I Am Mirror: A Historical Critique Essay

Claribel Alegr? a in Nicaragua in 1924 and a year later her family was exiled to El Salvador because of her father’s support of Nicaraguan guerrilla leader Augusto Cesar Sandino, Alegria’s family was forced into exile by Anastasio Somoza, a Nicaraguan politician who later became commander-in-chief of the Nicaraguan army and eventually the nation’s president. Her poem I am Mirror was translated in 1978. And is the topic for this critique. In 1978 Alegr? a would be in the United States she left El Salvador in 1943 to study at George Washington University. From 1924 to her departure to the United States there was much violence in her home country in 1932 there was a massacre in which over a period of eight days thirty thousand peasants were estimated to be slaughtered by the vastly superiorly armed El Salvador army. The country also has vast disparity of wealth with one half to one percent controlling ninety percent of the nation’s wealth. The poem states: Water sparkles on my skin and I don’t feel it water streams down my back I don’t feel it I rub myself with a towel  I pinch myself in the arm I don’t feel frightened I look at myself in the mirror she also pricks herself I begin to get dressed This is identifying that wealthy portion of the population that controls 90 percent of the country’s wealth. It is describing their lack of humanity to allow the rest of the population to suffer in great poverty. The author uses this lack of feeling to question if their humanity has been lost. Given that Claribel was able to afford an American education like many of the wealthy amilies did it stands to wonder how much she associated herself with the wealthy. Perhaps it’s contributed by her support for non-violence and the poor given that she did come from some resemblance of wealth herself. In the following stanza it gives evidence that the character of the poem was wealthy: I wander through the streets: children with dirty faces ask me for charity The children could be desperate enough to be asking anyone but the character given that they were doing better than most at the time. But then again it does say paint a pretty desperate picture with â€Å"child prostitution† and â€Å"shouts like lightning bolts† Military enforced oppression was the times. The use of a mirror as a metaphor could also be alluding to the killing of one and wounding of five students protesting the government spending of one million dollars to bring the Miss Universe pageant to El Salvador. Of course during the program all that was shown were the beautiful sandy beaches and failed to show the massive poverty or military security around the contest. This is a portion from the poem: â€Å"I am a blank mirror that nothing penetrates my surface is hard is brilliant is polished I became a mirror and I am fleshless scarcely preserving a vague memory of pain. † This demonstrates how the government oppression and the atrocities resulting from the oppressive military rule were covered up by the government. Going back to the massacre of 1932 the government swiftly removed all accounts of the event from the libraries and replaced them with more favorable accounts. It was the way of life in El Salvador. The poor see much of the same everywhere they go poor. While rich control so much of the wealth they can afford to shield themselves from it. And the atrocities they never happened because the government says they didn’t. As it says in the poem: I simply reflect what happens at my side the tanks are not tanks nor are the shouts shouts The above demonstrates the denial that the people have even goes as far to describe them as â€Å"phantoms† with how they do nothing to change. Which leads me to one of my favorite lines â€Å"I hurt, therefore I exist† which is likely an adaptation of Descartes’s â€Å"I think therefore I am. † In this situation she is saying that the lack of humanity of those who are the oppressors have stripped them from their existence. Furthermore as you read the poem it seems as if the character is coming to an epiphany but then recedes back right after the stanza â€Å"I think, therefore I exist. † This is probably used to show how permanent the stories last in the media how quickly something like the killing of the student protester outside of the Mrs.  Universe can become a national headline and then slip from the attention of any news outlet. The symbolism of a mirror is also further represented with how a mirror project a current image but does not contain any of its past. In 1979 a year after this poem was translated and Alegr? a was awarded the Casa de las Americas poetry prize for Sobrevivo. It is also the same year that the National Liberation overthrew the Somoza government. She continues to write about El Salvador and Nicaragua politics and resides in El Salvador, Spain and Nicaragua.

Administrative Issues and closeout, Sponsor interactions, IRB communication, Document retention, Close-out

Drug research and development are an essential part of the medical and pharmaceutical company today and therefore each step has to be taken cautiously to keep the process flawless and thereby maintain the efficiency of the system.The system is rendered useless if there are fingers being pointed at the preciseness and the authenticity of the outcome of the research. Issues may crop up related to the research due to a difference in the interest of the scientists and the financial interests of researchers in the study, thereby making it the responsibility of the staff or the pollster to make others aware of the underlying rift in the interests of the two.The function of the food and drug administration (FDA) is to gauge the researches that are requirements of the law needed for the development of new medicines and other similar products and to apply for re-categorizing medical instruments and gadgets, together with upgrading the image of these products.Moreover it minutely scrutinizes e ach and every detail of the data put forth so as to be sure that the research had been done with the required steps so that the study is neutral.The other duty of the FDA is to remain fully aware of the benefit of the sponsors and the clinical investigators, and   the reason why the study is being carried out, and therefore analyze if both are appropriate to each other or not. It even keeps a check by visiting the sites to be sure about the authenticity of the results. (Source: Good Clinical Practice Regulations)The secretary of the US department of the Health and Human services, Tommy G Thompson has stated that the best way to preserve the efficiency of the research is by maintaining the ethics in the study, and the preeminent way to do this is by keeping nothing hidden from all the elements involved in the research, Therefore, shielding all the subjects in the study.There is a report by the name of â€Å"Financial Relationships and Interests in Research Involving Human Subjects : Guidance for Human Subject Protection† which is followed by the HHS and FDA in all the researches that they undertake, aimed at providing a written guidance about the rights of all the human subjects that are a part of the study. (Source: HHS Provides Guidance on Financial Relationships and Interests in Research Involving Human Subjects)The other issue that comes forth is the imbursement to the people taking part in the study. It has been known that the subjects have been paid, but on what grounds, that still is questionable as any written proof on this subject matter has yet not been found.Even the federal and the experts of the field (being researched) do not see eye to eye on this matter. This is where the Institutional Review Boards step in.These agencies are aimed at ensuring that no harm what so ever is caused to the subjects of the research and that they were not brain washed or coerced to be a part of the study and that it was solely their decision to participate. (S ource: National practices regarding payment to research subjects for  participating in pediatric research)There are however certain rules that have to be abided by when it comes to paying the subjects. Firstly that the payments should be made in bits as the study progresses, however if any of the subjects back off before the completion of the research   in that case the payment should be made at the time that had been promised to them had they not backed out.Moreover a check should be made that incase if an additional benefit is to be given to the subject, then it should not be a handsome amount so that it holds the subject back to remain in the research out of greed who would have otherwise not been a part of any longer therefore every monetary dealing should also be documented and written in the approval. (Source: National practices regarding payment to research subjects for  participating in pediatric research)ReferencesUS Food and Drug Adinistration (2006).   Good Clinic al Practice Regulations.   Read the sections in part 312 related to financial disclosure (part 54).   Retrieved on  July 24, 2008  from  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?CFRPart=54 Department of Health and Human Services (2004).   HHS Provides Guidance on Financial Relationships and Interests in Research Involving Human Subjects.   Retrieved on July 24, 2008 from http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2004pres/20040512.html. Weise, K. L., Smith, M. L., Maschke, K. J. and Copeland, H. L. (2002). National practices regarding payment to research subjects for  participating in pediatric research.   Pediatrics 110 (3), 577.   Retrieved on May 21, 2008 from  http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/110/3/577?ck=nck.

Evaluation on buying organic food Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Evaluation on buying organic food - Essay Example Psychosomatic study has shaped a large number of theories associated with the difficulties encountered in organic food purchase decision making process. These studies have revealed that consumers’ purchase decisions in a definite environment and at a specified time are determined by a combination of mental and relative factors as well as their connections (Klockner 40-56).Moreover, the following phases will be conferred: In what way do ethics, principles, attitudes and fears for both the health and environment influences the consumption of organic food, does availability, visibility, and prices awareness contribute, the role played by trust, environmental and health psychological simulations contribution towards organic food purchase and lastly, the impact of labels on organic food on decision making influence Consumers are always placed at the bottom of production chain. However, they play a chief role in in the establishment and development of the organic food market. In ess ence, the ultimate purchase in a supply chain, health food entity or on a grocery market by a consumer creates the demand that eventually sustains organic production sector. In addition, the act of purchasing food is not as easy as it seems since it requires keen attention by the consumer for the ingredients among other nutrients details. Further, the purchasing process can be split into a sequence of linked decisions by the consumer. For instance the consumer will start with allocating time for his/her shopping, then they will choose the place where they will go for their shopping for example, a local supermarket, hypermarket, grocery shop, etc. Accordingly, the consumer will make his/her budget, and the category of products they would like to purchase. This is the most important stage that a consumer of organic food faces. Further, this stage is consequential because within each food classification the consumer must have a specific product they are willing to purchase. The importa nce of the mentioned stages affects the end product of purchase. For instance, when a decision to shop in a supermarket instead of a grocery store is made, both places will have different varieties of produces. Consequently, the different variety impacts the foodstuffs that are taken into thought. In addition, when the food shopping is done under time constraints, it will clearly have an effect on the purchase choice because the time invested to make decisions is dramatically reduced ( Reed 87-100). It is important to evaluate the explanation of motive in influencing the purchase of organic food. Generally, there must be a motivation that triggers individuals to prefer organic food over conventional food when making a decision. Consequently, there are three main motives to buying organic food namely; Values, Attitudes, and Concerns. These three motives are psychological and the purchaser keenly regards them. The consumer will be purchasing organic food with a motive of enriching the ir health and on the other hand protect the environment and the animal welfare which is a value that most organic food consumers hold. Consequently as has been mentioned earlier, health concerns are a chief influence to the purchase of  organic food.  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Summary for Organizational Behavior Case Assignment

