Distributed Leadership Among Teachers Education Essay

Distributed Leadership Among Teachers Education Essay Distributed leadership stretches and shares the leadership practice to form collection leadership so that those not in formal authoritative position such as classroom teachers could be valued and have a voice in leadership. It disassociates from the vertical, bureaucratic and organizational hierarchy to enable collaboration and wide spread sharing of information and power to sustain improvement in teaching and learning. Distributed leadership is effective as it is an open and democratic model of principle equipped with both vertical and lateral communication. This leadership is associated with concepts such as empowerment, teamwork, capacity building, teacher leadership and professional development. The theoretical framework of distributed leadership is Theory Y as the leadership considers diverse contribution to the process of subtleties of leadership to shape collective action instead of the traditional vertical leadership process which separates leaders from followers as mutually exclusive categories. The purpose of this research proposal is to explore the perceptions of head teachers, teachers and students about distributed leadership, how it is practiced in schools and the perceived effects on teaching and learning in three high performing urban secondary schools in Klang Valley. Both qualitative and quantitative methodologies are proposed in this study as semi-structured interviews with four head teachers to capture their perceptions on distributed leadership and what it means to them, while questionnaires to be administered on teachers and students to investigate on the level of distributed leadership practiced by head teachers and its effects on teaching and learning. Keywords: Distributed leadership, collaboration, empowerment, teamwork, and capacity building. Introduction Distributed leadership, I believe, presents a powerful concept of leadership in the educational arena of 21st century as it enables a collaborative and sharing approach among teachers and students and treats every person as a leader at the entry level, rather than leadership understood individually. It acknowledges various stakeholders and provides them with a voice about their situations to positively impact the teaching and learning outcome (Flowers, 2007). According to Leithwood and Mascall (2008), meaningfully leading schools requires collective leadership and interactions of people and their situation, and not centred on a single formal leader, so that they can specify and perform the tasks involved in leadership by identifying, acquiring, allocating, coordinating, and use the social, material and cultural resources necessary to establish the conducive conditions for teaching and learning in order to be powerful enough to have significant effect on students. This active and purposeful involvement of multiple individuals in school leadership enhances instructional innovations as distributed leadership considers teachers and students as partners in school leadership, rather than as followers to engage them as collaborative leaders with their colleagues to learn from one another and empowering others to lead, participation in shared decision-making, and development of a shared vision for their school (Sheppard and Brown, 2009). A widely distributed school leadership at all levels and the greater partnerships are important as it enables sharing of ideas and insights and therefore has great influence on the school and student outcomes (PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2007). Distributed leadership enhances student outcome as it creates a culture for learning by promoting instructional leadership, leadership for learning, team work, capacity building, collective interaction and good communication among leaders, followers and their situations thus, crea ting trust and accountability among them. It is against this backdrop that this study proposes to explore the perceptions of head teachers, teachers and students of selected high performing schools in Klang Valley about distributed leadership and its effects on teaching and learning. These perceptions are essential to gain a deeper understanding of distributed leadership and its impact on teaching and learning and to yield lessons regarding the ways high performing schools can effectively lead and operate with their workforce of headteachers and teachers. Background of the study There is growing empirical evidence that distributed leadership causes a positive difference to student outcome as it has greater density of instructional leadership (Harris Spillane, 2008). This leadership identifies, develops and utilizes the pedagogical expertise and talent of teachers so that they are knowledgeable and responsible of the educational outcomes to positively impact the teaching and learning (Robinson, 2008). According to Chan and Sidhu (2009), excellent principals in Malaysia had deliberately chosen distributed leadership to move the school forward by empowering others to lead so that there is collaborative, cooperative, participative, democratic teacher leadership throughout the school. Distributed leadership which engages teachers as leaders with wider distribution of tasks rather than hierarchical distributions enables shared vision based on trust and a collective endeavour within the school which builds a broad capacity base is fast replacing the charismatic hero or the heroic leader in school leadership. Thus, the decision making processes are widely shared and school development becomes the responsibility of team of teachers to enhance student achievement rather than the senior management group. Although distributed leadership involves various stakeholders including principals, local education authorities, parents and community, the researcher proposes to explore the perceptions from those directly involved, that is, the headteachers, teachers and students who are the participants in this study, in moving forward the teaching and learning agenda by investigating their perceptions of the term distributed leadership, how it is practiced and what they perceive as its effect on teaching and learning as it is not possible to conduct a study that incorporates the perceptions of all the stakeholders within the scope of this study at this time. The study would involve three urban, high performing secondary schools in Klang Valley. The first school is a large secondary school with an enrolment of 1,200 students and 105 teachers and 5 head teachers. The second school also has an enrolment of 1,100 and the third school with an enrolment of 1,090 pupils. Pupils in these schools come from the wider community and are often sent by private vehicles. The students have no learning difficulties as they are the excellent students. Problem Statement There is a growing recognition of the need to study distributed leadership in the field of education especially in high performing schools as there has been powerful effects on student outcomes and there has been growing dissatisfaction with the traditional vertical leader-centred leadership (Caskey, 2010). Leadership vested in one position has become obsolete as it is not the single and heroic individualistic leader who makes an organisation function but leadership should be broadly distributed throughout the school to take into consideration of the competences of its members. According to Richard Elmore, distributed leadership is linked to schools fundamental task of helping students learn. However, the concept is new