M019 Regular Assignment - Understanding Retail Essay

M019 Regular Assignment - Understanding Retail - Essay Example E- Tailing companies such as Onsale, @home, Webvan and Boo.com have experience their fair share of failures and were eventually closed down (Caroll and Casey, 2004:2). This goes ahead to prove that not all e-tailing companies have been successful in business. High street retailers have been in existence for a long time and have substantial loyalty and a wide customer base in the global market (Shepherd, 2007:66). They have strong brand names that are easily recognised by the consumers and this makes it easy to sell their merchandise on their online stores. Renowned fashion lines, mobile companies, food joints have a well established online business that contributes to a considerable amount of their income. New entrants have a hard time competing with these high street companies. High street companies have a competitive advantage since they have more resources, state of the art technology and better customer loyalty. It can be noted with a lot of concern that e- tailing is a relativel y new concept in some parts of the world. However, they are slowly catching up with the spread of the internet across different parts of the world. ... In conclusion, although e-tailing has grown rapidly in some parts of the world including the UK, US and some parts of Asia, there are those that that are not aware of the concept. It entails a wide array of businesses ranging from auction sites, entertainment sites and consumer based sites. In addition to, e- tailing facilitates the electronic usage of goods and services between buyers and sellers and helps bridge the language barrier (Cuthbertson, 2012:57). Recent studies reveal that e- tailing has opened new opportunities for companies from various parts of the world. It has helped companies reach a high number of shoppers from all over the world and has been shopping to be a fast and hustle free experience. This has led to a considerable increase in revenues gained by high street companies. Retail Internalisation Nearly thirty years ago, every retailer in the global scene was a pure nationalized firm with an irrelevant share in the international market. Currently, retailer interna tionalisation is one of the most momentous trends that have accelerated immensely in the past two decades. It can be argued that retail internationalisation is much more than the opening of stores abroad as it includes a wide range of issues (Wrigley et al., 2005:440). A close look at the 200 top global retailers reveals that they operate numerous countries and have established a remarkable capacity in the global market (Hanf and Pall, 2009:2). In fact, many retail companies earn a considerable share of their revenue from foreign markets. There are various companies that have established their subsidiaries in the international market and failed miserably. This goes ahead that there is much more to retail internalisation than open stores in various parts of the world.

Moving towards a cashless society Essay Example for Free

Moving towards a cashless society Essay In history there was no money but people used to evaluate commodities in monetary terms. People used to make trade of goods for goods that could be estimated to have same monetary value as waved. The person who wanted to buy some commodity could make estimates of the commodity the seller has and compare its value in terms of worthiness to the commodity of exchange. Money was later invented as a tangible form that includes paper and coin. Transactions were all handled in monetary value and different currencies were also put in place for different nations. Different rates were also set up to be able trade efficiently on different currencies. Cash became the day to day ways of trading were one had to have paper money so that they could be able to acquire whatever they want. Banks were developed for easier and safe storage so that no one could get hold of in illegally. Cash or money has the following advantages like that the mode of payment is easier and simple because no so much transactions are made. Counterfeit money is also easy to detect and systemic risks are hardly a problem. There is no paper trail and is a peer to peer mode of payment. It also introduced lots of problem like theft and counterfeiting of paper cash. This led to the revolutionary of cashless society by introduction of cheques where people no longer carry cash but writes cheques that authorizes withdrawals and payments in terms of cash. (Thorndal, 1994) Traditionally deposits have been used for payments at a distance. Deposits can be transferred in a number of ways: payer initiated transfer, direct debit, standing order, check, credit card. With distance to distance payments or mode of trade the demand for are more fast and effective ways of communication and trade came into place. The introduction of ATM card was introduced by the banks to enhance trade. People no longer had to carry cash but could make withdrawals through these cards. The electronic cash system came into place where people can buy things over the internet using cards as a form of electronic commerce. This electronic cash system involves use of cards that have been categorized as credit cards, electronic cash and smart cards. The credit cards involve creating an encrypted channel for use of cards for internet like VISA or MasterCard. Electronic cash uses specially designed software where customer buys electronic cash for digital wallet then sends as payment to merchant. Examples are DigiCash and CyberCash. Smart cards include contact less and swap cards like MasterCard, Visa, Quicklink, VisaCash, Protonn and Danmont. The growth of payment cards reflects their attractiveness to consumers over other forms of payment and credit. Payment cards offer consumers numerous benefits, including better management of one’s expenses, improved recordkeeping, greater shopping convenience, reduction of the risk of theft, float for those who do not revolve balances, rewards from use of cards that are available for additional purchases, and, especially for debit cards, convenience in obtaining cash. I first discuss these benefits and then consider the benefits of payment cards when used to obtain credit. (Wallace, 1983) Payment cards allow consumers to manage their money better by making it possible to anticipate, plan, and match their obligations to their available funds. The payment cards allow consumers to smooth out unexpected expenditures such as car repairs or family emergencies . Payment cards also reduce the costs of record keeping and retaining