Sociocultural Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Sociocultural Theory - Essay Example 101). The debate about the definition of term 'collaborative' as well as ongoing attempts to identify relevant criteria to determine whether learning is collaborative or not does not seem to have any major implications for the basics of collaborative learning. Almost every research study exploring collaborative learning environment comes to positive conclusions (Johnson, Johnson, and Stanne, 1986; Natasi and Clements, 1991). Natasi and Clements (1991) summarize these conclusions in the following way: "Cognitive-academic and social-emotional benefits have been reported for students from early elementary through college level, from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, and having a wide range of ability levels Furthermore, cooperative learning has been used effectively across a wide range of content areas, including mathematics, reading, language arts, social studies and science" (p. 111). Initially, research in the realm of collaborative learning focused on functioning of an individual learner in a group: the theories which dominated cognitive psychology over the 1970s tended to emphasise the role of individual information processors in the process of cognition. The social context of this process was viewed as secondary to individual activity (Dillenbourg et al, 1996: 189). The last decades of the 20th century were marked by increased attention to the social context, and, consequently, improved understanding of the process of cognition. Much of the shift was due to growing influence of sociocultural theory in pedagogical practice. This theory is very helpful in predicting, explaining and justifying the above listed cognitive, psychological and social benefits of engaging students in collaborative learning activities MAIN DISCUSSION The theoretical background underlying contemporary models of collaborative learning relies heavily upon three major theories of learning: socio-constructivist theory, socio-cultural theory, and shared cognition theory (Dillenbourg et al, 1996). These three perspectives share the basic features of cognitive stance, including the focus on the interactive aspect of human development and learning, but the socio-cultural theory has been recently gaining momentum as the most influential among the three in the realm of language education (Lantolf, 2000; Wells, 1999). L. S. Vygotsky formulated the basics of socio-cultural theory in the 1920s and 1930s, though current conceptualisations of this approach also draw on works and ideas of other theorists (Luria, 1979; Wertsch, 1991, 1998; Newman and Holzman, 1993; Cole, 1996). The essence of socio-cultural theory is exploring the causal relationship between the social interactions and cognitive

Quality management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Quality management - Essay Example A number of scholars and theorists have contributed their knowledge and expertise towards the study of quality of management. Majority of such theories have been developed from actual organizational experiences. Juran, Feigenburn, and Deming were amongst the earliest theorists who contributed valuable ideas and concepts towards quality management in organizations. These ideas were further extended and made adaptable by the Japanese theorists namely; Genichi Taguchi, Shigeo Shingo, and Kaoru Ishikawa. The ideas provided by such eminent scholars led to the development of important quality management techniques such as Six Sigma, Just in time, Mc Kinsey 7S framework, Jidoko, Kaizen and quality circles amongst much more. These concepts are widely practiced in modern organizations to gain efficiency in operations and attain quality related objectives in end products. Kelemen’s dimensions In the book Managing Quality by Mihaela Kelemen, the author has provided insight upon the impor tance of quality management on the basis of eight important approaches which are divided into two important categories. The categories are mainly the managerial and the critical perspectives of the quality management approaches. These perspectives and approaches are considered to be an extended view of Garvin’s framework in quality management. However, the approaches developed by Kelemen were seen to incorporate the notions provided by different, authors. Writers were also seen to support more than one particular approach.

The Archaic Electoral College for Presidential Elections Research Paper

The Archaic Electoral College for Presidential Elections - Research Paper Example Firstly, it is important to describe how the Electoral College method currently works. Every four years, in this indirect election method, U.S. citizens vote for Electors in their respective states who, in turn, vote for a Presidential candidate. With some exceptions, when a party receives a majority in a particular state, Electors from that party are deemed to have won the state. There are a total of 538 electors in the Electoral College system. When a party wins enough states to reach a count of at least 270 electors, the Presidential nominee from that party wins the election. So, a President wins the election by an aggregate of statewide electors rather than the total number of nationwide votes. The number of Electors in each state is equal to the total number of Senators and U.S. Representatives in it (â€Å"How the Electoral College Functions† 10). Since the number of U.S. Representatives is based on population, more populous states have more electors. The electors only t ake part in this one-time vote and are not responsible for any future legislative work. They are appointees of participating political parties and typically always vote in favour of their party’s respective candidate. Historically, on four occasions the winning president did not receive the popular vote with the latest being the 2000 elections (â€Å"How the Electoral College Functions† 17) when Al Gore lost to George W. Bush by a slim margin of Electoral College votes despite receiving a higher nationwide popular vote. Bush won 271 Electoral College votes, with a margin of only 1 vote above the minimum required.

