Internship Experience for an ESL Teacher Essay Example for Free

Internship Experience for an ESL Teacher Essay As a foreign student with a degree in Informatics and Library and currently pursuing a master’s degree at the University of Pennsylvania in Adult and Community Education Program, I have a vision of teaching English as a second language in Saudi Arabia. To this effect, I have been on an internship project at the Communications Media department at the same university between January and March this year. The main purpose for the internship was to give me an exposure to the kind of environment I will find myself working in as an ESL teacher. ESL is a course that is offered to people who wish to learn English as a second language. Thesis Statement For my internship, I was attached at the Communication Department at the University of Pennsylvania where my duties included but were but not limited to coordinating activities between students taking English as a Second Language (ESL) and conversation partners at the American Language Institute. Also in the line of my duty was the task of overseeing how the two groups have been progressing together. The internship was time well spent and it played a very important role in familiarising me with the classroom set up at an ESL teaching centre. I also had the opportunity to learn much about the job and what it entails as well as the kind of challenges that I may encounter in the course of my career. Taking my internship course at University of Pennsylvania was the most convenient choice that I made. The communications Media Department where I was attached is right on the campus and I was therefore able to operate from my residence without any hustles of commuting from one place to another. It was also convenient in that I was able to coordinate between my classes at the Adult Community Program centre and the training on the internship. The convenience made life a little more comfortable for me because of reduced costs of transport. The internship kept me in good relations with the law because being in one place helped me avoid any instances of breaking immigration rules set for foreign students. The convenience of having all my activities centralised on Campus has played well in helping me to develop my social skills. This is because it has been easy to have extra interaction with some of the students when the opportunity allowed and as a teacher, this was very helpful in that I could closely get to know more about the challenges that ESL students face in their social life as foreign students. Since we were all from different social backgrounds, the interaction helped to improve my social relations with others considering the diversity of culture represented in the ESL class. A close bond between teacher and student is very important as it helps students to learn better and also helps the teacher to improve their skills. Knowing students a little bit more beyond the classroom set up is very important for teacher-student relations. Interaction with the volunteers from the American Language Institute helped me learn more about American society. With these two groups, I was able to share my challenges as a foreign student in America and also listen to theirs and suggest possible solutions. This helped learning easier and more interesting for the students. The sole purpose of learning an extra language is to aid the learner in communicating easily through the desired language. Despite the fact that I speak the English language, the experience I got from the internship greatly helped to improve my skills in conversing with others. The interaction I had with the students as well as the volunteers in the ESL learning programme exposed me to those who were learning and others who were there to assist in learning. It was a learning experience for me as I was able to improve on my fluency and using correct grammar when conversing in the English language. By identifying the students’ challenges in learning to converse in English, I was able to polish my own language especially in using of proper tenses, right statements and remarks. The ESL program brings together people from different cultural backgrounds. Students come here with the aim of learning English that will help them to adapt to their new environment and they are helped through this process by communication partners. Through interaction with this group at the ESL program, I got exposed to a diversity of cultures and it was interesting to get to learn about different cultures and practises of the world. It is interesting to note how the world can meet in such a small set up as a classroom. This knowledge is very important for me in my pursuit of a career in ESL teaching as it will help me adopt to any new culture that I may be exposed to. Objectives were set to enable me achieve the goals of the internship. They were supposed to guide me in carrying out activities that internship period. This would enable me acquire knowledge and skills that are required for one to become an effective ESL student’s teacher. The experience would give me an opportunity to give my suggestions and ideas in order to improve students teaching techniques and materials. In this essay, there will be a reflection on the meaning of the internship experience for my intellectual development and career planning. The internship experience was necessary in equipping me with new learning. It would offer me knowledge and skills required in future teaching work with the language students. Suggestions and ideas that can improve teaching techniques and materials for the students would contribute in achieving my new learning objective. Engaging volunteers achieved this in sessions on curriculum and teaching methods, recommending improvements in class handling discussing organizational concerns with volunteers, drafting lesson plans and evaluating them and discussing educational techniques with volunteers. My objective to teach volunteers on how to interact with English was achieved by carrying out the following activities; directing English lessons in the classroom, engaging the volunteers on curriculum and teaching methods, evaluating their performances and recommending necessary changes in class. The assignments that were offered to the students is a sure evidence that this objective was attained. Creating organizational system to allow educators to organize volunteer schedules and paper work effectively was enhanced by meeting and discussing organizational concerns with the volunteers, organizing schedules to avoid confusion, handling volunteer and class paper work and documentation as well as getting program feedback from the student Creating lesson plans for the volunteer teachers was achieved by; drafting lesson plans for teaching, adapting the teachers according to the class needs, discussing the quality of lesson plans and suggesting their changes, incorporating volunteer opinions in final lesson plans and finally implementing the lesson plan. I managed to work with the students and volunteers of presentation materials, decided upon educational techniques and ensured students follow guidelines in presentation. This assisted me in acquiring skills in creating presentation materials. As a teacher, I accommodated a certain number of students when my time allowed, graded and