The Bribery Scandal at Siemens Ag Essays

The Bribery Scandal at Siemens Ag Essays The Bribery Scandal at Siemens Ag Paper The Bribery Scandal at Siemens Ag Paper The Siemens bribery scandal brought to light a strategic dilemma facing multi-national firms attempting to gain a competitive edge by operating abroad; specifically, how can they balance adherence to their own ethical and legal standards with the customs required to do business efficiently, or perhaps at all, in foreign markets? ?Germany’s Co-Determination law has since drawn intense criticism as hampering competitiveness and creating untenable situations for management, rife with conflict-of-interest issues, not only because of Siemens, but also because of the number of other German-based companies accused of bribing labor union representatives. ?The forced resignation of CEO, Klaus Kleinfeld, despite the resulting success during his tenure, illustrates the predicament international managers face with regard to conflicting operational methods, and leads us to larger questions about accountability within an organization.? As the case study author states, the Siemens scandal is representative of what many firms believe is the inevitable â€Å"ethical cost of intense competition in global markets†, particularly emerging markets, where payments for contracts are described as common place and perhaps even required. ?Perhaps the most glaringly problematic observation remains that the Siemens AG top management claims that they failed to notice rampant, and arguably conspicuous embezzlement leading to lucrative foreign contracts. Are there flaws in the German System of Corporate Governance? The 2007 scandal resulting in charges against Siemens’ Chief of Information Technology, Johannes Feldmayer, and Chief of Finance, Karl-Hermann Baumann, was rooted in illegal payments designed to work around German corporate governance laws. In this instance, IG Metall complained that Siemens was illegally funding smaller, rival union, AUB, in an attempt to grow and cultivate it as an ally against IG Metall in the bargaining process. This scandal marked the beginning of the unearthing of unethical behaviors in other German-based firms that have since lead to criticism that the Co-Determination law is antiquated and hampers competitiveness. The Co-Determination law was designed to provide a mechanism for worker participation in management decision-making via a two-tiered system with a supervisory board having oversight of the management board. Critics, however, argue that the law, in fact, limits the management board’s ability to make strategic decisions due to the control exerted by labor holding 50% of the seats on the supervisory board. I agree with the author’s statement that this creates, â€Å"a suspicious alliance between the management and the labor representatives†. The end result was often agreements made prior to the official meetings to facilitate outcomes favorable to management. Although the law was meant to bring balance to the corporate governance structure, I would argue that the potential for corruption of the labor representatives, or on the other end of the spectrum, obstruction of the management board, has a destabilizing effect likely to manifest in questionable and dysfunctional partnerships, such as was the case with Siemens. Another component of the Co-Determination law prevents selection of supervisory board members who are non-German, regardless of the expertise or perspective they could bring to the table. Naturally, the result is a limited, often recurring, and potentially like-minded pool of candidates, which the author points out, may have contributed to the ousting of Kleinfeld. The facts presented indicate that the lion’s share of the bribery scandal took place under Heinrich von Pierer, who was the CEO from 1992 until 2005, and the supervisory board chairman from 2005 to 2007. Kleinfeld took over in 2005 and, within a period of only two years, had accomplished a remarkable and profitable restructuring, as evidenced by a 26% increase in the stock price. This was not without growing pains, however, as it is speculated that Kleinfeld’s aggressive management style, often described as â€Å"American†, did not meet with the approval of the more conservative supervisory board. As such, analysts opined that the bribery scandal was used as an opportunity to remove Kleinfeld, citing the need for a â€Å"new beginning†. I agree that this is likely the case. The growth under Kleinfeld was impressive, particularly given the timeframe. Furthermore, the timing of the actual instances of bribery put them squarely during von Pierer’s tenure as CEO; and he had already stepped down from the supervisory board. Nevertheless, under the power granted by the Co-Determination law, the supervisory board opted to bring in a new CEO, Peter Loescher, indicating, in my opinion, that its issue with Kleinfeld was not performance based. Why Such Risky Business? The history of Siemens AG paints a picture of a successful and arguably dominant multi-national firm, with a reputation for a war chest of competencies and innovative products. The obvious question, then, is why would a firm with this resume and list of global achievements become involved with corruption and criminal behavior? The author recounts the opinions of analysts who believe the answer is simple; many firms view the types of payments at the heart of the Siemens scandal to be the necessary cost of doing business in the current global environment. At first glance, the facts of this case may seem to support this theory. There were â‚ ¬420 