Thursday, October 31, 2019

Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 18

Essay Example Being rooted in the child’s experience, drama as a learning medium involves thinking, questioning, taking responsibility for actions, and use of space. Since there is active participation of children in drama, learning takes place spontaneously, which leads to later learning of higher order. The theories of educationists like Jean Piaget and Jerome Bruner contribute to the use of drama as a learning medium. According to Jean Piaget, the child goes through several stages of development, one of which is the Preoperational stage from ages 2 to 7. At this stage, the child is acquiring motor skills. Magical thinking is foremost at this stage. He appreciates drama and relates to it. A child at this stage learns quickly from the dramatized version of ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ or â€Å"The Lion King†, elements of vocabulary, arithmetic and a little geography. Since at this stage of the child’s development his egocentricism has begun, he can relate to the central character of the drama. But, according to Piaget, he cannot conserve or use logical thinking yet, which he starts using in the next stage of his development. The next stage of development in children is the ‘concrete operational stage’ which spans the ages from 7 to 11. At this stage of their development, children have started thinking logically, and concretely, but they need aids for conserving and thinking logically. Higher order thinking is beginning and they are helped by drama at this stage of learning. After the age of 11, children start to think and conserve abstractly. Here, they appreciate and learn from drama based on detective stories such as Sherlock Holmes. Piaget explains that the child ‘s perceptions of notions of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ , and ‘valid’ , ‘proper’, and ‘necessary’ develop during these stages. He constructs his theory of actions which are correct and effective, by the process of objectification, reflection and and

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Becoming an Effective Leader Essay Example for Free

Becoming an Effective Leader Essay My job title is Training Co-ordinator for an organisation called Lifeskills Centres, I assess in the following areas; business administration, customer service, management, delivering level 2 and 3 and also any supporting key skills needed. I am responsible for my caseload of learners; their progress, learning and achievement of the qualification. I must cater each programme to suit the needs of the individual learner, I do this by setting each new starter off on initial assessments so that I can see what level they are currently at which will help me decide which course is the most suitable and which approach will be the most beneficial for the learner. I am also responsible for creating strong professional relationships with the learners new employers and maintaining relationships with existing employers this is for two reasons so they would recommend us to other employers so we gain a good reputation and so that they will want to use Lifeskills as a training provider for all of their staff and will not use a different organisation as it is a competitive market. I also advertise vacancies for our employers who have had good experiences in the past with apprentices and would like to recruit a new one. I agree with the employer all of the details to go on to the advert and interview all of the candidates and trial period the suitable ones for a week before sending them to the employer themselves to interview and then make the final decision. Within my role I use a number of different leadership styles in different situations and with different people in order to progress and achieve what needs to be achieved for example; I use the leadership style autocratic when I come to the end of the programme and I tell my learners what I want and what needs to be done and how it needs to be done, this is when the learners are short of time if they are leaving the organisation and don’t have much time to complete and it works the best when they want to achieve and are highly motivated. I have used the leadership style democratic when I had a group of learners in one particular placement where I was finding it hard to make them progress as they wouldn’t complete any work unless I was there  with them and they had no motivation towards the qualification. I discussed with the learners my concerns and asked how they thought we could move forward and they suggested one to one meetings, I informed the learners that this would be too time consuming and that I could afford to have a morning or afternoon out of the month for me to come in to the organisation and support them and motivate them to complete the knowledge questions, technical certificate and key skills side of the qualification. The learners confirmed that this was an effective method and I informed them that I will observe them twice a month but they do not have to complete any written tasks for me between observation as it will be done on the one morning / afternoon per month. I used this leadership style so that they felt they were included and to help me gain more respect from them and I do not think that it came across as a weakness from myself I think it showed that I was honest and realised that there was something not right and then discussed and implemented a solution. Lastly the leadership style I use not very often but I do still use is delegative which is where I let the learners make their own decisions on how they can progress through their qualification. I usually use this style when a learner has progressed from a level 2 qualification with myself on to a level 3 so they know the way the programme works and we have a comfortable relationship I also allow some level 3 learners to reference their own work in to their files. Application of emotional intelligence in shaping performance I employ the two aspects of emotional intelligence when dealing with learners and colleagues at all times as I must first understand myself and my goals, intentions, responses