Setting an Agenda for Social Justice

Introduction Written by Mark Brundrett and Rachel Anderson de Cuevas in the journal of Management in Education, and published in 2007, this article is titled Setting an Agenda for Social Justice through Leadership Development. According to Wilkinson (2007), Brundrett is a professor of Educational Research in the Faculty of Education, Community, and Leisure and the head of the Centre for Research and Evaluation, in the Liverpool John Moores University.Advertising We will write a custom article sample on Setting an Agenda for Social Justice specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More On the other side, Rachael de Cuevas is a PhD student in the School of Tropical Medicine in the Liverpool John Moores University (Theobald, 2010). Professor Brundrett started as a primary school teacher before progressing to middle and secondary school teaching and finally becoming a professor in the Liverpool John Moores University. He holds masters degree in edu cation, and arts, bachelors degree in arts, and a doctorate degree in philosophy and education. His research has been mainly on education where he has authored and co-authored 12 books and numerous scholarly journals. Moreover, he is a board member of many advisory boards of different international journals. Major Thesis This paper addresses two main issues; one, the implicit nature of commitment in leadership development programs which until recently, has been practiced in the United Kingdom to enhance social justice through management of school system. Secondly, this article argues that recent legislations in education have fostered crucial reforms that would facilitate active involvement of school leaders in promoting social justice whilst in training. Article Summary The United Kingdom has undergone increased funding in leadership development evidenced by formation of the National College for School Leadership (NCSL) and upsurge in national programs of leadership development. Ne vertheless, these reforms came only after the election of a government mandated to advance social justice in 1997, that is, the New Labor administration. Hitherto, there was no elaborate system to incorporate leadership development in schools but this has changed with the creation of NCSL, which deals with improving leadership training in schools to align with the increased regulatory and accountability clause in the 1988 Education Act. The NCSL was established to â€Å"ensure that our current and future school leaders develop the skills, the capability, and capacity to lead and transform the school education system into the best in the world† (Brundrett de Cuevas, 2007, p. 45).Advertising Looking for article on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More NCSL has continuously performed well and by 2001, it had structured the Leadership Development Framework to guide in leadership developments entailing core and extensi on programs befitting all leaders in school system viz. emergent leaders, established leaders, head teachers, and consultant leaders. This framework encapsulates preparation, induction, and further training of head teachers. This framework specializes with head teachers mostly because the triad of preparation, induction, and further training of head teachers forms the backbone of national intervention measures in leadership training and development. Head teachers are the ‘heads’ of schools thus are better placed to implement any form of leadership development in their respective institutions. In 2006, the NCSL formed Head for the Future (HftF) to address challenges facing school headship and challenge participants to think critically to embrace and incorporate change in school headship and leadership development. In 2003, NCSL introduced ‘Leading from the Middle’ a portfolio meant to develop leadership acumen at all levels of the teaching profession. Moreov er, the NCSL conducts online learning and network information, research and development projects among other leadership development issues. Moreover, NCSL runs the Leadership Network, which runs in over 2,000 schools. Nevertheless, there has been criticism of NCSL functioning and outcomes. While some people see the rapid expansion of NCSL as a positive move towards realization of leadership development in schools, others have been quick to point loopholes in the system. NCSL has been on the receiving end in matters concerning efficiency; outcome-focus, goal clarity, and depth in the future work. A 2002 review by Ofsted revealed that, while NCSL’s training programs are efficient, the selection criteria for the candidates and ability to meet prevalent needs were inefficient. Nevertheless, NCSL has an agenda for development, which would facilitate renewal of leadership capacity in this sector as suggested by PricewaterhouseCoopers in 2007. This study also pointed out the dire ne ed to come up with leadership framework that would address needs hence calling for goal-oriented system.Advertising We will write a custom article sample on Setting an Agenda for Social Justice specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Reflection and Personal Evaluation/conclusion This article properly articulates the need to set an agenda for social justice through leadership development. Fortunately, this agenda is underway with NCSL working tirelessly to improve on what it has in place. It is true there are some shortcomings here and there as depicted in the PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ofsted’s reports. However, it is important to appreciate what the NCSL has achieved so far. The Leadership Development Framework coupled with other programs as Leading from the Middle’ has proved vital in leadership management. Brundrett and de Cuevas have given a clear and concise picture of how far leadership development has gone in the Un ited Kingdom. The article draws widely from other sources and this shows its credibility. Unfortunately, the authors did not leave any room for further analysis of the paper. Generally, the article is well written to accomplish its objective. Reference List Brundrett, M., de Cuevas, R. (2007). Setting an Agenda for Social Justice through Leadership Development. Journal of Management in Education. 21(4): 44-48. Theobald, S. (2010). Staff Profile. Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. Retrieved From,  https://www.lstmed.ac.uk/ Wilkinson, P. (2007). Mark Brundrett. Liverpool John Moores University. Web. This article on Setting an Agenda for Social Justice was written and submitted by user Camren D. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Black Hawk Down Summary essays

