sexual reproduction involved. Nature is a better teacher than man, it teaches about that, it teaches about recycling in the decay.  It is not enough for Heaney to just watch nature like Keats does. He must be involved in nature. He gets his wellington boots out and gets stuck in. This most likely comes from having lived on a farm, and having all the experiences he did. Keats’ poem came from his ultimately dreamy heart, forever impractical on looking at things as they are.

Project on Budgetary Control Essay

1. A budget is concerned for a definite future period. 2. A budget is a written document. 3. A budget is a detailed plan of all the economic activities of a business. 4. All the departments of a business unit co-operate for the preparation of a business budget. 5. Budget is a mean to achieve business and it is not an end in itself. 6. Budget needs to be updated, corrected and controlled every time when circumstances changes. Therefore it is a continuous process. 7. Budget helps in planning, coordination and control. 8. Different types of budgets are prepared by industries according to business requirements. 9. A budget acts a business barometer. 10. Budget is usually prepared in the light of Past Experience. 11. Budget is a constant endeavor of the Management. 2 PREPARATION OF BUDGETS 1. Definition of objectives: A budget being a plan for the achievement of certain operational objectives, it is desirable that the same are defined precisely. The objectives should be written out; the areas of control demarcated; and items of revenue and expenditure to be covered by the budget stated. This will give a clear understanding of the plan and its scope to all those who must cooperate to make it a success. 2. Location of the key (or budget) factor: There is usually one factor (sometimes there may be more than one) which sets a limit to the total activity. For instance, in India today sometimes non-availability of power does not allow production to increase inspite of heavy demand. Similarly, lack of demand may limit production. Such a factor is known as key factor. For proper budgeting, it must be located and estimated properly. 3. Appointment of controller: Formulation of a budget usually requires whole time services of a senior executive; he must be assisted in this work by a Budget Committee, consisting of all the heads of department along with the Managing Director as the Chairman. The Controller is responsible for co-ordinating and development of budget programmes and preparing the manual of instruction, known as Budget manual. The Budget manual is a schedule, document or booklet which shows, in written forms the budgeting organisation and procedures. The manual should be well written and indexed so that a copy thereof may be given to each departmental head for guidance. 3 4. Budget period: The period covered by a budget is known as budget period. There is no general rule governing the selection of the budget period. In practice the Budget Committee determines the length of the budget period suitable for the business. Normally, a calendar year or a period coterminous with the financial year is adopted. The budget period is then sub-divided into shorter periods—it may be months or quarters or such periods as coincide with period of trading activity. 5. Standard of activity or output: For preparing budgets for the future, past statistics cannot be completely relied upon, for the past usually represents a combination of good and bad factors. Therefore, though results of the past should be studied but these should only be applied when there is a likelihood of similar conditions repeating in the future. Also, while setting the targets for the future, it must be remembered that in a progressive business, the achievement of a year must exceed those of earlier years. Therefore what was good in the past is only fair for the current year. In budgeting, fixing the budget of sales and of capital expenditure are most important since these budgets determine the extent of development activity. For budgeting sales, one must consider the trend of economic activity of the country, reactions of salesmen, customers and employees, effect of price changes on sales, the provision for advertisement campaign plan capacity etc. 4 Meaning of Budgetary Control: The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of England and Wales has defined the terms ‘budgetary control’ as â€Å"Budgetary control is the establishment of budgets relating to the responsibilities of executives of a policy and the continuous comparison of the actual with the budgeted results, either to secure by individual action the objective of the policy or to provide a basis for its revision.† It is the system of management control and accounting in which all the operations are forecasted and planned in advance to the extent possible and the actual results compared with the forecasted and planned ones. Budgetary Control Involves: 1. Establishment of budgets 2. Continuous comparison of actuals with budgets for achievement of targets 3. Revision of budgets after considering changed circumstances 4. Placing the responsibility for failure to achieve the budget targets. The salient features of Budgetary Control System are as follows: 1. Determining the objectives to be achieved, over the budget period, and the policy or policies that might be adopted for the achievement of these ends. 2. Determining the variety of activities that should be undertaken for the achievement of the objectives. 