individual receipts. Checks also offer this advantage but payment cards do not require the additional inconvenience of recording in and then rebalance a checkbook. Payment cards can also reduce the time and transaction costs associated with shopping. Advances in technology have dramatically increased the speed of processing card transactions which are now substantially faster than writing checks. If the ATM is outside of the consumer’s network the consumer must pay a fee to withdraw the money. In contrast transactional users of payment cards pay nothing to use their card. Transaction errors, such as receiving too little or too much change, are also probably higher with cash than with electronic payment card transactions. Another advantage of payment cards is that payment cards can be used in a wide variety of outlets hence helping both consumers and merchants. (Krueger, 1999) Some Debit cards, PIN or online cards allow consumers to withdraw additional cash beyond the price of the purchase for which the card is used thus saving the use of ATM. Unsecured personal finance loans are expensive with much higher initiation fees than credit cards. Credit cards are attractive for consumers for both cost and convenience. General purpose credit cards have also substantially displaced retail store credit. We have also so many disadvantage of using payment cards. One of this disadvantage in that they are risky for customers because they cay be incur fraud easily. People can use your card and pin number once known to withdraw or use your money. Credit cards are also expensive to acquire because they are costly. Payment cards are only acceptable by registered merchants and hence are not applicable everywhere. Card users also incur high interchange fee and cost while transacting using this payment cards. (Prinz, 1999) Specific regulations need to make a cashless society of cards work smoothly. Regulation in the payment card need to be set due to the claim of interchange fees are too high and as a result reduces consumers to overuse payment card. Interchange fees arose from the structure of the Visa and MasterCard networks. Visa adopted a fixed interchange fee which was not linked to the merchant discount charged by individual acquirers. A uniform fee reduced the transaction costs of negotiating separate interchange fees between acquirers and issuers and eliminated the difficulties that issuers faced in monitoring in the merchant discount set by the acquirers. Visa and MasterCard reduced the interchange fees charged to supermarkets hence reducing the merchant discount. Some regulations were also imposed on regulating card frauds that many banks face. Fraud card detectors have been setup and laws governing the enactment of the card fraud have been set to punish those fraudsters. The winners of the cashless society are the consumers or users of the cards because they have been absorbed from the risk of physical theft of money. Even though there are fraudsters, the users are not exposed to so much risk of theft. Card users can effectively purchase things online regardless of the distance because all transactions are done to the and at a very high speed. The losers are the merchants or company providing this services because the have to incur all the expenses of setting up this technology and infrastructure. Lastly they incur the problem of making all transactions possible regardless the distance and parties involved. The merchants incur all this cost and expenses in this cashless society. (Buiter, 2005) Reference Buiter, W (2005): New developments in monetary economics: Economic journal, Vol. 115 Thorndal, J. (1994): Prepaid cards and monetary Review: Danmarks Publishers Krueger, M. (1999): Towards a Moneyless world: Dept of Economics and finance: University of Durham Press Prinz, A (1999): Money in the real and Virtual World: Netnomics journal. Wallace, N (1983): A suggestion for oversimplifying the theory of money: Economic journal

Americas Oil Problem Essay -- American Economy, Oil Industry

The United States is in a recession and depends on foreigners to fuel our country. Oil companies are taking advantage of the power they have over gas prices and the economy is at one of the lowest points in all of our history. It can be seen that the way things are going now that change needs to occur for America to get back on its feet. Drastic changes will need to happen if we are going to continue to enjoy living in a very advanced and prominent country. By developing proper offshore drilling techniques, and alternate energy, America could eliminate debt and lessen dependence on foreign oil. As it stands, oil companies have a firm grasp of the American economy. As the price of oil increases, the price of living also increases. Not only that, but they are getting away with paying dues they owe. "Oil companies have escaped more than 60 billion dollars in royalties because of a loophole to get access to more leases. The United States is the third largest producer of oil in the world, and 31 percent of that production comes from land owned by the federal government" (Offshore Drilling Will Enrich Big Oil Companies 2). America maintains this title even though "America's crude oil productivity has decreased since 1985" (Crude Oil Production 1). Currently, oil is becoming more expensive and damaging the economy while America is becoming more dependent on foreign oil; decreasing productivity and narrowing offshore drilling. The oil industry is making an immense profit. Oil companies that secured leases in 1998 and 1999 haven't been paying royalties, even though a bill signed in November of 1995 required royalties to be paid in proportion to the oil profit made. An example of a company profiting because of this is "West Texas Inte... ...ational security. As voters, and future voters, we need to vote for candidates that understand the colossal importance of using renewable energy and offshore drilling to start a recovery of the economy and keep America as a power figure. It will cost billions of dollars for research and perfecting offshore drilling, but it is a long-term investment that will have an enormous payout. If America was to fail in alternative energy research and offshore drilling have multiple spills; the worse that could happen is we go farther into debt. The country is already trillions deep into debt. Taking a risk and finding other ways to generate profit is how we will stimulate growth. The future is here. Fossil fuels will not last forever. If America leads the charge into the renewable energy field we can continue to be a very powerful nation and get the economy back on track.

