The dramatic presentation of justice and morality in The Crucible Essay

Sin and Struggle is one of the most common things we can come across in our life. This concept of Sin and Struggle is presented very dramatically in the play of The Crucible. The play describes the fury mass hysteria, which took place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 and shows people’s self-centred attitude. The dictionary definition of sin is any serious offence, as against a religious or moral principle. As The Crucible is set in a very strict Puritan community, anything, which is done as an offence will be regarded as a sin against Christianity. In the play, there is verification that there are struggles within the community and within characters themselves. Examples of these characters are John Proctor. Proctor is unable to agree with Danforth or his inner self and is a character that will go to any extent to prove what he says is right. In the other case, Mary Warren is incapable of standing in opposition to Abigail in the courtroom. The other main sources of dispute are also land, money, and religion. For example, Giles Corey and Thomas Putnam have an argument over private land. In the play of The Crucible, the first sin we come across is dancing. The event occurs when Betty, Abigail, and her friends are dancing and conjuring up spirits in the wood with Tituba. According to Puritan Law, neither children nor anyone are admitted to dance. You can see that in the final court scene. DANFORTH: â€Å"What is this dancing? â€Å"(Act 3) You can see from this that dancing is a forbidden sin. The main event from the damnation is the sin of lechery between John Proctor and Abigail. We come to know this from Abigail and Proctor’s secret meeting. This is also the main sparking event for the witchcraft, which took place. You could say that this sin is the catalyst. The sin of lechery then triggers a lot of resentment between Elizabeth and Abigail. Therefore, many events after this are always to get rid of Elizabeth so she could fulfil her dreams with John Proctor. As this spell casting and witchcraft led to more and more dilemma, false accusations were starting to be made. The main cause of this complication is Betty Parris. She is in some sort of coma and that is when Parris calls for Reverend hale who is intellectual in witchcraft. Parris was not popular member in the community and he is a severe man who said that his ministry is much more important than his daughter’s life. Now that Abigail does not want the blame, false accusations were made. This is an advantage for Parris because this meant he was able to defend himself from other reverend’s fallacious talk. E

Research Methods Db 2

Group Discussion Board Forum 1 – Part 1 1. Ch. 1 Q. 8  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ As area sales manager for a company manufacturing and marketing outboard engines, you have been assigned the responsibility of conducting a research study to estimate the sales potential of your products in the domestic (U. S. or Canadian) market. Discuss key issues and concerns arising from the fact that you, the manager, are also the researcher. A very important aspect of good research is for the researcher’s experience to be reflected (P. 17). The research has a greater chance of being successful if the researcher is experienced.Thus, as a manager the research process might be bias to the manager’s perception of the problem compared to the research problem. The inexperience as researcher will make it difficult to perform both roles effectively. Additionally, the manager might only analyze secondary data to obtain answers and rely on it for decision making. 2. Ch. 1 Q. 10- Apply the principles in Exhibit 1-4 to the research scenario in question 8. In order to apply the principles from Exhibit 1-4 to the scenario in question 8 we need to use the scientific method. a.Purpose clearly defined: The research study must present an estimate of the sales and marketing of the outbound engines in the market for the U. S and Canada. b. Research process detailed: First, the researcher presents a proposal and budget for approval. Then, the researcher presents weekly reports related to the progress of the research and also provides an estimated timeframe for completion. c. Research design thoroughly planned: The procedures are outlined. Once primary and secondary data is collected it needs to be analyzed for interpretation. d.Limitations frankly revealed: interpreted data about the size market for the outbound engine is compared to the desired procedure. e. Management Decision: The manager is presented with the information for decision making, after it has been analyzed, interpreted and c ompared. 3. Ch. 3 Q. 6- You observe the following condition: â€Å"Our female sales representatives have lower customer defections than do our male sales representatives. † a. Propose the concepts and constructs you might use to study this phenomenon. My proposal for the concepts is female sales representatives and male sales representatives.I would use customer defection as the construct for the research. b. How might any of these concepts and/or constructs be related to explanatory hypotheses? According to explanatory (casual) hypotheses, the independent variable needs to be the reason for the existence of the dependent variable (p73). Therefore, the skills of both male and female representatives are taken under consideration in this scenario. An example of this is that female sales representatives are naturally more skillful with establishing and maintaining relationships (IV), allowing them to have this advantage and have less customer defection (DV). . Ch. 3 Q. 8-  Ide ntify and classify all the variables in the Army’s dud shell research. I identify three variables (p. 62 & 67): 1. The dud shell as the independent variable because it can be manipulated 2. The exploding shell as the independent variable because is the one being monitored and 3. The people coming into contact with it as intervening variables because civilians were cracking the bombs open to obtain copper. 5. Ch. 4 Q. 4-  Confronted by low productivity, the president of Oaks International, Inc. asks a research company to study job satisfaction in the corporation.What are some of the important reasons that this research project may fail to make an adequate contribution to the solution of management problems? The low productivity in Oaks International Inc. presents a management dilemma to the president. The president has related this issue to the job satisfaction of the employees. Therefore, the management has decided to study job satisfaction only as the cause of low producti vity. Even though, this in fact has some influence in the productivity of employees, the study is already bias because all other factors of influence are being excluded.There may be other factors to consider that may be affecting low productivity such as machinery and equipment, technology, management, etc. This will eventually become a waste of time and resources if the results prove that job satisfaction is not the main cause of low productivity. Consequently, the management dilemma will not be resolved and more time and resources will need to be invested to find the real cause. 6. Ch. 4 Q. 5-  Based on an analysis of the last six months’ sales, your boss notices that sales of beef products are declining in your chain’s restaurants.As beef entree sales decline, so do profits. Fearing beef sales have declined due to several newspaper stories reporting E. coli contamination discovered at area grocery stores, he suggests a survey of area restaurants to see if the situ ation is pervasive. a. What do you think of this research suggestion? I think the research suggestion will be beneficial because it will reveal if the decline in consumption of beef as an entree is in fact caused by the concern of the E. coli. This survey will also allow comparing the competition and discovering their strategies or suggestions on how to survive this crisis.I also believe that the restaurant can introduce some new entrees that contain fish, chicken and even duck as an alternative to increase their sales and profits. b. How, if at all, could you improve on your boss’s formulation of the research question? I believe the study should include both external and internal factor. The survey to competitors would be considered an external factor, but including the customers, the preparation and presentation of their beef entrees can be considered internal factors.It has already been established that the people are already alarmed due to the several stories in the newsp apers about the E. coli. However, the restaurant can ask these frequent customers about their perception about the incident and even accept suggestions from them. This will allow the restaurant to get a clearer and direct answer to their dilemma. 7. Ch. 5 Q. 12- Develop the management-research question hierarchy (Exhibits 5-6 and 5-8), citing management dilemma, management question, and research question(s) for each of the following: a. he president of a home health care services firm. MD: The president receives many complains about the quality of health care services. MQ: What can be done in improve the quality of the health care services? RQ: Why are the services provided considered poor? In which specific areas of services do we get the most complains? What can be implemented or change to improve the services provided? b. The vice president of investor relations for an auto manufacturer. MD: The vice president experiences low productivity. MQ: What is causing low productivity?RQ: When did the company start to experience low productivity? Do we have up to date technology for production? How are the job conditions perceived by employees? c. The retail advertising manager of a major metropolitan newspaper. MD: The metropolitan newspaper is experiencing a decline in advertising sales. MQ: What can be done to increase the sales? RQ: Should the prices/rates for advertising in our newspaper be evaluated? When did sales start to decline? What methods can be implemented to increase the sales and attract more customers to advertise with newspaper? . The chief of police in a major city. MD: The chief of police has received several reports of increased crime in the city. MQ: What can be done to reduce crime in the city? RQ: Where are the majority of reports coming from? Which areas are being more affected? What group of people is the one being affected the most? What types of crimes have increased? How can we prepare and equip police officers to monitor these crimes an d areas? This is to be completed by 11:59 p. m. (ET) on Sunday.

