Social Communication in Nation Building

The basis of nationality is the sense of belonging to the same nation and the desire on the part of its members to live with each other at this level of community. When the political scientist wants to de fine or locate this subjective sense of community, he has used such objective criteria as common language, common history, common territory, and so forth. It is clear that ail these criteria are an expression of something more basic—shared experience.This shared experience, which may lead to the necessary mutual trust among members of a given society and to the feeling that this group as a group is different from others, contributes continuously to national unity. National unity likewise makes shared experience more possible. To determine the human and geographie frontiers of a nation the political scientist must find ways to examine this shared experience.The problems in the Tiers Monde are greater with regard to such research than they are in Europe because much of the nece ssary data are not available. Research at very basic levels with some new methods is necessary. Karl W. Deutsch, professor of political science at Yale University, has proposed a quantitative interdisciplinary way to examine shared experience and, indirectly, the sense of community. 1 He suggests that one measure the quantities of communications among a given people to find out how much contact they have.For this one must use criteria such as flows of letters, telegrams, movement of vehicles, trains, planes, telephone calls, mass media of communication, location of markets, settlement patterns, and population movements, he says. If it is possible to examine these different forms of communication, or as many as possible of them, it is equally possible, he says, to estimate shared experience and make predictions about increases or decreases in shared experience. The first stage in this process, that of physical contact, is called â€Å"mobilization†.People who have intensive co mmunications with each other are â€Å"mobilized†1 for shared experiences and are â€Å"mobiliz-ed† into a current of communications which may eventually change a physical relationship into an affective relationship. The second stage is a change in the sentiments and attitudes of the people; it is called â€Å"assimilation†. People find that, on the basis of shared experience, they communicate increasingly more effectively with members of a particular society than with others. In other words, when the â€Å"communication habits† of a population become ncreasingly standardized within a group composed of smaller groups, assimilation of the smaller groups to the larger one is occurring: â€Å"If the statistical weight of standardized experience is large, and the weight of recalled information within the [smaller] group is relatively small, and the statistical weight of feedback information about the [smaller] group's peculiar responses is likewise small, th en the responses of such a group would differ from the responses of other groups in the same situation by a converging series, until the remaining differences might fall below the threshold of political significance.This is the process of assimilation. â€Å"2 People may also find that there are advantages to be gained in belong-ing to this new community, but there may never be a conscious choice which is made. Because a study of assimilation is a study of beliefs, values and conceptions, different kinds of data are necessary. Professor Deutsch says that there are also quantifiable.According to him, the â€Å"rate of assimilation† depends on certain linguistic, economie, and cultural â€Å"balances†: similarities in linguistic habits must be balanced, for example, against differences in value, material rewards for assimilation must be balanced against rewards for non-assimilation. To measure values he says it is necessary to give psychological tests to considerable nu mbers of people3 and to measure rewards it is necessary, in part, to examine economie surveys to determine where people work and how much they get paid. The problems involved in using these criteria are insurmontable at present. The data for these â€Å"balances† are lacking, and even if one had the men, the money, the machines, and the time necessary, or as many as possible of them, it is equally possible, he says, to estimate shared experience and make predictions about increases or decreases in shared experience. The first stage in this process, that of physical contact, is called â€Å"mobilization†.People who have intensive communications with each other are â€Å"mobilized†1 for shared experiences and are â€Å"mobiliz-ed† into a current of communications which may eventually change a physical relationship into an affective relationship. The second stage is a change in the sentiments and attitudes of the people; it is called â€Å"assimilation†. People find that, on the basis of shared experience, they communicate increasingly more effectively with members of a particular society than with others.In other words, when the â€Å"communication habits† of a population become increasingly standardized within a group composed of smaller groups, assimilation of the smaller groups to the larger one is occurring: â€Å"If the statistical weight of standardized experience is large, and the weight of recalled information within the [smaller] group is relatively small, and the statistical weight of feedback information about the [smaller] group's peculiar responses is likewise small, then the responses of such a group would differ from the responses of other groups in the same situation by a converging series, until the remaining differences might fall below the threshold of political significance. This is the process of assimilation. â€Å"2 People may also find that there are advantages to be gained in belong-ing to this new community, but there may never be a conscious choice which is made. Because a study of assimilation is a study of beliefs, values and conceptions, different kinds of data are necessary. Professor Deutsch says that there are also quantifiable.According to him, the â€Å"rate of assimilation† depends on certain linguistic, economie, and cultural â€Å"balances†: similarities in linguistic habits must be balanced, for example, against differences in value, material rewards for assimilation must be balanced against rewards for non-assimilation. To measure values he says it is necessary to give psychological tests to considerable numbers of people3 and to measure rewards it is necessary, in part, to examine economie surveys to determine where people work and how much they get paid. 4 The problems involved in using these criteria are insurmontable at present. The data for these â€Å"balances† are lacking, and even if one had the men, the money, the machines, and the time necessary, villages or in the same village. These quantifiable data served as a basis for a study of mobilization.In order to validate conclusions based on the quantitative census data I took a tour of the country during which I visited every region and lived in a few selected villages for periods of three days to a week. In the course of this tour I found that one way to investigate attitudes and assimilation was by oral histories and conceptions of kinship. My use of these histories was different from that of Professor Hubert Deschamps who had made an extensive tour of the country in 1961 to collect and record oral histories as part of a large project to write the history of Gabon. 1 As an historian he was naturally interest-ed in recording the facts of the past. For me, as a political scientist, the â€Å"truth† was irrelevant.I was interested in history as ideology: how were present relationships between tribes justified in the history, what was the place held b y neighboring tribes in a given history, how were history and conceptions of kinship infmenced by present settlement patterns. I thought that these two criteria, settlement patterns and histories, could serve as a basis for estimations of trends in assimilation and mobilization and could show the relationship between non-quantifiable attitudes and quantifiable social communications. The following are some of my findings. Mobilization Gabon may be crudely divided into three generai zones of mobilization: places where people are relatively non-mobilized, where they are partially mobilized, and where they are mobilized for intensive contact with people of different ethnie groups.I have called these zones Heartland, Contact, and National. The Heartland Zone is a group of contiguous cantons in which one ethnie group or tribe clearly predominates with at least 80% of the total population. Internai communication is fairly good and may be better than means which link the area with other par ts of the country. Contact Zones are on the edges of Heartland Zones; from about 50% to 80% of the people belong to one tribe. Such zones are cantons in which people of different tribes live in adjoining villages or in the same village; or they are centers of attraction such as administrative posts and markets to which people from different Heartlands travel regularly.They are most likely along roads and rivers which provide a link between Heartland Zones. There may be more mechanical means of communication in a Contact Zone than in a Heartland. National Zones are groups of contiguous cantons and large centers of attraction in which no tribe accounts for 50% of the total population. The internai means of communication are best here: they are public, mechanical, and regular. It is usually the one place where most decisions affecting the whole country are made. A. A Heartland. The largest Heartland in Gabon is that of the Fang who account for one-third of the total population of the c ountry. 1 The center of this Heartland orresponds with the administrative region of Woleu-Ntem in the northern half of the country along the Camerounese frontier. The region is relatively isolated from the rest of Gabon but has regular contact with Cameroun and Spanish Guinea by land and water. The only road to Libreville has been in poor condition even during the dry season; the rains often close the road completely. While there is regular air and telegraphie communication between Libreville and administrative centers of Woleu-Ntem, there is no regular land transportation. By contrast, fair roads extend into Cameroun and Spanish Guinea where close relatives of the Fang, the Bulu, live.Merchandise is imported along these routes while coffee and cocoa exports leave Woleu-Ntem through the Cameroun. 2 Some Fang take advantage of the road to the Cameroun to attend Camerounese technical schools and go to Camerounese hospitals (particularly a missionary-run hospital not far from the front ier). Radio Cameroun is a popular source of information and entertainment. For 14 of the 16 cantons of Woleu Ntem there is a regular service of autocars which link the administrative centers of the region. For example, two little Renault cars leave Oyem, the administrative capital, every day for each canton except that of Medouneu to the far west and Lalara to the south.There are frequent cars from Oyem or Bitam to Spanish Guinea and Cameroun. Another means of internai communication has been a regional newspaper published by some Fang teachers. In 1962 it contained mainly Fang stories and essays on â€Å"the true Fang custom†. In spite 1. For studies of the Fang see Georges Balandier, Sociologie actuelle de l'Afrique Noire, Paris, 1963. P. Alexandre and J. Binet, Le Groupe dit Pahouin, Paris, 1958. James Fernandez, Redistributive Acculturation in Fang Culture, unpublished, Northwestern, 1963. 2. Neither Libreville nor Port-Gentil, which are both on the ocean, have a port whic h can adequately accomodate large ships. f the great preponderance of Fang in the region, it was printed in French and was issued in only 75 copies. About 55,000 out of a total adult population of 56,500, or 98% are Fang in this region. 1 In the canton of Woleu, for example, there are 5,531 Africans of whom 5,473 are Fang. Non-Fang live in well-defined quarters in the town of Oyem; most of these people are Bulu merchants from southern Cameroun or Bakota who have moved from a neighboring region to work as servants or to attend a Roman Catholic secondary school. While these â€Å"foreigners† move into the Woleu-Ntem, the present Fang residents are fairly stationary. The census indicates that 80% of the men between the ages of 15 and 59 were born in the place the census taker found them.However, only 12% of the women were born in the place they were counted. 2 This does not mean that many Fang have not moved outside the Woleu-Ntem for many have; it means that Fang maies, who sti ll live in the region, have an interest in continuing to live in the village where they were born and that they find wives outside their village. Several women in each of the villages along the Guinea and Cameroun frontiers indicated that they were born in these neighboring states. Contiguous with the Woleu-Ntem are eight cantons which are an extension of the Heartland. The Fang have moved into these particul-ar cantons partly because the ways of communication exist.For example, the administrative region of Ogooue-Ivindo has three cantons adjacent to the Fang Heartland. In two of these cantons the Fang represent 80% or more of the total population and in the third they represent only 2% of the total population. The difference is that the two cantons with high Fang percentages are linked to the Woleu-Ntem by a river and a road while the other has no such link. In the sixteen cantons of Woleu-Ntem plus the eight cantons in adjacent regions which constitute the Heartland there are 70,0 00 Fang out of a total Fang population in Gabon of 106,000. On the basis of settlement patterns 66% of the Fang are, therefore, non-mobilized. Their contacts are almost exclusively with other Fang.Table I indicates that over half the Gabonese have no contact with people of tribes different from their own. Not ail the tribes of Gabon have Heartlands; of those who do have Heartlands 62% live in them. The total population of the country (14 and older) was approximately 285 000. 3 If the total population 1. Unless otherwise noted ail census figures refer to people 14 and older. 2. Recensement et enquete demographiques ic6o-ic6i: Resultats provisoires ensemble du Gabon, Service de Cooperation de l'Institut National de la Statistique et des Etudes economiques, Paris, 1963, p. 24. 3. Ail the calculations, unless otherwise noted, are my own; they are based

Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation Pattern Essay

It is ironic that Kapil Sibal declared at 125th Birth Anniversary celebrations of great Mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan that exam-centric education system would have to go. One wonders what Ramanujan himself would say – â€Å"Mr. Minister, even I am a product of exam centric education system†? Kapil Sibal says he would like to replace the current system with a child-centric one. Now that is a very interesting term. So how does the minister define the term? Expressing his determination to do away with rote learning and the â€Å"archaic† examination-oriented system, he said: â€Å"We are endeavouring to reform this with emphasis on skill development and unlocking the creative talent within the child. † The Ministry’s decision to do away with examinations at the end of the year, replacing them with a Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation (CCE) system in a bid to de-stress children, was a step in that direction. [Link] Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation has its benefits. It has to be, however, said that CCE will not de-stress the children all by itself. Students are under stress due to the range of competition. Imagine a candidate appearing for IIT JEE during +2. He faces at least 7 lakh others across the country. Imagine what goes on in the family, forget the candidate! Every IIT graduate has a story to tell as to how many sacrifices the complete family makes for success at the exam! CCE has its benefits and can de-stress the students but in an autonomous organization with tight controls within the organization. For example, some engineering colleges at graduate level and almost all of them at post-graudate level use it to the maximum benefit of both students and professors. The system is a success at these places because of the autonomy. JNTU implemented CCE in engineering colleges affiliated to it. It had limited impact and yet, it couldn’t do away with the final exam. The final exam had to cover 80% of the total score. CCE makes sense when the number of institutions involved is less. Another important factor that influences the impact of CCE is the physical proximity of affiliated institutions. Otherwise fraud and cheating would happen as the case is with JNTU’s example. Understanding the issue JNTU faced several issues with implementing CCE is more than 100 colleges in AP affiliated to it at the time of introduction of the system. They started with 80% external evaluation in the form of final comprehensive exam and 20% internal evaluation across the semester via 5 exams conducted by the instructor. Due to lack of feedback mechanism between students and the governing body – JNTU, the system led to several problems. There were cases of cheating and fraud. JNTU wanted to solve this problem by making internal evaluation â€Å"not so internal† through online objective evaluation. For this, an internal evaluation question bank was created through suggestions from all its professors, assistant professors, associate professors across the affiliated institutes. The online evaluation software would throw random questions on the screen to be answered in stipulated amount of time. This system again failed at several institutions due to infrastructure issues but the major problem was again cheating and fraud. The issue is quite clear – large educational bodies with centralized governing body cannot use CCE effectively. Effective use of CCE can happen with decentralized model. JNTU understood this and divided colleges between JNTU Hyderabad, JNTU Kakinada and JNTU Ananthapur. The division was purely based on physical proximity of the institute to the governing body. This system still faces the issues that it had initially. It will continue to face them. Take another example. IITs. For evaluating graduate students, IITs dont have a common examination across all the IITs! Even BITS Pilani which has its campuses in Pilani, Dubai, Goa and Hyderabad doesnt use CCE across all four via a common evaluation body. Closed loop within each campus is used. In fact in all these institutes, swift justice in case of any fraud/cheating via committees within the institutes ensures better evaluation, without hindering the process of education. The key phrase – â€Å"checks and balances†. One then wonders why such a tight loop cannot be framed within the schools or a set of schools within close physical proximity! What is happening now? In our current system of school education, we have CBSE at national level and as competing bodies we have State Education Boards. Schools are allowed to choose one of the bodies. The chosen body not just dictates syllabi but also evaluates students in a final examination with a common exam held on a common date at all affiliated schools. So by design CCE is missing. Private schools, so far bridged this gap by having internal evaluation which does not affect scoring at final exam but will only help students to be ready for the final evaluation. Government schools on the other hand, have been busy serving meals at noon to children rather than conducting classes regularly. All government education bodies across India have a common goal – syllabus. Core of the problem lies in this – skill development has never been the area of interest of these bodies. Skill development was and still is the school’s responsibility to compete with other schools. Students who make it top notch institutes across India via JEE, AIEEE, BITSAT etc. , generally have a set of skills in some area or the other. But it has to be understood that they do not make it there due to those skills. They acquire those skills at school, due to their own enthusiasm and sometimes due to the school’s stress on extra-curricular and co-curricular activities. Fortunately or unfortunately, skill development is not due to the governing body. Some exceptions do exist in places like Kerala though! In terms of the system of education, both geography and demography have a huge role to play. Before CCE Implementation†¦. Sibal’s megalomania and grandiose plans lack substance just because of one of his very fundamental assertion – centralization. For a country of the size of India, with such a large population, centralization of education is a disaster to start with. Decentralizing and allowing that little freedom to schools would be a very important step. Such a decentralization process must be addressed before CCE can be implemented. If we are supposed to get anything useful from implementation of CCE, what Governments at class X, +1, +2 level in Government Schools needs to Allow more freedom to schools to collaborate and spool resources – they are already in severe resource crunch. Leaving out examinations completely would be a recipe for disaster. As it is, drop out rates in Class X, +1, +2 across states like AP is too high. Any hasty introduction of CCE without first correcting some fundamental flaws in organizing schools would only bring about faster drop out rates at these levels. CCE is already available in an abstract way in private schools. Several aided and government schools tried to emulate it to see marginal success. But the issue remains. CCE it self will not reduce stress on students. In conclusion, CCE would make sense only with a proper mechanism to address drop-out rates at class X, +1, +2 levels across government schools in India. Acts proposed by Sibal like RTE only make it worse as they attack Private schools which have a decent CCE model already in place. Bottom line – leave private institutions alone. If possible allow them a % share of total evaluation points/score. Don’t scrap examinations, even if you introduce grading. Meanwhile, ensure Government and Aided school improve standards w. r. t infrastructure and faculty. Form conglomerates of schools within a certain radius and allow them to frame, organize and evaluate their students through proper resource spooling.