encouraged students and understanding the students’ need. The current challenges and problems in the classroom were discussed with fellow teachers. This in turn, ensured the students were taught as require by the instruction formal program. Additionally, experience at the ESL classes helped me to learn about other methods used in communicating apart from mouth language. These other methods are important in that as a teacher, knowledge of different methods of communication helps one to assess whether you are communicating fully or as desired by the students. Such methods include but are not limited to using parts of the body to express ourselves or gesturing and also the use of facial expressions. It was interesting to learn that a lot of communication can take place through non-verbal methods. At the end of the internship, I had developed a lot of confidence in conversing with students, being able to interact freely and easily with them as well as understanding diverse cultures and the styles they used to converse non-verbally in the different cultures. My internship was even more helpful as a master’s student in the Adult Education and Community programme. There was much more to learn from the experience at the ESL classes than I had earlier imagined. Interacting with students and volunteers from different cultures of the world helped me to grow as a person as well as to acquire intellectual improvement. I got exposed to diversity of cultures at very close range, something I had not encountered before and after such an experience, it becomes easy to be able to teach English anywhere in the world. This is because of the ability that I have gained to assess student issues anywhere. The ESL students mostly constitute of foreigners who wish to learn English so that they can be able to adapt to their new environments. Such students obviously encounter several challenges in the process of their resettlement and my experience with them enlightened me on ways in which I can be able to evaluate and understand their problems and the approach I can take in helping them to settle such problems. The ESL classes also constitute of people of different ages and as a future adult teacher, the internship has offered me great help in best ways of handling adults at different age categories. It is now easy to identify with their emotions and to know how well to help them cope with learning. Through this experience, I have realised that my own problems as a foreign student were not unique and that I have a lot to share in common with other foreigners that I shall encounter in the course of my career. I now have a burden to offer as much help as I can to make learning comfortable for foreigners. It made me feel even luckier that I could speak the language myself and made me realise that it was easier for me to adapt to my environment than those that cannot speak the language. Internship enriched me with methods of teaching that can be highly effective such as creating the right atmosphere for free teacher and student interaction and getting the students to give feedback on the way that they are fairing in their learning process. I learnt the essentiality of making the environment conducive for the students as it makes learning easier for them. Students can only learn successfully if several of these factors are pooled together. The internship was a good ground to put into practice what I had learnt from my course work.. Getting the chance to utilise my knowledge created a feeling of confidence in me as well as helped me to rectify and improve on areas that appeared weak. It is now possible for me to be able to come up with new ideas that can be applied in the ESL teaching program. This internship has surely given me the right exposure for my future career. Teaching at an ESL class is no longer a new encounter for me and I can affirm the fact that it is only through practice that one is able to assess whether you are ripe for a career. The challenges encountered in an ESL program set up are no longer strange to me. The internship has given me good experience in handling adults in a classroom set up and has helped to build confidence in me as an adult teacher. I believe this experience will assist me a great deal in planning and writing my thesis for the course that I am undertaking. Knowledge is only useful if it is put into practice. The internship offered me an opportunity to put into practice a lot of knowledge both academic and otherwise and gave me good direction on best ways of detecting, identifying and getting solutions to any challenges that may cross my path in the course of my career as an ESL teacher. By offering my own suggestions and contributing ideas on how teaching at ESL classes can be improved, my own personal growth in the career is advancing. I now have the confidence to handle adults in a learning environment and to be able to identify with their emotions, weaknesses, likes and dislikes and to handle such factors without interfering with the learning process. The students were taken out to become conversant with various aspects of the country. Supplementation of students’ knowledge on English by informally speaking with them aided their learning on the English language. On the other hand, not all objectives were achieved fully. There were several problems and challenges that made the achievement of these objectives difficult. The problems that were experienced included; volunteer delayed easy interaction with the students, and volunteers could not identify and understand concerns of all students fully. Though it took some time before they interacted easily with the students, they later managed to do it. There were few communication and organization problems that arose but were sorted out with time. It was also a bit difficult to develop lesson plans containing all relevant information for the course at one particular time. This experience assisted me to improve my conversation skills. This was due to the interaction with both the volunteers and the students. During this interaction conversations between me and then assisted me to gain fluency and correct grammar when conversing. The use of correct tenses, remarks and statements in order to pass the necessary language enabled me to identify their needs in their classes. Conclusion Internship has proved to be a very helpful undertaking and I would recommend it to anyone that wishes to develop and pursue a successful career. It offers a good opportunity to learn so much about the pros and cons of a job. From the experience that I have had at the internship, I believe that I have fewer challenges to face in my future career as an ESL teacher in Saudi Arabia. This is because the internship has prepared me on almost every aspect of human interaction is it personal, social or cultural that I need in my career. The exposure to people from different social backgrounds and different cultures will serve to help me adapt to new cultural backgrounds as it gives the right psychological preparation for such an encounter. The ESL class encounter will help me to adapt in a situation where I may find myself learning a new language. The whole experience was worth the time and effort. References Dolores, La Guardia. , Guth P. H. , (2000). American Voices. Culture and Community. Toronto, Mayfield Publishers.