and lacks the definition and empirical knowledge about how or to what extent the high performing schools actually use distributed leadership as well as evidence that firmly links distributed leadership to students achievement is still far in the future as there is lit tle empirical data to support the effects of distributed leadership on teaching and learning. I believe distributed leadership can only be judged by the evidence of its impact on teaching and learning. Objective of the study Firstly, the study aims to explore the perceptions of headteachers of distributed leadership and what it means to them. Secondly, to investigate on the level of distributed leadership practiced or how it is practiced by headteachers as perceived by teachers and students. Thirdly, it seeks to find out the contribution of distributed leadership to teaching and learning as perceived by teachers and students at each school. These objectives are in line with tentative conclusions from various studies which indicate that leadership that is distributed among the wider school staff is likely to have an effect on students academic performance than that of exclusively top-down approach (Muijs and Harris 2007; PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2007). However, to-date, there has not been any empirical data to support the effect of distributed leadership on student outcomes as studies have also confirmed that the effect of leadership on student outcomes is largely indirect (Hartley, 2007; Rhodes and Brundrett, 2010). This study therefore proposes to contribute to knowledge about the impact of distribute leadership on teaching and learning by providing some empirical evidence from teachers and students and to integrate to previous findings of studies on distributed leadership. Research Questions The research questions for this study with the aforementioned objectives include: 1. What are the perceptions of head teachers on distributed leadership and what it means to them? 2. What are the perceptions of teachers and students on the level of distributed leadership practiced by head teachers? 3. To what extent does distributed leadership contribute to effective teaching and learning? Significance of the Study This emerging approach to leadership will be potentially useful to national and international policy makers, practitioners, trainers and researchers in education as they are more directly connected to student learning. Policy makers could utilize the study to devise new leadership approaches based on distributed leadership while practitioners may assist in creating professional learning communities and for continued professional development for school improvement and effective leadership. Trainers could formulate training needs for stakeholders based on leadership distribution while researchers may use it to set future agenda for research. Besides that, there is little empirical data to support the effects of distributed leadership on teaching and learning in high performing schools (Mayr, 2008). By investigating the perceptions of teachers and students, the study will highlight how distributed leadership is practiced in these selected urban schools in Malaysia. The researcher also finds the study important so as to reflect on past practices of leadership and to seek new ideas on effective school leadership and teaching and further to contribute to knowledge by adding some knowledge base to distributed leadership. Literature review Distributed leadership Distributed leadership stretches and shares the leadership practice among multiple formal and informal groups whereby the leadership responsibility is disassociated from the vertical, bureaucratic and organizational hierarchy so that there is interaction and wide spread sharing of information and power to sustain improvement in teaching and learning (Robinson, 2008). For example, when teachers, parents and support staff work together to solve certain problems, they are involved in developmental space and collective capacity building within the school as they utilise multiple sources of guidance, direction and expertise of these stakeholders and as such by their actions, they are engaged in distributed leadership. This leadership practice is the result of interactions between different members of the team or organization to contribute to the life of the school and maximize the human capacity and enhance self-worth of others by energizing others for tasks within the organization to contribute to broad and deep learning for all students. Distributed leadership is a way of thinking about leadership and being involved in a common task or clear goal improvement of instruction and common frame of values in executing the particular leadership task rather than another technique. Distributed leadership is linked to the notion of collaboration, shared, distributive, dispersed and democratic as shown in Figure 1 below. Figure 1: Terminologies associated with distributed leadership (Moyo, 2010) Thus, distributed leadership is effective as it is an open and democratic model equipped with both vertical and lateral communication. Distributed leadership among teachers The authorities to lead is no longer centered around one man theory as distribution is not monopolized by the headteachers initiative but is a collective leadership and dispersed within the school and among teachers through the cultivation of relationship and networks as classroom teachers are in direct contact with learners in the majority of cases and hence influence their learning. (Ameijde, et al., 2009). The school leadership adopts power equalization and inspires teachers to participate in leadership by developing a school culture which values the sorts of learning that enhance the capacity of individuals to lead and conducive to building norms of building trust to enhance openness, respect, appreciation and autonomy for the teachers to conduct their activities in collaboration, to procure and distribute resources, support teacher growth for both individual and collective development, to provide both summative and formative monitoring of instruction and innovation so that teachers could develop skills and expertise by working together and have a sense of ownership to influence the quality of teaching which subsequently affect student outcome. (Ameijde, et al., 2009). Distributed leadership which emphasizes collaboration of teachers with their colleagues in other schools facilitates teacher learning and enhances self-confidence as they engage in action research by trying new teaching approaches and disseminating their findings to colleagues, thereby minimizing teacher isolation but rather challenging teachers to promote personal and professional development so that they contribute to optimal student learning and achievement. The collective endeavour of efforts enables team based work and forms leadership community that share meaningful contexts and creates opportunities for learning as it integrates differing viewpoints and interests in approaching a highly complex and interdependent task. In this regard, teachers have clearly defined responsibilities which are linked to their area of expertise so that they could contribute effectively to leadership process. By doing so, teachers are not confined to the classroom but are rather transcended to contribute to the community of learners beyond the classroom to lead to improved practice and higher performance (Ameijde, et al., 2009). Distributed leadership is associated with a number of concepts and themes such as empowerment, teamwork, staff motivation, capacity