Summary for Organizational Behavior Case - Assignment Example Studies have shown that some employees tend to perform and be reluctant due to forgetting of their required responsibilities in the organisation. However, Jones can also take the required action as in the agreement that was made between the two bodies. However in Podovinski’s case it is more of neglecting is duty. Unions have been created which fight for satisfactory relations between the management and the plant workers in McLaughlin pharmaceutical, after long negotiations that started at 1980 to 2012 the international manufacturer has achieved to reach fifteen separate negotiations successfully. However, the organisation has had two strikes in 1990 and the other one ten years after in 2000. The union has enabled the organisation to improve the management-labour relations where the responsibility of union negotiations has been given to Canadian management. These were after employees resented the American parent negotiating collective agreements for a different and unique Canadian operation. Consequently the agreement divided the plant into three different wage groups which were meant to define wage rates layoff procedures. Most manufacturing plants considered the McLaughlin’s collective agreement to be standard, nevertheless fifteen grievances by 1980 had been filed where ten of the c ases came from the plant mechanics/engineering which mainly ranged fro equipment safety concerns and supervisory harassment. Taking the case of Jones who has been an employee at McLaughlin for a period of 15 years where he started off an evening shift janitor. Due to experience in the organisation he acquired the mechanic ability this made his co-workers consider him as a mechanic adept since he taught himself the mechanic skills. Through hard work and also attending night classes on management courses, Jones was able to climb from a semi skilled mechanic to a supervisor that made him in charge of managing and directing 16 fellow employees and reporting

Geography of the Palestine-Israel Conflict and the USA Essay - 8

Geography of the Palestine-Israel Conflict and the USA - Essay Example This lobby and its activities should be blamed for urging America to get into a war with Iraq. There are many people in the US government who are assigned by the lobby to steer the US policies into serving Israeli interests. There are also many organizations working in the US which collect money from the US to send it to Israel. In contrast to Smith’s assertion that there are US officials working for Israel in reality, Mearsheimer and Walt argue that Israel is a close friend of the US and the US will always come to Israel’s aid when required. This does not mean in any way that every US official who supports Israel is also necessarily a part of the lobby or working for it. America is not concerned with the activities or interests of the lobby. Anyone who works to preserve America’s relationship with Israel should not be considered a member of the lobby. Frankel (2006) agrees with Smith’s viewpoint that the perceived power of the Israeli lobby in the US is just too much which is why more economic aid is received by Israel from the US than any other nation in the world. This is not only because Israeli power, rather it is the way the lobby’s power is perceived that the US gives Israel more foreign aid every year than it does to any other

Prison Overcrowding - Causes and Effects, Reforms to Reduce the Issue Coursework

Prison Overcrowding - Causes and Effects, Reforms to Reduce the Issue - Coursework Example The real meaning of imprisonment is not achieved since prisons become places of dehumanizing the prisoners unnecessarily, rather than serving as correction centers. Overcrowding results in undesirable situations such as prisoner strikes, epidemics, death, prison breaks amongst other things. Such situations are usually overwhelming to the prison administrations and usually attract undue disapproval from human rights organizations (Cox et al 1984 p. 1149). This paper is a discussion and a critical evaluation of reforms that can reduce prison overcrowding. There are several factors that contribute to prison overcrowding. The laws of many countries require that suspects be kept in remand awaiting conviction. The number of crimes punishable by imprisonment is high, including some which fines can be an effective alternative. With the current rate of population increase, there is a possibility of a continuous rise in crime. This means that prisons will be receiving inmates from time to time, creating the possibility of an increase in overcrowding within prisons.   The behavior of prisoners is largely affected by overcrowding, mainly tending to lean towards anti-social actions facilitated by idleness and the presence of a large number of people with varied behavior in a small space. There is therefore need for reforms that could reduce prison overcrowding. - Shortening prison sentences would be significant in reducing prison overcrowding. It can help in avoiding the accumulation of prisoners since as more are brought in, others leave to create more space. - The offenders who are not violent and have been proved incapable of jeopardizing the security of the public can be put under community work until they complete their sentence. Parole reforms can play a significant role in reducing overcrowding in prisons.   - Constant evaluation of progress in terms of prisoner improvement is important in order to release prisoners who have reformed etc.

Army Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Army Leadership - Essay Example After much contemplation, analysis and evaluation it came to my attention that NCO regard in the military and in the face of the public has decreased substantially. The solution lies in going back to what I now realize was a â€Å"full-spectrum† NCO system. The first notable difference that is requisite for today’s NCO is the establishment of an institutional training that allows for 360-degree assessment (United States Department of the Army, 2012). This, in the past decade has degraded almost entirely. Various aspects of this profession seem to be having a lot of focus and attention whilst others seem to receive close to none. For instance, public perception has it that other than put up colorful ceremonies and carry on strenuous drills an NCO, for the most part, does nothing else. Perhaps it is because of this logic that these two areas focus on institutional preparation at the expense of other important elements. As in the previous era, NCO like all soldiers, were well rounded. This ensured that the attributes that they put out were desirable and valuable. They also need for a good balance in their emotional stability and output. Anybody that has been around long enough will attest to the fact that determination has been an important part of the stance of soldiers in previous days. This is because stance tells of personality. Regardless of how much technical knowledge one amasses, the endowment of the psychological and physiological aspects is equally significant. The current institutional training programs overlook this aspect of training. In contrast to the period spanning a decade, I cannot help but notice the difference in the outlook of first line soldiers. It is important to highlight that first line soldiers bear responsibility for those falling behind them (Center for Army Leadership, 2008). First line soldiers should

The Implication of Cultural Diversity in American schools Essay

The Implication of Cultural Diversity in American schools - Essay Example majority of the population diversity was white alone that was represented 72% while the minority was American Indian and Alaska Native represented 0.9%. However, the African American census made up about 13% and the Hispanics numbering totaled 16%. The Asian population increased faster than other groups. Despite the changes in the education sector within the last decade, we still needed to concentrate the ethnic diversity in classrooms. That means we cannot eradicate the immigration’s issues by segregated the students, on the contrary; it is most significant to integrate different cultural ethnic. Actually, the educator must have various styles of teaching that he/she will have to educate children from different backgrounds and beliefs. So that, the teachers and the education programs with each other can work to create modify which is helpful for the different groups of learner in the schools. No doubt, educators will face some challenges to educate different students from dif ferent cultures (De 88). In retrospect, cultural diversity in American schools is the surest way of eliminating cultural discrimination since learners grow up into holistic individuals who appreciate cultural diversity in the society. As the students interact among themselves, they overcome some of the existing stereotypes thereby create social circles that are culturally diverse. This way, they share values and learn to respect each other despite the diversities in their respective cultures. Every cultural group always uses its cultural values to judge other cultures a feature that may often lead to discrimination (Phelan 76). With cultural diversity on the other hand, the students experience other cultures thus creating a cohesive system especially given the fact that schools just as any other organization often create systematic organizational

Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words - 3

Law - Essay Example Section 4 of the Act of Settlement 1700, comports with Dicey’s concept of the rule of law and sets the basic framework of the UK’s constitution. Section 4 mandates that â€Å"the laws of England are the birthright of the people.†2 Dicey’s definition of the UK’s constitution, together with Section 4 point to the significance of the separation of powers under the British constitution. To this end, Dicey formulated what he referred to as the â€Å"twin pillars† of the UK’s Constitution which essentially places Parliamentary sovereignty as the backbone of the twin pillars of the UK Constitution. Dicey explains that Parliament: â€Å"†¦has under the British Constitution, the right to make or unmake any law whatever; and further, that no person or body is recognised by the law of England as having a right to override or set aside the legislation of Parliament.†3 â€Å"...all that a court of justice can do is to look at the Parliamentary roll: if from that it should appear that a bill has passed both houses and received the Royal Assent, no court of justice can inquire into the mode in which it was introduced into Parliament, what was done to it previously being introduced, or what passed in Parliament during the various stages of its progress through both houses of Parliament.†4 Similarly, Lord Morris said in Pickin v British Railways Board [1974] AC 63 that the courts’ function is to â€Å"administer the laws which Parliament† enacts.5 Although there is an onerous process in Parliament for the passing of a bill, once that bill has been passed into law â€Å"there is finality unless and until it is amended or repealed by Parliament.†6 As for the courts, â€Å"there may be argument as to the correct interpretation of the enactment† however, there cannot be any discussion as to whether or not the act â€Å"should be on the statute book at all.†7 In the UK there is no codified Constitution, such as that found in the US