million of questionable payments made over a seven year period from 1999 to 2006. Official Siemens records showed the payments as having gone to external consultants. It was determined, however, that they were actually paid to foreign purchasing officials and that the expenditures coincided with the procurement of â€Å"fixed line telecommunications business in various international markets†, including Italy, Puerto Rico, Greece, and the United States. By March of 2007, two former Siemens managers were convicted of embezzlement of company funds for the purpose of bribing foreign officials. The employees argued that their actions did not violate any laws, resulted in no personal gain, and were taken solely for the purpose of improving Siemens’ positioning. They argued that they worked, only to secure a lucrative deal in which the payments were required by Enel management as part of the standard bid process. In fact, Siemens AG argued that the court order requiring forfeiture of earnings from the contract, prior to 2002 when the German government instituted a law prohibiting bribes to private officials abroad, specifically, had no basis in law. As previously stated, these events may appear to support the case in favor of questionable payments and loose ethical boundaries as a necessary cost of business. It is my opinion, however, that these events illustrate a flawed management culture and strategy. They are evidence of a system where a focus on true technological innovation has given way to a focus on unfettered expansion, and the unnatural duplication of the monopolistic type control over infrastructure in developing countries that was enjoyed during previous decades in other parts of the now industrialized world. If Siemens had bolstered their technologically competitive strength, they would not need to rely so heavily on their financial strength to gain entry into markets. Is this the New Cost of Doing Business? The fact that Siemens top management continue to take the official position that, despite the scope, depth, and intricacies of the bribery scandal, they had no knowledge of it remains difficult to explain. Further, they take no responsibility, save acknowledgement that they lacked adequate internal compliance systems. I find the truthfulness of this position to be of remote possibility due to the conspicuousness and magnitude of the payments, as well as their direct correlation with the securing of highly lucrative contracts. Moreover, the idea that entire sections of Siemens’ managers were of the character that they would be comfortable blatantly committing criminal acts for the sole benefit of their employer, but not themselves, I find to be quite counter-intuitive. The debate over whether events such as those unearthed at Siemens are part of the usual and customary cost of doing business abroad must be framed in terms of the complete denial of culpability by the top management. A legitimate, above-board expense is accounted for, tracked, and justified; this is the case even when it is outside the norms of the firm’s home country. It is not hidden from shareholders. A buffer of scapegoat-able employees need not lie between it and top management. If a light cannot be readily shown upon it, I believe it is without question, unethical. Whether or not it is illegal, however, depends upon the laws in the countries the firm is operating in. I could conceive of a situation where a firm could distribute cash â€Å"incentive† payments openly, on the books, as well as legally. In addition, firms have other options. They could improve their offerings to increase the competitiveness of the bid, and/or structure them with above-board incentives. They could operate with a clear and unwavering zero-tolerance policy for bribery; recognizing that it will be necessary to educate those conducting bid processes in markets where it is believed to be common to expect questionable payments. A firm could also exercise patience, and restraint, and be willing to walk away from markets requiring participation in corrupt processes. The Kleinfeld Conclusion. The Siemens AG supervisory board did provide adequate justification for the decision not to renew Kleinfeld’s contract, due to the scandals breaking during his time as CEO; yet, I believe that they were wrong in doing so in light of his track record of impressive and expedient accomplishments. Though his termination clearly pleased the board, unless Mr.  Loescher is able to maintain the growth trajectory set by Kleinfeld, I believe his departure will not inspire confidence from management or shareholders. This is of concern because confidence has a direct impact on value, which could make it harder to move beyond the bribery scandal. Was it Worth It? One question still remains: was Siemens really at fault, given the apparent prevalence of these sorts of issues among other German companies; or was their only sin getting caught? It is my opinion that the magnitude of the â€Å"bribing† which took place at Siemens made it highly unlikely that knowledge of it would stay buried. I believe Siemens had to have anticipated this, hence the buffer between top management and the â€Å"bribers†. I believe they made a calculated business decision that whatever the consequence may ultimately be, it was a greater benefit to get a foot hold in the infrastructure of those markets. In short, yes, Siemens is to blame, and yes, they are okay with it. Bibliography Deresky, H. (2011). International Management: Managing Across Borders and Cultures (7th Edition ed. ). Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall.