building, teacher leadership and to a lesser extent professional development. (Ameijde, et al., 2009). Distributed cognition Distributed cognition views thinking as social rather than individual activity. Teachers are no longer passive and isolated but are connected through dialogue and reflection so that they are active and weaved in the fabric of the school for a common task and shared common values. They become more knowledgeable and take responsibility about the task of teaching as more of the pedagogical expertise and talent of teachers will be identified, developed and utilized than a more hierarchical pattern of leadership to impact on learning and student outcome. This creates unity and instructional innovations rather than micromanaging instruction. (Ameijde, et al., 2009). Teaching and Learning According to PricewaterhouseCoopers (2007), the behaviour of school leaders impact pupil performance. By distributing leadership to teachers that emphasise collaboration and distribution of power and authority which is central to learning, they exert their influence on pupil performance by empowering pupils and creating a favourable condition for learning by applying learner centred approach to teaching and learning in classrooms and across the school which has the potential to effect learner inclusion, engagement and improved achievement. With collaboration which is effective in widening student learning opportunities and raising expectations, teachers could also help to resolve immediate problems through dialogue and establishment of a shared sense of accountability. Pupils are not treated as passive recipients and as such, good communication is ensured so that the students know what is going on and has a hand in shaping this. high performing schools High performing schools (HPS) or cluster schools act as models for other institutions within the same cluster and becomes the premise for pioneering new approaches and innovations in the education system. Students of these excellent institutions excel in academic and co-curricular activities and possess outstanding personality, leadership skills, high team spirit, creative thinking skills, and are patriotic, globally oriented and competitive. These schools are acknowledged to have ethos, character and own identity and unique in all aspects of education. The high performing secondary schools in Klang Valley are either regular day schools or residential schools, premier schools and 100-year schools and the Ministry of Education Malaysia uses the HPS as markers to point towards excellence in education and as special model schools to other schools in Malaysia (MOE, 2008). Safe and orderly learning environments are created in these schools with clear instructional objectives in which the head teachers expect high performance from teachers and students through increased time on task and develop positive relations All students are required to show excellent performance comparable to benchmark standards such as the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), and the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) with proficiency in Math, Science and English.  Besides that, the students should also master higher-order thinking skills such as applications, problem-solving, participation in co-curriculum activities, and personal development or soft-skills (The Malaysian Insider, 2012). In order to maintain the schools high performance, leadership is distributed throughout the school and its community and when teachers are empowered in areas they believe are important (Jacobson, 2010). According to Muhyiddin, Malaysian Education Minister, the objective of HPS is to ensure that all students regardless of stream, medium, or urban or rural locations would attain continuous excellence  (The Malaysian Insider, 2012). The principal and teachers from these schools are expected to set examples and share their experiences with counterparts in other institutions. Their accountability is outlined by a set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) relating to human resource development, physical development, financial management, professionalism among staff member, and school achievements (academic, co-curricular activities and aptitude) (MOE, 2008). According to MOE (2008), high performing schools are expected to bring about positive impact to the national education system through excellence in co-curricular activities programmes; exemplary career guidance programmes; outstanding all-rounded students that is 5.8% of 5.2 million students; acceptance of students from high performing schools at world renowned universities; government and private sector sponsorships; international acknowledgements; as benchmarks for other schools, both local and foreign; quality leadership; and excellent teachers. Theoretical and Conceptual underpinning Distributed leadership in which the leadership functions are shared, employs Theory Y as the leadership enables diverse individuals to contribute to the process of subtleties of leadership to shape collective action instead of the traditional vertical leadership process which separates leaders from followers as mutually exclusive categories. Conceptually, distributed leadership refers to democratic style of leadership to allow voices of influence beyond just one and increases participation of stakeholders. It de-monopolizes concentrated leadership and enhances delegation of authority, collective decision-making, power, influence and coordination to enable plurality of analyses and boundarylessness so that the organizational phenomena such as information systems, knowledge, cognition, learning systems and work can be distributed. As leadership expands to multiple players, it displays holistic framework and allows flexibility, open-endedness with overlapping expertise to complement and reinforce one another, and strengthened decision making commitment and quality, and further utilizes fully the resources of the schools to collaborate and collectively devise strategies to improve students progress. It eliminates the tightly drawn lines, borders, commands and control associated with a Weberian bureaucratic paradigm (Gronn, 2 008). Conceptually, distributed leadership is associated with notions of empowerment, teamwork, collegiality, staff motivation, capacity building, teacher leadership, professional autonomy and professional development (Muijs and Harris, 2007). According to Moyo (2010), collegiality results in strong professional culture in the school as it includes collaboration among teachers, mutual respect, shared work values, cooperation and specific conversation about teaching and learning. According to Ameijde et al. (2009), distributed leadership underpins is a shared influence process to which several individuals contribute; and leadership arises from the interactions of diverse individuals which together form a group of network in which essential expertise is a dispersed quality. Empowerment Empowerment of teachers is an essential component of distributed leadership. Distributed leadership disassociates from control and dominance but rather creates opportunity, support, space, capacity and growth among teachers by encouraging them to have the power to decide how to do the defined tasks and to get involved vigorously in school policies, curriculum and educational practices and voice their views openly without fear of retribution to experience a greater sense of efficacy. With empowerment, teachers are more motivated to take risks and committed to work with surprising ability as it cultivates teacher