High School and Education Essay

1a) Cultural Deprivation -Intellectual Development: development of thinking and reasoning skills. Theorists would argue that many WC homes lack educational books, toys and activities that would help stimulate a child’s intellectual development. Douglas- WC pupils scored lower on test of ability, as their parents are less likely to support their children’s intellectual development. Bernstein and Young- mothers choose toys that influence intellectual development. Criticism: WC may not be able to afford these toys etc. -Language: children fail to develop necessary language skills and grow up incapable of abstract thinking and unable to use language to explain, describe, enquire and compare. Restricted & Elaborated code; Bernstein. MC have an advantage as the elaborated code is used by teachers, text books and exams. Also MC pupils are already fluent speakers (socialisation) so they ‘feel at home’ in school and are more likely to succeed. Criticism: Bernstein describes WC speech inadeq uate. -Attitudes and Values: Parents attitudes and values are a key factor affecting educational achievement. Douglas- WC parents place less value on education. Feinstein- the lack of interest is more important than financial hardship or factors within school. Many WC subcultures have different goals, beliefs, attitudes and values from the rest of society. Hyman- WC subculture is a self-imposed barrier to educational success. Sugerman- Fatalism, Collectivism, Immediate Gratification, Present-time Orientation. WC children internalise the beliefs and values of their subculture through the socialisation process meaning under-achievement. -Compensatory Education: Policy designed to tackle the problem of CD by providing extra resources to school and communities in deprived areas. E.g. Sure Start, Education Action Zones etc. Criticism: Don’t see the real cause of under-achievement (poverty and material deprivation). -Criticisms: Keddie; CD is a myth and blames victims. A child cannot be deprived of their own culture they are just culturally different. Troyna and Williams; teachers have a ‘speech hierarchy’ where MC speech is highest. Blackstone and Mortimore; parents attend fewer parent evenings as they may work longer hours/less regular hours or put off by school’s MC atmosphere. Also may not help their children’s progress as they lack the knowledge. -Studies show that WC children are more likely to leave school from the age of 16 and are less likely to go on to sixth form and university. Also working-class children are more likely to start school unable to read, and are more likely to fall behind in reading, writing and number skills. 1b) Material Deprivation -Referred to poverty and lack of material necessities (housing/income). -Stats; 32% of WC students were considering moving out of the family home to attend university. 90% of failing schools are in deprived areas. 33% of those receiving free school meals got 5 or more A*-C GCSE grades. 90% of ‘failing’ schools are located in deprived areas. -Housing- overcrowded housing means less space to do work, play, sleep etc, and greater risk of accidents. -Diet and health- lower intakes of energy, vitamins and minerals. Poor nutrition -> weaker immune system -> lowering children’s energy levels -> get ill easier (poor attendance at school). WC children are more likely to have behavioural or emotional problems. -Financial Support- WC children lack equipment and miss out on school trips. They also make do with hand-me-downs (results in being stigmatised/bullied). Children living in poverty take on jobs (baby sitting, cleaning, paper rounds) which has a negative impact on their school work. Also very few go on to university. The government has tried to tackle this problem, e.g. EMA, raising the school leaving age and providing free-school meals. -Criticisms: Ignores internal factors and cultural deprivation. 1c) Cultural Capital -Bourdieu suggested MC culture is as valuable in educational terms as economic capital. The forms of knowledge, values, ways of interacting and communicating ideas that MC children possess are developed further and rewarded by the education system (qualifications).WC have a lack of cultural capital which leads to exam failure. They also ‘get the message’ that education isn’t meant for them thus they truant/leave school early/provide no effort. -Education, economic and cultural capital can be converted into one another. E.g. MC children with cultural capital are better equipped to meet the demands of school and gain qualifications. Wealthier parents can convert their economic capital into educational capital by sending their children to private schools, and paying extra tuition. -Gewirtz: sees how greater parental choice of school has benefited one social class more. Study; 14 London schools with interviews from parents and teachers. She found that differences in economic and cultural capital lead to class differences in how far parents can implement choice of secondary school. She identifies three main types of parents; privileged-skilled choosers (MC parents who used their economic and cultural capital to gain educational capital for their children), disconnected-local choosers (WC parents whose choices were restricted by their lack of economic and cultural capital), and semi-skilled choosers (mainly WC who were ambitious for their children but lacked cultural capital). Internal Factors (class difference) 2a) Labelling -Attaching a meaning to someone. Teachers often attach labels regardless of their ability or attitude. -Howard Becker- Did a study based on interviews with 60 Chicago high school teachers; they judge pupils to what they think is the ‘ideal pupil’. WC children were furthest (regarded as badly behaved). -Cicourel and Kitsuese- Did a study of educational counsellors in an American high school; they claimed to judge students according to their ability, however, they judged students on their social class/race- MC have more potential than WC children. -Rist- Did a study of an American kindergarten; the teacher used information about children’s background and appearance to place them into separate groups. At the front was the ‘tigers’ (MC, given complex work), ‘cardinals’ and then the ‘clowns’ (given easy work like drawing). -Sharp and Green- Did a study about a ‘child-centred’ primary school; children picked their own activities, teachers felt when a child is ready to learn they will seek help. However, teachers believed that children who weren’t ready should engage in ‘compensatory play’. Their findings support the interactionist view that children of different class background are labelled differently. They argue that the negative labelling of the WC is also the result of inequalities in wider society. 