Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Ugly renaissance babies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ugly renaissance babies - Essay Example In renaissance, painters gave careful consideration to muscles, fat, plurals, than excellence. Furthermore the style got popular to a considerable measure of painters. While painting infants they attempted to make nitty gritty look so when somebody paints skin plurals on children they look like old ones, I mean painters demonstrated their system on skin subtle elements. In the event that you take a gander at infants face they have a few plurals of fat on their skin, yet in genuine they are not exceptionally detectable and we see immaculate skin yet in the event that we look closer and attempt to draw all that subtle elements on paper it will look monstrous. So cute face need to be drawn obviously and painstakingly, and I dont intend to say that renaissance painters are not experts, I cherish the greater part of them. Be that as it may that was their style. Renaissance children were not generally expected to be practical. Renaissance craftsmanship is about religious imagery. The figures are intended to be rousing and common; the congregation was about holding social order under control, and utilizing symbolization to bond the enormity of god, and the congregation, in individuals personalities. The ability and expertise still beams through years after the fact in Old Master artworks, yet the Renaissance craftsmen more than once did something that we dither at today. They painted kids like scaled down old men. This was presumably because of the way that the idea of youth is a moderately late pattern ever, however in some fifteenth and sixteenth century meets expectations, it would appear that the painter never looked at a child. I think that great number of the Renaissance Babies are not particularly missed formed they are simply merciless accurate to-life. Maybe we want individuals, babies, in sketches to look a bit "upgraded." Well the Renaissance craftsmen clearly finished not. I think they were simply

Monday, October 28, 2019

Basic Electronics Essay Example for Free

Basic Electronics Essay The p-n junction is a homojunction between a p-type and an n-type semiconductor. It acts as a diode, which can serve in electronics as a rectifier, logic gate, voltage regulator (Zener diode), switching or tuner (varactor diode); and in optoelectronics as a light-emitting diode (LED), laser diode, photodetector, or solar cell. In a relatively simplified view of semiconductor materials, we can envision a semiconductor as having two types of charge carriers-holes and free electrons which travel in opposite directions when the semiconductor is subject to an external electric field, giving rise to a net flow of current in the direction of the electric field. Figure 1 illustrates the concept. A p-n junction consists of a p-type and n-type section of the same semiconductor materials in metallurgical contact. The p-type region has an abundance of holes (majority carriers) and a few mobile electrons (minority carriers); the n-type region has an abundance of mobile electrons and a few holes (Fig. 2). Both charge carriers are in continuous random thermal motion in all directions. Fig. 2. Energy levels and carrier concentrations for a p-type and n-type semiconductor before contact. 1 When a section of p-type material and a section of n-type material are brought in contact to form a pn junction, a number of interesting properties arise. The pn junction forms the basis of the semiconductor diode. Electrons and holes diffuse from areas of high concentration toward areas of low concentration. Thus, electrons diffuse from the n-region to the p-region. , leaving behind positively charged ionized donor atoms. In the p-region the electrons recombine with the abundant holes. Similarly, holes diffuse from the p-region into the n-region, leaving behind negatively charged ionized acceptor atoms. In the n-region the holes recombine with the abundant mobile electrons. This diffusion process does not continue indefinitely, however, because it causes a disruption of the charge balance in the two regions. As a result, a narrow region on both sides of the junction becomes nearly depleted of the mobile charge carriers. This region is called the depletion layer. It contains only the fixed charges (positive ions on the n-side and negative ions on the p-side). The thickness of the depletion layer in each region is inversely proportional to the concentration of dopants in the region. The net effect is that, the depletion region sees a separation of charge, giving rise to an electric field pointing from the n side to the p side. The fixed charges create an electric field in the depletion layer that points from the n-side towards the p-side of the junction. The charge separation therefore causes a contact potential (also known as built-in potential) to exist at the junction. This built-in field obstructs the diffusion of further mobile carriers through the junction region. An equilibrium condition is established that results in a net contact potential difference Vo between the two sides of the depletion layer, with the n-side exhibiting a higher potential than the p-side. This contact potential is typically on the order of a few tenths of a volt and depends on the material (about 0. 5 to 0. 7 V for silicon). The built-in potential provides a lower potential energy for an electron on the n-side relative to the p-side. As a result, the energy bands bend as shown in Fig. 3. In thermal equilibrium there is only a single Fermi function for the entire structure so that the Fermi levels in the p- and the n-regions must align. No net current flows across the junction. The currents associated with the diffusion and built-in field (drift current) cancel for both the electrons and holes. Fig. 3. A p-n junction in the Thermal equilibrium at T gt; 0? K. The depletion-layer, energy-band diagram, and concentrations (on a logarithmic scale) of the mobile electrons n(x) and holes p(x) are shown as a functions of the position x. The built-in potential difference V corresponds to the energy eV where e is the electron charge. 0 0 2 The Biased p-n Junction An externally applied potential will alter the potential difference between the p- and n-regions. This in turn will modify the flow of majority carriers, so that the junction can be used as a â€Å"gate†. If the junction is forward biased by applying a positive voltage V to the p-region (Fig. 4), its potential is increased with respect to the n-region, so that an electric field is produced in a direction opposite to that of the built-in field. The presence of the external bias voltage causes a departure from equilibrium and a misalignment of the Fermi levels in the p- and n-regions, as well as in the depletion layer. The presence of the two Fermi levels in the depletion layer, Efc and Efv represents a state of quasi-equilibrium. Fig. 4. Energy band diagram and carrier concentrations for a forward-biased p-n junction. In effect, then, if one were to connect the two terminals of the p-n junction to form a closed circuit, two currents would be present. First, a small current, called reverse saturation current, is, exists because of the presence of the contact potential and the associated electric field. In addition, it also happens that holes and free electrons with sufficient thermal energy can cross the junction. This current across the junction flows opposite to the reverse saturation current and is called diffusion current. Of course, if a hole from the p side enters, it is quite likely that it will quickly recombine with one of the n-type carriers on the n side. (Fig. 4) The net effect of the forward bias is to reduce the height of the potential-energy hill by an amount eV. The majority carrier current turns out to increase by an exponential factor exp(eV/kT). So that the net current becomes i = isexp(eV/kT) – is, where is is nearly a constant. The excess majority carrier holes and electrons that enter the n and p regions, respectively, become minority carriers and recombine with the local majority carriers. To explain the mechanism of reverse conduction, one needs to visualize the phenomenon of avalanche breakdown. When a very large negative bias is applied to the p-n junction, sufficient energy is imparted to charge carriers that reverse current can flow, well beyond the normal reverse, saturation current. In addition, because of the large electric field, electrons are energized to such levels that if they collide with other charge carriers at a lower energy level, some of their energy is transferred to the carriers with low energy, 4 and these can now contribute to the reverse conduction process, as well. This process is called impact ionization. Now, these new carriers may also have enough energy to energize other lowenergy electrons by impact ionization, so that once a sufficiently high reverse bias is provided, this process of conduction takes place very much like an avalanche: a single electron can ionize several others. Fig. 6. The reverse breakdown region The phenomenon of Zener breakdown is related to avalanche breakdown. It is usually achieved by means of heavily doped regions in the neighbourhood of the metal-semiconductor junction (the ohmic contact) . The high density of charge carriers provides the means for a substantial reverse breakdown current to be sustained at a much lower specific voltage than normal diode, at a nearly constant reverse bias known as the Zener voltage, Vz. This phenomenon is very useful in applications where one would like to hold some load voltage constant for example, in voltage regulators. The response time of a p-n junction to a dynamic (ac) applied voltage is determined by solving the set of differential equations governing the processes of electrons and hole diffusion, drift (under the influence of the built-in and external electric fields), and recombination. These effects are important for determining the speed at which the diode can be operated. They may be conveniently modeled by two capacitances, a junction capacitance and diffusion capacitance, in parallel with an ideal diode. The junction capacitance for the time necessary to change the fixed positive and negative charges stored in the depletion layer when the applied voltage changes. The thickness l of the depletion layer turns out to be proportional to v(Vo-V); it therefore increases under the reverse-bias conditions (negative V) and decreases under the forward-bias conditions (positive V). The junction capacitance C=?A/l (where A is the area of the junction) is therefore inversely proportional to v(VoV). The junction capacitance of a reverse-biased diode is smaller (and the RC response time is therefore shorter) than that of a forward-biased diode. The dependence of C on V is used to make voltage-variable capacitors (varactors). 5 Experiment l(a) : i-v characteristics of a semiconductor diode Procedure Connect the diode according to the circuit diagram as shown in Fig. 8. Fig 8 Vary the voltage V on the power supply between 0-30V. Alternately, the second concept is that the blocking action of an inductor stops the a. c. portion while the d. c. portion passes without much attenuation. Note: For filtering, large capacitance (hundreds to tens of hundreds microfarad) is needed. These are generally electrolytic capacitors, which consist of a repeating sandwich of aluminum sheets and a conducting paste, rolled into a cylinder for miminmun size. The aluminum sheets are polarized to form thin layers of aluminum oxide, a dielectric insulating material. The thinner the the dielectric the higher the capacitance will be.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Linda Pastans Poem Ethics :: Pastan Ethics

