Monday, January 20, 2020

Appeasement Essay -- essays research papers

The 1920s had a good outlook towards peace, but near the end of the decade and throughout the 1930s signs of war were forming. Leaders arose in countries that were unsatisfied with the results of World War I. Germany, Italy, and Japan took aggressive actions, and neither the League of Nations nor the democratic countries were stopping them. British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain suggested the policy of appeasement towards Hitler to keep peace. Europe moved closer to war as these actions were made. World War II had propelled with the lack of judgement by the League of Nations by continuous appeasing Hitler. September 3, 1939 was when the world plunged into World War II. The main reason for the cause of this war was the policy of appeasement. Before the war started, In October 1935, Mussolini ordered a massive invasion of Ethiopia. After Italy attacked, Haile Selassie, leader of Ethiopia, asked the League of Nations for help. In document 2, Haile Selassie, requested the League of Nations help stop the invasion and when the League’s response was ineffective he said, â€Å" God and history will remember your judgement†¦It is us today. It will be you tomorrow.† By now, Hitler came to power and was leading the Nazi’s in the Third Reich. They had also became the largest political party. In March 1935, the Fuhrer (Hitler) announced that Germany would not obey the restrictions of the Versailles Treaty. The League of Nations only issued a mild warning for the rebuilding of Germany’s a...

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Critical Analysis on Clinical Supervision in Schools