Business Coursework

Business Coursework Business Coursework Any student attending business courses has to write a business courseworkat some point in their academic career. Actually, business coursework may weight up to 50% of your final grade. Thus, students should be very responsible with regards business coursework writing. You cannot handle such a project overnight, as you have to devote enough time to writing, organizing ideas, researching thoughts of others, and editing your final draft of business coursework. Business is complex study and it includes a lot of themes for discussion. Any them can be interpreted into the topic anyhow related to it, so while choosing the topic you should be sure that you are keen on it and, very important, that you can add something new into the current knowledge on the topic. It is of primary importance to use the most relevant, updated resources for your business coursework writing: Moreover, you should rely on journal and magazine articles, books, and governmental sites only to support your statements. Wikipedia, personal blogs, or forum postings are not treated as reliable sources of information and it will not help you get a good grade. Business coursework should: have a good topic for discussion. It must not be too narrow as well as not too wide, because in the first case you will have to search for the needed material and maybe to pay for the information; while in the second case you will not include all the information into one business coursework.There is a danger of the treading water. Thus, be wise with the choice of sources. be planned in advance. It is not easy to conduct thorough research. You will have to collect material, search for the questions, write an outline and format your paper and many other things to do. If you do not think over the sequence of ideas, the chaos will be the defining feature of your business coursework.Start working. be written according to the required structure. You have heard a lot of times that any written assignment should be done in the following structure: introduction, body parts and conclusion, - but you do not know that introduction should contain the thesis statement, the body parts should have as many paragraphs as many thoughts you want to develop in thebusiness coursework, the conclusion should be written according to the introduction and include your own solutions to the problem. So structure properly. You may avoid all of these painful aspects of business coursework writing process if you rely on professionalism of our writers! We can definitely deliver a well-written coursework on time. Satisfaction with quality guaranteed! Interesting posts: Cause and Effect Essay Argumentative Essay Topics English Essay Writing Thesis Writing Thesis Topics

Unit 7 Seminar Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Unit 7 Seminar - Research Paper Example This is very necessary for the recovery period of the client since most of this time, the client will be, mostly with the mother or the family. When the client is a minor below 12 year old, it is necessary that their problems are shared with their parents even without their consent. This is very necessary as to ensure proper care by the family is accorded to the minor as they undergo their recovery period. However, when the minor is 16 hears and above, the decision to inform the mother can be weighed (Guttmacher, 2014). If the minor seem to be a responsible one, the steps to care for them can be aligned to the mother or the family members, but most confidential information can be kept by the service provider. This is because the minor seem mature enough and responsible to care for themselves. However, in any case the service provider feels it deem to let the mother of the client know, caution should be taken for the mother not to overreact or do anything that will let the client know that they were told a thing by the service provider (Susan, 2001). To the client, they must know that, in case of any problem, family always come first. Therefore, it would be so helpful to find a family that is so understanding to deal with any situation. However, the family members can only be that understanding and cooperative once they know the reason why they have to behave in such a way towards the client. If the family members decide to help the client, they can do this best by giving all the unconditional love, respect, care, and support in any way possible. The family members can give hope and encouragement to the clients by giving them inspirational talks and living examples with similar situations like

Emergence of the modern civil rights movement 1950s Research Paper

Emergence of the modern civil rights movement 1950s - Research Paper Example In essence, the chorus of change was unwelcomed during this period. The activism advocated for equal rights and fair treatment of all human beings regardless of color and race. They employed tactics such as protest, legal challenges, and freedom rides to enhance protection of United States and equal opportunity for all. In essence, the African America scholars vowed with loyalty to the Nation and abolition of slavery, as well as, readmission to the nation Majority of the black people living in America developed a collective union that advocated for personal privileges as the law states. The union claims that for the reason of color the semi-white people, especially those living in developed nations such as United States have been neglected and some of their privileges denied (Renee, pg85). To begin with, the semi-whites living in Diaspora did not enjoy some of their privileges; this came about because of the color issue. Relating to this phenomenon, the whites who are the real inhabitants of the land viewed the blacks as inhabitants who had no go a head of enjoying anything good that the land produced. Consequently, they decided to join hands and fight for what they viewed as their rights. Their fight was directed against both the public authorities and social systems. The two believed there was the hindrance to the rights they deserved. Surprisingly, some whites also joined in to support this movement. It should be noted that African American people had been denied access to several things. Some of the things that they were denied access to; were the right for equality in housing, equality for equality in education, employment opportunities, therefore they thought that making headways will bring them fruits they gave been longing for (Cohen, 56). Due to the headways, they started experiencing professional sector jobs as well as white-collar jobs. To some degree, the African Americans started to get light however, they still had to continue pressing on,

Supporting Pupils On Autistic Spectrum In Mainstream Classroom Education Essay