3. Drawing up a plan or a scheme of operation in respect of each class of activity, in physical as well as monetary terms for the full budget period and its parts. 5 4. Laying out a system of comparison of actual performance by each person, section or department with the relevant budget and determination of causes for the discrepancies, if any. 5. Ensuring that corrective action will be taken where the plan is not being achieved and, if that be not possible, for the revision of the plan. In brief, it is a system to assist management in the allocation of responsibility and authority, to provide it with aid for making, estimating and planning for the future and to facilitate the analysis of the variation between estimated and actual performance. In order that budgetary control may function effectively, it is necessary that the concern should develop proper basis of measurement or standards with which to evaluate the efficiency of operations, i.e., it should have in operation a system of standard costing. Besides this, the organization of the concern should be so integrated that all lines of authority and responsibility are laid, allocated and defin ed. This is essential since the system of budgetary control postulates separation of functions and division of responsibilities and thus requires that the organization shall be planned in such a manner that everyone, from the Managing Director down to the Shop Foreman, will have his duties properly defined. Objectives of Budgetary Control System: 1. Portraying with precision the overall aims of the business and determining targets of performance for each section or department of the business. 2. Laying down the responsibilities of each of the executives and other personnel so that everyone knows what is expected of him and how he will be judged. Budgetary control is 6 one of the few ways in which an objective assessment of executives or department is possible. 3. Providing a basis for the comparison of actual performance with the predetermined targets and investigation of deviation, if any, of actual performance and expenses from the budgeted figures. This naturally helps in adopting corrective measures. 4. Ensuring the best use of all available resources to maximize profit or production, subject to the limiting factors. Since budgets cannot be properly drawn up without considering all aspects usually there is good co-ordination when a system of budgetary control operates. 5. Co-coordinating the various activities of the business, and centralizing control and yet enabling management to decentralize responsibility and delegate authority in the overall interest of the business. 6. Engendering a spirit of careful forethought, assessment of what is possible and an attempt at it. It leads to dynamism without recklessness. Of course, much depends on the objectives of the firm and the vigour of its management. 7. Providing a basis for revision of current and future policies. 8. Drawing up long range plans with a fair measure of accuracy. 9. Providing a yardstick against which actual results can be compared. Working of a budgetary control system: The responsibility for successfully introducing and implementing a Budgetary Control System rests with the Budget Committee acting through the Budget Officer. The Budget Committee would be composed of all functional heads and a member from the Board to 7 preside over and guide the deliberations. The main responsibilities of the Budget Officer are: 1. To assist in the preparation of the various budgets by coordinating the work of the accounts department which is normally responsible to compile the budgets—with the relevant functional departments like Sales, Production, Plant maintenance etc.; 2. To forward the budget to the individuals who are responsible to adhere to them, and to guide them in overcoming any practical difficulties in its working; 3. To prepare the periodical budget reports for circulation to the individuals concerned; 4. To follow-up action to be taken on the budget reports; 5. To prepare an overall budget working report for discussion at the Budget Committee meetings and to ensure follow-up on the lines of action suggested by the Committee; 6. To prepare periodical reports for the Board meeting. Comparing the budgeted Profit and Loss Account and the Balance Sheet with the actual results attained. It is necessary that every budget should be thoroughly discussed with the functional head before it is finalized. It is the duty of the Budget Officer to see that the periodical budget reports are supplied to the recipients at frequent intervals as far as possible. The efficiency of the Budget Officer, and through him of the Budget Committee, will be judged more by the smooth working of the system and the agreement between the actual figures and the budgeted figures. Budgets are primarily an incentive and a challenge for better performance; it is up to the 8 Budget Officer to see that attention of the different functional heads is drawn to it to face the challenge in a successful manner. Advantages of Budgetary Control System: 1. The use of budgetary control system enables the management of a business concern to conduct its business activities in the efficient manner. 