The Play the Crucible is set in New England Essay Example for Free

The Play the Crucible is set in New England Essay A Crucible is a melting pot in which metals are melted together to form a pure metal. Millers characters represent these impure metals from Danforths eyes, as he came to determine Abigails accusations. Miller allows the reader to see how it was believed that the Bible should be interpreted in one way. This belief made sure that if you interpreted the bible wrongly, you would then have to undergo a thorough investigation. But the investigation Danforth underwent, interpreting if Abigails accusations were true or false was not thorough enough as his misinterpretation led to innocent deaths. In the beginning of the play we can already see that the characters are already being put to the test. Betty, Parriss daughter, is not waking up, will you wake, will you open your eyes? Paris saw the girls dancing naked in the woods. This line is significant as it allows Miller to get into the readers mind and makes them think a million thoughts at once. The reader knows that Paris saw the girls dancing, but now he/she is thinking could the dancing have anything to do with her not waking up, is Paris blaming himself for this because he saw what was going on and didnt stop it before the spell was cast on Elizabeth, which is not known at this point of the novel. Miller not only creates a scene but he builds tension with each and every single line. In this scene tension builds as more and more characters get to know that Betty is not waking up. John Proctor, a father of two boys, a farmer in his middle 30s and a man who made a fool feel foolish in his presence, in this case the fool of the novel was Reverend Samuel Parris. Well Proctors character gets toyed around with and tested in act 2 by Elizabeth Proctor his wife. She has never lied but she loves her husband so much that she will lie for him, when she is asked by Danforth if Proctor has ever committed the crime of lechery (adultery), she tells a lie and says no, sir. This tests Elizabeths character by making her do something she has never done (tell a lie). This test proves to the reader that she loves her husband so much that she will go to the extent of do anything for him, even something she has never done before. Why, then, it is not as you told me, Elizabeth proctor toys around with Proctor in the beginning of Act 2, slowly making him admit to her, that he committed lechery (but he doesnt say he does). The toying around with Proctor that Elizabeth did is an excellent test that shows the reader Proctors limits. We know Proctors limit has been reached as he bursts out and tells her she shouldnt judge him I must have mistaken you for God Let you look for the goodness in me, and judge me not. The questioning of Proctor by Hale in Act 2 is a moment in the reader gets proof of Proctor s deep regret for the sin he had committed. You have said that twice, sir, Proctors failure to complete the reciting of the ten commandments is key as it lets the readers imagination loose. This could be interpreted in many ways but it made me think that he was really ashamed of what he had done, as he knew the commandment but didnt want to say it because he was ashamed of it. The questioning of Proctor during this Act allows the reader to get to grips on Proctors character. So in the contrary Miller constantly put his characters through the process of trying to purify them and make them become perfect in Danforths eyes but had a massive turn around in the end of it all and resulted in death, take his shame away, we have seen how much proctor didnt want his name to be spoilt for his children, what more proof is needed to show the reader that this is a man who loved others more than himself and . He refused to sign away his name and decided to die a man with a good name. Nothing could have changed his mind he had decided on keeping his name. Miller may have formed his pure metal but his crucible had a hole in it and this hole allowed some metals to escape so I guess it wasnt fully a pure metal.

Planning and design phase

Planning and design phase CHOICE OF PROJECT MANAGER AND TEAM MEMBERS The initial phase of the Sodor project involved the formation of the project team and the nomination of the project manager. Group 12 is made up of 4 Nigerians and 1 Vietnamese which reflects a multicultural team with each nationality possessing peculiar personality traits. The objective of the first meeting was to nominate a Project Manager and to define and agree on ground rules for project team meetings. To ensure equal participation of all team members, it was agreed that the rotational project manager system will be adopted whereby each individual in the group would serve as the project manager for 1 week each throughout the 5 week duration of the Sodor project. It was agreed that meetings will be scheduled 3 times a week by the project manager lasting no more than 2 hours each. At each meeting, specific tasks is assigned to each team member to be submitted at the next meeting day. CONTRACTOR SELECTION CRITERIA The contractor selection criteria adopted by the team is the Trade-off technique. This technique uses a scoring system to quantify specific attributes of the various contractors and provides a numerical output, the highest of which represents the best contractor choice. The use of this technique provided the best possible contractors to manage the various stages of this project. MANAGING CONFLICTS Some of the conflicts experienced by the Group 12 team in the management of the Sodor oil terminal include: Team members attitudes: Some of the team members lack motivation and commitment to participate in the project team. This is manifested as absences from team meetings, late comings to team meetings, and lack of verbal contribution to team discussions. This issue was addressed by the project manager in charge who spoke with the team members concerned. Choice of Contractors: The proposal to use Trade-Off for contractor selection was initially resisted by some team members who where in favour of using a more subjective