Intro to Business Essay

FRANCHISE Case Study Questions: 1) Discuss the benefits and drawbacks of opening a franchise. (6 marks) The benefits of opening a franchise is that the franchisor would provide support, assistance and training; they would have a recognized name and products and; opening the franchise would be a reduced risk to the franchisee. The drawbacks of opening a franchise is that there would be restrictions on operations as the franchisee would have to follow the franchisor’s rules and regulations; must pay franchise fees and the percentage of sales to the franchisor and; there would be a loss of management control, prices, wages or even innovation. 2) Evaluate the benefits and drawbacks of running this franchise with a partner rather than doing it on your own. The benefits/advantages of running this franchise with a partner would be; It would be fairly easy to start the partnership with an agreement between two people; It would be easier to raise more capital than a sole proprietorship; We would have greater skills and expertise with two of us as partners and; flexibility to support and help each other. The drawbacks/disadvantages of running this franchise with a partner would be; there could be conflicts or disagreements with a partner; we would be sharing the profits and; there could be difficulty in leaving or ending the partnership. 3) List 6 key characteristics that you and your partner will have to display in order to be successful in this entrepreneur endeavor. The key characteristics that my partner and I would have to display to be successful in our entrepreneur endeavor would be, to be: Ambitious, committed, self-confident, energetic, passionate, creative, passionate, determined and risk takers. 4) List 6 stakeholders and discuss how they are impacted by your business. 1.Employees – my business would create jobs Customers – my business would be a convenience of another franchise available Suppliers – my business would give suppliers more business Government – my business would pay taxes (business and employee, etc) to help the economy Local Community – to create a better local economy of having a business Environment – to be environmentally responsible by using reduce, reuse and recycle FRANCHISE Case Study 1: Intro to Business 5) Using your knowledge of demand and supply theory. Draw a market for Dominos Pizza with demand (BLUE Line) and supply (RED Line) equilibrium assuming the average price customer pays for a Domino’s pizza is $9 and sells an average 500 units a week. (2 marks) Dominos Pizza – Supply and Demand in One (1) Week UNITS The pizza market is highly competitive and competitors prices impact and demand. On your diagram, draw the shift in demand that will result from new low price $5 hot and ready pizza offer by its competitor Little Caesar’s. Discuss the impact on Domino’s (in terms of its price and profits) . (2 marks) Due to the low price of the competition (Little Caesars) means Dominos pizza’s Demand Curve will DECREASE (GREEN Line) which means the profits will decrease along with the demand for Domino’s higher priced pizza. 6) As a local franchise, using your knowledge of the promotional mix, describe 4 tactics/strategies from the promotional mix that you could use to promote your local store. Be sure to explain how it will increase sales. (4 marks) 1. Personal Selling – to use a sales person to assist customers in making a purchase 2. Advertising – using different media channels to build awareness of the product 3. Public Relations – to create a good image of the company & product through publicity and sponsorship 4. Sales Promotion – to stimulate sales through coupons, discounts, contests & special offers 7) Make 2 recommendations to Domino’s Pizza Corporate on how the marketing mix could be changed in order to meet customer needs and continue to grow the company. (4 marks) The Marketing Mix is a blend of product offering, pricing, promotional methods and distribution system that brings a specific group of consumers superior value. My two recommendations to Dominos Pizza Corporate would be concerning the ‘Product’ to make smaller personal sized pizzas and my second recommendation would concern ‘Pricing’ to have a special introductory low price to attract customers, to the new personal sized pizza. My recommendations would meet the more ‘healthy = smaller sized portions’ of food to the healthy minded customer – and this would help with the growth of the company.

IT Project Management Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

IT Project Management - Coursework Example The problems that develop through this acknowledges more in regard to the protection of children. Various technological innovation approaches help us understand the existing interactions between the information systems, and those people in operating them. The purpose of understanding these interactions is to show how the various approaches contribute to an evidence base, and future development of the information systems. This will enable users to enhance their abilities, and also in discovering their needs. The increased approaches to growth in management of the risks accrued to children are apparent in the western societies. The attempts to enhance safety, through formalizing organizational methods and implementation of the information systems, may incorporate opposing views. The analysis of the failings in organization settings should aim in the prevailing information system weaknesses that increase the probability of the risk of failing. Citing a report finding from a two year ESR C funded study involving ethnography, and looking at the local adaptations of practice from the performance context of the front door modernization, we give attention to the short cuts that the recent configuration tends to apply, using the increasingly audit needs, and timescales. Better and new methods of governance can elaborately work as an efficient player in terms of managing the failings. However, the design of a better system requires to be incorporated with the requirements of the practitioners who have a wide understanding of their working environments. The state can develop a much broader view of concern about how the risk constitutes to children and function the people equipped with knowledge should do in relation to this. This means the governance aims in safeguarding rather than child protection. Social technical systems show how organization development develops work design that recognizes the relationship that exists between technology, and people in their places of work. It shows the interaction between a man’s behavior and the complex infrastructures. It focuses on the methodology and related skills. Social technical is a source of optimization which shares emphasis on obtaining an excellent technical performance. They show the relationship of the social technical design principles and their essentiality. They also focus on managing information systems in terms of effectiveness, management, and also in business ways. It shows the importance of the general management in designing and processing information systems, and hence achieving a successful design and promoting the innovations hence meeting the organization objectives. The technologies develop within the social world and experts in the information technology experts. A relevant principle of the social technical interaction is within the philosophical values and premises. A significant section of this developed and efficient teamwork process is participation. Participation involve s co-ordination of the process that exists between experts and people. The existing interaction of the two parties involved leads to an innovation of an effective organization design. In the process of participation, all the parties involved should be considered and respected. This is because they all have a contribution to the improvement and to the success of the project. Another part is design of the social technical and is inseparable from its result. The design process further divides into

Bitcoin - IT professional and society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Bitcoin - IT professional and society - Essay Example It is supported by the network and created as a part of reward for any work to be processed. Furthermore, it is created by users that can offer their computing power for record and verify payments. Most of the transaction and buying are done by the help of credit or debit card. The use of credit card via online is insecure and never supposed to be used by the online users. The transaction done through Bitcoin does not require providing any secret information. People who are the victim of using credit card for online transaction are trying to use Bitcoin as a solution. Bitcoin is safe and required two keys such as private one and public key. Private Key is secret and is not revealed to any users. Public key is the actual Bitcoin address. One of the biggest retailers, Overstick.com is accepting the use of Bitcoin. Lot of major organizations and companies are taking the notice of making transaction secure and trying to implement the use of digital currency, Bitcoin. The introduction of Bitcoin has been one of the debated topics and buzzwords around the world. The effect of Bitcoin on Ecommerce is immense. It is mainly due to the fact that, there are no transaction fees for consumers on the currency. Moreover, the implementation of Bitcoin is secure and low transaction fess required. In addition, transaction can be possible in areas where it is not possible for any option of payment. The potential growth of implementation of Bitcoin is huge and can revolutionize the use of online transaction. The introduction of Satoshi Nakamoto has been for many years now. But it is finally taking its prime position to be on the main stage. The revolutionary currency idea has been a late arrival in the United States. Many other countries have utilized the use of Bitcoin as a potential future payment system. A vacation home can be bought with the help of Bitcoin in Argentina. Dentists in Finland have approved the use of

Buddhist and christian view on evolution Research Paper

Buddhist and christian view on evolution - Research Paper Example Eventually, evolution of organisms over time leads to presence of a stronger and a more complex species. Darwin’s theory of evolution erupted a great deal of debate as it challenged traditional religious explanations of the world and nature (Boeree 26). His work encouraged further research into the concept of evolution and other unsolved mysteries of life at the time. Therefore, it is important to explore the evolutionary theory from various religious perspectives in order to understand how the theory fits in. this leads to extensive knowledge on the various impact evolution has on world religions and what the reactions are. As such, this paper focuses on the Christian and Buddhist view of the evolution theory. It is a popular belief in the world that man and all of nature was created by a sacred deity for whom all mankind ought to be grateful. This is evidenced in Christianity with enormous reference to the story of creation in the Bible. Everything in the world was created b y God and is still under control of God. However, the evolution theory serves to upset this belief at the expense of most believers who find it imperative to defend and preserve it. Among Christian scholars and believers, the evolution theory denies the role by God as the sole creator of the world while most scientific research ignores divine activity. This is achieved by the proposition of antitheist theories by renowned naturalists who suggest the existence of the world is due to a less explored scientific phenomenon. As such, Christians have always voiced their concerns on scientific theories that contradict the creation theory. The clergy and the Christian community have always united to call for the rejection of the naturalism theories based on philosophical, theological, and historical grounds. As a result, Christianity and the scientific community have always being at loggerheads with each other. To them, it is a violation of what is divine and contrary to the widespread beli ef of a powerful God who is capable of doing anything including creating. Universally, Christians fail to understand how God’s involvement in creation is recognized in events that lack scientific explanations while His overall role is ignored. This illustrates how meaningful divine action is shelved only do be adopted where gaps in human knowledge prevail and a scientific description is lacking (Miller 8). As such, naturalistic proposals such as the evolution theory serve to belittle divine action thus fuel conflict between science and the Christian faith. For instance, Christians and scientists differ on the role of pain, suffering, and death in the world. Among Christians, it is widely accepted that God exercises His sovereignty, transcendence, and providence with regard to natural evil that creates pain and suffering. On the hand, the scientific community readily accepts the theory of natural selection in which Darwin believed that all species had a common ancestor, but ev olved to survive due to the process of natural selection. Organisms that fail to adapt to their habitat do not prevail under the new environmental conditions and hence, cannot survive, which explains natural selection where only the strong and mighty thrive effectively. While the scriptures present the evidence of God’

Film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 3

Film - Essay Example The essay will summarize the parallels drawn in the film and the metaphoric representation of all the political processes and in conclusion, the paper will discuss how the movie succeeded in emulating and approximating the real-world sentiments. One of the greatest themes discussed in the movie was the theme of democracy. This is not only because Rome was the first empire to implement the basic principles of democracy, but at the time the film was made, the United States was already tackling a string political scandals that the then-President Clinton got involved in and George Bush was about to assume the office soon. The former concept is shown in a very intense scene after Maximus wins a battle in an epic showdown, using his military expertise which grabs Commodus’ attention. The crowd loves Maximus to the point that when he publicly threatens Commodus, he is able to go unharmed and is allowed to live because the public favors him greatly. The aforementioned was not only intense because of the great acting by both Russell Crowe and Joaquin Phoenix, but because of the symbolic value of this entire scene. The gladiatorial games were vastly meant for public entertainment and therefore they had ultimate say in helping the winner achieve glory and position in the society, even though the individual in the arena is more or less of a slave. When Commodus is confronted by Maximus, he is forced to give him the thumbs up as the crowd fervently hailed Maximus and roared his name. The helplessness of their so-called Emperor to public demand was ostensible and such is the case in a democratic system of government, whereas the government caters to serve the public and keep them happy to ensure they do not rebel against them. This is the reason, why Commodus had to put forth a charming and amiable front despite his conniving

The RNL company HR management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The RNL company HR management - Essay Example At the same time as this form, the employee's boss writes a review of the employee as well. When all this is complete the employee meets with his or her boss to discuss what is on both of the forms. This is not how RNL has always done things. They asked a consultant how they could improve their company's performance and the consultant suggested this kind of formal review. The results have been good from the change. RNL now is more profitable and efficient and gets much better communication from its employees about how things are done as well as how they complete their own job. Although these reviews are improving the situation, the managers of the company still don't like the fact that when they get the form it is not labeled with a person's name. This is because occasionally the things that the employees write are just mean and don't really serve any sort of constructive purpose to make the company better. If this form was not filled out anonymously the managers think this would sto p because people would not want their names associated with that and so they would only write actual issues down. The feedback that they receive is also usually not specific enough to be really useful. Management would like this to change as well maybe by adding more specific questions on the form.

