Risk Management in Business: A Case Study

Risk Management in Business: A Case Study INTRODUCTION SITUATION Every day, there is the chance that some sort of business interruption, crisis, disaster, or emergency will occur. Anything that prevents access to key processes and activities can be defined as a disaster. Companies can experience many different threats to their mission critical systems such as fires, floods, lightning storms and humidity to disgruntled employees, hackers, human error, power failures and viruses. A disaster can happen at any time and it is vital to be prepared in the event that one occurs. NEED To be prepared for a business interruption, the organization must have a carefully crafted and comprehensive plan that describes risks, impacts, and step-by-step recovery strategies for critical business processes in various disaster and emergency scenarios. Without a plan, the team will be flying blind when an interruption occurs. The plan provides the necessary tools to mitigate interruptions and resume operations as quickly as possible, greatly facilitating decision-making and taking action when there is scant time and stress levels are elevated. CHALLENGE Using the information in the risk assessment to create effective recovery strategies for critical processes in all departments, incorporating these strategies into a comprehensive business continuity plan, and encouraging ownership of the plan across the organization, and ultimately, achieving the highest resiliency possible with limited resources. SOLUTION Create the recovery strategies department-by-department, process-by-process. This allows each department to focus on strategies specifically relevant to their critical processes without extraneous information from other departments. Do the same for your business continuity plan, writing smaller plans by department. Also, use a template to document your recovery strategies to ensure process consistency across the organization. Finally, have plans reviewed and approved by department heads and distributed to all employees to encourage ownership and pride in the plan. RESULT Each department in the organization will have a comprehensive action plan for business continuity outlining the steps to take to recover vital processes in various emergency scenarios. All employees will have their own copy of the plan, ready to use immediately when a disruption occurs. Employees will take ownership of the organizations business continuity effort and this effort will be further ingrained in the organizations corporate culture. CHOCOLATE MANUFACTURING COMPANY AN OVERVIEW The Chocolate Company since inception in 1990 has been largely responsible for satisfying the countrys demand for Chocolates and Sugar Confectionery. Situated at Rusayl Industrial Estates in Muscat, Sultanate of Oman, the plant has various lines producing a wide range of confectionery like Éclairs, Toffees, Fudges, Caramels, Hard Boiled Candy and Enrobed Chocolates. These products are available in attractive packaging and premium Gift Boxes making them ideal for gifting as well as for own consumption. Most of the packaging in the Gift Pack segment has been carefully selected to ensure its enduring utility, thereby giving our valued customers an added benefit. The confectionery is produced by experienced personnel under stringent quality control and hygiene standards. State-of-the-art manufacturing facilities ensure products of international quality. The company in its relentless pursuit of quality obtained HACCP Certification in April, 2004. The Company, through its uncompromising stand on quality and competitive pricing, has successfully penetrated countries all over the Gulf, the African continent, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa, USA and the UK. The principal business processes involved are Procurement of raw materials and consumables. Production and Quality control. Distribution and marketing. Inventory Management. Pricing and cost control. Feedback from consumers and redressal systems. Publicity and promotional activities. Recruitment and HR. Finance Administration. Corporate communications and public relations. Legal and secretarial matters. Investor relations. Maintenance of equipment and other assets. Capital expenditure for equipment and other purposes. IT systems and telecommunications. Transportation and Logistics. Today, manufacturing sector companies like chocolate manufacturing operates in increasingly complex, competitive and global markets. The ability to manage risks across geographies, products, assets, customer segments and functional departments is of paramount importance. The inability to manage these risks can cause irreparable damages. Chocolate company will always face the likelihood of being impacted by uncertain or adverse future events. These uncertainties will have an impact on a companys ability to generate capital and shareholders returns. The company Board expects that management will not only look at where the company may be exposed to risk, but also how these risks can be managed to influence favorable business outcomes. RISK AND RISK MANAGEMENT Risk Management Methodology followed by the chocolate company The risk management methodology at the chocolate company encompass the scope of risks to be managed, the process/systems and procedures to manage risk and the roles and responsibilities of individuals involved in risk management. The framework is comprehensive enough to capture all risks that the company is exposed to and have flexibility to accommodate any change in business activities. The chocolate companys effective risk management methodology includes Risk Policy framework. Identification of risks. Measurement and Impact Assessment. Management of the risks. Monitoring Reporting and Control. A. Risk Policy Framework The following fundamental principles should be considered by the company to develop and implement a proactive risk management program and help them to identify any potential areas of concern: Acceptance of a risk management framework: A formal risk management framework is needed at this company, to guide the integration of risk management into the companys day to day operations. Corporate governance and risk: At this company,corporate governance is the prime responsibility of the Board of Directors and the General Manager. It combines legal duties with responsibilities to improve and monitor the performance of the company. Establish the risk response strategy: Following the agreement on the risk assessment rankings in all functional departments, management action will need to be taken to reduce the risk levels where they have been deemed unacceptably high or alternatively remove constraints where they are preventing the business from pursuing opportunities. Assigning responsibility for risk management change process: It is important for the company to ensure that the daily operation of the business supports this strategy and that the staff understands the proposed changes. Re-sourcing: Risk management is the responsibility of all levels of management. Communication and training: Implementing a communication and training program is important to introduce the concept of risk management. Monitoring of risk management process: To ensure that risk responses gaps are filled and that the risk responses continue to operate effectively and remain appropriate in light of changing conditions. B. Identification of Various Risks of The Company While drafting this Risk management Policy, the primary risk exposures at the company X that are identified is provided below, which are inclusive but not exhaustive and it will be the responsibility of the Risk Management Committee to review these on a periodic basis. I. Market Risks It is the risk that the value of the company will be adversely affected by movements in market rates or prices, foreign exchange rates, national global fluctuations, credit spreads and/or commodity prices resulting in a loss to earnings and capital. The market risks identified at this chocolate company are