Lao-Tzu or Kafka Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Lao-Tzu or Kafka - Essay Example After understanding self, it is important for the individual to understand other humans and live with them in harmony. But the ultimate understanding comes when the individual understands the universe and nature and learns to live according to the universal rules of nature. He has connected unrelated things like nature and warfare with complete success. â€Å"Therefore a wise prince, marching the whole day, does not go far from his baggage wagons. Although he may have brilliant prospects to look at, he quietly remains in his proper place, indifferent to them. How should the lord of innumerable chariots carry himself lightly before the kingdom? If he do act lightly, he has lost his root; if he proceed to active movement, he will lose his throne†. The life and work of Lao were very closely connected to the above Biblical proverb as he was a man of wisdom and he stressed the importance of wisdom and understanding all his life. His work Tao Te Ching, which meant ‘The Law of virtue and its way’, is a testament of wisdom and understanding. Lines like the following are the embodiment of wisdom and understanding of all the elements. Lao commended the sage who has all the understanding and wisdom; but never makes an exhibition of it. He can command people and make things happen without using any speech and this is done on the strength of his wisdom and understanding of human nature. His following words show perhaps the most understanding sentence of life: â€Å"  Heaven and earth do not act from any wish to be benevolent; they deal with all things as the dogs of the grass are dealt with. The sages do not act from any wish to be benevolent; they deal with the people as the dogs of the grass are dealt with.† http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/CHPHIL/LAOTZU.HTM He argued that from wisdom comes humility devoid of all self importance. With the understanding of human nature and the nature around us, we attain humble command

20th Century World Literature a Madmans Diary Essay Example for Free

20th Century World Literature a Madmans Diary Essay In this paper we will research the Chinese Revolution of 1911. Talk about how is Lu Xun’s A Madmans Diary a reflection of China’s revolutionary history, explain how In Diary, who the madman was and what he represented. Also we will look at and explain what cannibalism represented. And then we will discuss how this can be applied to our lives. The Revolution of 1911 was a period of time during Chinese history which overthrew Chinas last imperial dynasty, and established the Republic of China. It was made up of many fights and uprisings. What changed it all was the Wuchang Uprising on October 10, 1911, which was the result of the Railway Protection Movement. This ended with the resignation of the â€Å"Last Emperor† on February 12, 1912, which marked the end of the Imperial rule and set up the Chinas Republican era. A Madmans Diary promoted Chinas education and progress similar to the style of Western civilization thorough first-person fiction that is obscenitively satirical. At the end of the piece, the madman says,† Perhaps there are still children and future generations who have not yet fully adopted Confucian values are the likely candidates for social change. The have not yet read the history books pounding in the ideas of age-old morality and piety and social cannibalism. Their parents have not yet corrupted their belief system. Save the children, and save China. The exact words from the book says that the madman: was one of two brothers: Two brothers, whose names I need not mention here, were both good friends of mine in high school; but after a separation of many years we gradually lost touch. Some time ago I happened to hear that one of them was seriously ill. pg. 131 The Longman Anthology World Literature 2nd Ed The brother that was seriously ill was considered the madman and the only illness he was suffering from was a persecution complexity issue within himself. The madmans ideas represents the changes sought by the Revolution of 1911 which were a spirit of progress and reform at both social and personal levels; the rejection of an tyrannical traditionalism, conformity and ignorance. The madman respects writing as the source of apparent truth but is trying to gain true wisdom through the making of this novel literary. As cannibalism is metaphor for the unfeeling nature of Chinese feudalism, the madman is Lu Xun’s ideal persona. Furthermore, Lu Xun personifies his own ideals through his career choice to pursue writing in an effort to bring about the spiritual awakening that he believes the Chinese are in need of. In the end, Lu Xun effectively places himself as the â€Å"madman† and revolutionary of modern Chinese literature. This story has taught me a lot and I am glad that it was a piece of literature that we had to read. It taught me that no matter how crazy we think we are sometimes we are really the smartest ones in the bunch and it generally is just a persecution complex issue that we have with ourselves which we need to find a way to overcome.