International corporate governance Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

International corporate governance - Coursework Example he corporate sector of Australia has previously been regarded to hold the same core features as those of the United States and the United Kingdom.7 These issues will be discussed thoroughly in the later sections. The goal of corporate governance, which offers guidelines to direct the decisions and responses of the board and management, has been widely agreed to be concentrated on ‘enhancing corporate profit and shareholder gain.’8 Quite frequently this is understood as ‘maximising shareholder value,’9 and quite frequently as well can be understood as allowing profit and advantage today to the detriment of profit and advantage in the future. Indeed, temporary shareholder profit and corporate advantage is simpler to determine and easier to integrate in corporate decision making and could even be reasonable to quick fix or temporary shareholders.10 However, an exclusively short-range focus may result in inadequate ventures in training and innovation, for instan ce, so that potential competitive advantage is risked, to the absolute loss of the shareholders.11 Due to these grounds, defining the corporate objective only in relation to ‘maximising shareholder value’ is not enough. A more adequate way to define the corporate objective is ‘maximising wealth creating potential.’12 This is tantamount to sustaining the company for the gain of every shareholder by pursuing actual long-term economic growth. Theorising Corporate Governance Two major features of present-day companies are the distribution of equity among shareholders, and the separation of control and ownership.13 The concept of agency cost is defined by Jensen and Meckling (1976) as the ‘sum of (1) the monitoring expenditures of the principal, (2) the bonding expenditures by the agent, and (3) the residual loss.’14 Agency costs, more particularly, may comprise the direct losses of advantages or assets and/or expropriation because of managerial ine ptitude or lenience.15 Management, as argued by Shleifer and Vishny (1997), can carry out asset expropriation in a variety of ways, such as directly pilfering wealth from the accounts of the company, transferring the assets of the company through ‘subjective’ pricing to their own companies, or trading valuable company resources to their own companies at low prices.16 However, management lenience could be the more unfavourable kind of agency cost. Management may boost their purchase of luxuries at the expense of the company, or raise their position by enlarging the company’s size even though the expansion is not justified on competence bases.17 The direct expropriation of a company’

Plasma Membrane and Diffusion Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Plasma Membrane and Diffusion - Case Study Example Diffusion is a means of active transport which results from thermal, random movement of molecular particles from regions of high concentrations to regions of low concentrations(3). There are six factors which influence diffusions in fluids, these includes: Concentration gradient, size of the molecules involved, Distance travelled by the molecules, Temperature of the medium and the molecules, Solubility of the molecule and the surface area of the plasma membrane in which the molecule can carry out its activities, Hence the rate of diffusion is given by the ratio of the product of solubility, gradient, temperature, surface and the product of distance the molecules moves by the square root of the mass of the molecule. Diffusion can be classified into three categories or types, which include; simple diffusion, channel diffusion and facilitated diffusion(3).Simple diffusion occurs when micro or small non-polar molecular particles go through a fluid (liquid or gases) mostly liquids through a lipid bilayer. This diffusion type is characterized by hydrophobic molecules moving to hydrophobic regions without being rejected(3). Hydrophilic molecules do not participate in simple diffusion because they would be rejected when they move into the hydrophobic region of the membrane.Channel diffusion is a type of passive transport which involves channel proteins in which the molecule moves through an open, aqueous pore and it can be regulated. Charged particles and ions can pass through the pore (1).

Marketing home work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Marketing home work - Essay Example In a highly competitive environment of cut throat business, creating and keeping customers therefore becomes vital ingredient of the market strategy of the firms. Saxonville Sausages is a prime example of how brand strategies were used to position their product in the market. They had targeted family and homemakers who relished home cooked food. The advertisements showed women using Saxonville sausages to make different dishes and enjoying it with family. Thus it was able to create a niche market position. Through right positioning, it was able to revive its declining profits (Mullins & Walker, 2009). Mountain Man brewery case, on the other hand emphasizes the need for new product to meet the challenges of time. Mountain Man is established brand of lager with regional specialty that primarily caters to the niche market of coal miners. Its brand equity is associated with long history of coal mining and has a loyal customer base which now is elderly populace. The new light beer would meet the tastes of young generation but fears that it could threaten its brand equity. But this is a risk which the firm must take to maintain its competitive advantage in the industry. Market research is intrinsic part of business strategy that is used to identify and analyze changing customers’ requirements which the firms meet through new product development or value addition (Vandermerwe, 2004; McKenna, 1991). The buying behavior and surveys are important tools for qualitative and quantitative analysis that help deintify the changing trend of the consumers. For example, qualitative study would show that coke is a favorite drink but diet coke is preferred more because of its low calorie. On the other hand, quantitative research would indicate that coke is more popular than Pepsi. Various firms like Redbull, Reebok, Nike have used market research to identify their requirement that was used for new product

