Academic Streaming Debate

Good evening chairman, ladies and gentlemen. The topic for our debate is that we should ban academic streaming in schools. We the negative team believe that this should NOT happen. Before I get into the topic at hand I would just like to rebut some of the opposition’s points: Our first speaker Nevin has already stated the academic benefits of streaming, and now I would like to focus on the social benefits. Today I will be talking to you about how streaming can positively affect students self-esteem and also their motivation.Now to my first point: A student’s low self-esteem has a significant impact on almost everything he or she does, it effects the way they interact with others, the way they engage in activities, and as Dr. Ken Shore’s, Classroom Problem Solver states, even has a marked effect on academic performance. Even as the affirmative team may say, that streaming labels students, causing them to have low self-esteem, this is not the case.Even in mixed abi lity classes students know where they stand, if they are excelling or even if they are struggling they will know how they are doing if it’s from test grades or just from observing the classroom. In comparison to streamed classes where Professor Liu Woon Chia has proved through examinations that streaming is beneficial as it has a ‘big fish in a little pond’ effect. Secondly streaming helps motivate students as it increases the level of competition between the students.In a class, which has a mixed group of students, the smart student always comes first in the class. He does not have enough motivation to improve himself. He has to have self-motivation, which is sometimes hard to find. However, if he is in a class of smart students, he works hard because of the competition other students give him. This has the same effect to all students no matter of what academic ability.This effect keeps all the students academically improving, in contrast to a mixed-ability clas s where the students could stay stagnant, as there is very little or too much competition. So chairperson, ladies and gentlemen, I conclude that academic streaming should not be banned as assigning students to classes according to academic performance helps motivate students to achieve there very best as well as the fact that streaming is good for a students self-esteem as it will not make them feel as they are struggling and will push them to achieve their personal best. Thank-You.

Review on The Pursuit of Happyness Essay

The Pursuit of Happyness is a very moving film about a man and his quest for a better life. It is an inspiring case study of how many of the elements of happiness work together from relationships, to poverty, to positive mental attitude and determination. The movie is based on the true story of Chris Gardener, a struggling entrepreneur in 1980s San Francisco, with one driving ambition- to be a good father to his son. He tries to improve the family financial situation by purchasing and selling medical equipment, but the investment does not work out and the family sinks further into poverty. He sees his chance to make good after admiring a sports car on the street in the business district, where all the people seem happy. The car owner tells Chris he is a stock broker and anyone who is good with numbers and with people can be successful as a stock broker- even without a college degree. Chris uses his people skills and demonstrates the value of good relationships to get a chance at an internship where he must compete with 20 other candidates for 6 months for one paid position. His wife leaves him, he loses his apartment, bank accounts, credit cards, and has to spend time in jail, but all through it he is dedicated to keeping his son and pursuing his dream. The title, Pursuit of Happyness spelled with a y,comes from some graffiti at the daycare center and is also a reference to an essay written by a biracial man in the US shortly after the Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson. The movie is beautifully acted by Will Smith and well written. It shows how people without money are often victimized and bullied by those who do have money and power. Yet Chris Gardener repeatedly demonstrates the importance of good relationships even with people who treat him badly. He shows the importance of knowing his strengths and using them, even in unconventional ways. His optimism turns into dogged determination as he demonstrates incredible persistence and creativity in his pursuit of happiness. The realism and emotional punch of the Christopher Gardner story makes this a moving and inspiring drama. Whether you are inspired to be grateful for your own circumstances or by the value of grace and determination, this movie is sure to show you something about happiness- its importance and how to get it. The Pursuit of Happyness teaches us a lot about the importance of virtues and strengths in our happy lives.