and behaviour and understand others and their feelings to be able to manage my learners and their progress. I empathise with learners and use the understanding of their emotions to motivate them and inspire them to complete their work. I am aware of my own feelings and emotions and control these to make sure that I do not behave in a way that is unacceptable towards learners or colleagues, I may not have to say anything to communicate how I am feeling as it can be portrayed in my body language and facial expressions which is also something that I have to control. Based on Goleman’s theory to be an effective leader I must be aware  of my own feelings and emotions and manage these to make sure that my emotions do not show in my behaviour if they are unacceptable. I must motivate myself which I do by meeting appraisal and review targets and setting myself my own goals to achieve. I must also manage other peoples emotions I do this by building a relationship with my learners and getting to know what they like and what annoys them so I can recognise this and stop it from becoming an issue where possible, it also makes the learners feel valued and that I care about the way they feel. It is also stated in Maslows Hieracy of needs that to work to your full ability and progress in your job and grow as a person you must have the following; Be in a healthy state, feel safe, feel like you belong somewhere and have some form of social life (friends, family, relationships) and have self esteem before you are able to grow personally. I must make sure that I show all learners that I care about each of them as an individual and that there progress and growth means a lot to me. I think an area that I personally have to work on is when I worry and panic about things for example we were mock inspected and I felt very anxious about it, I must make sure that this feeling does not come across to learners or employers and that the rest of my work doesn’t suffer from it. I also try to understand and manage the employers I deal with emotional intelligence as I want to build a relationship with them and trust so I make sure that I empathise with them and try not to do anything possible which may annoy them for example if I can see that an employer is very busy instead of updating them after the appointment with their learner I will ask if they would like an update via email as I can see they are really busy and then they can decide how they would like the feedback. Setting direction and gaining commitment I communicate and set direction for my learners by visiting them fortnightly, observing them work, showing them what each observation will cover or link in with, giving them feedback on their performance and setting them targets for the next appointment. I provide ongoing support via email and over the telephone to learners when I am at work but not at an appointment with them and review their progress and set targets formally at their ten week reviews which gives them clear direction and motivation to meet the targets they  agree by the next review. I provide support and tutorials to learners for the whole of the technical certificate and functional skills they complete and also offer training on the telephone, prioritising techniques and assertiveness skills as I have noticed that this is an area for development that employers ask for and the learners too. I also motivate and gain commitment from learners and try and persuade new employers to take on new learners by using myself as a role model example, as I began my career by completing an administration level 2 apprenticeship and have completed enough qualifications and worked my way up to becoming a Training Co-ordinator. I communicate and set direction and motivate employers by keeping them up to date with the learner’s progress and exactly what I have been doing with the learner after each visit where possible and including them in the qualification by asking for witness statements and also asking them to participate in the learner’s reviews. With my colleagues I communicate direction in standardisation meetings where we share best practise on how to cover and assess certain units that we may find difficult or what we have found that works very well. I try to motivate my colleagues by being hardworking and genuinely enthusiastic about my learners achieving and my job .

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Composition Of Consumer Co Operative Societies

Composition Of Consumer Co Operative Societies Consumers are unorganized and therefore exploited by traders in price, quality and weight. Consumer co-operatives protects the interests of consumers against artificial scarcity, over charging of prices, supply of sub standard goods and the unfair trade practices distorted by private traders. Definition: Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960, defines consumer co-operative society as a society, the object of which is: The procurement, production or processing and the distribution of goods to or, the performance of other services for its members as also other consumers, The distribution among its members and customers, of the profit occurring from such procurement, production, processing and distribution are in proportion as prescribed by rules or bye-laws of the society. A consumer co-operative society is basically formed for the promotion of the interests of the consumers. Composition of consumer co-operative societies: National Co-operative Consumers Federation (1) State Co-operative Consumers Federation (28) Departmental Stores (Apna Bazaar) Wholesale / Central Stores (681) Primary Consumer Co-operative Stores (26469) University College Consumers Stores Consumers Stores of Industrial Workers Consumers Stores for Rural Population Objectives of consumer co-operatives: To educate the consumers to keep their needs within the income limit. Stabilization of market rates. To supply the goods and services regularly at reasonable costs. To protect the consumers from black marketing, increase in market rates, scarcity, cheating and adulteration. To supply proper unadulterated goods and to use proper measurement (weighing scales). To