as follows Government Policy risks Product Risks Environmental risks Volatility of export orders Price Competition in the local export market Currency fluctuation for export orders II. Operational Risks The operational risks identified at chocolate company are as follows Fire Allied Risks Machinery breakdown/ obsolescence Volatility of Raw material Packing material prices Quality/ Ageing risks of Raw material/ Packing material Delivery risk of Suppliers Loss of data information- IT security Manpower Availability risks Accidents Inventory carrying risk III. Reputation Risks These are risks arising from negative public opinion resulting from failures of process, strategy or corporate governance. The Reputation risks identified at this company are as follows Contamination-hygiene Product expiry/Shelf life Corporate Governance IV. Credit Risks Non receipt of receivables or delay in receipts is the credit risks attributable to the company. These may be identified as Payment risk from customers-local Payment risk from Customers- export Security from customers Advance to Suppliers V. Liquidity Risks The possibility is that the company will be unable to fund present and future financial obligations. These may be identified as Cash flow working capital management CAPEX decisions Cost overruns VI. Strategic Risks Risk those are arising from adverse business decisions or the improper implementation of such decisions. These may be identified as follows Business Plan forecasts. Attrition of key people. C. Risk Prioritizing and Impact Assessment Risk Prioritizing To adequately capture institutions risk exposure, risk measurement should represent aggregate exposure of the company to both risk type and business line and encompass short run as well as long run impact on it. To the maximum possible extent the company should establish systems / models that quantify their risk profile. However, in some risk categories, quantification is quite difficult and complex. Wherever it is not possible to quantify risks, qualitative measures should be adopted to capture those risks. The company should utilize a Risk Matrix to evaluate the level of risks which are identified in the Company. The Risk Matrix is formed by assessing the probability of the risk, the severity of the risk, and the quality of control that exists specific to those risks. Scoring is attributed for each the three parameters namely probability, severity and Internal control. The aggregate score is computed and ranking of the risks is ascertained. The probability of the impact occurring is arranged ranging from low to high. Scores assigned as 4 for High, 2 for medium and 1 for low. Severity of the Risk is assessed as High, Medium and low based on the experience and normal prudence. Scores assigned as 4 for High, 2 for medium and 1 for low. Quality of Internal control is also similarly categorized as high, medium and low. The scores assigned in the reverse order since the better the existing control the lower is the impact and vice-versa. So scores here can be assigned as 4 for Low, 2 for Medium and 1 for High. Aggregate Score was thereafter computed after adding the individual scores for each parameter. Companys Risk Matrix using the above method is shown in Annexure I ii. Impact Assessment The company being a medium scale manufacturing unit should focus on the manageable risks like Operational risks, Liquidity risks and Strategic risks. Market risks, Credit risks and Reputation risks though an integral part of risk management may not need detailed impact assessment at this stage unless the probability of such factors seem to be out of proportions in time to come. Impact assessment of the Operational risks, liquidity risks and strategic risks at the company termed herein as Manageable risks, can be assessed as follows Risk associated with any event has two components, loss severity and loss probability. Loss, in itself consists of expected and unexpected components. The unexpected loss component could be severe or catastrophic. Usually, expected losses are adjusted for in pricing or in reserve allocation. Unexpected losses require capital allocation. Given that operational risk, liquidity and strategic risk events are most often subject to internal control, any manageable risk system that passively measures these risks would clearly be inadequate. Once risk factors are identified as likely causes of the Risk losses, mitigating steps need to be initiated. While quantification would indicate risk magnitude and capital charges, it may not by itself suggest mitigating steps. This makes it advisable for the company to combine qualitative and quantitative approaches to manageable Risk. The broad steps involved here would be: determine the types of operational losses that could occur identify the causal risk factors estimate the size and likelihood of losses Mitigate associated risks Qualitative Approaches Qualitative approaches involve Audits, Self-assessments Expert / collective judgment. Critical Self-Assessment: (CSA): This is one of the common qualitative bottom-up approaches where line managers of the company can critically analyze their business processes given specific scenarios to identify potential risks and gaps in their risk management processes. Tools like questionnaires, checklists and workshops are used to help the managers analyze the risk profile of their business units. The key idea behind this method is that businesses managers of this company are in the best position identify and manage the Operational Risks pertaining to their business units. Risk Audit Employing the services of external (or internal) auditors to review the business processes of a business unit is another approach. This process not only helps identify risks but also helps put in place the oversight organization for the manageable risks. Key Risk Indicators (KRI) Using the KRI approach the company can blend the qualitative and quantitative aspects of Operational Risk management. Factors that have predictive value and that can be easily measured with minimum time lag can serve as risk indicators. Some risk indicators inherently carry risk related information, for instance, indicators like sales volumes, order size, etc. Others are indirect indicators, for instance, production budgets, production lifecycle, performance appraisal etc. Key indicators are identified from several potential factors and are tracked over time. The predictive capabilities of the indicators are tested through regression analysis on historical loss data and indicator measurements. Based on such analysis, the set of indicators of the company being tracked can be modified suitably. Over time, as the model gets refined, the set of indicators can provide early warning signals for operational losses. D. Management of the risks Managing Market Risks: The chocolate company may be exposed to Market Risk in variety of ways as described earlier such as environmental issues, export orders, future contracts, Price competition, customer profile and marine transportation risks. Besides, market risk may also arise from activities categorized as off-balance sheet item. Government Policy Risks: Change in government policies, tax rates, introduction of new tax regimes, reduction or abolition of incentives etc carry risk to any entity in terms of its costing and pricing. In the short and medium term the company does not perceive any major risk in this segment, however the management has to be aware of any forthcoming changes that the government might envisage. Should there be any drastic change in Government policies that would affect its profitability especially in case of exports; the Company has contingency plans for producing at an alternative location outside Oman. Product Risks: Since the product is that of food item the company has to be 100% careful to maintain the product quality, product specification, pack sizes, contents in each pack etc. Producing lesser or poor quality products and not as per specification is a risk which company X needs to constantly be aware off. To