leadership which extends beyond their own classrooms to others within and across schools, and further enhances teacher involvement in collective and collaborative process of school decision-making that promote teacher learning to contribute widely to teaching and learning. The empowerment elevates teachers expertise, confidence and self-esteem as they have control over resources, methods and decision making and further to experiment with novel, cutting-edge teaching methods, and to evaluate their colleagues teaching performance through team work, selection of instructional materials and textbooks, curriculum development, school policies and plans, coordination of programmes, professional development, organizing visits to other schools, collaborating with colleagues, leading study groups and coaching and mentoring students which impacts positively on their effectiveness as teachers and to have a positive effect on students. Teamwork Teamwork which refers to setting up of teams by the headteachers with the need to work together on a common purpose is crucial for distributed leadership. This implies that the headteacher is willing to distribute leadership. The team must be equipped with clear goals and results driven, competency, unified commitment, collaboration climate based on trust to develop honest openness and respect, clear standards of excellence, and external support and recognition to achieve an optimum degree of synergy. With these characteristics, the team will have comprehensive knowledge and responsibility of student learning and outcomes. They further become role models for students to emulate. Capacity building Capacity building through collaboration and trusting relationship for mutual learning can be achieved with distributed leadership in order for teachers to become professional communities and to focus on teaching and learning as they participate in decision-making and have a shared sense of purpose so as to have a joint responsibility for the outcomes of their work. The capacity may be built by reviewing the performance of teachers, adding more resources, materials or technology and by restructuring the tasks so that teachers can work together, experiment, reflect and explore with colleagues to acquire new skills and practice of the profession. Capacity building enables continuous learning of teachers to enhance pupil learning. According to Harris (2002), the conditions for capacity building to create a learning culture may include commitment to teachers development, inclusion of teachers and students in school policies and decisions and collaborative planning with effective coordinat ion strategies. Teacher leadership research methodology

A Comparison of Dulce Et Decorum Est and Exposure Essay example -- Wil

A Comparison of Dulce Et Decorum Est and Exposure Traditional war poetry gives the idea of patriotic idealism of war. This style of poetry implies that war is patriotic and that people who fight for their country are honorable. But many of the poets do not portray war as it really is, by glossing over the gory details with attractive images. Many traditional war poems were written before the war to persuade and encourage young boys to become loyal soldiers. Many of the soldiers were taught to believe that they were the chosen few and they were delighted to take part. They even thanked God, ‘Now, God be thanked, Who had matched us with His hour’. The capital ‘H’ on ‘His’ implies the importance; meaning that ‘His hour’ is God’s war. This makes the soldiers even more delighted and thankful. And the worst occurrence would be death. But as it says in ‘The Soldier’ by Rupert Brooke, death doesn’t last long and everybody shall die at one point, so why not die honorably for your country? Owen and many other ww1 poets were a contrast to traditional poems. They wrote about war realistically. They wrote from personal experience. They include horrific details of death and injury. They also criticized those who were running the war. Wilfred Owen was born in 1893 into a middle-class family. His family came under financial difficulties and his education was stunted. Nether the less his ability of poetry writing grew fuelled by his reading of romantics. In his twenties he went through life going from one badly paid job to another. During this time he had little spare time to concentrate on writing poetry. In August 1914 Wilfred Owen found himself with a stable job as a private tutor of a French family in the ... ...ir personal, first hand experiences of the war. Owen met Sassoon at Craiglockhart War Hospital near Edinburgh. The two men worked together to write ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’, this partnership worked particularly well as both men had experiences of war and could express themselves in their poems. Although ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’ and ‘Exposure’ are different poems, they have their similarities. They are both written by a man who was awarded the Military Cross for bravery at Amiens, they both have the same theme (war and the effects, both short term and long term) and both are superbly written. Wilfred Owen experienced the terrors of war first hand and filtered his experiences into his work. That is why ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’ and ‘Exposure’ are such wonderful, emotive and interesting poems. Their writer had first hand experience of the horrors of warfare.

The Proper Golf Stance :: Expository Process Essays

The Proper Golf Stance While there are many factors in determining the outcome of a golf shot, setting up the proper golf stance is the foundation from which all other aspects essential to hitting a perfect shot are judged as success or failure. Proper stance is made up of proper implementation of multiple factors. The entire outcome (shot) depends on setting up properly. There are three elements that comprise the proper golf stance: grip, stance, and body placement. Your grip must be firm with hands in their proper places. The stance is crucial to making your weight shift correctly. The golfers' body placement must be comfortable, with all elements in their proper places. The proper golf starting position allows for the perfect golf shot. NOTE: The stance detailed below is for a right-handed person. Your hands must be placed in on the end of the club creating a grip. The backside of the left hand should be placed even with the end of the club. The right hand should be directly below the left with both thumbs pointing down the shaft (body of the club). Next lock the right pinky finger with the left index finger, turning you hands into a single unit. The left wrist should be bowed (curved outward) and never cupped (curved inward). The golfer should squeeze the club lightly. A common analogy is to hold the club like you would a bird, tight enough so it couldn't fly away but not so tight that you could kill it. The next crucial element is the stance. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart and parallel with the ground. To line up your feet, draw an imaginary line from your back (right) foot toe to your front (left) foot toe. Notice where this imaginary line points and you have a good indication of how you are lined up and where you are aiming your shot. The players weight should be on the inside of the right foot and knee. Hold the club with the proper grip next to the left leg. The club head should rest gently on the ground, centered approximately 18 inches in front of your toes. Allow the club head to lay centered behind the golf ball so it dose not touch or move it.

