How parents participate in their children's education Literature review

How parents participate in their children's education - Literature review Example This research will begin with the statement that parent participation in children’s schooling and education is an essential ingredient in the children’s academic success. The study focused on facilitation of increased parental involvement in the education of their children in a multi-ethnic elementary school, California. The findings revealed that students whose parents got actively involved in their education scored better grades and showed more commitment to school work.   Suc involvement included regular discussion of child progress with the teacher, checking if the student did their homework, offering remedial work, and offering educational advice.The findings were supported by a later study by BECTA which reported that parents who paid little attention to their children’s education risked having their children perform below par academically. Notably, students who parents actively involved themselves in their academics scored and the average of 55% in contr ast to an average of 43.6 attributed to students who parents were less concerned about their progress in school. As a matter of fact, the study reported a positive correlation between parental involvement and children’s academic performance. Williams & Chavkin, on the other hand, deviated from conventional research which assesses level of parental involvement based on students' academic performance; rather, the researchers sought ways to which parents involve themselves in education of children

The Changing Face Of Youth Transitions Social Policy Essay

The Changing Face Of Youth Transitions Social Policy Essay Whether a young person is from a richer or poorer family may determine the age and the level of difficulty of going from a young person to an adult. The definition of youth transition seems vague. It generally means the time period when young people take increasing responsibility for themselves, their relationships and the decisions about their lives that shape their future prospects (HM Treasury, 2007). It is a principle that can be applied that to several key areas of adulthood, such as transition from education to work, moving out from home and starting a new family. The aim of this essay is to look at how social background could affect how long the speed of someones transitions in the mentioned areas. It will attempt to come to a conclusion afterwards. For simplicity, social class will be divided into working-class and middle-class. First of all is the transition from education to work. The main theory linking social class with this transition is that adolescents from middle-class backgrounds are more likely to stay in education at university level than youths from less well-off backgrounds. This could be because of more than one reason. This is because a persons level of education is likely to affect their childrens. For example, a mother from the working-class probably would not have had a higher education and may not have performed well in school as a child or adolescent herself. As a consequence, she may not have seen education as important as a parent from a middle-class background. This could possibly affect her childs education in two ways. The first way is that the parents unfavourable attitude towards education means that they are unlikely to encourage their child to pursue a university education. This is referred to by Jones (2002, p.9) as cultural capital. The second way is that parents who did not do well academically might have, as a result, low expectations of their children, expecting them to be similar to their parents. This would also mean parents not favouring university education. The importance of these two relationships between a parents social background, cultural capital and low expectation, is that children who do not study at university level (normally a three year course) are likely to get some form of employment sooner than those who go to university. For the same reasons, teenagers from wealthier backgrounds probably have better educated parents and are, perhaps, expected to attain a university degree. From this, it can be said that social class may influence the timing of transition to adulthood as children from less well-off backgrounds are more likely to move from education to employment earlier than those from middle-class backgrounds. It can also be said that this transition is made earlier and easier for working-class youths simply because their parents cannot afford to pay for their university fees. Therefore there is little choice for them but to get a job. This is another example of the influence of social class. Teenagers from a wealthier background could have the option to delay transition into work by furthering their qualifications at university, because there is money available from their parents or other sources. On the other hand, however, this theory is may not be very convincing. This is because there is usually financial aid available to those who do not have the money themselves, such as government