2b) Self-Fulfilling Prophecy -A prediction that comes true because it has been made. Step 1: Teacher labels pupil and makes predictions. Step 2: Teacher treats the pupil accordingly. Step 3: Pupil internalises the teacher’s expectation which becomes part of their self-concept/image, and becomes the kind of pupil the teacher believed (prediction is fulfilled). -Streaming: involves separating children into different ability groups (streams). Each group is taught differently. Studies show that the self-fulfilling prophecy is likely to occur once streamed. WC children are usually put in a lower stream as they aren’t ‘ideal pupils’. It is difficult to move up into a higher stream thus are locked into their teachers expectations -> self-fulfilling prophecy as the children live up to their teachers expectations by under-achieving. 2c) Pupil Subcultures -A group of pupils who share similar values and behaviour patterns. They emerge as a response to the way pupils have been labelled (reaction to streaming). -Lacey: Differentiation- process of teachers categorising pupils according to their ability/attitude/behaviour. Polarisation- process in which pupils respond to streaming by moving towards one of the two opposite extremes. Pro-school subculture- placed in higher streams, remain committed to the values of school and gain status through academic success. Anti-school subculture- placed in lower streams, have inferior status. -Hargreaves: There are two distinctive subcultures: Conformists and Non-conformists delinquents (a delinquent subculture that helped guarantee their educational failure). -Woods: argues that rather than seeing pupil subcultures as either conformist or deviant, it is more realistic to see a variety of possible adaptations/responses to the schooling process. Pro-school: Ingratiation (pupils who try to earn the favour of teachers), Opportunism (those who vary between teacher and peer approval), Compliance (pupils who conform for instrumental reasons), Ritualism (pupils who go through the motions), Colonisation (pupils who avoid trouble, but will deviate if there is less punishment). Anti-school: Ritualism, Retreatism (not opposed to school values, but not concerned about achieving success), Colonisation, Intransigence (deviate and aren’t bothered about the consequences), Rebellion (pupils have little regard to school values and reject school teachings). -Ball: found that when the school abolished banding, the basis for pupils to polarise into subcultures was largely removed and the influence of the anti-school subculture declined. However, differentiation continued. As a result, class inequalities can continue due to teachers labelling. -Limitations: Deterministic: assumes that once pupils are labelled, they have no choice but to fulfil the prophecy and will inevitably fail. Ignores wider structures of power: blames teachers for labelling pupils but fails to explain why. 2d) Marketisation and Selection Policies -Marketisation is a policy that introduces market forces of supply and demand into areas run by the state. Marketisation has brought in; Funding formula (giving a school the same amount of funds for each pupil), Exam League Tables (ranking schools based on their exam performance), Competition among schools to attract pupils. -A-C Economy: Schools need to achieve a good league table position to attract pupils and funding. However, this widens the class gap in achievement. The A-C economy is a system in which schools ration their time, money, effort and resources to those who will get 5 A*-C GCSEs to get a high rank. -Educational Triage: sorting pupils; ‘those who will pass anyway’, ‘those with potential’, ‘hopeless cases’. Those classed as hopeless cases are ignored (self-fulfilling prophecy and failure). -Competition and Selection: Schools with a good league table position will be placed to attract other able/MC pupils. Thus improves the school’s results and makes it more popular which increases funding. Popular schools can afford to screen out less able and more difficult pupils, unpopular schools are obliged to take the, get worse results, and get less funding. Cream skimming: selecting higher ability pupils, who gain the best results and cost less to teach. Silt-shifting: off-loading pupils with learning difficulties, who are expensive to teach and get poor results. -Attraction: creating school contracts to attract parents, buying things like pipe organs to get a ‘traditional’ image of the school (attracting the MC), grant maintained and city technology colleges provide vocational education in partnership with employers (another route to elite education). Ball et al suggests that schools spend more on marketing themselves to parents, and spend less in special needs in other areas. -Marketisation and selection – created a polarised education system, with successful, well-resourced schools at one extreme, and failing un-resourced schools at the other; blurred hierarchy. External Factors (ethnic differences) 3a) Cultural Deprivation -Intellectual and linguistic skills: Major cause of under-achievement. Many children from low-income black families lack intellectual stimulation and enriching experiences. This leaves them poorly equipped for school because they have not been able to develop reasoning and problem-solving skills. Also the language used by black children in inadequate for educational success. Also those who don’t speak English at home may be held back educationally. However, Mirza and Gillborn note that Indian pupils do very well despite not having English as their home language. -Attitudes and Values: Lack of motivation is a major cause of the failure of black children. Many children are socialised in a mainstream culture of ambition, competitiveness and willingness to make scarifies to achieve long-term goals. Black children are socialised into a fatalistic subculture. -Family structure: Failure to socialise children adequately is the result of dysfunctional family structure. Many black families are headed by a lone-mother; their children are deprived of adequate care because she has to struggle financially due to the absence of the male breadwinner. The absence of the father also leads to the absence of the positive role model. Charles Murray: would lead to the under-achievement of some minorities. Pryce: Asian pupils are higher achievers because their culture is more resistant to racism and gives them a greater sense of self-worth. Black culture is less cohesive and less resistant to racism. Thus they have low self-esteem and under-achieve. -Asian families: Driver and Ballard: they bring educational benefits as the parents have more positive attitudes towards education, higher aspirations and are therefore more supportive. Lupton: respectful behaviour towards adults was expected from children, and had a knock-on effect in schools. Khan: parents are ‘stress ridden’, bound by tradition, and controlling. -Criticisms: Driver: ignores positive effects of ethnicity on achievement. Lawrence: black pupils under-achieve because of racism not self-esteem. Keddie: victim-blaming theory. They under-achieve because schools are ethnocentric and favour white culture. Compensatory Education: it is an attempt to impose on the dominant white culture on children who have a culture of their own. Critics propose 2 alternatives: Multicultural education: recognises values of minority cultures and includes them in the curriculum. Anti-racist education: challenges the prejudice and discrimination that exists in schools and wider so ciety. 