International Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

International Economics - Essay Example As a substitute, the United Nations supports the use of special drawing rights (SDRs), a creation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) – a proposal supported by Russia (Bryanski, 2009). The SDR is the designated international reserve asset that is the unit of payment on IMF loans; it has an advantage over the US dollar in that its valuation is calibrated against a basked of currencies, rather than on the currency of a single country. Preferably, however, the UN recommends the establishment of a new reserve system that is not based on just one or even several currencies, but should instead serve the need for stable international liquidity. In response, several European officials expressed their disagreement, citing the market as the ultimate determinant of which currencies countries would hold in reserve. Several have voiced the concern that political or administrative decisions cannot reformulate the world’s currency system (Vayrynen, in Charbonneau, 2010), and in the entire post-war period the currency exchange system had been based on the U.S. dollar (Sundaram, in Charbonneau, 2010). EU officials fear that any intervention by an administrative body into the workings of the market would just create additional problems and would make things even less predictable (Piebalgs, in Charbonneau, 2010). Some simply reject the idea of an artificial currency as the SDR as the reserve currency of the international financial system, stating that it is a non-starter because it is created by political decision making (Al-Jasser, in Kessler, 2009). Based on this scenario, some sectors have voiced the possibility that the yuan (or renminbi), the currency of China, may in the span of a decade gain the status of reserve currency and present itself as a suitable alternative to replace the U.S. dollar. Supporters cite the relative stability of the Yuan during the recent financial crisis, saying that it is a better holder of value than the dollar. This

New England and Chesapeake Regions Essay Example for Free

New England and Chesapeake Regions Essay Although New England and the Chesapeake regions were both settle largely by people of English origin, the two regions developed differently. Certainly they eventually evolved into similar modern societies. However in their early years, they were very different. Thus, by 1700, the New England and Chesapeake regions had developed into two separate and distinct societies due to differences in social structures, political structures, and economies. The social structures of the two regions were very different, mainly in demographics and the incentives of the immigrants and religion. In the New England area, the early populations was mostly comprised of families with children and servants. This brought to the New World skilled craftsmen, farmers, and indentured servants to shape the economy. This also provided a relatively equal male to female ratio. They had longer life spans and less infant and childbirth related deaths. The incentives of the New England immigrants was to escape religious and political conflicts in England, thus shaping their religion. The religion of the of the New England settlers was very Puritan. They wanted to establish themselves as a city on a hill or a place of morality and social reciprocity to serve as role model for the rest of the Americas. The Puritan communities were strong and tightly knit and the Puritan marriages were stable and most lasted until death. The religion of these settlers greatly influenced their politics; their form of government was a theocracy. The Chesapeake immigrants were many teenage boys and very few women. The women who did immigrate there had great choice in husbands. They married young, widowed, and usually remarried, carrying on the plantations of their late-husbands, resulting in greater economic freedom for women Most of the male immigrants were seeking gold in the New World and prone to fights from the start. The Chesapeake was very diverse in religion. This diversity nearly required religious toleration to some extent. As a result, the community life was very unstable. The political structures of the New England colonies and the Chesapeake colonies, too, were different. In the New England colonies, the  government was a Puritan theocracy. Each town had an agreed upon covenant or promise of not only moral, but social commitment. Established and enforced by their government and covenant were fair and set wages, shared property, and public schools. Each town had a annual town meeting during which the male voters would appoint men to govern for the coming year. In the Chesapeake there was at first general chaos. The councilors appointed by the English king wanted to just go back home to England. The established governments were oligarchies and aristocracies, breeding social unrest in the lower classes, as is very apparent in Bacons Rebellion. In the Chesapeake, there was a system of headrights or one of land grants to people who were willing to either immigrate to the colony or pay for the voyage of another. Also different were the economies of north and south. The New England economy was primarily sustained on agriculture and some fur trading. As governed by their Puritan ideals, goods and foods were traded for need, not profit. The Chesapeake colonies were mainly plantation colonies. The main crops was tobacco, but cotton, indigo and rice were also grown. The labor intensity of the crops grown in the Chesapeake, the bad soil, and unfavorable growing conditions gave rise to slavery in the south. All the crops grown were grown for profits, so there was a very competitive system of plantations. The New England and Chesapeake colonies were settle mostly by the English, but they developed differently. By 1700 the two areas had two very different had developed into two very separate and very distinct societies due two differences in social structures, political structures, and economies.