2. It is a powerful instrument used by business houses for the control of their expenditure. It in fact provides a yardstick for measuring and evaluating the performance of individuals and their departments. 3. It reveals the deviations to management, from the budgeted figures after making a comparison with actual figures. 4. Effective utilization of various resources like—men, material, machinery and money is made possible, as the production is planned after taking them into account. 5. It helps in the review of current trends and framing of future policies. 6. It creates suitable conditions for the implementation of standard costing system in a business organization. 7. It inculcates the feeling of cost consciousness among workers. 8. It helps the principal of management by exception to apply. 9. Management which has developed a well ordered budget plans and which operate accordingly, receive greater favour from credit agencies. 9 Limitations of Budgetary Control System: 1. Based on Estimates: Budgets may or may not be true, as they are based on estimates. 2. Time factor: Budgets cannot be executed automatically. Accuracy in budgeting comes through experience. Management must not expect too much during the development period. 3. Cooperation Required: Staff co-operation is usually not available during budgetary control exercise. The success of the budgetary control depends upon willing co-operation and teamwork, 4. Expensive: Its implementation is quite expensive. No budgetary programme can be successful unless adequate arrangements are made for supervision and administration. 5. Not a substitute for management: Budget is only a managerial tool. It cannot substitute management. 6. Rigid document: Budgets are considered as rigid document. But in reality, firm’s affairs continuously change under inflationary pressure and changing government policies. 10 ZERO BASE BUDGETS The technique of zero base budgeting suggests that an organisation should not only make decisions about the proposed new programmes, but should also review the appropriateness of the existing programmes from time to time. Such a review should particularly be done of such responsibility centres where there is relatively high proportion of discretionary costs. Costs of this type depend on the discretion or policies of the responsibility centre or top managers. These costs have no direct relation to volume of activity. Hence, management discretion typically determines the amount budgeted. Some examples are: expenditure on research and development, personnel administration, legal advisory services. Zero base budgeting, as the term suggests, examines or reviews a programme or function or responsibility from ‘scratch’. The reviewer proceeds on the assumption that nothing is to be allowed. The manager proposing the activity has, therefore, to justify that the activity is essential and the various amounts asked for are reasonable taking into account the outputs or results or volume of activity envisaged. No activity or expense is allowed simply because it was being allowed or done in the past. Thus according to this technique each programme, whether new or existing, must be justified in its entirety each time a new budget is formulated. It involves: 1. Dealing with particularly all elements of mangers’ budget requests 2. Critical examination of ongoing activities along with the newly proposed activities 3. Providing each manger a range of choice in setting priorities in respect of different activities and in allocating resources. 11 Process of Zero Base Budgeting: The following steps are involved in Zero base budgeting: Determining the objectives of budgeting: The objective may be ‘to effect cost reduction in staff overheads or it may be to drop, after careful analysis, projects which do not fit into achievement of the organizations objectives etc. Deciding on scope of application: The extent to which zero base budgeting is to be introduced has to be decided, i.e. whether it will be introduced in all areas of the organisation’s activities or only in a few selected areas on trial basis. Developing decision units Decision units for which cost-benefit analysis is proposed have to be developed so as to arrive at decisions whether they should be allowed to continue or to be dropped. Each decision unit, as far as possible should be independent of other units so that it can be dropped if the cost analysis proves to be unfavourable for it. Developing decision packages : A decision package for each unit shou ld be developed. While developing a decision package, answers to the following questions would be desirable: †¢ Is it necessary to perform a particular activity at all? If the answer is in the negative, there is no need to proceed further. †¢ How much has been the actual cost of the activity and what has been the actual benefit both in