Understanding Child and Young Person Development Essay Example for Free

Understanding Child and Young Person Development Essay 1.Fill in the development chart located at the back of this workbook :- †¢An explanation of the sequence and rate of each aspect of development from birth to 19 years. †¢An explanation of the difference between :- †¢The sequence of and rate of development. †¢Why this difference is important. See separate developments stages chart. Read more: Explain how children and young peoples development is influenced by a range of external factors essay 2.Write an explanation of how children and young people’s development is influenced by :- †¢A range of external factors. †¢A range of personal factors. †¢An explanation of how current practice is influenced by:- †¢Theories of development. †¢Frameworks to support development A range of external and personal factors that influences development There are many different factors that affect children’s development. These include: Gender, health, family, environment, psychological, behavioural and social and economic. Gender There is a lot of discrimination about gender and what people expect that gender to be associated with and be doing. For example people would discriminate a boy in thinking they would want to play with cars and some parents wouldn’t want their son to be playing with ‘girl toys’ for example dolls. This can impact a child’s emotional development as they may get upset if they can’t play with certain toys. Boys are usually stereotyped into being encouraged to play ball games this is because they tend to have more co-ordination. The negative impacts of this are that you would end up having girls and boys playing at different ends of the nursery. Although the positive impacts of this are that it will encourage eye foot co-ordination whilst playing ball games. This can help develop a boy’s physical development – gross motor skills. Girls tend to have better fine manipulative skills from playing with beads etc. This can help develop their physical development – fine motor skills. Health Children with serious illnesses and genetic diseases tend to look and act different to other children and they pick up on this fact. This may affect them joining in with certain activities as they may be incapable to do it for example if they are physically unable to do P.E they won’t take part. They may also lack in socialisation skills and may not be able to make friends as easy as many other children. Some children may not want to play with them as they look and act differently to them self. If their illness or disease means they need time of school to visit the hospital and if they are simply not well enough to come in this will mean they will miss out on a lot of education and socialising with other children. Family Depending on what type of family a child comes from can have a big impact on how developed they are in most areas of development. For example a child from a better well off family may have more resources at home and have a better environment to learn in from home. With a big family a child would have lots of support and would always have someone to be able to read with them and help them with homework sheets and practice writing. This can have a big help in their intellectual development as they have always got support they need and help from the whole family. They can also develop their social development from coming from a big family as they are used to be around a lot of people and have been encouraged too interact with other children and adults. There are many different types of families. These are: Extended family an extended family is a family with other relations for example uncles, aunties and grandparents. This could benefit your child’s intellectual development as t hey will have lots of support and help from extended family for example aunties and uncles. They will always have someone to encourage them to try and succeed in crawling, walking etc. Drawbacks of this are that the house may be crowded and extended family like grandparents may end up looking after ill siblings. They may also have different parenting ideas and this can affect a child’s emotional and intellectual development as they’re being told to do two different things. Nomadic family – a nomadic family is a family who travel around and don’t stay in one place for a long amount of time. This could effect their intellectual and social development as they would never get used to one school and because of all the moving around different schools would have their curriculum set out differently so they may have already done the subject in a previous school. Single parent family – a single parent family is when your parent’s aren’t together anymore or you don’t know one of your parents and you live at home with one parent. This may affect your child’s social development as they wouldn’t have a mother or father role model in their life and may find it hard to adjust with some situations as they’ve been brought up by one parent and so may have missed out on interaction with a male or female figure. If one parent had left recently in their life this may have affected them emotionally and would struggle in their development for a while until they got more used to them not being there anymore. Nuclear family – a nuclear family is 2 parents living with their 2 children. This can benefit a child’s intellectual development as they will have 2 supporting parents who are still together and siblings who can develop all areas of development faster than they would usual develop. An example being – with an older sibling they can encourage your child to do things for themselves and develop socially from always being around them. Re-constituted family a re-constituted family is when parents have split up and re married so a child has a step mom and dad. This may affect their development as the spilt of the parents may have affected them emotionally and their development may be slowed down. They also may not like their new step mom and dad which could cause lots of problems and they won’t want to visit them anymore. This may affect their emotional development as they may be worried about having to go and see them and so won’t be concentrated on work which could affect them intellectually. There are also positive impacts of this though because with step family they will have a lot more support and will always have someone to read to them. This will encourage their intellectual development. The role and responsibilities of the parents is to care for their child and look after them. Provide them with shelter, warmth, food and love so they are emotionally developed. These factors are all important for your child’s physical needs as they need warmth and food to keep them going and growing. Their physical needs need to be met before any other stage of development can take place. Environment Housing is very important as where a child lives can affect majorly how well developed they are. If a child lives in a bigger house then they have more space and most probably their own room. This gives them their own space and gives them time alone to concentrate and relax in, this can help their emotional development as if they ever had a tantrum or was angry or upset they would have their own room to go and calm down in. Having a big house could also mean they therefore have a big garden and this plays a massive part in developing your child physically and socially. This is because having their own outdoor space and being able to run around whenever they like will help them develop physically. They are also able to have friends round to play in the garden; this will help them develop socially. Where as if a child lives in a small house they might have to share a room and this would affect their intellectual development not being able to do some work on their own and have somewhere they can concentrate. They might not have a garden and this would affect their physical development in not being able to run around in their own garden. It would also affect their social as they wouldn’t be able to have friends back to come and play in the garden. Although positive impacts of having a small house and no garden are that they would be out a lot more and would have a lot of fresh air and socialising with friends at a near by park. Where a child lives does affect their development because by living near town they are able to meet friends and socialise and also most importantly be able to get to the library and other useful facilities easily. This therefore benefits their intellectual and social development as they are able to get to the library and be around books and maybe even hire new ones out. They are able to go places easily with their family and socialise, maybe even meet up with their friend and their family and go out somewhere nice in the town for example a coffee shop or restaurant. A positive impact of living in a rural area is that there is less pollution and more space for pets and fresh air. Psychological Children find it really easy to make strong attachments to carers or teachers whom they spend quite a lot of time with, this can affect their emotional development as they may refuse to do things without that certain carer being there. If this is not stopped at an early stage it may be long-lasting and this could cause problems when arriving and leaving them. Children are very capable of making multiple attachments to other people at their nursery or just people they see often and their emotional well being is catered for which in most cases is. Parents play a massive role in a child’s life; factors that may affect their emotional and social development are homosexual parents and lone parents because these children may lack in role models and may have been brought up with different moral values. Security in a child’s environment is very important because it’s what makes the child feel safe and secure in their own environment with their family. Children often feel the need to attention seek for example: a child 6 years old who is a lonely child finds out his mother is pregnant and decides to start playing up acting younger than he actually is to get the attention he wants and needs of his mother that he’s so used to. Children suffer a lot from nightmares and this is all psychological and normally about a lack of understanding of something or a fear of something unusual. This could affect their intellectual development as they may be scared often and therefore not be able to concentrate on more important things. Night terrors play a big part in affecting a child’s intellectual development as if they have a fear or are very tired they are not going to be able to concentrate on their work as they have not sleep. Parent’s need to be very careful what they are letting their children watch on television as there are lots of adult programs that a child won’t understand and may have night terrors about or try to repeat it themselves. Children need to be comforted when they get settled down and after a night terror because they are very sensitive and need to feel loved and comforted by their parents. This can help their emotional development. With a large family or family with siblings there is always rivalry and jealously among each other especially if there’s a new baby and this can affect their emotional development as they are competing who can do better. Positive impacts about having siblings is they can help younger siblings read and encourage them to be able to do things for them self. Parent’s can never compare their child to other children as it can make them feel inadequate and not good about themselves. When there’s a new baby in the family its best to keep their older siblings involved with the entire baby’s routine so they don’t feel left out and can help out and feel needed and grown up about helping out. This will build their confidence up and they will want to experiment more doing new things and this will help their intellectual and social development. A child’s fears appear very real to them and sometimes older siblings feel the need to tell them stories which will scare them and which they won’t understand which doesn’t help a child’s emotional development and it could become a repeated thing which they have a fear of and may not want to go to bed. This could cause them to be very tired and may struggle getting up, it may also affect their intellectual development as when a child is tired they are not as capable as taking part in simple activities. Behavioural There are lots of factors which pay a big part on how a child behaves. Living conditions – if a child lives in a big house they have lots of space to play in but if a child lives in a small house they won’t be able to let out all their energy and so may let it out in anger. They will also be deprived from socialising with their friends who will affect their social development. Rest and sleep – every child needs their rest and sleep, it’s important for the brain and body to relax and be ready for the busy day ahead. So when deprived of rest and sleep they will be unable to work properly and so won’t be developing to the standard they should as they will be tired. This will affect their intellectual development. Diet – if a child consists of a very unhealthy diet of sweets and e numbers they will be very hyper active and this will cause very bad behaviour. This could impact their intellectual development as they may not be able to concentrate a t nursery or home and so won’t be learning or taking part in anything new. This will also impact on their social development as while at nursery if they misbehave and choose not to join other children may not want to play with them or be friends with them because of their behaviour. General health – if a child is mentally ill they may get frustrated if they can’t do something and this can cause bad behaviour. Some children with mental illnesses need a 1 to 1 support carer to help control their behaviour. This could help their intellectual development and social as they’re learning more and spending more 1 to 1 time with adults and learning about how you should act around children. Lifestyle – a child’s lifestyle and things that are going on around them play a big part on how they choose to act. An example of this is imitating bad behaviour at nursery because they are getting more attention than that certain child. This can affect their social development as other children may not want to get involved or play with them if they are misbehaving. Children often lie to get their own way and to get attention, other children then copy thinking that its right to blame it on other people and get them out of trouble. Children who lack se lf confidence tend to be the children who misbehave and don’t have respect for others this could be from the way they’ve been brought up. This affects their social development as other children who they aren’t very nice to are not going to want to play with them. Children like to feel superior to others and show this by changing their behaviour when in situations so they can get their own way and so their in control of the situation. This could affect other children’s social development as they may be blamed for things they haven’t done and may not want to be played with. They don’t care about any one else’s point of view, as long as they are right. Lying can cause lots of problems though as it can cause violence and effect their behaviour. This may affect their intellectual development as they may not want to take part in some activities. It also encourages others to do the same which isn’t very good as their intellectual development is being affected too then. Children have lots of different ways of showing aggression some of these are through violence, not listening, putting others down, disrespect, shouting or talking very loudly, biting hitting and throwing things and frowning and moaning. This impact a child’s social development as other children may not want to play with them. When a child is angry they are immediately not aloud to join in with the activity and they are therefore missing out on learning. Most children when behaving badly are doing it to get attention, attention seeking. Some children lie so they can get what they want, others just refuse to do the work and answer back. It’s all linked to the child’s insecurity so if they know someone is watching them they will deliberately play up for the attention. This affects a child’s intellectual development as most the time they would rather get attention than do any work at all. Social and economic In families who are in poverty, social exclusion or unemployed they find it hard to stay focused on their own and their children’s health and hygiene and sometimes might not be able