Melbournes Weather And Climate Environmental Sciences Essay

Weather affects everybody. Consequently it is of involvement non merely to occupants of an country, but besides to visitants. The undermentioned information is designed merely as a general study ; one to give occupants more cognition of their environment and tourists an thought of what can be expected. Melbourne enjoys a temperate clime with warm-hot summers ; spring and fall are balmy and mild, the winters cool. Melbourne is rarely unbearably cold or unbearably hot, temperature extremes when they do happen see the hotter kingdom of the thermometer doing more jobs than the colder. There is a repute for rain in the metropolis, which is statistically baseless as Melbourne receives merely 50 per centum of the mean rainfall of either Brisbane or Sydney. Possibly it can sometimes be a small unpredictable, nevertheless, it is a comfy environment to be in whatever the season. In fact it is a great topographic point to watch the seasons change, they are so clearly defined and so extremely ocular within the many Parkss and gardens of fall and spring, giving rise to all of natures dramatic beauty and appeals within the confines of a great metropolis. Melbourne lays within the southern hemisphere where the seasons are reversed to those in Europe, North America and most of Asia. Melbourne ‘s alterations of seasons are renown for get downing late, the â€Å" functionary † first twenty-four hours of summer is 21st December, but it seldom feels like summer until mid January or even later. During the summer months out-of-door activities in peculiar the fabulous Melbourne beaches are popular with both locals and visitants.Melbourne ‘s conditions by the monthJANUARY & A ; FEBRUARYIt is high summer in Melbourne during January and February, a typical twenty-four hours is warm and cheery with a refreshing sea zephyr geting from the South in the afternoon. A few yearss are cool and cloudy, a maximal temperature below 20 °C being recorded about one time a hebdomad. There are ever hot yearss and the twelvemonth ‘s highest temperature of about 40 °C is normally recorded during these two months. Some of the hot years s are accompanied by an unpleasant North air current, which can be rather strong. Largely there are merely one or two hot yearss in a row. Occasionally hot conditions may go on for three or more yearss, when the day-to-day visual aspect of that cool refreshing, north bound sea zephyr in the afternoon, becomes that twenty-four hours ‘s most welcome visitant. The twelvemonth ‘s warmest dark, with a minimal temperature of about 24 °C, is besides recorded during these two months. Hot weather usually ends with an disconnected cool alteration when the quicksilver may fall by 10 °C in merely 20 proceedingss. Some of these alterations are dry and waterless ; showers and electrical storms accompany others. High degrees of humidness create uncomfortableness on really few yearss, largely towards the terminal of a hot enchantment. It is non uncommon for a two weeks to go through without rain. On occasions prolonged heavy rain can fall.MarchMarch is a transitional month between s ummer and fall. Hot conditions can be experienced in the first two weeks, when the month ‘s highest temperature of about 35 °C is normally recorded ; it may good be accompanied by a strong northwards air current during the twenty-four hours. The hot conditions normally comes to an terminal with a crisp air current alteration to the sou'-west and a rapid autumn in temperature. Humidity is uncomfortable on about one twenty-four hours merely. Many yearss are mild and cheery although some yearss are cool and cloudy. A maximal temperature below 20 °C is recorded about twice a hebdomad. The afternoon sea zephyr is non near every bit strong as in mid-summer. Nights are perceptibly cooler than in the predating month. Towards the terminal of March, it is rather common for the nightlong temperature to fall below 10 °C on one or two occasions. The month is reasonably dry nevertheless drawn-out heavy rain, falls on occasion.AprilApril is a pleasant month, frequently with enchantment s of all right cheery conditions enduring several yearss during which the temperature on occasion exceeds 25 °C. Every 2nd twelvemonth 30 °C is exceeded. The darks are rather cool with temperatures falling below 10 °C several times a hebdomad. Once in every five old ages an nightlong minimal temperature below 5 °C is recorded. Fog occurs during the early forenoon on a few occasions but clears to a cheery twenty-four hours. There are normally several yearss of strong air current ; largely from the North but the mean wind velocity of 9 kilometers per hr is the lowest of any month. Prolonged heavy rain falls on occasion. In April 1960, 172 millimeter fell within three yearss. On the other manus, April 1923 is the lone rainless calendar month on record.MAYMay is an appreciably cooler month. The last case until spring of temperatures in the low 20s normally occurs in the first two weeks. In May 1904 the temperature exceeded 20 °C on all but two of the first 15 yearss. The first hoars of the twelvemonth occur in the outer suburbs tardily in the month. In the metropolis itself, the coldest dark of the month normally has a minimal temperature of 4 °C, a small excessively high for hoar. Fog occurs on several forenoons but both frost and fog are normally followed by a all right and cheery twenty-four hours. This late fall, early winter period is noteworthy for drawn-out periods of really light air currents in Melbourne, although there are a few yearss of strong air current, largely from the North. Cloudy and showery conditions may prevail for some yearss at a clip, but prolonged heavy rain is rare.JuneThe conditions in June is cold, frequently with enchantments of all right and unagitated conditions. There are more yearss with really light air currents in June than in any other month. It is besides the foggiest month. Fog normally forms in the late eventide and clears by mid-morning, on occasion it may prevail for most of the twenty-four hours. Many yearss a re nebulose, June being the cloudiest month of the twelvemonth. Nights are cold with occasional hoars, largely in the outer suburbs, the lowest temperature for the month in the metropolis normally being about 2 °C. Rain falls on one twenty-four hours in two and sometimes it is in the signifier of mizzle in the forenoon which clears to a all right twenty-four hours. Heavy rain is rare.JULY & A ; AUGUSTThe windiest clip of the twelvemonth in Melbourne begins in July. There may be several yearss in sequence of strong, cold North to northwest air currents, frequently with cloud and some light rain. The conditions is often cold and cloudy. The few yearss of unagitated cheery conditions are accompanied by cold darks with hoar or fog. Fog normally forms late in the eventide and clears by mid-morning, but on occasion persists for the whole twenty-four hours during July. There are normally a few really cold yearss with strong southern air currents and showers, light snow may fall on the hi lls within 35 kilometer of the metropolis Centre. On rare occasions, snow even falls in the metropolis. The twelvemonth ‘s coldest twenty-four hours, with a maximal temperature of about 9 °C, normally occurs during July. Some rain falls on an norm of one twenty-four hours in two ; on some of these yearss there may be merely a small mizzle or a light shower. The highest figure of wet yearss in any one-month in the metropolis is 27, in August 1939. However, heavy rain is rare at this clip of the twelvemonth. In late August there are some warmer yearss, when the temperature normally reaches 20 °C for the first clip since May.SeptemberSeptember is the first month of spring, which is the most mutable season of the twelvemonth. A full scope of conditions may be experienced within a few yearss, from warm, unagitated and cheery to cold, windy and showery. There are several cloudy to cloud yearss. September is another blowy month. Most strong air currents are from the North, these frequently occur on the heater yearss. There besides are on occasion strong cold sou'-west air currents with showery conditions. The temperature normally reaches the mid-20s for the first clip since April. Nights are cool, hoar is reasonably rare, and the lowest temperature for the month in the metropolis being about 4 °C. Fog is uncommon. Rain is higher in spring than in winter, falling on one twenty-four hours in two. There are yearss with merely a small mizzle or a light shower but heavy rain falls on occasion.OctoberThe mutable conditions of spring continues in October, there is greater contrast between the heater and colder yearss than in the predating month. The maximal temperature exceeds 25 °C one time a hebdomad. However, it besides fails to make 15 °C one time a hebdomad. There are several cloudy to cloud yearss and many yearss are blowy. Most strong air currents are northwards and warm, but there are on occasion strong cold sou'-west air currents conveying rainy con ditions. Warm windy conditions may be followed by a sudden alteration to colder conditions with showers. Rain falls on about one twenty-four hours in two, some of it heavy.NovemberMutable and blowy conditions continues in November. There is frequently great contrast in the temperature from twenty-four hours to twenty-four hours. Warm to hot and cheery yearss and cold and rainy yearss may follow each other in rapid sequence. There are besides some cloudy to cloud yearss. Nights are normally mild. Many yearss are blowy. Most strong air currents are northwards and warm, nevertheless cold showery conditions with strong southern air currents can happen. The month ‘s warmest twenty-four hours registers a maximal temperature of about 34 °C while the month ‘s coldest twenty-four hours experiences a maximal temperature of merely 16 °C. Some of the most terrible storms with gales and rain have occurred at this clip of the twelvemonth.DecemberThe conditions is less mutable in D ecember than it is in November, although it still can be rather varied. Cool and cloudy conditions can predominate for some yearss at a clip during which the temperature remains below 20 °C. There are besides some hot yearss, temperatures transcending 30 °C on about six occasions, but hot conditions does non frequently last for more than two yearss at a clip. There have, nevertheless, been occasions when it persisted for much longer. Hot yearss are sometimes accompanied by an unpleasant North air current, which can be rather strong. On about two yearss high temperatures are associated with high humidness and there may be electrical storms in the late afternoon on these occasions. Hot weather frequently comes to an terminal with an disconnected cool alteration when the temperature may fall by approximately 10 °C in 20 proceedingss. Some of these alterations are accompanied by showers and electrical storms so followed by strong and cold southwesterly air currents. Nights are nor mally mild yet during hot weather the temperature overnight may non fall below 20 °C. Heavy rain falls on occasions. Like many urban environments, Melbourne faces some important environmental issues, many of them associating to the metropolis ‘s big urban footmark and urban conurbation and the demand for substructure and services. One such issue is H2O use, drouth and low rainfall. Drought in Victoria, low rainfalls and high temperatures deplete Melbourne H2O supplies and clime alteration may hold a long-run impact on the H2O supplies of Melbourne. [ 96 ] Melbourne has been in a drouth since 1997. [ 97 ] In response to low H2O supplies and low rainfall due to drought, the authorities implemented H2O limitations and a scope of other options including: H2O recycling strategies for the metropolis, inducements for family H2O armored combat vehicles, greywater systems, H2O ingestion consciousness enterprises, and other H2O salvaging and recycle enterprises ; besides, in June 2007, the Bracks Government announced that a $ 3.1 billion Wonthaggi desalinization works would be built on Victoria ‘s south-east seashore, capable of handling 150 billion liters of H2O per twelvemonth, [ 98 ] every bit good as a 70A kilometer ( 43 myocardial infarction ) grapevine from the Goulburn country in Victoria ‘s North to Melbourne and a new H2O grapevine associating Melbourne and Geelong. Both undertakings are being conducted under controversial Public-Private Partnerships and a battalion of independent studies have found that neither undertaking is required to provide H2O to the metropolis and that Sustainable Water Management is the best solution and in the interim, the drouth must be weathered. [ 99 ] In response to Attribution of recent clime alteration, the City of Melbourne, in 2002, set a mark to cut down C emanations to net nothing by 2020 [ 100 ] and Moreland City Council established the Zero Moreland plan, nevertheless non all metropolitan municipalities have followed, with the City of Glen Eira notably make up one's minding in 2009 non to go carbon impersonal. [ 101 ] Melbourne has one of the largest urban footmarks in the universe due to its low denseness lodging, ensuing in a huge suburban conurbation, with a high degree of auto dependance and minimum public conveyance outside of interior countries. [ 102 ] Much of the flora within the metropolis are non-native species, most of European beginning, and in many instances plays host to invasive species and noxious weeds. [ 103 ] Significant introduced urban plagues include the Common Myna, [ 104 ] Feral Pigeon, [ 105 ] Brown Rat, [ 106 ] HYPERLINK â€Å" # cite_note-106 † [ 107 ] European Wasp, [ 108 ] Common Starling and Red Fox. [ 109 ] Many outlying suburbs, peculiarly towards the Yarra Valley and the hills to the north-east and east, have gone for extended periods without regenerative fires taking to a deficiency of saplings and underbrush in urbanized native bushland. The Department of Sustainability and Environment partly addresses this job by on a regular basis firing off. [ 110 ] HYP ERLINK â€Å" # cite_note-stateoffire-110 † [ 111 ] Several national Parkss have been designated around the urban country of Melbourne, including the Mornington Peninsula National Park, Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park and Point Nepean National Park in the south E, Organ Pipes National Park to the North and Dandenong Ranges National Park to the E. There are besides a figure of important province Parkss merely outside Melbourne. [ 112 ] HYPERLINK â€Å" # cite_note-112 † [ 113 ] Duty for modulating pollution falls under the legal power of the EPA Victoria and several local councils. Air pollution, by universe criterions, is classified as being good. Summer and fall are the worst times of twelvemonth for atmospheric haze in the urban country. [ 90 ] HYPERLINK â€Å" # cite_note-113 † [ 114 ] Another recent environmental issue in Melbourne was the Victorian authorities undertaking of channel intensifying Melbourne Ports by dredging Port Phillip Bay – the Port Phillip Channel Deepening Project. It was capable to controversy and rigorous ordinances among frights that beaches and marine wildlife could be affected by the perturbation of heavy metals and other industrial deposits. [ 74 ] HYPERLINK â€Å" # cite_note-114 † [ 115 ] Other major pollution jobs in Melbourne include degrees of bacteriums including E. coli in the Yarra River and its feeders caused by infected systems, [ 116 ] every bit good as litter. Up to 350,000 coffin nail butts enter the storm H2O overflow every twenty-four hours. [ 117 ] Several plans are being implemented to understate beach and river pollution. [ 74 ] HYPERLINK â€Å" # cite_note-litter1-117 † [ 118 ] In February 2010, The Transition Decade, an enterprise to passage human society, economic sciences and environment towards sustainability, was launched in Melbourne. [ 119 ] Melbourne has a repute for its mutable conditions. A tip for any visitant is to be prepared for anything – take an umbrella and wear beds that can be worn or removed as needed! As a general regulation, Melbourne enjoys a temperate clime with warm to hot summers, mild and sometimes barmy springs and fall, and cool winters. While Melbourne has a repute for rain, the metropolis really receives less rainfall than either Brisbane or Sydney. Melbourne is an first-class topographic point to see the seasons change. In summer, most people head out to see our aureate beaches. In fall, see the glorious leaf of the many European-style Parkss that fringe the CBD.A In winter, Melburnians enjoy the heat of cozy coffeehouse and bars. Spring is a clip for reclamation – a great clip to head back into our Parkss and revel in our beautiful gardens.