inculcate the habit of savings and economy among the consumers. To control the profit-making tendency Need and importance of consumer co-operatives: Supply of things and services as per needs- The consumer co-operative societies are formed to satisfy the needs goods and services as demanded by the consumers. There are directly contracts with producers and manufacturers of things and required goods are purchased directly from them, thereby the consumers can be supplied with the goods as demanded. Eradication of malpractices of traders- It is found that there are many malpractices in trading like black marketing, artificial scarcity, cheating in measurements, hoarding, etc. proper measurements are not used whereby the consumer becomes ultimate victim of all these malpractices by the traders. There is no place for all these things in co-operative consumer societies and so the consumers are attracted towards them. Necessity of time: India has adopted financial planning and there is importance for public distribution of essentialities of life. The consumer co-operative societies help the government in distributing these essentialities to rural and urban areas of our country. These societies have become very important day by day. Since these societies have been entrusted the job distribution, the consumers are saved from financial exploitation and hardship. Establishment of proper trading system: The consumer co-operative societies supply good quality of things at reasonable cost by using right measurement and pure things. Hence from the viewpoint of customers these societies are very important. Eradication of traders chain: There is long chain in between the producers and consumers. The things are sold at higher cost to consumers because the middlemen add their own profit and expenses. The consumer co-operative societies directly purchase the goods from the producers and chain of middleman can be avoided. Apna Bazaar Apna Bazaar is probably the oldest and largest consumer co-operative multi-state society with a customer base of over 12 lakhs. The Rs 140-crore retail chain, that, for over 55 years remained largely middle-class, Apna Bazaar has 80 outlets in Mumbai, Thane and the neighbouring Konkan region. It has recently opened its first shop outside the state in Goa. It recorded a turnover of Rs 127 crore for the year 2003-04. Apna Bazar, the synonym for the basic needs, Brand name of Mumbai Kamgar Madhyavarti Grahak Sahakari Mandal Ltd Date of Incorporation 9th May 1948 Constitution Multi State Co-operative Society Sector Private Industry Retailing Registered Office 106-A, Govingi Keni Road, Naigaon, Dadar [East], Mumbai 400014 Role of Apna Bazaar: Apna bazaar plays a vital role by market intervention during the shortages of essential commodities. The distribution of these items is taken up by the Apna Bazaar at a loss to fulfill its social commitments. At times of need, Apna Bazaar has diverted its manpower and resources, even at the cost of its own commercial interest, for the public good. Objectives of Apna Bazaar: To undertake wholesale and retail distribution of consumer goods and essential commodities; and to establish department stores; To foster the growth products and new manufacturing units through market support and management advice To lower distribution costs and to introduce fair and better trading practices such as fixed prices etc; and Eradication of malpractices of traders black marketing, artificial scarcity, cheating in measurements, adulteration, etc. Necessity of time public distribution of essential commodities in rural and urban areas. Elimination of middlemen. Management and Organization: Apna Bazaar is headed by a management team comprising a chairman, vice chairman and Hon secretaries. The team largely provides direction to the organization and is not involved in the day-to-day affairs. The day-to-day affairs are managed by an executive team, which consists of a general manager, additional general manager and office bearers of the organization. Outlet Apna Bazaar has a customer base of over 12 lakhs. Apna Bazaar has 80 outlets in Mumbai, Thane and the neighbouring Konkan region. It has recently opened its first shop outside the state in Goa.The break up of the stores is: Items Sold By Apna Bazaar Apna Bazaar has the following three main categories of items: Agro products Branded products Rural products Apna Bazaar sells an immense variety of items through its various departments/retail outlets. These are described below: Furniture: All type of wooden furniture, steel furniture library furniture, hospital furniture, revolving chairs, computer furniture, mattresses, pillows, sofa cushion. Household: Steel utensils, aluminum utensils, non stock, gas stoves, locks, mixer-grinder, juice-cum-mixer grinder, hot-cases, room heater, room convector, geysers, all type of fans, electrical goods, washing machine, air-conditioners, water cooler, voltage stabilizer, generator set, crockery, flasks, plastic items, electrical bulb/tubes and tube fittings, table lamp, emergency light, cell, torch, electric wire, desert cooler, exhaust fans. Footwear: Shoes, sandals, ladies purse, belt, umbrella, school, bag, suit cases, brief cases, file box, file bag, luggage bag. Textile: Woolen suiting, tericot suiting and shirting, blanket, blazer, bed-sheets, pillow cover, dress material, all types of sarees, markein cloth, long cloth, voil, mulmul khadi etc. Handloom: Towels, dusters, curtain cloth, bed-covers, carpets, quilt, durries, jute matting, blankets, pillow covers, door-mats, PVC flooring. Ready Made Garments: Pants, shirts, undergarments, socks, sweaters, leather jackets, ladies suits, petticoats, children garments, rain coats, over-coats, mosquito mat, curtain tapes, machine oil, raxine. Stationery: All types of duplicating, typing, photocopies paper, printing paper, all types of rules registers in different sizes peon books, dak pads, pens, pencils, pen stands, eraser, markers, sign pens, gum-bottles scales, colours, art material, sealing wax, white fluid, sutle, stencil and carbon paper, all type of computer stationery, butter paper, crepe paper, glaze paper, graph paper, file