tangible as well as intangible forms? †¢ What should be the estimated cost of the level of activity and the estimated benefit from 12 such activity? †¢ Should the activity be performed in the way in which it is being performed, and what should be the cost? †¢ If the project or activity is dropped, can the unit be replaced by an outside agency? After completing decision packages for each unit, the units are ranked according to the findings of cost benefit analysis. Essential projects are identified and given the highest ranks. The last stage is that of implementing the decision taken in the light of the study made. It involves the selection and acceptance of those projects which have a positive cost-benefit analysis or which are capable of meeting the objectives of the organization. The above analysis shows that zero base budgeting is in a way an extension of the method of cost benefit analysis to the area of the corporate budgeting. Advantages of Zero Base Budgeting: †¢ It provides the organization with systematic way to evaluate different operations and programmes undertaken. It enables management t o allocate resources according to priority of the programmes. †¢ It ensures that each and every programme undertaken by managers is really essential for the organization, and is being performed in the best possible way. †¢ It enables the management to approve departmental budgets on the basis of cost-benefit analysis. No arbitrary cuts or increase in budget estimates are made. †¢ It links budgets with the corporate objectives. Nothing will be allowed simply because it was being done in the past. An activity may be shelved if it does not help in achieving the goals of the enterprises. 13 †¢ It helps in identifying areas of wasteful expenditure and, if desired, it can also be used for suggesting alternative courses of action. †¢ It facilitates the introduction and implementation of the system of `management by objectives’. Thus it can be used not only for fulfillment of the objectives of traditional budgeting, but also for a variety of other purposes. It is contended that zero base budgeting is time consuming. Of course, it is true, but it happens only in the initial stages when decision units have to be identified and decision packages have to be developed or completed. Once this is done, and the methodology is clear, zero base budgeting is likely to take less time than the traditional budgeting. In any case, till such time the organization is properly acclimatized to the technique of zero base budgeting, it may be done in a way that all responsibility centre’s are covered at least once in three or four years. Zero base budgeting as a concept has become quite popular these days. The technique was first used by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1962. Texas Instruments, a multinational company, pioneered its use in the private sector. Today, a number of major companies such as Zerox, BASF, International Harvester and Easter Airlines in the United State are using the system. Some departments of the Government of India have recently introduced zero base budgeting with a view to making the system of budgetary control more effective. 14 PERFORMANCE BUDGETS Performance budgeting (or programme budgeting) has been designed to correct the shortcomings of traditional budgeting by emphasizing management’s considerations/ approaches. Both the financial and physical aspects are incorporated into the budget. A performance budget presents the operations of an organisation in terms of functions, programmes, activities, and projects. In performance budgeting, precise detainment of job to be performed or services to be rendered is done. Secondly, the budget is prepared in terms of functional categories and their sub-division into programmes, activities, and projects. Thirdly, the budget becomes a comprehensive document. Since the financial and physical results are interwoven, it facilitates management control. The Main objectives of Performance Budgeting are: (i) to coordinate the physical and financial aspects; (ii) to improve the budget formulation, review and decision-making at all levels of management (iii) to facilit ate better appreciation and review by controlling authorities (legislature, Board of Trustees or Governors, etc) as the presentation is more purposeful and intelligible; (iv) to make more effective performance audit possible; and (v) to measure progress towards long-term objectives which are envisaged in a development plan. Performance budgeting involves evaluation of the performance of the organisation in the context of both specific, as well as, overall objectives of the organisation. It presupposes a crystal clear perception of organisational objectives in general, and short-term business objectives as stipulated in the budget, in particular by each employee of the organisation, irrespective of his level. It thus, provides a definite direction to each employee and also a control mechanism to higher management. 