Principles and trends in curriculum development Essay

Principles and trends in curriculum development - Essay Example Children naturally express such creativity in their natural communication. Their communications may be expressed in various forms or â€Å"languages†Ã¢â‚¬â€œ in words, drawing, artwork, three-dimensional constructions, music and movement. Young children do not express their ideas in just one form but move naturally and easily between â€Å"languages†. They may vacillate from drawing, speaking, singing and moving (Fawcett & Hay, 2004). A more holistic perspective of learning that likewise entails creativity development is now being supported by many educators, as it threads segregated learning into a more integrated one. Littledyke (2008) has defined integrated curriculum as such: Integrated curriculum thus refers to the use of several different strategies across several different domains and encompassing project and process approaches for holistic learning and development designed to support meaningful learning for children† (pp. 21-22). Curriculum integration hel ps students recognize connections between curriculum areas. These connections are essential to the brain in order to learn effectively. Integration changes the emphasis from the instruction of discrete academic subjects to activities that promote learning through real-life tasks. It blends academic disciplines into integrated topic studies which support creative thinking and problem solving, as opposed to rote memorization and teacher-directed instruction of isolated skills and bits of information (Krogh, 1995). An integrated curriculum consists of a number of strategies that can be applied to deepen meaningfulness and support conceptual development (Bredekamp and Rosegrant, 1992). The initiative to integrate curriculum began when John Dewey (1938) proposed that curriculum be linked to real-life experiences and organized around activities that interest and engage children actively. Dewey asserted that children’s interests naturally progress into appropriate learning activitie s and extend to various areas of study. As implied by the guidelines for appropriate curriculum, the concept of integration can also be attributed to the integrated nature of development; that is, development in the different domains does not occur in isolation; rather they influence one another (Bredekamp and Rosegrant, 1992). An integrated curriculum allows the young child to perceive the world around him more clearly. Furthermore, it provides opportunities for in-depth exploration of a topic and learning that has a thorough coverage; more choices and therefore more motivation to learn and greater satisfaction with the results; more active learning; an opportunity for the teacher to learn along with the children and model lifelong learning; and a more efficient use of student and teacher time (Brewer, 2001). For the teacher, an integrated curriculum is a good planning device that offers much flexibility. If the children lean toward another way other than what the teacher had expec ted, the integrated curriculum quickly guides her as to how to integrate it to a related concept so the flow of learning is not disrupted. At one glance, the integrated curriculum shows the coverage of what the children learn in school. It advocates natural learning, as it follows children’s interests and not impose the concepts that they need to learn. It follows that the skills they learn become meaningful to them, as it sprouts from their own interests. It also gets to touch on

Nanjing Massacre Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Nanjing Massacre - Research Paper Example Later, it was revealed that the Japanese soldiers were given clear orders: they had to kill and rape. In this context, Nanking become a symbol of extreme and unjustified military violence. The Nanjing Massacre is discussed in this paper. Particular emphasis is given on the reasons for which Nanjing Massacre has been considered as a forgotten holocaust of World War 2. Efforts are also made in order to explain why the Massacre is still in the spotlight 70 years after the crime was committed. It is proved that Nanjing Massacre has become a forgotten holocaust of the WW2 mostly because of the violence involved; if the Massacre has been kept at the first line of interest, then the chances for the improvement of relationships between China and Japan would be minimized. Still, the Massacre has remained a spotlight despite the fact that 70 years have already passed; it is clear that the events of that period are still alive in the memory of many Chinese, but also of Japanese, as revealed in the primary sources (interviews), retrieved in regard to the particular event. The Nanjing Massacre has been an event that highly influenced the political choices in China; however, today that the relationship between China and Japan has been improved, the Nanjing Massacre may not be valuable in promoting national interests and priorities, at least at the level of political relations between the two countries. People across China are still allowed to develop activities for remembering the Massacre, a fact that means that the Nanjing Massacre is still in the memory of Chinese people. Thus, the specific event should be further reviewed for understanding its characteristics as part of the WW2 and its importance in the context of the global history despite the fact that 70 years have already passed since the crime was committed. 2. Nanjing Massacre 2.1 Key points of the Massacre If the events related to the fall of Nanjing are carefully reviewed, it is made clear that the brutality deve loped in Nanjing has been unjustified. In fact, the city has been fallen after the end of a continuous bombing, which lasted for about 6 months, from the 15th of August up to the 13th of December 1937 (Li 2003, p.119). It has been estimated that about 160 tons of bombs have been used during the 110 missions against Nanjing (Li 2003, p.119). All these months, people in Nanjing, especially foreigners, have tried to develop shelters to be better protected (Li 2003, p.119). After the fall of the city, in the 13th of December 1937 one of the worst periods for China began. For about 6 to 8 weeks, up to March 1938 Japanese soldiers developed mass killings and rapes in Nanjing, an event known also as the rape of Nanjing (Li 2003, p.119). The entrance of Japanese troops in the city in the 13th of December of 1937 is considered as the starting point of the Massacre (Figure 1, below). The number of victims, mostly women and children, during the Massacre of Nanjing has been estimated to 250,000 -300,000 (BBC News 2005). Minnie Vautrin, an American who was in Nanjing when the Massacre began, noted that ‘there probably is no crime that has not been committed in this city today’ (BBC News 2005). Foreigners in Nanjing have been forced to leave the city, during the first days of the Massacre. This fact is highlighted in a report of Tillman Durdin, a journalist of New York Times, who were in Nanjing when t

What kind of adjusmnets hospital CEO must make to meet helath reform ( Essay

What kind of adjusmnets hospital CEO must make to meet helath reform ( ACA) requirements - Essay Example This paper indicates the possible actions that a hospital CEO would undertake to tackle the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities the Act presents. It is divided into six sections that are meant to answer the question. Likely questions that a hospital CEO would ask him or herself include how the Act will be applied to the hospital, what the Act means for his or her hospital and what strategic concerns should be regarded to prosper in the environment resulting from the Act. The Affordable Care Act is composed of resources and plans to manage growth local, federal and the state workforce. The Act offers loans and grants for persons, hospitals, organizations, and schools. Those who are mainly targeted are those who have interest in low earnings and in the countryside. The Act maintains the number of graduates taking medical courses who are funded by Medicare. It has provisions that allow the redeployment of slots that have not been allocated to anyone. Redeployment of closed hospital slots is aimed at exploiting healthcare resources and prospects in training (Main & Starry, 2010). When the aging workforce is considered with the demand for services in healthcare, especially if the general population is made up of a large number of old persons, then this raises a great concern for hospital CEO’s. Who will take care of this ageing population if the general healthcare workforce in the hospital is ageing? Healthcare professionals and workers above the ages of 55 are regarded as part of an ageing workforce. As the hospital CEO, one will seek to take advantage of the Act and seek the grants that it offers. These grants will then be used by the hospital to sponsor bright needy students undertaking medical courses in institutions around the country. The terms for sponsorship shall include provisions which shall ensure that sponsored students will work for the hospital in return for a period of not less than ten years. This way, the