Black Hawk Down Summary essays A Black Hawk is a very advanced, expensive and deadly military helicopter and the title of the movie explains what the goal of the plot was. Once the one hundred elite U.S. soldiers dropped into Somalia they were almost instantly fired upon. A rocket was actually shot at one of the black hawks while a soldier was preparing to descend to its target but to dodge the missile the helicopter had to jar itself to the left which caused the soldier to plummet to the ground. The movie was very graphic and the language was pretty harsh but then again the material being covered was very harsh itself. When men (and women) began opening fire on the U.S. soldiers it explained everything. Many soldiers were hurt in this battle, and a total of 19 U.S. soldiers were killed. When the fighting began things looked good for the U.S. They did not have tactical advantage, and they did not have the advantage of having the location they were prepared for even though preparation was intense. They did have the advantage of having a better more advanced, yet smaller artillery and combat training. Leave no U.S. soldier behind! said the general, which helps to better explain the title. The soldiers that were alive had to get to the helicopters that had crashed so they could be seen and evacuated. Through radio contact it would be very difficult to let the rescue team let them know where they were because they couldnt explain where they were due to the fact the aria was new to them. Plus, at the crash sites many Somaliland rebels were looting and ready to fight which only made things more difficult. Rebel ground forces were not the soldiers only problem, the biggest threat they had were the snipers on the roof tops that were taking out ground soldiers and mak ing it near impossible for helicopters to land for evacuation. All in all, I thought this was a very good movie. It may have been a bit too long, ...

Investments in Emerging Countries Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Investments in Emerging Countries - Essay Example Higher global crude oil price is expected to benefit Russia’s economic recovery. But this benefit will be carried away by the expected capital outflows. The capital outflow of Russia is much higher compared to that of the inflow. Business Risks in Czech Republic: The political risk of Czech Republic is lesser compared to that of Russia. Rising oil price is one of the business risks in Czech Republic. Annual oil production of the country is much below its annual oil consumption. (Theodora, 2011) Therefore, the rising oil bills will increase cost of production and paving way for an inflationary situation in the country. Another risk of the country is the strict legal system. Bureaucracy is at an increased rate in the country. Another risk factor is that the capital market of the country is small. Czech Republic is mostly an export related economy with majority of its exports being to other European countries. Therefore, the performance of the country’s economy depends lar gely on the stability of other European nations. Best Investment: The analysis of business risks at both the countries show that Czech Republic is better placed with less investment risks than Russia. Economic factors are positive to Czech Republic than Russia. Therefore, Czech Republic is the better investment destination than Russia. Works Cited World Economic Forum (2010) Current Investment Risk in Russia. Retrieved May 20 2011.