Supporting Pupils On Autistic Spectrum In Mainstream Classroom Education Essay Introduction The National Autistic Society (NAS) describes Autism as: A lifelong developmental disability that affects how a person communicates with, and relates to, other people and the world around them. It  is a spectrum condition, which means that, while all people with autism share certain areas of difficulty, their condition will affect them in different ways.  Asperger syndrome is a form of autism. (NAS, website) Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) can have an effect on the ability of a child to learn and participate in the classroom, however, there are ways to ensure autistic children learn and participate within the mainstream environment. As a teacher of Support for Learning, I am working in both the Primary and Secondary sectors. My role involves supporting children with additional needs within a mainstream school, either in the classroom, one-to-one or in small groups. The pupils I support display an array of additional needs including those exhibiting autistic tendencies. Looking at a case study of a child within a mainstream primary school exhibiting autistic tendencies, this assignment discusses the topic of ASD; the historical aspects, characteristics, theories and diagnosis, policy and legislation, and support provided. The Case Study Child Pupil N is 10 years old, and in primary 5. When the family moved from England to Scotland he was held back for a year in nursery due to delayed development. He had communication and language difficulties which were amplified when he started nursery in a Scottish school, not only did he have difficulties understanding spoken language, but he now had to contend with the Scottish accent as well. To gain some background information, I designed a questionnaire for parents to complete. The questionnaire was carried out verbally during a telephone conversation with Ns mother. During the conversation, she also clarified some of the questions in more detail. (See appendix 1) As shown in the questionnaire, and from my own observations, some of the characteristics displayed by pupil N, which are identified in the triad of impairments, include: lack of eye contact, poor social skills, difficulty in forming friendships with peers, delayed speech although he now speaks fluently, however he does have difficulty in understanding language; liking for sameness, a special interest in tractors, does not initiate and sustain conversation, has had frequent diarrhoea and issues with going to the toilet, which seems to have improved as he has grown older; he can also occasionally, swear and display aggressive behaviour towards others, and gets in trouble for this at school. The Historical aspects of Autism Research in Autism dates back to 1938, though Wing (1993) suggests there were accounts in literature prior to this, but states there is no information as to the occurrence of autism before the second half of the twentieth century, however Volkmar, et al (2005) suggests that in 1867 Henry Maudsley possibly made the first step toward a classification by grouping children with peculiar, unhinged behavior under the label insane. He suggested a number of subgroups, one of which he called instinctive insanity, which could indicate that some of the children he discussed had ASD. Studies carried out by Kanner in 1943 involved children identified as having conditions which were different and unique from anything recognized so far. Around the same time, but independently, Asperger also carried out work in the same field. All of the children in Kanners study were different but displayed very similar characteristics; the common elements found in these children included a lack of emotion, repetitive actions, speech formation problems, ability to manipulate various objects, learning difficulties, and their levels of intelligence. Kanner noted the symptoms were very similar to those of schizophrenia however, they appeared to manifest at a much earlier age. He assumed that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. these children had come into the world with an innate inability to form the usual, biologically provided affective contact with people. (Kanner, 1943 p250) Asperger discovered many individuals had similar problems with social skills and repetitive actions but did not have trouble with learning or their cognitive abilities. Some showed exceptional talents or abilities that were considered outstanding. Both Kanners 1943 study Autistic Disturbances in Affective Contact and Aspergers 1944 study Autistic Psychopathy in Childhood are important in early autism research, though Aspergers study was not translated into English until 1991 by Dr. Uta Frith. (Long, B. 2007, website) Both Kanner and Asperger described autism as a distinctive developmental disorder that had not been clinically described before; people suffering from it were unduly considered to be mentally handicapped. (Bogdashina. 2005) Defining Autism There has been much research, and varying theories in the field of autism since the studies of Kanner and Asperger, however there does not appear to be a single core deficit, nor is there a cure. Authors such as Happe (1994), Powell and Jordan (1997), Sicile-Kira (2003), Bogdashina (2005), and Lathe (2006), discuss the most universally used criteria for defining and diagnosing autism which is known as Wings Triad of Impairments. The Triad of Impairments is based on certain behavioural characteristics, described by Schreibman (2005) as deficits, which are exhibited in three main areas: impairments of social interaction, impairments in social communication and impairments in imagination. Impairments of Social Interaction Wing (2003) suggests this can be shown in different ways, and groups them into four categories: The aloof group Probably the most common social impairment in young children; behaving as if other people do not exist, and not responding when spoken to; appearing to have empty expressionless faces unless displaying extreme anger, distress or joy. They tend not to want to be touched, and do not make eye contact; rather they look past or straight through you. They show no sympathy if you are in pain or upset, and seem to be in a world of their own. For some it may change as they grow older, but for others it may continue throughout life. The passive group Children and adults are not completely cut off and accept approaches from others; however they do not instigate social interaction; also having difficulties with eye contact but can often make contact when reminded. Passive children are happy to join in games but can often be left out when games change. Generally, their behaviour is less problematic although some can display disturbed behaviour during adolescence. The active but odd group People in this category can initiate contact with others but this can appear odd and inappropriate, and tends to be with those in charge rather than their peers. They appear to be concerned