Kingship Comparison of Henry V and Beowulf Essay

This essay is a comparison of the kingship of King Henry V in the play â€Å"Henry V† written by William Shakespeare and Beowulf in the poem â€Å"Beowulf† translated by Seamus Heaney. The specific texts to be used for this purpose is the â€Å"Henry V† book of the Folger Shakespeare Library series and the â€Å"Beowulf† poem found in The Norton Anthology of English Literature 7th edition Volume 1, respectively. Henry the Fifth and Beowulf are ideal kings fit to become role models for the leaders of today because they have great ideas of their kingship and leadership which made them rule over each of their kingdoms with strength, courage and faith in God’s providence as their source of power. These similar qualities and characteristics make their kingship successful and fruitful. Henry the Fifth is worth emulating for he is a great and powerful king who holds his role as a king with highest regard. He manifests his ideas of kingship through his deeds throughout the play. First, he sees his kingship as a serious matter. Thus, he acts responsibly forgetting the â€Å"wildness† of his youth. This is evident in his sudden transformation from the wild Prince Hal that he was in the past to a responsible and mature King Henry V. This is what Canterbury observes and states: â€Å"The breath no sooner left his father’s body But that his wildness, mortified in him, Seem’d to die too: yea, at that very moment, Consideration, like an angel, came, And whipp’d the offending Adam out of him, Leaving his body as a paradise, To envelop and contain celestial spirits. Never was such a sudden scholar made; Never came reformation like a flood, With such a heady current, scouring faults; Nor never Hydra-headed wilfulness So soon did lose his seat, and all at once, As in this king† (Shakespeare, 13). This change in him is probably because of his desire to be respected as a ruler of his people. Indeed, he has matured over the time that he is required to stand up as a king. Second, he considers that his kingship depends on the will of the people. Hence, he consults his leaders before he makes a decision. He specifically asks information from the leaders of the church, the Bishops, about the Salic law and his rightful claim to France and if there should be a reason for him to go to war if the king of France won’t accede to his claim. He also expresses his worry about leaving the country to go to war against France. He finally decides to go to France after hearing the advice of the bishops and after listening to the insult of the Dauphin through his messenger (19-23). Third, he believes that a king should have restraint and self-control. That is why when he was insulted by the message of the Dauphin, he did not react irrationally. He showed cool-headedness with these words: â€Å"We are glad the Dauphin is so pleasant with us; His present and your pains we thank you for. When we have matched our rackets to these balls, we will in France, by God’s grace, play a set to strike his father’s crown into the hazard. † He also adds: â€Å"But tell the Dauphin, I will keep my state; Be like a king, and show my sail of greatness† (35). Moreover, he could have prevented the Dauphin’s messenger from coming out alive from England. Instead, he allowed him safe passage. If he were some other irrational king, he would have taken revenge right away. But he did not and thus, he showed his greatness as a king. He also chose his words well in sending his message to the Dauphin through his uncle Duke Exeter (75). Fourth, he assumes that a king should be brave and courageous to lead his soldiers to war. Therefore, he is not afraid to go to war even if it will cost his own life. He does not leave his soldiers on their own to fight for the country instead he goes along with them and encourages them to move on. Henry V admonishes his soldiers with these words: â€Å"But every rub is smoothed on our way. Then, forth, dear countrymen. Let us deliver Our puissance into the hand of God, Putting it straight in expedition† (65) and â€Å"We are in God’s hand, brother, not in theirs. March to the bridge† (119). Fifth, he has concern for his subordinates and his soldiers. When he was still contemplating to go to France to claim his rightful place, he thought of the women and the children who will be left behind when the men will go to war (29) especially that another country might attack their country if the king and all the men are away. He also became worried for his soldiers after he disguised as an ordinary man and talked to some of his soldiers (153). This concern is also demonstrated when he prays â€Å"O God of battles steel my soldiers’ hearts. Possess them not with fear† (155). Sixth, he knows that his kingship is not a reason for abuse. So when he and his troops have taken over the town of Harfleur, he commands his soldiers not to loot and he tells them to respect and show mercy to every citizen in that town. He charges Exeter to have mercy on the people and show fairness and justice because he wants to win the people’s loyalty