Linda Pastan's poem "Ethics" In Linda Pastan's poem "Ethics," the speaker recounts a moral dilemma that her teacher would ask every fall, which has been haunting her for a long time. The question was "if there were a fire in a museum / which would you save, a Rembrandt painting / or an old woman who hadn't many / years left anyhow?" and the speaker tells us through the theme that ethics and moral values can be only learned from the reflection which comes through experience and maturity. In this poem, imagery, diction, and figures of speech contribute to the development of the theme. The speaker in the poem uses images to help to support the theme. For example the statement that "sometimes the woman borrowed my grandmother's face" displays the inability of the children to relate the dilemma to themselves, something that the speaker has learned later on with time and experience. In this poem, the speaker is an old woman, and she places a high emphasis on the burden of years from which she speaks by saying "old woman, / or nearly so, myself." "I know now that woman / and painting and season are almost one / and all beyond saving by children." clearly states that the poem is not written for the amusement of children but somebody that has reached the speaker's age, thus supporting the idea of the theme that children cannot help or understand her or anybody of her age. In addition, when the speakers describes the kids in the classroom as "restless on hard chairs" and "caring little for picture or old age" we can picture them in our minds sit ting, ready to leave the class as soon as possible, unwilling and unable to understand the ethics dilemma or what the speaker is feeling. The choice of words of the author also contributes to the development of the theme. For example, the use of words like "drafty," "half-heartedly," and "half-imagined" give the reader the idea of how faintly the dilemma was perceived and understood by the children, thus adding to the idea that the children cannot understand the burden the speaker has upon herself. In addition, referring to a Rembrandt as just a "picture" and to the woman as "old age," we can see that these two symbols, which are very important to the speaker and to the poem, are considered trivial by the children, thus contributing to the concept that the children cannot feel what the speaker is feeling.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Causes of high unemployment in Zimbabwe Essay

Introduction: The unemployment rate is the proportion of the economically active population that is unemployed and actively looking for employment. In 1990, Zimbabwe embarked on a programme of Economic Reforms popularly known as Economic Structural Adjustment Programme (ESAP) and 1991-1992 saw one of the worst droughts. With close to 70% of the population living in the rural areas (CSO 1992) and dependent on agriculture for their livelihood, this constituted a major disaster. One result of these events was increased migration to the urban areas by people in search of employment. A further drought in 1995-1996 compounded the effect. Worsening economic conditions plus ever increasing corruption and crime have been the norm since 1995. Unemployment is currently soaring and the current rate stands at 70%. This has been from retrenchments, business closures e.t.c. According to EMCOZ survey, about 6000 jobs in the different sectors of the economy were lost by the end of 2001. The figure for 2002 was much higher as a result of the worsening business environment as the government fails to create opportunities to stimulate industrial expansion. Causes of Unemployment Unemployment is Zimbabwe has been caused by quite a number of factors. Most of these are mainly because of political reasons. The following are some of the factors that are causing unemployment: Sluggish investment and growth Weak export performance Poor macroeconomic policy environment The investment/business climate is unfriendly Population growth rate/age structure The growth path – reliance on primary products – is suboptimal Geography (proximity to South Africa, no direct access to the sea) Tertiary Education These are now explained below: Sluggish investment and growth The investment and growth of the Zimbabwe Economy has been shrinking of late. This has had a significant impact on the Zimbabwean companies. In the past 3 years, over 500 companies closed operations because of prohibitive operational conditions characterized by high input costs, hard currency shortages, high levels of interest rates, inflationary levels as well as the uncompetitive export market. Both the company and the government has been failing to effectively invest and thereby slowing growth. As a result, this has resulted in massive unemployment. Weak export performance Usually governments and exporters worry most about the foreign elasticity of demand for the exports. But in Zimbabwe today the most important is undoubtedly the domestic elasticity of supply of exports. This is reflected in the export volume numbers. In 2003, tobacco prices are still virtually unchanged from last year and higher than in previous years, but volumes are down by two-thirds. This then means that if we have very few goods that we are exporting, no we end up having a weak generation of foreign currency which we direly need for all our imports. This has significantly impacted on most organizations who eventually resort to the black market for the foreign currency. Poor macroeconomic policy environment The role of monetary policy is crucial because macroeconomic policy affects  the REAL economy, largely through the credit and capital markets. At the start of the 21st century monetary policy is the most powerful weapon that governments have at their disposal. Monetary policy influences interest rates (directly) and exchange rates (indirectly). It also influences investment, and thereby economic growth and employment. It has major implications for the financial markets – bonds and equities And today, its most important role is that of ensuring price stability. All this seem to have been ignored in the Zimbabwean scenario, where the macroeconomic policies are arm twisted just for the sake of political expediency. As a result, many sectors have been affected, and no jobs were created and thus an increase in unemployment. The investment/business climate is unfriendly The more profitable and attractive the business investment climate, the more firms will want to raise new money to expand and the more they will issue bonds. During a business boom or upswing the supply of bonds rises. The investment climate in Zimbabwe is not sufficiently favorable to attract the type of Foreign Direct Investment needed to transform exports. There are so many regulations concerning capital repatriation and profit/dividend remittability. This discourages investment and hence at the same time increasing unemployment. Population growth rate and age structure The population in Zimbabwe has been increasing at a decreasing rate, but the fact that the population is increasing without a complimentary increase in job opportunities, this therefore means all the job candidates are jobless. The growth path – reliance on primary products – is suboptimal Zimbabwe has been relying mostly on the products which are just primary. Such dependence has had no joy being found for the thousands of youths in Zimbabwe who are looking for jobs. Geography (proximity to South Africa, no direct access to the sea) Zimbabwe is a landlocked country and has been relying mostly on its neighbours namely South Africa and Mozambique. This has placed the country in a state of disadvantage hence the employment creation rate going down. Tertiary Education A number of tertiary colleges have sprung up in Zimbabwe, and yet the existing infrastructure is unable to absorb the swelling numbers of youths seeking training opportunities. There is also a high mismatch of skills acquired from training on one hand and the labour market opportunities on the other has led to increased job seekers. Seriousness of the problem: The issue of unemployment in Zimbabwe has reached such alarming levels which have brought discontent among the citizens of the country. This has been evidenced by the massive increases in the crime rates and other issues which include prostitution. This whole lot is as a result of a number of job seekers who are on the market failing to secure anything. Effects of Land Resettlement and HIV-AIDS on unemployment HIV and AIDS has been much talked about and discussed in Zimbabwe. This deadly incurable disease and virus has brought about much untold suffering and orphans. This also means that the number of job seekers flowing into the market will fall sharply. This might be a blessing in disguise in that it will provide a partial solution, but it will also highly likely slow the growth rate of the economy and thereby the rate of job generation. The issue about the effect of HIV-AIDS is two fold as it erodes both the employed and the unemployed. In the long run, there might end up there being very few numbers seeking for employment. The high levels of people who are  joining the job market make this a good pessimism. The massive land reform initiated by so-called war vets and the government produces more losers than winners. More than half a million farm workers have already lost their jobs and source of income, without gaining any of the redistributed land. Those displaced from the farms have found themselves on the job market. This then means that instead of solving a problem, the government has created more problems for itself. The problem with that is that this produces a chain of other problems interrelated to the farming business. On another note, if the land resettlement programme was well managed, this could bring a partial solution to the problem. This could temporarily create self-sustaining jobs for the rural community. The only problem is that the government in principle banned all commercial agriculture and villagised the whole country into small villages. This can never be a lasting solution to the unemployment problems as agriculture’s share of total employment falls as economies develop. Thus in the long run, this ceases to be a solution. Many hopes are on the informal sector which people say could expand given enough resources and incentives. Unfortunately, unemployment has risen far beyond the capacity of formal sector establishment while employment in the informal sector has grown phenomenally. Others, however, argue that expansion of the informal sector would generate new and equally serious economic problems – destroying the viability of formal sector operations, worsening crime levels, and devastating the environment, negatively affect national health programmes and affect state revenue inflows. Those in the informal sector remain an economic burden for the country because their incomes cannot meet basic needs and that most, if not all, operators subsist below the poverty datum line. It is a pre-requisite for employment creation in Zimbabwe to be enhanced by mobilisation of resources in capital markets through an unprecedented improvement of savings as a percentage of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)  to around 25 percent so that funds would be invested and hence forth job creation. But to achieve this, the country should offer competitive investment incentives such as consistently low inflation and interest rates, stable foreign exchange rates, minimum state controls, low taxation and a politically stable environment. Improvement of conditions of services in the sector could be sustainable because of low wages, and there is need to realise that the economy could be stimulated through the rural sector, small scale and medium enterprises or large corporations. Conclusion All the stake holders, citizens and the government must all be actively involved the reduction of unemployment. Without this combined effort and commitment, unemployment is likely to continue rising since the economic conditions are worsening and it is becoming more difficult for the companies that had survived before to continue surviving. If things are left unattended to as they at the moment, unemployment will grow to be a self created time-bomb for the government and will eventually build enough pressure in it to force it to explode.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Sample Interview Paper