loans, grants and university bursaries. According to Jones (2002), 68% of student income is from loans. This suggests that a high amount of higher education students are from backgrounds that cannot themselves afford it. The relevance of this is that it gives the impression that the influence of social class on transition from education to work is minimal, as many working-class children are also pursuing higher education in recent times. It is also crucial to consider domestic youth transitions. The first is the change a young person experiences from living in their parents houses to living independently. Living independently means that the adolescent is living in accommodation financed by his or herself. This links together with the education-employment transition as university students, although most of them are living away from home, are not living fully independently because it is most likely their parents who are responsible for their childs education and university accommodation fees. It was claimed earlier in this essay that middle-class adolescents are expected to go to university more than those from a poorer background. From this it could be said that the moving from home transition may occur earlier for those from the working-class as they will go into employment sooner than those from wealthier backgrounds. The relationship between social class and standard of living may be important. Using economic intuition, it can be said that higher income and wealth leads to a higher standard of living as more luxury goods and services become affordable. Therefore young people from middle-class backgrounds would enjoy a higher standard of living than youths from working-class backgrounds. This is surely influential over the time and ease of the transition of leaving home. This is because high living standards may reduce the incentive for young people from middle-class backgrounds as they are enjoying a higher quality of life while living with their parents. It is probable that moving away from home and earning their own living would reduce their quality of life as they will not be able to afford it in the short-term. Those from working-class background, however, do not have this quality of life and therefore have more reason and enticement to move out of home and aim to make a better living from hi s or her self. Another domestic transition is a youth going from their family of origin to starting a new family. This could mean having children. Before this, it is important to consider why a young woman would have a planned pregnancy. According to Carter and Coleman (2006), an unsettled childhood can be a key factor in this fast-track transition. Separation of parents and domestic violence are usually more associated with people of working-class background than any other. It can be claimed that teenagers that have separated parents and difficult family relationships desire a baby to achieve more stability in their lives something which they believe being a parent may bring. An unsettled background could also result in the youth abandoning home. This suggests that teenagers from less-wealthy backgrounds may make the family transition or the leaving-home transition earlier than those from richer families. Another theory is that poor educational achievement and bullying may prompt young women to c hange to a different life course such as parenthood (Carter and Coleman, 2006), but it is difficult to link this to social class. In fact, the issues of separated parents and domestic violence affect middle-class families too, undermining the strength and validity of the previous point. From the analysis above, it can be said that social class seems to have some influence over the timing and ease of youth transitions. It appears that all the mentioned transitions employment, moving out of parental home and parenthood seem to happen earlier and with more ease for children of working-class background. However, it is difficult to conclude the extent to which social class affects youth transitions. There are also other factors that need to be looked at such as the individual characteristics of a young person or the role of ethnicity in youth transitions (Cassidy. et al, 2006). Overall, social class might has some influence over the timing and ease of youth transitions through the family situations, academic expectations and living standards typically associated with that particular social background. Reference List Jones, G. (2002). The youth divide: diverging paths to adulthood. Joseph Rowntree Foundation Carter, S. and Coleman, L. (2006) Planned teenage pregnancy: Views and experiences of young people from poor and disadvantaged backgrounds, York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation Cassidy, C. et al (2006). Young peoples experiences of transition to adulthood: a study of minority ethnic and white young people. Joseph Rowntree Foundation HM Treasury Department for Children, Schools and Families (2007) Aiming high for young people: a ten year strategy for positive activities [Online], Available: http://publications.dcsf.gov.uk/eOrderingDownload/PU214.pdf [July 2007]