Accounting Terminology Essay Example for Free

Accounting Terminology Essay Each of the following statements may (or may not) describe one of these technical terms. For each statement, indicate the accounting term described, or answer â€Å"None† if the statement does not correctly describe any of the terms. a. The level of sales at which revenue exactly equals costs and expenses. Break-even point. b. Costs remain unchanged despite changes in sales volume. Fixed Costs. c. The span over which output is likely to vary and assumptions about cost behavior generally remain valid. Relevant Range. d. Sales revenue less variable costs and expenses. Contribution margin. e. Unit sales price minus variable cost per unit. Unit contribution margin. f. The reduction in unit cost achieved from a higher level of output. Economics of scale. g. Costs the respond to changes in sales volume by less than a proportionate amount. Semi variable costs. h. Operating income less variable costs. â€Å"None†. Exercise 20.7 – Using Cost-Volume-Profit Formulas Exercise 21.2 – Home Depot’s Financial Statements: Incremental, Sunk, and Opportunity Costs Read the footnote in Appendix A referring to Home Depot’s decision to close all of its remaining big box stores in China. Write a short paragraph identifying the incremental, sunk and opportunity costs associated with this decision. Assume that any cost savings will be invested elsewhere in more productive stores. Incremental costs relate to the difference in costs between alternative courses of action and incremental revenues. The incremental costs that would be that would occur from either remodeling or closing Home Depot an existing location would include cost of materials, overhead from the actual physical remodel, labor that includes employee pay for rearranging and moving merchandise during a remodel if it occurred, designing and planning costs. Opportunity costs are important factors when it comes to decision making because they define the costs of taking some action in terms of the value foregone or that’s given up due to a particular action taken place. Opportunity costs of remolding would include profits on lost sales if the store is closed during remodeling, loss of current sales due to decrease in customer traffic (due to excessive noise, smell, dirt and inconveniences. Stores could potentially lose profit if they are not able to stock the full line of products or keep items stocked during a remodel. Whereas a sunk cost is an outlay that has been irrevocably incurred at some time in the past; sunk costs cannot be changed no matter what course of action is taken and are irrelevant for purposes of decision making involving the future. Sunk costs related to either remodeling of the store that would need to be taken into consideration include original costs of the current store (decorations, paint, shelves, displays, carpet) and designs that will need to be replaced or removed during either remodeling or closing. Exercise 21.6 – Incremental Analysis: Make or Buy Decision The cost to Swank Company of manufacturing 15,000 units of a particular part is $135,000, of which $60,000 is fixed and $75,000 is variable. The company can buy the part from an outside supplier for $6 per unit. Fixed costs will remain the  same regardless of Swank’s decision. Should the company buy the part or continue to manufacture it? Prepare a comparative schedule in the format illustrated in Exhibit 21-6. It would be more beneficial for the company to manufacture the part rather than buy it from an outside provider. Brief Exercise 22.9 – Flows of Costs through Manufacturing Accounts The President of Cold Moo Ice Cream Company, a chain of ice cream stores in the Midwest, was unhappy with the actual six-month profit figures for the  company recently prepared by the CFO. The president asked the CFO for a profit breakdown, by store, of the actual six-month results. When the President received the report, he was extremely upset and called the CFO, into his office. The President stated, â€Å"These reports show that each store in the chain is profitable, but our company results are unprofitable! How can this be?† The CFO pointed out that each store was allowed to set prices for ice cream based on its cost structure. However, the stores’ cost structures did not include headquarters costs of the costs of advertising and delivery of products. What are the three characteristics for operating a successful responsibility accounting system? Consider whether the accounting system at Cold Moo Ice Cream Company includes the three characteristics of a successful responsibility accounting system. How could the responsibility accounting system at Cold Moo be improved? As the Textbook states, â€Å"measuring performance along the lines of management responsibility is an important function. A responsibility accounting system holds individual managers accountable for the performance of the business centers under their control and provides top management with information useful in identifying strengths and weaknesses among units throughout the organization.† The three characteristics of a successful operating accounting system will include budgets, will measure the performance, and contain timely performance reports. â€Å"Budgets serve as performance targets for each subunit in an organization. The accounting system will measure the performance of each responsibility center, and timely performance reports are prepared that compare the actual performance of each center with the amounts budgeted.† When reports are preformed frequently, it allows center managers to be able to keep their performances on target, and helps with the evaluation of the managers. It does not appear hat Cold Moo Ice Cream is following the timely reports method of the accounting system, which is essential to ensuring the financial information is accurate as possible, and to improve this aspect should be more intertwined with the actual budget and more accurately present how the performance of the store is measured. To do so the responsibility income statement should also be presented, this  contains not only the operating results of a particular part of a business but also the revenue and expenses of each profit center within that part, which could be extremely important to see how those centers within the same area measure and stack up against one another. For the responsibility income statement to be informative and useful it should essentially and efficiently be able to detail Variable Costs, Contribution Margin, Fixed Costs, Traceable Fixed Costs and Common Fixed Costs. In addition, fixed costs that are common to both product lines amount to $125,000.00. Instructions a. Prepare Chocolatiers’ responsibility income statement for the current month. Report the responsibility margin for each product line and income from operations for the company as a whole. Also include columns showing all dollar amounts as percentages of sales. b. According to the analysis performed in part a, which product line is more profitable? Should the common fixed costs be considered when determining the profitability of individual product lines? Why or why not? According the analysis in part a, the solid product line is more profitable. When determining profitability of any product line, common fixed costs should not be considered. Only the costs that are directly traceable to the product lines should be included. Common fixed costs are not directly traceable to any product, as they are arbitrarily allocated in proportion to a chosen factor, for example, machine hour or square feet of a certain space occupied. c. Chocolatiers has $15,000.00 to be used in advertising for one of the two product lines and expects that the expenditure will result in additional sales of $50,000.00. How should the company decide which product line to advertise? The effects of this campaign will typically be in both sales and variable costs, and therefore the company should select the product line based on which product will have the highest contribution margin ratio, which is the  percentage of sales, service revenues or selling price that remains after all variable costs and variable expenses have been covered. This method takes into consideration the limited time frame of the advertising campaign, where fixed costs will most likely not be affected.