with their own needs rather than those of others. When not getting the attention they want, they can behave aggressively towards others, due to the lack of understanding of social interaction. The over-formal, stilted group This type of behaviour usually manifests in later adolescence, in those who are more able, with a good level of language. They tend to be over polite and formal, and try very hard to be well behaved. However, they do not fully understand the rules of social interaction and have difficulty adapting their behaviour to different situations. Impairments of social communication Baron-Cohen (2008) claims that if children do not produce single words by the age of two, or phrased speech by the age of three; they are identified as having language delay. Pupil N did not speak until nursery age, even then, he could not form the words properly and was referred for Speech and Language Therapy (SALT). Wing (2003), suggests that all children and adults with ASD have communication problems; however Baron-Cohen (2008) suggests there is no speech and language delay with Asperger Syndrome. Wing (2003) states that speech and language delays are common, some may never speak at all. Those who do speak often start by repeating words echolalia, spoken by others. Echolalia can be immediate or delayed. With delayed echolalia, they can often repeat something randomly that they have heard previously, which could be some time ago. The level of understanding varies; most have some understanding although this can be limited. They also have difficulties in understanding non-verbal communication such as nodding ones head, and facial expressions. A major characteristic is that they take things literally, for example, if they were told it is raining cats and dogs, they would expect to see cats and dogs falling from the sky, therefore care is needed when speaking to a person with an ASD; figures of speech can be taken at face value, leading to stress and terror. The majority of people with ASD have an odd monotonous tone when speaking, which can be inappropriate, they can occasionally speak too loud or too quiet; some often use their special voice which is different from their own. Impairments of Imagination Children with ASD are unable to develop imaginative play. Some do show evidence of imaginative play; however it tends to be very repetitive, doing the same thing over and over again. Some may even copy a character they have seen on television or in a book, or a non-living object, but also in a repetitive manor. Other repetitive activities include tapping, tasting, smelling, feeling and scratching different surfaces, and some can inflict self-injury in the form of scratching, biting and head-banging. (Wing, 2003) Other features suggested by Sicile-Kira, (2003) include: Not liking change in routine or environment Not reaching developmental milestones Only eating certain foods Eating or chewing unusual things Lacking of common sense Not understanding simple requests Frequent diarrhoea, upset stomach or constipation. Theories in Autism Theoretical approaches to research in Autism include neuropathological and neuropsychological. Neuropathological Neuropathology relates to the central nervous system and brain. Discussed by Frith (2003) and Feinstein (2010), Kemper and Bauman carried out a study which led to autism being treated as a biological disorder. They found that cells in the hippocampus, subiculum and amygdala; parts of the brain associated with emotions, space, behaviour and memory (OMara et al, 2009), were decreased in size and closely packed, and suggested the irregularity occurred in the cells during early development. Anthony Bailey noted that four out of six people with autism had unusually large heavy brains, and Dr. Eric Courchesne reported that he found evidence of rapid brain overgrowth in the first year, in infants who develop autism. Dr Manuel Casanova investigated mini-columns of neurons; the smallest unit of cells capable of processing information, and suggested they are smaller and more abundant in autistic people. Gillberg, Kemper and Bauman were interested in both sides of the brain as the left side deals with linguistic performance, while the right side deals with non-verbal communications such as, gestures and emotional expression, which are impaired in autism. (Feinstein, 2010) Neuropsychological Theories The non-social features that have been explained by researchers include: theory of mind, weak central coherence, executive dysfunction and joint attention. Theory of Mind Theory of mind is the ability to impute mental states to self and others. (Doherty 2008) Baron-Cohen, Leslie and Frith (1985) suggested that autistic children do not develop theory of mind (ToM). Research was carried out by using the Sally Anne test (See appendix 2) which suggested that they suffer from mind blindness and cannot envisage what others might think. ToM attracted criticism due to the fact that dolls were used instead of real people. Baron-Cohen cited by Feinstein (2010), stated that the test produced similar results after being carried out again with real people. Weak central coherence Normally developing people process information by looking at and understanding the whole picture. Frith and Happà © cited by Rajendran and Mitchell (2007), suggest people with autism process the component parts individually rather than the whole; indicating that they have weak global coherence. Shah and Frith tested central coherence using the Wechsler block design (See appendix 3), which requires children to use separate blocks to construct an entire design. They found that autistic children produced a higher score than others in the test, and were also faster in constructing the design. (Frith 1985, Shah and Frith, 1993) Frith, cited by Rajendran and Mitchell (2007), argues that autistic people perform better on these tasks because they lack the understanding of global form. Executive Dysfunction Executive function (EF) is defined as the ability to sustain problem-solving activities for achieving future goals. EF is used for activities such as planning, organizing, strategizing and paying attention to and remembering details. Researchers have noted that symptoms that are not explained by ToM can resemble specific brain injury symptoms, which has led to Ozonoff theorizing that autism could be explained as a deficit in EF. However, different researchers have produced differing results, which suggests that not all autistic individuals exhibit EF problems, also, these difficulties are seen in other disorders and not exclusive to autism. (Rajendran and Mitchell 2007) Joint attention Joint attention is the way in which one draws somebodys attention to a stimulus by gazing or pointing. This developmental milestone emerges around six months of age. Charman (2003) suggests impairments in joint attention are among the earliest signs of the