Marketing Strategy 4. Recruiting Foster Carers

Marketing Strategy 4. Recruiting Foster Carers More foster carers are needed in the UK today. Official statistics from the Fostering Network indicate that over 10,000 foster families are needed. Another research by Fostering Network found 82% of local authorities saw a rise in the number of children coming into care and needing foster homes in 2009-10. Family foster care provides substitute planned family care for children who cannot be adequately cared at the own home due to various reasons. 4.1 Foster children: The number of children coming into foster care has become overwhelming over the years. But the fact is that it has become very difficult to find the families who are ready to meet the challenges of increasing complex behavioural, emotional needs these children experience. SHORTAGE OF FOSTER HOMES England: 8,200 Scotland: 1,700 Wales: 750 Region Shortage England 8200 Scotland 1700 Wales 750 Source: Fostering Network Website Chart 1a: National Breakdown: Shortage of Foster Homes in England, Scotland and Wales SHORTAGE OF FOSTER HOMES IN ENGLAND North West: 1700 North East: 1300 East: 650 South West: 600 South East: 850 London: 2000 West Midlands: 650 East Midlands: 450 Region Shortage North Wales 1700 North East 1300 East 650 South West 600 South East 850 London 2000 West Midlands 650 East Midlands 450 Source: Fostering Network Website Chart 1b: Regional Breakdown: Shortage of Foster Homes in England 4.2 Motivations for foster carers: Much research has been conducted on this issue as what motivates people to foster. It is very important to understand this key component because this may help to understand their needs and can be used as a tool in the marketing mix to recruit more carer. In 1996, Denby Rindfleisch conducted a research on children and youth services. The research was conducted in order to understand what motivates a person to become a foster carer. Some of the findings were, fulfilling the need for foster homes in the community, enjoying and wanting to help children, providing a companion for an only child and for oneself, increasing family size, obtaining substitute for a child who has died or who has grown and left home, religious reasons and supplementing family income (Denby Rindfleisch, 1996). Based on the findings of this research it is very clear that there are various factors that are involved for a person to become a foster parent. 4.3 Foster carer recruitment: In the recent years, there has been a decline in the number of families able to provide foster care. When a child is identified in need of foster care, the problem of finding placement homes still remains very high. Some of the factors that are related to the shortage of foster carers may be due to the following reasons: Greater difficulty in meeting the increasing complexity needs to become a foster carer Lack of public awareness The poor public image of faster carer. With these issues, it has become difficult to recruit foster carer and has become an important and yet a challenging task. Recruitment of quality foster carer in an on-going demand for the agency. 4.4 Productive approaches 2008 till date: For the past 2 years, the enquiries generated by fostering solutions using the current marketing strategy have increased. Fostering solutions uses different methods of advertising to attract potential carers. These include bill board, bus, community care, exhibition, flyer, internet, job centre, jobs fair, local community booklet, national magazine, newspaper advertisement, passed office, post office, radio, tv, recruitment event, taxi, website, word of mouth, yallow pages etc (Fostering solutions). Over the past few years, the recruitment focus was on the following factors: To recruit carers through using fees, and other allowances. Using messages such as show you care to reach the carers. 4.5 Recruitment outcome: Table 3: FOSTER CARE RECRUITMENT ENQUIRIES SOURCE OF INTEREST BETWEEN 01/09/2009 AND 04/08/2010 SOURCE TOTAL ENQUIRIES Advan 4 Fostering Network 2 Banner 1 Bill board 1 Bus 38 Current carer 8 Flyer 41 Internet 10 Job centre 3 Jobs fair 1 Local community booklet 30 National magazine 2 Newspaper Advertisement 761 Not specified 1 Passed office 78 Radio/TV 28 Recommended 156 Recruitment event 419 Recruitment poster 102 SMS 13 Van 1 Website 1071 Word of mouth 494 Yellow pages 22 TOTAL 3289 Source: FSDocument Out of these, the most successful advertisement medium for fostering solutions has been website with a total of 1071 enquiries followed by newspaper advertisement with a total enquiry of 761, followed by word of mouth with 494 enquiries between 01/09/2209 and 31/08/2010. From the above table it is evident that the total number of enquiries during the period 2009-2010 is 3289, but the no. Of approval are only 126 out of 3289 enquiries. This is just 3.82% of the total enquiry. It is evident that 3289 people are interested to know about the fostering care. But the approval rate is very low. Table 4: FOSTER CARE RECRUITMENT ENQUIRIES SOURCE OF INTEREST BETWEEN 01/09/2008 AND 31/08/2009 SOURCE TOTAL ENQUIRIES Fostering Network 3 Bill board 4 Current carer 1 E-invite 1 Flyer 19 Internet 1 Local community booklet 47 Newspaper Advertisement 591 Not specified 13 Passed office 108 Radio/TV 32 Recommended 173 Recruitment event 168 Recruitment poster 130 Taxi 1 Van 4 Website 1347 Word of mouth 535 Yellow pages 106 TOTAL 3284 Source: FS document The total no. Approval between 01/09/2008 and 31/08.2009 was 163 and total enquiries received during that period was 3284. When Comparing the current year enquiries and approval rate with the previous year (i.e.) recruitment enquiry between 2008 2009 which was 4.96% of the total enquiry, it is clearly evident that there is a decrease in the approval rate when compared with that of the previous year. But we just cannot come to a conclusion that there is a decrease in the approval rate because some of the enquiries may still be in the approval process. Table 5: Conversion rate Year Enquiries Approved Conversion Rate % 2008-2009 3284 163 4.96 2009-2010 3289 126 3.83 Source: FS Document Over the past two years, the conversion rate is found to be reasonably constant with 4.96% in the year 2008-2009 and 3.83% in the 2009-2010. Chart 2: Enquiries in different region From the above chart it can be seen that the number of enquiries received from each region varies to a greater extent. For example the highest number of enquiries was received from the midlands with a total of 396 enquiries. Where as on the contradictory there were lower enquiries from various other regions. The reason for so many enquiries in the midlands is because of the strong advertisement campaign with additional newspaper advertisement. Fostering solutions should focus on all the regions equally. This will help to increase the enquiry from different region. The major problem