Analysis of the Failure of Superior Bank and Trust Essay example -- es

Superior Bank & Trust The thrift financial Institution Superior Bank & Trust is one of the largest. It is located in Chicago and has many branches eighteen of which can be found in the Chicago area. It is owned by one of Chicago's wealthiest families the Pritzkers and Alvin Dworman a well-known real-estate investor from New York. With assets totaling $2.3 billion and deposits of $1.6 billion Superior Bank FSB got caught up in some problems with sub prime loans. This was their main focus. Sub prime lending is lending to people who are poor credit risks. They lend money or issue credit cards at high interest rates. Many companies have prospered using this method but most have gone under due to rising default rates and early prepayments by borrowers who can refinance at lower rates. Superior Bank & Trust's failure was directly related to sub prime lending. Regulators were believed to have detected problems as early as January 1999. These regulators should have been the ones to step in and notice that things weren't going the way they should have been. Instead Superior's management is bearing the brunt of the blame in this situation. Ellen Seidman states "responsibility for the success or failure of any depository institution rests with its management, directors, and owners." This may be true but if management and financial intermediaries had been performing their tasks properly they would have n...

Irony and Foreshadowing in Poe’s Short Stories Essay

In Poe’s short stories, he uses literary devices like irony and foreshadowing to increase reader interest in his stories. Irony and Foreshadowing helps to create suspense, anxiety, and humor in his works. They also help to capture the audience’s attention and draw them into the story. Poe’s irony and foreshadowing are integrated in â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado† and â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher†. â€Å"The Cask of the Amontillado† is one of the best examples of irony and foreshadowing in Poe’s works. In this story, almost every detail seems to stand for something else. These ironic details foreshadow Fortunado’s horrible death. Poe’s uses irony and foreshadowing to develop suspense and mood throughout this story. The first example of irony in this story lies in the character’s name. The name Forunato is ironic because it sounds like the word fortunate. Also Fortunato translates to â€Å"fortunate one† in Italian and suggests good luck. As we know from the beginning of the story, Fortunato is not so fortunate and his future lies in the hands of Montresor. Other ironies abound in the setting of the â€Å"Cask of the Amontillado. † This story takes place in Italy during Carnival, which is a joyous and happy time full of family, friends, and food. Carnival is the last place one would think of committing a murder. This ironic setting is one of the reasons Montresor is so successful and is why Fortunato is so surprised. A more visual and humorous irony lies in Fortunato’s apparel. â€Å"The man wore motley. He had on a tight-fitting parti-striped dress, and his head was surmounted by the conical cap and bells† (Poe â€Å"Cask†). His festive outfit contrasts with the impending doom that awaits him. Also, it is ironic that Fortunato believes that he is intelligent on the subject of wines, but he is dressed as a fool. In addition to irony, forshadowing is evident in the opening paragraph of the â€Å"Cask of the Amontillado†. Montresor’s first words to the reader are: The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge. You, who so well know the nature of my soul, will not suppose, however, that gave utterance to a threat. At length I would be avenged; this was a point definitely, settled –but the very definitiveness with which it was resolved precluded the idea of risk. I must not only punish but punish with impunity (Poe â€Å"Cask†). Clearly, Montresor has serious intentions for Fortunato, and these comments foreshadow Montresor’s vengeance on Forunato at the end of the story. Montresor says he must not only punish but punish with impunity. This foreshadows how an insult drove Montresor to take justice into his own hands and implies that Forunato’s punishment was deserved. Later in the story we see how this justice is really just an excuse for murder. Another instance of foreshadowing is when Montresor and Fortunato are in the vaults, looking for the