You are to write and deliver a speech on 'my future Essay

You are to write and deliver a speech on 'my future - Essay Example Through language different signs have different meaning. These signs include; spoken language or signed language. The different components of language include; syntax which is the order and hierarchy of utterances that are meaningful; morphology, which are the smallest possible semantic units that are composed of phonemes; semantics which is the meaning related to a word, phonetic and phonology which are sound and gestures that are constructions of a language. Language helps to promote literacy level, mostly when raising children. A child’s journey towards literacy involves the following; learning how speak, read, write, draw, understand, listen and watch. This helps to develop a child’s skills (Chomsky, 2006, p. 152). There are three strategies used in literacy development. The first being child-oriented strategies, which encourage children to initiate and engage in everyday interactions so that educators can respond to their ways and encourage them to engage in the interactions. The second is the interaction-promoting strategies that encourage comprehensive individual and group conversations between adults and children. The third is language-modeling strategies that expand the child’s oral language skills and facilities development of abstract language. Language promotes communication. Communication skills are very important to children without language, it is difficult to know what they want and need and what is important to them. Languages helps in expressing their ideas, hypotheses, emotions, desires, and all things that need expressions (Chomsky, 2006, p. 141). Communication activities provide opportunities for learners to use language with one another and with people in the community. Language promotes cultural identity. The language brought about by the wants of people who are at a particular location over a specified period of

Managing Working Capital Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Managing Working Capital - Essay Example Fundamentally, the working capital is total current assets of GHS (Jain, p.13.4). Langabeer (2008) explained further that this is the â€Å"funds necessary to finance the conversion operating cycle for a hospital – from delivering services to receiving funds to paying invoices for materials used† (p.59). The net working capital, on the other hand, is the difference in GHS’s current assets and current liabilities or that portion of current assets that are financed with long-term funds (Jain, p.13.4). These conceptual s definitions underscore the requirement to manage working capital because it determines the ability of an institution such as GHS to pay its debt and enhance its value. According to Langabeer, it reflects the efficiency of a hospital in the manner it orders, stores and pay for goods and services, hence, â€Å"the key with working capital management is to match the amount of money needed in the short term with the amount of funds available and keep a ll other assets in assets with higher returns† (p.59). For instance, working capital management in GHS involves initiatives such as the investment in an equity fund or the purchase of property and the construction of a facility that would yield profitability. GHS’s treasurer plays an important role in the working capital management. This is highlighted by the fact that the working capital needs of GHS can be affected by several factors such as the nature of business, the seasonality of operations, the production policy, market conditions and the conditions of supply (Chandra, 2011, p.574). He must ensure an efficient management because it will inevitably lead to increased organizational performance, quality in service delivery and profitability. The activities follow the GHS working capital cycle, which – as in the case of all organizations – is a process in which it purchases or produces inventory, holds it for a time, and

Qualitative Research Methodology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Qualitative Research Methodology - Essay Example For example, the use of computer has become essential in the administrative field and for this reason the public sector has experienced a huge technical growth where the computer has become an integrated part to any administrative work system. One can refer to the decreasing prices of computers and the demand for new computer models. Technology is nourishing the society, to give efficiency, from the running of a fan to the satellites, circling the space. In every field of knowledge and work, technologies are used to gain time. For eg: before there was TV, there was the radio. But the latter was not enough. One wanted to see and hear at the same time. The aim of science is to make man use all the senses all that once to gain a wholesome knowledge of the surroundings. Therefore, the experts too want to find ways and means to create a technical system that helps the employees in finding informations related to their work with the least effort and shorter time to avoid searching in files and box folders for a certain paper which takes time and effort. This problem demands the need of the UAE E-administrative to be brought to notice, in order to check the police system to update its efficiency.

Beowulf Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Beowulf - Essay Example It is also evident in the way that he does not touch the treasures that he finds in beside the dead body of Grendel’s mother. This shows he is rich enough already, with his own wealth and the gifts that he receives for defeating the monsters, and not greedy in the way that a lesser warrior might be. Beowulf’s nobility is the kind that comes with breeding and character, and not the kind that comes with material wealth. Beowulf is ambitious because he sets off to fight an enemy that no one else has managed to defeat. He has a great belief in himself and his own powers, and this is an important quality for someone who leads others. He is undoubtedly very brave, because he tackles and kills Grendel with his bare hands. The scene with Grendel’s mother is very scary because of the monsters and the dark, slimy cave location, as well as the superhuman elements that surround the figure of Grendel. He is almost defeated, but does not give up, and grasps the strange sword with great courage. It is obvious that he is quite willing to sacrifice himself in the attempt to kill the monsters troubling the Scyldings. Beowulf is physically very strong. His hands are able to kill Grendel and wield the huge magic sword. This physical strength is a necessary quality for a Germanic hero because there was so much fighting and war in those days, and a hero had to be able to hold his own on the battle field. Beowulf is stronger and braver than everyone else, which makes him the ideal warrior hero. The quality of generosity is seen in the way that Beowulf takes the gifts he has received from Hrothgar for his feats of strength, and gives them all to his King Hygelac. The economy of the time was based on exchange of goods and services, and it was extremely important that subordinates show loyalty to their superiors. Beowulf is not obliged to give the treasures to the king, but he does so to demonstrate

Free

Free Will Essay Vilayandur S. Ramachandran came from a distinguished family in Tamil Nadu, India, and was neuroscientist, which is a field of study encompassing the various scientific disciplines dealing with the nervous system. Ramachandrans views on the brain and how it works are discussed in his work â€Å"The New Philosophy†. In his essay he discusses the nature of consciousness, discussing the effects of certain mental states and their influence on the body and the brain. One of his main topics, however, is the Ramachandrans view of free will. He suggest that â€Å"neuroscience intersects with philosophy because the question of free will has been a philosophical problem for hundreds of years and more† (Jacobus 569). He discusses the significance of the brain imaging that shows a â€Å"readiness potential† and what it really means to have a free will. Through his essay, though, it is interesting to point out where religion and Christianity stands on the issue of free will and whether Christians are puppets under Gods command. Ramachandran poses this question about free will: â€Å"Is your brain the real one in charge, making your free will only a post-hoc rationalization; a delusion..?† When a special experiment was underway, it was discovered that when a person was told to move their finger within the next ten minutes at their own free will, their brain would kick in almost a second before the actual willingness to move the finger. This posed the original question stated above and brought on other questions as well. If this person is now shown the screen displaying the signal from the EEG scanner hooked up to your brain, they can then see their free will. They will then have three options: 1) They will experience a sudden lack of will, feeling as though the machine is controlling them, making them feel like a puppet. 2) They will refuse to have their belief of their free will to be altered but instead believe that the machine has some â€Å"paranormal precognition by which it is able to predict your movements accurately† (Ramachandran 559-60). 3) The person will reconfigure the experience in their mind, and cling to their sense of freedom, denying what their eyes have seen as evidence and maintain that â€Å"the sensation of will precedes the machines signal, not vice versa† (Ramachandran 560). The point when the brain would â€Å"kick in† before the movement is called the â€Å"readiness potential†. The â€Å"readiness potential† is what happens when there is a change in the electrical activity of the brain that occurs before the subjects conscious decision to move a muscle (medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com). Ramachandran believes that â€Å"there is an inevitable neural delay before the signal arising in one part of the brain makes its way through the rest of the brain to deliver the messagenatural selection has ensured that the subjective sensation of willing to delay deliberately to coincide not with the onset of the brain commands but with the actual execution of the command by your finger† (Ramachandran 560). Ramachandran is a firm believer in evolution, believing that the events must have some sort of evolutionary purpose. â€Å"On one hand,† he says, â€Å"this experiment shows that free will is false and cannot be causing the brain events because the events kick in a second earlier. But on the other hand, the pause must have some purpose, otherwise why would the delay have evolved† (Ramachandran 560). Though these events have a purpose, evolutionary is not the answer. In Joshua 24:15 it says â€Å"Choose for yourselves this day who you will serve, as for me and my household we will serve the LORD.† God gives mankind a choice to follow Him and so free will is a gift from God as something to be accepted. Humans have the gift of God to reject or take the free gift that He offers. If humans really are descendants of apes, then when did the gift of free will come into the evolutionary chain of todays mankind? John 7:37 says â€Å"Anyone who is thirsty may come to me.† It is an offer. Not a demanding command. Anyone who is thirsty may come to me, shows us that God does not want us to be without his living water and without him, but it is our choice whether we choose to accept Gods free gift of salvation. When studying free will in the Bible and through works of literature like Vilayandur S. Ramachandran, there will always be people on both sides of the argument. Do we have control of our own destinies or are we merely puppets in Gods giant game of the world? My personal beliefs on the subject are as I have stated in this paper: Though God has a control over the destiny of the world and each of our lives, he gives us a chance to make a decision to follow him or to ignore the free gift of his son that he has offered to us. John 3:16 it says: â€Å"For God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whoever believed in him would have eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.† Works Cited Jacobus, Lee A. A World Of Ideas. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2008. Print. The Free Dictionary. Medical Dictionary. Online source. http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/readiness+potential Bible. New Living Translation.