disorder. There has been other hypothesis suggested as causing autism such as the triple MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine, implicated by Dr Andrew Wakefield, which is administered to children at eighteen months, around the same time that autism is most commonly detected. Rutter, cited by Feinstein (2010), stated that although research has pointed out that there is no link between autism and the MMR, there are still some parents who choose to have individual vaccinations for their children. Although many theories have been connected with the origins of autism, the core deficits of the disorder are still unknown. Kemper, cited by Feinstein (2010), stated: there is not going to be one cause or treatment. Diagnosis Sicile-Kira, (2003) states that there is no medical test to diagnose ASD, and any diagnosis is based on observation of behavioural characteristics. Medical practitioners base the diagnosis on guidelines set out in the World Health Organizations International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10), which requires that all three of the triad of impairments are present at 36 months of age; or the American Psychiatric Associations system the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV) and (DSM-IV-TR), which also requires that the age of onset should be recorded. (AWARES.org, website) The ICD-10 specifies that at least 8 of the 16 specified items must be fulfilled, which should include 3 from Impairments of reciprocal social interaction, 2 from Qualitative abnormalities in communication, and 2 from Restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behaviour, interests and activities. The diagnosis for Asperger Syndrome is similar to Autism however; the diagnosis requires that single words should have developed by two years of age or earlier. (World Health Organization, 1993) The Criteria from DSM-IV specifies there should be a total of six or more items which includes 2 from Qualitative impairments in social interaction, 1 from each of the other areas. For Asperger Syndrome, the DSM-IV also states there should be no significant impairments in language communication. (American Psychiatric Association, Internet source) The guidelines for diagnosing autism differ from each other in that the ICD-10 requires a minimum of 8 manifestations for a diagnosis, whereas, the DSM-IV only requires 6. It appears that a person may or may not be diagnosed with autism, depending on which criteria are used. After many conversations with researchers, Feinstein (2010) suggests that there has been an increase in the prevalence of Autism, possibly due to the expansion of the spectrum and improvements in diagnostic tools. Dorothy Bishop re-tested adults diagnosed with speech and language disorder as children, but not autism, which resulted in a quarter of them being re-diagnosed with autism. (Feinstein, 2010) Criticisms of diagnostic criteria Cited by Feinstein (2010), researchers such as Lorna Wing, Dr Patricia Howlin, Christopher Gillberg, and Dr Fred Volkmar who was on the DSM-IV classification drafting committee, have criticized the ICD-10 and DSM-IV, especially as far as Asperger syndrome is concerned. They suggest it is very feigned; both criteria state that spoken language must be normal for an Asperger syndrome diagnosis, when in fact; Asperger originally stated that peculiarities of speech and language were a key feature. Fombonne (1999) suggests that there are more boys than girls diagnosed with autism; on the other hand, Dr Judith Gould cited by Hill (2009) argues that doctors are failing to diagnose thousands of girls who have Aspergers syndrome, and suggests that girls are not being noticed in the first place, or if they ask for help, they are being turned away and are often rejected when referred for diagnosis. Pupil N appears to display many signs of autism but does not have a medical diagnosis; however he has been diagnosed with speech and language delay, and health issues such as toileting. HMIE (2006), state that for best practice, education authorities should not limit support only to those with a formal ASD medical diagnosis. There are many reasons why N may not have an official diagnosis. Autism is very complex; therefore it is possible that the behaviours he displays fit into more than one category, or none at all, depending on any criteria used, which can make it difficult to ascertain. Also, diagnosis can be time consuming and perhaps stressful for the child and the parents. A survey carried out by Osborne and Reed (2008) examined how communication between parents and professionals concerning ASD and its diagnosis, could be facilitated; most parents wanted a quicker and easier process, and would prefer the procedure to be more consistent in content and structure. They also called for better professional training and awareness about ASD, especially regarding the information that professionals possess, and the interpersonal skills of some professionals. Sicile-Kira, (2003) suggests if parents have concerns about their child, it is important to seek advice from a medical professional who is experienced in ASD, and acquire a diagnosis as early as possible to gain access to services. Another reason which may prevent a parent from requesting a medical diagnosis is the stigma of labeling a child. Labeling can suggest a low overall attainment compared with their peers, have an effect on the attitude and behaviour of teachers towards children, and affect the children themselves. (Hart, et al, 2004) Authors such as Sicile-Kira, (2003) and Ho, (2004) comment that labels ascertain the eligibility for people to access benefits and services, however, Ho (2004) also argues that it provides an excuse for school officials to assume a medical model of learning disabilities, and ignore other problems in our educational and social systems that give rise to a range of students learning difficulties. Policy and Legislation In 2001, Scottish Ministers commissioned the Public Health Institute of Scotland (PHIS, now NHS) to carry out a needs assessment of services for people with ASD in Scotland. The aim was to look at current service provision, and provide advice on how the services could better meet the needs of both children and adults with ASD. The report suggested a lack of understanding amongst service providers of the nature of ASD and made 32 recommendations, resulting in the National ASD Reference Group being set up by The Scottish Executive in June 2002, to identify priorities to support the development of good practice across a range of services. (PHIS, 2001) The Scottish Executive (2006) suggested an audit of training in each NHS board with a view to addressing training needs and gaps, this corroborates the earlier discussion that parents suggested there is a need for more professional training and awareness about ASD, however, the Scottish Executive (2006) only