Ict implementation Essay Example for Free

Ict implementation Essay Once the system is created, it is important to test the system, this is so I can discover any faults within the system and to make sure that I have met the end user requirements The system will be tested with: normal data ( data which is the normal to test) Extreme data ( data which is exceeded test range) Erroneous data( data which is totally wrong to test) Macro testing Formula testing- formulas must be correct and linked to specific cells VLookups- must be correct and linked to specific cells the lay out of the test pan will be in table format , illustrating each test as fully as possible at this stage . the plan will include the following column heading:# test no . test criteria what is to be tested test purpose why is it been tested data what data is used to [perform the test ie. Normal extreme expected outcomes actual outcome i will produce evidence of my test results by illustrating each one with screen shots and all will be cross referenced and annotated properly this will be shown after the implementation is done . Testing User interface Test number Test criteria Test purpose Expected outcome Actual outcome 1 Click the command button stock list. To check the stock table opens The overall stock sheet should open The stock list worksheet opens 2 Click the command button customer details To check the customer details opens The overall customer details should open The customer details worksheet opens 3 Click the command button Build your own pc To check the Build your own pc opens The overall Build your own pc should open The Build your own pc worksheet opens 4 Click the command button Invoice To check the Invoice opens The overall Invoice should open The Invoice worksheet opens 5. Click the command button Exit To check the Exit worksheet opens The overall Exit worksheet should open The worksheet exits and saves as requested 6 Click the command button HELP To check the help button /Vba opens The help button should open with a message box The help button opens showing a message box Screen shots of Testing : Test number 1 The user clicks on the stock list button and the stock list worksheet opens: As you can see below the worksheet stock list opens and works Test number 2 The user clicks on the stock list button and the customer details worksheet opens: As you can see below the worksheet customer details opens and works Test number 3 The user clicks on the stock list button and the Build your own pc worksheet opens: As you can see below the worksheet customer details opens and works Test number 4 The user clicks on the stock list button and the invoice worksheet opens: As you can see below the worksheet invoice opens and works: Test number 5 1) the user clicks on the command button exit below is what message box appears this give us 2 options. If I dint want to exit excel is would click no and the message box that will appear is : If I clicked yes my work would get saved and it would exit my worksheet . Test number 6 The user clicks on the command button (a) help a message box should appear as shown below (a) As you can see below the help button opens . Test number 7 The user clicks on the homage button (1) and the homepage worksheet will open (2) (1)Homepage button (2) as you can see below the homepage opens once the homage navigation button has been clicked Test number 8 The user clicks on the worksheet button invoice (1)as shown below and the following will show(2) (1)user clicks the button. (2) As you can see below the invoice worksheet opens Test number 9 Stock list worksheet Test number Test criteria Test purpose Expected outcome Actual outcome 7 Click the command button home page To check the if the button goes to the home page The homepage should open The homepage worksheet should open 8 Click the command button invoice To check the Invoice opens The overall Invoice should open The Invoice worksheet opens 9 Click the command button hide grid lines To check if the gridlines disappear when clicked The grid lines should disappear. The grid lines did not show on the worksheet 10 Click the command button show grid lines To check the button shows the gridlines The gridlines should show The gridlines show on the worksheet 11 Click the command button print To check the button prints the worksheet out The stockist worksheet should print out The worksheet printed out . Customer details(worksheet) Test number Test criteria Test purpose Expected outcome Actual outcome 11 12 13 14 15 Design your own pc (worksheet) Test number Test criteria Test purpose Expected outcome Actual outcome. 16 17 18 19 20 Invoice(worksheet) Test number Test criteria Test purpose Expected outcome Actual outcome 21 22 23 24 25 Implementation User interface To set up my new computer system I need to use a spreadsheet software package and so I choose to use Microsoft excel. I used this software as it is simple to use for setting up and provides the most commonly used spreadsheet package . This means that the most of the people who are able to use the pc and use Excel , and I know that the employees at PC systems who will be using the system can use the software. I collected the data for the spreadsheet by contacting Pc Systems contacting office , materials and extra and for the pc parts and other information I used from the PC Systems website. How to record the macros on the user interface and all pages Firstly I used clip are as shown below to get the pictures for my user interface: Below is how I opened the clipart menu Once the clip are menu is opened I searched for the following items for the pictures to come up that I used for my interface clip art menu The following clip art images I used for my interface as shown below. MACROS Once the pictures are in place I now can record the macros I need to navigate around the spreadsheet as shown below . Step 1 : Firstly I needed to click on tools then macro and then record new macro as shown below Step 2 Then I give a name for my macro . eg macro 1 then press OK Step 3 Now you will see a little play and pause button icon as shown below Step 4 Now I have to select the destination of the macro as you can see at the bottom of the worksheets there are named worksheets eg when I made the customer details macro I will do the following as shown below. Once customer details has been selected I then clicked stop on the macro button as shown below . Step 5 once I had clicked stop I then clicked on the picture which was relevant to customer details as shown below then right click on the picture and select assign macro as shown here Step 6 Then once it has opened now I will select the macro I have just made to link it with the button as show below Once macro 1 is found then click OK and the macro works and it links to the customer worksheet. I did this to all my macros which are link on the user inter face as shown below I used the same method on all 4 of them. I also have navigation buttons on the other worksheets to return to the user interface so the user can move around my spreadsheet quick and efficiently. VBA code : Vba code is useful for producing message boxes , and are easy to do as shown below and again they are linked to my picture Help I opened vba up as by pressing ALT, F11 together and this screen should appear: (1) (2) entering the code as shown below into vba . I have included the following message for the user so if they have problems with the software or with any formulas or buttons they can contact the helpline so I can help them and guide them in the write direction . Now right click on the picture as I said before and assign macro and then choose helpline and once it is done the outcome is Now I am going to make an exit button using vba so the user can exit excel immediately and saving there work at the same time . using this button below . this method is used again by right clicking on the picture and assigning the macro as shown below : Then open up VBA as shown above. Now enter the code as shown below Once this coded is entered I linked it with my button as shown in the other example and the out come should be as shown below .. first click on the exit icon then this message box will appear If no then If yes then application quits successfully. Named ranges Once I have entered the stock information into my spreadsheet I need to name the ranges to use them in a v look up . to make it easier for the use to make calculations and search for the criteria needed to run the system correctly Step 1 I highlighted customer details as shown below Then I named the highlighted items customerddd as shown below using the toolbar as shown below :then I pressed enter so that it confirms that the name has been changed and is saved . I used this method to name all of my ranges and named them appropriately. To show all of the named ranges I did the following InserName define Then this toolbox opens showing all the named ranges and the formulas in the specific range as shown below . here you can add names and delete them . V-look ups Combo boxes A combo box sometimes called a drop down box is a list of items from which you can choose one item of data. To open the combo box menu I needed to right click on the mouse and select forms as shown below : Once I have clicked on the forms the menu below opened : As shown above I then selected the combo box item, then I drew the combo box in the correct column to make it look professional as shown below . Once I drew the combo boxes they need to be linked to a Vlookup and I need to format the control to link with the specific sell eg, product number as shown below(2) (1) (2) First I had to right click on the combo box and select the format control as shown below ` Spinners A spinner button enables you to increase or decrease the value of a number in a cell by clicking the control. firstly I right clicked on the excel tool bar and selected forms as shown below . Then I selected the spinner from this menu choice as shown below . Then I drew the spinner on my spreadsheet as shown below : Then I needed to format the spinner to a specific cell to make calculations as shown below . i firstly right clicked on the spinner and the menu below appeared I then selected format control as shown below and the following message box appeared . Evaluation In my evaluation I will first of all consider each of the end user requirements stated in the specification in turn and my objectives , and evaluate the success of below are my general objectives. Start up screen and Homepage buttons and links to all the pages back and forth . I have met this objective as My spreadsheet has a start up screen and various buttons which were requested by the user so the user can move around the spreadsheet efficiently and are able to open and close worksheets also there are 2 other buttons which I used vb code so if the user gets stuck or damages the spreadsheet they contact the help line also there is a save and exit button which will make a back up of the work for future reference and a print button eg. For the output of the invoice as needed which will save a lot of time compared to the old system where everything is done by paper and when a record needs to be found it took a long time and even got lost on the other hand the spreadsheet saves records and time and is much more reliable and efficient compared to the old system Various work sheets such as , hardware sheet ,invoice sheet etc I have met this objective as there are 4 separate work sheets to separate the collection of data (stock) and the output(invoice) 4 separate sheets helps the user move around the interface smoothly as he can open and close the preferred work sheet as needed. Automatically store customer details and what they have bought. Once item is bought it is taken away from the stock. Protect the work sheet so no formulas can be altered by the user . Use formulas to calculate total cost and vat etc Labels to help the customer when moving on to a button option boxes to let the user choose the best product eg memory for them Limitations In the system there are various limitations I have recognised. In one of my validations it wasnt accurate as when I typed in incorrect data the error message wasnt displayed .this would then create inaccurate data as the user wouldnt be aware of there mistakes Improvements In the system there are various improvements that can be made to improve the overall system Also to improve my system I would create a separate spreadsheet that contains each customers details of the products they have previously bought and what they have ordered so the end user knows what the existing customers have bought so the user can deciide to give discount for spending so much money etc valuable customer. End user comments. I arranged a meeting with mr Anderson who will be using the system to see how he feels about It and helps reduce work load that he originally had to do . I first of all gave the end user a couple of days to familiarise to the new system . Here are the end user comments :   The deign is practical and doesnt irate the eyes the colour is restful and doesnt distract the users attention .   Navigation is easy , as is adding and deleting information   Alternating through the worksheets are very easy   The out out of the system (the invoice) are very organise and very consistant. The macros , formulas and v look ups help reduce lots of manual imput which saves time .   There are few errors made as validation used on different data helps keep data accurate and up to date My overall comments I think my design is reliable and easy to use , there are only a few things that I can change and they are mentioned in my improvements , I think I have reduced massed amounts of user input compared to the paper work what they had to do before which took allot of time and effort , also the system looks professional and is very efficient and is very user friendly. User guide Contents page Description Page Introduction / Installing / Opening the system 1 Functions of the user interface Customer sheet Entering customer details Deleting customer details Introduction Welcome to the Invoicing System. This system has been created so that you can create an invoice in a seconds compared to the paper work that you used to do. Installation The system works directly off the USB memory stick, or alternatively you can copy it to the computer and run it from your computer. Simply press ctrl c on the Invoicing System file, and then press ctrl v in on the hardrive or in my documents on your computer Opening the spreadsheet system   Insert the USB stick.   Next, click on My Computer Next, open the memory stick (a). If the logo is not there then wait for a couple of minutes as computer may be trying to detect the key or press F5 to refresh the page to help the computer detect the inputted device . then click on the invoice system (b) and open the file. (A) (b) Once the system has been opened the following pop up will appear about the security of the spreadsheet on the screen as shown below If this is presented then simply click on Enable Macros. This will activate the buttons in your spreadsheet . but if you click disable the spreadsheet will open but the macro buttons will not work which will effect the spreadsheets efficiency (C)The screen below will be presented once the spreadsheet has opened below : User interface. The user interface is the heart of the system which allows you to access the invoice system, and to access the stock list and access the customers list and allow users to choose what they would like to buy. To do this, simply click on the buttons at the top of the screen. These buttons are on all sheets, in the same place and with the same names, they will all open their appropriate areas when you click on them and do the tasks the same . Customers To enter the customers details into the system, you will first need to select the button from any area. This will open up the customers sheet which should look something like the one below.