and respect (99). Seventh, he understands that a king should practice impartiality. Thus, he gives punishment to anyone who violates a law of the land or his word even if the person is an old friend, and he gives rewards to anyone who deserves it. King Henry V manifests this characteristic when Lord Scroop who was very close to him, Earl of Cambridge and Sir Thomas Grey who are also old friends conspired with France to kill him. He then ordered that they be arrested for treason (59). Another instance was when he allowed the execution of Bardolph, a former companion in his younger days, for stealing a communion plate from a church (115). Eight, as a good leader he believes that a king needs to delegate work to his subordinates. This is what he did when he tells his uncle Exeter, brothers Clarence, Warwick and Gloster, and Huntington to â€Å"go with the King; And take with you free power to ratify, Augment, or alter, as your wisdoms best Shall see advantageable for our dignity, Anything in or out of our demands† (219). And most of all, he believes on a greater power who is the Almighty God whom he considers as his source of power. He continually refers to God in the play. King Henry says: â€Å"But this lies all within the will of God, To whom I do appeal† (37) when he decided to go to war against France. He expresses his anxiety by saying â€Å"God’s will, I pray thee wish not one man more. By Jove, I am not covetous for gold† (163) while his soldiers are fighting in the war. At the end of the battle, he speaks to God with these words: â€Å"O God, thy arm was here, And not to us, but to Thy arm alone Ascribe we all! – When, without stratagem, But in plain shock and even play of battle, Was ever known so great and little loss On one part and on th’ other? Take it, God, For it is none but thine† (199). King Henry V does not take the glory of the victory in the battle but he praises God for it. Similarly, Beowulf even before he was made a King of the Geats has the qualities of a good and great king as Henry the Fifth is and he is also worth imitating as a leader. The following are the ideas of kingship he manifested. First, Beowulf is compassionate as a leader. When he heard of Heorot’s predicament because of Grendel’s deeds, he went to Heorot to fight Grendel and freed Heorot of its miseries (lines 400-460). He has compassion towards people that is why he sacrifices even his own life to save others. Second, he uses his strength which is the gift that God has given him as a way to help people who are in need. This is the means by which he was able to defeat Grendel, Grendel’s mother and the Dragon in order to free the people who are attacked by these creatures. There are times when he is about to be defeated but because of the great strength which he believes comes from God, he is able to overcome his deadly and monstrous foes. Third, he is a brave and courageous warrior who never steps back from a challenge especially when he fights Grendel and Grendel’s mother. His bravery and courage can be seen throughout the poem. This was once again proven when as a king who is already old in age still hopes to fight the Dragon that has besieged his own land. Unfortunately, after he killed the Dragon, he also died. Fourth, he knows that a king should rule with discretion. He is even praised by Hrothgar with these words: â€Å"The Lord in his wisdom sent you those words that Beowulf is fit to be king of the Geats and they came† (lines 1840-1860). Fifth, as a leader, he has great concern and responsibility for his men. Thus, when he was about to go and fight Grendel, he asks Hrothgar to take care of his men because he might no longer come back alive with his fight against the monster. And the most important of Beowulf’s qualities as a warrior and ruler is that he looks up to God as his source of power, guidance and protection. Throughout the poem, God is praised with such words as: â€Å"in triumph and gladness. The truth is clear: Almighty God rules over mankind and always has† (line 700). Beowulf also expresses in the poem: â€Å"But the lord of Men allowed me to behold- for He often helps the unbefriended† and â€Å"If God had not helped me, the outcome would have been quick and fatal† referring to his fight with Grendel’s mother. In addition, he says: â€Å"So I praise God in his heavenly glory that I lived to behold† (line 1779). In conclusion, Henry the Fifth and Beowulf exhibit the good qualities of a great king anchored on strength, courage and faith in God’s providence. Both of them are wise, strong, brave, and devoted to God as their one and only source of power. They have very admirable traits which any king, ruler or leader in these modern days should pattern after. References â€Å"Beowulf†. Translated by Seamus Heaney. The Norton Anthology of English Literature 7th edition Volume 1. Eds. M. H. Abrams and Stephen Greenbalt. USA: W. W. Norton & Co. Inc. , 1999, 29-98. Shakespeare, William. â€Å"Henry V†. The Folger Shakespeare Library. Eds. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York: Washington Square Press. 1995.