A lot of student's can't afford to move away from their families. What are the common roles within the family system? Wife- domestic responsibilities as well as caring for the family Husband- work during the day-go out at night (on the town-drinking) Children-Help around house, work as soon as they are able (usually beginning around age 12), If lucky they are able to attend school What are the gender roles? Both in the home and in general)? Men have a much higher status. They are the leader of the household and make all of the ‘family' decisions Women are granted very little respect. They usually do not work outside the home and their pollens are usually not validated. What are the main religions? Roman Catholicism – occasional practices of tribal religions What holidays are celebrated and how? New Years- dress as famous people; blow up scarecrow filled with fireworks 10th of August; Independence- drinking and partying What is a typical day like?Men get up early and go t o work (generally labor Job) Women get up early to prepare breakfast, get children ready and begin chores Children (if lucky get to go to school) get up and go to work (chores/labor) Long lunch break (1-3) Family eats together and takes a nap or ‘siesta' goes until about 7 late dinner (around 8 dock) with families What types of foods are common? Work/school Several Course meal (wealthier families)- begin with coffee/appetizer Rice, potatoes, meats-?loom Finn (similar to steak)-?often times grown by the family One course meals for poorer families How do people handle conflict?Very expressive; late at night the men are drinking, leads to more violence Taught to be very vocal-discuss heavily What are the education systems like? Not everyone gets to go to school – some have to help family Show more respect towards teachers- don't want to get into trouble, see school as a privilege and don't want to lose it Not as many restrictions on discipline (hitting or ‘striking') -doesn't mean it happens the time Is anyone given more respect than others? Elders and males How is America viewed?The Projects view them very positive because they understand that Americans come to help them Very envious, everything Americans do is great- view Americans as ‘better than they are' -mimic our actions and lifestyles Of America – don't understand that we also have our own problems-not everyone is rich Of Equator (hot)-?rarely gets over 75 degrees -â€Å"third world†- poor families that need financial help What do people enjoy doing in their free time? Men drink Soccer and Volleyball- Play and watch the World Cup and Ecuador professional team Play outside- kids do not have T.V and very rarely a radio Is there anything else that you would like to tell me about the culture? Country- inside the borders you have mountains, Jungle, and beaches all within hours weather is generally nice throughout the entire year People- They are very friendly Quite a few A mericans either living or visiting there Cultural Inferences A collectivist culture, such as Ecuador, can be defined as a culture that places â€Å"emphasis on the group's wants, needs, and desires. People of Ecuadorian culture are defined by their relationships and are connected to others† (Staten).Although the men are given distinct individual privileges and do not always consider the opinions of others, the whole culture of Ecuador embraces more of a collective approach. One specific example is that the children often times do not go to school so that they can help out the family either by working around the house and in the yard, or by getting a Job to provide a little extra income. This may seem as more of an economic issue, but it is the belief system associated with the situation that illustrates a collectivist approach.Children understand that it is an honor to attend school and would love to do so, but they are ultimately concerned with the benefits of the entire fam ily, not just themselves. Therefore, knowing that it will help the family makes it relatively easy to give up the opportunity to further their education. While collectivist values are very apparent in Ecuador, there are also illustrators of a very individualistic view. As mentioned above, the males in Ecuador are a prime example of individualism. As defined, individualistic values place â€Å"emphasis on the individual's wants, needs and desires.A person is defined by their personality and is separate from others† (Staten). Men in Ecuador are given, and grow to expect a much greater deal of respect. They do not have to check in with anyone, and are free to make decisions based on their individual feelings and beliefs (even if the decision affects a number of people besides themselves). When the men come home from work they do not help out with the family or around the home either. It is not unusual to find men out late at night â€Å"unwinding† after a long day, illust rating how they deliberately take care of themselves first. Ales. Not only is this applied to men, but also to elders. They make decisions without consulting others and no one questions their authority. One specific example of vertical power can be found in the fact that women are legally obligated to practice total obedience towards their husbands. If respect is not given to a certain individual, domestic violence is a common response and is not considered a criminal code (Guidance). Also illustrating vertical values, students view the school system and their education as an opportunity not to be taken advantage of.Therefore, they give up-most respect to their teachers and do not misbehave in class (talking out of turn, Ewing late or disrespectful, rough-housing etc). The premium is placed on memorization and lecture with very large class sizes. This means that students are not given one on one attention, and instead have a ‘nodding acquaintance' with their teacher. The prima ry goal of secondary education is the development of economic and social mobility so youth are prepared and able to assume positions of leadership in society (showing importance of rank).Also, in order to qualify for one of the nine institutions students need to score high on the admissions test, thus ranking dents with their peers and promoting a competitive atmosphere (Wilson). Specifically looking at the classroom conduct that children are taught to obey, it is also easy to detect a restrained cultural value. As seen in the classroom and also in the definition of restraint, â€Å"people are expected to learn to control their emotions, which is a sign of maturity' (Staten). Speaking up against the teacher is absolutely unheard of and results in very careful use of language and analysis by the students.The students are not the only ones who practice restraint though. The teachers liver a class session full of facts, theories, and reflections, leaving little to no time for discussi ons or most forms of expression. The classroom is calm and controlled, leaving little room for the unexpected, or unwanted. Restraint does not stop in the school system, but extends to various aspects of life. For example, if a woman chooses an occupation in the business field she must take extra precaution and find an appropriate balance between appearing ‘pushy and professional.During the initial greeting, both men and women will refrain from contact and will reserve kissing (once on each check) for the elderly and the young. Typically, men will greet with a firm handshake and women will greet with a soft hand-touch (once again showing that women must refrain from a ‘powerful' appearance). Also, when having a discussion with someone, it is common knowledge to refrain from talking about politics (specifically the government and possible difficulties with their neighboring countries).These practices show that people are expected to hold off on emotional expression and in stead show self-control to appear ‘professional' (Foster). As discussed above, there is an obvious cultural value in the area of gender differences. An emphasis is placed on unambiguous sex-roles and women/men are viewed different physically, psychologically, and socially. Men work outside the home and are the initial providers for the family, contributing the main income and making the family decisions.Women very rarely work outside of the home and are expected to be capable of working in areas such as weaving, cooking, cleaning, child care and yard work (preparation and harvest). Even children are raised with specific gender-based chores and early occupations. While young, little boys will often complete their duties souse with the cooking, sewing, and cleaning. For extracurricular activities boys are allowed to learn music and play instruments while girls are only allowed to sing and dance along with the provided music.As they grow older, boys will often find a Job around a ge 12 (usually labor based) to help support the family financially, while girls will often enter the sexual union (have children and take care of their husband) by age 12-13 (Brine). The cultural values of Ecuador do display a degree of structure between individuals of varying ‘status,' but values of flexibility are also very prevalent n day to day life. During casual or leisure time the notion of time' is not always viewed as a necessity. Lunch dates and evening get-together are set around flexible times and it is not considered ‘rude' to show up late (15-20 minutes).Lateness in Ecuador however, has become such a problem that the government has been forced to get involved. In a recent interview with President Lucia Guttering he stated â€Å"We have to be on time for the sake of God, the country, our people and our consciences! † (â€Å"Don't Be Late.. â€Å"). This ‘problem' is being dealt with, but remains as a prime example of their flexible lifestyle. Flexibility is a value that is also tied directly to family life. Families and individuals need to remain flexible when determining how to earn their income. Many families are not extensively wealthy and live off of their crops or products sold at the market.However, there is always the chance that the crops will not turn out, or the products will not be sold and so families are often times willing and open to finding additional sources of income. The children understand and are accustomed to these situations, and therefore remain very flexible with any of their future plans. While helping around the house they may not have set chores, but instead help out with whatever is necessary at that moment. As they grow, some might have the opportunity to attend school, while others may have to stay at home.Even if they are granted the chance to go to school, children understand that they need to be flexible in case their family needs them at home, resulting in withdraw from their classes. C learly, the idea of flexibility is taught from an early age and carried out though adulthood. Intercultural Comparison: Matt was a key person to interview. Not only did he grow up in Ecuador and embrace the culture and values, but he has also experienced a considerable amount of his life in America. Through the interview he gave very qualified information about the people, customs and traditions of Ecuador.Then, following the interview we discussed some of the similarities and differences that are apparent between Ecuadorian culture and American culture. It seems through resources and Mat's personal experience that both Ecuadorian and American cultures have a wide variety of situational communication â€Å"dos and don't. † Both cultures have casual and professional styles of communication, both appropriate for different events. The greatest differences between the two cultures and their forms of communication are the use of expressive communication (greetings in particular) a nd the expectations based on status differences.In American culture, people rely a great deal on the use of expression, specifically person (someone they have previously met) without the use of their body or exaggerated facial features, it would most likely be very difficult or nearly impossible. In America we often times greet others with a hug, a large smile, and possibly a ‘handshake' specific to our relationship. The American culture values expression within our communication from beginning to end, an aspect that differs with that of the Ecuadorian culture. In Ecuador, people are fairly restrained with the use of actions and expressions, producing a more subtle greeting.Even people who are very excited and happy to see one another will be more formal and calm, most often extending Just a friendly handshake. In Ecuador it has been clearly stated that there is a strong vertical structure throughout not only the home but through the community. This differs greatly from Americ a, the ‘land of equality. If a woman in Ecuador was to be told she can't do something because of her gender (especially if told from her husband) she would most likely accept this as an understandable explanation.However, if an American woman was told that something was being withheld from her simply because of her gender she would most likely sue the company or individual for discrimination. This difference is also very apparent in the school systems. Children in America give a degree of respect towards their teachers, but as they advance the respect seems to dwindle until student/teacher relationships become so casual that they are implementing their own ‘handshake' upon greeting, and comparing plans for the upcoming weekend. In Ecuador, respect is expected – even more so as you advance.Students give total reverence to their teachers and would not even consider crossing any questionable behavioral or communication boundaries. Clearly, Ecuador and America have so me clear cultural differences, but those differences are what make each country unique. The differences between the two cultures do not have to serve as a boundary, but rather a bridge if researched and dealt with properly. All human beings are alike. As Matt explained, one of the greatest misunderstandings is the quality of life (materially) in both countries.Both countries have people who are rich, and people who are poor. In both countries people relate to their families, work to support themselves and loved ones, and most importantly, people in both countries all need some source of communication to survive. The key is broadening our knowledge base about what communication is– not only in our own culture, but around the world. Coming to understand and appreciate the various values found in other cultures will not disconnect us from one another, but will make world-wide communication stronger and more effective.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Book Review of People of the Three Fires

Book Review of People of the Three Fires The book, People of the Three Fires, is written by three different people each describing a tribe in detail.The book is very well written and relatively easy to understand. It is informative and was written to be used as a teaching tool for schools. The book discusses the relationship between the groups that lived in Michigan and surrounding areas. James M. McClurken writes the first section, which deals with the Ottawa people. McClurken tells about the Ottawa peoples relationship with the environment they lived in and how they adapted to change when contacted by Europeans. One thing I found interesting about the Ottawa is their beliefs. The Ottawa believed in respect for the individual. Their leaders represented the people much like our elected officials represent us when a decision is needed for the whole of the country. They are in tune with nature and consider the earth and animals part of their family, addressing them with father, mother, brother, sister. The Ottawas a lso amazed me at their ability to believe in the supernatural, the spirits that told what sickness a person has and the healing power of the firewalkers is a leap of faith. I am always amazed that people survived without Advil and Tums, and they didnt just survived they thrived! The Ottawa were great traders, in fact they traded all !over northern Michigan. A surprising fact I read in the section was of the fleecing of the Indians out of their lands by the Mason County government. In the past year however the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians have reclaimed land in Mason County. This worries me somewhat because I think the house in which we live was part of the land given to the Ottawa in the Treaty of 1855. While I feel bad that the Ottawa were cheated out of their land, I dont think I should have to give up my house to right a ...