The Rise Of Green Vehicles Marketing Essay

The Rise Of Green Vehicles Marketing Essay Introduction A green vehicle is a motor vehicle that has less dangerous and less deadly effects to the environment than any regular gasoline or diesel powered vehicles. The major inspiration of the development of alternative fuels and green engineering are to reduce the harmful environmental impacts and to create the mentality of reducing dependency to oil. Based on what customers majority demand in automobile industry: low fuel consumption, low cost, low noise pollution, state-of-the-art technology, and environmentally friendly, manufactures are significantly are transforming their technology to the green vehicle technology. Green vehicles are powered by alternative fuels and include hybrids, electric cars, ethanol, hydrogen cars, natural gas, plug-in hybrids, biodiesel, and air powered vehicles. Latest trend of the green vehicles popularity was significantly caused by the rise of oil prices. People are trying to find other ways to save their money from purchasing gas for their gas/diesel powere d cars. Tax saving also contributes to the rise of green vehicles popularity in various countries such as United States and European Union. According to IRS website, The Energy Policy Act of 2005 replaced the clean-fuel burning deduction with a tax credit. A tax credit is subtracted directly from the total amount of federal tax owed, thus reducing or even eliminating the taxpayers tax obligation. The tax credit for hybrid vehicles applies to vehicles purchased or placed in service on or after January 1, 2006 (www.irs.gov). This paper will answer several questions that people might be curios about. First, I will discuss the causes of the booming market of green vehicles in the last decade. Secondly, I will discuss the controversies of GMs electric vehicle EV1 and its relation to the conspiracy theories with Oil Company. Background As mentioned before, green vehicles include hybrids, electric cars, ethanol, hydrogen cars, natural gas, plug-in hybrids, biodiesel, and air powered vehicles. Hybrids combine two or more different propulsion systems, typically a gasoline engine and one or more electric drive motors. Most hybrids on the road today compliment their gas engines by charging a battery when breaking. Engines running on diesel or other alternative fuels can also be used in hybrids. A hybrid drive is fully scalable, which means the drive can be used to power everything from small commuter cars to large buses and even locomotives. Hybrids get more MPG or miles per gallon than most non-hybrids, and usually have very low tailpipe emissions (greencar.com). Electric cars produce zero localized emissions since theyre propelled by electric motors that run on batteries charged at home, or special electric vehicle charging stations. Electric cars are extremely efficient and run for pennies per mile, much cheaper than any other alternative fuel. Ethanol (ethyl alcohol) is the same type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages. As a fuel, ethanol can be used in more than 30 flex fuel vehicle models that have been designed to run on alcohol, gasoline, or any combination of the two fuels from the same tank. Most ethanol today is produced from corn or sugar cane, although this will change as cheaper cellulosic ethanol made from fast growing woody grasses and other biomass becomes a reality. Hydrogen cars perhaps the cleanest of all alternative fuels, burning with nearly zero emissions in an internal combustion engine and with emissions of only water vapor and heat in an electro-mechanical fuel cell. Natural gas, the cleanest-burning fossil fuel, is being used by an increasing number of medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles like refuse trucks and delivery vans. Natural gas is stored and used in its liquefied or compressed states. It is most commonly abbreviated as LNG for Liquefied Natural Gas, a nd CNG for Compressed Natural Gas. While a variety of light-duty natural gas cars were once available, the only factory-produced natural gas car made today in the U.S. is Hondas Civic GX. Plug-in hybrids boast great potential for improving fuel economy. Plug in hybrid technology allows gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles to be recharged from the grid and run many miles on battery power alone. A gas engine provides additional driving range as needed after the battery power is gone. Plug in hybrids may never need to run on anything but electricity for shorter commutes. The combination of gas and electric driving technologies can already achieve up to 150 mpg. Biodiesel is a renewable alternative fuel made from various sources ranging from waste vegetable oil to soybeans. It can often be used seamlessly in diesel engines of all kinds. Biodiesel is a cleaner fuel than standard petroleum diesel. Since it can be produced locally, biodiesel has the potential to decrease our dependence on for eign countries for oil, and enhance local economies where biodiesel production is taking place. Air powered cars are relatively new to the green car scene. Compressed air is currently being explored as a viable alternative fuel to efficiently power car engines with little or no environmental impact (greencar.com). Going back to the history of green vehicles, they have been around for around almost 120 years. Jake Richardson in his article 9 Electric Cars 100 Years Old or More explains that the first green vehicle ever made was 1891 Morison. Made by William Morrison in 1891, some say the Morrison was the first electric vehicle in America. It  had a four horsepower engine, and could  carry 6-12 passengers. Top speed was about 20 mph. The batteries needed to be recharged every 50 miles. It has been said the car was actually completed in 1887 and was driven in a Des Moines parade in 1888. If that is true, the Morrison was first built 122 years ago, and it was built in America, where today they are  almost no electric cars on the roads. Next is electrobat, produced from 1894-1899.   Electrobats were made for several years in Philadelphia. The first ones were very heavy and used steel  tires to support a large lead battery. They employed twin 1.5 hp motors and  had a top speed of 20 mph. They could go 25 miles on one charge. Next is the 1900 Riker. Riker is a bulky enclosed cabin four passenger sedan that was made about the turn of the century; the Riker featured electric side lamps, wooden-spoked wheels, and a voice tube so passengers could communicate with the driver. Cabin windows could be raised and lowered. 48 battery cells were onboard, with an electric engine near each rear wheel.  The drivers seat was about 6-7 feet in the air.   Next is 1901 Riker torpedo. Andrew Riker, the founder of Riker Electric Vehicles, made the Torpedo in 1901 to be the fastest car on the road. Next is the 1902 Studebaker, 1906 Krieger, 1909 Babcock, and 1909 Bailey (http://gas2.org). It hasnt been seriously developed until the 1973 when the oil crisis strikes. Paul Lucas in his article The History of Green Motoring explains that in the 1980s, attempts to develop the green car concept reached new heights. In Switzerland for example, there was an annual race for solar-powered veh icles called the Tour de Sol. This ran from 1985-1995. In 1991, BMW created a pair of battery powered E1 concepts that failed to get past the concept stage. In the same year, the Citroen Citela was born with a range of 130 miles and top speeds of 70mph. GM also introduced its first purpose-built electric vehicle, the EV1, from 1996-1999. Since the turn of the millennium the concept of green cars has expanded at a phenomenal rate. This is because of the contribution of the expansion of hybrid cars, which effectively plug the gap between electric cars and conventional vehicles. Popular models include the Toyota Camry, which was once acclaimed as the top-selling passenger vehicle in America, and the Toyota Prius which in 2007 was the number-one selling hybrid vehicle worldwide. The concept has even been introduced into larger vehicles such as the Lexus RX400h, an off-roader. The Volkswagen BlueMotion Polo, which became available in 2007, cut CO2 emissions even further. Hydrogen fuelled cars arrived in 2006 through the BMW 7 Series, while the Ford Airstream was introduced in 2007 with a lithium battery that was topped up by a hydrogen fuel cell (www.thegreencarwebsite.co.uk). Major Reasons So, what exactly encouraged the rise of green vehicle popularity? One of the major contributors to the popularity of green vehicle is the increase of oil prices all over the world. The advancement of technology is causing the green vehicles to consume less gas. Ricky Lim in his article 3 Advantages Of Hybrid Cars Over Conventional Cars explains that Combining the cleaner energy of an electric motor with the long range capacity of a gasoline engine allows a hybrid car to save as much as 30 miles a gallon (http://ezinearticles.com. One of the technologies of hybrid cars is that they will only use the gasoline engine during constant speed such as highways speed. During the stop and go traffic, the electric engine will be functioned thats resulting in saving fuel. People always wonder on why hybrids cars are extremely quiet during idle. It is because the gasoline engine is turned off. The electric engine doesnt produce any noise at all. Here are the data of gas consumption on some of the hybrid cars: Ford Escape 31.9 mpg; Honda Accord 29.4 mpg; Honda Civic 46.2 mpg; Honda Insight 55.3 mpg; Lexus GS 450H 23.5 mpg; Lexus RX 400H 25.3 mpg; Mercury Mariner 29.5 mpg; Nissan Altima 34.3 mpg; Saturn Vue 25.9 mpg; Toyota Camry 36.5 mpg; Toyota Highlander 26.4 mpg; Toyota Prius 47.5 mpg (www.greenhybrid.com). Based on www.green-energy-efficient-homes.com, Hybrid car sales statistics have shown steady growth over most of the last five years, but sales peaked in early 2008 (at 45,000 vehicles) and showed a steady decline in the second half of 2008 with sales starting to recover somewhat in spring 2009. Considering the spike in oil and gasoline prices up to about July of 2008, and their rapid decline once the economic downturn hit later in 2008, its not surprising that sales show a peak followed by a steady drop. Fortunately for hybrid car manufacturers, gasoline price increases in the second through fourth quarters of 2009 have been accompanied by a return to high er hybrid car sales (http://www.green-energy-efficient-homes.com/hybrid-car-sales-statistics.html). Take a look at this chart, which shows three data series: hybrid car sales statistics by month, a 12-month moving average of hybrid car sales, and average US gas prices per gallon, from January 2004 to December 2009: (www.green-energy-efficient-homes.com) According to carsdirect.com, the August 2009 hybrid car statistics show that of the more than 200,000 hybrid cars sold in the U.S. year-to-date (YTD), the Toyota Prius is the top selling vehicle. There were 93,810 Prius sales through August 2009, with 18,886 units being sold in the month of August alone. Behind the Prius were the Toyota Camry, which sold 17,630 YTD, Honda Insight, selling 14,045 YTD, Honda Civic at 14,014 units sold and Ford Escape in the top 5 at 11,222 units sold YTD. In the month of August, Toyota Prius sales were 49% of all August U.S. hybrid sales. Camrys August sales made up 5% of hybrid sales, Insights comprised 11%, Civics 2% and Escape sales were 4% of all August hybrid car sales.   