Leadership Development Past Present And Future Management Essay

Leadership Development Past Present And Future Management Essay This article reviews notable trends in the leadership development field. In the past two decades, such trends included the proliferation of new leadership development methods and a growing recognition of the importance of a leaders emotional resonance with others. A growing recognition that leadership development involves more than just developing individual leaders has now led to a greater focus on the context in which leadership is developed, thoughtful consideration about how to best use leadership competencies, and work/life balance issues. Future trends include exciting potential advances in globalization, technology, return on investment (ROI), and new ways of thinking about the nature of leadership and leadership development. The Past Looking back at the state of leadership and leadership development over the past 20 years, we were surprised to discover more than a decade passed before HRP first contained an article with the word leadership in its title. At the risk of making too much out of mere titles, we note with interest the contrast between that early period and the fact that leadership development is now one of HRPs five key knowledge areas. The last two decades have witnessed something of an explosion of interest in leadership development in organizations. Some of the most noteworthy issues and trends in the field of leadership development in the past 20 years fall under these two general headings: The proliferation of leadership development methods; The importance of a leaders emotional resonance with and impact on others. Proliferation of Leadership Development Methods One clear trend over the past 2years has been the increasing use and recognition of the potency of a variety of developmental experiences. Classroom-type leadership training-for long the primary formal development mode-is now complemented (or even supplanted) by activities as diverse as high ropes courses or reflective journaling. Classroom training should not be the only part of a leadership development initiative, and may be the least critical. While training may even be a necessary element of leadership development, developmental experiences are likely to have the greatest impact when they can be linked to or embedded in a persons ongoing work and when they are an integrated set of experiences. Activities like coaching, mentoring, action learning, and 360-degree feedback are increasingly key elements of leadership development initiatives. Developmental relationships primarily take two forms: coaching and mentoring. Coaching involve practical, goal-focused forms of one on- one learning and, ideally, behavioural change (Hall, et al., 1999). It can be a short term intervention intended to develop specific leadership skills or a more extensive process involving a series of meetings over time. The most effective coaching allows for collaboration to assess and understand the developmental task to challenge current constraints while exploring new possibilities, and to ensure accountability and support for reaching goals and sustaining development (Ting Hart, 2004). Mentoring is typically defined as a committed, long-term relationship in which a senior person supports the personal and professional development of a junior person. It may be a formal program or a much more informal process. Recognizing the value of mentoring, organizations are increasingly looking at ways to formalize these types of relationships as part of thei r leadership development efforts. Action learning is a set of organization development practices in which important real-time organizational problems are tackled. Three kinds of objectives are sought: delivering measurable organizational results, communicating learnings specific to a particular context, and developing more general leadership skills and capabilities (Palus Horth, 2003). Effective action learning may range from tacit, unfacilitated learning at work to focused and high-impact learning projects to transformations of people and organizations (Marsick, 2002). Challenging job assignments are a potent form of leadership development and provide many of the developmental opportunities in organizations today. The level of organizational involvement in making job assignments part of their leadership development process runs the gamut from simply providing people with information about developmental opportunities in their current job to a systematic program of job rotation. Using job assignments for developmental purposes provides benefits that go beyond getting the job done and may even result in competitive advantages for the organization (Ohlott,2004). One developmental method has been so pervasive that it deserves somewhat greater attention here: the use of 360-degree feedback to assess leader competencies. Chappelow (2004) recently noted that perhaps the most remarkable trend in the field of leader development over the past 20 years has been the popularity and growth of 360- degree feedback. Others called it one of the most notable management innovations of the past decade (Atwater Waldman, 1998; London Beatty, 1993). To help those organizations disappointed with 360-degree feedback results, here is some of what we have learned over the years about how to implement them effectively (Chappelow, 2004): An assessment activity is not necessarily developmental. Three-hundred-sixty-degree feedback should not be a stand-alone event. In addition to assessment there need to be development planning and follow-up activities. Boss support is critical for the process itself, as well as for buy-in for the recipients specific developmental goals stemming from the feedback. The 360-degree feedback process works best if it starts with executives at the top of an organization and cascades downward throughout the organization. Shoddy administration of a 360-degree feedback process can be fatal. The timing of the process accounts for other organizational realities that could dilute or confound its impact. Another kind of leadership development method gaining popularity during the past 20 years has involved teams (Ginnett, 1990). The prevalence and importance of teams in organizations today, and the unique challenges of leading teams, make it easy to forget that teams were not always so pervasive a part of our organizational lives. One way to convey the magnitude of that shift is to share an anecdote involving one of our colleagues. During his doctoral work in organizational behaviour at Yale about 20 years ago, our colleague Robert Ginnett would tell others about his special interest in the leadership of teams. Routinely, he says, they would assume he must be an athletic coach; who else, theyd say, would be interested in teams? Importance of a Leader s Emotional Resonance with and Impact on Others Twenty years ago, our understanding of leadership in organizations was dominated by the classic two-factor approach focusing on task and relationship behaviors. That general approach can be characterized as transactional in nature, as distinguished from a qualitatively different approach often described as transformational. Transactional leadership is characterized by mutually beneficial exchanges between parties to optimize mutual benefit including the accomplishment of necessary organizational tasks. The exchange-model nature of transactional leadership tends to produce predictable and somewhat shortlived outcomes. Transformational leadership touched followers deeper values and sense of higher purpose, and led to higher levels of follower commitment and effort and more enduring change. Transformational leaders provide compelling visions of a better future and inspire trust through seemingly unshakeable self-confidence and conviction. Conger (1999) reviewed 15 years research in the related fields of charismatic and transformational leadership, and observed that scholarly interest in these areas may be traceable to changes in the global competitive business environment at that time such as competitive pressures to reinvent them selves and challenges to employee commitment. Prior to that time, leadership researchers generally had not distinguished between the roles of leading and managing: A person in any position of authority was largely assumed to hold a leadership role. It was a novel idea that leadership and management might represent different kinds of roles and behaviors. Hunt (1999) was even more blunt about the state of scholarly research in the field of leadership in the 1980s. He described it as a gloom-and-doom period characterized by boring work, inconsequential questions, and static answers. Research in the areas of transformational and charismatic leadership both energized scholars and interested organ izational practitioners. One factor presumably underlying the interest in charismatic and transformational leaders is the nature and strength of their emotional impact on others. The nature of the leaders emotional connectedness to others is also apparent in the growing interest over the past decade in topics like the leaders genuineness, authenticity, credibility, and trustworthiness (Goleman, et al., 2002; Collins, 2001). These seem related more to the affective quality of a leaders relationships with others than to specific leader behaviors and competencies. Attention given during the last decade to the concept of emotional intelligence also attests to that shifting interest. For example, Goleman, et al. (2002) present data that a leaders ability to resonate emotionally with others is a better predictor of effective executive leadership than is general intelligence. Recent research at the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) has uncovered links between specific elements of emotional intelligence and specific behaviors associated with leadership effectiveness (Ruderman, et al.,2001). Effective leadership is clearly about more than just enacting the right behaviors, or merely translating feedback (e.g., from 360-degree feedback) into changed behavior. One way 360- degree feedback can positively impact an individuals effectiveness as a leader is by deepening that persons self-awareness about the impact of his/her behavior on others. Much leadership development feedback naturally affects how people think about themselves, not just