Review of A Journal Article on Population and Economics Term Paper

Review of A Journal Article on Population and Economics - Term Paper Example Moreover, health of aging population is also improving significantly and a large proportion of old-age people will live without any health complications. Productivity in any country will have bearings due to age-related changes in working populations. It is pertinent to note that population of age 60 and above was 200 million in 1950 but today, it has increased to 760 million and estimated to be around 2 billion in 2050. Similarly, the numbers of people of age 80 and above were 14 million in 1950 that has raised to 11 million today and are likely to reach, based on the current projections, nearly 400 million by 2050. This is critical since these patterns of aging population were never seen in the past. Authors have attempted to examine the effects of aging population on world economy as a whole. Authors have drawn data from the United Nations and have projected age-wise population between 2005 and 2050. The projections are based on the medium-fertility rate. If the fertility rates ar e lower than this than the aging population will increase further. The fertility rate estimation between 2005 and 2050 is a matter of uncertainty and will lead to different results pertaining to elderly proportion. Even changes in mortality rate will influence the proportion of aging population significantly. Different continents will have varying estimation of ageing population. Africa will have a least proportion of the people with age 60 and higher while Europe is projected to have the highest proportion of aging population amongst all continents – to the tune of almost 34 percent followed by North America at 28 percent. Declining fertility rates, increasing life expectancy at birth and declining mortality rates in child are the factors behind increased proportion of aging population across most part of the world. Quantitative Methods Employed The authors have employed quantitative empirical methods to study the effect of ageing population on the world economy. They have d one population analysis by age group based on historical data from 1950 to 2005 and then projections made about age-group distribution for years beyond 2005 until 2050. With different fertility assumptions, an attempt has been made to estimate proportion of aging population beyond 2005 until 2050. It is believed that the issue will have its social as well as political fallouts too. For example, an aging population will need support in terms of healthcare services and income security for them. In developing countries, this, traditionally, has been taken care by families but as more and more women enter workforce, this is likely to change. Formation of nuclear families, migration towards urban centers and children leaving away from their parents will become a norm even in most of the developing countries posing new challenges for security of the elderly population. Most developed countries have social security plans in place to provide healthcare and income security; however, as the e lderly population goes up, it is likely to be a daunting task for most governments. In short, aging population may cause serious consequences on the economy of the nation. Behavioural Changes Authors emphasise that behaviour changes play a pivotal role in meeting the shortfall in labour supply and they can be described as per the following. Rising life expectancy is responded by the society by increasing the number of working years keeping the saving behaviour unchanged. Even if the people do not work for extra years, it is certain that increased life

British industrial relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

British industrial relations - Essay Example lective bargaining can force employers to deal with labour as a collective identity, rather than isolated individuals and so, secure better the terms and condition of employment. Nevertheless, in 1979when the conservative party won the election, everything changed. The new government used a lot measures to restrict the role of trade unions. In addition, it introduced an enterprise culture in which individuals and organisations, rather than government, were to be held responsible for economic performance. Thus, as well as rejecting the maintenance of full employment as a major policy objective, they in effect abandoned the commitment of their predecessors to voluntary collective bargaining as the most effective method of determining pay and conditions. Then, there was a total break with the old work patterns but an explanation of this will be the economical context. In fact, after the war, there was a period of reconstruction that engendered a lot of work; manufacturing was the backbone of the economy, it was a period of full employment. After that, there was a wave of privatisation, many companies became multinationals, and there was an internationalisation o f business. Because Britain is the candle of industrialisation, the British employment relations system has a long history. It is extremely important as it's the FIRST system in the modern sense and thus other ER systems such as Australia's, has been 'modelled' on it (Marchington et al. 2004 p36). For example, many percent trade unions can trace their roots back to this mid-19th century or earlier in Britain. The legislations and rules of employment relations in many countries are also modelled on the Britain's. As a result, studying the British employment relation system can help to know the history of the ER... The aim of this essay will be to access and explain the management of British employment relationship and then derive lessons concerning the management of the employment relationship from the study of the operation, structure and effectiveness of systems of the employment relations in Britain. This essay will then give a description of the recent management of the British Industrial Relations system in Britain and discuss the future of British Industrial Relations System. The British industrial relations system has a long history and has gone through much change in recent years. Industrial relations are also known as employee relations. There are three phases in the evolution of employee relations since the end of the World War II, the third one being the partnership approach. Until 1979 (date of the election of the Conservative Party), work relations were based on collective bargaining and collective agreement aiming to determine and regulate, in varying degrees, the terms on which individuals will be employed (Flanders 1968 p35), with a strong voluntarism encouraged massively and informally.Since the early days of the Industrial Revolution, from 1760-1830 progress, innovation and growth in every field of human endeavour have served to transform industry, economics and society. The British system of industrial relations has often been considered as being as voluntarist, by which is generally meant the abstaining of the state from direct interference in the managing industrial relations

The validity of class conflict, feminism, diversity and inequality in Essay

The validity of class conflict, feminism, diversity and inequality in the context of organization theory - Essay Example Reform is more thoroughly implemented through legislative change and mandate at the state or national level. Organization theory charts a multi-disciplinary approach to the structure of business institutions, alternatively relating psychological studies, anthropology, sociology, and systems theory to methodology and research drawn from other social sciences in order to de-construct business organizations and understand them thoroughly. In a sense, organizational theory does reflect multiculturalism in its multi-disciplinary inquiry, but feminists and other civil rights activists have had a much stronger ability to effect business practices by targeting social legislation and the education system as places to implement political change. In many ways organization theory and the evolution of multicultural awareness within it in the 20th century as related to feminism, diversity movements, and civil rights must be seen in context with the Marxist movement, with which it competes in many ways historically.

RESEARCH PROPOSAL ON PRISON POPULATION AND RATES OF INCARCERATION IN Paper

PROPOSAL ON PRISON POPULATION AND RATES OF INCARCERATION IN OUR COUNTRY - Research Paper Example While crime level appears to be driving some of this growth, much of it is connected to sentencing rules and guidelines, the length of sentences, and a general public intolerance of crimes. Racism is still prevalent in America and this is reflected in levels of sentencing and incarceration as well as the proportion of minority races in prisons. This study looks at minority races within prisons, what factors drove them to commit crimes, what their background is and what their sentencing severity was like compared to other races. To do this, face-to-face interviews with prisoners and written questionnaires will be undertaken at many prisons across the country. This attempts to provide a snapshot of the current prison population in the US, how the racial minorities are distributed and whether there are differences in their sentencing and imprisonment compared to other races. Keywords: Prison population, incarcerations, disparity, sentencing policies, African American, racial minority. C ontents Prison Population and Rates of Incarceration in the United States of America among Racial Minority Populations 1 A Research Proposal 1 Abstract 2 Prison populations are rapidly growing with no leveling off of growth rate in sight in the United States. ... 2 To do this, face-to-face interviews with prisoners and written questionnaires will be undertaken at many prisons across the country. This attempts to provide a snapshot of the current prison population in the US, how the racial minorities are distributed and whether there are differences in their sentencing and imprisonment compared to other races. 2 Contents 3 Introduction 4 Literature Review 5 Why are Prison Populations so High? 5 What is the Connection between Crime and Prison Population? 7 How is Minority Races Represented? 8 The population of the US is not uniform, and there are many minority groups widely present. While there have been many increases in equality of treatment across races, it is clear that there is still some way to go. The historical election of President Barack Obama into office, making him our first black president has played a large role in the rights and the equal treatment of minority races, however there are still many socioeconomic examples of racial d ifferences in factors such as employment and rate of incarceration . 8 The rates of incarceration have not risen at the same rates for different minorities. For African Americans the rate of increase has been 184% while it has been 235% for Hispanics. In contrast for non-Hispanic whites the rate has been 164% . A strong example of this is the imprisonment rate of young African Americans. Throughout the country an average of three African Americans for every four serves some time in prison. This is a high rate, and is not proportionate to rates for non-Hispanic whites . 9 The question remains, what is driving the high rates of imprisonment for racial

The Golden Mean Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Golden Mean - Essay Example Subjectivisms and relativism are strongly condemned in deontological systems of thought. On the contrary, one challenge about deontological moral systems is that they do not provide any clear way of resolving conflicts arising out of moral duties. Ethics of care Ethics of care is basically a normative theory of ethics which seeks to determine what makes actions right or wrong. Indeed, it is normally seen that some actions are regarded as right while others are deemed wrong. However, people might not always understand the line between right and wrong and the issues around that. Ethics of care focus on the importance of response. It totally opposes the use of universal judgment in making decisions whether right or wrong. As such, for the media practitioners, it is always important to understand some of the right or wrongs they report. According to the theory, it is seen that all individuals are normally interdependent on the achievement of their various interests. It is further seen th at some people are usually vulnerable to the choices of others and the outcomes in such cases need extra consideration. In a way, ethics of care contrasts the commonly ethical views of deontology and utilitarianism which most women view to be the right angle for looking at the concept of morality. In the media world, journalists will always encounter a number of issues relating to such contradictions and they must effectively report the right situations. In this case, there must a balanced view when looking at the concept of morality so as not to discredit any gender. Potter Box The potter box is an ethical framework that is crucial in analyzing various ethical dilemma realized in communication.... Ethics of care is basically a normative theory of ethics which seeks to determine what makes actions right or wrong. Indeed, it is normally seen that some actions are regarded as right while others are deemed wrong. However, people might not always understand the line between right and wrong and the issues around that. Ethics of care focus on the importance of response. It totally opposes the use of universal judgment in making decisions whether right or wrong. As such, for the media practitioners, it is always important to understand some of the right or wrongs they report. According to the theory, it is seen that all individuals are normally interdependent on the achievement of their various interests. It is further seen that some people are usually vulnerable to the choices of others and the outcomes in such cases need extra consideration. In a way, ethics of care contrasts the commonly ethical views of deontology and utilitarianism which most women view to be the right angle for looking at the concept of morality. In the media world, journalists will always encounter a number of issues relating to such contradictions and they must effectively report the right situations. In this case, there must a balanced view when looking at the concept of morality so as not to discredit any gender. The potter box is an ethical framework that is crucial in analyzing various ethical dilemma realized in communication. It utilizes four categories which are identified as universal in all ethical dilemmas.