Monday, October 21, 2019

The Raven Essays - Literature, Fiction, Poetry By Edgar Allan Poe

The Raven Essays - Literature, Fiction, Poetry By Edgar Allan Poe The Raven The Raven Once upon a midnite dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary. Edgar Allen Poe, The Raven, This poem is mainly about his wife dying and her being sick and his depression and anger. Nameless here forevermore, Only this and nothing more, Darkness there and nothing more, Tis the wind and nothing more. While I nodded nearly napping suddenly there came a tapping as pf sp,epme gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door, some visitor, he muttered tapping at my chamber door. Wondering , fearing, doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before, the silence was unbroken and the only word spoken was the whispered word Lenore and that he whispered back and then echo came back Lenore merely that and nothing more. Open then came the shutter, with a flutter, and there stood a Raven of the saintly days of yore, and there it stood perched above my chamber door, Raven wondering from the Nightly shore tell me what the lordly name is on the nights Plutonian shore, his response, quote the raven nevermore Then the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censor swung by seraphim whose foot falls tinkled on the hard floor. Wretch he cried, respite the memories of Lenore this kind nepenthe and forget his lost Lenore. Thing of evil, bird of devil, tell his soul with sorrow laden if within the distant Aidenn it shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels name Lenore. And the raven never flitting still is sitting just above my chamber door, and his eyes have all the seeming of demons that is dreaming and the lamp light over him streaming throws his shadow on the floor, and my soul from out of that shadow that lies floating on the floor, shall be lifted-nevermore.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Why Write a Follow Up Email After Sending Resume

Why Write a Follow Up Email After Sending Resume Writing resumes is often a huge, anxiety-ridden feat. You need to follow certain rules to complete a resume. But dont worry you can always ask our experts to write your resume. After sending resumes, most people want to sit back and relax, considering their part of the job hunt over. However, theres an important step after youve sent out your resume. Ignoring it may cause you to miss some opportunities. Sending a follow-up email can make the crucial difference between getting a call for an interview or getting left in the discard pile. A follow-up email accomplishes a lot of things: It ensures that your email wasnt lost and/or that your resume made it into the right hands. It shows that you have initiative and that youre really interested in the position. Even if the hiring manager already looked through your resume, sending a follow-up email will cause them to pay special attention to it. When sending out your follow-up email, bear the following tips in mind: Send a Message to Your Contact If you happen to have a contact within the company you applied to, go ahead and send them a message letting them know that you sent your resume but havent had a response yet. They may be able to give you an insiders scoop on why not. It could be that the hiring manager is on vacation or the company is in the middle of a major overhaul. Or this may just be standard for them to take a long time before replying. Any heads up you can get from your contact will help you relax a little bit while you wait for a reply. Send a Message to Human Resources If you dont have a contact and you sent your resume blind, then you should do some research to find out who the companys human resources head is and shoot them an email about your resume. Sending an email directly to them will make you stand out from the crowd who didnt put the time or effort into finding out who would be hiring them. Be Brief Your message should be around 100 words. Dont ramble or bring up non-relevant topics. Be professional. Introduce yourself by including your full name and job title. Then include your reason for writing: I sent my resume to your company on December 5th and would like to make sure that it was received. Restate Your Skills and Experiences Go ahead and summarize your resumes highlights. This will help trigger their memory if they did read your resume and hopefully spark their interest in reading it if they havent. I have a Masters in Fine Arts and worked for five years as director of the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco. Ive recently relocated to New York and am seeking a position at your museum. Thank Them for Their Time Showing some courtesy goes a long way. A lot of hiring managers are busy and its a drag to read resumes and check references so make sure you tell them: Thank you for taking the time to consider my resume. Re-attach Your Resume If, for some reason, your resume got lost in cyberspace or if they havent gotten around to reading it yet, make it easy for them. You can also benefit from such a situation because you will have one more chance to check if everything is good with your resume. You can even strengthen your resume by adding good adjectives for resume that you can find on our blog. Go ahead and re-attach your resume so they can have it at their fingertips after reading your email. That way they dont have to go digging around through their email to find it. If after looking through your resume, youve found out that it should be rewritten, follow these 8 steps to writing a magnetic resume. Send Another Email After Two Weeks If you havent heard back from them after two more weeks, go ahead and shoot off another email. Follow the same protocol as above, only this time its not necessary to re-attach your resume. And Another Two Weeks Later Try one more time, and if you dont hear back after that, you might have to accept that you struck out on this one. At least then you can start to focus your energy on other companies and will hopefully have earned some other interviews by then. Have any resume tricks up your sleeve? Wed appreciate your comments and suggestions!

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Trends and Marketing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Trends and Marketing - Assignment Example From this paper it is clear that Deluxe Financial Service is part of a two billion-dollar firm that serves over 8000 banks and financial institutions. Founded in 1915, it became a global phenomenon and its growth is considered an inspiration by many organizations. As it started, many people relied on some of its products to conduct business. However, as technology grew, it was considered old to use some of their products, and services. To prevent their organization from falling, the managing heads decided to rid themselves of everything that was old, and tried to focus on the future. Their paper checks were facing the challenge of the use of credit and debit cards. Deluxe decided to offer their consumers what they truly desired. They decided to be the financial institutions robust competitors, while promising their consumers to be their most valued, trusted business partner. Learning about consumer wants and needs became their marketing strategy. As that knowledge was put to the test , Deluxe was at an advantage over their competitors, and at par with their consumers.The retail experience financial institutions offered their clients were not appealing. Deluxe decided to take this up a notch. This changed the manner in which Deluxe conducted its business. Customer relations were increased because most of the customers claimed that, in their financial institutions, customer relations was a problem. Deluxe could assist financial institutions with customer relations, and at the same time, provide them with retail experience they so desperately needed.  

Friday, October 18, 2019

Religion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 9

Religion - Essay Example According the Durkheim, the Orthodox Church is more likely to stress on the importance of conserving old traditions, while the teachings of the Protestant used to emphasize freedom and autonomy as the greater priority. The Protestant Church separated from the Roman Catholics on Reformation, and tends to view change and an occasional deviation from traditions as a positive change (Huismans, & Schwartz, 1995). There are a few distinctive differences in the teachings of Roman Catholics, Orthodox and the Protestant Church, but they revolve mostly around the different values and belief that each of these sects prioritize (Huismans, & Schwartz, 1995). For example, as the Protestants view development and success over stagnancy. While Roman Catholics and Orthodox Church both give more importance to not letting go of the old traditions, through which humankind initially learned about and sustained Christianity. These facts may point out the blatant differences, which can be found for each, bu t meanwhile also show that each has its own value-based teachings, none of which can be objectively proved more correct than any other. The understanding that Orthodox Church, as the name suggests, promotes the adherence to traditional ceremonies and worship, while the Protestant Church encourages change, is correct. While these two sects operate on polar beliefs as far as the importance of conservatism is concerned, it is important to note that religious leaders preach the importance of some values while perhaps shunning the value of other beliefs. This shunning is not, perhaps done voluntarily, but does result in the matter of the teachings of Christianity turning from objective to subjective, as each sect is taught to emphasize a difference belief by their leaders. As Weber pointed out, â€Å"Calvinist Protestantism promoted and supported industrialization in western Europe by influencing believers to emphasize wealth, success, ambition, and

The Significance of Motives and the Role of Duty in Morality in Kants Essay

The Significance of Motives and the Role of Duty in Morality in Kants Work - Essay Example This study outlines that Kant defines the right motive as doing the right thing, doing one’s duty and respecting the moral law in the process. In other words, to be rational is to constantly have the right motive/good will. Most important to morality, according to Kant, is thus a good will that makes people to automatically do their duty. Kant’s philosophy on morality was based on what he referred to as the â€Å"Categorical Imperative† (CI), which bases morality on a standard of rationality. â€Å"Formulations of the CI bring together the perspectives of one who seeks to act on principles that all others could share and one who seeks to act on principles that that respect all others’ capacities to act.†. In other words, to violate the CI is tantamount to immorality. In fact, other philosophers such as John Locke and Thomas Hobbes agreed with Kant on this perception of morality, especially his basing of morality on the CI standards of rationality. F rom this paper it is clear that the fundamental of morality as contained in the CI is the law of an autonomous will and a self-governing reasoning in which people are viewed as possessing equal worth and as deserving equal respect. A rather useful work of Kant’s on morality is â€Å"The Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals†. It covered morality-related issues like the aims and methods of moral philosophy, good will, moral worth and duty and duty and respect for moral law, among others. In later writings such as â€Å"The Critique of Practical Reason†, â€Å"The Metaphysics of Morals†, â€Å"Anthropology from a Pragmatic Point of View† and â€Å"Religion within the Boundaries of Mere Reason† he would later refine, develop, modify and enrich some of his views in this piece of work. Deductions from Kant’s Ideas There are two core and interesting conclusions that may be deduced from Kant’s ideas about morality and good will. Fir st, under no circumstances should people consider their morality as something they could just lose or forfeit in exchange for personal desires. In fact, â€Å"desirable traits such as courage, perseverance and cleverness may lose their values and get diminished or sacrificed in certain circumstances† .