their interactions with others. Similarly, it can lead to re-evaluations of many aspects of ones life, not just ones role as a leader. It can affect the whole person. It follows, then, that in some ways leadership development itself involves the development of the whole person. The Center for Creative Leadership began during the heyday of the human potential movement, and its ideals and educational philosophy still reflect a commitment to the value of self-directed change and growth (albeit informed by knowledge about the needs of the organization). Virtually all CCL leadership development programs include numerous activities to increase managerial self-awareness, and most address balance in life, including the relationship between health, fitness, and leadership. From our own participants, representing diverse companies across virtually all industries, the feedback is that balance in life has so far been more of an aspiration for them than a reality. The Present Today, effective leadership is commonly viewed as central to organizational success, and more importance is placed on leadership development than ever before. Developing more and better individual leaders is no longer the sole focus of leadership development, although it remains a critical aspect. Increasingly, leadershipis defined not as what the leader does but rather as a process that engenders and is the result of relationships-relationships that focus on the interactions of both leaders and collaborators instead of focusing on only the competencies of the leaders. Leadership development practices based on this paradigm are more difficult to design and implement than those that have been popular for the last several decades in which the objective was to train leaders to be good managers. In light of this, several themes describe the state of leadership development today: 1. Leadership development increasingly occurring within the context of work; 2. Critical reflection about the role of competencies in leadership development; 3. Revisiting the issue of work/life balance. Leadership Development Within the Context of Work Leadership development initiatives today typically offer performance support and real world application of skills through such methods as training programs, coaching and mentoring, action learning, and developmental assignments. Combining instruction with a real business setting helps people gain crucial skills and allows the organizations to attack relevant, crucial, real-time issues. The goal of leadership development ultimately involves action not knowledge. Therefore, development today means providing people opportunities to learn from their work rather than taking them away from their work to learn. It is critical to integrate those experiences with each other and with other developmental methods. State of the art leadership development now occurs in the context of ongoing work initiatives that are tied to strategic business imperatives (Dotlich Noel, 1998; Moxley OConnnor Wison, 1998). Furthermore, best practice organizations recognize leadership as a key component of jobs at all levels and are committed to creating leaders throughout their organizations. Increasingly, organizations have CEOs who model leadership development through a strong commitment to teach leaders internally. For example, Carly Fiorina at HP is annually teaching at 12 leading business results classes. The targets of leadership training programs are no longer relatively isolated individuals who were anointed by senior management. Instead of the thin horizontal slices, the program design is likely to involve work groups or several vertical slices of the organization (Fulmer, 1997). The proliferation of leadership development methods was previously noted. Not just the variety of development methods matters; greater variety is not necessarily better. It is also critical to integrate various developmental experiences to each other as well as to both developmental and business objectives. That way they can have a greater collective impact than they otherwise could have. But such efforts at integration are far from universal. In reviewing the entire field of leadership development, McCauley and VanVelsor (2003) noted that the approach of many organizations is events-based rather than systemic. One method of making leadership development more systemic is to make sure it involves more than training. An array of developmental experiences must be designed and implemented that are meaningfully integrated with one another. Leadership development efforts and initiatives must be ongoing, not a single program or event. The idea of leadership development strategies that link a variety of developmental practices including work itself (e.g., action learning projects) with other HR systems and business strategy is an emerging and probably necessary evolution of our state-of-practice (Alldredge, et al., 2003). Critical Reflection about the Role of Competencies in Leadership Development Although the field is moving away from viewing leadership and leadership development solely in terms of leader attributes, skills, and traits, leadership competencies remain a core dimension of leadership development activities in most organizations. A recent benchmarking study found that leading-edge companies define leadership by a set of competencies that guide leadership development at all levels (Barrett Beeson, 2002). A majority of organizations have identified leadership competencies, or at least tried to define the characteristics and qualities of successful leaders. How then are leadership competencies most effectively used in leadership development? Leadership competencies need to correspond to the organizations particular strategy and business model (Intagliata, et al., 2000). Leadership development programs implemented in isolation of the business environment rarely bring about profound or long-lasting changes; therefore, organizations must develop leaders and leadership competencies that correspond with and are specific to their distinct business challenges and goals. While common leadership qualities or competencies characterize effective leaders, developing such core leader qualities may not be enough. The leadership competencies of a best-practice organization uniquely fit the organization, its particular strategy, and its business model (APQC, 2000). This perspective has also been applied to the individual level. Not only may organizations differ in their identification of critical leadership competencies, some would argue it is unlikely all leaders within an organization must all possess the same set of competencies to be successful- or make the organization successful. According to this perspective, leaders should not be accountable for demonstrating a particular set of behaviours but rather should be held accountable for desired outcomes. This perspective looks beyond competencies, which have a tendency to focus on what needs fixing, and instead focuses attention on the whole person and on peoples strengths and natural talents, not on a reductionism list of idiosyncratic competencies (Buckingham Vosburgh, 2003). Development is increasingly seen as a process of developing and leveraging strengths and of understanding and minimizing the impact of weaknesses. Work/Life Balance Revisited Health and well-being at work are issues of increasing interest and attention, including their relevance to leadership. In an environment of constant change and unrelenting competition, managing stress and personal renewal to avoid burn-out are becoming a central focus for leadership development. Dealing with multiple and competing demands of a fast-paced career and personal/family relationships and responsibilities is a common challenge, and there is increasing recognition that a persons work and personal life have reciprocal effects on each other. We know that individual leader effectiveness is enhanced when people manage multiple roles at home and at work but we continue to learn more about the organizational benefits and maybe even the benefits to family and community as well. We also know leadership effectiveness is correlated with better health and exercising HUMAN RESOURCE PLANNING (McDowell-Larsen, et al., 2002). We need to better understand which assumptions about organizational life are challenged by the idea of work/life integration as well as which changes organizations need to make to facilitate greater work/life integration. Challenging work/life situations are integrally related to the need for, and development of, resilience. Resilience is the ability to bounce back from adversity or hardship, a characteristic that can be developed at any time during a persons life. It is an active process of self-righting and growth that helps people deal with hardships in a manner that is conducive to development (Moxley Pulley, 2004). One of the fundamental characteristics of resilience is that it allows individuals to take difficult experiences in their lives and use them as opportunities to learn. This, in turn, develops their ability to face hardships successfully in the future. The Future Several trends will have a major role in our future understanding and practice of leadership and leadership development. They represent, in different ways, the critical role changing contexts will play in leadership development. Leadership competencies will still matter; Globalization/internationalization of leadership concepts, constructs, and development methods; The role of technology; Increasing interest in the integrity and character of leaders; Pressure to demonstrate return on investment; New ways of thinking about the nature of leadership and leadership development. Leadership Competencies Will Still Matter Leadership competencies will still matter, but they will change as the competitive environment changes. According to a Conference Board study (Barrett Beeson, 2002), five critical forces will shape leadership competencies (requirements) in the future: 1) global competition, 2) information technology, 3) the need for rapid and flexible organizations, 4) teams, and 5) differing employee needs. Given these, most organizations will not need the Lone Ranger type of leader as much as a leader who can motivate and coordinate a team based approach? This new environment will have greater ambiguity and uncertainty, and many if not all aspects of leadership (e.g., strategy development) will require a more collaborative approach to leadership. The model of effective leadership in the future will be one of encouraging environments that unlock the entire organizations human asset potential. The Conference Board report Developing Business Leaders for 2010 (Barrett Beeson, 2002) identified four essential roles for meeting the business challenges of the future, and the career derailers that will matter most in the future. The four essential roles for meeting future business challenges include master strategist, change manager, relationship/network builder, and talent developer. The most important derailers in the future include hesitancy to take necessary business risks; personal arrogance and insensitivity; controlling leadership style; and reluctance to tackle difficult people issues. Changes in the context in which leadership is practiced will bring certain competencies evenmore to the forefront, including globalization, the increasing use of technology, and public scrutiny of the character and integrity of leaders. Globalization/Internationalization of Leadership Concepts, Constructs, and Development Methods Future leaders will need to be conversant in doing business internationally and conceiving strategies on a global basis. Globalization will intensify the requirement that senior leaders deal effectively with a complex set of constituencies external to the organization. (e.g., responsibility for managing the companys interface with trade, regulatory, political, and media groups on a wide range of issues). Leadership development is rapidly moving to include substantial components involving international markets, world economic trends, and focus on particular regions such as the Asia Pacific rim (Cacioppe, 1998). Leaders are being exposed to how the world is becoming interdependent and the need to be up to date with international trends that are vital to the success of the business. Use of the internet to obtain information and to market products and services worldwide is a topic in many current leadership development programs. The Role of Technology The technology revolution has changed organizational life. It has changed the ways information and knowledge are accessed and disseminated, and the ways in which people can communicate and share with one another. This has profound implications for what effective leadership will look like as well as how to use technology most effectively in leadership development. Leaders will clearly have to be much savvier with regard to technology in general. Facility and comfort with communication technology and the internet will be a necessity. Given the pace of change and the speed of response time that leaders are now required to demonstrate, technological savvy has rapidly become an integral aspect of leadership effectiveness. It has even been noted that the effective use of technology is proving to be a hierarchy buster. It can be an avenue for people to communicate with leaders at all levels and whenever they need to at any time. Leading virtually is already a reality, and requirements to lead geographically dispersed units and teams will only increase. Technology will not be a solution for this challenge, but it will surely be a tool. The pressure on costs, increased reality of virtual teams, and availability of technology leadership development has reduced the need for people to travel to training programs, will make learning opportunities available to geographically dispersed leaders, and will allow individuals access to learning opportunities when it best suits their schedule. Technology can extend learning over time rather than limiting it to time spent in the classroom. Technology will also enhance the emergence and sharing of knowledge among participants via such venues as chat-rooms, thought leader access, e-learning advances, e-mentoring/ shadowing, and business simulations. While technology is useful for some aspects of leadership development, it cannot replace the importance of bringing leaders together to deepen their relationships and their learning experience. Maximizing the effectiveness of leadership development offers the best of both worlds: integrating face-to-face classroom and coaching experiences with technology-based tools and processes, i.e., blended learning solutions (e.g., Alexander Ciaschi, 2002). Increasing Interest in the Integrity and Character of Leaders The 1990s witnessed ethical lapses and arrogance among senior executives of certain companies of disturbing-if-not-unprecedented magnitude. Enron and WorldCom were two notable examples. Such events probably accelerated and deepened growing sentiment among many-including members of organizational governance boards-that interrelationships among leadership, character, and values ought to be made more salient. It is probably not a coincidence that a recent article in CEO Magazine (Martin, 2003) observed that the age of the imperial CEO is waning. In its place, a crop of new CEOs humble, team building, highly communicative are rising (p.25). Similarly, one of the intriguing and unexpected findings in the book Good to Great (Collins, 2001) was of the universally modest and self-effacing nature of CEOs in the good-to-great companies. This contrasts considerably with the often flamboyant and self-promoting style of many popular business leaders in recent years who, despite celebrity status, typically did not have an enduring positive impact on their companies. Bass and Steidlmeier (1999) noted that transformational leadership is only authentic when it is grounded on the leaders moral character, concern for others, and congruence of ethical values with action. A leaders credibility and trustworthiness are critical, and increasing numbers make the case that character-as defined by qualities like ones striving for fairness, respecting others, humility, and concern for the greater good-represents the most critical quality of leadership (e.g., Sankar, 2003). Assuming there is continuing if not increasing interest in the character of leaders, much work is needed in the years ahead to assure greater clarity of concept about these vital-yet-elusive concepts if they are to play a prominent role in leadership development practices in organizations. Pressure to Demonstrate Return on Investment The future trends noted reflect in part a response to the changing context of leadership. Perhaps the strongest pressure facing leadership practitioners in the future may be to demonstrate ROI (Kincaid Gordick, 2003). While leadership development is strategically important, it is usually expensive. Yet while leading-edge companies today such as PepsiCo, IBM, and Johnson and Johnson spend significant time and resources on leadership development, attempts to quantify its benefits precisely have remained elusive and have led some to speculate that investment in developing better leaders may be falling short of the desired impact. In todays economy, leadership development expenses will likely have to meet certain standards of proof of impact or return on investment. Demonstrating and quantifying the impact of leadership development investments is likely to emerge as a priority for organizations committed to building leadership strength. To maximize ROI for leadership development efforts, its payoffs organizations must effectively plan, implement, and evaluate their initiatives. They must create a chain of impact that connects leadership development to relevant organizational outcomes (Martineau Hannum, 2003). Historically, most organizations have not closed the loop through systematic evaluation and thus make assumptions about its efficacy based on anecdotes, reactions, or hunches. New Ways of Thinking about the Nature of Leadership and Leadership Development Emerging new perspectives on the nature of leadership may profoundly affect our thinking about leadership development. Increasingly, leadership and leadership development are seen as inherently collaborative, social, and relational processes (Day, 2001). Similarly, Vicere (2002) has noted the advent of the networked economy where partnerships, strategic and tactical, customer and supplier, personal and organizational, are essential to competitive effectiveness. As a result, leadership will be understood as the collective capacity of all members of an organization to accomplish such critical tasks as setting direction, creating alignment, and gaining commitment. Leadership development based on this paradigm is more difficult to design and implement than those that have been popular for the last several decades in which the focus was to train individual leaders. Taking this next step will require a deeper understanding of the role of organizational systems and culture in leadership development (VanVelsor McCauley, 2004). Conclusion The dual challenges of understanding the nature of leadership development and implementing effective leadership development practices will likely be greater than ever before. At the same time, we find ourselves guardedly optimistic about the fields future. Our optimism is directly tied to some of the trends that make the future both challenging and interesting. For example, leadership development practices will need to become better integrated in the broader context of organizational business challenges and systems. Thus, not only will organizations need to hire and develop leaders, they will also need to be the kind of organizations that nurture and reinforce enactment of the kinds of behaviours desired in those leaders. Similarly, demands to demonstrate ROI can encourage greater rigor and clarity in our understanding of the nature of leadership development and in how we assess its impact. Meeting such challenges will be one important thrust of more comprehensive efforts in the years ahead to demonstrate convincingly the strategic role of people in organizations.

Classroom Management Action Plan | Example