technique. It was finally accepted after an appraisal of the objectiveness of Trade-off was done by the proponent. CONSTRUCTION CHANGE CONTROL   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  All changes which include Contractor changes, Scope, Cost, and schedule changes proposed by the project sponsor passed through a Change management process which begins with a brainstorming session by the project team on the costs and benefits of adopting the change. The changes agreed on by the project team is then reflected on the Gantt chart. Due to the choice of contractor selection technique, the changes proposed by the project sponsor during the project lifecycle had a minimal impact on the actual cost and schedule. CLOSE OUT   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The close out process involved a review of the final Sodor terminal project plan to confirm scope, cost and schedule deadlines have been met. The lesson learned document was then prepared which showed the various conflicts that occurred throughout the project and how they where managed by the team in order to provide lessons for the future. The final project plan was then presented to the project sponsor and the Group 12 team was deformed by the project manager. INTRODUCTION   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Teamwork has been found to be an essential ingredient responsible for the success or failure of projects. The effective use and management of teams for projects has been noted to be a key determinant for how successful a project will be; however, the effectiveness of a team depends on the ability of the team members to interact appropriately with one another to produce a common output. DEFINITION Hoegl(2004) defined teams as a social interaction between two or more people within an organization who share a common task. Teams have also been described as a group of people who hold themselves mutually accountable to each other and who work together to achieve a common purpose(Scholtes et al,2003). The above definitions take into account the fact that for a team to exist, certain basic ingredients need to be in place which include; mutual accountability, constancy of purpose, and a shared responsibility for success or failure. The benefits of teamwork in project management cannot be overemphasized. Teams help in the mobilization of diverse resources to a project as compared to that achieved by a single individual. Church(1998) also noted that teams provide the flexibility to use the mobilized resources thus helping to continue with the project in the event of a particular individual being indisposed. Perhaps the greatest value of teams in managing projects rests with the ability of teams to provide a synergy of the efforts of the individual team members whereby the results achieved is greater than the arithmetic sum of the contributions of the individual members to the team. FACTORS THAT AFFECT TEAM EFFECTIVENESS Team size and choice of members: Hackman(1987) suggested that there is no ideal team size for a project. Furthermore, the team size chosen is dependent on the scope of the project. In contrast, Hoegl(2003) proposed that ideally a project should be reduced to a level where the work package can be managed by a team of between 3-6 people. This helps to avoid the confusion that may arise from Too many Cooks spoiling the broth. The choice of team members also plays a role in determining team success. Trent(2003) proposed that the membership of a project team should be made up of people with the right skills and competencies to tackle the particular task at hand. A set of objective criteria should be used in choosing the members of a project team. Team leadership: Trent(1996) suggested a direct relationship between leadership effectiveness and team effectiveness. The results that a team produces depends largely on the calibre of the leadership. Teams that lack a strong and effective leadership are more likely to fail(Zenger et al,1994). The effectiveness of a leader depends on the possession of skills, experience, and the will to assume responsibility for the team performance. Resource availability: The availability of resources plays a major role in the ability of a team to produce results. Peters and OConnors(1980) postulated that the availability of specific resources can either promote or interfere with a team effectiveness. The resources needed by a team to be effective varies depending on the project scope. It may include financial, Human, and Environmental resources. Establishment of clear goals: Zander(1980) postulated that teams with clear and measurable goals perform better than teams with fuzzy goals. This is as a result of the use of clear goals by teams as a baseline through which team results can be measured. Furthermore, the use of clear and concise goals also helps the team in planning for what they can achieve within a particular timeframe. Reward and Recognition: The relationship between appropriate reward structures and team effectiveness cannot be overemphasized(Bullock and Lawler,1984). Developing a reward system that focuses on the entire team rather than individuals help in improving team motivation and hence its effectiveness. It is a fact that people are motivated to achieve results if they feel that the results provide value to the organization and this value is acknowledged by the organization. SODOR OIL TERMINAL PLANNING AND DESIGN   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The need to have a plan for the management of the Sodor oil terminal cannot be overemphasized. Grachev et al(2006) using 3M corporation as a case study proposed that a key benefit of planning upfront for a project is the creation of well defined project goals. The goals help to give direction to a teams project. Other benefits of planning include; it helps the team members in the coordination of individual tasks by providing clearly stated assignments. Furthermore, the project plan also enables the team to have an overview of the project schedule, costs and constraints which the team can then use as a baseline to measure actual project progress.