mitigate such risks the company X should develop a well defined production policy develop a well defined Quality control and checks policy develop a well defined storage and Distribution policy Environmental risks: The company does not use and generate hazardous substances in its manufacturing operations. Hence the chances that the company may in future are subject to liabilities relating to the investigation and clean-up of contaminated areas is negligible. However the company should have a laid down policy of disposal of waste at pre-designed disposal points mainly for the rejected, expired and damaged items of raw materials, finished products and packing materials. Volatility of export orders: Some customers and sectors served by the company are directly dependent on general economic development, competition and frequent fluctuations in demand for their products. The prices for these products are, in part, dependent on the prevailing relationship between supply and demand. Possible price fluctuations are therefore apt to have a direct influence on each customers working capital management decisions, with subsequent influence on the customers Order Intake. This may lead to volatility in the development of Order Intake of the company. The company has a policy of geographically diversifying its customer base, as also expanding the customer base in each export market, so that transfer to less volatile locations can be made in short notice. Price Competition in the local export market: The Company does business in very competitive local and export markets. In spite of the competition the company has a 70% market share in the local market and its export business is expanding.Both these local and export markets in which it competes are highly fragmented, with a few large, international manufacturers competing against each other and against a high number of smaller, local companies. Sometimes new entrants or existing players suddenly lower their prices to get rid of the companys products. This has, in some cases, adversely impacted sales margins realized by certain of companys products. To mitigate this risk the company has taken the following steps: Maintaining complete information of its Competitors with respect to their latest technological developments, market strategies, new investments, management changes etc. Has developed emergency alternative plans to introduce different product ranges with minimal structural changes with similar or lower prices. Currency fluctuation for export orders:The Company exports its products to a large number of countries like Canada, USA, Australia, African countries, and the Middle East. Almost all export orders of the company are fixed in US dollars. Since Omani Rail is pegged with US Dollars, the fluctuation of the currencies in would have negligible impact on the export realizations at company X. Company X has a policy of booking export orders in terms of US dollars to avoid the risk of currency fluctuations. Managing Operational Risks: Being a chocolate manufacturing company, it deals with the retail market. The most important risks are those of Operational risks. Operational risk is associated with human error, system failures and inadequate procedures and controls. It is the risk of loss arising from the potential that inadequate information system; technology failures, breaches in internal controls, fraud, unforeseen catastrophes, or other operational problems may result in unexpected losses or reputation problems. Fire Allied risks: These are general risks applicable to almost all establishments. This includes Material damage to the companys property due to Fire lightning, Earthquake, Third party impact, Accidental damage, explosion, riot strike, storm tempest, burst pipes, Own Vehicle impact, malicious damage, and theft. The company should take necessary steps in mitigating such risks by taking â€Å"Property All Risks Insurance Policy† â€Å"Loss of profit insurance cover† Machinery breakdown/ obsolescence: This risk identified is a major risk element as the company has been established two decades earlier by using imported refurbished Plant and machinery. Though most of the machinery is in running condition as of now the chances of spare part obsolescence is quite high in a majority of such machines. The physical status and the possible mitigation for major machinery can be shown in ANNEXTURE II Volatility of Raw Material/ Packing Material prices: The Company faces a medium level risk in its Raw material Packing material prices. The main raw materials at are Sugar, Glucose, Milk Powder, vegetable fat, coconut, coco whey powders. The packing material required is Wrappers, Bags, Gift boxes, Gift Tins and cartoons. Other than a few packing materials almost all of the raw materials and packing materials are imported as shown below Quality risk Raw material Packing material: This is a medium sized risk and the company should take reasonable care to mitigate such risks. Since the majority of the raw materials and packing materials are imported by the company, the purchase committee should implementing a stringent policy of Should have a multiple suppliers from the same country or region. Should have proper Quality checks for each Consignment while receiving delivery. Should have a stringent penalty clause on variation of specifications in the agreements with suppliers. Delivery risk of Suppliers: This is major risk element at the company because of the fact that in most cases purchases are imported and made through Letter of Credits. Non Delivery or delayed delivery in such purchases may affect the performance of the company. The company is implementing proper penalty clauses in the purchase agreement for delayed and/ or non-delivery of the ordered items. Transporting risks: In case of local sales, the company transports the products mostly through its own personnel. The company therefore, takes a general Transit Insurance policy covering accidents and theft. Inventory carrying risk: Inventory Carrying risks are of three types: Storage risk Overstocking under stocking risk Expiry risk Storage risk The storage policies currently are The company can keeps the entire inventory in closed warehouses. Over-stocking Under-stocking: The company can maintain a good optimized production planning system in correlation with its sales plan so that it can have a optimum stocking policy. The current production plan is quite satisfactory and hence the risk is low to medium. But the company is mostly dependent on Export market, the volatility of export orders may lead to overstocking or under-stocking of inventory. Expiry risks: This risk is low to medium. Expiry risks of inventory can be mitigated by proper planning of Sales, Purchase, Production and Distribution. The Storekeeper needs to maintain up-to-date records. A system is being implemented to provide on-line information about the stock position i.e. the quantity in stock, Re-order period, Ordering level and the Expiry dates of each of the Raw material, packing material and finished stocks to the Sales, Production and Purchase department so that immediate action can be taken by the respective departments. Manpower Availability risks: There is a shortage of skilled manpower in Oman. This is however met with the expatriate staff employed mainly from the sub-continent. The company therefore faces a medium risk in terms of availability of skilled manpower. The company can met unskilled manpower availability with the local Omani population and also from expatriate staff. The gap of skilled labor availability is likely to increase and therefore the costs also increase. To mitigate such risks, the company can develop long term strategy to invest in higher capacity production machines so that the requirement of manpower is kept low. Accidents: The Company can face a chance of accidents at the factory, however the accident risks at the company is low, as it does not deal with hazardous material and the production processes are not complex. However the company may face risks from mechanical or