3b) Material Deprivation -Stats: 1) Pakistani and Bangladeshi women are more likely to be in low-paid jobs. 2) 15% of ethnic minority households live in overcrowded conditions. 3) Unemployment is three times higher for African and Bangladeshi/Pakistani people. -Gillborn and Mirza argue that social class factors don’t ignore the influence of ethnicity. When we compare pupils of the same social class but different ethnic origins, we still find differences in achievement. 3c) Racism in Wider Society -David Mason: ‘Discrimination is a continuing and persistent feature of the experience of Britain’s citizen’s of ethnic minority origin’. -Rex: shows how racial discrimination leads to social exclusion and how this worsens the poverty faced by ethnic minorities. E.g. housing; minorities are more likely to be forced into substandard accommodation than whites. -Noon: two people with the same qualifications and experience applied for a job. However, the white person got the job, rather than the Indian. Thus shows that ethnic minorities are more likely to face unemployment and low pay. Internal Factors (ethnic differences) 4a) Labelling and Teacher Racism -Interactionists: They see that teachers picture an image of the ‘ideal pupil’. But they see that black and Asian far from the ideal pupil. This leads them to label black pupils as disruptive and aggressive, and Asian pupils as passive and a problem they can ignore. -Gillborn and Youdell: due to racialised expectations, teachers were quicker to discipline black pupils than others for the same behaviour. -Black pupils: Teachers misinterpreted their behaviour as threatening/challenge to authority. Pupils then responded negatively and further conflict resulted. This may be why many black pupils are excluded, and their stereotypes may cause them to be in lower sets (under-achievement). -Asian pupils: Teachers assumed that they would have a poor grasp of English and left them out of class discussions or used simplistic childish language. They also felt isolated when teachers mispronounced their names or teachers expressed disapproval of their customs. 4b) Pupil Responses and Subcultures -Fuller: Study of a group of black girls in year 11. Found that the girls conformed as far as school work was concerned. They worked consistently, but gave the appearance of not doing so (positive attitude to academic success, but preferred to rely on their own efforts than teachers). Fuller sees that pupils may still succeed even when they refuse to conform, and negatively labelling doesn’t always lead to failure (no self-fulfilling prophecy). -Mirza: Study of ambitious girls who faced teacher racism. The study failed as their coping strategies restricted their opportunities and thus under-achieved. She found that racist teachers discouraged black pupils from being ambitious through the kind of career advice that was given to them. The colour blind: teachers who believe all pupils are equal but allow racism got unchallenged. Liberal chauvinists: teachers who believe black pupils are culturally deprived and had low expectations of them. Overt racists: teachers who believe blacks are inferior and discriminate against them. -Sewell: Four ways in which boys respond to racist stereotyping: Rebels (rejected both the goals and rules of school, conforming to the stereotype of the ‘black macho lad’. Saw white boys as effeminate), Conformists (keen to succeed, accepted the school’s goals and avoided stereotypes from teachers or their peers), Retreatists (disconnected from both school and black subcultures), Innovators (pro-education but anti-school). 4c) The Ethnocentric Curriculum -Ethnocentric: attitude/policy that gives more value to one culture and ignores the rest. -The curriculum is very ethnocentric (favouring white culture). E.g. in teaching languages; non-European languages are ignored (also other cultures in literature, art and music). However, in history, black history is taught, but it is focused on slavery. This may produce lower self-esteem to black pupils as this image of black people as inferior undermines them and may lead to failure. 4d) Institutional Racism -Institutional racism: discrimination that is built into the way institutions operate. -Schools tend to set schemes for the gifted and talented, and vocational schemes for the less academic e.g. black and Asians. External Factors (gender differences) 5a) Girls -Feminism: McRobbie shows that magazines in the 1970’s emphasised the importance of getting married. Whereas, nowadays, they contain images of assertive, independent women. Also soap operas now highlight the importance of self-esteem and personal choice for young women. -Family: Sine the 1970’s there have been major changes in the family. For example: an increase in divorce rates, increase in cohabitation and a decrease in the number of first marriages, increase in the number of lone-parent families (female-headed) and smaller families. These changes affect girl’s attitudes to education. Such as: the increase in female lone-parent families may mean more women need to take on the breadwinner role. This creates a new adult role model for girls- the financially independent. To achieve this, women need well-paid jobs, and thus good qualifications. Also the increase in divorce rates suggests that girls can make their own living. -Employment: 1970 Equal Pay Act (illegal to pay women less for the same job as men), Sex Discrimination Act. Women’s employment has risen due to the service sector and flexible part-time work. 1975- The pay gap between men and women has increased. Women are now breaking through the ‘glass ceiling’ (keeps them out of high-level professional managerial jobs). -Ambitions: Sharpe- study involved conducting interviews with girls in the 1970’s and 1990’s. In the 1970’s the girls felt that education with unfeminine and if they were interested, it would make them unattractive. In the 1990’s, the girl’s ambitions had changed, and thought careers are more important as they can support themselves. 