Bipolar disorder Essay example -- essays research papers fc

The Bipolar Child – A New Emergence   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The bipolar child is a relatively neglected childhood diagnosis that is the subject of great controversy in the fields of clinical and child psychiatry and psychology. Diagnosis and treatment of such a devastating disorder is very difficult due to several different factors, including, Childhood-onset Bipolar Disorder (COBPD) does not have its own criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - Fourth Edition (DSM-IV), published by the American Psychiatric Association, Washington D.C., 1994, the main diagnostic reference of Mental Health professionals in the United States of America, a child shares the same criteria standards as an adult, plus there are several similarities in COBPD and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), causing some misdiagnosis, and the simple fact that there is little reference to the disorder in a medical and psychiatric field afraid to step into the world of childhood mood disorders.(Papolos NARSAD 2003, P opper 1989, NIMH 2000) Only until recently has more research and development been conducted on COPBD. According to the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria, a person must have at least five of the following symptoms during the same two week period to qualify as a major depressive episode: a depressed mood lasting most of the day for several days, a significant weight gain or weight loss, a loss of interest in activities, difficulty sleeping or an increased need for sleep, restlessness or slowed pace observable by others, daily fatigue, feelings of guilt or worthlessness, inability to concentrate, or recurrent thoughts of death. For a mixed episode, a person must display symptoms of depression and mania every day during at least a one-week period. A manic episode is described as elevated or abnormally irritable for at least one week, with a least three of the following: personal greatness, decreased need for sleep, extreme talkativeness, â€Å"racing† thoughts, distractibility or hypersexuality (excessive sexual activity, or sexual desire). The DSM-IV states that these symptoms must inte rfere with daily functioning and not be a result of the effects of drugs, medical condition, or temporary results from a traumatic event for all of these; depression, mixed state, and mania. The Child and Adolescent Bipolar Foundation lists four types of mood disor... ..., Anita Ph.D. About Bipolar Disorder (Manic Depression Illness). Kluger, Jeffrey and Song, Sora. Young and Bipolar Time.com. Time archive. August 19,2002. Letters Time.com. Time Archive. September 9,2002 Moyer, Paula. ADHD Kids May Have Bipolar Disorder, Too -Treating ADHD Alone May Worsen Bipolar Symptoms. WebMD Medical News. Oct. 29,2002. Papolos, Demitri F. M.D. Childhood-onset Bipolar Disorder: Under-diagnosed, Under-treated and Under Discussion, NARSAD Research. 2003. Papolos, Dimitri F. M.D. and Papolos, Janice. The Irrepressible Agenda of Children With Bipolar Disorder. The Bipolar Child Newsletter. October 2002. Vol.12. Popper, Charles M.D. Diagnosing Bipolar vs. ADHD. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Summer, 1989. Helping Children with Early-Onset Bipolar To Learn â€Å"A Guide for Teachers and Administrators† prepared by Parents of Children with Early-Onset Bipolar The BPParent Listserv. Owner/Founder S.M. Tomie Burke Weller EB, Weller RA, Fristad MA. Bipolar diagnosis in children: misdiagnosis, under diagnosis, and future directions. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 1995; 34(6); 709-714.

Airbus V Boeing

Airbus v. Boeing Unit 8 Case Study MT330-01 International Marketing Kaplan University Christina Olson November 14, 2011 Airline manufacturers must compete with one another to be successful, and have the most birds in the sky. Boeing and Airbus are the two largest manufacturers for commercial aircraft, especially those used for long flights. Iberia Airlines wanted to purchase up to 12 brand new jumbo jets from one of these manufacturers. Enrique Dupuy, Iberia’s CFO, set a price that he wanted the company to pay for the aircraft and then started a bidding war between the two super jumbo jet manufacturers. Negotiation between two major companies like Airbus and Boeing can make a marketing strategy very strong or the complete opposite, it can cause a strategy to crumble to pieces in an instant. Airbus and Boeing both have dedicated sales representatives, Bight of Boeing and Leahy to their jobs very serious and developed a