The purpose of this study is to present the definition of clinical supervision and some basic concepts that are currently being used in the clinical supervision of public schools today. By having a clearer understanding of these definitions and concepts, prospective supervisors in public education will be better equipped to do their jobs. A situation has occurred due to the ever-increasing demand for supervisors in public education today in which those entering supervisory positions may not be properly equipped to supervise. This is primarily due to the fact that they may not understand all that is expected of them. To use economic terminology, the â€Å"demand is exceeding the supply†. As a result, supervisors may be placed into supervisory positions without a clear understanding of some definitions and concepts which have come into the realm of education fairly recently. Supervisors cannot do their jobs effectively if they are not properly educated in the roles and responsibilities of the clinical supervisor. The following study may serve as a review of some current definitions and concepts. The earliest supervisors in America's schools were often nothing more than overly critical â€Å"snoops† whose main job was to find what a teacher was doing wrong and report it to the teacher's superiors. Today we refer to this type of supervisor as a â€Å"snoopervisor†. It was more likely that a teacher would receive a reprimand or dismissal as a result of those supervisory visits. The role of the school supervisor has changed drastically from the humble beginnings of America's schools. Our public school system has gone through many different stages of development. Likewise, our educational supervisors have evolved as well. Since our public school system has gone through so many changes, (and continues to do so), a clear understanding of the responsibilities of clinical supervision is needed in order to properly prepare those wishing to serve in that capacity. Today's supervisors must know what is expected of them and some of the more current methods and concepts being used in clinical supervision. The research information in this study is limited to the study of school supervisors in the public school system. This study focused on supervisors who oversee the grade levels of Kindergarten through the 12th grade of high school. This study does focus on supervisors of colleges or other secondary educational institutions although much of this information may apply in those areas as well. It is, therefore, the primary goal of this study to collect, compile, and organize information that will help to prepare those wishing to serve as school supervisors so that they may better understand some of the terminology and concepts in clinical supervision. One of the more common roles of today's school supervisor is that of providing teachers with the support they need to become better teachers. Today's supervisor must be a coach or mentor, a â€Å"teacher's teacher†, so to speak. Where supervisors once tore down teachers and criticized them, today they build up teachers and edify them. The first use of the term â€Å"clinical supervision† was in 1961 when Morris Cogan used it in a proposal entitled Case Studies and Research in Clinical Supervision at Harvard University. Cogan defined clinical supervision in the following way: â€Å"Clinical supervision may therefore be defined as the rationale and practice designed to improve the teacher's classroom performance. It takes its principal data from the events of the classroom. The analysis of these data and the relationship between teacher and supervisor form the basis of the program, procedures, and strategies designed to improve the student's learning by improving the teacher's classroom behavior.† From Cogan's definition of clinical supervision we can see that the emphasis is on improvement of the teacher's performance. This makes the role of today's supervisor more of a supportive role. With that definition in mind, how can supervisors help teachers to become better teachers? What can supervisors do to improve the educational system in which they work? In the following study are a few examples of contemporary practices and concepts being utilized today to answer those questions. First of all, supervisors are concerned with the quality of teachers they have in their school and school system. It is the job of supervisors to make sure that the teachers working in their school system are the best teachers possible, and that they are working to the best of their ability. Once teachers have been selected and hired, they must know that the supervisor is there to support them and help them to improve their teaching skills. In an article in Educational Digest, Thomas Harvey and Larry Frase put it this way: â€Å"Coaching is not an option for school leaders but a basic function, along with counseling, mentoring, tutoring, confronting, and supporting. All of these will increase the commitment to quality and productivity.† This simply means that supervisors must engage the teachers (as well as themselves) in a never-ending process of improvement. That means keeping up with current changes in teaching styles and curriculum. Supervisors must be willing to set an example for teachers by showing that they are also willing to make changes in the way that they do things. Now that we are in a new millenium in education we see the education system in a state of constant change. Everything we do changes regularly. Teaching styles, the equipment that we use in schools, and even the schools themselves continuously go through new stages of development. It is no longer acceptable to simply achieve and maintain a status quo. Supervisors must recognize this and always be ready to lead their teachers into the future and new ways of educating students. The first way supervisors must lead their teachers is to make sure that they are aware of the legal aspects of education. In a recent article in Education magazine the authors said, â€Å"First on the list of all things a beginning teacher must do is to learn the policies of the school system and local school. A teacher who is legally challenged by a parent will receive support from the board of education when the teacher's actions follow policy†. For this reason, supervisors should tell their beginning teachers that board policies and the school handbook are required reading. Once this has been concluded, supervisors can move on to the matter of teacher evaluation. One method being used by many supervisors to evaluate and support new teachers is the peer support method. This concept has been touted as a promising way to build a teacher's sense of professionalism. Margaret Johnson and Lucy Brown described one study in which teachers in a large elementary school with about 42 teachers were organized into collegial support teams (CSTs) to ,†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦supervise their teaching performance and promote their professional growth.†. Many of the teachers involved in the study said that it created,†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦a â€Å"safe zone† in which they could admit shortcomings and work to improve their practice.†. This method follows the philosophy that the best people to evaluate the performance of teachers in a particular school system are other teachers in the same school system. This method is becoming very popular. Sometimes the path into the future of a school system may not be clear and narrow. There may be many different directions the supervisor may have to choose from. While discussing teachers who pursue positions in administration, Roberta Bernstein writes: â€Å"The position of curriculum developer requires working in teams and reporting to the central office. While following the directions of your superiors, you will also want to provide teachers with a curriculum that excites them. It's a balancing act.† Indeed, supervisors must often let their own preferences fall by the wayside in order to reach the compromise that is the best, overall solution for a situation. One driving motivator behind the decision-making process should always be â€Å"What is the best thing for the students?† The same thing holds true when evaluating teachers. Unfortunately, sometimes supervisors realize that a teacher just isn't performing at the minimal level necessary to remain in the system. Even after working very hard to help a teacher come up to the required standard of teaching to remain in their position, the supervisor asks â€Å"What is the best thing for the students?† and realizes that a replacement may be what is needed. There are many different reasons for teachers becoming marginal. In an article in Education Digest Don L. Fuhr identifies three categories of teachers who become â€Å"marginal†: â€Å"First is the helpless marginal teacher who doesn't grasp the basic techniques of effective teaching. It may be because of poor training or of good training never absorbed. Second is the teacher with a pressing personal problem, the more common ones being serious illness of a loved one, marital problems, or financial difficulties. The third and most difficult type is the hardheaded marginal teacher who has developed ‘an attitude'. † Regardless of the reason for a teacher becoming marginal, encouragement is the key to trying to help them improve. Supervisors must be willing to advise and help them. First, the teacher must be made aware of the specific problem. Then, a strategy can be developed for dealing with the problem. Sometimes, the best time for strategies to be developed is after a classroom observation. According to C.H. Van der Linde, â€Å"The follow-up discussion sometimes provides the most important situation for the collection of further data, because the teachers are now in a situation where they are able to explain their behavior.† Van der Linde goes on to say, â€Å"The teacher should be encouraged to give attention to both strong points and deficiencies. Remedies that are realistic should be discussed and steps to promote continuing professional growth should be outlined.† Some people, such as Francis Duffy, feel that we in education are going about staff development all wrong. Ms. Duffy says, † Even though we understand that school districts function essentially as systems, we persists in trying to improve schools one teacher at a time.† According to Ms. Duffy's Knowledge Work Supervision model, teaching would be improved by focusing on the performance of the entire school system rather than just individual teachers. One thing is certain, no matter what model of evaluation or development a supervisor uses, it is still inevitable to occasionally come across marginal teachers which fail to meet minimal standards no matter what the supervisor does to try to help them improve. One possible contributing factor to this situation is stress. Education, and particularly educational administration, are very high-stress professions. Clinical supervisors should encourage personal responsibility for stress management. Articulation of the expectation that individuals are to take the responsibility for control of their own stress levels also validates personal inclinations to do the same.