15 Performance budgeting requires preparation of periodic performance reports. Such reports compare budget and actual data, and show variances. Their preparation is greatly facilitated if the authority and responsibility for the incurrence of each cost element is clearly defined within the firm’s organisational structure. In addition, the accounting system should be sufficiently detailed and coordinated to provide necessary data for reports designed for the particular use of the individuals or cost centres having primary responsibility for specific cost. The responsibility for preparing the performance budget of each department lies on the respective Department Head. Each Department Head will be supplied with a copy of the section of the master budget appropriate to his sphere. For example, the chief buyer will be supplied with the copy of the materials purchase budget so that he may arrange for purchase of necessary materials. Periodic reports from various sections of a departme nt will be received by the departmental head that will submit a summary report about his department to the budget committee. The report may be daily, weekly or monthly, depending upon the size of business and the budget period. These reports will be in the form of comparison of budgeted and actual figures, both periodic and cumulative. The purpose of preparing these reports is to promptly inform about the deviations in actual and budgeted activity to the person who has the necessary authority and responsibility to take necessary action to correct the deviations from the budget. 16 FUNCTIONAL BUDGET A functional budget is one which is related to function of the business as for example, production budget relating to the manufacturing function. Functional budgets are prepared for each function and they are subsidiary to the master budget of the business. The various types of functional budgets to be prepared will vary according to the size and nature of the business. The various commonly used functional budgets are: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Sales budget Production budget Plant utilisation budget Direct-material usage budget Direct-material purchase budget Direct-labour (personnel) budget Factory overhead budget Production cost budget Ending-inventory budget Cost-of-goods-sold budget Selling and distribution cost budget Administration expenses budget Research and development cost budget (xiv) Capital expenditure budget Cash budget 17 Illustration: Sales Budget: Sales forecast is the commencement of budgeting and hence sales budget assumes primary importance. The quantity which can be sold may be the principal budget factor in many business undertakings. In any case in order to chalk out a realistic budget programme, there must be an accurate sales forecast. The sales budget indicates for each product: 1. The quantity of estimated sales and 2. The expected unit selling price. These data are often reported by regions or by sales representatives. In estimating the quantity of sales for each product, past sales volumes are often used as a starting point. These amounts are revised for factors that are expected to affect future sales, such as the factors listed below. 1. Backlog of unfilled sales orders 2. Planned advertising and promotion 3. Expected industry and general economic conditions 4. Productive capacity 5. Projected pricing 6. Findings of market research studies 7. Relative product profitability. 8. Competition. 18 Once an estimate of the sales volume is obtained, the expected sales revenue can be determined by multiplying the volume by the expected unit sales price, the sales budget represents the total sales in physical quantities and values for a future budget period. Sales managers are constantly faced with problem like anticipation of customer requirements, new product needs, competitor strategies and various changes in distribution methods or promotional techniques. The purposes of sales budget is not to attempt to estimate or guess what the actual sales will be, but rather to develop a plan with clearly defined objectives towards which the operational effort is directed in order to attain or exceed the objective. Hence, sales budget is not merely a sales forecast. A budget is a planning and control document which shows what the management intends to accomplish. Thus, the sales budget is active rather than passive. A sales forecast, however, is a projection or estimate of the available customer demand. A forecast reflects the environmental or competitive situation facing the company whereas the sales budget shows how the management intends to react to this environmental and competitive situation. A good budget hinges on aggressive management control rather than on passive acceptance of what the market appears to offer. If the company fails to make this distinction, the budget will remain more a figure-work exercise than a working tool of dynamic management cont rol. 19 The sales budget may be prepared under the following classification or combination of classifications: 1. Products or groups of products. 2. Areas, towns, salesmen and agents. 3. Types of customers as for example: (i) Government, (ii) Export, (iii) Home sales, (iv) Retail depots. 