which is to be considered right now is that the approval rate is very low despite there was 3289 enquiries between 2009-2010. This may be due to various reasons. Advertisement Æ’Â   Enquiries Æ’Â   ROI Æ’Â   Approval With reference to the above given table, when an advertisement is made and when it is able to attract 3343 enquirers who have even the slightest idea of fostering has enquired the agency, it is clear that people are interested to know more about fostering. But somewhere as they move further in the process (i.e.) from enquiry to the next stage, the number gets reduced to a greater extent. This can be viewed as a result due to 2 reasons. There may be a problem in the process from the enquiry stage until the next stage which is the registration of interest. Or The agency is not targeting the right people. In order to identify the problem in the process from the enquiry stage until the ROI, a study maybe conducted as what is going wrong in that process. It is very important to focus on this issue right now because the time and cost involved in marketing is very high. Considering that fact, the marketing strategy maybe of good type, but due to some bottleneck in the process, the marketing strategy may seem to be unsuccessful. 4.6 STRATEGY Objectives: To successfully recruit the carers, the following objectives must be considered to meet the challenges that are associated with the recruitment activities. They are, To recruit carers for different age group To recruit carers for children with disability To recruit a diverse range of carers to place the children to meet their best needs. Recruit carers based on categories long, medium and short term carers. In addition to these objectives to recruit the carer, the fostering solutions should be the best choice for carers. In order to achieve such a position, the following factors plays important role Benefit packages for carer- what fostering solutions can offer for both carer and young people. Competitor awareness versus brand awareness of the agency. Services provided before and after approval. Raising awareness through advertisement that carers are still needed , that fostering solutions values the carers, and to create a sense of feeling that they have made the right decision in selecting fostering solutions. 4.6.1 Plan of action: In order to reach both regional and national audiences, the agency should continue to advertise a multi-layered approach of marketing. The message which the agency tends to convey to its audience must be clear and focused. The agency may use tools ranging from traditional to establishing its own marketing strategy through various opportunities that are available to raise the awareness of the people. The traditional method includes the regular media advertising which the agency is currently involved and it has delivered results. It is now the right time to think of new opportunities of marketing through using the internet media such as web tools like Linked-in, Facebook, twitter, etc. By using both the traditional and new methods, the agency can reach and cover a wide range of people from different regions, which will help to educate the people about the basic awareness and understanding about the need for fostering. This also helps to reach the target audience by giving them the information which they require. 4.6.2 Factors influencing the decision making: There are several factors that influence the decision making of the marketing strategy. These factors help the agency to be alert by keeping them informed about the decisions of the potential carer and the way they react to the recruitment strategies and approaches that are used by the agency. A research maybe conducted in this area so as to find out the following: What ultimately actuated the potential carer to pick up the phone and enquire about the services that are offered by the agency. This can be done through introducing marketing questions in the initial home visits. Checking closely the effectiveness of all the resources that are used in marketing and making sure it is being efficient. Look into the key areas where the potential carers drop out of the process. It is very important to understand this because, this will give an idea as the reasons why they drop out. This will in turn help to influence the potential carers to identify the drop out points. Through identifying the drop out points time and cost that are involved in retaining the potential carers can be kept under good control. 4.6.3 A change in the current communication tools The information that are offered by the current communication tools are limited. That is the current communication tools which is paper based (information pack) gives idea from where the information is obtained. Chart 3 : communication route Enquiry Information Follow Up Resultant Website Phone Information Pack Phone Call Postcards Drop Out Proceed This is the normal route through which the information flows from the agency to the prospective carers. This route does not offer flexibility for the carer. Which means the carers contact type preference, individual decision process are not considered in this route. Moreover, the person making a call to the agency maybe quite intimidating. There should be a change in the current communication routes and channels whereby the routes are open up through which the prospective carer can gather information and be informed about the follow-up and the application process right from registration of interest until the approval. Information Search Enquiry Informed Decision Follow up Resultant Recruitment Stands Newspaper Word of mouth Flyer Website Face to Face contact at event Phone Website Information Pack (Delayed decision) Direct phone and postcard Drop Out Proceed Un-persuaded Un-persuaded Prospecting Proceed or Informed Influencer Participants or Informed Influencer 4.6.4 ENGAGING THE COMMUNITIES: To target the right carer, I suggest increasing the chances of finding successful foster carer through designing a planned strategy to engage the communities in foster care. By involving with the community there is more scope to create awareness and recruit many carers. To come up with such a strategy, it is very important to know the agencys needs and lay down its priorities, thumb rules on how to come up with a specific message for the general public. By engaging with the communities, it helps to inform the public and the potential foster carers about the need for foster care. The ultimate goal of the agency is to increase the number of qualified foster carers. In any business concept, designing an effective marketing strategy is a means of trial and error. For a strategy to be successful, it has to be analyzed from various perspectives before it can be implemented. In such a way, before reaching a community for help in recruiting the foster carer, we have to know in particular the needs of the