covers, log books, all type of printed forms (Govt. offices), PVC sheet for binding purposes, transparency sheets, ledgers, cash books calculators, computer floppy, fax roll, typewriting ribbon, ammonia paper rolls. Watches: Watches of reputed companies like Titan. Grocery Toiletries: Pulses, spices, atta, rice, oils, tea leaves, and various other edible items, insecticides, disinfectants, phenyle, detergents, soaps, cosmetics, tissue rolls and napkins etc. Medical Surgical Equipment: All types of medicines, medical surgical equipment etc. Members Benefits: Dividend on shares at 12% to individuals, society and government. Purchase rebate on share amount 10% each year. Attractive rate of interest up to 9% on fixed deposit by the members. Facilities Offered By Apna Bazaar to Consumers: Apna Bazaar provides the following facilities to consumers: Quality products at reasonable prices. Variety of items under one roof. 24 hours drugs outlets. Self-service counters Items of high quality tested by its quality- testing laboratory. Display boards and price lists at various counters to enable the customer to make his/her choice. Home delivery, but this facility is only available for purchase from branches. Discount sales periodically on various items Location: The location for the store is selected taking in consideration the residential population in the area, the standard of living of the people, the amount of business the other shops are doing and also future development that are likely to take place in that area in future. Area covered: Apna Bazaar has 80 outlets in Mumbai, Thane and the neighbouring Konkan region. It has recently opened its first shop outside the state in Goa. However the density of Apna Bazaar is high in Naigoan and Chembur Space required: The minimum requirement of area for setting up Apna Bazaar is1000 sq.feet. The biggest store is at Vashi, which is spread across 27000 sq.feet. Target segments: The store was started keeping in mind the lower middle class section of the society. But gradually it has moved up the consumer ladder with the inclusion of the middle class as its target consumer. Now slowly it is drawing the upper class towards it. It now caters to almost all the segments of the society depending on the location. In order to attract the upper class to combat growing competition in the retail industry it is making changes in its product-mix. Change in product Mix: The above table indicates decline in the sales of Rice, Wheat, Pulses etc which shows the change in the food culture/consumption pattern of the consumer. It indicates that the consumers inclination towards ready-to-eat food is increasing. Taking this into consideration Apna Bazaar had made has made appropriate changes in its Product Mix. Slowly the Percentage of food grains, pulses has declined and that of FMCG products has increased. In a couple of years the percentage of poultry products in the product mix would increase whereas that of food grains pluses etc. would decline. This would further change the product -mix of Apna Bazaar. Store Layout: Layout of shop Apna Bazaar does not have any specific layout of shop. But in most of outlet the 1st division you would come out is Vegetable, Fruit, Medical product, food grains, and FMCG product. The only think that is kept under consideration that Heavy Product like 5kg. Sugar, 10kg. Wheat, 5 ltr. Oil is near cash counter for convenience of customer. In case of display they see to it that display at entrance is very colorful attractive. Hence they display cosmetics FMCG product. Besides product, which is new to the market, are also displayed to grab attention of consumer Product Display: The brands are displayed in a very attractive manner .The decision to place a Brand on a particular shall depends upon the Market share enjoyed by the company /Brand. Usually there are 5 Shelves. Out of which 2nd, 3rd 4th shelves are most important ones on which the brand with high market share or high brand equity are placed. These products are always in demand by the customers. Footfalls: In big stores, like the departmental store at Andheri, there are 2000 to 3000 footfalls in a day (on weekdays) on weekends there are around 3000 to 3500 footfalls. In small outlets there are around 100 footfalls on regular days .On weekends there are 200 to 250 footfalls. The footfalls are more especially on Sunday. The footfalls are more in evening between 6.30pm. 8.30pm .Whereas the footfalls are comparatively low during the afternoon slot of 1.30-3.30 pm. Keeping this in mind stores are closed down during this time. In this time the staff are rearrange the merchandise in the store. Sources of Income: Retailing is their core activity and a major part of their income come from the various retail outlets. They supply commodities like Dal, Pulses, Food grains, Cereals to Govt. Institutions, Hospitals for their Canteens. A 30 Days credit is given to them. They also earn income from the company racks that they display in their outlets. These racks contain the products of the particular company and the in turn pays Apna Bazaar for displaying these racks. E.g. Maggie, Colgate, Pepsodent, Vicks, Nescafe etc. They provide space to companies e.g. MEPL (Electronic goods) in order to display and sell their goods by charging rent for space provided. They have 37 Franchise outlets, which act as a source of income for Apna Bazaar as Apna Bazaar supplies 70% of goods. Provide place to banks for opening ATM center by charging rent since almost all the outlets are owned by Apna bazaar. MetLife India signed an agreement with Apna Bazaar Co-operative for selling life insurance policies. Based on the agreement, Apna Bazaar Co-operative shall become corporate agents for MetLife India and offer MetLife India products to its huge customer base. Henceforth Apna Bazaar will enable its customers to build financial freedom through MetLife India products based on need analysis. Apna Bazaar will receive a commission of 35% on Premium amount. Exports: Apna Bazaar is a 55 year old co-operative organization with US $ 37 million annual turnover through 07 departmental stores, 06 super markets 65 retail outlets. Apna bazaar used