Tragedies of Postpartum Psychosis Essay Example for Free

Tragedies of Postpartum Psychosis Essay Tragedies of Postpartum Psychosis: Ethical Decisions and Sentencing Postpartum depression affects approximately ten to twenty-two percent of women and as many as about eighty percent of women suffer from some sort of â€Å"baby blues†. Even so, the much more serious problem of postpartum psychosis only occurs in as few as one in every five hundred births (Williams, 2002). Postpartum psychosis can have catastrophic outcomes, like in the case of Andrea Yates. What should happen to women like Andrea? Prison, the death penalty or a mental institution? Ethical issues, such as postpartum psychosis crimes, are debated using various theories of ethics. Postpartum psychosis tends to have a rapid onset within the first four weeks after giving birth, whereas postpartum depression has a slower onset occurring around weeks six through twelve after childbirth (Williams, 2002). In postpartum psychosis, the symptoms include mood changes, delusional thoughts, paranoia and hallucinations. Symptoms can intensify or lessen. Women suffering are often afraid to ask for help due to the paranoia and guilt felt surround the disorder. Left to manage symptoms themselves, tragedies often occur as affected women committing suicide or infanticide. When such crimes occur, people debate how to deal with the women accused. Being committed to a mental institution is one course of action for such women. The argument for this is that these women are in need of psychiatric treatment, that they are unable to distinguish between right or wrong at the time of act due to their altered view on reality. Andrea Yates, for example, believed that she had Satan inside her and that she was unable to raise the children properly because of it; that they couldn’t be saved and were going to burn in hell (Roche, 2002). Andrea believed that her being evil was causing her children to not be righteous and that she needed to be executed. The only way for that to happen was for Andrea to kill her children. Women accused of such crimes can get the help they need in an institution, where they are unable to harm themselves or their children. These women always carry with them the horror and guilt for what they have done, once they are no longer sick. Postpartum psychosis is a mental disability and should be treated as such. It would be a huge injustice to the affected women to be placed in prison, or worse yet sentenced to death. The crimes that they commit, infanticide and the like, are unspeakable; however it would not serve them or society well to have them locked up in prison and continue to suffer from this illness. If placed in a mental institution they may be rehabilitated into productive members of society once again. However there are opposing views on this subject. One of the opposing thoughts is that the crimes are so heinous that these women must pay retribution for what they have done (Anonymous, 2008). Many believe that convicted women should be paying their debt to society from behind prison bars, that these women are a risk to society like any other murderer and should serve time accordingly. Complicating the situation are the callous women who commit such crimes and then use postpartum psychosis as a defense when they are not suffering from this illness. One example of uch would be Susan Smith, who lied about the disappearance of her two young sons and then later claimed that she suffered from postpartum depression causing her to kill her children. Investigators on her case found that she was dating a man who â€Å"wasn’t ready for a ready-made family (Gibbs, Booth, Gregory, Monroe, Towle, 1994). † Therefore, doubt is cast in the minds of society and they see all infanticides as horrific crimes where justice must be sought for the innocent victims. Committing capital offices such as the murder of children and infants are offenses that are eligible for the death penalty. Due to the appalling nature of the crimes committed many want to see the offender to be put to death instead of wasting tax-payer dollars to keep them in prison for life. This is just another way society seeks retribution for these horrid crimes. People believing that the women accused of these crimes are not really mentally ill may have a couple of different viewpoints for deciding their fates through sentencing. Viewpoints on sentencing convicted women to prison or the death penalty may depend on Kantian and cultural relativism theories of ethics. Kantian views on ethics rely on reason to apply categorical ethical principles (Waller,2008, pg. 21). In applying reason to the murdering of innocent children, ethically the convicted women belongs either in prison or sentenced to death. Kantian views believe in the â€Å"golden rule† – do to others what you would have them do to you. Keeping that in mind then the killing of another person would bring upon punishment to the accused. Kantian also believes that we are responsible for our actions, good or bad, and is a product of free will (Caswell, 2006). In keeping with this view then, these women are morally responsible and choose, due to free will, to end their children’s life; therefore they should be held accountable. Another theory that would support imprisonment or death penalty sentence, for non-believers of the women being truly mentally ill, would be cultural relativism. Cultural relativism is defined as ethical judgments made relative to a given culture. Cultural relativism is basically the relativity of its society’s values, and murder is wrong no matter who is the victim. specially when it involves innocent victims such as infants and children. Therefore, if the murdering of children is wrong then there should be someone held accountable for the crime. It is hard for society to imagine that a child could die at the hands of their own mother. Unfortunately, with the blood on the mother’s hands she is placed in front of the firing squad, so to speak, so that justice can be served for the children. Under cultural relativism then, anyone convicted of such a crime should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. But is this the right solution to the problem? Possibly taking on a more sympathetic view, such as care ethics and intuitionists, can help us in choosing the right sentencing for these women. People who believe in care ethics are more about caring for the person than for justice for the crime (Tong and Williams, 2009). Women committing these crimes need medical help more than they need to be placed behind bars and people looking at this from the care ethics viewpoint can see it this way. They are not blinded by the need for justice and have sympathy for not only the innocent victims, but also the accused. The accused are victims in many ways also. These women have been let done by the medical community and some by their families who have seen the signs and have not gotten them help before it had escalated into tragedy. Care ethicists can see that there truly is a problem and by placing the woman behind bars or worse yet, sentencing them to death, there is a bigger tragedy occurring: the continued victimization of a mentally ill woman. Intuitionist feel they know what is the right thing to do, as in the Waller (2008) he told of Huck Finn debating over whether or not to turn in his friend Jim, a slave owned by someone who had always been kind to him. Huck decided not to turn Jim in and let him go, knowing that ultimately slavery is wrong. This won over the fact that he was â€Å"stealing† Miz Watson’s property by helping Jim escape. The same can be applied to the women that have committed crimes while suffering from postpartum psychosis. Intuitionists know that the act was wrong and should require retribution for their crimes. However, the bigger issue is identifying postpartum psychosis as a medical condition and treating the accused accordingly. In conclusion, I believe that people choosing not to recognize postpartum psychosis as a medical condition seek out more severe punishments for the crimes. In doing so, Kantian views and cultural relativism are two ways that they justify their beliefs on severe sentencing. Kantian views are very strict and absolute – breaks a rule, you need to be punished accordingly. Cultural relativism is based on the societal ethics, break a societal rule punishment ensues. I believe this side of the debate just wants to see justice done for the innocent victims. Whereas care ethicists and intuitionists want justice, but they also want what is intrinsically right done. Sending the accused to prison or to death row, does not provide justice for the innocent victims, it would only add to the family’s suffering and create more victims. Care ethicists look at taking care of the accused as opposed to being out for revenge or justice. Intuitionists look at what they feel is the right decision, and sending someone away for a crime that they committed when they were not in control of themselves does not feel morally correct to them. References http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,218445,00.html http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2009/entries/feminism-ethics/