PRAN †the Largest Agro Food Processor in Bangladesh Essay

Introduction Agricultural Marketing Company Limited (AMCL) was set up at first in 1981 and then 1985 for farming and marketing of agricultural products for local and export market. Subsequently a modern fruit processing plant with bottling and earning facilities was added in 1993 to produce fruit juice, squash, sherbet, jam, jelly etc. the company processing unit started commercially production in July 1993 and launched its products in the market under the brand name â€Å"PRAN†. PRAN stands for Programme for Rural Advancement Nationally. The brand Pran has established itself in every category of food and beverage industry and can boost a product range from Juices, Carbonated Drinks, Confectionery, Snacks, and Spices to even Dairy products. Pran Group was born keeping in view the corporate mission of the group. Today Pran is the largest processors of fruits & vegetables in Bangladesh. Pran is the pioneer in Bangladesh to be involved in contract farming. They encourage contract farmers and help them grow quality crops with increased yields and to obtain fair prices. They procure raw material directly from the farmers and processes through the machineries at their several factories into hygienically packed food and drinks products. The Group comprises of 10 companies. The head offices are located at Dhaka with production facilities around the country. Their management is modern adapted to the environment & culture and Pran’s largest asset is their competent team of hands-on-mangers & dedicated employees. Pran is listed with the Dhaka and Chitttgong stock exchanges in 1996. Pran agriculture marketing company limited has controlled the nine individual Business Units on their umbrella. Agro Industrial Park Bangladesh’s first-ever agro-industrial zone, Pran Agro Industrial Park, was inaugurated in Natore. The park is comprised of automatic rice mill, spice, peanut, honey, tomato, pickle, jam and jelly processing units, fruit pulping units, pulses mill, puffed rice mill, cattle feed mill, plastic molding and milk collection units to produce wide range of products, which is using for  export. Plant in India: Now Pran is going for FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) in India by building its first foreign factory in India, taking advantage of the country’s recent decision to lift its ban on Bangladeshi investment. The plant will be built in the north-eastern Indian state of Tripura. It will initially produce jelly and drinks and is expected to come into operation by 2009 with an annual turnover of around Tk100 crore. It will supply the markets of northeast India -Assam, Nagaland, Tripura, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh -known as ‘Seven Sisters’, said a senior official of Pran Exports Ltd. The plant will initially produce jelly and drinks, which have already won popularity in those areas, said Paramuddin Hossain, senior manager of Export of Pran Group. Related and Supporting Industries Pran Food Limited produce different types of food products which require many other related and supporting products in their different stages of production and distribution. I.Mango and Other Fruits Industry: Pran’s mango juice is their most selling item and most of their earnings are earned by selling mango juice. So they need a large amount of mango as a raw material in mango juice production. They also need mango in producing Jam, Pickles and Mango Bar. Besides Mango they also need many other fruits like Orange, Pineapple, Apple, Litchi, Lemon and many other fruits to produce Juice, Jam, Fruit Bar and Pickles. At present they supply mango and other fruits from their own garden as well as import from other countries like India and Bhutan. But the importing amount is more than the amount of supply from their own garden. II.Sugar Industry: Sugar is an inevitable raw material for production process in Pran Food  Limited. They need sugar in juice production to candy production. They use our home countries sugar because they do not import sugar for high tariff rate. So sugar industry is a related and supporting industry for Pran Food Limited. There are many local sugar industries that depend on Pran. III.Dairy Firm: Pran has the country’s largest milk producing centre. Pran’s own dairy firm supplies milk to produce Ghee, Milk candy, Mango Milk, Chocolate Milk, and in many other production process. If supply from their own dairy firm can not satisfy the need of raw materials in future other dairy firms can give them the supply. IV.Wheat Industry: Pran needs a bulk amount of wheat to produce snacks, like Crackers & Chips, Bakery Items, Biscuit, Chanachur, Dal etc. They import wheat from other countries for their production process. V.Packaging Industry: To distribute all products Pran needs quality and colorful packaging. At present they are importing all packaging materials excluded the glass bottle