agency and the ways in which the public might be of help to the agency. By needs of the agency here refers to the big question who is our target customer?. To kick start this process of finding the target customer the following assessment maybe done by the agency. Identifying the foster care population in a community How many foster children are there in the community? Their age group Age group under one year No. Of children (between 1-12) No. Of teenager (between 13-18) No. Of youngsters (over 18) Based on the agencies past experience say for example previous 2-3 years, how many children does the agency expect will require foster care during the next year? The racial composition White Mixed race Asian Black Other Identifying the foster carer population in a community How many qualified foster carers are there in the community Identifying the children in the community Up to what extent the following elements contributed to placement of children in foster care LOW Moderate HIGH Substance abuse Poverty Mental illness of parent(s) Poor parenting skills Incarceration of parents Childrens emotional or behavioral health needs Knowing the needs: After the above mentioned needs assessment is reviewed by the staff, the agency can come to a specific needs conclusion. The next step may be to rank the needs. The rankings should be based on their priorities as shown below Example needs Ranks To provide more adequate support for foster families. 3 To recruit foster parents for teenagers. 1 To provide better training for foster parents so they can handle childrens special needs. To recruit foster parents for teenagers. 2 To educate the public about the impact of welfare reform on children in foster care. Once the needs are prioritized, the next step is to develop a community action plan. This can be done through the following ways 4.6.5 Engaging the wider public : At the national level, the foster care fortnight event is conducted by the Fostering networks helps to engage the wider public and to spread the awareness about the need for fostering and the young people at care. However, this may help to engage the wider public, the major drawbacks in these kinds of events is that the agency does not get the chance to engage directly with the wider public on the assumptions and views to inform how we move ahead to spread the awareness. In order to overcome this problem the agency may preferably engage with the residents from the communities to inform them about the messages and the promotional approaches of the agency through which the awareness of the need for foster care can be increased. This can be done through engaging services in a county wide arts and photography competition. This helps the agency to find out more ways to engage with the communities and encourage them to take part in fostering. The photography competition can be conducted through collecting pictures from different age group categories young people in care, people who have experienced foster care. The competition must be judged by the agency; the winning photography must tour around the county and be visible in libraries and other common places for short period. A separate budget maybe required for this competition. 4.6.6 Working with the mass media: Mass media is the most common and effective medium of advertising. However, for an advertisement to be effective through mass media, it is very essential for the agency to know what kind of information or message should be conveyed to the public. For example in the case of targeted recruitment, the focus is on the families where they can accommodate children and teens with specific needs. In this case community based recruitment would be very effective rather than a general media campaign. However, media campaign may be very effective and most suitable for general outreach. Strategies for getting the message out to the public and spurring the community to take action. 4.6.7 Invite community leaders to help you get the message out: Engaging with community leaders to spread the awareness is one of the best ways to reach the people in a particular community. This is due to the fact that the leaders may approach the public with a message which would be very effective rather than the agency conveying the message by itself. The community leaders may not have the special knowledge about the system of foster care as that of a social worker. However, what they do have is the ability to attract the public and press. It is very advantageous for the agency to form a link of network with the community leaders for they be very sympathetic the cause and would come forward to help the agency. These leaders may be invited to speak at the campaign events and they may be requested to mention about Fostering Solutions in their own events. In such a way the community becomes aware and lot of people might come forward to foster. The main advantage is that a minimal support from one community councillor or a child advocate can quick ly raise the status of the issue. 4.6.8 Using the help of current foster parents: The most effective means of advertising is to get help from the current foster carers to recruit more new foster carers. Gratified foster care parents are the better tool for recruitment and retention. The advantage of Working in with foster parents to increase recruitment will help to improve the retention as well. Foster parents can be of great help in the following ways: Through sharing their personal experiences, the current foster carer may help the new foster carers to explain as what takes to be a good foster carer. This will also give an opportunity for the new foster carers to meet the children in care even before they get placed with a child. The current foster care parents may help the new carers to complete the applications by way of providing pre-service anf training in collaboration with the agency. The current foster carer may act as a middle man between the agency and the prospective foster carer by way of following-up with a phone call or a personal visit. Through engaging with the current foster carers, the new carers may get individualized mentoring and it may in turn be a great motivation for both the new and the current foster carers. 4.6.9 Carer benefit package: Carer benefit package may help to attract more carers. It is great way to communication through which the awareness can be increased. A detailed list of benefits and opportunities maybe listed, this will in turn help the prospective foster carers to take up fostering. The fact is that the more we offer and promote ourselves as the agency, the satisfied and happier will be our carers and are more likely to stay with us. This maybe one of the retention strategy. This strategy helps to gain competitive advantage over the competing agencies because, the carers are very happy with the benefit package. Regardless of whether the benefits are being used by the foster carers or not, the list of available benefits on the website maybe seem real and more tangible. 