to export commodities like fish and grapes to Europe. In spite of good earnings on exports they have discontinued the exports from this year .Thus the reasons for the discontinuation were due to: The goods were seasonal in nature. In case of grapes the Jalgoan region in which grapes where cultivated was hit by drought, thereby by affecting the production of grapes. Besides the grapes were sprayed with certain chemicals which were banned in the European countries, thereby further affecting the exports. Besides exports is not Apna Bazaars core activity therefore the decision to discontinue exports was taken. SWOT Analysis: Strengths: Goodwill- Apna Bazaar has built its image over the years as a value for money store, which supplies good quality goods at economical price. Number of Outlets- Apna Bazaar has 80 outlets spread all over Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane and the neighbouring Konkan region, Lanza (Bombay-Goa road), among other places in Maharashtra. All these areas are easily accessible as public transportation is available. Hence providing easy accessibility to the customers. Team work- Although there is no training imparted to the employees at the outlets, there is co-ordination and understanding between them due to which the work goes on smoothly creating a win-win situation for both, the management and the employees. Modernization- Apna Bazaar makes use of modern technology to maintain correct supplier bills and giving accurate bills to customers giving details of each purchase and most importantly showing him the savings he has made while purchasing from Apna Bazaar. They also possess total details of their sales and the percentage of sales in each category so they know where the sales are high and where they are lagging behind. Genuine Products- The products of Apna Bazaar are genuine as they purchase it directly from the companies. Lots of imitations of consumables such as honey, oil, etc. are available in many stores. People get cheated, as it is not easy to identify them. CRM- Apna Bazaar organizes a customer meet for their regular customers called MELAVDA at their anniversary to build stronger relations with their customers. On this day, the customers are offered purchase discounts which show that they have taken corrective steps towards customer satisfaction. Weaknesses Capital- Raising capital for expansion and improvement is also a constraint. Apna Bazaar is bounded by the laws of consumer co-operatives due to which they cannot raise funds from open market. There is also limit prescribed by the consumer co-operatives for number of shares issued by Apna Bazaar. This is a major drawback for Apna Bazaar. Ageing society- Apna Bazar started after World War 2 when there was need of essential commodities at lower prices. But, after liberalization many super markets and hypermarkets have opened up due to which there is explosion of choices. Moreover, people today have the money to go for convenience shopping, and hence, the purpose for opening the co-operative is defeated. Obstacles in recruitment: Apna Bazar does not have the budget to recruit skilled staff. The employees are not well educated and hence, they are not aware of the management practices. A qualified employee demands higher salary, which cannot be given by Apna Bazaar due to their constraints. Hence they cannot appoint a MBA a managerial job. No online retailing: Apna Bazar does not have information about its products online. They should have their own website as it is very important in todays world. They could even learn about customer grievances by the feedback. Price fluctuation: Price Fluctuation is a major threat to Apna Bazar. If the product is bought at a higher price is has to be sold at that price only so as not to incur losses. For example, the price of oil fluctuates a lot. So if the price for oil is Rs. 820 for a can when it is purchased, it will be sold at Rs 820 per can even if the price falls to Rs. 800 per can. In this case the oil available from other shops will be cheaper. Opportunities Brand building: Apna Bazaar can take efforts to build its brand image. For this purpose, a marketing firm can he hired. This will attract more and more people to its outlets. Also, they have upgraded their outlets. This can be the base for attracting more customers as they will soon have all air conditioned stores. Expansion: Apna Bazaar can expand its outlets to other states. At present, they have discovered interests from Madhya Pradesh and Delhi. The initiation is on the anvil. Development in suburbs: People are now moving in the suburbs; infrastructure is developing due to which there is huge potential to attract more customers. Retailing boom: Retailing today is not only about selling at the shop, but also about surveying the market, offering choice and experience to consumers, competitive prices and retaining consumers as well. The establishment of supermarkets and convenience stores has been a great effort to communicate the advantages of organized retailing to customers. Threats: Malls- There are a large number of malls that offer discounts the discounts offered by them are as good as those offered by Apna Bazaar because the malls purchase in bulk and can hence afford to give heavy discounts to the customers. The customer has an explosion of choices and will prefer shopping at these big malls because of the ambience. They get the complete shopping experience at malls. Hence, malls are a major threat for Apna Bazaar. Competition from other stores in terms of- Customer Centric Approach: Most other stores take feedback from the customers in form of grievances, opinions and suggestions. They can find out customer needs and ways to satisfy them. Image: Image of a private retailer is more modern and advanced compared to that of Apna Bazaar. The display is also more attractive in other super markets and hypermarkets compared to Apna Bazaar. Future Plans: Apna Bazaar plans to open outlets in the new housing colonies coming up in the interior suburbs like Kandivli and Thane. Increasing the distribution reach is a strategy to counter competition the co-operative plans to increase its outlets