Beauty Obsessed Society: Cosmetic Surgery

Beauty Obsessed Society: Cosmetic Surgery Cosmetic surgery can be defined as surgery performed to improve appearance, rather than for medical reasons. Recently, it has become one of the most popular topics discussed by people in the society especially the future leaderships of the society, teenagers. Hence, the question that has come to light is should teenagers be discouraged to undergo cosmetic surgery. Through thoroughgoing research and convincing evidences from websites, journals, magazines and reports, it has been proven that teenagers should be discouraged to go for cosmetic surgery. This research project will reveal that cosmetic surgery carries some risks of harm, even of death. Besides, it interrupts teens natural growth and it is an expensive procedure. In short, teenagers should be forbade from cosmetic surgery. Content Abstract Introductionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Pg 03 Body of content Cosmetic Surgery carries some risks of harm physically and mentally, even of deathà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Pg 05 Cosmetic Surgery interrupts teens physical and emotional maturity.. Pg 07 Cosmetic Surgery is a high-priced procedureà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Pg 09 Conclusionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Pg 11 Recommendationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Pg 12 Reference List 1.0 Introduction For the past few decades, the evolution of beauty has brought a huge metamorphosis in peoples perspective about their appearance. People are more concern about their outer beauty than anything else. This is not only limited for woman but man at this decade of century has brain washed and actively involved themselves in this culture too, which is camouflaging imperfections. A survey had found out that man in US had spent $4.8 million on grooming products in year 2006 and there was an increase of 42% from year 2001 to year 2006 (Forbes, 2007). In addition, in this beauty-obsessed society, there are also people who choose to go under knife for an enthralling body feature. Cosmetic surgery has become one of the most popular trends all over the world. One might ask, what is cosmetic surgery? Cosmetic surgery is an aesthetic surgery that performed to improve appearance, rather than for medical reasons (thefreedictionary.com, 2003). Whenever you read newspaper, magazine or switch on the television, you are likely to see something which is related to cosmetic surgery. Reality TV shows such as Extreme Makeover, MTV series I Want a Famous Face, Italian show Scalpel: Nobodys Perfect and Foxs The Swan have also lead to an overwhelming popularity on cosmetic surgery especially among young boys and girls who are dissatisfied with their current look and want to look posh and perky like a pop star. According to Elsevier, the TV shows have lead youngster to have cosmetic surgery and American Society of Plastic Surgeons (2007) study proves that 57% of patients who chose to undergo cosmetic surgery were high-intensity viewers of reality TV shows related to cosmetic surgery. Moreover, for country like Korea, undergoes cosmetic surgery is a culture and they known it as The Korean Way (Yoo, J., n.d.). Most of the young generation today will go under knife in order to pursuit perfect beauty and this can be proven by a study con ducted by Korean Plastic Surgery (2009). The study shows that eight out of 10 Korean women over the age of 18 feel they need cosmetic surgery, and one out of two has undergone Korean plastic surgery at least once. American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) Reports (2007) also shows that cosmetic plastic surgery has increased 69% in the first decade of new millennium and in year 2009, there were 210,000 cosmetic surgery procedures were performed on teenagers from age 13 to 19 (Thompson, V., 2010). It goes without saying that cosmetic surgery has become so commonplace that the age of patient involved in the cosmetic surgery getting younger and younger. Teens often have unreal expectations. They are not satisfy with their appearance and intend to have glamorous beauty and flawless look. Ergo, teens go for cosmetic surgery and treat it as a godsend. For instance, Kate (2008) had a breast implant when she was 19 years old. In year 2008, Queensland, a state in Australia had banned teenagers under 18 from having surgery for purely cosmetic reason (ABC News, 2008) as there is a distinct sociological trend towards valuing beauty which leads to an increase in cosmetic surgery among teenagers. The question is, is it worth for teens to go under knife in pursuit of perfect beauty? The truth is teenagers should be discouraged to go for cosmetic surgery as it comes at risk. Besides, they are far more too young for that as it might interrupt emotional and physical maturity and it is a high-priced procedure. This research is not confined in certain countries only but all around the world. 2.0 Body of Content 2.1 Cosmetic Surgery carries some risks of harm physically and mentally, even of death. Opponents of the statement claim that cosmetic surgery is extremely safe with the help of advance technology and medication. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) reckons that the mortality rate of cosmetic surgery is the lowest among all the surgical procedures. Roughly around 1.754 ÃÆ'- %, which is one in 57,000 procedures, while according to the study conducted by medical journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the death rate is slightly higher, which is one in 51, 459 operations. Furthermore, adverse party also states that modern anesthesia is safe despite of the story you heard before. This is due to certain reasons, for example, qualified anesthesiologist, excellent surgeon and modern equipments used in the operating room. There is nothing wrong with wanting to become beautiful or perfect. However, undergoing cosmetic surgery should not be one of the options. Supporters of this argument claim that the statement cosmetic surgery is extremely safe with the help of advance technology and medication is a falsehood. Cosmetic surgery is still a surgery which carries out in the operating room and they believe that every surgical carries some common risks. Plastic Surgery Los Angeles pointed out that there can be complications to any surgery even though you are operated by a professional and qualified cosmetic surgeon. The most common complications is the used of general anesthesia. Anesthesia brings serious health effects; patients may experience drowsiness, feeble or weary for few days after having general anesthesia. According to Cassidy P. (2008), seven to 12% of total cosmetic surgeries had been reported of death as a result of cosmetic surgery complications. The Star (2008) had reported that Datin Fatimah Wan Chik, wife of former Labuan MP, Datuk Suhaili Abdul Rahman had died due to cosmetic surgery complications. Besides, infection and bleeding are also one of the most obvious shortcomings not only in cosmetic surgery but in all kind of surgical processes. There will be two in every 10 patients who suffered from infection and bleeding, which is 20%. Sometimes, scarring can happen due to bacteria attack. Bacteria can enter the body during surgery or after surgery through suture, drain sides and open wounds. Surprisingly, cosmetic surgery acts like drugs, it has the potential to cause addiction (iloveindia.com, n.d.) especially for those who started to go under knife at young age. Psychologist had found out that most of the people who underwent cosmetic surgery were most likely to suffer from oppressive emotional and psychological disturbance. Doctor Iqbal Ahmed (2010) asserts that seven to 15% of patients who underwent cosmetic surgery will entrap into the psychological abysm of Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). BDD is a mental disorder characterized by distorted body image and obsessions about perceived physical shortcomings (Dictionary.com, 2011). Those who suffered from BDD will tend to undergo a lot of cosmetic surgeries from surgeon to surgeon. However, the patients will never satisfy with their appearance and think that their body image is so distorted that it will never get fixed by one cosmetic surgery. This disorder can also known as mirror lies. When they look into the mirror, t hey will never see themselves in the right size or feature even though actually they are just nice. Thus, teens should be discouraged to go for cosmetic surgery as it comes with risks and if there was a faulty, they will regret for their entire life. 2.2 Cosmetic Surgery interrupts teens physical and emotional maturity. Opponents of the issue insist that cosmetic surgery not only improves ones self image but also boost their self-esteem at the same time. To illustrate, Caitlin Clemons, 18, describes that she will go for cosmetic surgery and believes that cosmetic surgery will boost her self-esteem as she knows how cosmetic surgery can magically change her life after seeing her sister and mother underwent breast enlargement and how happy they are after the surgery (cited by Thompson, V., 2010). In addition, some also believe that the capabilities in cosmetic surgery await for all those who would like to see a better version of themselves physically and mentally (ibid.). Opponents of this argument maybe correct, cosmetic surgery will boost self-esteem and indirectly increase their level of happiness. However, these modifications tend to be short lived. Most of the people who undergo cosmetic surgery tend to experience an increase in level of happiness for one or two years, after which they return to their previous level of happiness and are about as happy as they were before the surgery. This theory same goes to the lottery winners. Hence, the emotional effect of cosmetic surgery can only last for short period of time. 43% of the ladies interviewed stated that they would offer surgery for their kids if their look was the main reason of why they were being bullied (Leaton, R., 2011). This statement is pretty pathetic as the supporters of the issue believe that surely there are other non-invasive ways to help the teens to boost their self-esteem so that they can stand up and deal with bullies. Self-esteem is based upon how you feel and think about yourself and not merely according to ones appearance. Karen Batchelor (2010), a speaker on social media and midlife issues once said that, When you develop your inner beauty, your physical beauty seems to miraculously improve as well!. Hence, cosmetic surgery should not be seen as a quick fix to boost self-esteem and confidence because true confidence comes from inner personality and not outward appearance. One of the examples that is worth mentioning here is in some cases, cosmetic surgery actually lowers ones self-esteem and level of happiness. Surgeons note that once a person alters one part of their body, they begin to look at flaws in other part of the body. This can make a person fells less happy with their body than before they had any surgery and therefore, lowering in level of self-esteem happens (eruptingmind.com, 2011). In fact, the greatest failing in cosmetic surgery lies in a persons potential inability to raise their self-image to match their new look. The inclination to look to superficial treatments such as cosmetic surgery merely reflects a persons unwillingness to look within. To be sure, cosmetic surgery can only solve the problem temporarily and meanwhile it actually worsens the situation. Needless to say, it is clear that cosmetic surgery interrupts the development of teens mental maturity. Apart from that, supporters of the statement assert that cosmetic surgery disrupts teens natural growth. Queensland Premier Anna Bligh has spoken out about teenagers who choose plastic surgery, saying that deciding to go under the knife is a decision best left until one is an adult. (BellaSugar, 2007). This is because teenagers are still growing. Scientist had found out that human body will only be fully developed at the age of 25.Thus, teenagers should not undergo cosmetic surgery as firstly, it can cause growth retardation, its dangerous and its unnecessary. If they waited until 25 years old, they might be satisfied with their body as their body is fully developed and they will be more mature when considering the pros and cons of cosmetic surgery. In year 2008, Australias health minister also conceded that teenagers are still growing and they are still developing. They should not have a body shape-changing procedure until their growth is completed. This statement can be clearly pr oved to be true when Queensland banned teenagers under 18 year-old from having cosmetic surgery (ABC News, 2008). In short, teenagers should be discouraged to go under knife in order to pursuit perfect beauty when perfect is undefined. Besides, it only provides temporarily emotional relief and satisfaction. On top of that, cosmetic surgery causes growth retardation. 2.3 Cosmetic Surgery is a high-priced procedure. Those who do not share the view that cosmetic surgery is a high-priced procedure point out that the price of cosmetic surgery worth the outcomes and it is permanent. Moreover, according to Hilton, many discount price cosmetic surgeons that claim to offer professional service for a low price have begun to show up all over the country (cited in 123HelpMe.com, n.d.). However, the problem is, most of these doctors are not thoroughly trained to perform such drastic cosmetic procedure. In addition to that, Davis claims that there are cases that a doctor can attend a conference in a hotel for few hours to learn how to perform cosmetic surgeries such as liposuction, breast enlargement, rhinoplasty and etc. Other than that, The Cosmetic Surgery Directory'(n.d) also states that they had discovered an extensive black market for cosmetic surgeries. For example, a 46 year-old woman died as a result of a black market cosmetic procedure in which cooking oil was injected into her body by an unlicensed surgeon who promised a low-cost alternative way to legitimate procedure. So, professional service is just a falsehood. Hence, this is undeniable that it is extremely risky when a doctor is not properly trained and certified and this would be the main reason why the service is at low cost. According to a study conducted by American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) (n.d.), in year 2009, the top cosmetic surgeries done by teenagers were breast enlargement, rhinoplasty, eyelid surgery, liposuction and lastly, abdominoplasty. Below are the prices for top five cosmetic surgeries. Type of Cosmetic Surgery Cost (MYR) Breast Enlargement 17,000 Rhinoplasty 7,000 Eyelid Surgery 1,600 3,700 Liposuction 5,000 Abdominoplasty (Tummy Tuck) 18,000 Source: Health Horizon Holidays, Malaysia. From the above information, it can be clearly seen that cosmetic surgery is an expensive procedure. According to an article posted in THEEDGE MALAYSIA on 24th November 2008, the average nominal household income in year 2007 was RM 3,617 per capita and the real household income grew at 0.9% per year. Thus, it goes without saying that teens who wanted to go under knife will definitely put a huge strain on the family budget, especially when the cost exceeds the budget. Furthermore, Gred C. Pacher (n.d.) added that usually the estimated cost is just for the procedure along and the anesthesia fee is excluded. If there were complications, hospital stay may be to be prolonged and there is an expense to post operative care including post-op medications. On top of that, apart from reconstructive surgery, elective cosmetic surgery is not covered by insurance and all of these strain the familys financial resources. Moreover, there are also some cases that teenagers go into debt in order to obtain perfect nose or stomach which can lead to serious financial problems. On the whole, teenagers should be discouraged from having cosmetic surgery as it not only burdens the family of teens who undergoes the surgery but also put them in unnecessary situation when dealing with nasty recovery time. 3.0 Conclusion In this beauty-obsessed society, cosmetic surgery had increased six-fold in the past decade. Cosmetic surgery is no longer confined to famous or wealthy, it is now within the middle-class as well as teenagers with the influence of Hollywood stars, magazines and television shows. However, is this a good sign to the society and teenagers themselves? The answer is definitely no as the disadvantages of cosmetic surgery often outweigh its advantages especially when the protagonist is teenager. One might ask, why is this so? Firstly, cosmetic surgery carries some risk of harm physically and mentally, even of death. Supporters of this view believe that every surgical procedure carries some dangers. Besides, it not only interrupts teens physical and emotional maturity but also burdens the teens family who choose to undergo cosmetic procedure because cosmetic surgery causes growth retardation and it is a high-priced procedure. Thus, it is clear that teens should be discouraged to go under knife in pursuit of perfect beauty. 4.0 Recommendation In this highly complex society of today, outward appearance has played an important role in everyones life especially among teenagers who do not satisfy with their body and face features. However, cosmetic surgery should be avoided as it brings negative impacts. Despite cosmetic surgery, teens can choose to go for exercise and follow a healthy diet if they felt that their body is not perfect enough to fulfill their satisfaction. Exercise and healthy diet not only help to maintain the shape of the body but lead a healthy life style. Apart from that, cosmetic and grooming products can be used as well. It is definitely cheaper and safer if compared to cosmetic surgery. Furthermore, government should take the initiative to ban teenagers from cosmetic surgery and cosmetic surgery tourism should be demolished.