Saturday, January 4, 2020

Student s Achievement And Participation Rate - 868 Words

Most of the refugee students are not able to get benefit from government once they have turned 18 years old. This is definitely an issue for them as they are not able to work to earn money. The school principle established a trust fund name â€Å"Friends of Zainab† (D Hoddinott Sydney Public Hearing April 4 2014). This fund provide support for young refugee students. However, this fund is not available for refugees in a community detention center or on bridging visas. Refugee students generally are disengage with the school and community. Engagement are directly link to motivation. For instance the students are engage in the lesson, they would be motivated too. Research revealed that small class based teaching will be beneficially impact student’s achievement and participation rate. (AEU Victorian Branch, 2014) When the classroom size decrease, there will expansion time spend on task, teachers has more opportunity to give out explicit instruction to the students, and also lead to positive correlation on â€Å"student engagement behaviors†, and then increase participation rate. Most of the class I attend during my placement has 3-15 students depending on the level of outcome different students achieve. Students with high achievement will go to class that are more than 10 students, whereas low achiever students will go to the one that has less than 10 student classes. I strong believe this method would greatly impact on studentâ€℠¢s outcome, however, it’s unrealistic to apply to everyShow MoreRelatedValue Of Education Based Activities At Roosevelt High School1226 Words   |  5 Pagesacademic clubs, and sports. Roosevelt High School offers the opportunity for its 2,300-student population to participate in eighteen SDHSAA sanctioned sports programs, eight SDHSAA performing arts programs, thirty-four school sponsored clubs and thirty-six non-school sponsored clubs. Extracurricular activities provide an avenue for secondary schools to reinforce the lessons learned in the classroom, offering students the opportunity to apply academic skills in a real-world context, for this reason,Read MoreSports and Academic Achievement1494 Words   |  6 PagesStudents that participate in athletics have greater academic success than students who do not participate in athletics. Central Michigan University April 24, 2012 Abstract Many studies have been done regarding the positive impact that athletics has on a student’s life. Studies have looked at the physical impact that athletics has on a student’s life like sportsmanship, healthy lifestyle, discipline, strategy, and time management. We will be looking at studies that have explored the impactRead MoreThe Effects Of Athletic Participation On Academic Performance1571 Words   |  7 PagesThe purpose of the literature review was to determined the effects of athletic participation on academic performance and if there were differences between the male and female athletes of the Mennonite High School. In order to determine whether participating in sporting events have an impact on the student’s academic performance, the researcher collected existing data during the sport season period, there the participants’ assessment grades (AG) were calculated. These scores were compared with theRead MoreDoes Cooperative Learning Increase Stu dent Participation? Essay1213 Words   |  5 Pagesallowing students to work collaboratively during an activity will increase student participation. I want all of my students to participate fully when working with a group to complete a task/activity, but I don’t always see this occurring. This study will seek to answer the following question: Does cooperative learning increase student involvement/participation? I chose hypothesis testing research to test my assumption that allowing students to work collaboratively will increase student participationRead MoreStudent Athletes And Academic Achievement953 Words   |  4 Pagesinfluence the behavior of the subjects of the study. This phrase relates to a study that I may conduct because I would like to investigate how student-athletes’ academic achievement compares to that of non-student-athletes. In such an investigation, I would have no over influence over whether or a not a student participated in athletics nor their academic achievement. I would only be able to analyze data and determine if there were a relationship between the variables. Experimental Research (McMillanRead MoreParental Involvement On Student Motivation And Academic Achievement718 Words   |  3 Pageswith participants from vulnerable populations. (Mertler 2016). Subject participation is voluntary and they can chose to end their participation at any time. All surveys will remain confidential. Participants may gain a better understanding of self-motivation in relation to academic achievement. Parent or guardian participants may gain a better understanding of the impact parental involvement has on their child’s academic achievement. There is minimal risk. Potential Significance of the Study The resultsRead MoreCubas Achievements in Health Care and Public Education Essay1742 Words   |  7 Pages CUBA’S ACHIEVEMENTS IN PROVIDING HEALTH CARE AND EDUCATION TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC ARE BETTER THATN THOSE OF MANY DEVELOPED COUNTRIES. HOW HAS IT MANAGEDTHIS? There may be some question over Fidel Castro’s achievements in providing economic success, or democracy to Cuba in the last forty five years or so. However Cuba’s record on providing egalitarian health care and education to the masses have generally been agreed as a success story, even by Castro’s old enemy the United States. â€Å"To be educatedRead MoreNo Child Left Behind Act1737 Words   |  7 PagesFirst, what is the achievement gap? According to the achievement gap in education refers to systematic variances in the ability to learn between students from majority populations and students from minority populations. The most significant effort made by the federal government to improve the nation s schools and student learning is the 2002 reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). The ESEA was largely designed to address the achievement gap in multicultural educationRead More21st Century Classrooms - Annotated Bibliography Essay107 5 Words   |  5 PagesThesis †¢ Research shows that the integration of 21st Century technology increases student achievement and engagement. 1. Caruso, C. (2008). Bringing Online Learning to Life. Educational Leadership, 65(8) 70. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. a. This article discusses the use of the Internet in the classroom and how it can be used to personalize education. The effectiveness of the Internet in the classroom is evaluated at the Henry Hudson Regional School in Highlands, New Jersey. A faculty member atRead MoreStudent Mentorship Program For The Community College Essay1463 Words   |  6 PagesStudent Mentoring in the Community College Student Population Served Student Success is now considered a vital element in the community college role. We must teach our students, and equipped them with skills to achieve their educational goal, as well as their career goals thereby, surviving in the workplace. Therefore, I am proposing a student mentorship program that targets all students enrolling at Mohave Community College (MCC). The program will encourage participation from the concurrent enrolled

Thursday, December 26, 2019

Case Analysis Molex Inc. Designs, Manufactures, And...