4.7 Resources In order to implement the above mentioned strategies effectively, resources are very important keys. 4.7.1 Human Resources: In the current organizational structure, the marketing department is very centralized. With the ambition of developing the marketing strategies for both the national and regional level, it is very important to increase the hierarchy level as shown in the above chart. In order to strengthen the regional marketing strategy a new post namely marketing assistant may be appointed region wise. The main work of this job will be to spread the awareness of fostering in their region and attract more carers. They will be reporting directly to the Marketing and public relations manager. The main reason to implement this change in the organization structure is because just having a marketing department at the head office will not work. Division of work is very essential in such cases. But for time being with limited resources, the main challenge is to stay focused in the priorities of the service that are provided by the agency. Chart 4: Organizational Structure Marketing Department. 4.7.2 Financial Resources: To corroborate the current level of enquiries and conversion, it is essential to continue to invest funds in recruiting advertising. A sustainable budget allocation will help the agency to be efficient and effectively plan the time and resources which are very valuable. This will also help to improve response rate, and to reach all communities as well as effectively plan the response resources. For long term planning, a planned annual budgeting will help to place the agency in a better position to cope up with the increasing preferential rates and spends of the promotional activity. There is also a need for the agency to invest in high profiled activities such as web advertising, website development and so on in order to maintain the profile of Fostering Solutions as the agency of choice for the carers. Currently, Fostering solutions uses all feasible media which will enable the agency to touch the hearts and minds of many potential carers and make them aware about the need for fostering. More funds should be invested in the areas of community publications, editorial media and recruitment campaigns. 4.8 Recommendations: Considering the above discussed strategies the following maybe summarized as the strategic recommendations 4.8.1 Short term recommendations: Maintain year round awareness for the need foster carers across England, Scotland, Wales and in communities. As discussed in the strategy using the current carers and their positive stories of children will help to attract more carers and it also helps to retain the existing carers.(refer 4.6.8) -Work with the community leaders to spread the awareness(refer 4.6.7) With reference to the conversion rate issue raised in this report, it is essential for the agency to conduct a study on the effective procedures that are implemented by the agency in the process of responding to enquiries and registration of interest with prospective foster carers. Because, this is where lot of people drop out. So it is essential for the agency to conduct a research and find out the reasons as why the conversion rate is very low. (refer table 5) As discussed in the resources, it is essential for the agency to have dedicated marketing staff at each regional office to make advertising more effective.(refer 4.7.1) With the help of the demographic information and analysis of the community assessment by the agency a better targeting of recruitment and advertising can be achieved. 4.8.2 Long term recommendations: As discussed in the short term recommendations, statistical data on foster carers maybe collected using the community assessment in order to make better recruitment decisions. This will help the agency to have a continued sustainable investment at national and regional level in the recruitment of foster carers. Have ongoing high quality campaigns across England, Scotland and Wales on both national and local level to attract more foster carers which will help to maintain enough carers to meet changing demands The agency should put as much effort in order to retain the foster carers as in recruitment. The agency should work on the factors such as carer benefit package, and other benefits that can improve the retention of foster carers. (refer 4.6.9) Develop a comprehensive foster care recruitment website to promote awareness and interest in fostering and permanent care -Focus should be to improve local capacity through working in close relation with the communities in order to recruit locally

Summary of The Film Big Fish by Tim Burton :: essays research papers

â€Å"So this is a tall tale?† â€Å"Well, it’s not a short one†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Stories are our essence of life. They grow and change with us. They allow us to reconstruct the pas, and put our slant on things. They don’t’ have make sense, and they don’t all have to be fact. That’s what kind of story this is. Big Fish, directed by Tim Burton, is a heart warming, comedic film, with many twists and turns. It explores the world of an eccentric father, while telling his life story. And so, our story begins. â€Å"There are some fish that cannot be caught. It's not that they're faster or stronger then the other fish. They're just touched by something extra.† That fish is Edward Bloom. A compulsive storyteller, who enjoyed living life to it’s fullest. This extraordinary film is based on a collection of cleverly crafted stories from the novel, by Daniel Wallace. William Bloom (Billy Crudup) is a journalist who wants to find the truth behind his fathers’ mythical stories, to find out the truth about Edward, who is dying of cancer. For too long has Will heard the unending series of tales his father claims is his life. It is Edward’s myths, of course, that really reveal the man he is. Tim Burton has cleverly constructed his movie around Ewan McGregor, the young handsome Edward Bloom, and so the tall begin. The screenplay, by John August, mixes tender heartfelt drama with zany, outrageous scenes, skipping from past to present, while keeping the tension alive. Finding the town of Ashton and small pond for the big fish he is, Edward sets out for the wilder world. This is how it all began. Through witches, werewolves, and giants you can see Edward change and grow with each new experience. As Edward’s retells his story, Will begins to realise that his father has always been true. The casting of Big Fish is incredible. Burton chose wisely. With the uncanny likeness between Ewan McGregor and Albert Finney playing the young and old Edward, and Alison Lohman and Jessica Lange playing the wonderful Sandra Templeton/Bloom, you would swear that they were the same person.