4. Period—months, weeks, etc Example of Sales Budget: XYZ Ltd. Sales Budget for the Year Ended 31 March XXXX Particulars Units Selling Price (P.U) Total Sales Value (Rs.) Product A Product B Total 5000 10000 75 80 375000 800000 1175000 20 LEADING TO THE PREPARATION OF THE MASTER BUDGET When all the necessary functional budgets have been prepared, the budget officer will prepare the master budget which may consist of budgeted profit and loss account and budgeted balance sheet. These are in fact the budget summaries. When the master budget is approved by the board of directors, it represents a standard for the achievement of which all the departments will work. On the basis of the various budgets (schedules) prepared earlier in this study, we prepare below budgeted income statement and budgeted balance sheet. Illustration: Floatglass Manufacturing Company requires you to present the Master budget for the 31 March 2012 from the following information: Sales: Toughened Glass Bent Glass Direct Material Cost Direct Wages Factory Overheads: Indirect Labour Works Manager Foreman Rs. 500 per month Rs. 400 per month 2.5% on Sales Rs. 600000 Rs. 200000 60% of Sales 20 workers @ Rs. 150 per month 21 Stores and Spares Depreciation on Machinery Repairs and Maintenance Other Sundries Administration, selling and Distribution Expenses Rs. 12600 Rs. 3000 Rs. 8000 10% on Direct Wages Rs. 36000 per year Solution: Master Budget for the Year Ending 31 March 2012 Particulars Amount (Rs.) Sales: Toughened Glass Bent Glass Total Sales Less: Cost of Production: Direct Material Direct Wages Prime Cost (A) Fixed Factory Overhead: 480000 36000 516000 600000 200000 800000 Amount (Rs.) 22 Works Manager’s Salary Foreman’s Salary Depreciation Light and Power Total Fixed Factory Overhead (B) Variable Factory Overhead: Stores and Spares Repairs and Maintenance Sundry Expenses Total Variable Factory Overhead (C) Works Cost (A+B+C) Gross Profit (Sales- Works Cost) Less: Administration, Selling and Distribution Expenses Net Profit 6000 4800 12600 3000 26400 20000 8000 3600 31600 574000 226000 36000 190000 23 CAPITAL EXPENDITURE BUDGET: The capital expenditure budget represents the planned outlay on fixed assets like land, building, plant and machinery, etc. during the budget period. This budget is subject to strict management control because it entails large amount of expenditure. The budget is prepared to cover a long period of years and it projects the capital costs over the period in which the expenditure is to be incurred and the expected earnings. The preparation of this budget is based on the following considerations: 1. Overhead on production facilities of certain departments as indicated by the plant utilization budget. 2. Future development plans to increase output by expansion of plant facilities. 3. Replacement requests from the concerned departments 4. Factors like sales potential to absorb the increased output, possibility of price reductions, increased costs of advertising and sales promotion to absorb increased output, etc. Merits/Advantages: 1. It outlines the capital development programme and estimated capital expenditure during the budget per iod. 2. It enables the company to establish a system of priorities. When there is a shortage of funds, capital rationing becomes necessary. 3. It serves as a tool for controlling expenditure. 4. It provides the amount of expenditure to be incorporated in the future budget 24 summaries for calculation of estimated return on capital employed. 5. This enables the cash budget to be completed. With other cash commitments capital expenditure commitment should also be considered for the completion of the budget. 6. It facilitates cost reduction programme, particularly when modernization and renovation is covered by this budget. 25 FIXED AND FLEXIBLE BUDGETS Fixed Budget: According to Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of England, â€Å"a fixed budget is a budget designed to remain unchanged irrespective of the level of activity actually attained†. A fixed budget shows the expected results of a responsibility center for only one activity level. Once the budget has been determined, it is not changed, even if the activity changes. Fixed budgeting is used by many service companies and for some administrative functions of manufacturing companies, such as purchasing, engineering, and accounting. Fixed Budget is used as an effective tool of cost control. In case, the level of activity attained is different from the level of activity for budgeting purposes, the fixed budget becomes ineffective. Such a budget is quite suitable for fixed expenses. It is also known as a static budget. Essential conditions: 1. When the nature of business is not seasonal. 2. There is no impact of external factors on the business activities 3. The demand of the product is certain and stable. 4. Supply orders are issued regularly. 5. The market of the product should be domestic rather than foreign. 6. There is no need of special labour or material in the production of the products. 7. Supply of production inputs is regular. 8. There is a trend of price stability. Generally, all above conditions are not found in practice. Hence fixed budget is not important 26 in business concerns. Merits/advantages: 1. Very simple to understand 2. Less time consuming Demerits/Disadvantages: 1. It is misleading. A poor performance may remain undetected and a good performance may go unrealized. 