to feed the children or wash them. This affects a child’s emotional development and well being as if they are not looked after properly and given all the love and care they need they won’t develop properly. They may also have problems at nursery and school as other children may not want to associate or play with them, this would impact on their social development. The social class that a child comes from can have a direct impact on their development, if they have come from a lower social class they may not be able to afford resources that the child needs for their intellectual development and will have no spare time to read with the child or even play. Lots of families are unemployed and this comes with many disadvantages as it could affect their health and expectations to others arou nd them. Depending on where you can afford live could affect what school your child goes to and can get into, this could affect their intellectual development as they may not be able to get into a good school that you’d possibly have to pay for to get into. In a lower social class they may not be able to afford holidays or after school clubs/hobbies for example swimming and horse riding, this could affect their social development. Parent’s who have to work long hours may neglect their children quite a lot without even noticing, all children need to be shown lots of love and care to help their emotional development and bonding. Families in a higher social class may be able to send their children to educational games, sports and clubs which will help their physical and intellectual development. They would also be able to afford family holidays in which they could spend a lot of time with their parent’s and other children which will help their social development. Theories of development. Current practice and knowledge of development is influenced by different theories, an example of a couple of different theories are below: Cognitive Jean Piaget Piaget’s research suggests there are three basic elements to a child’s development, these stages include: 1.Schemas – is the building blocks of knowledge children develop to help them problem solve 2.There are transitions a child may go through to, these processes help a child to move from one stage to another, the equilibrium, assimilation and accommodation 3.He then suggests there are four stages of learning the Sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational and the formal operational stage Piaget suggests the transition stages happen at different ages which are at 18months, 7 years and 11 or 12 years, he suggests that at these ages a child is more capable or learning new things and until that age they are not able to learn these new areas until they reach this age. He believes a child will learn at these stages from doing and trying things hands on. This is where there the foundation of the curriculum has come from. Lev Vygotsky Vygotsky takes a similar stance to Piaget whereby he suggests children learn from doing and trying thingss and being hands on. However he also believes it is important for the children to socialise with other children of different ages and adults as well as ensure children play and be active to help learn new things Humanist Abraham Maslow Manlow’s theory produced a hierarchy of needs, he suggests a child must be met to help the child develop and if these needs are not met the child might not meet there potential. Therefore when working with children we must consider the hierarch of needs to help the child meet there needs and in turn this will help them develop. Factors such as food, warmth, are cared for, encouragement and respect is some of the criteria Manslow says a child needs. It could be said a child centred approach follows Manslows theory. Social Learning/ Behaviourist Albert Bandhura Banduras theory suggests children learn from others, through copying and observing how others act, play and behave. Therefore saying it is vital a child has a positive role model to learn from. Burrhus Frederic Skinner Skinners theory looks at behaviour and how operant conditioning (reinforcement) which says that a child’s behaviour can be altered through reinforcement. He found that positive reinforcement such as praise when a child receives positive reinforcement they are likely to repeat the behaviour. Skinner found that if you respond to negative behaviour they are more likely to repeat the behaviour because they are getting attention but instead ignoring the behaviour of having a time out is more likely to prevent the child behaving negatively in that way again. Psychological Sigmund Freud Freuds theory suggests that you unconscious will communicate there thinking when they do something. For example when a child lies they will smile or put their hand over their mouths as if they are trying to hide the lie Frameworks to support development See EYMP 1 question 1 for information on the EYFS framework the main framework to support development. See CYP Core 3.6 question 6 for information on other frameworks to support development including the Common Assessment Framework (CAF) and the children’s services core assessment. 3.Explain how to monitor children and young people’s development using different methods. You may find it helpful to use work products to illustrate your answer e.g. child observations assessments frameworks. From observing children and young people you can determine how they are developing and whether they are behind for their age, observations will help identify this to help put measures in place to aid in there development. Through observations you can identify children’s strengths and weaknesses and therefore plan to help develop their weaknesses and build on their strengths. They will also identify the child’s likes and dislikes so activities can plan planned to expand their interests and doing something they like doing they are more likely to develop at a quicker rate than doing something they dislike as they won’t be as interested in the activity. Observations will also help us pass on information to parents to the child’s progress and update the child’s profiles and learning journeys. Child profiles and learning journeys are a good way to evidence the child’s development and monitor how they are developing. Also asking the parents about their thoughts on the child’s development at home Also see EYMP 1 question 1 for information on the EYFS framework which must be used to monitor, assess the child’s development and look at moving their development to the next stage. 4.Explain the reasons why children and young people’s development may not follow the expected pattern. There are many reasons why a child’s development may not follow the expected pattern. These include a range of external and personal factors that influences development sees question two of this assignment for more information about these factors and why they might impact on the development as this question explains the social, economic, lifestyle, health, gender, psychological, behaviour and environmental factors that could mean a child’s development may not follow the expected pattern. A child’s development may be at the expected level for their physical and social development but may be below the expected level of development in communication. So a child may not be behind in all areas. A child may catch up with some support or it may just take them a little time to catch up and do it by themselves, others may not be able to due to physical or learning disabilities or emotional damage. Factors that may mean a child’s development may not follow the expected pattern include: †¢The range of external and personal factors that influences development described in Question 2 of this assignment †¢Cultural beliefs, traditions and having English as a second language †¢A child not being stimulated and socialised †¢Over protective children †¢An older sibling in the family who does everything for the child and even speaks for them †¢Learning disabilities including dyspraxia and dyslexia 5.Explain how disability may affect development. See CYP Core 3.7 for part of this answer. There are different types of disabilities that may affect development these include physical or learning disabilities. This may mean a child’s development is delayed in all areas or just one or some of the areas of developments. This could be because of the disability, because the setting is not experienced or set up to cope with the disability and/or because the child is subjected to discrimination this in turn may mean the child will not settle into the setting, feel different and lower their self-esteem and confidence. As a consequence of this there development may be affected. The disability may make cause delays in development as they physically can’t do something or there brain does not process information as it should, therefore sometimes there is little to do to ensure they are developing as you would expect a child too, however there is always something that could be done to stimulate the child physically and mentally even if it will not help them develop furth er. For example physiotherapy for a child in a wheelchair to get them moving and/or reading to a child functioning at a far lower ability such as cerebral palsy. For example if a child has dyspraxia they brain processes things differently and often they are immature and fine it difficult to decide what to do and in working out how to do it. They may also struggle with language and think about things differently. Therefore a child may struggle in understanding questions and activities, socialising, communicating what they are thinking and affect their development. All of these things can affect the child’s developments. If dyspraxia is diagnosed earlier there is a chance you can minimise a child’s development being delayed too much as measures can be put in place to help them be accepted by others and other methods of learning could be used to reduce the delay in development. A physical disability could be the child is paralysed and confined to a wheelchair; therefore making some of the common physical activities done in setting would be difficult for the child in a wheelchair which could mean a delay in physical development. The setting should think of inclusive physical activates for everybody to join in. A child in a wheelchair may feel different, labelled, and not accepted therefore can become withdrawn and not engaging in activities therefore all areas if there development may be affected. However if the child does fit, they may thrive in other development areas such as communication, social skills and fine motor skills but may find the gross motor skills difficult or due to the disability may not be able to certain physical motions such as kicking. 6.Explain how different types of interventions can promote positive outcomes for children and young people where development is not following the expected pattern. See assignment EYMP 5 questions 5 and 6 in particular as well as information in the following assignments:, CYP Core 3.3 question 23, CYP Core 3.7 question 4, 8, EYMP 4 question 5. 7.Show an analysis that explains the importance of early identification of speech, language and communication delays and disorders and the potential risks of late recognition. See assignment EYMP 5 question 3 for this answer as well as CYP Core 3.7. 8.Explain how multiagency teams work together to support speech, language and communication. See EYMP 5 question 4, EYMP 1 question 7 and CYP Core 3.6 questions 1 and 2 and CYP Core 3.5. The majority of services who work in a multi agency approach work together in the same way for better outcomes for the child whether this be to support speech, language and communication or to support children in need with issues of neglect. Therefore the above assignments cross referenced are relevant to speech language and communication. 9.Explain how play and activities are used to support the development of speech, language and communication Supporting the development and speech of language and communication is important to help the children learn how to communicate in different ways, pronounce words correctly and widen their vocabulary. An effective way of doing this with children is through play and activities and they encourage children to get involved as children enjoy playing and participating in activities especially if they are made fun. Play and activities usually involves more than one person whether this be a child/children and/or adults this will get the child to socialise with others to improve their social skills and in turn help improve their speech, language and communication. Play and activities i would do with children to support their development include: †¢Role play this encourages imagination and using descriptive words and communicating with others and helps with listening skills and taking it in turn to speak †¢Music time – this helps them learn songs whilst doing movements and understanding what things mean such as ‘wind the bobbin up’ gets the children to point to the windows, doors and clap their hands. †¢Free play – gets children to talk to others; ask for help, have conversations with other children and it helps them hear others talk. †¢Afterschool time play – When the school children come to the setting for afterschool care they love to play with the children of early years age and the younger children respond really well to this and young can see them developing when they are with them. This play helps the younger children with their speech and how to construct sentences †¢Book use of books and flash cards to read and match words to pictures, to teach children sentences, listening skills, recognise words, repeat words and enhance their vocabulary †¢Vocabulary Teaching children colours, shapes, words and doing this as part of an activity and getting them to repeat the words and i would use the different words throughout all activities to help them remembers. This could be an activity such as an arts and crafts activity or through puzzles. Activities will make it fun and the children are more likely to participate and learn. †¢I give the children praise and make time to listen to them and encourage them to communicate. If they pronounce something wrong i do not tell them they are saying it wrong as i don’t want to knock their confidence but instead i just say the word after them correctly so they can hear how it should be said. 10.An explanation of how different types of transitions can affect children and young people’s development. See EYMP 5 question 5 and verbally in CYP Core 3.2 If the transition is a positive experience for the child they are more likely to settle in, be confident and therefore like being there which in turn will help them thrive in there development. Often when a child starts at a new setting it will take them a while to settle in as it can be a very stressful time for them this can often me there may be a slight delay in there development at the stage they are at or they regress and go backwards. However this is often short lived and when they settle into the setting they soon catch up. On some occasions they take longer to catch up or need extra support to help their development. Also when moving setting the children in the new setting may be at a different stage of development and of different ages therefore if a child or other children are behind in a particular area of development, this could have an impact on other children. This also works the other way round as the children may be ahead in development and encourage others around them to develop in areas at a quicker rate as they will learn from them. 11.Evaluate the effect on children and young people having positive relationships during periods of transitions. See assignment CYP Core 3.7 question 8, CYP Core 3.5 question 2 Positive relationships help reduce stress, help them feel more comfortable and stable. During the transition period the child will meet there key worker and spend time with them to help build up a bond with them so when starting at the setting they feel more secure and as the key worker will know the child’s likes and dislikes and will therefore when starting at the setting they will be doing things like which will help reduce stress and help settle them in. This in turn which reduce the risk of the child’s development suffering. With the parents/carers permission I help children with the transition from my setting to pre-school and/or school, to ensure the transition is smooth for the child and they form positive relationships I arrange with the setting to visit with the child a couple of times and meet there key worker to help prepare them for the transition. I also ensure that I am aware of the new settings routines so I can help them prepare the child for them.