Classroom Management Action Plan | Example Classroom Management Introduction Classroom management is a term that refers to the techniques and skills that teachers use to keep students organized, focused, on task, orderly, attentive, and academic productive, during class. When teachers implement the classroom management strategies effectively, they minimize the behaviors that obstruct learning for both individual students and group of students while maximizing behaviors that enhance or facilitate learning. A lack of classroom management is also a major factor that makes teachers leave their profession within their first year. I am facing some challenges with the students that I teach. I have developed an appropriate solution and action plan that I would follow to achieve it. I have learnt several things from my research that would help me in my future classroom management. PROBLEM: CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT As a primary school teacher who is on placement, am faced with several issues regarding disorderly and disruptive behavior from my student such as talking, getting up from their chairs to walk to other students desks without permission, disobedience, aggressive behavior and refusal to finish assigned task or school work. My inability to control their behavior them has led to my lack of teaching them properly as required. The first reason for this issue is that this is because of my inexperience since this is my first role with a school setting of dealing with different children. Secondly, it is due to an underprivileged family background that most of the children come from. For example, some of them are from single parent family, other are living in extreme poverty conditions, and some parents are not concerned with their children education. Lastly, this is because of the different student’s ability to grasp information, For example lack of attention. EVALUATION RELATED TO MY SOLUTION To solve the above problems, I have realized that I need to implement a classroom management component. This is because the environment in which the students learn in is very important, and can create a learning atmosphere. Secondly, my behavior towards the students, how I interact and treat them is a concern on how they would act. I would develop a level of dominance in the class, through body language in a different situation, eye contact with the students, for example, when affirming an action to them. In addition, I should develop a positive attitude towards the students in my class, encouraging them to participate in class activities, treating all students fairly and equally. The other important thing is to express my expectations from them. For example, how they should act in class, at the beginning of the lesson I clearly tell them what I expect from them at the end of the lesson. In addition, how they should relate to one another and ultimately make agreements with them on different issues in class that they should do and not do. We agree with them the repercussions when they do not follow the agreements we have set together. I would prepare different learning skills and lessons to be able to incorporate the students interest instead of relying only on my scheme of work. I would also get involved with what the students go through outside the class. This would include learning more about their homes, if they are in need, are they from divided homes, language barriers between them and me, and lastly handle students with special needs carefully. ACTION PLAN Room Arrangement When the students enter the class, they are hit with exciting colors on the walls, with windows lighting reflecting on the different things on the wall, as they walk to their big circle table. They can look at their colleagues as they are facing each other. When they look at the wall they see arts, maps, famous people, and student work all portrayed in different posters that are colorful around the class. No work is in white paint. From my desk that is also in the circle, I will start the lesson. The students will get out their books and colorful pens to note today’s lesson. I believe the classroom set up would have a significant effect on the student and the environment would make them think discuss, and reflect on the lesson. The set up would help me walk around the class and look at what they are doing and their sitting arrangement will make them be able to interact with one another making room for discussions. The student work on the wall will help them feel part of the cl ass. Classroom Rules The best rule I would have will be a class is a place of learning, and we should all respect each other. If I respect them and they respect each other and me, I believe this would create a safe environment for learning. I would allow the students to eat and drink in class as long as they dispose of their waste correctly. However, I will notify them from the beginning that the privilege withdrawal things get out of control. I would create a class constitution if the behavior of the students were inconsistent. I will involve the students in making the rules, and allow them to discuss which ones to be in the constitution. I believe that involving them would make it a must for them to obey, and they will not fight back on the consequences of not obeying. I would make them write the final copy and hang it in class. To add on I would give them a copy to take to their parents to read, sign, and then return to school. This would help make the parents involved in what we are trying to do in c lass. In addition, I will be giving the students a newsletter monthly to take to their parents describing what we are doing in class. I believe involving the parents in their children schoolwork will make them support their children at home with any issue arising. I also want to create an environment whereby there is a good student teacher relationship with my class. This is so because my students are from different backgrounds, and want to create an atmosphere where they feel they are equal to each other by the way I treat them. I do not want to assume their capability in education by the way they look or act. I do not want their background difference to affect communication in class. I believe this is the foundation of most behavioral problems begin. Therefore, I would like to create an environment whereby I accept by students as unique people with different cultures that I can relate, respect, and like them. In addition, be able to communicate and listen to them. I want my student to be able to relate their life experiences in our class exercises, teaching them to appreciate and celebrate cultural differences. I want to have an open forum class meetings whereby we discuss what is working or not for us in class. In addition, then implement t he suggestions and ideas we have discussed. Am interested in finding out what the students are thinking of, and converting the environment to their liking as much as possible. This would make the student feel part and in control of their learning. In the case of a consistent misbehavior, I would ask the student to meet me after class. I would start by praising him on what he is doing well in class and explain to him how his behavior is interfering with the class. In addition, I would advise them on what to do to stop the behavior. In a class if they persist I would isolate them to seat alone at the back, if they persist I would call their parents to come to school and then we discuss the three of us. I believe in involving the parents in disciplining the child but disagreeing with sending the students at home. Class Procedures I want to develop consistency with the procedures I use in class. For example, I will be putting the class program on the blackboard for them to copy when they come to class, use assignments sometimes to engage them in their writing skills. In addition, I will use interactive notebooks for them to do all their homework and class work in them. I would staple loose assignments to the notebooks this would help them when revising for exams. I would them stamp every student book that has done the homework. I would then collect the books after every two weeks to grade them. The stamping is to make the students finish the assignment before the two weeks. The stamping is just a motivation for them to do the homework on time before the grading day. I will assist those who are not understanding with the home and class work. I will also grade their class participation in class. This would make them participate in various class activities. Encouraging all students Bill Rogers has different techniques on classroom management starting with preventing to positive management and ending with consequences. This is a very humane and logical approach to handling students. He gives strategies that teachers can use to work with the students for both of them control how the student’s behavior, instead of a teacher being authoritative, strict, and disciplinarian. Rogers’s first plan shows techniques to use to prevent problems dealing with discipline. Secondly, he distinguishes responsibilities from rights claiming that they need to balance. Under the rights, Rogers’s majors on how the students have a right to learn, feel safe, respected, and handled with dignity. I believe at the beginning of the term students be told their rights and explained to what they should do to have them. It is significant vital for the students to feel emotionally and physically safe for a good learning atmosphere to be established. Teachers should emphasize on how they treat each other, with full of respect and no calling each other names. Still at the establishment stage, he emphasizes on teachers consistent in establishing rules for the class. I agree with the rule because it would create accountability for the student concerned. However, if the problem persists force should be used to correct the child. Establishing attention is a preventive technique. Teachers should not speak over the noise. I agree because there is a particular place in class where I stand and the students keep quiet. Rogers talk about positive correction as a way to view the correction. His emphasis on address what a student should do instead of majoring on the problem. He should just state it and leave to give the student the right to choose to control their behaviors and not doing things just to please the teacher or other students. This has helped because when I find a student out of line, I tell them to stop and walk away, giving the student room to correct the mistake. Rogers’s deals with consequences by assisting the student find a connection between outcome and behavior. He insists that the consequence should be reasonable and related. I agree with the point because it gives the students a chance to decide about their own behavior. This would strengthen the teacher student relationship because the student feel fairly treated per the mistake done. Conclusion I have learnt that classroom management is a key component in any educational setting. I will use it to create a good environment for learning and to make my student feel safe participating. It does not mean punishing the behavior, but it involves setting up the right tone in class, preventing bad behaviors and encouraging a good relationship with the students, while encouraging them to do well and setting high expectations for them. I believe it is possible to create the environment that would limit the behavior problems from the start in my classroom. References Marzano, R. J., Marzano, J. S., Pickering, D. (2003). Classroom management that works research-based strategies for every teacher. Alexandria, Va: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Whitaker, T. (2003). What great principals do differently: fifteen things that matter most. Larchmont, N.Y.: Eye on Education. Canter, L., Canter, M. (2001). Assertive discipline: positive behavior management for todays classroom (3rd ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Canter Associates. Abu Nemrah, M. (2006). Classroom Management and Organization. 