electrical installations which cant be entirely ruled out. So the company needs to take the following steps: By providing ELCB (Electric Leakage Circuit Breakers) in all electrical circuits and ACBs for the main transformers By providing Hot masks to the manpower Having a good machinery breakdown policy Constant monitoring of the gas line leakages The company needs have a Manpower Accidents and Injury Policy to cover the possibility of injury or death of manpower within the factory premises. Managing Reputation Risks Reputation of the company may also get hamper in various situations some of which are Contamination-hygiene: Being in the Food sector the company should take utmost precaution to avoid any sort of contamination in its products which will reach to the general mass. The company should take precaution for the quality of the raw material and packing material that is required for the entire production process and the stocking procedure. The company can follow the following policy: Stringent Quality control checks of Raw materials and packing materials Stringent Quality checks of the entire production process Maintaining Hygiene standards of the Government of Oman both in production and stocking. Sample testing at each stage Have a third Party damage policy insurance coverage owing to contamination Product expiry/Shelf life risks: This is again a very vital risk to the company as it is in the Food sector. The Government of Oman is very stringent in its laws to avoid expired products to be sold to the general public. So the company should take utmost care to avoid this risk by providing a stringent Distribution policy of its finished products Checks and controls before distribution of products. Monitoring distributed products on a daily basis Attributing Responsibility to a Senior Personnel for the management Corporate Governance: Corporate Governance Policies and Procedures manual are already in place at the company. Hence the risk associated with it is low. The management has to ensure proper compliance of the policies already undertaken to avoid any risk of reputation arising out of non-compliance of corporate governance. Managing Credit Risks: Credibility Risk of Customers: The Company should develop a credit policy based on regions, volume and credibility ranking of the parties. Export: The Company exports to a wide range of countries. The contacts of customers are mainly through visits and through mail. It is initially very difficult to assess the credibility of the customers abroad. The risk element is therefore medium and high. The company should mitigate this risk in the following manner: The company should back up the export orders by Letter of Credit from the parties. In case L/C mode is not practicable, the company can ask for advance payments or Security deposit, or post dated cheques which will cover the entire order taken prior to effecting delivery of the goods. The company currently did not enter into any distribution agreement with any export party and deals with parties on a case to case basis The Company can set up a network of distributors for handling exports sales as far as practicable. The company can also set up more than one distributor; in each region/country, so that price advantage can be achieved through minimal risk. The company should select distributors with proven track record, and the distributorship agreement should be through a internationally binding legal contract. Local: Local sales are affected by the company mainly to retail customers like supermarkets and hypermarkets, small shops and to two distributors in the interior. The company should take the following steps: Sale to all hypermarkets and supermarkets where the volumes are above a certain limit are, as far as possible, affected by means of an annual contract with all modalities and terms and conditions clearly laid out. For single shop outlets, the company may face the risk of shop closing down and non-payment or delayed payment. To counter this company should maintain small stocks with such shops and should have a regular but frequent collection system. In case of distributors the company should have legally binding distribution agreements. Limit setting: An important element of credit risk management is to establish exposure limits for each single customer and distributors. The compan

Soft Skills And Communication Skills For Engineers

Soft Skills And Communication Skills For Engineers Abstract Engineering education widely recognize an increasing need to equip students with effective study skills early in their university education and basic professional skills prior to graduation. These, however, are traditionally difficult modules to teach successfully to larger groups through traditional lecturing. Observations suggest a poor absorption rate from the students and thus a lack in their ability to benefit from these skills both personally and professionally. Specific techniques described in this paper can be easily integrated into most types of teaching material. Introduction Over the years there has been an increase in emphasis on soft skills and particularly communication skills in the engineering programs. Reflecting both the demands of potential employers and professional bodies, as well as the creativity of course designers, modules such as first year study skills and final year professional skills have become more and more common. The greatest focus has been placed on fundamental topics such as presentation skills, effective report writing, teamwork, and time/project management. Whilst this change is certainly a positive one, these modules seem to be among the more challenging to teach and assess successfully, the criteria for success being that the student can understand the concepts presented, apply them using exercises, and demonstrate the resulting competence through assessment. A modified teaching approach is required that addresses the professional students. The approach needs to add interest and obvious relevance; students need to feel that any guidelines presented can solve a pressing issue or concern that exists in their world. Above all, to be successful the teaching approach must be dynamic, interesting, practical and organized to manage tactically the attention span of the audience. Modifying the approach Keeping a large number of undergraduate students continually engaged is not the easiest of tasks, particularly considering the challenges above. It was decided that a different and more dynamic teaching approach was required to stimulate students in place of traditional lecturing styles based essentially on one-way communication. If students frequently had to respond, discuss, react or participate they would be far less likely to disengage or go to sleep! Allowing them to make mistakes in a supportive environment would also go some way to convincing them that they needed to improve their skills and were doing so by attending the learning sessions. Some might argue that a high level of interaction is only practicable with smaller audiences. Whilst smaller groups are indeed easier to manage this was found not to be the case, although an experienced lecturer is required who is willing to engage in open discussions and deviate from a detailed lecture plan if necessary. Towards a task-based approach Typically, a traditional ELT syllabus lists learning items in terms of structures, functions, notions and vocabulary which are then set in situations and which usually integrate a variety of skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking). This dominant approach has been characterized as product-orientated because it focuses on what is to be learnt or on products. The problem with this approach, as Nunan (1988) has pointed out, is that input cannot be equated with output and that teaching cannot be equated with learning. In short, what the teacher teaches is not what the learner learns. Swan (2005) in his critique of task-based learning laments the polarization of attitudes in relation to recent discussion of language learning. On the