5b) Boys -Feminisation of education: Schools do not nurture ‘masculine’ traits such as competitiveness and leadership. Also coursework has created differences in educational achievement. -Shortage of male primary school teachers: Strong positive male role models both at home and at school cause may cause under-achievement. 16% of men are primary school teachers. 42% said they made them work harder. Yet, Myhill and Jones found they felt male teachers treated boys harshly. -‘Laddish’ subculture: WC boys are more likely to be labelled as sissies and subjected to homophobic verbal abuse if they appeared to be ‘swots’. Boys were more concerned to be labelled by peers than girls, as it is a threat to their masculinity. Thus, WC boys rejected schoolwork to avoid being called ‘gay’. Epstein- ‘real boys don’t work’ if they do, they get bullied. Internal Factors (gender differences) 6a) Girls and Achievement -Equal opportunities policies: Policies such as GIST and WISE encourage girls to pursue a career in non-traditional areas. The National Curriculum has removed one source of gender inequality by making girls and boys study mostly the same subjects. Also schooling has become meritocentric. -Positive role models: The increase in female teachers shows that women can achieve positions of importance and giving them non-traditional goals to aim for. -GCSE and coursework: Girls are more successful in coursework as they are more conscientious and better organised. Sociologists argue that these characteristics and skills are the result of early gender socialisation. E.g. girls are likely to be encouraged to be neat, tidy and patient. This puts girls in a better place as they achieve greater success. Elwood- not the only cause of the gender gap. -Teacher attention: Teachers paid more attention to boys as they are attracted to reprimands. This may explain why teachers have more positive attitudes to girls, whom they see as cooperative, than to boys, whom are seen as disruptive. This may lead to self-fulfilling prophecy in which successful interactions with teachers promote girls self-esteem and raise the achievement levels. -Challenging stereotypes in the curriculum: Sexist images have been removed from learning materials. This may help raise girl’s success levels- more positive images of what women can do. -Selection and league tables: Girls are more likely to be recruited from good schools as they are more attractive to schools. This may create a self-fulfilling prophecy. -Feminists: Liberal- See that further progress will be made by the continuing developments of equal opportunities, and see education is a meritocracy. Radical- System still remains patriarchal. E.g. sexual harassment continues, education still limits their subject choice and career options, females are less likely to become head-teachers.

How Important Is the Study of Sociology Essay

The study of Sociology is important but the level of importance is debatable. Sociology is the study of the organisation human society and what problems come about within the society. It looks at who is affected and why they are affected. A prime example would be a married couple with children who then decide to divorce. Not only are the couple affected but so are the children. Why? The children would have to come to the harsh terms of their mother and father no longer living together, in some cases have to welcome a new family member or members, ‘the step parents or siblings’ They would have to adjust to new living conditions whether that be a new school or two different homes etc. Sociology questions why rules were put in place and why people choose to follow them. In some cases we look at what other people do and we ‘follow by example’. If there is a queue at the bus stop to wait for the bus, naturally we would go to the end of the queue and wait for the bus. Why? Some may say it’s out of respect, if the people were in the queue before me who am I to cut the queue. Another person may say that following simple rules has a positive effect on our living. If you’re able to follow simple rules then it may be easier for you to follow the bigger rules with strong consequences and this will enable you to teach others i.e. children. The term sociology was coined by French philosopher Auguste Comte in 1838, who for this reason is known as the â€Å"Father of Sociology.† He believed in the concept that the social world was based on scientific facts and with this people could build better future. For example, humans need food to survive and all the major supermarkets know this, therefore they come up ‘special offers’ and provide more organic options as ways to attract a larger audience. By studying sociology we are able to look the relationship between a man and society. A ‘celebrity or public figure’ is often highly scrutinized for their choices or lifestyle and this is because a lot is expected of them. This could be anything from the way they dress to even the way they walk/ talk and the mass media i.e. TV, Radio, Movies, Internet etc help us to form assumption of this person. As humans we are often cautious of the decisions we make as we don’t want to be the topic of discussion within the society. For example when we do something bad in school we may not want many people to know about it and that is because we are afraid of how we will be branded in society (the bad kids). But why should we be so afraid of something that we created ourselves. Realistically without us there would be no society as we are what form it. By studying sociology we are able to understand others cultures, customs, traditions etc within the society. This is very important to us as it helps us to gain insight into certain groups both minorities and majorities this prevents us from making assumptions about people and makes it easier for us to accept people. Often when controversial topics arise the media uses this as a way of branding a particular part of society very negatively and as humans we sometimes get sucked into this then we find it co-exist with one other. Many people fail to see the importance of sociology with the belief that it is simply common sense, this is false. Living in a society doesn’t necessarily mean you know everything about it. â€Å"People who like to avoid shocking discoveries, who prefer to believe that society is just what they were taught in Sunday School, who like the safety of the rules and maxims of what Alfred Schultz has called ‘the world-taken-for-granted’, should stay away from sociology† (Berger 1963, 24). Naturally when asked what we believe to the ideal structured society we would say something like ‘everyone would be employed’ ‘’everyone would have a home’ etc. But if someone were to say that crime played an essential part in this ideal structured society you may think this would be absurd. However sociologists have found that without the identification of crime and the punishments that go along with it then