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Creating a Culture of Evidence-Based Practice Assignment

Creating a Culture of Evidence-Based Practice - Assignment Example This is so because many people first seek information about organizations online before making decisions about them. The information can also be disseminated in hospitals through posters or having agents of the organization who can readily disseminate the information and answer any queries that might be made. In order to strengthen the culture of evidence-based practice, the organization should seek the input of patients and clients in their plans and research. This is so because they are at the peak of evidence-based practice and hence should be involved in the program every step of the way in order to ensure that the results of the program are successful. Nurses are care givers and they always aim at ensuring that the patients not only receive medical care but psychological one as well (Polit & Beck, 2012). Their input in the evidence-based practice is therefore to humanize the project through provision of a care giving and psychological assistance which will ensure the project minds the psychological aspect and impact to the patients and clients and hence making it more acceptable and have positive

Breakfest at tiffanys Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Breakfest at tiffanys - Essay Example Yet, Joe tries to hide it and mostly is determined to show less of the emotions he feels for another. The narrator even described him as a man who is not easy to get along with; but interestingly, he showed that he cared for Holly like he had not cared for any other although he did not deliberately do so. For a man who is often exposed to the unkind and indifferent parts of the community, it is understood how hard it must be for Joe to demonstrate how he truly feels for anybody. Mag Wildwood. The character Mag, on the other hand, is an example of a complicated woman. She drifts from displaying a certain trait to another so easily. From being a friend to whom Holly agreed to be a roommate to judging Holly of going to bed with her then-fiancà ©, Mag is an unreliable woman as she refused to help her â€Å"friend† Holly from being arrested after she was held â€Å"involved† of a crime a certain Sally Tomato was engaged to. Rusty Trawler. The man Holly was always with in the story except from the narrator, Rusty Trawler, is an example of a fearful man who has allowed the pressures of society get hold of him and the way he lives his life. He almost had everything: money and power. However, he had not been true to himself and his being gay. He used women, Holly included; and pretended that he was a true man. After all the time Holly spent with him, Rusty married for the fourth time and did it with Mag; leaving Holly alone. From being untrue to himself, he also turned out to be selfish. Jose Yberra-Jaeger. The presence of Jose in the life of Holly presents to the readers an instance when a person meets someone he or she would find the things that he or she was â€Å"looking for† but ends up disappointed. Although Jose seemed to be a person who really cared for Holly, bringing along a doctor when she became devastated of her brother’s death and allowing her to pretend like his

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Creating a Culture of Evidence-Based Practice Assignment

Creating a Culture of Evidence-Based Practice - Assignment Example This is so because many people first seek information about organizations online before making decisions about them. The information can also be disseminated in hospitals through posters or having agents of the organization who can readily disseminate the information and answer any queries that might be made. In order to strengthen the culture of evidence-based practice, the organization should seek the input of patients and clients in their plans and research. This is so because they are at the peak of evidence-based practice and hence should be involved in the program every step of the way in order to ensure that the results of the program are successful. Nurses are care givers and they always aim at ensuring that the patients not only receive medical care but psychological one as well (Polit & Beck, 2012). Their input in the evidence-based practice is therefore to humanize the project through provision of a care giving and psychological assistance which will ensure the project minds the psychological aspect and impact to the patients and clients and hence making it more acceptable and have positive

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Port Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Port Management - Essay Example These include increased competition among ports, changes in transport technology and ports, and internal competition for global markets. Over the recent years, lending agencies and governments have come to agree on the view that the participation of the private sector can be a powerful tool for improving the performance of port assets. Many government officials and port managers believe that privatization is the only way in which the performance of public port organizations can be improved. This view emerges from the believe that some specific characteristics of the private sector are very critical in the achievement of the desired commercial success in ports. Currently, many ports have undergone reformations with an aim of reducing the role of government in port operations. In this case, the government is supposed to maintain the landlord function only. Port reform also enables a port to obtain financial autonomy and achieve increase productivity. The aim of this report is to analyz e the benefits and burdens of port reform with respect to existing forms of reform. The main objective of the report is to analyze the benefit offered by each form of port reform. Finally, the paper determines if the benefits of port reform overweigh its burdens. 2.0 Benefits of port reform 2.1 Forms of port reform strategy The overall benefit of port reform is improved operational and organizational performance. This can be achieved through the adoption of an appropriate form of port reform strategy. These forms include commercialization, privatization, corporation, liberalization or deregulation port services and modernization of Port Administration and management. These strategies present different benefits hence they are normally chosen depending on setting of the specific port. 2.1.1 Commercialization In commercialization, a public port is not changed into a private company. However, the port authorities apply accounting and management principles which are similar to those of p rivate companies. The main benefits that commercialization offers to a port is the attainment of increased accountability and autonomy in terms of decision-making and overall performance. This means that a port is free to adopt the characteristics and practices of private sector and the end results of such step improved efficiency and profitability. Commercialization as a reform strategy is characterized by decentralization of the decision-making process. This means the port management does not have to wait for a government dictate each and everything that happens in the port. Instead, they are able to make prompt decisions or change former decisions as dictated by circumstances. Decentralization also encourages specialization which is important in the delivery of quality services or leadership. Gos (1990) states that the involvement of government in port management complicates the hierarchy of its management hence commercialization as a port reform strategy therefore helps to relax this hierarchy. This enables the port management to exercise more control over, procurement and purchasing, budgeting, hiring and firing, maintenance strategies and