The militarization of our law enforcement agencies in America Research Paper

The militarization of our law enforcement agencies in America - Research Paper Example Owing to the level of criminals sophistication, militarization offers police protective equipment like helmet so that they are equally safe guarded from possible attack. This incude use of armored vests,sophisticated machines guns and trucks fitted with communication gadgets The militarized police must reconcile between keeping the civilians safe while they are on raid. At the same time they must uphold their own safety from possible return gun fire from the criminals. Abiliy to undertake these two responsibilities helps in gaugig the preparedness from the militarization process. The interest of the civiliam must be prioritized through sound preparation mechanisms while carrying out raids.accountability in the event that police raids aount to loss pof life of civilian through negligence or abuse of power is also a concern. Militarization of police is geared towards improving the security of the citizens and ensuring sustained functionality of the government to defend its subjects. This calls for shared responsibility between members of the public and government. Militarization of law enforcement agencies is a positive step towards addressing the surging criminal sophistications. The idea should be given more attention and offered more support by the society at

Discuss the idea(s) developed by the author about the significance of Essay

Discuss the idea(s) developed by the author about the significance of our memory of the past - Essay Example Memories of the past especially regarding racialism and the white supremacy mentality are evident and still haunt Walt’s future. In other words, the belief that the white race was supreme than others, which was practiced and held for many years still haunts memories of the actor in his past. For example, the author indicates that though "Hmong might be good people," if they wanted anything fixed such as appliances or even cleaning up a yard or even ending the gang war that affect the society, they needed a white person to help and that the white may get away with anything thing. The racist mentality that was practiced in the past still haunts the author; he believes that the whites are supreme over other races in all aspects. The past beliefs in cultural superiority dictate his relationships with other races, which as the film illustrates prevents the author from establishing a cordial relationship with others. Understanding one another early enough dictate how people interact later in life and how this interaction impacts their lives. Walt’s memories of the good and meaningful life he had in the past as a soldier and with the family affects his life, considering he is now alone and in different settings. This makes Walt to sink deep into loneliness and reject any gesture that seeks to lift him from this life. For instance, his oldest son and his wife bring him a birthday gift to make his life better and cheer him up. However, his son’s motives are against Walt’s values and feelings. As a result, he rejects the gift and the suggestion of a retirement home. This suggests that everyone views life in a different and unique lens. In other words, there is a need to understand others and their needs to avoid conflicts. The fact that the two do not understand one another results into conflict. If the two had understood one another before, the son could have known what his fat her needed most at the time,