Introduction Molex Inc. designs, manufactures, and distributes electronic connectors that are used by a variety of industries. Despite being a successful company, Molex experienced some downfall in 2002 and 2003. Demand for their products sunk and their financial performance declined. This occurred around the same time as the accounting scandal with Enron happened. Then, in 2004, Molex ended up having an inventory error that was caught by Diane Bullock, CFO and brought to attention to Joe King, CEO. The following case analyzes the inventory error, the external auditors’ opinion, and what the board should do about the problem. The Need for External Auditors Most importantly, because Molex is a publicly traded company on NASDAQ, it is a requirement that they have an external audit done. If the company did not produce audited financial statements the company would not meet exchange listing requirements and there would be a chance of NASDAQ pulling their stock off the market. The issue of independence is another reason why companies choose to have an external audit done. Independence refers to when different employees perform different tasks within a specific department. We will use the accounts receivable section of the accounting department as an example. For independence to occur, a company would want to have separate employees collecting cheques and/or cash, preparing the deposit, and actually depositing the cheques and/or cash. For some companies, usually smaller ones,Show MoreRelatedApple Inc.: Managing a Global Supply Chain11078 Words   |  45 PagesrP os t W14161 APPLE INC.: MANAGING A GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN 1 Ken Mark wrote this case under the supervision of Professor P. Fraser Johnson solely to provide material for class discussion. The authors do not intend to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a managerial situation. The authors may have disguised certain names and other identifying information to protect confidentiality. op yo This publication may not be transmitted, photocopied, digitized or otherwiseRead MoreProject Managment Case Studies214937 Words   |  860 PagesPROJECT MANAGEMENT CASE STUDIES, SECOND EDITION - PROJECT MANAGEMENT CASE STUDIES, SECOND EDITION HAROLD KERZNER, Ph.D. Division of Business Administration Baldwin-Wallace College Berea, Ohio John Wiley Sons, Inc. This book is printed on acid-free paper. @ Copyright O 2006 by John Wiley Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Published by John Wiley Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