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The planning and design of the Sodor oil terminal started with the identification of the Cost, Schedule and Scope goals from the data derived from the Project Sponsor. These goals where then integrated into a sequential structure by the use of the MS Project ® to produce the Sodor oil terminal preliminary Gantt chart. Multiple adjustments to scope, cost, and schedule data was proposed by the project sponsor which resulted in iterative changes to the project plan leading to changes in the project cost and time of completion. The final Sodor oil terminal plan is a comprehensive document showing the actual budget, time of completion, scope of the project, and the approved contractors selected for the project. Christina(2009) proposed that key factors that affect team success at the planning and design phase include; Well-Defined Goals: The definition of clear project deliverables has been shown to improve the success rate of project teams. Pinto and Slevin(1988) proposed that clearly defined and structured goals is a significant factor that determines the effectiveness of teams and hence the success rate of projects. The goals of the Group 12 team where clearly stated and well defined at the onset of the project which was to deliver a project plan within 98 weeks at no more than the stated project budget provided by the project sponsor. Management Support: Pinto and Slevin(1988) suggested that the support upper management gives a team helps in facilitating team success. This occurs by facilitating the release of resources to the project team hence ensuring their efficiency and helping to remove administrative bottle necks. Group 12 received the support of the project sponsor in the designing of the sodor plan especially with respect to weekly review meetings to assess the current status of the project plan and proffer ways to bring the plan back on track. Cross-Cultural teams: The importance of having multiple individuals from different cultures in a team has been proposed to impact positively on team results(Earley and Mosakowski,2000). Ochieng and Price(2009) also suggested that the effective use of proper communication techniques to handle cultural differences in a team helps in promoting project success. Multiple cultures in a team brings together people with different skills, competencies, and personal attributes dedicated to a common purpose. The multicultural environment of Group 12 provided a pool of diverse ideas derived via brainstorming from which the best possible solution was agreed on and translated into the Sodor project plan. Team experience and continuity: Pinto and Slevin(1988) suggested that the inclusion of individuals with specific project experience into a team helps in promoting its success. This is because this individuals already have a knowledge of the critical factors needed to ensure the success of the particular project from the lessons learned from past projects managed by them. Scott-Young(2009) suggested that the stability of a team throughout the project lifecycle helps in ensuring team success. Stable teams have been shown to maintain the consistency of ideas generation and are not susceptible to the distraction that tends to occur from a team member joining or leaving the team(Akgun and Lynn,2000). The use of team members with a wide range of experience managing projects like healthcare, education, and engineering played a key role in the results of Group 12. This is due to the diverse nature of the knowledge pool available for planning the project. The stability of the Group 12 team th roughout the project lifecycle also played a key role in the design of the sodor project plan. CONSTRUCTION AND CLOSEOUT Handling Conflicts: The absence of conflicts in a team has been proposed to be a pointer to the failure of the team(Saj-Nicole and Damon). The presence of conflicts and how the conflicts are managed indicates how successful the project team will be. The nature of the conflicts i.e. conflicts relevant to the project scope, serves to provoke a generation of ideas from the project team on the best way to manage the crises. Several conflicts arose during the management of Group 12; an example will be the, Who to choose as the project manager? The way it was managed was to have a face to face meeting with the project team, everybody laying their individual ideas on the table, then arriving at a decision mutually beneficial to everyone which is to have a rotational project manager system with each member of the project team ‘having a taste of the pie of being the project manager for 1 week each. This solution helped during the construction phase of the plan because all the team membe rs felt a sense of belonging and making a positive contribution to the team. Leadership: The proposal by Akgun and Lynn(2000) on the positive benefits of leadership continuity to the project team success is largely not applicable to the Group 12 project team. This is because the use of a single leader throughout the project lifecycle will have led to the presence of domineering tendencies being shown by the individual chosen which may affect certain decisions made during the formulation of the construction plan. It will also have led to project team members being made to feel they are not a part of the team. Hence in a bid to avoid this scenario, the rotational project manager system was proposed and adopted. Lessons-learned documentation: The preparation of the lessons learned document is an essential part of the project team closure phase(PMI,2008). The lessons learned document captures the lessons learned at various milestones in the planning of the project. The final meeting of the Group 12 team was a brainstorming session to identify various challenges we had during the creation of the Sodor project plan and how the challenges where managed. CONCLUSION This paper details how the Group 12 team managed the Sodor project from design to the closeout phase. It explains in detail the various factors responsible for the success of the team in arriving at the final project plan; and also the various challenges Group 12 team had and how those challenges where managed to produce positive results. The paper sheds light on the key factors that affect various stages of the project and how they where harnessed and utilized positively by the Group 12 team. REFERENCES Scholtes, P.R. Joiner, B.L. Streibel, B.J(2003) The team handbook.3rd Edition, Oriel Incorporated, USA. PMI(2008) A Guide to the Project management body of knowledge. 