cask of Amontillado. Fortunato begins to cough and says, â€Å"Enough, the cough’s a mere nothing; it will not kill me. I shall not die of a cough† (Poe â€Å"Cask†). This foreshadows his death because Fortunato was right in that he would not die of a cough but that he would die of something much more sinister. The clueless Fortunato also mentions that he has forgotten what Montresor’s family coat of arms looks like. Montresor describes his coat of arms as â€Å"A huge human foot d’or, in a field azure; the foot crushes a serpent rampant whose fangs are imbedded in the heel† (Poe â€Å"Cask†). This symbolically foreshadows Fortunato’s death because Montresor represents the human foot crushing the serpent, which represents Fortunato. This coat of arms shows that Montresor was not the first in his family to take justice into his own hands, a hint that Fortunato does not pick up on. â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† also makes good use of irony and foreshadowing. It is one of Poe’s most well-known short stories and is considered one of his best. This story shows us how important irony and foreshadowing are to a gothic tale by providing suspense and humor to Poe’s stories. One instance of irony in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† is in one of Usher’s many paintings. In this painting, Usher paints a vault for the burial of a body. This is ironic because it portrays the tomb in which Madeline will be buried. It also shows how Lady Madeline would be buried alive. This painting signifies Usher’s dark thoughts and leads us to believe that he planned to bury Lady Madeline alive. Another example of irony is when the narrator reads Usher the story the â€Å"Mad Trist†. The narrator reads this story in order to calm both his and Usher’s nerves. This is ironic because the â€Å"Mad Trist† is a parody about a medieval romance. Poe introduces this story at the greatest moment of tension in the story; the Narrator cannot sleep, a storm rages outside, and Usher is on the brink of hysteria. The narrator could not have picked a worse time to read this book. (Poe â€Å"Usher’). Probably the most ironic part of the story was the change that Lady Madeline experiences before she is buried and after she is buried. When the narrator first sees Madeline, before she is buried, she is lifeless and can barely move or talk. After she comes back from being buried alive however, she has much more of an impact on the people and things around her. When she comes back from the dead, she has enough strength to tackle and kill Usher. This shows us that Lady Madeline has grown since her death. â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† is known for its Gothic elements. In this story Poe describes the house as bleak, gloomy, and close to crumbling down. When the narrator first sees the house at the beginning of the story he says, â€Å"I know not how it was — but, with the first glimpse of the building, a sense of insufferable gloom pervaded my spirit† (Poe 139). The gloom and bleakness of the house foreshadows the doom and horrors that will occur inside the house later on in the story. Poe lets us know from the beginning of the story that something execrable will happen inside that house. Poe’s description of the Lady Madeline as having â€Å"affections of a partially cataleptical character† (155) predicts her early death. The word cataleptical means to be in a state in which consciousness and feeling are lost and the body assumes a death-like rigidity. Lady Madeline’s description foreshadows her death because she is described as lifeless and lost. She seems as if she was already dead. The most obvious example of foreshadowing in this story lies in the title. â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† foreshadows what will happen to not only the physical House of Usher, but also the symbolic House of Usher. Symbolically, the House of Usher represents the bloodline of Ushers. When the house crumbles to the ground at the end of the story, it represents the end of the Usher bloodline. â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado† and â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† give a multitude of examples of both irony and foreshadowing. Poe uses these literary devices to develop suspense and mood in these stories. Without these literary devices, his stories would seem flat and boring. Poe’s literary devices are what captured and maintained my interests thought his stories.