The Purpose and Objectives of Annual Reports

The Purpose and Objectives of Annual Reports The literature review section talks about the background of research being undertaken. It provides an illustration about the importance of the different sections of the annual reports and the qualitative characteristics of information that make it useful for users of accounting information. Hence, it outlines on the previous research done on the study of annual reports and the importance of annual reports to users who have a reasonable knowledge in business, economics and accounting. The main purpose of annual reports The purpose of the annual report is to inform shareholders as to the financial status of a company. Coy and Pratt (1998) conclude that the annual report serve as a communication tool and determines the reality of the organization in the public mind. However for this reality to be recognized, it depends on the quality of information provided in the annual reports. Annual reports are extremely significant sources of company information (Stanga,1976). Furthermore studies by Chang and Most (1985) and Hawkins and Hawkins (1985) concluded that even though individual investors do not find the annual report useful in decision making and do not meet their information needs, still the annual report is the document used as reference for investors and managers. Though annual report is not the only source of information for a company, as in New Zealand newspapers and magazines were also found as a source of information, nevertheless the annual report is considered to be an important resource due to its large reporting and availability. Therefore the fundamental aims of preparing financial reports are for decision making and accountability. Accountability Annual reports are considered as the main accountability mechanism. In 1975, the American Accounting Association (AAA) defined the purpose of accounting as to provide information for making useful economic decisions and which, if provided will increase social welfare. Thus annual report can be one tool for communicating economic information to allow update decisions and judgements by users. According to Stanton and Stanton (2002) the annual report uses the tools of management, marketing and communication theory to construct a picture of the organization. Thus, annual report is a tool for a firm to classify its accountability for managing and controlling business activities. Moreover, a number of researchers (Winfield, 1978; Chang and Most, 1985; Boyne and Law, 1991), have noted the importance of annual reports as a vehicle releasing accountability. Furthermore accountability is involved in the monitoring, evaluation and control of organizational agents to make sure that they perform in the welfare of shareholders and other stakeholders (Keasey and wright,1993). It can be classified as a requirement for one party to another party for its performance over certain time. In short, accountability is simply a must to report upon as it gives an extent to which an entity has met its responsibilities towards its owners and to fulfill this role, financial reports should reflect the nature and extent of performance that are related to the entity. Moreover accountability requires broadening the capacity of disclosure beyond the financial focus to ensure that adequate and meaningful qualitative information is also contained in the annual report. Besides, the owners of the companies, the shareholders, have a right to know what actions and what developments are taking place within the organization. Thus, the organizations are accountable to its shareholders and the annual report plays a great role in conveying the firms performances to them. Decision making As per IAS 1, the financial statements objective is to offer and inform the performance and the evolution of the financial situation, that could be helpful to a wide range of potential users for evaluating and making economic decisions .It is further claimed that, when the general purpose of financial reports meet this objective, they will also enable entities to discharge accountability. Consequently the first aim of the Trueblood Report is the provision of information for economic decision making is being interpreted as being the primary function of financial statements. Hence financial reports should seek to satisfy the information needs of users. In 1989, the Solomons Report, commissioned by the ICAEW (1989) reaffirmed that decision usefulness is the fundamental aim of financial reporting. Financial reports should provide information that will be accommodating to several users who have interest in financial performance and making decisions about investing and lending. Gray (1994, pp9), have proved that accounting literature is presently dominated by the idea of decision usefulness which mean that financial reporting will have to be maintained in order to meet the need of all users of accounting information. It is seen that nowadays there has been a rise in the users of accounting information for decision making hence objectives of annual reports are regarded as the major means by which companies distribute information to the external users (Firth, 1979). OBJECTIVES OF ANNUAL REPORTS According to FASB the main goals of annual reports can be classified in three parts: Objectives for making potential economic decisions; Objective of providing information about the financial position, performance and changes in financial position of an entity; Objectives for presenting and disclosing of information. Hence it is the attributes of the qualitative characteristics that make accounting information to be useful in annual reports. Characteristics of accounting information The quality of the information provided in annual reports determines the usefulness of those reports to users. FASB and the IASB propose that if Financial Statement setters study the standards and qualitative features in the process of preparation of financial statements only then the financial station would give the true and fair view. Many researchers like (Alford et al. 1993, Amir et al. 1993, Banyopadhyay et al. 1994, Harris et al. 1994, Joos and Lang 1994, Barth and Clinch 1996, Joos 1997, Lewitt 1998 and Pope and Walker 1999) had conduct studies with the aim to identify higher quality as it is related to the ability of financial statements to pass useful information to the users. Hendriksen and Van Breda (1992, P.123), has described qualitative characteristics as components of accounting information which lean to improve its usefulness. The Corporate Report of the Accounting Standards Steering Committee, Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), (1975) has identified seven qualitative characteristics viewed as desirable to make the annual reports useful: relevance; understandability; reliability; completeness; objectivity; comparability; timeliness. Relevance Relevance refers to the capacity of information to influence the decision making process of users. The Solomons Report (1989) has emphasized on this point: Relevance must come first, for if information is irrelevant, it does not matter what other qualities it has. FASB Concepts Statement 2,says in paragraph 27, to be relevant accounting information must be able to make a difference in a decision by facilitating users to form predictions about the result of past, present and future events. It also proposed that there is a trade-off between relevance and reliability that is accounting information should be both relevant and reliable. A number of research by Stanga (1980), and Mores and Duncan (1988) have already been conducted to deal with the issue of relevance and reliability and that optimistic association exists between the two, with minimum levels of reliability necessary to achieve relevance. UNDERSTANDABILITY Understandability is viewed as a user-specific property in the FASB model. Information cannot be useful to decision makers who cannot understand it, even though it may otherwise be relevant to a decision and be reliable. Information is understandable when users will be able to reasonably grasp its meaning. Thus useful information should be capable of being understood by users with reasonable knowledge of business and accounting and the way information is presented in annual reports. In addition, researchers like Subramanian, Insley, and Blackwell (1993), had evaluated the relationship between the performance of companies and the readability of their annual reports, concluding that the annual reports of companies that done well were easier to read than those of companies that did not perform well. RELIABILITY Reliability involves the completeness of information. Information is reliable when it is free from material error and bias and can be depended upon by users to signify faithfully. FASB has also concluded that verifiability is a major factor of reliability. Verifiability is the ability through consensus among measurers to guarantee that information represents what it purports to represent. It also focuses on whether a particular basis of measurement is properly pertained, rather than on whether it is appropriate. While Lev and Thiagarajan (1991) , got proof that the market does not retort to certain balance sheet information results of other studies suggested that it may wait until the balance sheet information shows up in future earnings which make accounting information more verifiable and reliable. COMPLETENESS Good Accounting information is complete when it provides all its potential users with all the required information that are vital to fulfill their needs and requirements. Moreover reported information in annual reports should provide a complete image of the activities of the organization. Completeness is also when all transactions and events that should have been recorded have been recorded and classified properly. It also assumed that there will be no error of omission in the information. Thus information in the financial reports must be complete within the bounds of materiality and cost is a vital element of faithful representation. OBJECTIVITY According to Hines (1991), it is in the benefit of accounting profession to publicly produce information that is objective. Financial information being objective means it should be free from bias in accounting decisions and shall be a measurement of having supporting proof. In other words together with objectivity, information should be both reliable and uniform. COMPARABILITY Comparability is the quality of information that allows users to identify similarities in and differences between two sets of economic phenomena. Moreover compliance with accounting standards helps to attain comparability. Thus, information about an entity gains more importance if it can be contrasted with similar information about other entities and with similar information about the same entity for some other period or some other point in time. Comparability is different from consistency because comparability is the goal while consistency is a means to achieve that goal. Users must be informed of the accounting policies used in the preparation of financial statements, any changes in those policies and the effects of those changes. However it is argued that any consideration of comparability must come after relevance and faithful representation. As noted by Sterling, Robert, R (1985), Comparability alone cannot make information relevant. TIMELINESS Timeliness is considered an ancillary aspect of relevance. Timeliness is about having relevant information available sooner before it loses capacity to influence decisions. Kross and Schroeder, (1984), indicated that the timeliness of annual reports is relative to the abnormal return around the release date of reports, corporations that released their annual reports earlier held higher cumulative abnormal returns than that of later releases. Researchers like Dyer Iv, and McHugh (1975),Whittred (1980) and Dwyer, and Wilson (1989), found that timeliness is affected by factors reporting lag such as auditing opinion, profitability and company size. Therefore the use of technology may enhance position of all users and improve regularity of timeliness with which information is received. In addition to the qualitative characteristics mentioned above, there is two more qualities proposed in the accounting literature which is essential; they are faithful representation and materiality. FAITHFUL REPRESENTATION Faithful representation is attained when information is representing faithfully the transactions and other actions it either claims to represent or could reasonably be expected to represent. However faithful representation does not mean total freedom from error in the representation of an economic phenomenon because economic phenomenon presented in financial reports is normally evaluated under conditions of uncertainty. Thus, to attain a faithful representation, it sometimes may be essential to clearly disclose the degree of uncertainty in the reported financial information. MATERIALITY Materiality does not involve only relevance but also faithful representation. Information is material if it could persuade users decisions taken on the basis of the annual reports. Materiality depends on the nature and amount of the item in case of omission or misstatement. It forms the threshold for recognition of information and only material information is contained in the annual reports. According to SEC (1999), is a symmetric in emphasizing that small misstatements may be material for qualitative reasons but SAB 99 is silent on whether, and when, a quantitatively large error could be immaterial, (Taub 2007). Thus, many registrants and practitioners consider that this guidance prevents judging quantitatively large misstatements to be immaterial. COMPONENTS OF ANNUAL REPORTS The annual report encloses a huge amount of information about a company. As formal communication documents the annual reports also contains quantitative information, narratives, photographs and graphs. There have been several survey-based studies in accounting conducted that the annual reports is useful source of information (e.g., Briggs, 1975; Lee and Tweedie, 1975, 1976,1981; Anderson and Epstein, 1995; Abu Baker and Naser 2000; Ho and Wong 2004). Ho and Wong (2004) conducted a research in Hong Kong and concluded that annual reports are consisted of high value of information in comparison to other sources, even though the respondents are not fully satisfied with the amount of information disclosed. Thus in Mauritius, the section 221 of the CA 01 specifies the contents of an annual report. Hence it includes the following: Chairmans Report Lee and Tweedie (1975), Barlett and Chander, 1997, p.246 found that the most common read sections of the annual reports is the chairmans statement .This was attributed to the simplicity of the chairmans report, which clarifies the more technical information, contained in other parts of the report. On the other hand, Wilton and Tabb(1978) surveyed about 300 shareholders and concluded that the chairmans report was the most widely read followed by