from China and Korea. And they use local glass bottle to distribute juice and pickles. Organizational Structure of Pran The Pran agriculture marketing company limited constructed their organizational structure in standard way which could efficient for their production and job. The structure is given below: Marketing Strategy of Pran To achieve its marketing objectives Pran uses the customer centered orientation program to gain large bulk of customers. First  of all they set Segmentation Targeting Positioning (STP) for their products. I.Market Segmentation: Pran segment their market to divide the market into distinct groups of buyers who have distinct needs, characteristics, or behavior and who require separate products or marketing mixes. For example: they segment their mango juice to think about the people of different age and who have different taste. Like Pran Mango Juice-Classic for generalized group, Pran Mango Juice-Premium for the group who want thick mango juice, Pran Joy Juice for the young generation and Pran Junior Juice for the children. II.Target Market: Pran target the middle class people who wants verified taste of foods. As consumer percentage is high in this group they think that this target market is highly profitable for them. So, they don’t go for high priced product rather than they try to serve low price but competitive quality of product. That is why their main object is to serve quality product at a lower price and they do a lot of promotional activities for being the best in the competitive market. III.Market Positioning: Pran positioning their products in their customers mind by offering special features and benefits. To occupy a clear, distinctive, and desirable place relative to competing products in the minds of their target market Pran tries to position their each and every product. For example; Pran tries to position the Mango Bar as a taste of the happiness of their childhood, in the mind of every consumer. IV.Marketing Mix of Pran: Pran has a set of controllable tactical marketing tools –product, price, place and promotion, which they blend to produce the response wanted by their target market. a)Product: Products act as customer solution for their demand. Pran has an extensive line of product which can easily satisfy the need for any food demand of the consumers. Consumers are getting all sorts of food products they need to consume from Pran. b)Price: Bangladesh has a huge shortage of fruit, vegetable, raw materials. So Pran make up this shortfall by importing from the neighboring and different countries like India, Bhutan, and China etc. But, for that, Pran needs a relaxed tariff structure to keep their products competitive. So, Pran follows competitive pricing strategy to compete in the market. But they also take care of the limitation of their customer. So they always try to keep the price low to compete in the market and to make their product’s price affordable for their consumers. c)Place: Pran has an extensive sales network throughout the country to reach their product to everyone. Their products are available even to the remote part of the country. Company appointed sales force to cover every part of the country. d)Promotion: Pran communicates with their consumers by various means of promotion. To maintain a good public relation they take intensive sales promotion. To promote Pran’s product to their customers, they are conducting some promotional activities. These include: Advertisement in print media such as news paper, magazine Advertisement in visual media with opinion leaders Free campaign Sponsoring in different cultural occasions V.Countrywide Sales and Distribution Network: Pran maintains the following distribution network Pran sales force comprises 137 Executives. Number of Sales Representatives is 1510. They are performing the responsibility of Selling to retailers all over Bangladesh through Distributors. At this moment company appointed total Distributors are 720. Mode of Transportation Pran use transportation in the following activities: I.To Import Raw Materials: To import the raw materials Pran use Freight on Board (FOB) and C&F both transportation system. On FOB the supplying company takes the responsibility to import raw materials up to Chittagong port and on C&F the supplying company imports the raw materials up to the factory. But Pran use the C&F system more than FOB system. II.To Export Processed Foods: Pran Food Limited uses the shipping system to export processed food to many other countries. To avoid the high transportation cost, they use shipping system instead of air. III.To Distribute In The Local Market: To avoid high freight Pran use their own distribution channel to distribute their products inside Bangladesh. They also take help of the local transportation agencies to distribute their products on payment. The names of some local transportation agencies that they use more frequently are given below: Haji Mostafa Transport Ananda Paribahan Shamim Transport Multi Star Transport Ltd. N. Mohammad Transport Packaging Packaging is the science, art and technology of enclosing or protecting products for distribution, storage, sale, and use. Packaging is very important part for the marketers because by looking at the packaging of product, consumers take the decision of buying a particular product. That is why Pran does colorful packaging which attracts customers a lot. Pran gives a lot of efforts in packaging. They are in a good position in doing  packaging compare to other companies in Bangladesh. Pran export their product in the international market, so comparing with the international market their process of packaging is not in a good pos ition at all. Pran is doing their best to compete with the international standard of packaging. For doing packaging they use foreign technologies to compete with the world market. They import package mostly from Thailand. Then they prefer China. They import different packing materials like- Aluminum Foil, Crown Cork, Flexible Packing material, Glass Bottle, Glass Jars, HDPE, Lug Cap (30, 53 & 63mm), PET, Shrink Labels, Shrink caps, Tin Can, U-Straw. Pran is doing packaging because of following reasons: i.Self-Service: Products should be packaging in such a process which is convenience for the consumers. Pran package their products in such a way that it is very convenience for the consumers to take products from one place to another. Pran do standardizing and grading their products according to different weight of their product. ii.Consumer Affluence: Pran always try to have bit more profit from customers. So Pran emphasize on appearance, dependability, and prestige of better package for having consumer affluence. iii.Company and Brand Image: Packages contribute to instant recognition of the company and brand. Pran packages their product in such a way that it’s become very easy for the customers to recognize their product. When Pran package their product, they emphasize a lot in few factors like- I.Physical Protection: Physical means the physical product. They emphasize whether products are secure after packaging or not. II.Barrier Protection: There are some problems that create product unhygienic, dust is one of them. To hygienic the product, Pran does their packaging very carefully. They concentrate on whether the packaging is protecting the products from different barrier or not. Pran use new types of technology for protecting these types of problem. III.Information Transmission: In packaging, Pran gives a lot of information about how to use products and what chemicals are their in the product. By doing these they do the work of information transmission which help a lot to the customers. IV.Security: There is possibility of damaging goods when products are going for shipment. Some time because of some defect in the packaging, products can not reach in there destination. For that reason companies loss their profit as well as their goodwill. That is why Pran emphasize a lot on security in packaging to prevent from these problems. Way of Packaging: The way that Pran packages their products can be shown in the following tables- Local Demand Condition Pran is the Bangladesh’s largest selling processed food company. The local demand for Pran’s product has increased day by day. The marketing officials explained that their current production volume even failed to satisfy the local demand condition in last year. The local demand condition of Pran’s product can easily determined by their sales volume. Here we examine Pran’s sales volume for last five years which shows that the local demand condition of their products has increased drastically. In 2004 the sales volume was worth of 50 crore taka which increased to 250 crore taka in 2008. That means the sales amount has increased by 40% in last five years. Foreign Demand Condition Like local demand condition Pran has a vast demand to the foreign market. They started to export from 2001 and from then on their foreign demand condition has just increasing and increasing. The foreign demand condition of Pran can be easily drawn by their exporting volume of last 8 years. We can see from the graph that at the beginning the only export worth 12 crore which increased by 16.67% in next year (2002). They had a slow increase in export up to 2005. Till then they had average increase of 17% each year in export. But they had a drastic change in export  from 2006 when their exporting volume rises by 55.55% from the previous year. They had exporting volume of 56 crore taka in 2006 and 80 crore in 2007. In last year they export worth 120 crore which break the all past record of increase in export. Market Access Issues Pran, Bangladesh’s largest agro process company produces and export different kinds of food products. Now they have access to many countries and have potential to export many other countries.