Monday, October 14, 2019

Social Policy - Putting People First Essay Example for Free

Social Policy Putting People First Essay For this assignment l have been asked to identify and examine a social policy and to make reference to a political ideology of welfare, discuss the contributions of social work, service user and carer’s experiences to the policy document. To achieve this l will discuss ‘Pettigrew’s model of strategic change’ which will help to summarise the key elements considered when looking at any specific policy. (Public Administration Management, 1999, pp. 494-507) Firstly to discuss the context, the governmental approach with New Labours/Third Way philosophy behind the policy â€Å"Putting People First†, the principles and why it was implemented, how this fits with what we know about New Labours commitment to finding solutions to societal issues from a socialist type theorist view. Also to discuss the Process, how it was put together and implemented. But most crucially l will discuss the Content, the implications to service user’s and carer’s experiences to the policy and its impact, in conjunction with the social work contribution to the policy and its own implications to welfare provision. Old age, seen as a burden viewed by governments as a cost to society, a value of each person has been imposed by way of what a local authority is willing to pay, â€Å"Older people are seen as past their best, no longer productive, no longer contributing to the economy and therefore a burden, a drain on the states resources† (Thompson, 2006, p.100). Demography along with increased expectations, put demands on an already faltering, aged service, people living longer with complex needs due to new technology, plus services out of touch with the needs and expectations of today. A well educated generation with the aptitude to convey their requirements, rather than the acceptance of being grateful for whatever they can get. In an age of 60 being the new 40, people wanting, expecting and hoping for a new type of consideration in regard to any help they may need. Using these arguments government issued statements that social care as it stands could not possibly continue and if not redressed, would not survive; something had to change. Driven by figures forecast that social care costs in the future were to rise and by â€Å"2022, 20% of the English population will be over 65 and by 2027, the number of over 85yr olds will have increased by 60%†(Department of Health, 2008,p.1). â€Å"Intolerance of inequality was the prevailing mood and New Labour policies reflected this†(Blakemore Griggs,2007, p.274), rethinking the aged Old Labour ideology of state provision and a well-known system of need, assessment, criteria and services provisioned on the outcome of eligibility, and provisioned by a limited statutory service were not reflecting good practice in terms of equality. In recognition of the rising cost of old age, New Labour in 2007 introduced the Putting People First policy as a â€Å"shared vision and commitment to the transformation of adult social care† and stated that it was to â€Å"set the new direction for adult social care for the next ten years or more† (DH) (2008), and has even been suggested by Alcock 2008 as being the most sweeping transformation of adult social care since the 1990’s community care act. Putting People First superseded the government white paper â€Å"our health, our care, our say – a new direction for community services (Department of Health, 2006), which gave an insight of what was to come and shared with it some of the radical thinking behind the governments new ‘third way’ philosophy. Putting People First was designed to implement a new way of delivering services through commissioning, personal budgets, recognising and utilising alternative methods of care provision such as family care, community support groups, voluntary sector and partnership working. These commissioned services can be partly funded via alternative funding streams such as lottery, voluntary and charities so reducing the states contribution. â€Å"Ultimately every locality should seek to have a single community based support system focussed on the health and wellbeing of the local population. Binding together local Government, primary care, community based health provision, public health, social care and the wider issues of housing, employment, benefits advice and education/training† (Department of Health, 2008, p.2), working collectively in four areas; â€Å"Universal Services, Early Intervention Prevention, Social Capital, Choice Control†(Department of Health, 2008 p.17). To illustrate where this policy fits with New Labour/Third Way, we can return to â€Å"early academic development of social policy and where Britain was closely allied to the political development of Fabianism† (Alcock, 2008, p.2). Fabians were â€Å"politicians and academics† who concerned themselves with â€Å"influencing governments† through â€Å"academic research and analysis† into how this should influence welfare reforms whilst pertaining the government’s responsibility (Alcock, 2008, p.2). Labour following WWII introduced much Fabian inspired reform’s using academic knowledge and research on social problems, closely followed by the Beveridge report and substantial change within state provision. Going against right wing critics who argued against state provision, and the New Right/Neo Liberalism who said that â€Å"state intervention merely drove up the cost of public expenditure†, furthermore developed a country who had â€Å"no incentive to protect themselves† consequently become totally reliant on government meeting all need (Alcock, 2008,p.9). Tony Blair became labour party leader in 1994, and continued along a political path instigated by the previous party leader John Smith who had â€Å"commissioned a review on social justice to look at past approaches to social policy†, where three methods became apparent: â€Å"The deregulators who favoured private markets over public provision†; â€Å"The levellers – supporters of old style social democratic justice† but the favoured style of social policy were the; â€Å"Investors who linked social justice to economic growth within a market economy† (Alcock, 2008, p.190). The â€Å"investor approach became central to the third way rhetoric† (Alcock, 2008, p.190) and won an election in 1997 for a New Labour who had discarded many of the state welfare commitments of â€Å"Old Labour approach of tax and spend in dealing with public services†(Blakemore Griggs, 2007,p.266). This third way was to recognise the more â€Å"complex make-up of modern societies†, from this â€Å"What Counts is What Works† was drawn from work by Anthony Giddens â€Å"a close advisor to Blair† (Alcock, 2008, p.10). â€Å"Giddens views about social policy involved a reformulation of the goal of equality in terms of exclusion and inclusion† two terms used widely by New Labour, both driving home some suggestion of concern with â€Å"citizenship, community† and â€Å"poverty†. (Alcock, Daly Griggs, 2008, p.205) Alcock (2008) suggests the Third Way or middle way rhetoric was a common sense way of keeping all political theorist’s happy. But continues on to say that some key themes are apparent such as shifting welfare towards an activist style of provision, sharing responsibility, improved choice using alternatively funded providers, â€Å"extending the conservatives strategy of building a market in welfare provision† (Blakemore Griggs, p.268), but â€Å"rather than being a distinctive path between different trajectories, is instead a pick-and-mix assortment of different ideas†(ed Ellison Pierson 2003, p.73). Both Blair and Giddens disputed this middle ground ideology of pleasing all, but rather a response to a â€Å"changed world† with â€Å"traditional values† (Hudson Lowe, 2004, p.44) New Labour continued with the ideology of â€Å"service user participation, community based care, and a mixed economy of provision delivered via social care makers† as the way forward, with an emphasis on â€Å"accountability and performance whilst encouraging â€Å"participation† and â€Å"choice† for purchasers of services (Blakemore Griggs,2007, p.276/77), and â€Å"invested considerable faith in the value of more informed approach to policy making, viewing it as central to improving the quality of public services†(Hudson Lowe, 2004, p.222). This rethink of â€Å"community care towards social care† (Blakemore Griggs, 2007,p.232) from central government produced a set of guidance to every local authority to assess and procure their own individual responses on how to implement the titanic changes required in changing the face of service delivery long-term to â€Å"fit services around not people round services† (Alcock, Daly Griggs, 2008 p.279). There were huge expectations on individual councils to develop ways of implementing service user and carer involvement more than ever before; their vision being, that service users and carers were to be empowered to contribute at the earliest stages of the way services were best delivered within local authorities. On the back of Putting People First came a grant allocation and background papers with guidance to be considered when implementing the policy were all produced to steer the implementation of service delivery, one being, â€Å"Personalisation†(Department of Health, 2008), which took the idea of Putting People First further, and brought together Primary Care Trusts and social care into jointly funding a ‘personal budgets’ or ‘individual budgets’ with a â€Å"full range of relevant local statutory, voluntary and private sector organisations to be fully engaged†(Department of Health, 2007). Putting People First and Personalisation policies are intended to take people with needs through a hugely diverse process of self assessment, where the social worker is led by the citizen, recognised as a lead player in establishing their own person centred plan of care, where â€Å"the individual is best placed to know what they need and how needs are best met† (Carr, 2008, p.3). Having been fortunate to experience implementation of direct payments for many years first hand, l can only praise the opportunities it has created within a learning disabilities team. Initial concerns regarding any security experienced within old fashioned service style was soon forgotten as the person emerged with newly found control over their lives, fortunately with few drawbacks; administration being one, reduced by regular reviews along with some form of Brokerage system. Also providing continuity and matching people in terms of personalities, with the assurance of knowing who will come into their home and at time to suit the person, not the care provider. As for Personalisation l can only imagine how positive this next stage can be devoid of issues with institutionalised social workers, deskilled and pressurised to be inventive with huge funding panel limitations. Individual budgets present a Resource Allocation Process, from a combination of funding streams, allocated via self assessment and support plan with assistance from a professional. This optimistically changes the role of social work from being a gatekeeper and provider of services to a broker, navigator, designer and risk assessor who advocates a person’s wishes from a resource allocation process (Carr, 2008, p.17), enabled to find â€Å"new collaborative ways of workingtailored specifically to meet individual needs† compared to the sticky plaster approach (Carr, 2008, p.3). Putting People First is seen by some as an â€Å"opportunity to return to the traditional social work, of enabling people to achieve potential† (Carr, 2008, p.16). Social work has to be diverse in its approach as this impacts, which ever political party is in power, which ever political ideology is favoured at any one time the social worker â€Å"moves backwards and forwards like some never ending contest between two evenly matched tug-of-war teams†, however this does not suggest that the social worker remains â€Å"power-neutral†, for a social workers powers are exercised on behalf of the state they â€Å"reflect a view which are fundamentally political in their determination† (Drakeford, 2010, p.304). We may consider whether all wish to be empowered in this way, changing the way services have been provisioned could we be taking away the proverbial security blanket. It is recognised that â€Å"families provide a far greater proportion of care and emotional and financial support† (Hill Irving, 2009, p.262) and it is for the â€Å"social worker to recognise and support carers in their role, and help with enabling maintenance of a life beyond caring†(Carr, 2008, p.3), PPF recognises this by delivering the tools to ensure a carer is â€Å"encouraged to play an active part† by being in control of what works best for them not prescribed by local authorities (Barton, 2010, p.410). Beveridge â€Å"didn’t anticipate the tumultuous decline in heavy industry† and the subsequent â€Å"rise in paid women’s work† (Hill Irving, 2009, p.265), sadly informal care continues to be â€Å"seen at the top of this mixed economy of welfare† (Hill Irving, 2009, p.190). It is vital in recognising the â€Å"power differential between carers and professionals, meaning the carer’s perspective can easily be overlooked†, â€Å"in addition to their motivation being driven by love, duty and a sense of enduring commitment but are sometimes compelled to take on this role against their wishes (Barton, 2010, p.410/13). All this puts further strain on carers, trying to juggle a life other than caring; Putting People First seems to have acknowledged this by including the ‘individual budgets’ to carers. By looking after the carer, valuing their expertise, and offering alternative solutions, thus prevents hospital admissions and residential care, both of which come at a much higher cost to the economy. We have taken a look at the impact of a political ideology, how this is developed into policies which impact on society, but also how the changes in societal discourses forces governments into making sweeping changes across provision. For me ‘sharing responsibility’ basically sums up the Putting People First policy, for those who receive help to be considered active, valued and empowered citizens, accredited with the ability to take responsibility of amalgamating services to meet individual needs. This new commissioning type of services by local authorities will inevitably force its way into social work, consequently social workers being privatised and commissioned by local authorities, again taking responsibility away from the state. However we have to be sceptical regards the costs – both in financial terms and the personal impact of this direction, as funding is reduced, how much of this shared responsibility will actually fall on the unpaid carers. And to reflect Hudson Lowe’s (2004) argument around â€Å"rational choice theory† and whether a society is able to develop a â€Å"collective action† due to a self-absorbed nation and what â€Å"sense of duty† is evident in â€Å"society to exist at all† (Hudson Lowe, 2004, p190), this may become apparent as we move towards a society who can make best use of social capital. References Alcock, C, Daly, G Griggs, E (2008): â€Å"Introducing social policy†, 2nd ed. Essex: Pearson Education ltd Alcock, P, (2008): â€Å"Social Policy in Britain† 3rd ed. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan Barton, R. (2010): â€Å"The carers perspective† in Davies, M. (ed.) The Blackwell Blakemore, K Griggs, E, (2007): â€Å"Social policy an introduction†, 3rd ed. Berkshire: open university press Drakeford, M. (2010): â€Å"Social work and politics† in Davies, M. (ed.) The Blackwell Carr, S. (2008) personalisation : a rough guide (ed) social care institute for excellence, London Companion to Social Work. Oxford: Blackwell publishing Ltd Ellison, N Pearson, C, (2003): â€Å"Developments in British policy 2†, London: Palgrave Macmillan Hill, M Irving, Z, (2009): â€Å"Understanding social policy†, 8th ed. West Sussex: Blackwell publishing Hudson, J Lowe, S, (2004): â€Å"Understanding the policy process†, Bristol: The Policy Press Department of health Think Local Act Personal – Debbie’s story HM Government (2008)[online]. London: National Health Service. [Accessed15.03.2011]. Available at: http://www.thinklocalactpersonal.org.uk . Department of health Putting people First A shared vision and commitment to the transformation of Adult Social Care. HM Government (2008)[online]. London: National Health Service. [Accessed15.03.2011]. Available at: . Department of health Think Local Act Personal- social care transformation. HM Government (2008)[online]. London: National Health Service. [Accessed15.03.2011]. Available at: http://www.thinklocalactpersonal.org.uk . Department of Health (October 2008) Putting People First Transforming Adult Care [online]. London: National Health Service. [Accessed 15.03.2011]. Available at: . Department of health Putting people First – Working to make it happen. HM Government (2008)[online]. London: National Health Service. [Accessed15.03.2011]. Available at: . Department of Health (January 2006) Our health, our care, our say: a new direction for community services[online]. London: National Health Service. [Accessed 15.03.2011]. Available at: . Public Administration Management: An Interactive Journal(1999) 4, 4, pp. 494-507 Thompson, N. (2006) Anti-discriminatory Practice.4th ed., Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

An Analysis of Beyond Parental Control (BPC)