Multimedia learning proposes Essay

Multimedia learning proposes ways of going beyond the pure verbal messages which have been used in lectures and printed lessons for hundreds of years. Multimedia learning as Thomas Edison predicted has proved to be an effective method of teaching, has revolutionized our educational system and has supplanted the use of textbooks. Multimedia presentations are known to help learners. The newly developed multimedia technologies which incorporate simultaneous presentations of narration, images and text make the possibilities for instruction vast. Yet how should educators use these technologies to ensure that there is optimal learning? The answer is that the multimedia messages should be designed in the best way using the eight principles for multimedia design as a guideline. Background to the multimedia principles: Mayer is known for his research in the field of cognitive theory. According to Mayer, a multimedia instructional message is a presentation which involves words (such as spoken or written text) and pictures (such as animation, video, illustrations, and photographs) in which the goal is to promote learning. Mayer links cognitive learning theory to multimedia design issues, validating three theory-based assumptions about how people learn from words and pictures: the (1) dual channel assumption which is based upon the theory that pictures are seen by eyes and are processed as pictorial representations in the visual-pictorial channel. Spoken words on the other hand enter through ears and are processed in the other channel of human cognition, the auditory-verbal channel. (2) Limited capacity assumption is demonstrated by auditory- verbal overload. Because each channel in the human cognitive system has a limited capacity for holding and manipulating knowledge, presenting too many visuals and a lot of sounds at the same time causes the auditory-visual channel to become overloaded. And the (3) Active processing assumption implies that optimal learning occurs when learners engage in active processing within the channels which include relevant words and pictures organized into coherent pictorial and verbal models and integrated with each other and other knowledge. The discovery of the eight principles of multimedia design was a result of Mayer’s research. Each principle was based on the cognitive theory and was supported by the finding of the research. The multimedia principles discussed with good and bad practice examples: These eight principles are explained as follows in more detail, along with their applications. Multimedia Principle: This principle states that carefully and selectively chosen words and pictures enhance a learner’s understanding of an explanation better than words alone. Mayer tells us that deeper understanding occurs because students mentally connect pictorial and verbal representations of the explanation. A study was conducted in which students viewed a narrated animation about pumps or brakes or simply listened to a narration; the students who viewed the narrated animation scored substantially higher. There are numerous examples of the multimedia principle. Desktop publishing programs and the illustrative capabilities of Microsoft Word and PowerPoint adding pictures to a multimedia presentation has become relatively easy. A good practice example would be to use an animation of how an earthquake occurs to support the textual and/or verbal description: â€Å"when the frictional stress of gliding plate boundaries goes beyond a certain value and causes a failure at a fault line, which results in a violent dislocation of the Earth’s crust. At this point, elastic strain energy is released causing elastic waves to be radiated, leading to an earthquake. † The goal of this principle is best achieved when graphics used are meaningful and illustrative in juxtaposition with text. Images which convey meaning, not simply multitudes of clip art images with no instructional purpose. It would be bad practice heaps of pictures which show destructions caused by earthquakes are used when explaining how earthquakes occur. It would actually be a hindrance in the process of learning as it would take focus off the topic and instead bring the costs of the earthquake into discussion. A good use of this principle would be when pictures and animations are used for presenting instructional content where there are used as lesson interfaces and not for any decorative purpose. Contiguity Principle: The contiguity principle examines how words and pictures should be coordinated in multimedia presentations. This principle states that there is more effective learning when the narration and animation are presented simultaneously rather than successively. Also, words and associative pictures should be close each other and presented at the same time so that when the narration or words describes a particular process or action, the animation or picture shows it at the same time. A good practice example of the contiguity principle would be showing a car assembly procedure where narration and video are presented simultaneously. Students would learn better when the two things are coordinated than otherwise. It would be bad practice if the entire textual description or narration of the car assembly procedure which has 23 stages is presented first, prior to the animation or when the animation is played prior to the verbal description. A good idea is to display the narration and animation in close time proximity so that when words describe the action, the visual depicts the same action at the same time. This will make it more likely for the learner to build mental connections linking the verbal and visual representations. Modality Principle: This principle states that students learn more deeply and effectively when words are presented as narration rather than on-screen text. Using animation and text is a method most people use when designing PowerPoint presentations. According to Mayer when both pictures and words are used are displayed in multimedia, only the visual channel is utilized and it easily becomes overloaded. A good idea therefore is to use both processing channels; the visual/pictorial channel and the auditory/verbal channel. When the narration presented is auditory, it is processed by the auditory channel allowing the visual channel the resources to process the graphical content without it becoming overloaded. A