The Vows Of Poverty, Chastity, And Obedience - 1071 Words

But how do the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience allow me to fulfill God’s will, increase my holiness, and spread love among those whom I shall encounter? I must face the fact that I am not Christ, I am a sinner. And, for each of these vows, I have failed to exemplify in my life. With regards to poverty, I have tried to seek solace by chasing a never-ending cycle of hoping that material things will help me feel more complete. I too, have failed living a chaste life when I struggled with pornography. And, my pride blocked me from recognizing the need to obey those superior to me, because of course in my mind, I was right. I sinned in all these ways, and I’m sure our good Lord knows even more of my faults, but Christ will never leave those who seek holiness without his help. Fortunately, Jesus has helped me tremendously transform my life into embracing the three vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. My encounter with the Jesuits, as well as my lengthy discernment made me first purely desire, the desire to please Jesus. As I grew in my faith, my awareness of my sinful nature became more clear. But, I didn’t know how to mend my life. I turned to patience, and persistent prayer. I asked the Lord to help me, show me how to love him more, and to let me see clearly his healing. Jesus, began healing me, and continues to heal me. Of course, I will need continuous healing until I enter Heaven, but fruitful progress has been made through the Holy Spirit. First, my desire toShow MoreRelatedThe Influence of Religion on Mother Teresa Essay1124 Words   |  5 Pagesand so she followed this will from God. To become a nun, and the lady known as Mother Teresa, Agnes had to take the last vows of obedience, chastity and poverty to follow the ways which Jesus was, and in the end the influence which had on Agness, or Mother Teresas life. To become a nun, a woman must obey Gods will, no matter what has been asked. Mother Teresa took this vow seriously, she obeyed Gods will in every little thing she did, and was a major influence on her life. In obeying GodsRead MoreAnalysis Of The Prologue Of The Canterbury Tales 1194 Words   |  5 PagesBhakta, Karan English IV, Sixth Hour Mr. Adcock 8 December 2015 The Religious Vows In The Prologue of The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer has some religious characters who break the vows they pledge for, to get a place in the Church. Many characters in the story seem to have an awkward characteristic that the writer did not notice. Why do the religious characters break the vow? How do they break it? For example, the monk was a primary part of the church, but as you keep readingRead MoreThe Rule Of The Franciscan Order1048 Words   |  5 PagesThe Rule of the Franciscan Order Francis of Assisi is an icon of poverty and reform in the Catholic Church, because his lifestyle encouraged the Church and especially the hierarchy of his time to change almost entirely. He can be perceived as a prophet of his time who revolutionized from his very being a drastic change, because with his life as an example he went from words to actions. Francis was born into a wealthy family in Assisi; he had everything a boy of his time could ask for. Francis experiencedRead MoreAugustine And Two Fathers Of The Greek Church1702 Words   |  7 Pagesreligious vows that were blatantly ignored by the clergy in the past, and do so now with more secrecy. It is Cannon Law that â€Å"competent authority of the Church† must take vows of the evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty, obedience, and charity (Catholic Canonists). Meanwhile, in the past as seen by the previously mentioned criticisms of Pope Alexander VI’s use of great wealth to help seize the papacy and the mode rn â€Å"Bishop of Bling† shows that both the vows of poverty and obedience to thoseRead MoreThe Purpose and Practice of Monastic Vocation Essay667 Words   |  3 Pagesto speak.  · The Abbot must be a father to his community.  · The Abbot must hold meetings with all the monks to decide monastery business.  · The Abbots orders must be obeyed without argument.  · Every monk must take a vow of chastity.  · No one should own anything.  · Monks must pray together seven times a day.  · At every meal, there must be a reading from the bible.  · Great care must be taken of those who are sick. For their first reason, silenceRead MoreThe Canterbury Tales Comparative Essay887 Words   |  4 Pagesembodies military excellence, honor, and loyalty. The Monk, on the other hand, is not thought of as highly as the Knight. Holding the title of Monk and Prior of the Cell, the Monk is bound to vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. The Monk is aware of the rules and restrictions that come with these vows, such as studying throughout most of the day, but he dismisses such regulations as worthless. â€Å"And I agreed and said his views were sound/ was he to study till his head went round† (187-188). ItRead MoreThe Establishment and Rise of the Jesuits Essay1348 Words   |  6 Pages At the turn of the 1500’s, the Society of Jesus, also known as the Jesuits, began. It’s founder, Ignatius Loyola, created this society very distinct from other orders, in its â€Å"fanatical† obedience to the pope, and requirement of education to be a practitioner in the Society. The Jesuits played a large role in counter-reformation, specifically Protestantism. The Catholic Church used the Jesuits to reclaim many of the souls lost to the heresies that abounded during that age. The Jesuits continueRead MoreReligious Characters in The Canterbury Tales by Chaucer Essay examples598 Words   |  3 Pagesthe Nun, the Monk, and the Friar. Yet, Chaucer does show one character, the Parson, as goodness and holiness in the church. Nuns are member of a religious order for women, living in a convent under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Their orders vary in the stipulations of the vows, some being permanent, and others only for fixed periods of time. The orders vary in dress, purpose, and rule, but generally follow the same basic principles. The nuns are devoted to a purely meditativeRead MoreSignificance Of The Second Nun Essay1222 Words   |  5 Pagesa very devout and highly moral life. Medieval nuns and priests must be fully dedicated to god and christian faith. The daily life of a medieval nun was formulated around three main vows established by St Benedict in 480-550 AD, The vow of Poverty, The vow of Chastity and the Vow of obedience. As dictated by these vows nuns and priests must live very modestly and renounce everything they own for use of the common good, remain chaste for their entire lives and must be obedient to god as well as theirRead MoreThe Importance of the Clergy during the Middle Ages1039 Words   |  4 Pagesless educated than the bishops and were not as high in rank in the clergy as the bishops. They listened to confession and gave advice to somebody on how to lead another’s life. The monks in the Middle Ages have to take vows of Poverty, Chastity, and Obedience these they had to vow to their bishops and popes. Monks could often read and write in Latin but that was not always a good thing to them. The reason was you could make a mistake and if you make a mistake then you got punished and usually the

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Critique of a Human Service Organisation free essay sample