marketing plan like none other. These two gentlemen understood one important thing when it comes to marketing, plans must be able to adapt to change at any given moment. Prior to the beginning of the negotiation Airbus had an advantage of Boeing. Iberia Airline were currently using the manufacturers largest plane (Michaels, 2003). Airbus had already established a solid reputation with the airline company. Dupuy was familiar with Airbus’s resale guarantee, which was hard to beat by any other company (Michaels, 2003). Although Airbus had previous history with the airline company, Dupuy wanted to look at other manufacturers to get the best competitive price. Bright was personally contacted by Iberia Airlines to begin a negotiation process in hopes that he would be able to meet the predetermined price set by Dupuy (Michaels, 2003). Bright’s marketing strategy was geared to the fact that these planes could save more money in the long run while earning more revenue. He not only explained to Dupuy Boeing 777 could hold 24 more seats than Airbus which generated more revenue per flight (Michael, 2003). These aircrafts also used less fuel, allowing for expense to be dispersed to areas other than fuel (Michaels, 2003). Leahy did not let the extra seats and lower fuel usage discourage him during negotiations. During the meeting with Dupuy, Leahy reminded Dupuy that Airbus guarantees resale value of all aircraft plus the lower initial cost of purchasing the aircraft (Michaels, 2003). He provided numbers of how much the company would save by keeping Airbus, the price of extra parts and pilot training (Michaels, 2003). All of these costs were expense that would save the airline company millions of dollars upfront. Despite the good marketing and negotiation strategies by both manufacturing companies, Dupuy was not happy. Dupuy set a price that he wanted the two corporations to meet, or he would look into purchasing used aircraft (Michaels, 2003). This made both men return to their home company and refigure the marketing strategies. Each company offered perks such as financing, maintenance discounts, and sufficient amount of parts. Negotiation between the aircraft manufacturer and the airline company was not an easy task. Each time Bright or Dupuy offered a new contract; Dupuy rejected it asking for more discounts in price. He would also contact the other manufacturer, causing uproar to try to beat the prior suggested contract. The negotiation between Iberia Airlines and the manufacturing companies went on for over a year. Bright and Leahy were constantly adjusting their marketing strategy to fit the need of the airline company. These two men had to not only negotiate with the airline company but with the finance company and the company that makes the parts and engines (Michaels, 2003). It was a never ending task until Dupuy finally decided on which company enter into contract with. During the end of the negotiations, Dupuy stood firm in his set price; he refused to settle. Boeing and Airbus had very strong marketing strategies that had to change constantly in order to not only meet the expectations of the buyer but to overcome the bid of the competitor. Even though Boeing had strong factors, such as the decreased fuel expense and increased income from more passengers, Airbus won the negotiation. Leahy was able to meet all of the expectations set by Dupuy, better financing, decreased price but most of all the guarantee return on sale of the aircraft for 20 years (Michaels, 2003). During the negotiation process both aircraft manufacturers were focused mainly on numbers. Another aspect of a marketing strategy should have been safety and consumer choice. Airbus was noted to have a system that not all pilots trust â€Å"Fly-by-the-wire,† causing planes to malfunction and plunge 100s of feet in seconds (Bland, 2009). Both of these factors can play a major role in how many passengers choose to fly with one airline company over another because of the aircraft used. Had either of the manufacturers used these two simple areas in their marketing strategy the negotiation outcome could have been different. Reference Bland, A. (July 1, 2009). The Big Question: Why was another Airbus crashed, and is flying Becoming more risky?. The Independent, Retrieved from http://www. independent. co. uk/news/world/africa/ the-big-question-why-has-another -airbus-crashed-and-is-flying-becoming-more-risky-1726056. html Michaels, D. (March 10, 2003). Boeing and Airbus in the Dogfight to Meet Stringent Terms of Iberia’s Executives. The Wall Street Journal Europe, Dow Jones & Co. –