Mini Usa Essay

Although there is millions of people watch the ads in TV, the most of â€Å"right† viewers miss it. For example, if only 1% of total viewers are potential consumers, the ad is not cost effective. – Recall or hold the information. It is difficult for people to recall or hold the information if they are interested in the product currently or in future. Internet advertising and online customization Emphasize on internet advertising and make an online customization service to potential consumers to design their own unique motors. MINI USA may take full advantage of customization of cars. This may also find some unknown consumers. Pros: -Huge viewers. Internet advertising can be viewed by a lot of viewers. -Internet advertising had reached a tipping point and was about to enter a period of accelerated growth. -Low cost Cons: -Senior citizens are not online in the same numbers as younger generations. -People may ignore ads when they are browsing webpages. Most people do not browse webpage aimless and they have a goal to find what they want, so they may ignore the ads. Recommendation Internet advertising and online customization would be recommended due to several reasons. Firstly, internet advertising is cost effective since it has a lower cost and can be viewed by a lot of people. Secondly, the television advertising and printed ads are declined. However, internet advertising was about to grow. Thirdly, online customization would be interesting, so consumers may send their customized motors to their friends and it may create more participants and discover more potential consumers. Finally, the potential buyers of MINI are

Life of Quaid E Azam After Independence

QUAID-E-AZAM’S LIFE AFTER THE INDEPENDENCE GOVERNOR-GENERAL: Jinnah became the first Governor-General of Pakistan and president of its constituent assembly. Inaugurating the assembly on August 11, 1947, Jinnah spoke of an inclusive and pluralist democracy promising equal rights for all citizens regardless of religion, caste or creed. This address is a cause of much debate in Pakistan as, on its basis, many claim that Jinnah wanted a secular state while supporters of Islamic Pakistan assert that this speech is being taken out of context when compared to other speeches by him.We should have a State in which we could live and breathe as free men and which we could develop according to our own lights and culture and where principles of Islamic social justice could find free play. The office of Governor-General was ceremonial, but Jinnah also assumed the lead of government. The first months of Pakistan’s independence were absorbed in ending the intense violence that had aris en in the wake of acrimony between Hindus and Muslims. Jinnah agreed with Indian leaders to uthoriz a swift and secure exchange of populations in the Punjab and Bengal.He visited the border regions with Indian leaders to calm people and encourage peace, and uthorize large-scale refugee camps. Despite these efforts, estimates on the death toll vary from around two hundred thousand, to over a million people. The estimated number of refugees in both countries exceeds 15 million. The then capital city of Karachi saw an explosive increase in its population owing to the large encampments of refugees, which personally affected and depressed Jinnah.In his first visit to East Pakistan, under the advice of local party leaders, Jinnah stressed that Urdu alone should be the national language; a policy that was strongly opposed by the Bengali people of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). This opposition grew after he controversially described Bengali as the language of Hindus. Jinnah uthorized force to achieve the annexation of the princely state of Kalat and suppress the insurgency in Baluchistan.He controversially accepted the accession of Junagadh—a Hindu-majority state with a Muslim ruler located in the Saurashtra peninsula, some 400 kilometres (250 mi) southeast of Pakistan—but this was annulled by Indian intervention. It is unclear if Jinnah planned or knew of the tribal invasion from Pakistan into the kingdom of Jammu and Kashmir in October 1947, but he did send his private secretary Khurshid Ahmed to observe developments in Kashmir.When informed of Kashmir’s accession to India, Jinnah deemed the accession illegitimate and ordered the Pakistani army to enter Kashmir. However, Gen. Auchinleck, the supreme commander of all British officers informed Jinnah that while India had the right to send troops to Kashmir, which had acceded to it, Pakistan did not. If Jinnah persisted, Auchinleck would remove all British officers from both sides. As Pakistan had a greater proportion of Britons holding senior command, Jinnah cancelled his order, but protested to the United Nations to intercede. The New AwakeningAs a result of Jinnah's ceaseless efforts, the Muslims awakened from what Professor Baker calls (their) â€Å"unreflective silence† (in which they had so complacently basked for long decades), and to â€Å"the spiritual essence of nationality† that had existed among them for a pretty long time. Roused by the impact of successive Congress hammerings, the Muslims, as Ambedkar (principal author of independent India's Constitution) says, â€Å"searched their social consciousness in a desperate attempt to find coherent and meaningful articulation to their cherished yearnings.To their great relief, they discovered that their sentiments of nationality had flamed into nationalism†. In addition, not only had they developed† the will to live as a â€Å"nation†, had also endowed them with a territory which they could occupy and make a State as well as a cultural home for the newly discovered nation. These two pre-requisites, as laid down by Renan, provided the Muslims with the intellectual justification for claiming a distinct nationalism (apart from Indian or Hindu nationalism) for themselves.So that when, after their long pause, the Muslims gave expression to their innermost yearnings, these turned out to be in favor of a separate Muslim nationhood and of a separate Muslim state. Demand for Pakistan –  Ã¢â‚¬Å"We are a nation† â€Å"We are a nation†, they claimed in the ever eloquent words of the Quaid-i-Azam. â€Å"We are a nation with our own distinctive culture and civilization, language and literature, art and architecture, names and nomenclature, sense of values and proportion, legal laws and moral code, customs and calendar, history and tradition, aptitudes and ambitions; in short, we have our own distinctive outlook on life and of life.By all canons of inter national law, we are a nation†. The formulation of the Muslim demand for Pakistan in  1940  had a tremendous impact on the nature and course of Indian politics. On the one hand, it shattered for ever the Hindu dreams of a pseudo-Indian, in fact, Hindu empire on British exit from India: on the other, it heralded an era of Islamic renaissance and creativity in which the Indian Muslims were to be active participants. The Hindu reaction was quick, bitter, malicious.Equally hostile were the British to the Muslim demand, their hostility having stemmed from their belief that the unity of India was their main achievement and their foremost contribution. The irony was that both the Hindus and the British had not anticipated the astonishingly tremendous response that the Pakistan demand had elicited from the Muslim masses. Above all, they failed to realize how a hundred million people