discussed training for health practitioners and not education. In the past, pupils with additional needs would have been educated within a special school; recent legislation and policy such as The Standards in Scotlands Schools etc Act 2000, and The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act, 2004, places a duty on education authorities to meet the needs of all pupils in a mainstream environment, where possible, alongside their peers, including those with additional support needs. Children are described as having additional support needs if they require additional support to enable them to make progress in their learning. My local authority provides guidance to schools for supporting children with autism, with a staged intervention procedure to meet the needs of children and young people on the autistic spectrum, which  acknowledges the role of multi-agencies in developing consistency in both school and home. HMIE (2006) implies that some education staff feel they do not have enough knowledge and understanding of ASD therefore, training for all staff involved in the education of pupils with ASD is an important area to develop. They also argue that parents are not always kept fully informed about the range of provision available for their children, implying there is a greater need for collaboration between parents, teachers and other professionals. The HMIE report highlights a conversation with Ns class teacher (appendix 4), in which she commented that he is a bit strange, and gave the impression that she is unaware of Ns difficulties, therefore, there is a need for more collaboration to develop a good working relationship with the class teacher, pupil and parents, in order to meet his learning needs. Collaboration can mean different things to different people, at different times; on a professional level, through sharing good practice, it can improve effectiveness, self-reflection and teacher learning; on a personal level, it can enhance moral support and confidence. Effective schools need effective communication and collaboration amongst staff, other agents, parents and pupils. (Head 2003) Classroom Practice Powell and Jordan (1997) state that a great deal of what needs to be taught to pupils with autism is out-with the curriculum, such as interaction and communication skills, therefore the needs of the child should determine the curriculum. Most children require some one-to-one teaching, not just to address their difficulties, but also develop their skills and strengths. Pupil N was known to the Speech and Language Services in England prior to moving to Scotland (See appendix 5), and received some one-to-one support in the form of SALT, which continued until 2007. He then received an Individualised Educational Programme (IEP) and support at school level to address his literacy skills. When I started this post a teacher of SFL in January 2010 pupil N was being removed from class along with five other pupils, to work on the literacy program Read and Write Inc (RWI) (See appendix 6), which provides a structured approach to the teaching of phonics and literacy. (Miskin, R, website updated 2010) As I did not know anything about the pupils at the start, I decided to re-assess their reading ability in the RWI programme, and found that although pupil N could read the words, he did not fully understand. I have recently been involved in auditing pupils needs within the school, to identify that require high, medium and low priority support, along with colleagues, with a view to making changes in the way support is offered, and produce an IEP for those who need one. Up until now, all the pupils have been coming out of class for support rather than receiving in-class support. The changes would allow more targeted support to meet the individual needs of the children, within the class, individually, and in small groups. Children have the right to say what they think should happen and have their opinions taken into account when adults are making decisions that affect them (UNICEF, 1991), therefore, the audit included a questionnaire to find out what support and help the pupils felt they needed. When asked, it appeared that pupil N did not fully understand the questions; however, he did say that he liked to come out of class, preferably on his own. (See appendix 7) During the audit, I discovered that the last IEP for pupil N was in 2008, and had not been reviewed. Through collaboration with pupil N, his class teacher and parents, a new IEP has been developed. (See appendix 8) During a conversation with Ns mother at parents evening, she felt his needs were not all being appropriately met, she had not been fully informed of his progress except through yearly class-teacher reports, and was unaware that N had previously received an IEP. A copy of the new IEP has been sent home to parents to allow them to become more involved in Ns learning and development, which should have been done with his previous IEP. The class teacher, parents and I will now take steps in working towards developing strategies to enable N to meet his IEP targets and enhance his learning to make further progress. Conclusion Very little was known about autism during the early part of the twentieth century; however, since the reports by Kanner and Asperger, much research has been carried out. Many hypotheses have been identified and researched, such as Theory of Mind, Weak Central Coherence, Executive Dysfunction and Joint Attention and impairments in the function of various parts of the brain. The MMR vaccine has also been implicated in the cause of autism; though this was dismissed through further research. Although there has been much research into possible causes, and the various theories look as if they may all be related, there does not appear to be one single cause, but rather, many; those with autism seem to display traits from all of the theories in varying degrees. For a diagnosis, there needs to be a display of the characteristics from the Triad of Impairments, however the criteria for diagnosis differs, in that, a person may or may not be diagnosed with autism, depending on whether the ICD-10 or the DSM-IV is used. Although Pupil N does not have a formal ASD diagnosis, he does display many characteristics, and according to HMIE (2006), for best practice, he should receive the support as he would if he was diagnosed. After carrying out the audit of needs for all the pupils with additional needs in the school, it appeared that although pupil N had made much progress in terms of speech and reading, there are other difficulties and strengths, which have not yet been addressed. The new IEP which has been developed in collaboration with the pupil, parents, class teacher and I is the start of working towards meeting those needs. There will be a review in three months time to assess progress, and a continued support and review cycle thereafter.