one hand traditionalists argue in favor of a linear, atomistic syllabus design. On the other hand, hard-line task-based ideologues seem to exclude any atomistic activity in favor of all-or-nothing holism. Bygates distinction (2003, p. 176) between tasks and exercises helps to situate this debate. He defines exercises as activities which practice parts of a skill, a new sub-skill, a new piece of knowledge. In contrast, he defines tasks as activities which practice the whole integrated skill in some way. Bygates discussion (2001, pp.23-48) lends support to the idea that task-based teaching needs to be situated in a broad curriculum framework, suggesting that isolated tasks are not sufficient in themselves to promote learning. The implication drawn from such research and discussion is that units of learning that involve the strategic use of holistic repeated tasks and supporting atomistic exercises provide one means of avoiding narrow ideological positions. A task-based unitary framework is therefore proposed here that leads to student-led holistic outcomes in the form of written reports, spoken presentations and substantial small-group conversations that lead to decision-making outcomes. However, due consideration is also given to the design of atomistic exercises within the framework. In her model for task-based learning, Willis (1996, pp.52-65) proposes a pre-task component, a task-cycle component (pre-task/task/post-task) and a language focus component. With regard to focus on form, Willis emphasizes the importance of a post-task report phase, which could be a written activity such as writing a polished report or a spoken public-report phase in which students can be encouraged to focus on accuracy and can be prompted to recast inaccurate forms. Other key stages for Willis that improve the linguistic focus of task-based learning are the planning stage during which the teacher can take on a role of language advisor. This 1996 framewor k by Willis has been influential. In his 2006 Asian EFL Journal (AEJ) conference keynote speech, for example, Ellis made extensive reference to it, adopting it as his basic framework. Components of a Task Tasks contain some form of input that may be verbal (a dialogue/role play/reading) or, nonverbal (pictures/a gesture) followed by an activity, which is in some way derived from the input. This activity sets out what learners need to do in relation to the input. Tasks have also goals and roles for both teachers and learners. Components of a Task (Nunan: 1989) From the above diagram, a task can be viewed as a piece of meaning focused work, involving learners in comprehending, producing and/or interacting in the target language. Before taking up the task of converting the textual content into various tasks, the following points were noted and kept in mind by the investigators: -The objective of the task must be stated very clearly -The task must be appropriate for the level of the learners -The task must equip the learners with the ability to apply classroom learning in new situations. -Tasks must be interesting and motivating to the students -The form the input takes, must be clear to the teacher -The roles of teachers and students must be specified clearly -Through the task, learners must be encouraged to negotiate meaning -The language that will be generated by the task must be predicted -There should be variety and flexibility in the tasks The following are eight well documented techniques that can be used flexibly to transform any standard lecture into a more dynamic one. These techniques are summarized below. An emphatic and captivating introduction A successful training session must begin by creating a sense of urgency and somehow capturing the interest of the audience, usually by emphasizing the importance of the topic and its relevance. What rewards can be obtained by applying the content of the session? What pitfalls exist for those who lack the competence? However, it is important that in emphasizing the importance of a topic the presenter is not perceived as finger wagging. For example, when youre in industry youll have to . . . or you wont pass your final year project unless you learn to . . . are unlikely to prove engaging whereas would you like me to help you get more marks for your lab reports without doing any more work is. Use of relevant examples and storytelling Examples, stories and anecdotes turn theories and guidelines into perceived reality by providing a true-to-life basis for their application. They will also capture the full attention of most audiences. Use plenty of these at least one for each principal point covered and, wherever possible, focuses on real examples rather than hypotheses. Let students share their similar experiences. Group exercises Have students perform short exercises in groups to try out the application of concepts presented, followed by debriefing where each group reports its findings, progress and difficulties to the audience. Exercises of this type break up the session, increase engagement and can be easily conducted even in a lecture theatre. They also force the students to admit their errors, even if these errors are not reported to the audience, and this helps to establish for them the fact that they have learnt something. Brainstorming This is another interactive technique to provide stimulation and variation. Provide an open question and have students brainstorm in small groups (usually together with those sitting next to them) before beginning a discussion session. Demonstrations/simulations It is much more effective to demonstrate an idea than to talk about it. Documentation could include some type of physical simulation, a simple game, or even a video clip. Role playing is particularly effective as it involves the students in an active way, provided that a risk-free and supportive environment is provided to those who participate. This in turn is dependent on the lecturers making sure that students are never embarrassed by failure during an activity. Opinion polls This is a quick change and helps students to engage in a new activity or a new aspect of a topic. For example a quick show of hands: How many people think .? The mind break Used to refresh the listeners attention span during more demanding presentation components, for example, take a 2 minute break to chat with your neighbor before we move on . . . Facilitation vs. lecturing Whenever possible, lean towards the process of facilitation rather than lecturing. Prompt the audience with relevant questions, challenges their ideas, and shapes an understanding based upon the responses and active discussions rather than reading a script. It is, however, important to be respectful towards students who give wrong or poor answers. The techniques presented above provide some of the most important ingredients for an engaging lecture. They are well documented and widely used in isolation. Not all are applicable to all situations and types of material, and the next step is, therefore, to devise session plans into which they are woven appropriately. The choice of techniques will depend largely on the topic to be presented and to some extent the lecturers personality and individual style. Conclusion Perfect communication is near impossible in the classroom because it depends on many variables. However, if the teacher is to be successful, the content of his message should be clear in his mind and be put in suitable code and transmitted through appropriate media. There is need for a careful sequencing of ideas and the use of activities that is within the experience and understanding of the students. Whatever learning experience the students are exposed to, they should be allowed to practice it. Learning takes place through the active behavior of the students. It is what the student does that he learns and not what the teacher does. The teacher is only a facilitator of learning. The quality of learning that takes place in any situation, to a very large extent, is dependent on the effectiveness of the teachers plan and communication.