Gender Women's studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Gender Women's studies - Essay Example An issues touching on courtship usually reminds us of the relationship leading to marriage without paying attention to issues, which might terminate it before the goal is realized. Notably, courtship is a complex cultural ritual that has been shaped by modernization (Janrt 187). In fact, many things have changed and the people’s way of life has had dramatic shifts. Traditionally, both men and women did not have a choice of their partner as this was an issue left for the parents, thus part of the societal ritual (Clark, Poulin and Kohler 397). The process of courtship was done by the parents without involving the man and woman to get married. In Ethiopia, Men who had reached maturity would ask their parents to arrange for their marriage, because it was the role of the parents to pay the dowry (Fafchamps and Quisumbing 348). The parents then arranged for the marriage, depending on their choice for his/her son or, daughter. Indeed, it was a complex ritual where dowry was paid after the bride had been identified, prior to the actual marriage (Fafchamps and Quisumbing 348). Additionally, the parents were to make all the necessary inquiries to make sure that their child would marry, or get married to families with impeccable background (Fafchamps and Quisumbing 355)). Precisely, this was the only sure way of sustainability of the marriage and a better life. In some communities, even girls ware to be imposed on older men due to parental arrangements, which they could not resist. However, with increase in education, urbanization and HIV/AIDS epidemics, this has changed and relationships are nowadays by choice (Clark, Poulin and Kohler 398). As part of the engagement process for marriage, courtship has recently shifted attention from organized marriage to a situation where the adult person selects a spouse for him/herself (Clark, Poulin and Kohler 398). In Malawi, for example, the increase in cases of HIV/AIDS has changed the situation since the

Response Journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Response Journal - Essay Example The explosion also killed 11 people instantly leaving several others seriously injured and in addition to blackening the Gulf coast (Taylor par. 2). It is two years since the disaster occurred and its devastating effects are still being felt. Experts reveal that all oil, approximated at about five million barrels, leaked spreading from the coast of Mexico to Florida. Houston is arguably the place that felt most of impacts of the incident which affected mainly wildlife and the environment, thereby raising ethical issues (Taylor par. 4). The main ethical problems present in this situation were to do with the destruction of the environment and wildlife by humans in the Gulf of Mexico and its environs. For instance, environmentalists reveal that the spill interfered with aquatic life as several marine animals were killed as a result. The other ethical issue that arose is that BP and its subcontractors were only concerned with cost saving without adequately assessing the hazardous risks. This in itself becomes unethical issue since BP concentrated only on cost saving and failing to put measures in place to ensure that their drilling processes were safe. The BP oil spill is also seen as an ethical issue for the reason that the company failed to minimize the impacts of the disaster for all those who were affected. The spill interfered with businesses and coastal beaches that are dependent on fishing and tourism. Furthermore, the oil spill was not only a health concern for residents of Houston but also to coastal businesses that lost millions of dollars due to the disaster. Oil that spilled underwater also affected all the aquatic animals throughout the gulf raising ethical concerns (Taylor par.6). In conclusion, the BP oil spill problem seems to have been caused by negligence on the parts of engineering who were building the deep-water horizon. To solve this problem, BP should always adhere to ethical practice when handling

What will happen to Iraq if the US leaves Essay

What will happen to Iraq if the US leaves - Essay Example One of the most important events in the current world affairs is the invasion of Iraq by the US and there have been several essential voices arguing that it is high time for the US to leave the region to set the Iraqis free to pursue their political and economic destiny. Critics who regard the invasion of Iraq by the US as a serious offence against the freedom of that nation argue that America needs to establish normalcy in the region before they leave the land. "No one can say with confidence what will happen in Iraq if the United States leaves precipitously and without making a continuing effort to compensate for its mistakes and failures. It is easy to talk about intensive civil war, 'blood baths', and an international resurgence of al-Qaida. Such worst cases are possible, but the most likely result is less violent sectarian and ethnic cleansing, and the de facto division of much of the country." (Cordesman and Davies, 2008, p 737). Therefore, the most essential question in the pr esent context is not whether the US invasion of Iraq is justifiable or not, but what happens if the US leaves Iraq all on a sudden. In this paper a careful and reflective analysis of this essential question concerning Iraq's future if the US leaves the region is conducted and the discussion in this regard not only is vital to an understanding of the political system in the US but also to an understanding of some of the most important world affairs as well