Expansion and contraction of matter Essay

Thermal Expansion and Contraction Most of the matters, without some exceptions, expand with the increasing temperature. When you give heat to matters; speed of its particles increase and distance between them also increase which results in the increase of the volumes of matters. All expansions occurs in volume of the substance however, sometimes some of the dimensions of them expand more with respect to others. In this case we neglect the less expanded ones and assume expansion like linear expansion in long materials. Moreover, we take the expansion of plate as area expansion and finally we take the expansion in three dimensions as volume expansion. thermal expansion Inverse of the expansion is called contraction, generally when matters lost heat and their temperatures decrease they contract. Now we will learn which factors effect expansion. If the initial volumes, areas or lengths of the matters are big enough their expansions with the same temperature are also big. In other words, expansion or contraction is linearly proportional to the initial volume of the matter. Different matters have different atomic structure, thus distances between the atoms are also different. They give different reactions to the same amount of temperature changes. So, another factor effecting expansion is type of matter. Final factor that affects expansion is the amount of change in temperature. Larger the change in temperature results in larger the change in the volume of matter. We get following formula from the explanations given above; ∆V=V0.ÃŽ ±. ∆T Where; ∆V is the change in the volume, ÃŽ ± is the coefficient of thermal expansion and ∆T is the change in the temperature of the matter. ÃŽ ±= Coefficient of thermal expansion is equal to the change in the volume of a unit of mass under 10C change in temperature. Expansion in Solid Matters We will examine this subject under three title, linear expansion, area expansion and volume expansion. Linear Expansion: Picture given below shows the linear expansion of metal rod. When it is heated, its length increases. linear expansion Our formula for linear expansion is; ∆L=L0.ÃŽ ±. ∆T Where; ∆L is the amount of change in the length of the rod, L0 is the initial length of the road, ÃŽ ± is the coefficient of linear expansion and ∆T is the change in the temperature of the matter. Example: There are three same metal rods having same length and thickness. If the temperatures of them are given like; T, 2T and 3T find the relations of final lengths of the rods. (Rods are in contact) We find the final temperatures of the system by the formula; Tfinal=T1+T2+T3/3=6T/3=2T Since the temperature of the first rod increase, its final length also increases. Temperature of the second rod stays same, thus there won’t be change in the length of this rod. Finally, temperature of the third rod decreases, thus its contract and final length of it decreases with respect to initial length. As a result relation of the final lengths of the rods; L1>L2>L3 Area Expansion: When plate given below is heated, it expands in two dimensions X and Y. We find the area expansion with the given formula; ∆S=S0.2ÃŽ ±. ∆T  Where; ∆S is the amount of change in the area of the plate, S0 is the initial area of the plate, 2ÃŽ ± is the coefficient of area expansion and ∆T is the change in the temperature of the matter. area expansion Example: We cut a circular piece from the rectangular plate. Which ones of the processes given below can help us in passing through the circular piece from the hole? expansion example I. Increasing the temperatures of rectangular plate and circular piece II. Decreasing the temperature of the circular piece III. Decreasing the temperatures of the rectangular plate and circular piece I. If we increase the temperatures of the plate and circular piece, expansion of the hole and the circular piece will be the same. Thus, this  option can help us. II. If we decrease the temperature of the circular piece, it contracts and hole becomes larger than the piece. This option can also help us. III. If we decrease the temperatures of the plate and circular piece, hole and circular piece contract in same size. This process can also help us. Volume Expansion: If the objects expand in volume with the gained heat, we call this volume expansion and find it with the following formula; ∆V=V0.3ÃŽ ±. ∆T  Where; ∆V is the amount of change in the volume of the cube, V0 is the initial volume of the cube, 3ÃŽ ± is the coefficient of volume expansion and ∆T is the change in the temperature of the matter. volume expansion Heat Temperature and Thermal Expansion Exams and Solutions  Phase Transition of Water< Prev Next > Heat Temperature and Expansion Cheat Sheet Tags:area expansioncalculations of thermal expansionlinear expansionsamples of thermal expansionthermal contractionthermal expansion and contractionvolume expansion

Essay about The Kings Speech - 1188 Words

While The Kings Speech draws upon a number of historical facts and events, this is not its primary concern. The film is about the effect of a person’s family on how the person develops. For example, in The Kings Speech, King George VI’s brother abdicating and his father’s cruelty played a part in his stammer and lack of confidence. The film is also about the importance of a secure support system, for example Queen Elizabeth and Lionel Logue were Berties support system and they helped him overcome his stammer and lack of confidence. A third important issue in the film is about the different approach to class distinction by British and Australian people, as shown by the expectations of Bertie and Queen Elizabeth that Lionel Logue will do†¦show more content†¦Nobody wants to hear that, me least of all† (Hooper, 2010). Also, â€Å"I am not a King, I am a naval officer. I’m not a king, I’m not a king† (The Kings Speech, 2010). The p sychological effect his brother abdicating had on him, was enough to send him back to Logue for more therapy. Bertie was fortunate to find that his wife, Elizabeth, gave him the love and support he did not receive from his own family. She was his backbone. At the start of the film, when George had given up and he said â€Å"promise me, no more† (The Kings Speech, 2010), she believed in him and knew she had to keep trying to find the right person to help him. It was only through her efforts, that they found Logue. Throughout the film, whenever George was giving a speech, she would be there in support of him. â€Å"I’m sure you’ll do great† (The Kings Speech, 2010) were her words of encouragement before Berties final speech on the war against Germany in the film. The love and encouragement of a persons partner can help the person achieve great things. The fact that Logue was Australian was also an important element to helping Bertie overcome his difficul ties. The approach to class distinction of Australians is different to the approach of British people. British people believe strongly in social hierarchy. Being Queen, Elzabeths high expectations revolve around respectfulness and full cooperation of the subject. The laid back personality ofShow MoreRelatedKings Speech Intertextuality1357 Words   |  6 PagesHow does Tom Hooper use intertextuality in his film The King’s Speech? Stage 1 English SACE ID: 532883T The King’s Speech is a 2010 movie directed by Tom Hooper which explores the plight of Prince Albert, who has an awful speech impediment, in his reluctant ascension to the throne. 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