2nd Edition. Amman: Dar Yafa. Erythromycin Stearate Tablets: Quality Assurance Assessment Erythromycin Stearate Tablets: Quality Assurance Assessment QUALITY ASSURANCE ASSESSMENT OF SOME COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE ERYTHROMYCIN STEARATE TABLETS. Aiwaguore Johnbull Obarisiagbon1*, Oladejo Peter Ogunlowo2 ABSTRACT Erythromycin drug products have been mostly imported into Nigeria from different countries of the world; with relatively no Nigeria based pharmaceutical company manufacturing same. Cases of therapeutic failures have been reported in some of our hospitals. Hence, the need arises to study some of the physicochemical parameters of some of the available drug products in the Nigerian Pharmaceutical Market with a view to detecting drug products that meet the specified pharmacopeia standards and those that fall short of such standards. The parameters measured were the uniformity of weight, friability, tensile strength, disintegration time and dissolution rate of 12 selected erythromycin stearate 500mg film-coated tablets. The tensile strength of the tablets was determined using the static loading method and Mosanto hardness tester to find the crushing strength and their results compared. The 12 samples disintegrated within 30mins with four of them disintegrating within 3mins, suggestive of possible inclusion of superdisintegrants in their formulations. All products, except two had a percentage release of the drug within 90mins of 70% and above. The friability of three of the products exceeded 1%. However, their tensile strengths did not prolong the disintegration time beyond the official limits. The results obtained from the physicochemical testing of the drug products revealed the failure of two products having release rates of less than 70% within 90mins. Further tests need to be done on these two products (namely Rycin ® and Erythromycin 500mg) in order to draw a more definite conclusion. Keyword: Stearic acid, formulation, physicochemical, friability INTRODUCTION Erythromycin stearate is the stearic acid salt of erythromycin, with an excess of stearic acid. It is a white, bitter crystalline powder, which is practically insoluble in water, but soluble in acetone and in methanol. The solutions may be opalescent 1. Erythromycin is available as the free base, ethylsuccinate estolate, gluceptatae and lactobinnate derivatives. When given orally, erythromycin and its derivatives except the estolate are inactivated to some extent by the gastric acid, and poor absorption may result. Erythromycin is a typical representative of the macrolide group of antibiotics and is produced by Streptomyces erythreas The tertiary amine of desosamine confers a basic character to erythromycin (pKa 8.8). Through this group, a number of acid salts of the antibiotic have been prepared. A second sugar, Clandinose, which is unique to erythromycin, is attached via a ÃŽ ²-glycosidic linkage to the C-3 position of the lactone ring. Erythromycin stearate tablets contain the equivalent of not less than 90.0 percent and not more than 120.0 percent of the labeled amount of erythromycin (C37H67NO13).1 Clinically, erythromycin is widely used in the treatment and prevention of diseases. Like penicillin G, it is a broad spectrum antibiotic and it is effective against most gram – negative and gram – positive bacteria compared to other antibiotics. The side effects are relatively low. Current indications for the drug include: respiratory infections and whooping cough. Erythromycin is also known to be active against penicillin resistant Staphylococcus, Chlamydia and mycoplasma. The base and the salt, by being unstable at acid pH, are absorbed in the upper part of the intestine 2. To assure higher blood concentrations, the drug should be administered in the form of coated tablets that dissolve in the duodenum 3. Physiological factors such as the presence of food; and intestinal motility and transit time, may affect the absorption of the drug with a consequent variation in bioavailability. 4,5 Highest serum concentrations of the base or stearate is 0.3 – 0.5  µg/ml, four hours after administration. It rapidly reaches bacteriocidal concentrations in all tissues and body fluids except in the brain. It is usually eliminated in the active form from urine, and bile, but part of the drug is also metabolized by demethylation2. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY This study was undertaken to analyze and compare some of the physicochemical properties such as disintegration and dissolution of coated erythromycin stearate tablets from twelve different pharmaceutical companies. All the drug products were imported into the Nigerian Pharmaceutical Market from abroad. The study is also to ascertain the extent to which these drug products conform to the standards as specified in the pharmacopoeias. MATERIALS AND METHODS Weight Variation From each product sample, 20 tablets were randomly selected and the weight of each tablet was determined. The mean weight and standard deviation were calculated. Friability Ten previously weighed tablets from each product sample were subjected to cascading and free fall shocks in the drum of a fraibilator set to rotate at 25 rpm for 4 minutes. The tablets were deducted of any adherent particles and reweighed. The difference in tablet weight was determined and the friability calculated as follows: Key W1 = Original weight W2 = Final weight Tensile Strength The crushing strengths of the tablets were determined individually with the aid of the static loading equipment. This was done by placing standard weights (kg) on top of the tablet until it yielded. The total weight was calculated as the maximum load (kg) that caused the tablets to break. This was then converted to Newton. With the vernier caliper, the width (thickness) and diameter of the tablets were measured in millimeter. Triplicate determinations were done for each product sample and the mean recorded. Disintegration Test Six tablets per product sample were subjected to the B.P disintegration test and the mean value of the disintegration time calculated. The disintegration medium (sodium phosphate buffer pH 8) was maintained at a temperature of 37oC  ± 0.5oC. Standard Curve A standard calibration curve was prepared as follows: 250mg (potency) erythromycin stearate was weighed and dissolved in 50ml methanol and sodium phosphate buffer solution, pH 8.0 was added to make exactly 100ml, giving a concentration of 2.5mg/ml. This was diluted serially with the sodium phosphate buffer solution to obtain the following concentrations; 1,2,3,4,5 and 6 µg/ml. The absorbance of the standard solutions were measured at 365nm using the UV spectrophotometer. The test was carried out in triplicate and plots of absorbance versus concentration were obtained as shown in the Figure 3.1. Dissolution rate of samples A stirred beaker method (Okor et al, 2002) was used. A caplet containing 500mg of erythromycin stearate was placed in a stationary cylindrical basket (aperture size 425 µm, diameter 2cm and height 3cm) suspended in 800ml of sodium phosphate buffer pH 8.0 as dissolution medium. The medium was maintained at a temperature 37  ± 0.5oC and stirred at 100rpm with a single blade – Gallenkamp stirrer. This was done with care to exclude air bubbles from the surface of the tablets. At various intervals, a 5ml specimen was withdrawn from a fixed zone, mid-way between the surface of the dissolution medium and the top of the cylindrical basket, not less than 1cm from the vessel wall. Every aliquot withdrawn for analysis was replaced with an equal volume of fresh dissolution medium at the same temperature. The aliquot was diluted 1 in 100 and then filtered through a Whatman No. 1 filter paper. The absorbance of the filtrate was determined at 365nm. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Sample brands of Erythromycin Stearate tablets: The list of different brands of erythromycin stearate 500mg tablets used in this study is shown in Table 3.1. Two brands, Erythrocin-500 (Abbott Laboratories, Pakistan) and Erotab-500 (Hovid) had no NAFDAC Registration Number. These products were probably smuggled into the Nigerian drug market without proper clearance by the authorities concerned, or the registration process was not yet concluded before the drugs were made available in the market for public consumption. All the drug samples had expiry dates with two samples; Icethrocin (India) and Zin Zine (India) having expiry dates of 12/2011. It is also observed that all the 12 samples were imported into Nigeria from abroad, with 8 samples from India. The standard curve obtained is a straight line with the regression coefficient equation of y = 0.014 x + 0.000. (Figure 3.1) TABLE 3.1: LIST OF DIFFERENT BRANDS OF ERYTHROMYCIN STEARATE 500MG TABLETS USED IN THE STUDY S/No BRAND NAME MANUFACTURER B. No. MFG DATE EXP. DATE NAFDAC REQ. No 1. Erythrocin-500 Abbott Laboratories (Pakistan) 96282XV Dec. 12013 2. Erymycin ® Mercury laboratories Lt. Unit II GUJARAT, India. 9158403 March 2009 Feb. 2012 04-8419 3. Enthrox-500 Falma Laboratories (P) Ltd 54A Industrial Area, Bangalore, India. 