An Analysis of Beyond Parental Control (BPC) Over the years, parents seeking Beyond Parental Control (BPC) order from the Juvenile Court has increased drastically, in particular during economic downturns. When Singapore was gripped by an economic recession from 2008 2009, the number of applications for BPC increased. 744 applications were filed last year, compared to 720 in 2008 and 673 in 2007 (Eisen, 2009). In any case, it is worthy to note that the perennial issue has seen an increased in delinquent girls forcing parents to apply for BPC and handing over to the court to take control of their daughters. This essay will attempt to discuss the background of BPC and critically analyse the issues faced by the parents and youth. The second part of the essay will define the relevant theories which will be applicable to the issue and relate examples to further illustrate the theories. Thirdly, media effect and their role of reporting the juvenile crimes especially on the problematic girls will also be discussed upon. Last but not l east, recommendations on the way forward for juvenile crimes and prevention methods will be deliberated. Background and Trending of BPC In light of the increasing juvenile crimes over the years, the Beyond Parental Control order was instituted in 1997 and Singapore is the only country in the world which instituted such an order to deal with juvenile delinquency (Balhetchet, 2010). According to Ministry of Community Development Youth and Sports (MCYS, 2010), Children Beyond Parental Control refer to children below 16 years of age who is observed to display certain behavioral problems in school or at home. The gathered statistics proved to be alarming as the number of BPCs applied by parents or guardians has tripled over the last decade. In February 1999, one of the Subordinate Court research bulletins (1999) highlighted that an average of 200 BPC complaints were lodged at the Juvenile Court annually. However, in comparison, an increasing trend of BPC applications was observed for the past 3 years (2009: 744, 2008: 720, and 2007: 673). Moreover, the statistics gathered seems to suggest that an economic downturn between 2008 to 2009 could have attributed to the incremental trend. This was also observed during the recession in 2001 when the number of applications for BPC doubled from 244 to 598 cases in the following year (Eisen, 2009 Serene, 2010). According to another set of statistics from Singapore Police Force, there was an increase of 1.2% in the overall crime rate for the last 2 years (SPF, 2010). Elsewhere in United States, while arrests of male juveniles have increased since 2002, statistics for female juveniles have spiked alarmingly. According to US federal statistics in 2003, 25% of the arrested juveniles were females. In comparison to ten years ago, female juveniles only clocked approximately 10% of the arrest made by the police (Geoffrey, 2005). Social Demographics of BPC cases One of the researches conducted by Subordinate Courts in 1999 studied on 379 BPC cases. To understand the nature of the complaints filed, the study includes their family and social backgrounds and demographic profiles. From the research, 49% of the juveniles parents were married, while a substantial figure of the juveniles parents were either divorced (37%), widowed (7%), single parents (3%), separated (3%) or cohabiting (1%). Most of their parents are low-skilled workers and the average household income is less than $2000. The reported figures somehow lead to the assumption that more than half of the BPC cases came from low income and broken families. Most of the parents already spend so much time earning for a living so that the earned money can be given to their children. As they have been working and tend to neglect their children, they have little energy left to gain their attention and communicate with them (Serene, 2009). However, Dr Carol Balhetchet, director of Youth Service s at the Singapore Childrens Society feels otherwise. She shared that the generation has evolved and in recent years, most of the problematic children who face court orders or under warrant arrest by the police come from a complete home (Joan, Chia, He Ong, 2008). Similar to Dr Carols claim, 69% of new probation cases (according to MCYS) in 2006 involved delinquent youth who come from 2 parent families. Another worrying data collated from the study by Subordinate Courts revealed that a total of 65% of the BPC cases were committed by girls whereas male only constituted the remaining 35%. Although a recent trending (as of Sep 10) by Youth Services Centre as elaborated by Dr Carol during a face-to-face session with her, revealed that BPC cases involving girls has generally decreased over the decade (boys: 49% and girls: 51%), 267 BPC cases (out of 523 cases) involving girls is definitely of a concern not only to parents, but to the society as well (Balhetchet, 2010). The next part of the essay will critically discuss and analyze some of the causal factors and problems faced by parents, the children and the society. Why did it happen and who to blame? One may ask, why are some of the girls wilder and getting into trouble? According to a social worker, the sharp increase of problematic girls could be a result of changing attitudes towards bringing up daughters (Roaul, 1997). While parents claimed that they will raise their daughters no differently from their sons, studies by experts have shown that boys and girls are nurtured differently due to the fact that by virtue, boys and girls behave differently due to the genetic differences (Ames Haber, 1989). Boys are perceived to be active and often get into trouble, but when their daughters behave similarly, parents gave up and hand them over to the Court. This may breed resentment in the girls and inadvertently cause Parent-Child relationship to be severely strained. Henceforth, the girls may run away from home and skip school (Roaul, 1997). A typical case is that of a 13-year old girl whose parents applied to the Juvenile Court for BPC order when she is reported to have skipped schoo l and hang out with men twice her age. She became resentful and stay away from home when she is aware that her parents have handed her to the Court (Radha, 2008). Moreover, girls running away from home are often susceptible to committing a variety of crimes, such as shoplifting, rioting, theft and even to the extent of prostitution to survive (McCormack et al., 1986; Phelps, McIntosh, Jesudason, Warner, Pohlkamp, 1982).When a child commits a deviance act, parents tend to ask why do you do that? Based on the Control and Social Bond theories, control theorists hypothesize that crime and deviancy is a natural occurrence in the society simply because all human beings have an innate to commit crime (Jones, 2009). Therefore, when parents need to deal with their deviant children, they should explain to them Why you should not do that. Similarly, Hirschi (1969) claimed that there is no requirement to explain why people commit such acts because delinquency is not caused by beliefs that requ ire delinquency but rather, it is only possible by the absence of effective beliefs that forbids delinquency. In essence, child nurturing starts from young and good child rearing practices will definitely facilitate positive socialization process within the family and the childs circle of friends. Conversely, bad parental skills and negative influences are contributing factors to deviancy acts committed by their children. Studies have revealed that the quality of parent-child relationships is largely associated with some of the high-risk health behaviours such as consumption of alcohol, smoking, drug abuse and sexually risky behaviors. For instance, several large-scale pediatric surveys have discovered that parents who are smokers themselves are more likely to have children who smoke (Green et al., 1990). Another research by Berk (1997) has shown that family members behavior and habits, socialization patterns, environmental influence and a childs inborn personality traits will shape the childs cognitive development and behavior as they grow up. In addition, positive parenting styles with a balance of control and warmth are very beneficial to the childs development in which a rational and consultative approach by parents and children rights are mutually agreed and respected (Subordinate Courts, 2001). On the contrary, parents who are only interested in making money and neglect their children unknowingly must bear the responsibility when their children are recalcitrant and belligerent. A study by Ozawa and Loh (2000) analyze that most fathers of the juvenile offenders appear to be uninvolved, neglecting and permissive towards their child. Generally, fathers, being the bread winners of the family are often not involved in their childs growth and development. The treatment for gender differences is that fathers tend to exert more authority on boys whereas for girls, fathers are usually more permissive and leave it to their mother to handle. As for mothers, they ar e generally observed to be permissive. Although mothers tend to be more caring and loving, their permissive attitudes could ultimately lead to teen delinquency because they may not be exercising control over their children and thus indirectly allowing them to continue with their misbehavior. From the analysis made by Ozawa and Loh, it appears that a deadly combination (which is common in the society) of permissive-neglecting and uninvolved father, matching with a permissive mother is a formula for disaster to happen at home. What we can hypothesize is that low control of children especially female juveniles can potentially lead to delinquency. Behavioral Problems of Youths Nevertheless, looking at another perspective, the parents may not be entirely at fault because the children could be influenced by the environment. According to the Anomie and Strain theory, Merton (1997) described the materialistic dream of being successful and wealthy. Not everyone is entitled and have the opportunity to achieve the goal. Hence, this dissonance between the goal of being wealthy and the structural limitations that prevent people from achieving the goal causes strain within the community. Such strain will therefore cause people to commit deviant acts illegitimately to achieve such desires. As the cognitive development of a juvenile is still premature at this stage, the thought of committing crimes to fulfill certain desires will supersede the moral values that are taught in the school. Accordingly to statistics, the top 3 crimes committed by juveniles are shoplifting, theft and rioting (Subordinate Courts, 2004). When they are in need of money, they will resort to st ealing, extortion and bullying, and prostitution for girls. Typically, a case of a 13-year old girl joined a gang and inherited all the bad habits such as smoking, drinking, glue-sniffing, stealing and rioting. When her father applied for Beyond Parental Control and eventually remanded in Girls Home, she was only 14 year-old (Joan, Chia, He Ong, 2008). Besides that, more girls, as young as 10, are also experimenting with sex. In 2006, teenagers constituted 12,000 abortions that were done in Singapore. Girls who turned to prostitution gave reasons such as financial problems and needed money to buy branded goods. For instance, a 15 year-old girl who needed money and turned to prostitution was pregnant (Carolyn Kimberly, 2009). Many girls have reported that sexual exploitation has somehow affected their eventual entrance into prostitution (Silbert Pines, 1981). At times, they might have been wronged or abused by their parents or guardians as much as they have done wrong. Take it for instance, a girl who had run away from home, was molested by her father before she turned to prostitution. Before she was even 16, she has had slept with countless men and contracted Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) (Serene, 2010). But in the eyes of the law, having sex with girls below 16 years old can be charged for statutory rape. If found guilty, offenders can be jailed up to 20 years and fined and caned. More parents are giving up on their delinquent daughters than sons and seeking assistance from the Juvenile Court. According to the Research Bulletin from Subordinate Courts (1999), some of the more serious delinquent behaviors that were encountered are beyond control, running away from home, involve in gangs, taking drugs and unlawful sexual experiences. Other problems such as rude and violent to teachers, smoking and play truancy in school were also observed in the study. Another aspect of delinquency is the youths exposure to various media such as the internet. In the current Information and Communication Technology (ICT) era, the child and even the parents are constantly engaged in their I-phones, laptops and internet. Because of such exposure and freedom to use the internet, Professor Winslow, a psychiatrist said that teenagers find it a thrill in obtaining and watching pornography on the internet and they are far more sexualized (Shuli, 2008). Besides that, coupled with lack of parents or adult supervision and boredom, things can get complicated when teenagers are left alone. Even when parents are at home, they have little energy left after a long day at work especially when both parents are working. Some parents faced the difficulty of gaining their childrens attention, who even if they are physically at home, are preoccupy with their online games, chatting with friends online and surfing the internet. Gone are the days where children and parents share a family phone, television, or even computer (Serene, 2010). Problems and issues between the children and parents begin to escalate when there is a lack of proper communication as well as mutual trust and support. The cognitive development of a child is largely dependent on their parents. Juvenile delinquency is often traced back to the youths family and social life. Other than trust