the income statement. However, Barlett and Chander have also disclosed that the majority of respondents in their sample desired less information in the form of a summary report rather than the annual report itself. Directors Report The Directors report supply useful information to investors about the activities of the company, the dividend policy and information about the decision makers of the company. Anderson (1998) spot out that despite majority of investors found the basic financial statements to be most valuable, the most thoroughly items read in the annual report are the directors report. Lee and Tweedie (1975) found that the executives report was of great to less importance, over one-third of the respondents believed the directors report to be of no value. Corporate Governance Report Corporate governance (CG) has been a foremost policy issue in developed market economies for more than a decade. Hashim (2009) defines CG as a combination of processes and structures conducted by the board of directors to authorize, direct and oversee management towards the achievement of the organizations objectives. The Report on Corporate Governance for Mauritius, states that companies that are listed on the Stock Exchange of Mauritius shall abide to all provision of the code and there should be a separate corporate governance section in the annual report. Dividend policy, Directors profile and going concern of the corporate governance report might be useful to user of accounts. Shareholders will attain valuable information about the amount and timing for payment of dividends declared by the company. On the other hand the disclosure of the qualifications and experience of the board members is useful to investors as such information specify that people with required experience, qualifications and integrity are managing the company hence it boost up the confidence of shareholders. Cohen, Krishnamoorthy and Wright (2004) recommend that CG can be one of the main functions in ensuring the quality of financial reporting. Auditors Report The auditors are required to report to the shareholders of the company as to whether in their opinion the financial statements have been prepared accordingly with the accounting standards and whether they give a true and fair view of the transactions of the company. The fundamental aspects of an Auditors report are set by ISA 700-The Auditors Report on Financial Statements. This ISA gives guidance on the type and content of the auditors report as a result of an audit carry out. The auditors report was the most understandable section of the annual report while the balance sheet was the forth (Nasser and Rutherfords 1996). Hence it is useful to users of accounts as it offers assurance that the users are making economic decisions based on reliable information. However, Bartlett and Chandler (1997) found that the auditors report was read the least by individual shareholders. Corporate social responsibilities (CSR) CSR can be described as the process of communicating the social and environmental effects of organisations economic actions to particular interest groups within society (Gray et al 1996 p.3). Corporate social disclosure is referred as the provision of financial and non financial information that intend to discharge social accountability of an organisation (Gray et al 1987).Gelb and Strawser (2001) states that CSR disclosure is a form of socially responsible behaviour, thus by providing more information to the public will help companies to meet their responsibilities towards their stakeholders in a better manner. However research studies have shown that most users use the information of financial statements for financially based decisions. IAS 1, of IASB, 2004: (para.7) states that the objective of financial statements is to provide information about the financial position, financial performance and cash flows of an entity that is useful to a wide range of users in making economic decisions. So the financial statements are made as follows: Statement of financial position Statement of comprehensive income Statement of changes in equity Statement of cash flow Notes to the accounts Statement of financial position This statement provides a snapshot summary of what a business owns or is owed-assets-and what it owes-liabilities-at a particular date thus it is referred as a statement of net worth. It shows how solvent a business is, how liquids its assets are and how much capital is being spent. It also consists of non-current assets, current assets, capital and reserves, non-current liabilities and current liabilities. The non-current can be classified as assets that are not quickly and easily realizable, and current assets are assets that can be readily convertible into cash within a short time. Furthermore share capital represents amount receives in respect of shares issued by a particular company, non-current liabilities and current liabilities are obligations that are not aimed to be liquidated within a year and one that are expected to be settled within one year respectively. Statement of comprehensive income The main purpose of the comprehensive income statement is to report a companys earnings over some pointing period of time. This statement reflects the companys revenues, expenses and earnings; it gives information about the financial performance of a company. Users of accounts who are concerned about the profitability can obtain relevant information in the comprehensive income statement and they can make use of ratios to take out information they need therein. Statement of changes in equity IAS 1 requires that companies should prepare a statement of changes in equity to be presented with the same value as the other primary statements. According to Barry and Jamie Elliot this statement is vital because a quantity of gains and losses are required by law or accounting standards to be managed through directly with reserves, so as to prevent the financial statement from being incomplete. The shareholders acquire more information about any changes made to share capital, retained earnings, revaluation reserves, share premium other reserves and to proposed dividends. Sometimes gains and losses may be easily traced by reserve accounting, which permits items to bypass the income statement. Hence the statement of changes in equity provides more transparency in reporting these gains or losses. Statement of cash flow Section 217 of the CA 01 requires all companies to include in their annual report a statement of cash flow and the latter should be prepared in accordance with IAS 7. The purpose of IAS 7 is to include the provision of information about the historical changes in cash and cash equivalents of a company by means of a statement of cash flow. Cash flow statement has become useful sources of information for users (Day (1986) and Yap (1997)). Thus cash flows are classifies during a period from: operating activities-the cash effects of transactions concerning trading activities; investing activities-cash flows from the purchase and sales of non-current assets and short term investments; financing activities-involve receipts from or refund to external providers of finance in respect of the primary amount. Notes to the accounts Notes to the accounts can be refers as explanatory notes that accompany the financial statements. These are intended to give further detail of the items appearing in the financial statements, to provide surplus information, to represent attention of related party transactions and to give existence of interest to stakeholders, other than the shareholders. It includes the IAS, concepts, depreciation policies and methods of valuation that an entity has used. Furthermore studies conducted by Anderson (1981), found that the most readable sections of the annual report were seen to be the balance sheet, profit and loss account, notes to the accounts, and the chairmans statement respectively. The comprehensive income statement, however, was seen to be more essential than the balance sheet. However this author failed to carry out any test whether there are major differences between the users usage of annual reports sections and on the other hand observed its importance of those sections. Epstein and Pava (1993) has developed on the work of Epstein (1975) and found that there has been an increased in the importance of annual report as a source of information. Furthermore, they found that the importance of the balance sheet had extended, and that over the same period the perceived usefulness of the income statement had declined. Anderson and Epstein (1995) argued that in Australia they found that the comprehensive income is more useful in making an investment decision rather than the directors report. In this respect the respondents had also demand for simplification and more explanation of the balance sheet, statement of cash flow, and the income statement. In another study by, Abdelsalam (1990ÂÂ ­) it was highlighted that the comprehensive income and information about the future of the company as well as information about directors was seen to be important part of the annual report. Ba-owaidan (1994) also found the profit and loss account to be the most influential part of the annual report followed by the balance sheet but has also concludes that some respondents faced some problems in understanding the contents of the annual reports. The Kruskal Wallis test revealed that the cash flow section was the only section of the annual report that the user groups have significant differences regarding its value. This is not surprising as the findings reported by Lee and Tweedie (1975), Wilton and Tabb (1978) and Yap (1997) for developed countries disclosed that individual and institutional investors have little interest in the cash flow statement and may not rely upon, as they are not a sophisticated group. In New Zealand, Chang and Most (1985), disclosed that newspapers and magazines were the preferred source of information and the comprehensive income statement was found as the main statement in the annual report for decision making. Moreover, Anderson (1979) and Courtis (1982) also found that the balance sheet and the profit and loss statement were regarded as the two most essential statements for decision-making. In addition, Anderson and Epsteins (1997) study revealed that in Australia, New Zealand and US, the comprehensive income and financial position statement were ranked as the most essential items but the cash flow was less important to New Zealand and Australian investors than to US respondents. Moreover, Stephen L.Buzby carried a research in 1974 on the usefulness of annual reports and his aim was to find the perceptions of professional financial analyst on selected items in the annual reports. To summarize Daniels and Daniels (1991) found that information present in financial statements is important and very useful but not sufficient enough to evaluate the financial condition of a company. USERS OF ACCOUNTS According to IASB, financial information is prepared for users, presuming that they have a reasonable knowledge of business and economic activities and accounting and a willingness to study the information with reasonable diligence. The different users and their needs are identified below: Investors Investors need information to decide whether they should continue to invest in an entity, to assess whether that particular organization will be able to pay out dividends as well as how the enterprise has been managed. The investors require information about profitability, volumes, sales, amounts invested, assets owned, share price and information about competitors. Epstein and Pava (1993) document that individual investors demand for more financial and non financial information in the annual reports. Shareholders Shareholders are the owners of the company. Thus, they have the right to receive dividends from the companys profit. Information in annual reports is very important to shareholders as profit acts as an indicator of the amount of dividends they ought to obtain. According to Cook and Sutton (1995), companies should prepare summary annual reports based on information requirements of shareholders in order to satisfy their needs. Thus, companies should disclose essential piece of information in a clear and understandable format that will enhance the relevance and value of annual reports in communicating company information to shareholders. Lenders and Financial institutions Lenders such as insurance companies, pension funds use FS information to decide the loan amount, the interest rate and security needed for business loan and they should also make sure whether the company would be able to repay back both the principal amounts and the interests payments. The key accounting information for lenders is therefore: Cash flow Investment requirements in business Thus such information required by lenders is available in the annual report. Employees Employees demand annual report for the stability and profitability of the business. They are interested in information about employment prospects, security of their jobs and retirement benefits. Furthermore, Clark and Craig (1991) conclude that relevant information for investors is also relevant for employees. Government The government group makes use of an annual report for tax purposes. The tax authorities such as the Inland Revenue needs information on the profitability of an entity to levy corporation tax and custom and excise make use of information to check VAT returns. Hence tax authorities use FS information as a source for enhancing social welfare by establishing tax policies. Public The public are usually considered as stakeholders and businesses form part of society at large and as a result create much public interest. Marston and Shrives (1991, pp196), found annual report as the main document available for the public thus is being regarded as the main disclosure vehicle. Moreover despite some improvements has taken place in reporting in recent years, the users groups of annual reports wish to have more information than is currently provided (Abu-Nassar and Rutherford, 1996; Hatif and Al-Zubaidi, 2000; Naser and Nuseibeh, 2003). On the other hand, Dye and Bowsher (1987) concluded that most users seek an annual report to include other information that will enhance their understanding. Hay and Antonio (1990) found that users demand for highly detailed disclosures in annual reports. In addition users want information on future prospects, company products, publication of quarterly reports and management audit reports (Anderson 1981). Furthermore Benston (1976) reported that annual report were the least important source of information compared to financial press and newspaper reports. In summary, results from preceding studies shows that users believed that annual reports is the main sources of information; though each section was not considered as of equal significance. The results also disclose a necessity to establish some changes to the annual reporting that allow the information to be more understandable and sufficient for potential users.