good practice example of this principle would be to present an animation of how a bicycle tire pump works together with the narration of the explanation. Presenting some information in visual mode and some in auditory mode will expand working memory capacity and reduce excessive cognitive load. It would not be a good idea to play the narration after or before the animation. Redundancy Principle: This principle states that students learn far better from multimedia presentations consisting of animation and narration than from animation, narration, and text. The redundancy principle rejects the idea of presenting duplicate instructions in different forms. Unless it is necessary, presenting the same information both in narration and on-screen text hinders the process of learning rather than facilitating it. Some people think presenting the same information in multiple forms is safe and at best advantageous. However we must understand the architecture of human cognition. When dealing with new and technical instruction, working memory is very limited and presenting the same information in narration and on-screen text will mean that not all information will be processed. A good practice of this principle would be when a lecturer uses presentations to deliver his lectures. He can narrate the instructions while his presentations present animation and pictures. It would not be good practice if the lecturer has text heavy-slides and yet continues to try to maintain the attention of the audience. This redundancy causes the learners or audience to become wrapped up in either the verbal presentation or the textual material and miss the other. Even worse the learner may decide to not pay attention at all when he is being bombarded with so much information. Coherence Principle: This principle states that students learn better from multimedia presentations when irrelevant material is excluded rather than integrated. Irrelevant words and pictures, interesting but irrelevant sounds and unnecessary words huts the student’s learning process. Learners throughout the multimedia presentation try to make sense of the material by building a coherent mental representation and any irrelevant information that comes out of nowhere is likely to disturb the process. A good practice example of this principle would be that when discussing the issue of widespread public display of affection and whether there should be laws imposed against it. It would be a good idea to stick to the topic and present points for or against the argument and the reach a conclusion. If however a person is tempted to spice up the presentation, it would be bad practice. Including dramatic stories of politicians engaged in the art of public affection and video clips where couples are seen showing affection in public would be highly entertaining but off topic and the audience might get upset if they do not make out anything from the four hour long presentation. It would also not be a good idea to include any other non instructional material such as unrelated clip arts, background music, sound clips or detailed textual descriptions. Personalization Principle: The personalization principle states that students learn better when words are presented in a conversational style than in a formal or expository style. Students or audience responds better when a more personalized tone is used in narration. A good example of this principle is when explaining how a human respiratory system works, there is a use of ‘your’ instead of ‘the’. For example instead of saying † During inhaling the diaphragm move down creating more space for the lungs† we say † When you inhale, your diaphragm moves down creating more space for your lungs†. Also when addressing community issues using multimedia presentations it is always a good idea to use ‘your community’ rather than ‘the community’. It will help the learners see that it is his community that has issue and not some other community and will provoke him to take action or become a responsible member of the community. Segmenting principle: This principle states that lessons should be divided into manageable segments. When an unfamiliar learner is introduced to a continuous presentation with a lot of inter related concepts which are complex it is easy for the cognitive system to become overloaded. A good practice of this principle would be when a lecture breaks down complex geometry problems into segments rather than present them as a single solution. This helps learners learn at their own pace. Pre-training principle: This principle suggests that people learn better from multimedia presentations when they are familiar with the names and idea of the core concepts. There is a better transfer of knowledge when the audience is trained on the components the presentation would use preceding a narrated animation. A good practice of this example is when explaining the phenomenon of global warming to children, it would work better when terminologies such as green house gases are explained and smaller concepts are built before proceeding to the presentation. This will help the children integrate their built in concepts into understanding the main problem of global warming. It is not good practice to start with the subject before providing the learners with an appropriate start up knowledge neither would it be a good idea to stop in the middle of the lecture to explain some terminology or a hidden concept. Conclusion: Multimedia enhances learning but for learning to be optimal, there should be effective use of animation, narration and on-screen test in multimedia presentations. Techniques to increase working memory by reducing cognitive load have been proposed by many theorists. These techniques improve instructional design, learning efficiency, and effectiveness. Richard E. Mayer and his Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning has highlighted well-established principles of multimedia learning which the research continues to support, including (a) the multimedia principle, (b) the contiguity principle, (d) the modality principle, (e) the redundancy principle, and (f) the coherence principle and (e) the personalization principle. These principles aid users to design effective multimedia presentations. References Clark, R. C. & Mayer, R. E. (2003). e- Learning and the science of instruction: Proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer.