50 July 2010 April 2013 A4-0915 4. Althrocin-S 500 Alembic Ltd. Plot 21/2 Vadodara 390003, India. 89970084E Jan. 2010 10/2012 043328 5. Erotab-500 Hovid AK11612 12/2012 6. Ice throcin Stallion Laboratories PVT 9293MD1/IDE 12/11 A4-3133 7. Donythrocin-500 Medopharm, 34B, Industrial Area, Malur- 563 130, India. 8E42 May2008 12/2012 043140 8. Zinzine Micro Laboratories Ltd. 92, Siplot, Hosur-635 126, India. ZZTJ 0044 January, 2009 12/2011 04-6174 9. Rycin Erythromycin ® Medreich Limited Bangalore-560 062, India. 690326 December, 2009 05/20 13 04-7570 10. Labcin ® 500 Laborate Pharmaceutical E-1 I hid Area Panipat 132103, India. LNFT-001 June, 2010 July 2012 04-6174 11 Erythromycm 500mg Mekopher Chemical Pharmaceutical Jomt Stock Co Mmli City, Vietnam. 10001 AX December, 2010, 12/06/J 04-75 70 12. Eryfast-500 Erythromycin Medibios Laboratories Pvt. Ltd, J-76, MIDC Tarapur Thane-40 1506, India. MD003 August, 2008 Aug. 20.10 A4-3007 Uniformity of Weight According to the USP 1980; 20 tablets are to be used in the determination, and there is compliance if each of the individual weights is within the limit of 90% and 110% of the average weight. Table 3.3 shows the mean weight of the various samples of Erythromycin stearate tablets Table 3.3: Mean weight of the various samples of erythromycin stearate tablets S/N Brand Name Mean Weight ( ± SD) Remarks 1 Erythrocin-500 1.13  ± 0.02 Passed 2 Erythromycin ® 1.10  ± 0.22 Passed 3. Enthrox-500 0.92  ± 0.01 Passed 4. Althrocin-S500 1.01  ± 02 Passed 5. Erotab-500 0.98  ± 0.01 Passed 6. Icethrocin 0.99  ± 0.01 Passed 7. Donythrocin-500 0.93  ± 0.01 Passed 8 Zin-Zine 1.01  ± 0.01 Passed 9. Rycin  ® 0.91  ± 0.02 Passed 10 Labcin  ® 500 0.88  ± 0.02 Passed 11. Erythromycin 500mg 0.97  ± 0.03 Passed 12. Eryfast 500 0.93  ± 0.01 Passed Friability Test The result of friability test of the various samples of erythromycin stearate (film coated) tablets is as shown in Table 3.4. The friability of a tablet is a measure of interparticualte cohesiveness of the particles and is a function of tablet hardness. A maximum mean weight loss of not more than 1.0% is considered acceptable for most products. From the table, products 1,2 and 7 failed the friability test, with friability values greater than 1.0%. It is expected therefore, that these product samples would break, chip or wear out during handling and transportation experienced in the manufacturing plant, in the drug distribution system and in the field at the hands of the end users (patients/consumers). These effects would result in possible loss in active drugs administered. Table 3.4 : Some of the physicochemical properties of the erythromycin stearate tablets. Tensile strength (MN/m2) S/No Brand Name Friability (%) Static loading method Monsanto hardness tester Disintegration time (mins) 1. Erythrocin-500 1.55 1.917 1.922 5.47 2. Erymycin ® 2.04 2.590 2.594 2.44 3. Enthrox-500 0.82 6.050 6.00 20.46 4. Althrocin-S500 0.25 4.190 4.184 14.40 5. Erotab-500 0.51 6.680 6.670 20.46 6. Icethrocin 0.76 5.370 5.402 20.83 7. Donythrocin-500 1.33 4.590 4.586 1.83 8. Zin Zine 0.25 4.820 4.750 5.46 9. Rycin ® Erythromycin 0.00 2.730 2.750 2.42 10. Labcin ®-500 0.87 6.780 6.802 16.21 11. Erythromycin-500mg 0.26 4.460 4.468 7.11 12. Eryfast-500 Erythromycin 0.27 2.940 2.950 2.81 3.4 Tensile Strength The tensile strength of the product samples are shown in Table 3.4. The results from the two methods used are compared, i.e. the static loading and the Monsanto Hardness Tester methods. Using Student’s t-test, the results showed that the differences were not statistically significant at 95% confidence level. In a previous work on comparison of testers by Brook and Marshall (11), it was affirmed that variations in crushing strength values between instruments are due in part to inaccuracies in instrument scale values, zero errors and varying methods of applying the load. Calibration is therefore necessary for accurate measurement using one instrument or when comparing results from more than one tester. This is the measure of the mechanical integrity of tablets, which is the force required to cause them to fracture (i.e. break) in a specific plane. The hardness did not have significant influence on the disintegration times of the product samples. Disintegration Time Oral uncoated tablets are expected to disintegrate in 15 minutes unless otherwise stated. Sugar and film coated tablets are allowed 30mins to 1hour within which to disintegrate. The 12 product samples of erythromycin stearate were all film coated, and all disintegrated within the official time of one hour. The disintegration time of 4 products namely, samples 2,7,9 and 12 were below 5 minutes. There is the probability that some types of super disintegrants were employed in these formulations. Concentration ( µg/ml) Fig: 3.1 Standard curves for Erythromycin stearate at max 365 nm. Dissolution Test The dissolution rates of the various samples of erythromycin stearate tablets are shown in Table 3.5. This table shows the amount of erythromycin dissolved at times 45 and 90 minutes respectively in percentages. All the product samples except Rycin ® (62.4%) and Erythromycin-500mg (65.50%) had more than 70% of drug released within 90 minutes. The relatively low percentage release of erythromycin from Rycin ® (62.4%) and Erythromycin 500mg (65.5%) would possibly result in poor bioavailability of the products. Erythrocin-500mg (Abott) used as reference standard at 90mins had amount dissolved of 80%. Another product ‘Labcin’ also released 80% of drug after 90mins. Product samples Rycin ® and Erythromycin-500mg were officially cleared into the Nigeria drug market with NAFDAC Reg. No 04-3205 and 04-7570. It is therefore possible that there was a mix-up between the product samples submitted for NAFDAC registration and those currently available in the market for patients’ consumption. It is also possible that the types of excipients used in the formulation of these product samples (Rycin ® and Erythromycin-500mg) may have reduced the percentage of the drug dissolved. Table 3.5: Dissolution Rates of Erythromycin Stearate tablets from the Various Samples, at 45mins and 90mins respectively S/No Brand % released (45 minutes ) % released (90 minutes) 1. Erythrocin-500 43.20 80.00 2. Erymycin ® 36.80 72.00 3. Enthrox-500 40.80 76.80 4. Althrocin-S500 40.00 79.20 5. Erotab-500 40.00 77.60 6. Icethrocin 46.40 76.80 7. Donythrocin-500 41.60 77.60 8. Zin-zine 40.00 76.80 9. Rycin ® 25.60 62.40 10. Labcin ® 500 40.16 80.00 11. Erythromycin 500mg 22.40 65.50 12. Eryfast-500 40.80 77.60 Figures 3.2, 3.3, 3.4 and 3.5 show the dissolution profiles of the various product samples of Eryhtromycin Stearate tablets. FIGURE: 3.2: Dissolution Profiles of Erythrocin -500 (Abbot), Erymycin, Enthrox -500.Figure: 3.3: Dissolution Profiles of Althrocin –S 500, Erotab- 500 (Hovid), Icethrocin Figure: 3.4: Dissolution Profiles of Donythrocin -500, Zin Zine, Rycin. Figure 3.5: Dissolution Profiles of Labcin, Erythromycin – 500mg, Eryfast 500 CONCLUSION The therapeutic response to a drug in its dosage form can be predicted by studying the physicochemical and biological properties of the drug product. A thorough knowledge of the impact of the various manufacturing methods and technologies on the performance of the drug product would always be useful. In this study, 12 different products of erythromycin stearate 500mg film-coated tablets were examined. The physicochemical properties studied included weight uniformity, friability, tensile strength, disintegration time, and dissolution rate. Product samples 1, 2 and 7 (Erythromycin-500, Erymycin ® and Donythrocin-500 respectively) had friability values above the standard set by USP of not more than 1%. Their friability values were 1.55%, 2.04% and 1.33% respectively. It was also observed that the weight variation within each drug product was within the acceptable limit. All drug products disintegrated within 30 minutes as required for film coated tablets by the pharmacopoeias and FDA regulatory guidances11. Film-coated erythromycin base tablets are expected to be absorbed at the duodenum (pH 6 to 6.5). All drug products except No. 9 (Rycin ®) and No. 11(Eryhtromycin 500mg) released 70% and above within 90 minutes. There is therefore, the need for our regulatory bodies, NAFDAC, NDLEA, PCN and Police Force to be adequately alert and watchful to prevail against the nefarious activities of some Nigerian nationals who possibly connive with their foreign cohorts to sneak in substandard drug products into the country even when such drugs have been initially registered. REFERENCES British Pharmacopoeia (2008). Her Majesty’s Stationary Office, London. Pp2377, 2380. Luciane C.M and Schapeval E.S (1996). Bioavailability study of coated erythrornycin stearate tablets in rabbits; Acta Farm. Bonaevense 15(2):77-84. Fell, J.T; Newton, J.M. Determination of tablet strength by the diametrical-compression test. J.Pharm.Sci. 59(5), 688 691. Tomoshenko, S. (1934). Theory of Elasticity, McGraw Hill: New York, p. 82 -85, 104 109. Frocht, M.M. Plastoelasticity; John Wiley and Sons, New York, pp 32-39. Stanley, P; Newton, J. M (1980). The tensile fracture stress of capsule-shaped tablets. J.Pharm. Pharmacol. 32(12), 852 — 854. Pitt, K.G, Newton, J. M; Stanley, P. (1988). Tensile fracture of doubly-convex cylindrical discs under diametrical laoding. J. Mater.Sci. 23, 2723 2728. United State Pharmacopeia 2008 (31) (1217), Rockville, US Pharmacopoeia Convention Inc. p 677. FDA Regulatory guidances, FDA Website for regulatory guidances. (www. fda. gov/ cder/ guidance/index. htm) Allen, P.V, Rahn, P.D, Sarapu, A.C, Vandewielen, A.J (1978). Physical characteristics of erythromycin anhydrate and dihydrate crystalline solids. J.Pharm.Sci.