There were 38,701 hybrid cars sold in the United States in August 2009. Sales of the Toyota Prius were 1% of all car sales in the month of August.   All hybrid sales were 3% of the car sales that were made in the month. The number of hybrids sold in the month is up 48.6% over the same time period in 2008, showing a rise in the popularity of these vehicles by American drivers. Toyota, Honda and Ford are the largest makers of hybrid vehicles, with the most sales and models.  Toyota features the top-selling Prius, Camry and Highlander models. Honda has the Insight and Civic while Ford produces the Escape and Fusion hybrid vehicles (www.carsdirect.com). Based on www.mixedpower.com, from the states hybrid sales statistics in 2008, California sold the most hybrid cars with 39,830 units followed by New York: 8,810; Florida: 8,612; Texas: 8,255; and Illinois: 6,107 (www.mixedpower.com). The increasing of environmental awareness also contributes to the rise of green vehicles popularity. Alexandria Haber in his article The Facts About Hybrid Car Emissions and Global Warming explains that hybrid cars emit far lower levels of pollutants in the air than conventional cars, resulting decreased pollution and reduced effects of global warming. Because no two people drive the same way, it is therefore difficult to estimate, but emissions can be reduced from 25% to 90%, when comparing hybrid cars to conventional gas-powered vehicles (www.buzzle.com). Ricky Lim also in his article explains that hybrid cars emit lower toxic emissions compared to conventional gasoline-powered cars due to less gasoline being burned (www.buzzle.com). It is environmentally friendly, causes less pollution and releases less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere (http://ezinearticles.com). Peak oil theory also emerges and causes people to be more aware to consume more oil. Peak oil theory states: that any finite resource, (including oil), will have a beginning, middle, and an end of production, and at some point it will reach a level of maximum output as seen in the graph: (www.peakoil.com) This is the graph of world oil production from 1900-2080 taken from www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net It indicates that in the future we will have no more oil to be consumed, and the productivity of green vehicles has to be increased to decrease the dependency of oil. The last contributor to the rise of green vehicles is the tax incentives for the green vehicles buyers. It was in 2005 that Energy Policy Act of 2005 was passed by the United States congress and passed by President George W.Bush. The act, described by proponents as an attempt to combat growing energy problems, changed US energy policy by providing tax incentives and loan guarantees for energy production of various types. Consumers can itemize purchases on their federal income tax form, which will lower the total amount of tax they owe the government. In addition to federal tax incentives, some consumers will also be eligible for utility or state rebates, as well as state tax incentives for energy-efficient homes, vehicles and equipment (www.energy.gov). According to www.hybridcars.com, the exact amount of credit given by the government may vary: Current Models Make Model Tax Credit Audi A3 TDI (Clean Diesel) $1,300 Audi Q7 TDI (Clean Diesel) $1,150 BMW 335d (Clean Diesel) $900 BMW X5 xDrive35d (Clean Diesel) $1,800 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid $1,300 Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid $2,200 Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid $2,200 Ford Escape Hybrid (2wd) $3,000 Ford Escape Hybrid (4wd) $2,200 Ford Fusion Hybrid $3,400 GMC Sierra Hybrid $2,200 GMC Yukon Hybrid $2,200 Honda Civic Hybrid $2,100 Honda 2005 Civic Hybrid (auto) $1,700 Lexus GS 450h $1,550 Lexus LS 600hL $450 Lexus RX 400h $2,200 Mazda Tribute Hybrid (2wd) $3,000 Mazda Tribute Hybrid (4wd) $2,200 Mercedes GL 320 Bluetec (Clean Diesel) $1,800 Mercedes R320 Bluetec (Clean Diesel) $1,550 Mercedes ML 320 Bluetec (Clean Diesel) $900 Mercedes S400 Hybrid $1,150 Mercury Mariner Hybrid (2wd) $3,000 Mercury Mariner Hybrid (4wd) $2,200 Mercury Milan Hybrid $3,400 Nissan Altima $2,350 Toyota Camry Hybrid $2,600 Toyota Highlander Hybrid $2,600 Toyota Prius $3,150 Volkswagen Jetta TDI (Clean Diesel) $1,300 Volkswagen Touareg TDI (Clean Diesel) $1,150 Despite of its cons, green vehicles have the cons as well. Phillip Dunn in his article Hybrid Cars Pros and Cons explains that all this new technology comes at a price: a hybrid car is complex and expensive. It has two motors and all the ancillary systems to manage them plus a heavy battery and a regeneration system used to produce electricity during breaking. Hybrids are the most gasoline efficient of all cars they typically get 48 to 60 mpg (claimed). Not bad, but only about 20% to 35% better than a fuel efficient gasoline powered vehicle like the Honda Civic, for example, that gets 36 mpg. But, when comparing prices hybrids cost from $19,000 to $25,000 and gas saver cars cost $14,000 to $17,000 the justification to buy becomes less clear. Much of the fuel efficiency comes from improvements in aero dynamics, weight reduction and, the biggest change: a smaller, less powerful gas engine. In fact, any car will get substantially better mileage just by reducing the engine size. The main reason this is not done has to do customer demand they want the extra power and zippiness (www.physorg.com). EV1 Controversies. Since the rise of green vehicles popularity, have the oil industries been affected tremendously? In the 1990s oil was getting scarcer and the pollution produced by combustion engines was becoming recognized as a very serious problem. Consumers began to demand some solutions that would save their world, their bank accounts and their breathing from gasolines bad effects. Like mentioned earlier, electric cars have been around for 110 years from the first time its been made. Alexandra Paul in her article Who Killed my Electric Car? explains that in 1900, electric cars outsold both gasoline and steam vehicles because electric cars didnt have the vibration, noise and dirtiness associated with gas vehicles. But soon afterward with the discovery of Texas crude oil that reduced the price of gasoline, the invention of the electric starter in 1912 that eliminated the need for a hand crank, and the mass production of internal combustion engine vehicles by Henry Ford the electric vehicle went t he way of the horse and buggy (www.cnn.com). In the 1990s oil was getting scarcer and the pollution produced by combustion engines was becoming recognized as a very serious problem. Consumers began to demand some solutions that would save their world, their bank accounts and their breathing from gasolines bad effects. In 1990 California passed the ZEV, requiring 2% of new vehicles sold in California to be emission-free by 1998, 10% by 2003. In response to ZEV, GM launched their revolutionary car EV1. The EV1 required no gas, no oil changes, no mufflers and rare brake maintenance. The success of electric vehicles would have threatened the status quo and core business models of two of the worlds biggest industries oil and automobile. Electric cars are a threat to the profitability of the conventional gas-powered auto industry. GM said that it spent more than $1 billion to market and develop the EV1 (www.ecosherpa.com). Not only would a successful electric car program cannibalize sale s of conventional cars, but the electric car costs the auto industry in other ways: lacking an engine, it saves the driver the cost of replacement parts, motor oil, filters, and spark plugs. The EV1s regenerative braking system, in which the cars electronic controls handled much of the work of slowing down the car, spared the cars mechanical brake system from wear. Brake parts and repair is a billion-plus dollar industry alone. The EV1s efficiency was a winner for consumers but a loser for the auto industry. Despite of its advantages, EV1 still had its disadvantages: it was only available to be leased to the public; it was only available for three year leases with no option for renewal or purchase at the end lease period. Leases ranged from $299 to over $574 monthly which was pretty expensive at that time. EV1 also had a short range (around 80 miles) and no backup system. It took 12 hours to fill up the battery. All in all, GMs EV1 has brought pros and cons to the public. It was thr eatening the oil industry, yet it also had major weaknesses to sustain its existence. In conclusion, the popularity of the non-traditional energy sources is increasing since more than two decades. People have realized the importance of the green vehicles for the environment. The rise of green vehicles has been encouraged by the uncontrollable increases on gas prices, the awareness trend to save the environment, and also the tax incentives that is given by the government. The electric cars need to be existed for one more time because with the advancement of technology, it wouldnt be difficult to produce a better car than GMs EV1. Electric vehicles will help tremendously to conserve the oil that has been consumed uncontrollably.