4th Edition, PMI, Newton square, USA. Hoegl, M(2004) ‘Smaller teams-better teamwork: How to keep project teams small. Business horizons, Vol.48, Nos.3, pp.209-214. Church, A.H(1998) ‘From both sides now: the power of teamwork-fact or fiction?. Team performance management, Vol.4, Nos.2, pp.42-52. Hackman, J.R(1987) ‘The design of work teams. In: Lorsch, J.W(1987) Handbook of organizational behaviour, Prentise-hall, USA, pp.315-342. Trent, R.J(2003) ‘Planning to use of work teams effectively. Team performance management: An international journal. Vol.9, Nos.3, pp.50-58. Zenger, J. Musselwhite, E. Hinson, K. Perrin, C(1994) Leading teams:mastering the new role. Irwin, Homewood, USA, pp.14-15. Trent, R.J(1996) ‘Understanding and evaluating cross-functional sourcing team leadership. International journal of purchasing and materials management. Vol.42, Nos.2, pp.29-39. Peters, L.H and OConnors,E.J(1980) ‘Situational constraints and work outcomes: the influences of a frequently overlooked construct. Academy of management review, Vol.5, Nos.3, pp.391-397. Zander, A.F(1980) ‘The origins and consequences of group goals. Retrospections on social psychology. Oxford university press, New York, USA. Bullock, R.J and Lawler, E.E(1984) ‘Gainsharing: a few questions and fewer answers. Human resources management. Vol.23, Nos.1, pp.23-40. Grachev, M.V. Rogovsky, N.G. Bobina, M.A(2006) ‘3M: Role model for emerging markets? Thunderbird International Business review, Vol.48, Nos.6, pp.803-821. Iles, P and Hayers, P.K(1997) ‘Managing diversity in transnational project teams. Journal of managerial psychology. Vol.12, Nos.2, pp.95-117. Pinto, J.K and Slevin, D.P(1988) ‘Critical success factors across the project lifecycle. Project management journal. Vol.19, Nos.3, pp.67-75. Cohen, S.G and Bailey, D(1997) ‘What makes teams work: Group effectiveness research from the shopfloor to the executive suite. Journal of management. Vol.23, Nos.3, pp.239-290. Scott-Young,C(2009) ‘Team management for fast projects: an empirical study of process industries. International journal of operations and production management. Vol.29, Nos.6, pp.612-635. Akgun, A.E and Lynn, G.S(2002) ‘Antecedents and consequences of team stability on NPD performance. Journal of technology management, Vol.19, pp.263-286. Earley, P.C and Mosakowski, E(2000) ‘Creating hybrid team cultures: and empirical test of transnational team functioning. Academy of management journal. Vol.43, Nos.1, pp.26-49. Ochieng, E.G and Price, A.D.F(2009) ‘Managing cross-cultural communication in multicultural construction project teams: the case of Kenya and UK. International journal of project management. Vol.10, pp.101-106. Saj-Nicole, A.J and Damon, B(2009) ‘How to pick a good fight. Harvard business review. Vol.87, Nos.12, pp.48-57. Christina, S(2009) ‘Team management for fast projects: an empirical study of process industries. International Journal of operations and production management, Vol.29, Nos.6, pp.612-635.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Essay -- Poet Persuasive Argumentative Poet

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow A Fellow’s Long Worth How does one describe a poet when he has already described himself with his own words? Although Henry Wadsworth Longfellow isn’t popular, he is such a poet. As described by Arnold Bennett, Longfellow is "the chief minor poet of the English language." Among a harsh lineup of critics, however, they claimed he fell short of literary. This is quite the contrary. Longfellow attended Bowdoin college, near Portland, Maine where he was born and raised. The college offered him the newly formed position as chair of modern languages. "Two things are striking about this event: the informality of the academic approach to language studies and the obvious natural gift that Longfellow possessed" (Fuller 3). Traveling throughout Europe before settling into his new job (as well as during numerous trips after), Longfellow practically learned the languages by osmosis. He could speak splendid amounts of French, Spanish, Italian, German and some Scandinavian. After leaving Bowdoin, he later taught at Harvard University. At this time, his pen began to constantly scratch prose and poetry. After almost twenty years as a professor, Longfellow retired and devoted himself to his craft of poetry. After tasting random stanzas and meters of Longfellow’s work, it is easy to identify his tone: uplifting, positive and somewhat glowing. Along with his shorter pieces that evoke positive feelings, Longfellow also tells stories with his longer poetry. He used lyrical verses to describe, weave and introduce new characters or feelings. From the poem "The Skeleton in Armor" to "Paul Revere’s Ride," Longfellow opened up worlds with his words, whether as real as the Revolutionary War, or as mystic as Nordic my... ...t, overall, passion was underneath his skin. As he wrote in "Michael Angelo: A Fragment," "The fever to accomplish some great work that will not let us sleep. I must go on until I die." It is unfair that Longfellow isn’t praised more as an American poet, especially with a backpack heavy with accomplishments. His hike through the literary world was rugged, but his perseverance left readers with kind, unassuming meter and lyric. Works Cited Fuller, Edmund. Introduction. Poems of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1967. 1-13. Untermeyer, Louis. Introduction. The American Poets: Longfellow. By Henry Wadwsworth Longfellow. New York: The Heritage Press, 1943. ix-xv. Wagenknecht, Edward. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: His Poetry and Prose. New York: The Ungar Publishing Company, 1986.