(67), 1087 — 1093. Brrok, D.B and Marshall, K. (2006). Crushing strength of compressed tablets 1. Comparison of testers. J. Pharm.Sci. 481 484. Ethical Fashion Markets in the UK and India | Research Ethical Fashion Markets in the UK and India | Research Thinking about my future life and career, long term aims for this MA are to build useful contacts in fashion industry in UK, gain a real insight into the Ethical Fashion Industry in UK, and hopefully complete a work placement at the Ethical Fashion Forum. In order to fulfill my project,I need to do the forecast research of the Ethical Fashion in UK and India in order to reach to the best topic of my research. To complete this MA, good time and project managementskills is going to be one of my most important challenges. Also, my strong focus would be on strategically planning and developing research skills. Fulfilling my learning agreement goals will give me new understanding and knowledge on the Ethical Fashion Industry in UK and India. For achieving all of the above, I need to build innumerable contacts with the fashion designer, businesses and organisation concentrating upon sustainability in the fashion industry in UK and India. Formerly, I have made enough contacts and gathered information; I will then discuss and orate about my project proposal. Ultimately, when I get an enthusiastic response, by looking at the success of Ethical Fashion Market, UK, I will then exchange those ideas with Kakoli Banergee, Trustee, Satya Jyoti Trust,India; to collaborate and formulate my project plan. If I receive a positive hope I would believe I have finally completed my MA journey, successfully. ANSHU YADAV Investigate into an Ethical Fashion market in UK and India PROJECT PROPOSAL TITLE Investigate into an Ethical Fashion market in UK and India AIM Understand the current scenario of ethical fashion business in India and relate to UK. Research UKS ethical fashion business; providea plan for making of a marketing body (Eco Fashion Park) for ethical fashion producer group and artisans in India. RESEARCH QUESTIONS What is Ethical Fashion? Defining Ethical Fashion Sustainability and triple bottom line Finding out issues and practices of Ethical Fashion Reviewing history of ethical fashion Fast Fashion and Cheap Fashion What is the market size of Ethical Fashion? Domestic (INDIA) market research on the Ethical Fashion Business and Lifestyle. International (UK) market research on the Ethical Fashion Business and Lifestyle. What is sustainable production and consumption . Defining the sustainable production and consumption Domestic (INDIA) industry research on methods of sustainable production and consumption International (UK)industry research on methods of sustainable production and consumption Sustainable Fashion producer groups and their problems in India What are the various certification possibilities for establishing a sustainable fashion business in UK and India? Ethical standards and Labeling Trade Tariffs and Barriers What is value chain? Defining value chain Research into linking the national ethical fashion producers and international buyers and markets. RESEARCH METHODS Quantity: Case Study, Grounded Theory and Consumer reactions study. Quality :Observational Analysis ANSHUYADAV Investigate into an Ethical Fashion market in UK and India 3. Primary Research: Focus on gathering information on ethical fashion from India and UK 3.1 Interviews with key forum members of Ethical Fashion Forum, UK. 3.2 Interviews with emerging fashion and textile designers in sustainable design in UK and India. 3.3 Social networking, for instance, Face book, 3.4 Fashion Business networking: Ethical Fashion Forum(UK), Designer Forum(UK), Ethical Trade Initiative(UK), Craft mark (India), Labour organisations, Manufacturers of Sustainable Fibres, Yarns and Fabrics. 3.5 Personal contacts in the Fashion Industry will help me gain appreciable approach. 3.6 Questionnaires and Videos of various artists involved in Sustainable Fashion practices. 3.7 International trend and fashion show visits. For instance, London Fashion Week, London; The Cloth Show, Birmingham; Premier Vision, Paris 3.8 Design institutes and government bodies 3.9 Non Profit Organisation, Satya Jyoti Trust, India. 4. Secondary Research: Focusing on Ethical Fashion Forum in UK. 4.1 Co work with Ethical Fashion Forum as a research intern, alongside an associate director, collecting research for EFF projects and events. 4.2 To understand the implications of formulating a marketing body(Eco Fashion Park) in India, for the sustainable Practioners. 4.3 Analyze Journals (MONOCLE,DRAPERS,FINANCIAL TIMES,ECO- TEXTILE) Weekly Magazines(TREND UNION,NEW CONSUMER, THE ECOLOGIST) and Online Magazine(THREAD), and Readings(ECO- CHIC, BY SANDY BLACK;GREEN IS THE NEW BLACK, BY T BLANCHARD,BUSINESS ETHICS AND VALUES, BY PETE ENGARDIO;SUSTAINABLE FASHION AND TEXTILES BY KATE FLETCHER. 4.4Get reports from online Databases and Articles( MINTLE, GMID, JUST STYLE.COM) 5. Literature Research: Refer to Bibliography RATIONAL OF MY PROJECT In my view point ethical fashion is the exciting subject to study as it has been grabbing the headlines within fashion industry in recent times.It is the uniqueness in fashion that allows us to look at sustainability in innovative ways. Therefore, Fashion provides an opportunity of awareness for sustainability. Many sustainable practices and movements are gaining momentum and moving towards mainstream. Green buildings, interiors, home products and even green weddings and events are flourishing, yet fashion is when embraced in sustainable ways, holds even greater impact potential. What is also unique to fashion, more so than other sustainable pathways, is that it is a large vehicle. Ethical fashion also interested me as it focuses on ill practices in the factories, poverty reduction, environment education, production and consumption issues, with a strong attention on workers health; in relation to the fashion industries. Ethicall fashion at a global level has captured my interest, for the very simple reason, that London fashion has stepped forward to promote ethical fashion clothing. Top shop, Marks and Spencer, Zara, Next, Europeon Fashion chain and USA Banana Republic are all specialising in â€Å"going green†. With a strong focus on Ethical Fashion Forum(UK), I want to know how to create such a not for profit organisation, where the ethical fashion producer group, from field to factory to end product, exchange ideas, collaborate and communicate effectively on various sustainable practices and events .My knowledge in Ethical Fashion from UK wouldthen allow me to provide the plan of making a successful marketing body (Eco Fashion Park) for Ethical Fashion producer groups and artisans of India, in India. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES LEANING GOAL 1: 1.1 Clarity of thoughts: Think deeply for filtering clear and in-depth information. 1.2 Assessed: Being able to decide the best final research topic. LEARNING GOAL 2: 2.1 Quick and Accurate Reading: discover to read relevant topics and fast. Also to improve summary and note taking skills, to be able to apply useful data resource at time of compilation of my project. 2.2 Assessed: Allowing myself to make reading list and note takings habits. LEARNING GOAL 3: 3.1 Professional Writing and Presentation Skills: enhance my English speaking and writing skills, professional approach towards any assigned task and submissions. 3.2 Assessed: Confidently being able to articulate and present myPGC Presentation and Learning Agreement. LEARNING GOAL 4: 4.1 Project Planning and Self Time Management Skills: Producing a comprehensive project proposal with a proposed approach, research direction and schedule to be followed. 4.2 Assessed: Being able to produce a timely submission of Project Proposal. LEARNING GOAL 5: 5.1 Professional Knowledge: History of Ethical Fashion Design, Business and Industry, increased awareness of Ethical Fashion Business in global context. 5.2 Assessed: Being able to approach future research phase professionally. LEARNING GOAL 6: 6.1 International Work Experience Placement: Co- work with Ethical Fashion Forum to gain more knowledge about Ethical Fashion 6.2 Assessed: Possible Case Studies and Personal Growth of improved interactive skills. LEARNING GOAL 7: 7.1 Research orientation skills: Improve my research making skills, by self understanding and implementing them in my dissertation. 7.2 Assessed: Being able to make a research oriented MA Dissertation in the last phase of research. PROJECT TERRAIN OUTCOMES KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING Project Proposal, presented in the PGC stage Project related information collection and analysis, using the primary and secondary research methods Learning agreement: refer to this document Self time management SKILLS, QUALITIES AND ATTRIBUTES Project Management: refer to the project time frame Learning Contract Summary Form Plan of learning resources inside the University (Oct- Nov 2008) Reading relevant magazines and books in library and using library learning resource to get the marketing report which I need Attend the lectures that are related to my project proposal Attend undergraduate lectures of Fashion and Textile Management. Ask questions about y research from my tutor and supervisor Multiple photocopies of magazines, journals, report and books from library Plan of learning resources outside the University (Jan-June 2009) Observe the magazine market from news, reports, blogs, forum on websites Make contacts with the relevant industry or hopefully find a research internship with Ethical Fashion Forum, UK, which can help me gain the knowledge of Sustainable Fashion and Textile industry. Maintain Chronofile (My Research log book) Academic support Keep in touch with supervisors and professors during doing the project Use the library learning resource to obtain any relevant report that I need. Practical learning Try to contact as many Fashion Designers, Sustainable Fashion Producer groups, consultancys and not for Profit Organisations. Interview the people who relate to my project proposal and learn the skills of communication. Identification of learning needs Suggestions from my supervisor and tutor Lectures which are related to my project proposal Latest reports and news on fashion, design and ethical fashion market Collect a lot of documentariesrelated to sweat shops and sustainable Fashion and Textiles. Learn to get the opinions from different people and understand Ethical consumer and producer groups in UK and India. Also interact with fashion students and make videos asking about their buying attitudes towards Ethical Fashion Clothing. Skills to summarize the information that I obtain during the research Skills to take a precise note from interview (primary research) and books and video (secondary research) Identification of non-learning resource needs Access to university computer which has professional software to produce my document and adjusting photos and pictures Target date for completion of project proposal