Conquest :: essays research papers

Conquest The day they landed was the most horrible day I have ever been forced to live through. * * * The Soviet Union had begun to regroup. It was not immediately joined by the smaller and weaker nations that made up the northwestern region of the union. The independent nations of Latvia, Estonia, and Lithua would not follow under communist rule again; they were willing to die for their freedom. The U.S.S.R was unable to persuade the remaining components to rejoin them in their conquest and they were hasty to declare war on their counterparts. With war waging in Eastern Europe the United Nations took action. The leader of Russia's communist party and president rejected the UN's cease-fire treaty. Russia was expelled from the United Nations early the next day. The CIA agent, Newton, inched his way through the air conditioning make an effort to remain as quiet as possible. Once he reached the ventilator above the leader's bedroom he unveiled his device, a new prototype developed by his agency. This devise would unscrew and disable any form of fastener. Using a laser divertor to abstract the laser alarm system path the agent lowered himself into the room. Waiting for the man, a smaller man yet more powerful. The door creaked open slowly and an exhausted fat man entered. As soon as the door had been closed the fat man's throat had been gashed and he lay in a pool of his own warm blood. The United States had volunteered to be a "cut-off" regiment. We would put pressure on Russia to remove their troops from Eastern Europe and detain their troops in Russia. If they failed to comply with this mandate we would have no choice but to supply aid to Eastern Europe. My regiment was originally from the Southern California area; we were to be transported to San Francisco where we would rendezvous with a rather large concentration of military. From San Francisco we would be transported by carriers to the island of Hokkaido, specifically the town of Wakkanai. Our army would form a percent of the United Nations army along with Japan and England and launch an attack on a Russian city named Korsakov. This was the plan as it stood, but when you are attacked on your own soil there are priorities to attend to. Later that week the leader of Russia was assassinated in chambers. The assailant had entered through the overhead ventilator and slit the dictator's throat. He had then fled through the window setting off a number of alarms and finally escaping by slaying three of the soldiers on guard.

coraline :: essays research papers

Coraline Have you ever wanted to read a book that keeps you on the edge of your seat and at the same time you will be scared of what’s going to happen next? Well if the answer is yes then Coraline is the right book for you. This wonderful book was written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Dave McKean. I chose this book because I had never read a good scary story in my entire life. This book is supernatural fiction. This story mainly takes place in another world that looks exactly the same as Coraline’s home. Although it looks the same, to Coraline it feels much different. The love and happiness from her real home is missing. This other world is not a bright and happy place like Coraline expected. It is gray and boring. In fact, not only is this unknown world dull and unhappy, it is also full of scary creatures. Coraline is very sad in this strange, horrible world. Although the the author did not give a detailed description of what Coraline looks like, I imagined that she was about my size, but thinner, with dark brown hair, beaming black eyes and a narrow face. I thought Coraline was a very brave girl. She showed her courage in the story when she went down into a dark cellar and found herself being chased by a frightening, button-eyed creation of the â€Å"other† mother. I liked the fact that even though she was scared, Coraline never stopped trying. She believed in herself and knew that some day she was going to get out of this miserable place. The story begins with Coraline finding the door to another world. Ready for adventure she goes inside, and what she finds amazes her at first but after a while things start falling apart and everything turns into a total and complete nightmare. Her real parents are missing and she is trapped inside this other place. Coraline must find her parents and her way out before the â€Å"other† mother changes her. During her adventure she finds many lost souls that she also must save. They were once children like her but never escaped. My favorite part in the story was in the beginning when Coraline found the door and went right through into the other world.

Humorous Speech by an Old Friend of the Groom (Bridegroom) :: Wedding Toasts Roasts Speeches

Humorous Speech by an Old Friend of the Groom (Bridegroom) Good afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen. On behalf of the bridesmaids, I would like to thank Michael for his kind words, and I have to say they were absolutely wonderful and have done an excellent job today - I mean the bridesmaids, not the words. Now, it's customary in these speeches to tell a story about the bachelor’s (stag) party, but in this case it won't be possible. That's because Michael has insisted on having his stag party after the wedding. So instead, I was going to tell you about a night out in the big city that Michael and I recently had, which involved beer, bad food and Michael bent over the toilet all night. But this is Magdalene’s day as well, and I don't want to ruin it with Michael's vulgarity. So I've decided to look elsewhere for my material. I started by writing down everything I could think of that Michael and I have done over the 23 years we've been friends (mates). But even this wasn't particularly fruitful, as a lot of it would have got Michael strung up by his mom (mum), some of it would have got me strung up by my mom (mum) and some of it simply involved Michael stringing himself up with a couple of vacuum cleaners within easy reach. So, as it was quite challenging coming up with anything of real substance to tell you about Michael, I thought I’d explain how our bride and groom got together. ‘The romance began,’ as Magdalene describes it, ‘after an outing to the cinema was arranged with five or six mutual friends. But on the night, only Michael and I could make it. We enjoyed each other's company so much we went out together every evening for the rest of the week.’ ‘The romance began,’ as Michael describes, ‘after Magdalene individually bribed six people to pull out of a trip to the cinema so she could finally have an evening alone with me to curse me with her love spell.’ There also seems to be some confusion over which film they saw together that night. Magdalene remembers it to be 'Demolition Man'. Michael remembers it as 'Free Willy'. Despite meeting Magdalene, Michael didn’t desert me and we pursued our interests in gambling, excessive drinking, Playstation and being sick a lot. For me, the most significant moment during this time was Michael getting his ear pierced - even back then he was preparing for marriage - experiencing pain, hurt and buying jewellery.