Written Task 2: SOAD 9106. By Andrew Melgaard-Lerche, Student #2078018 1 Critical Analysis of a Human Service Organisation IF ever a segment of society was in need of a „break? , it? s that motley crew of social outcasts who are, or have been, on the wrong side of the law. Who else, I ask you, is so universally despised that politicians – always on the lookout for unpopular, easy targets want to â€Å"rack „em, pack „em and stack „em in jail†? 1 The „man in the street? would dispute a criminal? being due some positive karma. A not atypical view from suburbia might be articulated thus: â€Å"but s/he transgressed! S/he deserves all the blame/punishment/trauma/discrimination/indignation s/he gets! † Fortunately, we? re all Social Workers, and that means we put such judgements aside, right? No-one is beneath our altruism – our only criterion is need – and there are few needier people than those at the mercy (either incarc erated, on bail or out on parole) of our justice system. We will write a custom essay sample on Critique of a Human Service Organisation or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page writing service business Thank Heavens, we believers in Social Justice might say, that here in SA we have Good Samaritans like the folks at OARS Community Transitions. In researching OARS, I initially relied on its website, some promotional literature and an interview with its Social Inclusion and Enterprise Manager, Dot Stagg. From the phalanx of pamphlets Ms Stagg sent me, I discovered that Offenders Aid Rehabilitation Services (OARS) is a voluntary community association that – in various incarnations has been helping offenders and their families in South Australia since 1886. From a promotional spiel on the OARS website, I learned the organisation began life as the Prisoners Aid Association, â€Å"grew and evolved in response to the changing needs of clients and the changing face of justice administration†, adopted the well-known moniker of OARS SA in 1977 before finally re-inventing itself as OARS Community Transitions just last year. 2 The OARS website and promotional material went on to describe this Human Service Organisation (HSO) as a secular, community-based, non-profit Non-Government Organisation (NGO) employing 55 staff and with about 90 active volunteers. Its service users (referred to as clients) include people released from prison, their partners and children. Services include counselling for drug and alcohol abuse, gambling, financial planning and general counselling. 3 OARS employs a Youth Worker and provides unspecified â€Å"prison services† and â€Å"emergency assistance†, vague terms contained in OARS literature about which I couldn? t gain further clarity. 4 OARS Community Transitions also runs a number of supported accommodation (half-way) houses across Adelaide and at Murray Bridge, Port Augusta, Port Lincoln, Berri and Mt Gambier. When I asked Ms Stagg if former prison officers still play a security/keep-the-peace role at these houses (as they have in the past) she answered rather emphatically in the negative. â€Å"We aren? t a continuation of prison,† she said. â€Å"All our residential clients answer to case workers, not former prison officers†. Asked whether OARS has a specialised client bod y, Ms Stagg said the organisation caters to all races, creeds and colours. However, it? fair to say OARS does cater to a specific, economically-depressed demographic: the homeless, low income earners, educationally-disadvantaged people, usually white males but with an overrepresentation among Aboriginal Australians. Anyone in or at risk of entering the justice system is OARS? base constituency, a sector which also includes the mentallyill. There is a waiting list for residential places and some other services, although in some cases people receive assistance â€Å"off the street†. According to Ms Stagg, â€Å"no- Written Task 2: SOAD 9106. By Andrew Melgaard-Lerche, Student #2078018 2 ne† is turned away by OARS, which she says receives a mix of self-referrals, names from other agencies and clients from SA Corrective Services. Most of OARS? funding these days comes from the Commonwealth Government (a quandary I? ll return to later) and its accountability mechanisms (int ernal audits, thrice-yearly accredited quality management and an official complaints procedure involving the CEO, Leigh Garrett) appear to be fairly standard. 6 OARS is multi-disciplinary, employing anyone from psychologists to Social Workers to security personnel, and all – according to Ms Stagg are professionally qualified. On paper, OARS seems to provide a healthy mix of rehabilitation and intervention, all packaged under the enticing banner of it? s ubiquitous mantra: Restorative Justice. If any of the above information sounds – to put it mildly like self-serving spin, that? s because it is. Ms Stagg? s contribution to this essay turned out to be a combination of public relations hype, omission and – most disappointingly outright deceit. The first hint I gained that all was not as it seemed was when I received shrill and evasive answers to „sensitive? questions about OARS? corporate structure, funding and staffing. Having encountered an Omerta-like silence on such questions from other senior staff, it seemed I couldn? t provide much of the structural information sought for this assignment. Ms Stagg was often coy, even on seemingly-innocuous questions surrounding OARS? vision, mission and values, its relations with other agencies and the public, or the nature of its â€Å"interventions† and who carries them out. Extracting the OARS corporate structure or operating budget was like extracting teeth. I was told in no uncertain terms that such queries should be directed to the CEO, but that â€Å"he probably won? t provide such details†. Curious about such reticense, I took a different approach to this assignment, digging deeper where I could and putting more of the critical in â€Å"critical analysis† It didn? t take long to uncover a virtual morass of dishonesty, inefficiency and inappropriate practices, certainly on the residential side of this operation. The lessthan-frank Ms Stagg had her poker face on when she spoke with me, but clients I interviewed* left me with the definite impression that corner-cutting practices abhorrent to most Social Workers were rife at OARS. More shockingly still, the unspoken rationale for this seemed to be the notion that â€Å"they? e only crims†. So frequent were consumer references to this „us-and-them? attitude that I came away feeling it was rooted in the organisation? s culture. According to clients, the â€Å"help† this HSO provides its residents is minimal, grudging and hardly consistent with the organisation? s vague commitment to â€Å"Restorat ive Justice†. Far from â€Å"evolving in response to the changing needs of clients and the changing face of justice administration†, consumers I interviewed spoke of archaic procedures and resistance to change from staff marooned for too long on what is an isolated, specialist „island? of an NGO. I was unable to confirm precise staffing numbers, but – for reasons I? ll explain later – I find it hard to believe OARS still employs 55 staff, a figure found on the organisation? s website and last updated in 2008. According to existing clients, prospective residents are turned away by OARS, often on the basis of favouritism and not need. The â€Å"prison services† OARS supposedly provides were a spurious claim – I? ll explain why below – as were the â€Å"emergency assistance† for their residential clients. â€Å"The only time they get off their * For obvious reasons, the clients I spoke with preferred to remain anonymous. Written Task 2: SOAD 9106. By Andrew Melgaard-Lerche, Student #2078018 3 arses and come see us is when someone has run amok or hasn? t paid his rent†, one