Parental Involvement in their Childs Education Essay example -- Educa

When my six year old daughter comes home every Friday I expect a green folder filled with colorful masterpieces she created during integrated arts, three new weekly reading books, seven to ten double sided pages of homework, an array of spam letters trying to sell us food and a variety of other things and last but not least, letters from her teacher. Every week it is my responsibility to go through this folder, respond to communication letters, and work with my daughter to complete any assigned work. If I do not work with her on this it won’t get done and she will fall behind in school. Yes, there are some days that I wish I could just flip on my TV and ignore the fact that she has homework, but until she graduates it is my responsibility to insure her future by enforcing rules on homework and school. It seems everything parents do is for their children, but who has time to add more conferences and study sessions to an already hectic schedule? Every parent wants the best for t heir child, but most aren’t willing to step up where children need them most, in the classroom. Parental involvement in a child’s education makes a world of difference, it lowers dropout rates, raises test scores, improves the child’s outlook on education and the list goes on. It would seem like a no brainer that it is really important for parents to find time to be more involved for the sake of their child’s future. Yet parents are not doing this willingly, which is the reason Florida state Representative Kelli Stargel's proposed a law that would grade parents based upon the most basic parental involvement in their child’s education. Could a law enforcing parental involvement be the missing link in the education system or is a child’s education the responsib... ... PTA meetings, or school board meetings, it’s simply trying to enforce very basic involvement in a child’s education. Parents should be, and need to be more involved in the education of their children, after all the children are our future. Works Cited Belkin, L. (2011, May 22) Whose Failing Grade Is It? New York Times, 2(L). Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 17 Jan. 2012. Couwels, J. (2011, January 26) Florida lawmaker wants teachers to grade parents. CNN U.S. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/01/26/florida.grading.parents/index.html Friedman, T. L. (2011, November 20) How About Better Parents? New York Times, 11(L). Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 17 Jan. 2012. Kronholz, J. (2012, January 17) Truants: The challenges of keeping kids in school. Education Next, 11.1, 32-38. OmniFile Full Text Select. Web. 17 Jan. 2012. Parental Involvement in their Child's Education Essay example -- Educa When my six year old daughter comes home every Friday I expect a green folder filled with colorful masterpieces she created during integrated arts, three new weekly reading books, seven to ten double sided pages of homework, an array of spam letters trying to sell us food and a variety of other things and last but not least, letters from her teacher. Every week it is my responsibility to go through this folder, respond to communication letters, and work with my daughter to complete any assigned work. If I do not work with her on this it won’t get done and she will fall behind in school. Yes, there are some days that I wish I could just flip on my TV and ignore the fact that she has homework, but until she graduates it is my responsibility to insure her future by enforcing rules on homework and school. It seems everything parents do is for their children, but who has time to add more conferences and study sessions to an already hectic schedule? Every parent wants the best for t heir child, but most aren’t willing to step up where children need them most, in the classroom. Parental involvement in a child’s education makes a world of difference, it lowers dropout rates, raises test scores, improves the child’s outlook on education and the list goes on. It would seem like a no brainer that it is really important for parents to find time to be more involved for the sake of their child’s future. Yet parents are not doing this willingly, which is the reason Florida state Representative Kelli Stargel's proposed a law that would grade parents based upon the most basic parental involvement in their child’s education. Could a law enforcing parental involvement be the missing link in the education system or is a child’s education the responsib... ... PTA meetings, or school board meetings, it’s simply trying to enforce very basic involvement in a child’s education. Parents should be, and need to be more involved in the education of their children, after all the children are our future. Works Cited Belkin, L. (2011, May 22) Whose Failing Grade Is It? New York Times, 2(L). Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 17 Jan. 2012. Couwels, J. (2011, January 26) Florida lawmaker wants teachers to grade parents. CNN U.S. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/01/26/florida.grading.parents/index.html Friedman, T. L. (2011, November 20) How About Better Parents? New York Times, 11(L). Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 17 Jan. 2012. Kronholz, J. (2012, January 17) Truants: The challenges of keeping kids in school. Education Next, 11.1, 32-38. OmniFile Full Text Select. Web. 17 Jan. 2012.