from 80 at present to about 100 by next year. This would comprise department stores, super markets, franchisee outlets and medical stores, both in Maharashtra as well as rest of the country. Apart from that, it has money transfer facility under an arrangement with Western Union money transfer. On the tie-up with HPCL for having Apna Bazaar outlets at the petrol pumps, so far three HPCL pumps have Apna Bazaar outlets and the results are still being analyzed. Apna Bazaar Co-operative has embarked on a restructuring exercise and has appointed Darashaw and Company as strategic consultants. The restructuring involves exiting certain business while adding more services, to be provided under its umbrella. The restructuring plan involves exiting out of businesses like export of fish and grapes, milk processing, manufacturing bakery products like biscuits and also pickles papads and spices. Online booking for provisions through the Net and a centralized system to control inventory are also on the anvil. To begin with the co-operative plans to have a dedicated call center for customers to phone in their requirements, which would then be delivered from the nearest Apna Bazaar outlet. An online presence, on the lines of Sangam Direct-the online initiative of HLL-is under consideration. To ensure minimum inventory and maximum rotation, the co-operative is planning to centralize its supply chain management. It is talking to FMCG majors like Tata, Nestle, HLL and PG to ensure rotation without building up much inventory. While the super markets would be serviced directly by the companies, the requirements of franchisee outlets would be met by Apna Bazaar to ensure better co-ordination. Apna Bazaar operates the Akshay Labh Yojana scheme wherein the customers can deposit Rs. 10,000 at any point of time in the year and get items worth Rs. 100 per month free. They also have term deposit schemes. Apna Bazaar has also entered into an eCRM tie-up with Venture Infotek, the e-infrastructure solutions provider, whereby Venture Infotek provides the integrated end-to-end solutions, with the shared infrastructure and payment-as-you-use payment mechanism, without investment in infrastructure. The first thing on Apna Bazaars plans is to work on all 365 days like other big players. Upgrading the skills of their manpower and create vehicle parking facility are also in their agenda. They plan to have a tie-up with Citibank on co-branding. Regarding credit card, they are on the verge of signing a MoU with SBI. As visual merchandising, a new way for presenting the products will be introduced. The National Consumers Co-Operative Federation has approached Apna Bazaar and enquired about the possibility of running department stores under the brand name Apna Bazaar in Delhi and Madhya Pradesh. Apna Bazaar is planning to open another outlet in Goa as they have got a good response from the supermarket. Recommendations: Government interference has had a major effect on the democratic setup of Apna Bazaar. Therefore, lesser dependence on government should be opted for. Government should help stores like Apna Bazaar with credit at cheaper interest rates. Apna Bazaar should improve their capital assets by enrolling more members and also introduce more product varieties. In the coming years, the economy will be dominated by the retailing sector. Times are changing, organizations are changing. Changing according to times is inevitable. Apna Bazaar has to change its traditional viewpoints. It should adopt new techniques and accept change wholeheartedly. Bringing qualitative changes in their skill and especially mindset will help it to survive competition. Apna Bazaar can open one outlet offering all the products it sells in the 80 outlets so that people get all products offered by Apna Bazaar under one roof. Other activities: Healthy child competition for member children. Ayurvedic camp conducted by apna bazaar every year in November. Consumer bulletins are printed and distributed to consumers, which gives them information about various products stored by them.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Preparing Teachers for Certification Essay -- essays papers

Preparing Teachers for Certification Each state has its own specific standards that are constantly under revision. The state of Maryland issues teacher certificates for early child hood, elementary education, special education, and then several areas of secondary education. Many of these areas are the traditional, core subjects but certificates can also be obtained in areas like outdoor education, agriculture, data processing, or as a work based learning coordinator. (Certification Educator Information System, n.d.) To gain certification in each area, a prospective teacher must complete an approved program that leads to that particular certification. The traditional method of certification is through college and university programs and each one has its requirements and guide lines that will lead to such certification. In addition, â€Å"all candidates applying for an initial teacher certificate are required to present qualifying scores on the Praxis I Academic Skills Assessments and the appropriate Praxis II Subject an d Pedagogy Assessment, where required. Out-of-state candidates must meet Maryland's qualifying scores.† (Certification Educator Information System, n.d.) Information for teachers on locations, dates, and fees can be found at the Maryland State Department of Education home page. There are several different certificates that a teacher can receive upon completion of an approved program. For example, a PEC or Professional Eligibility Certificate will be issued after all certification requirements are completed and will be valid for five years to someone not currently employed in the state of Maryland (Certification Educator Information System, n.d.) Other examples of possible certificates are the Standard Professional... ...but the information is a little old since it was published in 1997. Lucas, C. (1997). Teacher education in america: reform agenda for the twenty-first century. New York: St. Martin’s Press Includes historical perspectives, as well as origins and development of teacher education in America. There is also a portion about recommendations from working teachers. This source is also a little outdated. Mack-Kirschner, A.(2003). The teacher's guide to national board certification: unpacking the standards. New Hampshire: Heinemann. This is an overview of the National Board's certification standards. She's actually explaining to teachers the preparation they must go through to get their certification. I think this is a great source for me. I have two other books with a lot of good information but this one was published in 2003 so the information is up to date.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Gothic Subculture †Sinister or Harmless? Essay