had suddenly become supremely conscious of their distinct nationhood and their high destiny.In chan nelling the course of Muslim politics towards Pakistan, no less than in directing it towards its consummation in the establishment of Pakistan in  1947, non played a more decisive role than did Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah. It was his powerful advocacy of the case of Pakistan and his remarkable strategy in the delicate negotiations, that followed the formulation of the Pakistan demand, particularly in the post-war period, that made Pakistan inevitable. ILLNESS AND DEATH: The Funeral of Jinnah in 1948. Tomb of M. A.Jinnah in Karachi, Pakistan Through the 1940s, Jinnah suffered from tuberculosis; only his sister and a few others close to him were aware of his condition. In 1948, Jinnah’s health began to falter, hindered further by the heavy workload that had fallen upon him following Pakistan’s independence from British Rule. Attempting to recuperate, he spent many months at his official retreat in Ziarat. According to his sister, he suffered a hemorrhage on Septem ber 1, 1948; doctors said the altitude was not good for him and that he should be taken to Karachi. Jinnah was flown back to Karachi from Quetta.Jinnah died at 10:20 p. m. at the Governor-General’s House in Karachi on 11 September 1948, just over a year after Pakistan’s independence. It is said that when the then Viceroy of India, Lord Louis Mountbatten, learned of Jinnah’s ailment he said ‘had they known that Jinnah was about to die, they’d have postponed India’s independence by a few months as he was being inflexible on Pakistan’. Jinnah was buried in Karachi. His funeral was followed by the construction of a massive mausoleum—Dina Wadia remained in India after independence, before ultimately settling in New York City.Jinnah’s grandson, Nusli Wadia, is a prominent industrialist residing in Mumbai. In the 1963–1964 elections, Jinnah’s sister Fatima Jinnah, known as Madar-e-Millat (â€Å"Mother of the Natio n†), became the presidential candidate of a coalition of political parties that opposed the rule of President Ayub Khan, but lost the election. The Jinnah House in Malabar Hill, Bombay, is in the possession of the Government of India but the issue of its ownership has been disputed by the Government of Pakistan.Jinnah had personally requested Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to preserve the house and that one day he could return to Mumbai. There are proposals for the house be offered to the Government of Pakistan to establish a consulate in the city, as a goodwill gesture, but Dina Wadia has also laid claim to the property. Recently she has been involved in litigation regarding Jinnah House claiming that Hindu Law is applicable to Jinnah as he was a Khoja Shia. LEGACY: Few individuals significantly alter the course of history.Fewer still modify the map of the world. Hardly anyone can be credited with creating a nation-state. Muhammad Ali Jinnah did all three. Pakistanis view Jinnah as their revered founding father, a man that was dedicated to safeguarding Muslim interests during the dying days of the British Raj. Despite any of a range of biases, it almost impossible to doubt, despite motive and manner, that there is any figure that had more influence and role in the creation of Pakistan than Jinnah. The End

Can technology improve diversity in hiring

Can technology improve diversity in hiring Improving diversity in all aspects of our cultural and business environment is an ever-increasing concern in the twenty-first century. While certain strides have been made in ensuring that people of all genders, races, nationalities, religions, and orientations are better represented in our society, these efforts have only just begun. Hopefully, far greater strides are to come in our collective future. According to Jeanette Maister, the managing director, head of Americas at Oleeo, that hope may arrive in the form of artificial intelligence (AI).Oleeo is a London-based company that provides solutions for companies looking to acquire new talent. Before joining Oleeo, Maister led recruiting efforts at such companies as Lehamn Brothers and Gartner, so she has a very firm background in hiring. In such roles, she has also witnessed the flaws in common hiring practices. Despite the desire of many companies to reflect society’s diversity more accurately in their hiring processes, man y businesses just can’t seem to get with the times. They have no established processes for ensuring greater diversity. In fact, as Maister recently told SHRM Online, many companies are â€Å"still doubling down on the same approaches they have used since the 1960s.† She says that such half-hearted efforts are more about avoiding lawsuits than actually improving diversity. In many cases, these â€Å"efforts† to increase diversity are downright backward, as potential employers only consider whether or not applicants were sufficiently diverse after those applicants had been interviewed.Maister sees technology as a possible solution to this problem. By using AI programs and Big Data to select the ideal person to fill a position, the biases of recruiters are less of an issue- these programs make automatic decisions based on myriad data points. It is essentially a computer-based form of blind screening, which is a hiring process that removes all identification informa tion from an applicant’s application and resume. AI can focus only on skills and experience rather than factors such as name, age, and gender that could provoke bias.Improving diversity in the workplace is not as easy as merely blocking out applicants’ personal information. It is a matter of ensuring that all phases of the hiring process are balanced and unbiased; it is also a matter of adjusting the language of job posts to be more inclusive, such as using gender-free pronouns in help-wanted ads. Some companies are already using technology that scans job descriptions for gender bias to help manage this issue. Algorithms and intelligent automation can also be used to cut the fat from job descriptions so that they only focus on the skills and duties essential to the given job. This will be a boon for women, who are more likely to ensure that they meet every criterion in a job description before applying than men are. In other words, by streamlining job descriptions, wom en will be more likely to apply to those positions.Of course, to create a completely unbiased hiring process, the hiring technology itself must be free of bias. After all, these systems are programmed by human beings who come with their own baggage and may possess personal prejudices that can end up in the very programs intended to curb bias. Maister reveals that a solution to that potential problem is to make the selection compliance rates of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission an essential part of the algorithm.hbspt.cta.load(2785852, '9e52c197-5b5b-45e6-af34-d56403f973c5', {});This is just the beginning of a new age in which technology is used to improve diversity in the workplace. New regulations will likely be set in place as the technology improves, and existing technology must be scrutinized to ensure that it utilizes sound data. Like all aspects of progress, improving diversity in hiring is a process, but hopefully the end result will be greater representation of all genders, races, nationalities, religions, and orientations in the workplace.