Effect of Parent Involvement in Education

Effect of Parent Involvement in Education This essay is going to investigate whether parental involvement within a childs education has a positive or negative impact on the child and their education. This will include looking at the parental involvement within education and how the government feel about it and how the government deal with parental involvement and what educational provisions have been set out for parental involvement for all those concerned. Parental Involvement has been on the Labour Governments agenda since they came into power in 1997. New Labour has not been short on appeals to return to family values, particularly when the issues of crime, parenting and education have been the topic of discussion (Mooney et al, 1999:6). In 1997, when New Labour came into power, there were suggestions to create parenting classes for those parents who need help with their childs behaviour, education and also to help themselves become better and more pro active parents within all aspects of their childs life. Jack Straw wants parenting classes to be accepted in the same way as ante natal classes, through such classes will involve compulsory counselling and guidance classes for parents who are struggling as parents and for parents ordered by the courts to receive help dealing with their children (Mooney et al, 1999:6). Jack Straws wishes are significant because when a child is in a happy and supportive home environment then the child i s more likely to enjoy school and be more successful in their education, which will lead to happier children. The importance of parents in the education of their children is not a new concept. Parents have been their childrens first educators since prehistoric times. The first formal parent education classes occurred in The United States in 1815, concerns about childrens development come from many levels including womens associations, colleges, parent cooperatives, government and schools (Berger, 1991:209). Education was used to enlighten middle income families as well as to help mainstream immigrants and the underclass parents. In recent times the focus on parental involvement emerged during the 1960s with provisions, such as Head Start, Home Start and Follow Through USA (Berger, 1991:209). This continued in the 1980s and 1990s, though there were still concerns, this time about poorly educated pupils, exclusion, truancy, teenage pregnancy and poverty. These issues emphasize that parental involvement within a childs education is essential in order to have pupils who are fully engaged in th eir education and schooling. In more recent times, there are different stereotypical versions of parents and families; there are single parent families, same sex families, the traditional families. There is also many ways in which parents and families can get financial support from the government, for example child tax credits, child benefits, CSA. As well as that, there are many different facilities for parents to use if they need to go back to work, such as childminders, family support and nurseries. There is also support and provisions available to benefit both children and parents. Parents can put their child into some type of education for example private nurseries or childminders from as young as 3 months, for parents who had to go back to work. When this happens then parents can apply for childcare vouchers to help them with childcare costs. From the age of 3 until the age of 4 children get 12.5 hours, these are provided by the Labour government and offered by the Local Authorities (LA) so again parents c an place their child in nursery or preschool from the age of 3 and give them a head start and get taster ready for school. In 2007, the government introduced the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provision, which was a combination of the Foundation Stage and Birth to Three Matters provisions. The EYFS began in September 2008. The EYFS is based around four themes, a unique child, positive relationships, enabling environments and learning and development. The positive relationship theme is to enable the children to become strong and independent, from a base of loving and secure relationships with parents (DFES, 2008). The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is also linked to a supporting programme called the Parents as Partners in Early Learning Project (PPEL). The Parents as Partners in Early Learning Project began in October 2006; the project team undertook an audit to review current provisions with an initial baseline audit of policies and practices across 150 LAs (Local Authorit ies) in England. (DCSF, 2007). From the age of 4 until the age of 16 or 17 for new secondary school pupils from September 2008, children have to by law either go to school or be in some type of full time education for example home schooling. If the child does not attend school or if they are not in some kind of full time education then the parents will be punished. This could be by a fine or it could even be imprisonment. According to the DCSF (2009) parents should support school by ensuring that their child attends school, if they do not then the parents can face fines between  £30 and  £150 and for those parents who continue to let their children miss school, the maximum possible is already  £1,000 per parent per child and they could also face up to three months imprisonment (DCSF, 2009). For many parents, they like to be involved with their childs education in some way. Parental involvement is when a childs parent or parents get involved with their childs education and also work in partnership with their childs school. According to some researchers like Desforges et al (2003:5) parental involvement did not have to be parents being in direct contact with their childs school, but could be a naturally occurring parental involvement like good parenting at home Parental involvement takes many forms including good parenting in the home, including the provision of a secure and stable environment, intellectual stimulation, parent-child discussion, good models of constructive social and educational values and high aspirations relating to personal fulfillment and good citizenship; contact with schools to share information; participation in school events; participation in the work of the school; and participation in school governance. (Desforges et al, 2003:5) According to Mackinnon et al (1995:26) the 1967 Plowden Report based on extensive research, it concluded that parents; attitudes to education were of supreme importance in influencing childrens educational success more so than the parents educational or occupational status, than material circumstances at home and at schools themselves. Mackinnon et al (1995:26) continues the concept of greater parental involvement was favourably received and this involvement has increased in the year since Plowden. This shows that parental attitude whether negative or positive has an impact on their childs education, because if a parent has a negative impact on education because they had a poor, unsuccessful or appalling experience of education, then they are more likely to show a negative or very little interested in their childs education, which in retrospect their child will more than likely have a negative attitude towards education. It is also shown that children perform better when a parent s hows interest in their child education according to research carried out on the attainment in Secondary Schools by Feinstein et al (1999) found that children of parents showing high levels of interest in their schooling can progress between 15-17% more in maths and reading between the ages of 11 and 16 as compared to pupils whose parents showed no interest. There are many different policies and legislations on parental involvement, which start from around the 1980s. Most of these legislation and policies are mainly in favour of parents as consumers of education and parents as partners in education, these policies and legislation are; The 1980 Education Act, this Act gave the Parents the right to choose the school they wanted their child to go to, although the LEA could refuse on the grounds of inefficient use of resources (and parents could appeal), parents were given the right to be represented on school governing bodies, parents on such matters as criteria for admission, exam results, curriculum, discipline and organisation. (Mackinnon et al, 1995:59). When Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minster, she created these labels as schools are producers and parents are consumers, because as parents you look at what school is best for your child or best in the league table is that area, and something parents actually move to an area of a school t hat they want their child to go to in order to be inside the school boundaries. This is the same as if you were going shopping clothes, etc when youre shopping you tend to look for the best quality, price, etc and the shops that you buy from are the producers as they are providing that item you. Same with school, they try to sell their schools to parents by prospectuses, open evenings, league tables and Ofsted. The 1988 Education Reform Act gave the parents more power, Parents may send their children to any school that has room for them, provided that it caters for their age and aptitude. Parents could vote in a secret ballot to opt out of the school from the LEA finance and control and be given grant maintained status (Mackinnon et al, 1995:62) and finally the 1991 Parents Charter give even more choice for parents, in this charter parents were promised five key documents. These documents were a report on their childs progress at least once a year, regular reports on their childs school from independent inspectors, performances tables for local schools and finally an annual report from the school governors. The most important policy for parents was the 2005 White paper; this is an important paper because it puts parents and their child at the heart of the school. The White Paper suggested that parents receive regular, meaningful reports during the school year about how their child is doing, with opportunities to discuss their childs progress with their teachers; parents have the chance to form Parent Councils to influence school decisions on issues such as school meals, uniform and discipline, such Councils will be required in Trust schools (DCSF, 2005:9). There are many ways in which parents can be involved with their childs education from before they even start school, by choosing the right school for them to go too, and once the child is at school, their parent or parents can be involved in many different ways with their childs education. Ball (1998) came up with seven different ways of parental involvement; these varied from decision making and management of school parents and community representatives participate in school governing bodies, parent/teacher associations and advisory committees, to school support for learning at home schools may help families to develop learning at home to help in turn the childs learning in school (Ball, 1998). There are two main ways of involvement, in which a parent can be involved in their childs education; these are formal involvement and informal involvement. The more formal ways of involvement are for parents to be involved in Parent Teacher Association (PTA) which promotes partnership between pupils, parents and teachers and local authorities and encourages parents to support their childrens education. Also being a parent governor at a childs school is also a formal involvement, because as a parent governor, they can make a valuable contribution to the running of their childs school. The informal ways of a parent being involved in their childs education, are by attending awards evenings/days, attending parents, career and option evenings, also meeting with their childs teacher(s) and also parents coming into schools to help with reading time or fund raising events. Parents can be directly involved with their childs education by helping their child with their homework every day or by talking to their childs teacher on a regular basis. Parents can also be involved by volunteering to help out with activities such as fundraising, school events, or even being a part of the actual classroom by helping out with any reading schemes available in a childs school. Parents can also be on their childs school governing board as a parent governor. The government and LEAs have also funded different opportunities for parental involvement and parent school interaction; examples of these are The Home School Agreement. Home-school agreements can raise standards and contribute to school effectiveness by enhancing partnerships between parents and teachers. The processes involved in introducing and reviewing the agreement will clarify what the school is trying to achieve, and the agreement will set out the role of the school, parents and pupils in this vital partnership. Providing that staff, pupils and parents have been consulted effectively when drawing together the agreement, it should successfully build on existing working relationships between home and school. The partnership promoted by an agreement should result in; better home-school communication, parents and teachers working together on issues of concern, parents supporting and helping their childrens learning at home more effectively, the identification of issues that need to be addressed through the School Development Plan. The clarification of roles and responsibilities in a home-school agreement, supported by effective home-school policy and practice, should generate high expectations, parental encouragement and support, and strong home-school links (DCSF 2008). Parental involvement does not just benefit the child, but it can also benefit the school and the parents. The ways in which parental involvement can benefit the school are; that it reduces workload and pressure of the teachers and management staff, more enrichment activities can be provided which can boost the curriculum and the school. Parent/school interaction. The benefits for the parents are; reduced barriers between parents and the school, parents can feel and achieved self confidence and self worth, parent involvement may encourage parents to go back to education themselves, parents can monitor the work level in which their child is at, parents can also develop the feel for the school community and life and finally parents can get to spend some quality time with their child without even know they have. The issues of parental involvement are because of many factors. Parental involvement is mainly voluntary you cannot always rely on the parents, parents can or may cause problems for the teacher, parental volunteers may need to get CRB checks done on them because of the Ofsteds rules on safeguarding children in educational