Human Relations Case Study

Human Relations Human relations can be defined as a study of group behavior for the purpose of improving interpersonal and social relationships in work environment. In order to improve work productivity, achieve successful teamwork and understand the importance of managing people, it is necessary for managers to develop appropriate ways how to do it. Human relations management has become a concern of many companies. To increase work productivity each company must create a way how to motivate their employees, see them as individuals and not machines, and provide them with good working conditions.Since human being is the main key factor of the organization, managers should always be encouraged to seek for new opportunities for the company growth. Human relations movement approach was started and established by Elton Mayo – a Harvard professor who is most famous for the well-known Hawthorne studies experiment at the Hawthorne plant of Western Electric Company in Chicago,USA. Mayo conducted and analyzed the experiment for several years. The intention of the experiment was to investigate the relationship between work conditions and productivity by examining environmental influences at workplace.After a while experiment moved on to the psychological aspects as well. During this research, new approaches to motivation, social relations and employee care were developed in order to increase work performance and productivity. Experiment gave an opportunity to understand human behavior in groups and their needs in work environment. The experiment had four stages- illumination studies, relay assembly test room, interviewing process and bank wiring observation room. For the first stage, there were selected workers from the Hawthorne plant. Workers were separated in groups and placed under the eye of supervisor in separate test rooms.The idea was to research and determine relationship between illumination in workplace and employee work efficiency, by increasing or decr easing lighting in the test rooms. The final results were confusing and everyone thought that the experiment has failed, because despite of the increase or decrease of lighting-productivity has been increased or stayed the same at all times. Researchers tried to figure out different theories, why it has happened. The general conclusion was that illumination is not the most important factor of output. After this stage change in employee’s behavior was discovered, workers felt important and knew that the work erformance will be researched. Researchers decided to call this phenomenon as Hawthorne effect. This unusual effect is still noticeable in nowadays and it has a big role in human relations management. For example, clinical research organizations- when patients are randomized for the trial, organization is subordinating patients for the Hawthorne effect. Patient health is studied for a long period of time and special attention is received from many employees. Clinical trial organizations usually choose two randomization options for patients-giving the actual trial medicine or the placebo medicine, which is not a real treatment.In most of the cases, clinical trial measures can result either in true or false improvement, which is caused by Hawthorne effect. In clinical research industry important factor is not only scientific, but also psychological effect, because without investigating human factors, finding necessary answers would be much harder, if the theory would be based only on scientific and medical impacts. The second stage of the experiment was relay assembly test room. Again there were selected people from the Hawthorn plant and divided in groups.This stage was conducted to investigate importance of working hours, lunch breaks, rest periods, wages etc. There were numerous questions that needed to be answered in order to understand how to manage efficient working day. That is why researchers kept changing rest periods, work weeks, wages, super visory practices etc. This stage had the same effect as the illumination stage- no matter what change researchers introduced; productivity either increased or stayed the same. After this stage the most important conclusion was that material gains are not as important as the social processes at the workplace.Every company must pay attention to employee well being, in order to establish positive working conditions and improve employee motivation scheme. One of the most popular motivation programs in nowadays is the â€Å"Employee of the month† title. Organizations make effort to analyze employee’s accomplishments every month. That is a simple way how to say â€Å"thank you† for the effort that has been made and motivate for even more successful results by granting workers with the special title and, in some cases, even with material bonus. The third stage at the Hawthorne plant was interview process.Over 21,000 of employees were interviewed by the time of three ye ars to find out the reasons for the increased productivity in previous two stages. Questionnaires were about everything what affect employees working conditions. Workers were allowed to talk about anything, but not always the answers were truthful or useful for the experiment. During the interviews Mayo thought that he had spread his research too wide and too far, because many of the answers were too vague. At the end of the interviews, researchers were surprised by the unpredictable results again.Investigators came to revelation that employees started to reveal more of personal facts, by the time of interviewing. Rather than giving direct answers, workers chose to speak about their personal life details and issues. After this stage became clear, that each person has their own individuality and important fact for the employers is to create certain trainings and interview processes-applicable for every employee. Also it is important to create surveys for employees and clients as well , to make sure that the company is moving forward, not backwards.For example, worldwide hotel â€Å"Premier Inn† has created survey called â€Å"Your say† (Premier Inn, 2011), which is a short questionnaire for employees and guests. By asking questions about the guest satisfactory level, â€Å"Premier Inn† can summarize information and create a plan how to avoid from biggest mistakes and also consider guest recommendations. Survey is also for employees-to make sure every single employee is satisfied and after the survey there is possibility to organize meetings and discuss negative or positive outcomes of their responsibilities.Most of the companies use these surveys in nowadays, to strengthen and improve their business. The last stage at the bank wiring room in Chicago was conducted to study behavior of the workers in informal groups, and research the social structure and its importance at the workplace. Overall conclusion for this stage: when humans interact w ith each other for a long period of time, various social structures are being created. Work productivity is affected by social processes at workplace, which is why important factor in every organization is communication.Many companies use informal meetings to strengthen employees, by creating different team building programs, so employees doesn’t feel like that is a compulsory task to attend. Overall, the main characteristics of the Hawthorne experiment theory are still noticeable in nowadays. Motivation, social relations, employee care/needs in work environment and behavior of groups are the basics of the human relations movement. Elton Mayo’s experiment was a major historical event and even though Hawthorne studies received a lot of criticism, it was a huge step in human relations management.While Scientific Management looked at technology and processes, Mayo found that the real key to high productivity lies within the people and â€Å"work units,† or groups, in the organization (Odportal 2011). Human satisfaction will always lead to productivity, which is why communication at workplace is important factor to achieve positive results. Also motivated workers are always more committed to their job-this was one of the most important characteristics in Hawthorne experiment. Without human relations theory, working conditions would be slightly different nowadays.Every person has their own individuality and needs, why it is important for organizations to take care of employees, make their own researches and seek for different options how to keep employees interested and motivated at all times. References 1. A Fast Learner’s Guide to Leadership. The Human Relations Movement. http://www. odportal. com/leadership/fastlearner/humanrelations. html -accessed 01/11/2011 [i. p. 1] 2. Guest Recommend Survey http://www. premierinn. com/en/why/contact_us/guest-recommend-survey. html – accessed 01/11/2011 [i. p. 1]