as affairs in the Iraqi region. In a careful analysis of the current situation in Iraq, it is essential to comprehend that there are several benefits if the US army stay longer in the region. People, who consider that going into Iraq was a big mistake committed by the US, are greatly concerned about what will happen when USA leaves Iraq. To most of them, it will be foolish to consider that the Iraqis are able to defend themselves against all the issues in the country and the region. First of all, there will be great chaos in the nation and the region if the US leaves immediately. Although there are people who argue for the rapid withdrawal of the US troops from the region, on the basis of the unfortunate developments precipitated by the US invasion of Iraq, it is not logical for the army to leave the region before the Iraqi security forces are self-sufficient. Such a rapid withdrawal of the US troops will inflict long term damage on US credibility and ability to deter enemies and would facilitate the objectives of the al-Qaeda. "In Iraq, the United States has demonstrated that it will stand and fight in the face of adversity when it believes that its core interests are at stake. US determination in Iraq has done much to counter previous jihadists' perceptions of the United States as a 'paper tiger' If the United States leaves prematurely, these gains will be lost and Iraq will join Vietnam, Beirut, Aden, and Somalia in the jihadi mantra regarding US weakness." (Forest, 2007, p 47). Apart from these, it is also argued that some of the powerful leaders from within Iraq can emerge in the nation, take over the government and eventually result in another dictatorship. Also there is a possibility that Iran will invade Iraq and take over it if the US leaves the region all on a sudden. There is a serious argument that "Iraq will become a terrorist haven if the United States leaves." (Preble and Logan, 2005). Reports from the Baghdad confirms that the US withdrawal from the region can affect the norma lization process of the country and "Iraq's foreign minister warned that a quick American military withdrawal from the country could lead to a full-scale civil war, the collapse of the government and

Sports fitness centre in Mayfair London Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Sports fitness centre in Mayfair London - Essay Example 2. Situation Analysis Overall wellbeing and health fitness has become a major concern in every society. There has been an increase in the number of people becoming obese and overweight. More than half of London adults do not engage in any form of sport or fitness program. To achieve a healthy weight the Mayor of London proposes to work closely with and encourage a wide range of people to become physically active and eat healthy (Johnson, 2011). Other measures include making sport and active recreation opportunities affordable, in addition to supporting workplace health programmes. London faces a significant shortage of sporting facilities in respect to the demand. 3. Target Market Analysis Britain is in the grip of obesity epidemic (This is London, 2011). According to experts by 2050 at least 60 percent of the population will be obese (London Assembly, 2010). The target market is the young adults and the adults of both sexes. According to a study by the London-based International Obesity Taskforce that 28 per cent of boys and 36 per cent of girls in the UK are now overweight or obese (Dobson, 2006). A UK government report estimated that by 2010 12 million adults and 1 million children in England will be obese (Medical News Today, 2006). Less physically active and eating more junk food is adding to the problems. Thus, the target market for the fitness centre would be the age group 16-40 of both sexes. 4. Problems and Opportunities The people of Mayfair would not be aware of the Fitness Centre yet to open. People could be apprehensive of the quality of service, equipments and coaches. However, since the demand exceeds supply, the opportunity could be used to penetrate the market with the right strategy. The government is also supporting fitness initiatives and obesity is at an all time high. 5. Marketing strategy Customers seek value for money and hence the fitness centre should understand the services it can extend in exchange for money while knowing the target audience to whom the services are directed. The objective is market penetration in the initial stages. Knowing the target audience will enable to include the essential features at the fitness centre. The core strengths of the fitness centre need to be communicated effectively. The marketing strategy for ABC Sports fitness centre would take into account various factors in devising the marketing strategy. 5.1 Product Positioning The leisure industry is a high-growth area which includes health, fitness, sports and recreation facilities. This sector contributes 13.5% towards the total employment in the United Kingdom. There are two reasons for the growth of the sector. There has been the increase in the consciousness to keep fi t as health concerns have risen, which has hiked the demand for better facilities and spaces for exercise (20th Century London, 2010). In addition, sedentary lifestyle has urged people to look for convenient places to exercise. Thus, Sports Fitness Centre, Mayfair London, should position itself as a Fitness and Health Club. 5.2 Marketing mix To develop the marketing strategy the essential of the marketing mix have to be evaluated. Product mix The product should satisfy a need or a want. The need at this moment is healthy living. Healthy living can be achieved through different activities