settings, which may make offended some parents, there is also a lot of paper work involved for the school, and CRB checks can take as long as six weeks to process. The most important issue of parental involvement is that not all parents can help or support their child as they may not have the skills, this can make some parents who want to be involved within their childs school inadequate. Even though many parents want to be involved in their childs education, they do not for a variety of reasons or because of boundaries, the many four main issues for parents not to be involved in their childs education are skills, class, gender and ethnicity. Skills, Knowledge and understanding is one of the main four boundaries because of the poor levels of educational achievement and skills development of some parents, resulting in mistrust of education and difficulties in engaging with the education process on behalf of their children. A knowledge defect in some groups of parents, for example, little knowledge of the importance of childrens games, nursery rhymes and traditional stories in developing childrens learning and the lack of knowledge of the local educational opportunities available for them and their children. Another boundary is social class. The words Social Class are used to describe how different segments of the population may be grouped together. These groups are considered to share roughly the same level of resources and similar styles of living. Class membership is generally indicated by the use of the Registrar Generals (RG) Scale of five social or occupational categories, though other systems of classification of socio economic groups are used. The main dividing line is between manual (working class) and non manual (middle class) occupations, although it should be noted that the range of lifestyles and material wealth within these two groups can vary considerably. There are four main groups that define social class, these are; upper class made up of between 5 and 10 per cent of the population, including company directors, financiers, senior civil servants. As a group the upper class own a substantial part of the nations wealth. The upper middle class, these are made up if 25 -3 0 per cent of the population, including professionals, senior managers and those running small businesses. The groups are sometimes referred to as the professional managerial class. Lower middle class, is made up of 35 40 per cent of the population, including white collar workers who are employed in shops and offices. This group may be referred to as the personal service class and the final class is the working class, this is made up of 35 40 cent of the population, including manual workers who may be skilled or unskilled, working in heavy industry, manufacturing, transport or agriculture (Trowler 1995:139). Social class has a huge influence on which school a parent chooses to send the children and also shapes the relationship between parent and school. In the 1959 Crowther Report it states that the extensive research that was commissioned confirmed earlier findings about the relationship between fathers occupational status and pupil educational attainment. The higher the father s status, the greater the childs chance of attending a grammar rather than a secondary modern school, though the occupational group skilled manual workers was so large that their children were by far the largest single group in all types of school. It was argued that there was considerable wastage of talent and much attention was paid to the neglected educational territory of pupil who left school at 15 to follow craft or technical, rather than an academic career. Mackinnon et al (1995:23). Parents social class has become a boundary within parental involvement within a childs education, it is believed by some that if you are in a lower social class, you are more likely to fail, drop out and underachieve because thats what is expected of them, also some parents from lower social class may feel intimidated by those parents from a higher social class. According to Douglas (1964) working class parents do not value education. Parents who are most interested in their childrens education c ome mainly from the middle classes. Parents from a lower social background may not have received a good education so they do not have the skills to help their children. Also parents from a lower social class may not be able to afford to take time of work to help out, as they need the money to live and provide for their children Another boundary is gender. The words Gender refers to the differences between men and women. Gender has been a big issue within education for many of years, in the 17th and 18th centuries education for girls was at a fairly low standard, but increased in the mid 19th century when all children has the right to attend school.. In the 17th and 118th centuries, education was only aimed for rich boys and young men and they were the only children allowed to go to school, while the girls and young women had to stay at home with their mother and do housework and look after their family. When females were allowed to attend school, females were not allowed to do many subjects from the curriculum. They had to learn needlework, etc. The males on the other hand got to learn subjects such as metalwork and engineering and also languages such as Greek. Since the 1975 Sex Discrimination Act both male and females can do the same subjects. This Act prohibited sex discrimination in admission to schools, appointment of teachers (with exceptions for single sex schools) and careers advice and stipulated that neither girls nor boys should be refused access to any course, facilities or other benefits provided solely on the grounds of their sex. (Mackinnon et al, 1995:57). Todays boys are the students who are underachieving, twice as many boys as girls achieve below level 3 in English in Key Stage 2 (DCSF, 1994). Gender is an issue when it comes to parental involvement because it is mainly the female parent or the guardians who looks after those children who gets involved with their childs education. Currently there is considerably lower participation by fathers than by mothers in schools and in family learning initiatives (C lawley et al, 2004:3). This could be for a number of reasons, it could because they are a single parent family, it is also possible that the father may have to work or cannot take time off work, it is much harder for men to be involved with volunteering at schools because they may be ask to have a CBR check done, even through both males and females have to have them done now. The final boundary is ethnicity. What is meant by the term, ethnicity refers to the sense of shared cultural identify which binds a community together. It is used to distinguish one community from another and can be the basis for collective action by and conflict between communities. Ethnicity is an issue within education because many of the pupils from ethnic groups are underachieving, and most of them are boys. Figures shows that on entry into preschool, children of White UK heritage have the highest mean score in cognitive skills (verbal and non verbal), with the lowest scores being recorded for Pakistani children. Difference in scores between ethnic groups are reduced when the factors of parents educational and occupational status is taken into account. Bangladeshi, Black and Pakistani pupils perform less well than other pupils in the early key stages. Pupils for these three ethnic groups also tend to achieve significantly less well by the end of compulsory education and the per cent of these ethnic groups completing further/higher education such as college and university is even lower. Only thirty seven per cent of ethnic minority students get a first or upper second degree compared with 53 per cent of white graduates. (National Statistics, 2001) Students from ethnic groups are underachieving because they are at a disadvantage when it comes to learning because they may not speak or only speak very little English. Students from ethnic groups may have a different type of learning and their culture may be different to the culture in England also the way of teaching in England. There are a number of policies and legislations in force such as the 1981 Rampton report, which states the main requirement, as they see it, was for a change in attitude in the community at large towards acceptance of ethnic minorities. In specifically education matters, stress was laid on both initial and in service training of teacher to attune them to the needs of ethnic minority groups and to improve their understanding of multicultural approach to education (Mackinnon et al 1995:37), the Rampton Report was then replaced with the 1985 Swann Education for all Report, this report was almost eight time longer than Rampton and it also included the above (from Rampton Report) and more such as the effectiveness of racism awareness training should be investigated, Its further recommended that greater effort should be made to employ and promote teachers from ethnic minority groups, though without positive discrimination or lowering of standards (Mackinnon et al, 1995:39). There was also the 1976 Race Relation Act this act prohibited discrimination on the grounds of race in admission to schools, appointment of teachers, careers advice, access to facilities and the award of discretionary grants. Positive discrimination in favour of disadvantages racial groups (ethnic groups) neither is nor normally allowed e.g. in recruitment or promotion. In some closely defined circumstances, however, where it can be shown that a particular racial group has a special need with regard to education or training access to facilities may be restricted or allocated first to its members, this act was amended in 2000. The reason why ethnicity is an issue when it comes to parental involvement is quite simply the same issues as why children from ethnic groups are underachieving. Parents from ethnic groups may not want to or cannot get involved with their childs education because of language problems, lack of skills i.e. poor English, reading maths, ICT skills. Parents may feel threatened by the school or teacher and especially other parents from other ethnic groups. Parents may not be able to afford to take time off work or may have other younger children to look after. The government is doing to overcome the above boundaries and many other boundaries There are many different initiatives that the government, LEAs Schools, local communities and university have set up in order to overcome these boundaries that parent may have when it comes to parent involvement in their childs education. The department of Education have supported and sponsored many different parental involvement initiatives like the Home School Agreement. The Millennium Commission set up Clubs called the Clutch Club, these clubs are set up to help parents learn Information and Communication Technology (computer skills). Set up by the Millennium Commission one of the National lottery good causes, the Millennium Awards, these are grants to help individuals develop their interests whilst at the same time putting something back into their local community. The Open University and Living Achieve Awards Scheme aims to encourage and to enable parents of school children to gain new skills in I CT and an understanding of their use for teaching in their childrens schools. It has already involved around 300 parents with children at school in and around Milton Keynes (DCSF, 2008). In Nottingham there has been a project set up to help parents from ethnic group, called AMBER, which stands for Adult Minorities Breaking Educational Restrictions, helps families from ethnic minorities gain a better understanding of the education system within the UK and provides guidance for them. The project, launched in 1995, began by working mainly with Asian and African-Caribbean parents but has since been expanded to include other groups in the City and County of Nottingham who have been at a disadvantage when it comes to participating in school life. The project aims, to allow and support parents to become involved in their childrens education, to provide the opportunity for school-based adult learning and to train parent support workers to facilitate these aims. AMBER works with parents who participate informally through fundraising and general school support activities, social events, etc. and more formally through in-class help, governorship and parent consultations. (DCSF, 2006). If programs like these continue to develop all over the UK and achieve the goals they want and need to achieve the boundaries that are stopping the parents from being involved within their childrens education, will no longer be a huge boundary stopping them. Some researchers who believe that some parents use the fact that there are boundaries such as social class to hide behind but in fact they are not really interested or have time to be involved in their childs education. The researchers in question are Douglas (1964) and Newson (1989). Douglas (1964) argued that working class parents do not value education. Newson (1989) continues by suggesting that middle class parents are measurably more child centred than working class. However figures show that 80 per cent of working class parents in Nottingham were actively helping their children with reading (Newson 1989). Other researchers would argue that parents do not hide behind risks and barriers when it comes to parental involvement. Blackstone et al (2004) argued that working class parents do care as much as middle class parents, but working class parents felt less confident about dealing with schools. It is important for parents to be involved in their childs education, as it shows them how interested they are in what the child is doing and learning at school, which builds up self esteem. However much time a parent puts into their child and their education all count towards being involved, from volunteering at their childs school on a regular basis, to helping them with their homework when they ask for help, to most importantly to ask them what they have done at school each day, because this shows the child that the parent are showing an interest within their education. Even though there are boundaries that some parents need to overcome, these can be overcome with the help and support of the government and the childs school. Also additional research needs to be carried out in order to address how educational initiatives and policies impact on parental involvement and pupils. On a more local level the importance of effective communication needs to be addressed. Its improvement woul d be a great benefit to parents, education professionals and especially the pupils, as this will help with the pupils educational engagement, knowing that they have support at all angles from school to home.