society really wouldn’t be structured. This is true because without both of those things mentioned then people wouldn’t know what type of behaviour is tolerable or intolerable. Therefore crime does play a part in an ideal structured society. Sociology appears to only look at groups and not individuals, this is not true. Sociologists believe that individuals can’t be understood without being aware of the society that they live in e.g. You walk down a dark alley late at night your pace will be faster than you walking down a high street in the middle of the day. This may be caused by a number of reasons, from a young age you’ve been taught that it’s dangerous to be out late at night. This is referred to as primary socialisation and is sourced by the family. It is our family. It is our family that shapes into the view of what we consider is ‘normal’. There are more witnesses on a high  street so you would feel a lot more confident and comfortable. Another continuously proven theory is that men and women have different roles and responsibilities. Men are shown to be in control of business’ and high in power i.e. the government. 52 out of the 53 Prime Ministers the UK has seen have all been male. In certain situations males behaviour may be said to be overlooked. Aggression and Loud behaviour is tolerated by the males. However females still assume the role as bringing up the children and caring for people. According to the Nursing Times only 1 in 10 nurses in the UK are male which would mean that women would dominate that role. This does support the theory that the differences between males and females are through socialisation and this helps boys to become men and girls to become women. Human culture has been enriched through the contribution of sociology. According to Lowie ‘most of us harbour the comfortable delusion that our way of doing things is the only sensible if not only possible one’. This means that Sociology has given us training to have rational approach to questions concerning oneself, one’s religion, customs, and morals. This gives us the confidence to be able to decide whether or not we choose to practice a religion or not. It has further taught us to be objective and critical. This means we are able to give constructive criticism to our peers. It enables man to have better understanding both of ourselves and of others. By comparative study of societies and groups other than his existence, our lives have more meaning. Sociology also impresses upon us the necessity of overcoming narrow personal prejudices, ambitions and class hatred. This allows us to accept others as equals. The fact that few Muslims have been found to be terrorists does not mean that all Muslims should be treated as beneath us and be subjected to ridicule. The study of sociology can help us to view things differently, things we view as negative we may begin to see the other side of. A prime example would be suicide which we would associate with somebody that has some psychological problems. Although, Durkheim revealed in sociological study into suicide that our surroundings play a part in us making that decision to commit suicide and this could be anything from our relationships with the church to the one with we have with our family. This to me means that society influences certain decisions we make without us even knowing. Also as Straus once said ‘Taking a sociological perspective requires that we look beyond our individual experiences to better understand everyday life’ (Straus 1994). This allows us to look beyond the ‘social expectations’ and we then begin to learn from our experiences. Sociology has played a big part in how the government makes decisions and how they form rules and regulations. In 2011, the government made the harsh decision to abolish Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) this meant students from the age of 16-18 would no longer be receiving a weekly allowance from the government. This decision affected each class of people, higher middle and lower. For lower class this may have meant they couldn’t help out at home with any necessary bills etc. For the middle and higher class they lost that extra bit of cash weekly. Sociology can be used as good teaching skills as Teachers can test students knowledge by reversing situations where they may need to apply their everyday knowledge which is an important skill to have. Bibliography http://www.sociologyguide.com/introduction-to-sociology/importance-of-sociology.php https://www.gov.uk/government/news/plans-to-end-the-education-maintenance-allowance-ema-programme http://durkheim.uchicago.edu/Summaries/suicide.html

The Battle of Alam Halfa in North Africa During WW II

The Battle of Alam Halfa in North Africa During WW II The Battle of Alam Halfa was fought from August 30 to September 5, 1942, during World War IIs Western Desert Campaign. Armies Commanders Allies Lieutenant General Bernard Montgomery4 divisions, XIII Corps, Eighth Army Axis Field Marshal Erwin Rommel6 divisions, Panzer Armee Afrika Background Leading to the Battle With the conclusion of the First Battle of El Alamein in July 1942, both British and Axis forces in North Africa paused to rest and refit. On the British side, Prime Minister Winston Churchill travelled to Cairo and relieved Commander-in-Chief Middle East Command General Claude Auchinleck and replacing him with General Sir Harold Alexander. Command of the British Eight Army at El Alamein ultimately was given to Lieutenant General Bernard Montgomery. Assessing the situation at El Alamein, Montgomery found that the front was constricted to a narrow line running from the coast to the impassable Qattara Depression. Montgomerys Plan To defend this line, three infantry divisions from XXX Corps were positioned on ridges running from the coast south to Ruweisat Ridge. To the south of the ridge, the 2nd New Zealand Division was similarly fortified along a line ending at Alam Nayil. In each case, the infantry was protected by extensive minefields and artillery support. The final twelve miles from Alam Nayil to the depression was featureless and difficult to defend. For this area, Montgomery ordered that minefields and wire be laid, with the 7th Motor Brigade Group and 4th Light Armoured Brigade of the 7th Armoured Division in position behind. When attacked, these two brigades were to inflict maximum casualties before falling back. Montgomery established his main defensive line along the ridges running east from Alam Nayil, most notably Alam Halfa Ridge. It was here that he positioned the bulk of his medium and heavy armor along with anti-tank guns and artillery. It was Montgomerys intention to entice Field Marshal Erwin Rommel to attack through this southern corridor and then defeat him in a defensive battle. As British forces assumed their positions, they