â€Å"What are the worst dangers that threaten our children today? Satanism? Drugs? Homosexuality? A culture of violence? Heat exhaustion? What if there was a danger that included all of these? That danger is here, and its name is GOTH. † 1 Those words, taken from the website hosted by Parents American Religious Organizations Defending Youth which main purpose is to inform and warn parents against dangers related to Gothic subculture, best summarize the confusion around the phenomenon of being ‘Goth’. Is gothdom a sinister cult posing danger to the society or a harmless movement, one among many? The commonly negative reputation of the Gothic subculture, especially among parents and teachers, has its roots in stereotypes. ‘Stereotype’ is defined in the Webster’s New World Dictionary as â€Å"a fixed or conventional notion or conception, as of a person, group, idea, etc. , held by a number of people, and allowing for no individuality, critical judgment, etc. † Stereotypes are usually imposed on the group of people they are applied to by others who are not within the group but are instead critical of them, very often due to lack of understanding or fear. Thus stereotypes are simplified cutouts representing general ideas rather than real living human beings, depriving them of their exceptional individual features. Such attitude easily leads to intolerance, resentment and loss of communication between general society and the subculture, hiding the real truths of alive people behind the stereotypical fiction. Among many stereotypes related to Goths, one of the most common ones is obsession with death. The commonly held view is that they are antisocial outcasts attempting suicide or desiring to kill someone else. In reality, Goths’ fascination with everything related to death is not as superficial as it appears at first sight. Their â€Å"viewpoint on death is one of acceptance of the fate that awaits us all rather than ‘whistling past the graveyard’, denying death and hoping it will just go away. Goths accept death as a natural part of life, part of the natural balance of things. This does not mean, however, that Goths invite death by attempting suicide or homicide – instead they accept and respect death for what it is, and move on. â€Å"2 Although the notion of suicide is fascinating among them, it is not accepted as a solution to their own existential problems, but as an admitted failure to their emotions of despair, loss and loneliness. In this aspect it is the self-awareness and an attempt to overcome the fear of death, an attempt to pursue a critical analysis of their own proximity to death; a different attitude towards this problem, contrary to the one shown in tabloids and TV programmes, where the idea of dying is either ignored or deprived of its dignity. As Birgit Richard points out: â€Å"The Gothics are one of the most conspicuous subcultures because they work against the suppression of ageing with their deathly pale faces in a time when sun-studio tanned complexions are the epitome of health. They become the terror of a deathless producing and consuming culture which marginalizes the process of dying and bodily decay to be able to proclaim the ideal of perpetual youth. Putting death at the centre of their style and their lives becomes a provocation by a subcultural group of adolescents which cannot be forgiven by society. Youth has to look fresh and ‘tasty’; it is not supposed to walk around ‘dead’. In a society with an ever increasing average life expectancy, dealing with death is suitable only when a certain age has been reached. † Another stereotype commonly associated with Goths is that their culture is anti-Christian with its Satanic motifs, black clothing, occult jewellery and devilish music of Marilyn Manson. They are accused of the worship of Satan, dangerous rituals and blood-drinking. Being attracted to the idea of self-mutilation, they are proud of their scars and occult symbols carved with razor blades all over their bodies. The Gothic movement is considered dark and self-destructive, glorifying everything that is morbid, and degrading everything that is good. The truth hiding behind this stereotype is different. Although the rooms of the â€Å"blacks’ are designed in a special manner, e. g. containing small altars with accessories like grave-ribbons, crucifixes, grave lamps, candles and skulls, their purpose is not to serve as a place for black masses but to â€Å"reconstruct the dark atmosphere of the cemetery, its proximity to death, or serve as a cave that shelters from a threatening outside world. â€Å"3 The colour black which dominates the style of clothing does not stand for their attraction to Satan but expresses a sense of despair, ascetic isolation and is the symbolization of inevitable death. The same meaning is vital for hair dyed black, specific make-up with black eye-shadow, lipstick and nail polish, and a chalky white face. Since Goths are attracted to everything related to death, their favourite motifs in jewellery are skulls, skeletons and bones, which serve as memento more rather than provocative items. Other popular accessories, such as crucifixes, stars of David, ankh, the pentagram and the cross turned upside down, do not serve as symbols of Satanism but as distinguishing feature from the institutionalized church or a protective talisman against evil eye. â€Å"Symbolism rejected by as irrational by other parts of society enables them to express dissatisfaction