Studying The STOF Business Model Domains Information Technology Essay

Studying The STOF Business Model Domains Information Technology Essay STOF Model: This framework for business model focuses on customer value creation, the arrangements required from the organisational, financial and technological point of view, for creating a new service. These four dimensions address how value is delivered to the customer and similarly how the service provider can gain value from the service offered. The four dimension of the framework are service domain, technology domain, organisational domain and finance domain. In the following sections, these dimensions will be explored in detail. STOF Business Model Domains Since it is essential that the service offered by the firm should meet the demands of the customer, the new service definition is used as the central reference for all other domains. In customers viewpoint the technology is an enabler of the service, from the firms perspective it is the driver. Organisational domain describes how the resources in the firm will made available and used. Financial domain, stress on the pricing model, investment and other cost based risks involved in providing the service. Service Domain: Critical Success Factor and Critical Design Issues for Customer Value Chapter 3: A successful business model should balance the value created for the customer to that for the service provider. To achieve this there should a balance between the different domains of the business model. A critical design issue is variable which is of importance for the feasibility and sustainability of the business model. Understanding of critical design issues (CDI) and its linkages is critical for designing balanced business model. Service domain requirements guide the choice of technology to be used for the service delivery. Furthermore, it affects the organisational and financial domain. Critical Design Issues in Designing Business Model For each business model domain, we identify the respective CDIs. The identification of different CDIs is based on the literature review. In case of service domain the CDIs are target customers, value creating elements and customer retention. Target customers: Service requirements and the customer need are different for each target group. The target group definition, whether it is B2C or B2B is necessary. And it is therefore fundamental to have a clear segmentation of the customers to address respective value proposition. Value creating elements: To provide a compelling value proposition to the targeted customers, factors like relevance, ease of accessibility, accuracy, quality and trust are critical. It is therefore, the core service offering as well as support service being offered to the customer. Branding (removed in the diagram) : To get a better recognition for the new service , brand image is essential. It can also increase the trust and awareness of the service being offered. Customer Retention: It defines the ways to keep the customer loyal and satisfied. It is also need to develop recurrent use of the service by the customer. Critical design issues for Technology domain: Factors like security, integration of the existing system and accessibility are key design criteria for the technology domain. Security: The way information is stored in the technical architecture and how the access is granted to the customer is essential to avoid security breaches. The trade off between ease of accessibility and data privacy should be addressed to reduce the risk of improper use of the services. Quality of Service: The ability to provide different priority to maintain a certain level of performance based on the users, context and importance. The incurred cost in the technological infrastructure should be balanced with that of the quality of service. It can also be argued that the technological architecture or infrastructure influences the technical functionality, which in turn affects the customers perceived value of the service. System Integration: The extent to which the new service offering can be integrated with that of the existing ones determines the adaptation of the service. Cost and flexibility of the new technology affects the system integration. In the case of ICT , firms with open standards bring down the level of integration required in the technical side. Accessibility: There two factors which affect the accessibility of a service by the customer, first preference of service platforms and second the architecture. If there is a closed or controlled environment, it can make way to a restricted access to a particular group of customers. This also increases the security at technology level. Critical Design Issue at Organisational Domain: Partner Selection: This design criterion is based on the strategic interest that the firm has, based on it suitable partners can be chosen. It is also vital, to get hold of the required resources and capabilities by the firm. Openness of Network: It is the extent to which new business can link to the value network. There can be two scenarios, first a closed network and second an open network. The closed network is mostly used to create higher quality of service and new partners are chosen by certain set of rules. Open network, gives an opportunity to deliver services to a wider audience than the closed network. Network Governance: Establishment of set rules by which the partner businesses should operate and can be monitored. This is usually done by the most dominant actor in the value network. Access to the end-users is the key determinant of an actors dominant role in the collaboration. Network Complexity : The number of relationships that has to be maintained with other businesses in providing the services act as the determinant of the network complexity. If the complexity is reduced , or in other words, less number relations increases the security and quality of service. Critical Design Issue in the Finance Domain: Pricing: Pricing of the service plays an critical role in the service adaptation and its use. The perceived value by the customer should be greater than or at least equal to the delivered value by the service provider. The pricing strategy should address whether the firm is aiming for maximising the market share or maximising the profitability from delivering the service. Risk and Investment: The uncertainty about return on investment is the fundamental risk involved in developing and delivering a new service to the market. A division of investment and risk among the actors can reduce the degree of impact to the actors involved. Cost and Revenue: The division of cost and revenue between the businesses is not the same in all cases, it differ from case to case. For instance, the service provider can share the revenue with the other actors in the service delivery or it can be based on the subscription fee. The revenue sharing is based on the underlying business logic either value based or on cost basis. The division of cost and revenue depends on the division of risk and investment also. The CDIs play a significant role in the process of creating value to the customer as well as to the service provider therefore it act as the starting point. The next step is the identification of Critical Success Factors (CSFs). A minimum group of areas in which satisfactory outcome is required to make certain that the business model generates value for both the service provider and to the customer is called the Critical Success Factor(Rockart and Bullen ,1981). Then the linkage between CDI and CSF , will aid for generating a feasible business model. Critical Success Factor and Critical Design Issues for Network Value Critical Success Factors (CSF) For creating value to the customer : Compelling value proposition: It is related to value creating element CDIs in the service domain and it is a critical criterion for creating value to the customer. Value proposition is the overall benefits that are delivered to the customer by the service provider. Bouwan et al (2008) argues that the value proposition should be based on the customer needs and requirements and not to be based on the technological possibilities. Customers perspective of value also depends on the pricing (CDI) of the service. Similarly, Kotler (2000) points out that brand (CDI) influences the customer perspective of value proposition. Defined target customer: The CDI targeting is related to this CSF. Defined target customer will help the firm to focus on the targeted customers, as the customer needs are different for different customer group. The assumed customer needs by the service provider can be nullified by segmenting the customer base (Kotler, 2000). Accessibility CDI of technology domain also affects this CSF. Customer Retention: Customised or personalised service delivery to the customers will help retain the customer, mainly influenced by customer loyalty and customer experience. The unconstructive occurrence in service can affect the experience and frustrate the customer(Strauss, Schmidt, Schoeler, 2005). Quality of Service: Grà ¶nroos, 1994 suggests that the quality of service output and service process are equally important. CDIs from technology domain are closely related to QoS. CDIs in the technology domain demands an adequate level of quality, since the service being delivered is technology based. Security and system integration To summarize a high score in these CSFs will grantee that the service being provided will meet the customer expectations and create value to the customer. CSF for creating value to the network: The actors in the value network will cooperate for generating value on mutual interest and also compete for value on individual interest (Brandenburg Nalebuff, 1996). Another framework, Porters five forces model stress on competition between the actors (Porter, 1980). For creating value in the network, balance between financial and organisational domain is critical, mover over it should be acceptable by the collaborating actors. Profitability: There should be a acceptable profit for the firms, according to the division of cost and revenue (CDI). Other domain issues like customer group and pricing will affect the profitability. Risk: An agreeable division of risk among the participating actors should result from the division of investment CDI. Since, there is a high uncertainty of service acceptance and due to the investment in IT infrastructure. Network Strategy: This CSF is required to effectively manage the different relation in the value network, from the organisation domain perspective. Division of roles and Network Governance CDIs is directly related to the network strategy. Partner selection and network complexity is also interlinked with this CSF. To summarise a high score on these CSFs will create benefit for the firms that are involved in the service. Organisational CDIs help in allocation resources and capabilities, similarly the CDIs in finance domain is instrumental in directing to a profitable service.