Do ACT Scores Predict Success

Do ACT Scores Predict Success SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Many students make judgments about their potential for future success based on how well they do on the ACT or SAT. Thoughearning high scores on these tests will help you to get into a selective college, the scores can’t necessarily determine your future beyond that. In this article, I’ll go through whether or not ACT scores can be used as a means of predicting academic success, career success, and overall happiness later in life. Do ACT Scores Predict Future Academic Success? The answer to this question is complicated because high ACT scores are intertwined with many other factors that may lead to academic success.Overall, studies have shownthat test scores are less reliable predictors of a student’s academic success in college than high school GPA. In examining students who submitted test scores versus students who did not, this study found negligible differences (an average of .05 points) in cumulative GPA in college between the two groups despite large differences in test scores. However, the GPAs of these students in college did correlate strongly with their high school GPAs. This isn’t entirely surprising, considering the fact the ACT scores are a limited measurement of academic ability. Your grades over the course of four years are overall a more accurate representation of your potential for academic success than your scores on one test. But this also depends on how you earned your ACT scores. Some students study for long periods of time to raise their scores, and some don’t study at all and still end up doing well. For students who did study hard to improve their scores, the numbers might provide more meaningful predictions of future academic performance. Interestingly enough, there is a more significant correlation between a student’s English and Math ACT scores and success in college than there is between a student’s composite score and success in college. According to one study, the Reading and Science sections of the ACT are the least relevant predictors of student graduation rate. A student with a 24 composite score who earned 22s on the Math and English subtests and 26s on the Reading and Science subtests is 43 percent more likely to drop out of college after three years than a student with the same composite score but opposite subtest scores. Students with very high or very low scores are also likely to see this performance reflected in their college achievements.It is probable that students with such extreme scores already had very high or very low GPAs as well. A very low ACT score (below the 25th percentile score of 16) may indicate an educational background that is lacking in the skills that are necessary for success in college academics. The weirdest graduation party ever? Do ACT Scores Predict Future Career Success? There isn’t definitive evidence to suggest that students with higher ACT scores will have significantly more success in their careers long-term. Of course, this also depends on your definition of "success." For some people, this means earning a high salary, and for others it just means doing a job that they enjoy. In the latter case, ACT scores are less relevant, although they can give you access to a wider variety of opportunities in career fields that interest you. Students who earn high ACT scores and attend selective colleges will have better educational resources available to them and be more attractive to employers. High ACT scores can get you into a good college, which may ultimately bolster your hiring and earning potential, but this depends on how well you do in your college classes, what level of education you reach, and what major you choose. People who earn master’s degrees earn more on average than people who earn bachelor’s degrees, and STEM majors earn more on average than humanities majors. In competitive fields like finance, software engineering, and consulting, employers sometimes use SAT and ACT scores to narrow down the field. If you’re planning on going into one of these fields, your ACT score may predict some fraction of your hiring potential, but this is relatively rare. Students who go on to higher levels of education usually do earn high standardized test scores, but most of them will also have performed well in their classes throughout high school and college.A high ACT score can’t predict that someone will earn a master’s degree or that they will be hired in a certain field.For people who are successful long-term in their careers, perseverance, hard work, and responsibility matter the most, and these traits can’t necessarily be determined by scores on the ACT. For some students who do extensive prep work, high scores may be indicative of these qualities, but that's not always the case. If only it were that simple... Do ACT Scores Predict Future Happiness? This is extremely subjective since each person defines happiness in a different way.Happiness for you might end up meaning something for you later in life that you could never have foreseenas a high school student.High ACT scores may predict admission to a selective college (depending on your GPA). This in turn means that you may have more opportunities to pursue your passions and follow a career path that interests you. These opportunities will contribute significantly to your happiness if you place a lot of value on academic achievement and career advancement. They might not contribute much to your happiness if you aren’t as interested in those things, or you feel unsatisfied even when you do well in school.In most cases, your quality of life will be better overall if you have a college education.Good scores will give you the chance to create a fulfilling life for yourself in certain ways, but you will need to develop skills for coping with setbacks and find out what you most enjoy doing in order to make the most of your opportunities. Happiness is subjective. Some people hate the outdoors/being rained on, so this would be a terrible experience for them. Conclusion ACT scores can usually predict whether you will get into a competitive college program. They're also relatively good at predicting performance in college for the first year or so. After that, it’s tough to make any concrete judgments about whether scores predict long-term success. Your GPA in high school is a slightly better predictor of academic success in college, and your major choice and ultimate education level are better predictors of your career and earning potential.A high ACT score indicates a greater likelihood that you will achieve success in college and in life, but only if it occurs in conjunction with these other determining factors. As far as long term happiness goes, most of the time that has more to do with intrinsic than extrinsic factors. For some people, no level of achievement on its own will bring happiness, and for others, happiness can be found in almost any situation.What it comes down to is that once you get into college, your scores have limited predictive value for your potential to do well going forward.Focus on your goals and think about what makes you happiest, and work towards those things! What's Next? Not sure whether your ACT score makes the cut? Find out what a good ACT score means for you based on your goals. If you're worried about your ACT scores, you should check out this article on when your test scores don't matter for college admissions. You might also take a look at these quick tips for improving your scores. Still can't decide whether to take the SAT or the ACT? Read this article to decide whether you're better suited to one or the otherbasedon your academic strengths. Disappointed with your ACT scores? Want to improve your ACT score by 4+ points? Download our free guide to the top 5 strategies you need in your prep to improve your ACT score dramatically. Have friends who also need help with test prep? Share this article! Tweet Samantha Lindsay About the Author Samantha is a blog content writer for PrepScholar. Her goal is to help students adopt a less stressful view of standardized testing and other academic challenges through her articles. Samantha is also passionate about art and graduated with honors from Dartmouth College as a Studio Art major in 2014. 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