were augmented by the arrival of reinforcements and new equipment as convoys reached Egypt. Rommels Advance Across the sands, Rommels situation was growing desperate as his supply situation worsened. While he advance across the desert had seen him win stunning victories over the British, it had badly extended his supply lines. Requesting 6,000 tons of fuel and 2,500 tons of ammunition from Italy for his planned offensive, Allied forces succeeded in sinking over half of the ships dispatched across the Mediterranean. As a result, only 1,500 tons of fuel reached Rommel by the end of August. Aware of Montgomerys growing strength, Rommel felt compelled to attack with the hope of winning a quick victory. Constrained by the terrain, Rommel planned to push the 15th and 21st Panzer Divisions, along with the 90th Light Infantry through the southern sector, while the bulk of his other forces demonstrated against the British front to the north. Once through the minefields, his men would push east before turning north to sever Montgomerys supply lines. Moving forward on the night of August 30, Rommels attack quickly encountered difficulty. Spotted by the Royal Air Force, British aircraft began attacking the advancing Germans as well as directing artillery fire on their line of advance. The Germans Held Reaching the minefields, the Germans found them to be much more extensive than anticipated. Slowly working through them, they came under intense fire from the 7th Armoured Division and British aircraft which exacted a high toll, including wounding General Walther Nehring, commander of the Afrika Korps. Despite these difficulties, the Germans were able to clear the minefields by noon the next day and began pressing east. Eager to make up lost time and under constant harassing attacks from 7th Armoured, Rommel ordered his troops to turn north earlier than planned. This maneuver directed the assault against the 22nd Armoured Brigades positions on Alam Halfa Ridge. Moving north, the Germans were met with intense fire from the British and were halted. A flank attack against the British left was stopped by heavy fire from anti-tank guns. Stymied and short on fuel, General Gustav von Vaerst, now leading the Afrika Korps, pulled back for the night. Attacked through the night by British aircraft, German operations on September 1 were limited as 15th Panzer had a dawn attack checked by the 8th Armoured Brigade and Rommel began moving Italian troops into the southern front. Under constant air attack during the night and into the morning hours of September 2, Rommel realized that the offensive had failed and decided to withdraw west. His situation was made more desperate when a column of British armored cars badly mauled one of his supply convoys near Qaret el Himeimat. Realizing his adversarys intentions, Montgomery began formulating plans for counterattacks with the 7th Armoured and 2nd New Zealand. In both cases, he emphasized that neither division should incur losses that would preclude them from taking part in a future offensive. While a major push from 7th Armoured never developed, the New Zealanders attacked south at 10:30 PM on September 3. While the veteran 5th New Zealand Brigade had success against the defending Italians, an assault by the green 132nd Brigade collapsed due to confusion and fierce enemy resistance. Not believing a further attack would succeed, Montgomery cancelled further offensive operations the next day. As a result, the German and Italian troops were able to retreat back to their lines, though under frequent air attack. The Battles Aftermath The victory at Alam Halfa cost Montgomery 1,750 killed, wounded, and missing as well as 68 tanks and 67 aircraft. Axis losses totaled around 2,900 killed, wounded, and missing along with 49 tanks, 36 aircraft, 60 guns, and 400 transport vehicles. Often overshadowed by the First and Second Battles of El Alamein, Alam Halfa represented the last significant offensive launched by Rommel in North Africa. Far from his bases and with his supply lines crumbling, Rommel was forced to move to the defensive as British strength in Egypt grew. In the wake of the battle, Montgomery was criticized for not pressing harder to cut off and destroy the Afrika Korps when it was isolated on his southern flank. He responded by stating that Eighth Army was still in the process of reforming and lacked the logistical network to support the exploitation of such a victory. Also, he was adamant that he wished to preserve British strength for a planned offensive rather than risk it in counterattacks against Rommels defenses. Having shown restraint at Alam Halfa, Montgomery moved to the attack in October when he opened the Second Battle of El Alamein. Sources Defensive Military Structures in Action: Historical ExamplesBBC: Peoples War - Battle of Alam Halfa

Hopi pottery1 essays

Hopi pottery1 essays Hopi Pottery is a historic art that has been passed down through many generations. The Hopi Indians have lived in the same area of the Southwest (present day Arizona) even before the time of Columbus. The prehistoric ancestors of the Hopi Indians were the Anasazi Indians. The Hopi Indians lived on desert land at the foot of the mesas. Hopi women made beautiful clay bowls, baskets, and jewelry. The art of pottery making came to these early Pueblo Indians by Meso-American Indians around 700A.D. Between this time and 1400 A.D., grey utilitarian ware was being produced for everyday needs which eventually evolved into a more colorful and decorative style of pottery. The 14th century became an extremely active period for the Hopi potters. New clays and firing techniques were employed transforming soft textured pots into harder, smoother and denser ones. The materials and techniques evolving during that time period resulted in a new form of pottery called sikyatki polychrome. This style, which involves painting directly on the polished body of the pot itself, continued until the late 1700's. Nevertheless, because of wars with the Spanish and other minor tribal disputes with the Navajo and Apache, Hopi pottery production almost completely vanished around 1800. However, in 1860, a woman named Nampeyo revived pottery making. She was considered to be responsible for the renaissance in Hopi pottery. Nampeyo single-handedly revived the art of pottery making by exclusively using the polychrome technique. Moreover, by the late 1800's, as the railroad was introduced to Arizona, it brought numerous traders who sought to fill the demands of an enlarging tourist market. Therefore, Nampeyo's pottery was highly prized and other Hopis, inspired by her, began fashioning their own work using similar techniques. The technique the Hopis use in order to build their pots is a simple, yet a very complicated process. This methods called the coiling met...