Missionaries in Pre-Colonial and Early Colonial Nigeria Essay -- Colon

Missionaries in Pre-Colonial and Early Colonial Nigeria In any study of colonial Nigeria, the groundwork accomplished by the missionaries in pre-colonial days must be a central concern. They were instrumental in setting the scene which would meet the colonists when they started arriving. Missionaries were used by the colonial power as an avant garde, to expand into new regions, a fact keenly displayed by Achebe in Things Fall Apart. For many Nigerians, missionaries were the first Europeans with whom they came into contact. The missionaries first made their presence felt through their work in abolishing the slave trade. As Crowder notes, they took the emphasis away from the ''human products'' of Africa in a bid to use more fully her abundant natural resources. The overall, and idealistic, aim was to promote a more healthy and mutually beneficial trade between Africa and Europe. Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton once put forward the argument that ''the only way to save Africa from the evils of the slave trade ... would be call out its own natural resources''(Crowder, The Story of Nigeria, 111). Right from the outset, there was both a commercial and religious context to all missionary work in Nigeria. If anything, it could be argued that initially, the commercial aspect was more pressing than the religious, due the urgent need to find a quick substitute for trading slaves so that the traders would not feel their profit was at stake. Outcry in England against the horrors of the slave trade reached unprecedented levels. Never before had there been such unanimous public support over a single issue. Cheap pamphlets and tracts were sold in abundance, meaning that the public was fairly well informed in matters such as the cramped and pes... ...y consulted their oracle. Yet, the underlying forces at work behind the missions, as well as their inextricable links with commercial activities should never be overlooked. From the outset, the missions were seen as ideal vehicles for gaining the trust and confidence of the tribal leaders, before the real monied interest moved in. It could argued that the missions were one part of the wheel of business and economics that starting to turn in Nigeria, while a substitute for slaves was sought. The humanitarian touch they seemed to bring disguised these motives behind a facade of peaceful and beneficent civilisation. It would be naive to assume that the missionaries were innocently unaware of the drastic consequences their opening of the African heartland would bring. In this sense they must, at least in part, be held answerable for the colonial predicament of Nigeria.