His Panic: Why Americans Fear Hispanics in the US Essay

Review by Howard Jordan, The City University of New York – Hostos Community College of book His Panic: Why Americans Fear Hispanics in the U. S. written by Emmy-award-winning journalist Geraldo Rivera. Rivera has truly emerged as a true warrior in defense of the Latino community and immigrant rights by dissecting and clarifying several myths that feed the anti-immigrant prejudice against the growing number of United States-born and foreign-born Latinos in our nation. One of the most obvious untrue assumptions surrounding immigrants is that Latinos are more prone to crime than their American counterparts. Rivera confronts the question of whether immigrants are committing crimes at higher rates than U. S. citizens. The debate started with a story about a drunk driver in Virginia Beach who killed two teenage girls in a terrible accident. The driver was an â€Å"illegal† Mexican. Rivera accusing Bill O’Reilly of making this same â€Å"cheap political point,† Rivera said, â€Å"[He] could have been a Jewish drunk, an Italian drunk, or an Irish drunk, would you still care? (p. 5). I believe this is the perfect example to showcase the constant double standard that exists when it comes to use Latinos as ‘scapegoats’ to take the blame for high rates of crimes or other issues. Statistics show that immigrants are no more prone to committing crimes than are the native-born. Another false rumor that causes anti-immigrant hostility is that Latino immigrants come here to take jobs from U. S. citizens. This statement cannot be further from the truth. With agreements like NAFTA, immigrants are not the ones to blame for stealing the jobs of American citizens. Conversely, the ones truly affected before any U. S. citizen is deprived of any opportunity are Mexicans because the jobs that NAFTA secures in the U. S. were jobs previously held by Mexican workers across the border. So, let’s take a moment to rethink who’s taking what from whom? In addition, Rivera cites several studies that show â€Å"Latino immigrants are not displacing American workers†¦ and rarely over-utilize social services†. Those criticizing must know that illegal immigrants are not entitled to receive any governmental assistance, because of their immigrant status. Going further Rivera has evidence in his book about â€Å"nonpartisan, non-ideological, scientific data [that] proves that immigrants contribute greatly to the America economy† (p. 169). Again this corrects the misinformation that immigrants are not a burdensome to the U. S. if not a huge contributing force of this nation whose rights are often violated. A further huge inaccurate detail Rivera addresses in his book is the assumption that immigrants use ‘anchor babies’ presumably to further the parents’ quest for citizenship. Anchor babies are children born of illegal immigrants to help their parents acquire citizenship status in the U. S. That cannot be further from the truth because under current law, an illegal immigrant parent seeking citizenship cannot use the fact that their child is a citizen, until that child reaches the age of twenty-one. However, immigrants are being wrongfully and constantly criminalized for intending to build and raise a family. In conclusion I believe that the United States has to stop using fear mongering to influence, manipulate the opinions and actions of its citizens with the goal of fueling anti-immigrant sentiment. This country was built by immigrants’ sweat and hard labor not just from Latin America, but from Europe and Africa. How can the U. S. carryon with not only taking their land, but also taking their pride, belittle them by inviting immigrants into this country and then deporting them as they conveniently desire when ‘those second class citizens are no longer useful’. I genuinely believe that American are in fear of Latinos. And they act they way they do to keep them at a margin, contain at a place where they are in need to settle and at often times take the poor jobs they get. It is embarrassing as a U. S. citizen that my own country carries this behavior. How can anyone be the cause of such horrible acts, of separating families due to technical issues and then praise to be the most powerful country in the world. The United States is the most powerful country in the world because our predecessors have gone out of their way to steal anything of value, not other communities’ ideas like Iroquois, or from the other developing countries of the world. The U. S must stop this way of politics and reach an agreement. An agreement where immigrants and workers are rewarded for their efforts, where we pay the price they are worth and earned for their hard work, that we restore what has been stolen, where the rich upper class get taxed according to the gross income they are earning. Where the jobs stolen are restored to Mexicans and Africans, restored for everything they have lost as a result of being brought here to build this country. This should be the land of opportunity, where everyone is equal at all levels and topics, not the land of exploiting the weak and enslaving them. Where is all this nonsense going to stop? I know is not that simple, to reverse the damage that has been done after so many years but we must start somewhere, perhaps by acknowledging the truth and not hiding the real facts behind the Latino scapegoat. People must be educated before taking a stand on what spot on the spectrum to be in. It is a very sensible topic that involves the lives of actual people, actual families. Thank you Geraldo Rivera for not forgetting about your roots, and using your position as a media figure to be an activist against the Latino immigrants.