with the institutionalized church and the completely rationalized modern civilization. â€Å"Also their favourite venue, cemetery, has a completely different function than the stereotypical one, considered as a place for morbid Satanic rituals, since it serves as a symbol of mortality, silence, isolation and mourning. To the majority of society Goths are plain deviants and worshippers of Marilyn Manson and other ‘dangerous’ music which inspired the tragic Columbine shootings 5. â€Å"The titles of the songs alone are enough to show just what kind of music this is: Gloomy Sunday, The Order of Death, Draining Faces, Laughing Pain, Haunted, Movement of Fear. These are dangerous songs, performed by dangerous bands. One band for example is called Type O Negative – a blood type, and clearly a reference to Vampirism. â€Å"6 While it may be true that many Goths enjoy Marilyn Manson’s music, almost all of them agree that he is not Goth as â€Å"the controversial shock-rock star with the satanic leanings and violence-tinged music has never been a part of their [Goths’] community, artistically or philosophically. â€Å"7 Besides, Manson probably borrowed from the media portrayal of the Gothic movement which predates his stardom by at least a decade, as its origin is usually placed in 1979. In conclusion, it must be said that evaluating the whole subculture by means of stereotypes may be more sinister than the community’s rules themselves as it shows no respect for the individual, leads to intolerance and finally creates a deep chasm between the general society and the Gothic community. It should not be forgotten that Goths have to cope with the same pressures that non-Goths encounter: social anxieties, family problems, every day failures and stresses. The only thing that differs is their way of dealing with those problems; a darker one and more introspective version of ‘normal’. Tolerance and understanding is what Goths long for, as is stated by one representative of the subculture: â€Å"One way or another, those of us in the Gothic community demand to exist with as many rights and as much respect as is given to any ‘normal’ human being. Our population are millions worldwide, and we laugh, cry, and live just like anyone else. We are your doctors, your counselors, your grocers, your teachers, your students, your librarians, your favourite authors, your fathers, your daughters, and your friends. We may choose to revel in the shadows, but we smile with those who would rather live in the light of day. Being Goth is not a ‘phase’, it is not dangerous, and it is not going anywhere. Everyone deserves a chance to simply be. This is all we ask: let us be. † BIBLIOGRAPHY Covelo, Benjamin. The Goth Music Death Machine. 28 May 2004:  http://redmusic.com

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Japanese Canadians During Wwii Essay

Japanese people were blamed for everything from a bad crop to a flat tire† (Biase). Japanese Canadians claimed they were given many dirty and hateful looks, and overheard â€Å"people cursing at Japanese for their car troubles† (Biase). The Japanese Canadians were being punished for a crime they did not commit. Canada’s only defence for its actions was that, â€Å"Japanese people were not white and they ‘could’ be spies† (Biase). This meant people were suspicious and literally afraid of Japanese for being spies sent from Japan. As a result, Japanese Canadians had to deal with being blamed for things they did not deserve, thus resulting in being treated unjustly as a human being. This notice was distributed throughout British Columbia. If any Japanese were found in the prohibited areas listed, they would be incarcerated. Thirdly, the Japanese Canadians were sent to internment camps across Canada against their will. In Canada, there were 10 internment camps where, â€Å"3 were road camps, 2 were prisoner of war camps (POW) and 5 were self-supporting camps† (Robinson). Internment camps is a â€Å"large detention  center created for political opponents,  enemy aliens, people with  mental illness, members of specific ethnic or religious groups, civilian inhabitants of a critical war-zone, or other groups of people, usually during a war† (Dictionary). In this case, internment camps in Canada at the time were designed for only Japanese Canadians. Internment camps were labour/work camps, which required heavy-duty work for the 22,000 imprisoned Japanese Canadians to do. Since World War II caused a large shortage of farmers, especially sugar beet farmers, the Security Commission Council organized, â€Å"Sugar beet projects to combat the labour shortage. This gave Japanese males a choice. The choice was to work in road camps as slaves or go to the beet camps and be with their families. Working in the beet camp was the choice taken by the majority of Japanese married men† (Biase). Considering the Japanese Canadians had to live inside the camps, the living conditions inside the internment camps were poor. They were crowded and were primitive with no electricity or running water. A story from Hideo Kukubo tells what life was like during the war: â€Å"I was in that camp for four years. When it got cold the temperature went down to as much as 60 below. The buildings stood on flat land beside a lake. We lived in huts with no insulation. Even if we had the stove burning the inside of the windows would all be frosted up and white, really white. I had to lie in bed with everything on that I had†¦ at one time there were 720 people there, all men, and a lot of them were old men. † This is just one of the many horrible stories the Japanese Canadians experienced. Therefore, the Japanese Canadians were treated unfairly when they were forced to work and live in internment camps. In conclusion, the Japanese Canadians suffered during the period 1929 to 1945. They had their property and rights taken from them, they were blamed for unnecessary things and forced into camps where labour was the only thing you did all day. Therefore, when Prime Minister Brian Mulroney announced a historic redress settlement for the Japanese Canadians on September 22, 1988, it truly was the best thing to do, even though it was long overdue.