and support, parents must show that they are keen to engage in their children. Such care and concern from parents would definitely enable their children to open up and share their woes and problems (Jonathan, 2010). Besides medias influence on juvenile, cyber bullying among girls is another worrying trend, abetted by the constant usage of the Internet and mobile phones today. Victims are exploited and bullied by unknown culprits hiding behind the computer screens. For example, on the blogs, victims are abused using expletives and obscene messages, pictures are vandalized and vicious rumours about the victims are broadcasted and made known to everyone. Studies made by Janssen, Craig, Boyce and Pickett (2004) proved that these groups of people are often victimized. In addition, children who are labeled as having lower levels of social acceptance and higher levels of social rejection among their peers are often found to be victims of bullies as well. (Salmivalli, Lagerspetz, Bjorkqvist, Osterman, Kaukiainen, 1996). As the internet is easily available and as simple as one click, the bully does not need to face the victim and their doings can spread like wildfire (Joan, Chia, He Ong, 2008). However , cyber-bullying does not constitute to be a crime. Where cyber-bullying could be serious and consequential, it may be relevant and appropriate for the law to step in to impose penalties on bullies. Under the Penal code, the only law that can be associated is Non-Physical Acts under Section 13b of Cap 224 where offenders display any writing, sign or other visible representation which is threatening, abusive or insulting may be fined not exceeding $2000 (Singapore Statutes). Likewise for other countries like Australia, under the NSW Crimes Act, harassing or intimidating a school student while the student is at school is considered a criminal offence. But this offence has its limits as it can only be applied to traditional off-line bullying and activities happening in school (Abrahams Dunn, 2009). Although laws are institutionalized, but such laws do not bring charges to cyber-bullies. That is why victims have been reported to retaliate against the bullies, in horrifying ways elsewhe re (Boulton, 1993). In one of the reports by United States Secret Service cited by Dake, Price, and Telljohann (2003), students who were involved in those deadly shooting in United States cited bulling as one of the strong motivation factors to commit such crimes. The report highlighted that 25 out of the 37 school shootings examined, involved attackers who felt marginalized, bullied and persecuted before the attacks took place. Some even reported that such bullying and harassment had in fact been ongoing for awhile (Dake et al., 2003; Mayer, Ybarra, Fogliatti, 2001). On the other extreme, there were cases reported that children committed suicide after being bullied by classmates. In fact, numerous cases of such incidents have been reported in the media (Kumpulainen et al., 1998; Smith, Talamelli, Cowie, Naylor, Cauhan, 2004). Medias Influence and Portrayal of Crimes Even in Singapore, a newspaper reported a 16-year old girl who committed suicide after being bullied by classmates for several years (The New Paper, 26 September 2005). Sometimes, one may wonder why such incidents were not spotted by the schools especially by the teachers. Had this incident be spotted by the teachers timely, it could have been prevented. In such incidents, the medias portrayal of crime transmits a strong signal to the public and at times, may have amplified the deviance. Such messages are crucial to serve as a warning for schools or parents to observe their children if there are certain tell-tale signs that indicate their children have encountered bullying cases. However, medias amplification of a criminal or deviance acts may result in moral panic and warrant greater scrutiny by the relevant authorities. The generation of moral panic will instill fear and public outcry within the community. For example, the recent incident of a teen who was hacked to death by 4 yout hs at Pair Ris Downtown East, amplified the criminal act (Straits Time reported the incident 5 days in a row in the headlines) and cause public outcry on such incidents (The Straits Time, 31 Oct 4 Nov 10). This would have an effect on the judges as they cannot ignore public opinion and hence might be influenced when passing the sentence (Jones, 2008) in view of media or public pressure. Studies from Leslie (1964) and Stan (1972) have shown that media is seen as an agent of deviance amplification and has the capability of influencing the publics opinion. In fact, the media does not have a role in the criminal justice system and they are supposed to only disseminate to the public about certain crimes and the governments official response to such crime. The media often uses phrases like the public is alarmed by or the public demands that. Ironically, the editors or journalists do not have a direct line to the publics opinion and they are seen to be the creators of opinion and not refl ecting the right message. An interview with a few people from the public does not necessarily represent the opinions from the entire population or the nation (Jones, 2008). Punishment and Treatment of Youths Beyond Parental Control As highlighted previously, Singapore is the only country that has instituted BPC order in Juvenile Courts. Essentially, these children are neither criminals nor offenders, but their rebellious and uncontrollable behavior may warrant serious attention by parents in which they apply to the Court for assistance to manage their children. By doing so may adversely strain or affect the parent-child relationship if such complaint made to the Court is successful. When the parents or guardian of a child can prove to a Juvenile Court that they are unable to control the child, the Court judge, under the Children and Young Persons Act Cap 38 Section 49, may order the child to be (1) remanded to an approved home not more than 3 years or (2) placed on Statutory Supervision for a specified period, of up to 3 years, under the supervision of a social worker (Subordinate Courts, 1999). Punishments meted out by such system are usually acted as a form of deterrence to juvenile from committing wrong doin gs and may eventually commit more serious crime when they grow up. Therefore, this kind of system is more inclined towards a classical approach as this theory is very policy oriented and concentrates on establishing and operating a criminal justice system that is rule-based, consistent and predictable (Joyce, 2006). End of the day, classicism focus on the act rather than the person committing. Unlike a criminal justice system where criminals are punished for their wrong doings, BPC act is not classified as a crime. As such, classical and positivist approaches are usually applied to such acts. During the process of the BPC application (which is seen to be positivist approach), parents and child will be advised to seek further assistance and treatment in the school or other social services such as Family Service Centre, Community Development Council, religious institutions and Youth Service Centre. Besides that, the child can also be referred to Beaconworks (a 6-month structured progr am) for counseling program. In addition, the Juvenile Court Judge has the prerogative to send both the parents and the child for additional counseling program with Singapore Children Society for a 4-week program (BPC, 2009). Rather than focusing on the law and the offence committed, the positivist approach (during the BPC application) looks into the contributing factors leading to deviance act committed by juvenile. It advocates treatment and rehabilitation over punishments (Jones, 2008). Ultimately, a deviance act may not be a product of rational choice but, rather, due to factors such as prematurity, influence from parents and peers over which juveniles have no control in. As youths who are still undergoing the process of growing up and maturity, the BPC order, which perceived to has a combination of punishment and treatment approach is appropriate and will therefore reduce overemphasis on rationality and idealistic, and yet do not overly concentrating on healing and treating the juvenile when the need arises. For example, when the child do not learnt the lesson and continue her delinquent act despite efforts made to treat her, the Juvenile Court will order her to be remanded in an approved Girls Home. Certainly, to prevent juvenile from leading astray and eventually being convicted, prevention measures must be implemented to arrest such situations from further developing. Recommendations and Preventions Problems and heated argument arise when there is a lack of communication and mutual support between youths and their parents. The development of a child is very much dependant on whether both the parents and the child have mutual understanding and support. When Juvenile delinquency is traced back, it is often the actions of the parents that ultimately will affect how the child behaves (Jonathan, 2010). If a child has established a positive relationship with the parents, it is postulated that they are more likely to disclose information to parents (Trost, 2000). Therefore in order to do so, parents must constantly show that they are keen in the childs interests. In essence, parents who are warm and supportive in interactions with their children are more likely to establish a positive parent-child relationship. In addition, it is also noted in one of the studies conducted by Steven and Daniel (1998) where greater parental involvement will improve the childs academic performance in scho ol. To put myself in a position of the role of parents, we should play an active role and constantly involved in our childs education, consistently demonstrating good parenting skills, interested in the childs development and show love, tender and care to their children. Furthermore, education, socialization and transmission of good values to the child should take place within the family environment. Values such as filial piety, respect, honesty, responsibility, contributing to the society, are critical building blocks that parents must advocate to their child (Zaleha, 2005). Nevertheless, youths cannot be strapped and controlled by parents all the time. Excessive control of their child might result in counterproductive and could lead to recalcitrant and belligerent behavior. Sometimes heavy-handed methods may not work for stubborn and strong headed youths. Therefore, parents should explore other methods and avoid using authoritarian style to deal with their child. Sometimes, treating yo uths as adults may be useful and they are given sufficient time and space to ponder the consequences of their actions (Ng, 2010). While parents play an imperative role in child nurturing, many are still being blamed for being incompetence in handling parenting challenges of this era. Increasingly, parents are facing difficulties domestic issues such as stabilizing their marriage, generating sufficient incomes for the families, taking care of their children and at the same time educating and nurturing them (Zaleha, 2005). However, such issues should never be part of parents excuses to dish out their parental responsibility to others such as appointing a guardian for their child, grandparents or even to the government. According to Dr Carol, too many parents are seen to farm out their parental responsibility to the State. In 2007, out of the 676 parents who applied for BPC orders, only 44 parents agreed to join the Beaconworks counseling program. Most parents cited reasons such as wor k commitments and since the counseling program is targeted for their child, they see no reason attending. One of the suggestions would be mandate parents to attend such counseling programs together with their children because parents may not realize that they also require professional help. In order for a mandatory counseling program to be effected, the Children and Young Persons Act (CYPA) is recommended to be reviewed and amended to exert tighter rein on parents. Another recommendation would be imposing fine on parents if they fail to fulfill their parental responsibility. In UK, parents of delinquent children are fined up to  £1,000 (S$2,670) if they fail to improve their childrens behavior. Current in CYPA, parents may be fined if they fail to comply with any court order pertaining to BCP cases. Perhaps the Juvenile Court can look into imposing such orders into the CYPA to deter frivolous and irresponsible parents (Radha, 2008). Conclusion In summary, ever since BPC order was introduced in 1997 to curb juvenile delinquency, the number of applicants for BCP cases has increased drastically, from an average of 200 complaints in the 90s, to an average of 700 cases over the last 3 years. However, it is worthy to note that although number of BPC applicants has increased, the number of BPC cases awarded by the Juvenile Court has dipped dramatically in the recent years. According to Dr Carol, more than 50% of the BPC applications were dismissed due to lack of concrete evidence to proof that the child is beyond parental control. In most cases, the child could return to normalcy after counseling sessions are conducted. While it is unclear that the statistics gathered can commensurate to the effectiveness of BPC order, the uniqueness of BPC order in Singapore does help and enable juveniles to build self-confidence, self-esteem, positive outlook and instill sense of social responsibility. Besides that, counseling and training prog rams for parents and youths such as Parent Management Training, Parent Support Group, Youth Mentorship Support Program, Beaconworks Program and etc were introduced by the Singapore Children Society to assist parents and youths in terms of counseling, psychological or psychiatric consultations and more importantly, to harmonize the parent-child relationship that might be strained previously.