2. It is not suitable for long period. 3. It is also found unsuitable particularly when the business conditions are changing constantly. 4. Accurate estimates are not possible. Flexible Budget According to Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of England,†a flexible budget is defined as a budget which, by recognizing the difference between fixed, semi-variable and variable costs is designed to change in relation to the level of activity attained.† Unlike static (fixed) budgets, flexible budgets show the expected results of a responsibility center for several activity levels. You can think of a flexible budget as a series of static budgets for different levels of activity. Such budgets are especially useful in estimating and controlling factory cos ts and operating expenses. It is more realistic and practicable because it gives due consideration 27 to cost behaviour at different levels of activity. While preparing a flexible budget the expenses are classified into three categories viz. 1. Fixed, 2. Variable, and 3. Semi-variable. Semi-variable expenses are further segregated into fixed and variable expenses. Flexible budgeting may be resorted to under following situations: 1. In the case of new business venture due to its typical nature it may be difficult to forecast the demand of a product accurately. 2. Where the business is dependent upon the mercy of nature e.g., a person dealing in wool trade may have enough market if temperature goes below the freezing point. 3. In the case of labour intensive industry where the production of the concern is dependent upon the availability of labour. Merits/ Advantages: 1. With the help of flexible budget, the sales, costs and profit may be calculated easily by the business at various levels of production capacity. 2. In flexible budget, adjustment is very simple according to change in business conditions. 3. It also helps in determination of production level as it shows budgeted costs with classification at various levels of activity along with sales. Hence the management can easily select the level of production which shows the profit predetermined by the owners of the bu siness. 4. It also shows the quantity of product to be produced to earn determined profit. 28 Demerits/Disadvantages: 1. The formulation of flexible budget is possible only when there is proper accounting system maintained, perfect knowledge about the factors of production and various business circumstances is available. 2. Flexible Budget also requires the system of standard costing in business. 3. It is very expensive and labour oriented. Need for flexible budget: 1. Seasonal fluctuations in sales and/or production, for example in soft drinks industry; 2. A company which keeps on introducing new products or makes changes in the design of its products frequently; 3. Industries engaged in make-to-order business like ship building; 4. An industry which is influenced by changes in fashion; and 5. General changes in sales. 29 Illustration: A factory which expects to operate 7,000 hours, i.e., at 70% level of activity, furnishes details of expenses as under: Particulars Variable Expenses Amount (Rs.) 1260 Semi- Variable Expenses 1200 Fixed Expenses 1800 The semi-variable expenses go up by 10% between 85% and 95% activity and by 20% above 95% activity. Construct a flexible budget for 80, 90 and 100 per cent activities. Solution: Particulars Budgeted Hours Variable Expenses Semi-Variable Expenses Fixed Expenses Total Expenses Recovery Rate Per Hour 70% 7000 1260 1200 1800 4260 0.61 80% 8000 1440 1200 1800 4440 0.55 90% 9000 1620 1320 1800 4740 0.53 100% 10000 1800 1440 1800 5040 0.50 30 Difference between Fixed and Flexible Budget: Fixed Budget Flexible Budget It does not change with actual volume of It can be recasted on the basis of activity activity achieved. Thus it is known as rigid level to be achieved. Thus it is not rigid. or inflexible budget. It operates on one level of activity and under It consists of various budgets for one set of conditions. It assumes that there different levels of activity. will be no change in the prevailing conditions, which is unrealistic. Here as all costs like – fixed, variable and Here analysis of variance provides useful semi-variable are related to only one level information as each cost is analyzed of activity so variance analysis does give useful information. If the budgeted and actual activity levels differ Flexible budgeting at different levels of significantly, then the aspects like cost activity facilitates the ascertainment of ascertainment and price fixation do not give a cost, fixation of selling price and tendering correct picture. of quotations. a meaningful basis of not according to its behaviour. Comparison of actual performance with It provides budgeted targets will be meaningless comparison of the actual performance with specially when there is a difference the budgeted targets. between the two activity levels. 31 BIBLIOGRAPHY 1 ICAI Module on Cost Accounting 2 Newsletters and opinions published by ICAI 3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budget 4 www.icai.org