Principles of managing information and producing documents Essay

Assessment You should use this file to complete your Assessment. The first thing you need to do is save a copy of this document, either onto your computer or a disk Then work through your Assessment, remembering to save your work regularly When you’ve finished, print out a copy to keep for reference Then, go to www.vision2learn.com and send your completed Assessment to your tutor via your My Study area – make sure it is clearly marked with your name, the course title and the Unit and Assessment number. Please note that this Assessment document has 5 pages and is made up of 4 Sections. Name: Sylvia Pratt Section 1 – Understand the purpose of information technology in a business environment 1. In relation to your current business environment (or one that you are familiar with), identify at least two different types of information technology that may be used when completing work tasks. The two different information technologies used are: 1. Spreadsheet 2. Word Processing 2. What are the benefits to businesses (and others) of using information technology for doing work tasks? Spreadsheet provides accurate calculation Section 2 – Understand how to manage electronic and paper-based information 1. Explain the purpose of agreeing objectives and deadlines when researching information. If possible, refer to specific examples from research tasks you have worked on to support your answer. 2. Identify the different ways of researching, organising and reporting information. 3a) For your own organisation (or one you know well), describe the procedures that need to be followed when archiving, retrieving and deleting information. Your answer should cover procedures for both electronic and paper-based information. 3b) When following the procedures outlined in Question 3a above, are there any legal requirements to consider? 4. Why is confidentiality critical when managing information? Section 3 – Understand the purpose of producing documents that are fit for purpose 1. Identify at least two reasons for producing documents that are fit for purpose. 2. Use the table below to describe some of the different types and styles of documents that are produced in a business environment, and then explain when these different options may be used. Documents When they are used Section 4 – Know the procedures to be followed when producing documents 1. In most organisations, time is taken to agree the purpose, content, layout, quality standards and deadlines for the production of documents. What are the reasons for doing this level of planning? 2. Businesses will spend time checking finished documents for accuracy and correctness. a) How is this done? b) Why is this done? 3. Explain the purpose of following confidentiality and data protection procedures when preparing documents. 4. In business environments, there is often a requirement to use notes as the basis for text and documents. a) Compare the different types of documents that can be produced from notes and include a description of the format of each document. b) Explain the procedures to be followed when preparing text from notes. Once you have completed all 4 Sections of this Assessment, go to www.vision2learn.com and send your work to your tutor for marking.