Lebanon Essay example -- Lebanese History, Religion, Politics

In the United States, citizens take their freedom and rights on numerous things for granted. Different countries, such as Lebanon, do not get to experience the wide range privileges we have grown accustomed to in America. Settled in the western party of Asia, Lebanon appears to be a quiet and calm country. But Lebanese citizens constantly debate and fight over their country’s status on controversial and different human rights, such as laws against the gays and their country’s women’s right, on a daily basis. Lebanon is a country very well known for its strict religious Muslims upbringing (Lebanon 2011). Because of the country’s religious background, sexual relations and sexuality remains a notorious topic that is not discuss amongst others. According to Article 534 of the Lebanese Penal Code, it is forbidden to participate in sexual relations that go against what the Lebanese citizens consider as laws of nature, such as homosexuality, adultery, sodomy, and fornication. If they were to be caught, punishment of a year or more in prison will be the result of the crime (LGBT rights in Lebanon 2011). Not only does Lebanon’s laws and strict religion prevents citizens in partaking what they consider a devious act, their society also plays a large role in attempting to stop homosexuality to spread throughout their country. In 2003, Lebanese media reported a situation at a Dunkin Donuts store, where the general manager refused to serve any customers that are gay or appear to be gay looking. Her defense for her action was that she wanted to reassure the parents of the children that came by were being protected and taken care of (LGBT rights in Lebanon 2011). If a scenario similar to this had happen in the United States, the general mange... ...establishes a balance of power among the major religious groups in the country (Human Rights in Lebanon 2011). More than half the population in Lebanon consider themselves as Muslims, while only 39% are Christians (Lebanon 2011). In this case, Muslims would be placed higher in authority and power compared to Christians. Generally the government respects all aspects of religions, but when it comes to politics, usually the superior religion will win the office (Human Rights in Lebanon 2011). Many of Lebanon’s human rights in their country are considered unreasonable and unfamiliar to American citizens who take their constitutional rights for granted. Regardless of the United States’ fortunate human rights act, Lebanon is a country of its own; it’s not America. Whenever they are ready, Lebanon will make new laws and changes that best suits its modernized country. Lebanon Essay example -- Lebanese History, Religion, Politics In the United States, citizens take their freedom and rights on numerous things for granted. Different countries, such as Lebanon, do not get to experience the wide range privileges we have grown accustomed to in America. Settled in the western party of Asia, Lebanon appears to be a quiet and calm country. But Lebanese citizens constantly debate and fight over their country’s status on controversial and different human rights, such as laws against the gays and their country’s women’s right, on a daily basis. Lebanon is a country very well known for its strict religious Muslims upbringing (Lebanon 2011). Because of the country’s religious background, sexual relations and sexuality remains a notorious topic that is not discuss amongst others. According to Article 534 of the Lebanese Penal Code, it is forbidden to participate in sexual relations that go against what the Lebanese citizens consider as laws of nature, such as homosexuality, adultery, sodomy, and fornication. If they were to be caught, punishment of a year or more in prison will be the result of the crime (LGBT rights in Lebanon 2011). Not only does Lebanon’s laws and strict religion prevents citizens in partaking what they consider a devious act, their society also plays a large role in attempting to stop homosexuality to spread throughout their country. In 2003, Lebanese media reported a situation at a Dunkin Donuts store, where the general manager refused to serve any customers that are gay or appear to be gay looking. Her defense for her action was that she wanted to reassure the parents of the children that came by were being protected and taken care of (LGBT rights in Lebanon 2011). If a scenario similar to this had happen in the United States, the general mange... ...establishes a balance of power among the major religious groups in the country (Human Rights in Lebanon 2011). More than half the population in Lebanon consider themselves as Muslims, while only 39% are Christians (Lebanon 2011). In this case, Muslims would be placed higher in authority and power compared to Christians. Generally the government respects all aspects of religions, but when it comes to politics, usually the superior religion will win the office (Human Rights in Lebanon 2011). Many of Lebanon’s human rights in their country are considered unreasonable and unfamiliar to American citizens who take their constitutional rights for granted. Regardless of the United States’ fortunate human rights act, Lebanon is a country of its own; it’s not America. Whenever they are ready, Lebanon will make new laws and changes that best suits its modernized country.

Huella Proposal

Founded in 1999 in Kuala Lumpua, Malaysia, Huella Online Travel was an Internet travel portal targeting Greater China and Asian Pacific. Huella online travel agent is a retail business, that sells travel related products and services to customers, on behalf of suppliers, such as airlines, car rentals, cruise lines, hotels, railways, sightseeing tours and package holidays that combine several products. Huella ‘s Hong Kong was launch in 2000. Up to 2004, the revenue growth in Hong Kong had been less than expected. Huella market share in Hong Kong to be only 4% compared 9% in Singapore.This time, Huella wants set up a whole new marketing research to get a depth insight into Hong Kong online travel market. 2- OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY: The previous research is very useful in exploring how people awareness of the Huella brand, however they are not conclusive of the public perception in Huella’s target market. In my opinion, we should conduct a research marketing strategy for Hu ella using a quantitative approach. From this research we should be able to identify: customers, competencies and competitors. Research Objectives: †¢ To identify demographic, economic, lifestyle, and traveling desire in Hong Kong market. To determine a match between consumers’ needs and how Huella online travel agents can be able to match these needs †¢ To identify main attributes of online travel agents that appeal to the target market†¢ To assess the target market’s purchase intent and purchase habits †¢ To determine promotional efforts that appeal to the target market †¢ To determine the price sensitivity of the target market for online travel agents †¢ To identify ideal channels to market the brand in Hong Kong †¢ To identify competition in Hong Kong travel agencies including brick-’n-mortar agents and online agents. – SAMPLING: Another part that is very important, how the sampling is done. Personally, I strongly re commend using online survey and face-to-face interviews because Huella is an online business. Yet online survey usually has low responds so I also want we have face-to-face surveys that will be more effective because Hong Kong is a small territory and high population. We can collect primary data by survey research and behavioral data. Sampling plan:Sampling size: 300 Sampling unit: white collar, young professional, foreigner travelers in Hong Kong. Sampling procedure: randomly Method: survey and behavioral data Demographics: age between 18 years old to 40 years old. Gender: male and female Professions: general Geography: Tsim Sha Tsui, Mongkok, Causeway Bay Contact methods – online survey, face-to-face. 3- ANALYSIS AND REPORT The result from this research will be put in power point and hard copy format.