In act four of The Crucible, Arthur miller shows the varying views of :: Essay on The Crucible

In act four of The Crucible, Arthur miller shows the varying views of justice of the characters How does Arthur Miller use a range of dramatic techniques in Act 4 to conclude his exploration of the theme of justice? In act four of ‘‘The Crucible’’, Arthur Miller shows a turning point for some of the characters and that they have an unfair and incorrect viewpoint of justice. In order to understand this, we need to look at how harshly John Proctor comes about to be judged by his wife and himself. Another key idea to explore is how Judge Danforth does not seem very fair in making judgements, as he believes he is honest and scrupulous whereas he is a strong believer of theocracy and his view of justice is warped. Another of the writer’s concerns is how a society ensures justice and fairness when it believes that its fundamental beliefs are under attack. John Proctor is at first one of the only characters in Salem who sees the injustices of the court. Due to his ethical and moral beliefs, he believes that by the end, the right thing will come about and justice will be served. Proctor is able to see that Abigail is using her authority to get rid of Elizabeth so she can take her place as his wife. "I'll not give my wife to vengeance." By saving his wife and friends, he himself ends up condemned. He does the right thing and dies for it, and once again, the court failed to recognise the truth because they were relying on their rulings of intangible evidence. By the end, Proctor seems purified as he does what is good even if it is going to kill him. In the film version, an extra scene shows Abigail talking to Proctor while he is imprisoned where she asks him to run away with her. However, by this time it is apparent that his feelings for her have changed and blue lights show this coldness. It becomes obvious that by this time he does not care about Abigail and even hates her. Furthermore, Proctor seems to take on the role of Jesus as he was persecuted and executed in similar ways to him. In addition, just before Proctor was hanged, Elizabeth said to him â€Å"You take my sins upon you† and Jesus took other people’s sins and died for them. These dramatic techniques cause the audience to think of Proctor as a heroic person who has done nothing wrong. Proctor’s pride was the main reason for his death because he felt bad about what he had done with Abigail and then lied to try to save his

Optical Mice :: Free Essay Writer

Optical Mice School of Polytechnic Studies Department of Industrial & Engineering Technology COMPUTER PERIPHERALS A mouse is a device, or computer peripheral, lets a user control a cursor that allows data to be manipulated without having to use complicated keyboard commands. The mouse, though probably named mouse because of its appearance, was originally called an X0Y Position Indicator. Douglas Englebart, who worked for Stanford Research Institute, in 1963, invented the mouse, as we know today. The device didn’t become widely used an appreciated until 1973, when Xerox applied it to their Alto computer system. The mouse was also widely used in Apple computers and is now found on every computer today (Computer Hardware, www.computerhope.com/help/mouse.htm). If you look to the diagram to the right, you will see four parts track an optical-mechanical mouse’s X-Y position movement. When the mouse is moved the ball moves in the direction of the movement. When the roller rotates, light shines through the openings. This light is detected by two light sensors, which send signals to the computer of the movement. The offset of the light that the sensors receive determines the direction of each axis. So that motion is detected, the ball needs traction between the ball and the rollers, which is a major drawback to this design. A pure optical mouse works a little differently. Optical Mice need special grids that the sensor inside of the mice needs to see to negotiate motion. When this kind of mouse moves over this grid light from an LED or laser passes over the grid and the lines seen by the sensor. Optical mice are much more accurate judging motion than the ordinary optical mechanical mouse. One drawback to pure optical mice is that they might run into problems with bright lights (Computer Hardware, www.computerhope.com/help/mouse.htm). Optical mice, technologically more advanced and more accurate than ordinary mice, carry a hi-tech price. The average optical mouse runs from $30 to $100. Since a simpler and cheaper peripherals exist, optical mice aren’t used on a wide variety of systems yet. According to PC Data, no optical mice made it into the top 20 sellers list in any given month (ABCNEWS.com). Recently, though, Microsoft has introduced an optical mouse that can be used without grids on any surface. This new mouse has a camera that can take up to 1,500 images per second and has a high enough resolution to read even fibers in a blank sheet of paper (ABCNEWS.