Integrated Children and Youth Social Services

Integrated Children and Youth Social Services Integrated Children and Youth Social Services Introduction The development of integrated services in Hong Kong aims to reduce the fragmentation and duplication of services, fill service gaps, make manpower deployment and resources allocation become more flexible, and concern community needs (Angie; Hong Kong Government, 1991). According to Social Welfare Department, integrated children and youth service centre (ICYSC) integrates children and youth centre-based team, school social work team and outreach team to better serve the multiple needs of children and youth aged from 6 to 24 using the â€Å"total person approach†. There are four main objectives as shown below: Facilitating the personal development of children and youth to develop their life skills, potential and problem-solving ability. Enhancing the social development of children and youth in building up positive social values and attitudes, enhancing interpersonal and family relationships as well as contributing to the well being of the community. Adopting a community-based planning strategy to address to local youth needs and to arouse the community’s concerns on youth issues so that young people could grow up in a more concerned and supportive environment. Providing guidance and support to children and youth in disadvantaged circumstances such as disadvantaged family environment, deprived living environment and unfavourable social environment etc. and to direct them to more positive lifestyle. ICYSC mainly provides four kinds of core programs, including social responsibility and competence enhancement programmes, supportive services, socialization programmes, and guidance and counseling services. Social responsibility and competence enhancement programmes can enhance civic mindfulness and involvement of children and youth in community issues. Supportive services for disadvantaged children and youth aim at facilitating mutual support and enhancing their personal as well as social functioning. Socialization programmes aim at helping children and youth enhance the interpersonal and family relationships and development of life skills. Guidance and counseling services aim at providing opportunities for children and youth to deal with their difficulties and stress. Apart from the core programmes, ICYSC also focused on how can the centre attract more children and youth, how to enable them to utilize their leisure time constructively, how to build rapport with members and their families, and how to build up community links. Among the work of ICYSC, community needs should be given the highest priority and the centre should collaborate with other significant persons or systems which affect the welfare of the children and youth. There is no regulation or guidelines about what integrated model should be adopted by ICYSC. The integrated model really depends on the agency and the community served so that clients and residents are best benefited. Strengths and Limitations of ICYSC The areas of strengths and weaknesses of ICYSC can be interpreted in different kinds of integration as different agencies may apply different integration models or concepts. Service Integration For service users, service integration allows earlier intervention, the service gap is narrowed and the stigmatization of clients are lessened. However, this may weaken services for groups with special needs, such as marginal youth. For workers, higher degree of coordination can be developed with insights from colleagues but it takes much time to communicate and both workload and pressure are increased. For agency, there can be higher flexibility in deploying manpower and resources, preventing the overlapping of services. Nevertheless, it increases the time needed and the difficulty in management and coordination. The quality of supervision may be lowered. There may also be insufficient space in peak periods, including after school hours and weekends. These may affect the quality of service to children and youth. Profession-oriented Integration Different professionals gather and work together. For example, policemen work with social workers in Police Superintendent Discretion Scheme. Teachers cooperate with social workers to hold school events for students. With different professional skills and knowledge, the quality of service can be increased. Multi-level and multi-disciplinary interventions are also available. However, as every profession may have its own values and preferences, it requires much time for discussion, collaboration and implementation of services. In case of conflicts among professionals, conflict-resolution is required. In this way, the quantity of time providing direct services to children and youth may become limited. Method-oriented Integration Different intervention methods like casework, group work, community work, asset-based community development model can be merged together to form a multi-level intervention. This makes it more flexible to fulfill clients with different needs. This kind of integration trains workers’ skills and build up their knowledge so the services provide to children and youth can meeting the changing societal needs. Since workers have to step into and consider many intervention methods together, the workload and pressure of workers are highly increased. If they are burnt out, the efforts paid in working will be decreased. Agency-oriented Integration Different agencies can collaborate together and increase their resource pool by sharing. Resources can be manpower, financial support professional service or specific knowledge and skills. A typical example would be volunteer group where children and youth centre works with elderly centre or rehabilitation centre. These kinds of cooperation can best utilized resources from and strengths of different agencies, avoiding the overlapping of services. As this kind of integration requires the collaboration of different agencies and the efforts to match clients’ needs with resources, it is relatively time-consuming. Locality-oriented Integration Similar to agency-oriented integration, locality-oriented integration makes use of the resource pool but it is particularly from community and aims at serving community needs. The sharing of resources strengthens the interflow and referral system with agencies in the same locality, reducing the administration process and enhancing the cohesion in the community. Social capital built and convenience are beneficial to service users. Again, it is sometimes time-consuming as consensus and negotiation are not easy to achieve. Client-oriented Integration Different services under one roof can be served to different clients’ profiles or needs. The services are more person-centered so as to promote holistic development of clients, serving multiple and developmental needs throughout their life-spans by single point of entry. To fully adopt this integration, high level of coordination among teams as well as case management are crucial. Outreach work has to be carried out in order to better understand clients’ needs. Hence, workers may have higher workload and pressure. There may also be conflicts between different types of clients. There are also some general limitations of ICYSC model. Models are not regularly and comprehensively evaluated. The government didn’t provide clear operational guidelines to NGO on the way of implementation of integration. Owing to the governmental subvention (i.e. lump sum grant), service providers have to fulfill requirement of funding service agreement so they focus more on quantitative output than qualitative outcome. With fixed amount of subvention, agencies compete with each other to apply for resources and funding. When services are directed by funding, it may not fit the community needs well. The lump sum grant also hinder long-term planning of services and sustainable service development as no one can guarantee there will be enough resources for the events in the coming years. Improvement on Implementation of ICYSC There are some suggestions on how to improve the implementation of ICYSC model. And they are categorized into worker, agency and policy levels. 1) Worker Level The government may support mandatory training to social workers and other relevant professions to let them master and update their knowledge and skills to meet the changing integration environment. Workers may also make use of their free time and working hours to better equipped themselves to comply with agency’s integration model. 2) Agency Level The agency can review community needs regularly and frequently. It can also develop a web-based electronic database for more effective case-management and share among multi-disciplinary teams confidentially so as to provide more integrated and real-time client-based information. The pool of resources should be strengthened by developing self-sustaining services and reducing the limitation from government funding. 3) Policy Level The government should introduce emergency funding to meet new or sudden community needs and provide financial security to facilitate long-term planning in NGO. FSA should be evaluated and restructured based on quality and fulfillment of community needs. ICYSC models should be regularly evaluated to see if amendment is needed with the invitation of suggestions from agencies and citizens. Although different districts may have different needs, there should be some common needs for children and youth in Hong Kong. It is good to synchronize services for these common needs among service providers in Hong Kong. Last but not least, tripartite collaboration among the public, the private sector and the government should be enhanced so resource pool will be magnified and self-sustainability can be promoted. Conclusion It is hoped that by adopting the more appropriate integration model, understanding the strengths and weaknesses of the adopted integrated model with continual evaluation and improvement, children and youth can satisfy their diverse needs in a holistic manner. Children and youth can enjoy one-stop and user-friendly services. Hence, the future generation can be nurtured well and contribute to society when time comes. (1497 words) References Angie, Y. The purpose and future development of social services integration. Hong Kong Government (1991). White paper on social welfare into the 1990s and beyond. Retrieved 9 May, 2014, from http://ebook.lib.hku.hk/CADAL/B38633498.pdf Social Welfare Department. Funding and service agreement (lump sum grant) integrated children and youth service centres (ICYSC). Retrieved 9 May, 2014, from http://www.swd.gov.hk/doc/fsa_sd/ICYSC.pdf Social Welfare Department. Integrated children and youth service centres. Retrieved 9 May, 2014, from http://www.swd.gov.hk/en/index/site_pubsvc/page_young/sub_centreserv/ id_integrated4/