client told me. â€Å"The [OARS houses] are run down, there? s little maintenance, and the only time we see [a staff member] is when something? s badly wrong†. I witnessed such chronic laziness and apathy first hand during a low-key visit to one OARS property at Christies Beach. The house was in a disgraceful state and the staff member in attendance merely turned up in his company car, walked to the walled-off staff area of the house and sat there, doing little in the way of work and never venturing „out back? o mix with the unwashed masses. At the conclusion of his 4hour „work? day, this staff member simply returned to his car, drove off and left the residents to their devices. As your colleague Andrew Paterson (a former Superintendent at Mobilong Prison) will attest, such a „work ethic? is consistent with that of prison offic ers, who spend their days huddled together in groups, doing as little as possible and only springing to their feet when there? s a disturbance. Such similarities aren? t coincidental: OARS residential staff don? t just mimic prison officers; they are former prison officers (or â€Å"screws†, as inmates call them). Ms Stagg, who insisted that no former prison officers worked at these half-way houses, told me a bald-faced lie. The pattern of former â€Å"screws being screws† goes beyond bone laziness. According to residents, these middle aged-to-elderly men have simply carried on where they left off in prison, handling virtually all of OARS? „interventions? through the use of, shall we say, „physical means? familiar to them from their days at Yatala or Mobilong. Such „means? , even when used on former inmates, would be abhorrent to virtually any other HSO. Far from providing â€Å"Restorative Justice†, it turns out that OARS perpetuates the prison power dynamic for its residential clients, affording them little respite from the daily routine of incarceration, providing nothing in the way of proactive support (these are clients? words) and then, one assumes, expecting them to rehabilitate spontaneously. Study after study has concluded, to quote Borzycki and Baldry, that â€Å"without sufficient resources and social support upon release, the cycle of release and re-arrest is difficult to break†. 7 OARS? â€Å"Restorative Justice† goal presumably involves helping to break this cycle. If my first-hand experience is any guide, it has failed in this goal utterly. As mentioned, the festering morass that is OARS was in part due to its isolation as a „specialist? organisation, immunized to a point against competition and meaningful scrutiny. The „outcast? status of its clientele with many members of the public and populist politicians left these clients unloved and under-resourced. Moreover, until recently, they were at the mercy of OARS? near-monopoly over services to offenders. Such monopolies are never a healthy situation: fiefdoms are the order of the day, power imabalances are the norm and services tend towards atrophy. Clients thus faced a „perfect storm? of monopolistic bureaucracy and pariah status, leaving them unwilling or unable to speak out. They were reduced to approaching OARS – the „only game in town? – on bended knee. Allowing for some bitterness and jaundice from the clients I interviewed, what I saw was enough to suggest that the efficacy of this organisation is minimal – assuming that rehabilitation (articulated within the framework of â€Å"Restorative Justice†) is in fact their goal. South Australian taxpayers weren? t getting value for their money, and Written Task 2: SOAD 9106. By Andrew Melgaard-Lerche, Student #2078018 fortunately for them, it seems someone at the Department of Correctional Services finally noticed. OARS festered along under its near-monopoly until 2009, when the Department shocked its long-time contractor by tendering out funding for its in-prison services. What ensued was a competitive process in which OARS had no experie nce or hope of success. OARS lost some $500,000 worth of in-prison funding in August 2010, mainly to Centacare, leaving the HSO in the unenviable position of having little or no in-prison presence to seamlessly transfer released prisoners to their accommodations. Clearly, whoever has responsibility for in-prison services should logically handle outside accommodations. With Housing SA in the process of putting the latter out to tender, the „writing is on the wall? for OARS, which seems to have entered a tailspin of lost funding and structural shrinkage. Its former presence at two Adelaide office locations has been reduced to just one rather dingy Morphett Street address, and its website is – to be charitable – in a „state of flux? and partially „under construction?. Responding to these challenges, the organisation re-launched as OARS Community Transitions last August. Clearly, the organisation is trying to reinvent itself, largely as a landlord (however briefly) for ex-prisoners and as a provider of the many, Commonwealth-funded counselling services it must see as its future. By definition, such services overlap with those provided by other agencies, so OARS seems destined to squabble for what it would formerly have seen as funding „scraps?. As Ming the Merciless might say, they must be â€Å"satisfied with less†. 8 In case my tone hasn? t betrayed my attitude, I can? t say I? m horribly upset at OARS? tribulations. If an organisation? worth is rooted in its efficacy, then the loss of $500,000 in funding – with more cuts likely – looks to me like competitive tenderingas-justice. It was near-impossible to glean meaningful information from upper management at OARS, and it was difficult to ascertain how effective OARS? efforts are in areas like counselling for drug and alcohol abuse, gambling and financial planning. I had l imited time, a reluctant subject and few investigative skills, so I couldn? t delve deeper and perhaps confirm that dysfunction afflicts all of OARS? operations. However, if the neglect, the „us-and-them? entality and the alleged brutality of its „interventions? is any guide, the objective measure of OARS? efficacy – that of a meaningful contribution to rehabilitation – provides a damning indictment. OARS should be seen as a cautionary tale. Its leaching of South Australian taxpayers for little return over decades of futility leaves one wondering how many other NGO? s – to one degree or another – aren? t living up to their literature. Centacare is a larger, less-isolated and more competitively focused organisation, and will be less prone to the atrophy of OARS, the organisation it replaced. That said, the pariah status of clients, the „don? care? stance of politicians and the potential for offender services to become a „fiefdom? wi thin the walls of its new contractors all warrant ongoing concern. As George Santayana put it, â€Å"those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it†. 9 *** Written Task 2: SOAD 9106. By Andrew Melgaard-Lerche, Student #2078018 5 BIBLIOGRAPHY 1 Foley, K. , Treasurer of South Australia,quoted in Wheatley, K. , „Packing our prisons just doesnt stack up? , The Advertiser, Adelaide, 8 May 2008; 2 OARS Community Transitions, promotional pamphlet, Adelaide, August 2010; 3 ibid; 4 taken from interview notes with D. Stagg, Social Inclusion and Enterprise Manager, OARS Community Transitions, 20 April, 2011; 5 OARS Community Transitions, promotional pamphlet, op cit; 6 taken from interview notes, op cit; 7 Borzycki, M. and Baldry, E. , ‘Promoting Integration: The Provision of Prisoner Postrelease Services? , Trends Issues in Crime and Criminal Justice (262) Australian Institute of Criminology, Canberra, September 2003; 8 Von Sydow, M. (as Ming the Merciless) quoted in Flash Gordon, Universal Studios, USA, 1980; 9 Santayana, G. , Volume 1, The Life of Reason, Dover Publications, New York, 1905.