Human anatomy and physiology Essay

The cardiovascular disease has been one of the most fatal diseases in the world. And nowadays, it has been categorized into one of the wide ranging and investigative illness in the world. It is a disease merely composed of various individual disorders mainly in the heart and in the organs building the circulatory system. For many years, this disease has been one of the chief causes of death not only in the United States but also in the other parts of the world. And for that, this disease has been one of the challenges that still on top of the challenges that are being faced by the experts in health and medicinal tasks. The coronary heart disease and the cerebrovascular disease are two of the several diseases that compose the cardiovascular disorders. Though experts have already tried easing down the death rates caused by this disease, still the cardiovascular disease along with many of its components haunts the bodies of the persons of their next victims. One million deaths which are mostly rooted on the cardiovascular diseases have been recorded during the year of 1997 and up to this year is still increasing and heaving up with it a huge amount of expenditure not only of the victims but also of the persons preventing and thinking ways on how to prevent and treat the disease. However, not long before this disease of the heart and of the circulatory system had come into view, there were also other diseases that had bothered the health of the United States. Diseases like the pneumonia, diarrhea, tuberculosis and others have been the main illness that the United States have been battling with. It was not until 1963 that the deaths caused by coronary heart disease have took over in having the highest record. Over the years of the deaths caused by the cardiovascular diseases, experts all over the world began studying on the primary causes of this disease. According to the studies, the factors affecting the occurrence of this disease can be categorized to two: the modifiable and the not modifiable factors. The second one, the not modifiable factors are the ones that are mostly of the genetic preferences. Examples of these factors are gender of the person and family background regarding the disease. On the other hand, the first factor, the modifiable factors are the factors that can still be controlled or managed by the person in order not to have the disease. High blood pressure, fat or cholesterol level in the body, smoking, and pressure of the person’s blood, blood sugar, obesity and physical inactivity of the person are cases of the modifiable factors of the cardiovascular diseases. Reaction The cardiovascular system is one of the various systems in the body. This system is the one responsible for the transport of the following: hormones, food, gases and metabolic wastes. The system is composed of three major components: the blood, the blood vessels and the heart. The blood is composed of plasma and cells and serves as the transport vehicle of the ones transported by the system. The blood vessels on the other hand are grouped into two: the arteries and the capillaries. These blood vessels are the passageway of the blood to and from the different organs of the body. The arteries are channels that carry blood away from the heart and the capillaries are the ones that transmit blood from the different organs back to the heart. And finally the heart; this is the component of the cardiovascular system that drives the blood into motion. Definitely the cardiovascular system is one of the systems needed by the body to sustain life. If not for this system, there would be no transport of blood therefore the body would not be provided with the proper nutrients and gases and thus leading to death. Cardiovascular disease as stated in the article by William T. Friedwald is a disease composed by many other individual diseases either in the heart or in the other parts of the body mostly on the circulatory system. For one, the coronary heart disease is one of the various disorders that compose this cardiovascular disease. And like the other components of the said disorder, the coronary heart disease is also one of the leading causes of death and expenses in the world. Coronary Heart Disease The coronary heart disease is a problem in the heart which is caused primarily by a disorder in the coronary arteries. The coronary arteries are the channels which sustains the heart with sufficient blood that provides the needed nutrients and oxygen. A problem in the coronary arteries causes the heart to have less or even none of the needed average blood in the heart. A deficiency in the supply of blood in the heart is the main reason for the occurrence of this disease. The deficiency of blood in the heart which supplies the nutrients and the needed gases is also known as ischemia that is why this disease is often referred to as the ischemic heart disease. Like any other diseases, the coronary heart disease has its own causes. One of the reasons for the existence of this disease is due to heredity. Coronary heart disease can be present in the blood that runs through the veins of your family. And so, if one of the ancestors of a person has exhibited the signs of this disease in the past, it would not be a wonder if the person too would have the possibility of having the disease. A high level of cholesterol in the body also aids in the development of the disease. These are also accompanied with the high blood sugar, high blood pressure and intense amount of excess fat in the body. These along with the abuse of tobacco, lack of regular physical activities and stresses brings about coronary heart disease. Lessen Tobacco Intake Smoking as a major cause of this disease should be definitely be lessened or most accordingly be brought to a stop. Too much intake of tobacco serves as grounds for the accumulation of fatty substances in the arteries. This build-up of fats in the arteries causes the narrowing of the arteries of these vessels therefore diminishing the deliver of nutrients and oxygen to the heart leading to heart attack. A gradual decrease in the intake of tobacco in the body may help in preventing the disease. Though it may sound unusual and that it is far from the existence of the disease, dieting can be an aid in preventing coronary heart disease. Dieting reduces the not only the cholesterol and sugar but also diminishes the blood pressure of the person. Researches conclude that the consumption of fish is better than eating meat. Researchers recommend the eating of fishes over meat for the reason that most of the meat especially red meat has a greater quantity of cholesterol than fishes. Moreover, certain fishes contain omega-3 which reduces the occurrence of irregular heartbeat which is the mere cause of loss from coronary heart disease. Be Physically Active Physical activities such as swimming and biking are recommended by most of the experts in order to prevent coronary heart disease. Being physically inactive is a big risk for the existence of coronary heart disease. Experts say that adults should engage themselves into activities with moderate intensity everyday. Cardiology Exam Everyone on Earth has the possibility of having the disease in their family history. Hence, a cardiology exam is advised for an early prevention and treatment program may be executed in case there is a positive result after the exam. Hormone Replacement Though not for everyone, researches have already concluded that estrogen has the ability to protect the blockage on the passageways of the blood. This has been formulated because of the observation that it is uncommon for women to experience heart attacks on pre menopausal stages of their lives. Though deadly and fatal as it may seem, the coronary heart disease can also be prevented in any ways like other diseases. Moreover, given the incurable and terminal effects of this disease, there is really a definite reason to know the ways of preventing this disease. Cardiovascular disease is a general diagnostic category consisting of several separate diseases of the heart and circulatory system. Cardiovascular diseases have been the major health problem and the leading cause of death in the United States for several decades. Despite impressive and sustained declines in the mortality rates from these diseases, the magnitude of the problem is still staggering. In 1997 alone, nearly 1 million people died of cardiovascular disease, which was about 40 percent of all deaths. The two most important components are coronary heart disease and cerebrovascular disease, with 460,390 dying of coronary heart disease and 158,060 dying of cerebrovascular disease in 1998. In 2000, it was estimated that cardiovascular diseases carried a direct heath expenditure cost of $186 billion and additional indirect costs of $190 billion, making these diseases a continuing major contributor to the escalating cost of health care in the United States.