Tuesday, December 3, 2019

The beginning of mathematics Example For Students

The beginning of mathematics Since the beginning of mathematics mathematicians have been reevaluating ( to more and more decimal places. It has gone from a whole number to 134,217,700 digits after the decimal. ( is the ratio of circumference of a circle to its diameter. In the ancient orient ( was frequently taken as 3. Later the Egyptians gave ( a vale of (4/3)4=3. 1604. But the first scientific attempt to compute ( seemed to be that of Archimedes in 240BC. He used polygons to set bounds for (, which he found o be between 223/71 and 22/7, or to two decimal places (=3. 14. His method was known as the classical method. In 150 AD the first notable value of (, after that of Archimedes, was given by Claudius Ptolemy of Alexandria in his famous Syntaxis mathematica he calculated ( to be 3. 1416. A Chinese mechanics worker in 480 gave the rational approximation 355/113 = 3. 1415929 , which was correct to six places. Al-Kashi in 1429 used the classical method to calculate ( to sixteen decimal places. was calculated o thirty-five decimal places by Ludolph van Ceulen of the Netherlands in 1610 using the classical method and polygons having 262 sides. We will write a custom essay on The beginning of mathematics specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now In 1621 Willebrord Snell, a Dutch physicist devised a trigonometric improvement of the classical method which allowed him to obtain considerably closer bounds. He calculated ( to thirty-five places like van Ceulen but with polygons with only 230 sides. Abraham Sharp in 1699 found seventy-one correct decimal places by using x=(1/3. In 1767 Johann Heinrich Lambert showed that ( was irrational. William Rutherford calculated ( to 208 decimal places in 1841 but was later found that only 152 were correct. Zacharias Dase in 1844 found ( correct to 200 places. Dase was perhaps one of the most extraordinary mental calculators who ever lived. William Rutherford returned to the problem and found ( to 400 decimal places in 1853. ( was calculated to 707 places by William Shanks of England in 1873. this remained the most fabulous piece of calculation ever performed. D. F. Ferguson and J. W. Wrench jointly published a corrected value of ( to 808 laces in 1948. In 1949 an army ballistic research laboratory computer in Aberdeen Maryland, known as ENIAC, calculated ( to 2037 decimal places. After 1949 computers were able to compute the value of ( to more and more places. In 1986 in a NASA research center in California a supercomputer calculated ( to 29,3600,000 decimal places. A little later Yasumasa Kanada of Tokyo used a NEC SX-2 supercomputer to compute ( to 134,217,700 digits passed the decimal. There are many reasons why mathematicians have been alculating ( to a great number of places. Not only is it just a challenge but to see if digits in ( repeat, to find out if ( is simply normal or normal, and it is valuable in computer science to design better programs. I found this assignment not fun. Writing has been something I have always hated and math has not been one of my favorite subjects. So I disliked this assignment very much. As for the librarys math collection, I really can not comment on it because I simply chose the first math book I saw so I really dont have any suggestions.