Old Testament Book of Jeremiah Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Old Testament Book of Jeremiah - Research Paper Example The prophetic ministry of Jeremiah began in 626 B.C and finished at around 586 B.C. Jeremiah’s ministry immediately preceded that of Zephaniah. Habakkuk was a modern-day prophet, and that would include Obadiah. Even though Ezekiel began his ministry in Babylon in the year 593 B.C, he also was a delayed contemporary of the grand prophets in Jerusalem. How and when Jeremiah died is vaguely known; Jewish custom, however, asserts that whilst existing in Egypt he was murdered by being stoned.   In the case of Jeremiah, God was critical. Jeremiah’s divinity conceived the Lord God as Creator of all that exists as almighty, as ever-present. Jeremiah attributed a large number of superior qualities to the God he served (King, 1993). Thus, describing God as the Lord not only of Judah but also of the world. At the same time, God is extremely alarmed about the people and their responsibility to him. Jeremiah’s highlighting as to this regard is comparable to that of Ezekiel, the two men have become acknowledged as the â€Å"prophets of individual accountability.† The irrefutable connection involving sin and its penalty, so evident to Jeremiah will watch his adored Judah in her demise, led him to the search of his celestial vocation a blistering cleric of uprightness and his writings have lost none of their commands with the transitory of the centuries.   The book of Jeremiah names disasters and also reveals its form and mirrors it back to its listeners. It depicts the entirety of the devastation; it also talks of pain and bitter anguish, as it articulates the rawness of the world in which the remaining will unearth. It first describes disaster as a coming event, an onrushing assault upon Jerusalem, by means of the subliminal â€Å"foe from the north† (1:14; 4:6).   

How Authentic And Religious Are Virtual Rituals Essay

How Authentic And Religious Are Virtual Rituals - Essay Example The accessibility of information online has drawn more people to virtual religious places, thus pulling them further away from offline, real-life religion. Connelly attests to this observation when he states that the lack of Buddhist teachers and learning centers, among other factors, has facilitated the growth of an online Buddhist ritual â€Å"Second Life†. Helland views a ritual as an individual or communal engagement undertaken for sacred reasons, which allows a person to have contact with the supernatural. A ritual can also be performed as a form of expressing social cohesion and preserving culture. In terms of social cohesion, Connelly states that through Second Life, feel like they belong to a community in which there are expressive involvements. The problem with online rituals as Helland states is that a person may decide to develop individual religiosity and deviate from what their traditional religious authority prescribes. These cyber rituals allow for some form of religious freedom that some strict religions are not comfortable with. According to Helland this raises the question of authenticity and authority of the people carrying out the rituals and the rituals themselves. Judging by this form of evaluation, Second Life would seem legitimate because, as Connelly states, most of the facilitators are ordained priest in real-life, who lead meditation rituals at Buddha centers.7. That aside, many questions are asked about the authenticity of the symbols found online and the sacredness of online space. The seriousness or level of religiousness of these symbols and the rituals they are used in is what bothers many religious observers. Although many people who are involved in online rituals claim that these rituals are as valid as real-life physical rituals, this issue remains to be a subject of debate. According to Connelly the symbols used in Second Life include donation boxes, statue of Buddha, incense, and meditation cushions8. These symbols, a mong others are a representation of the actual artifacts found at the Buddha Center. Virtual pilgrimages according to Helland are one of the most common points of disagreement between participants and observers9. The fact that such pilgrimages are called â€Å"virtual pilgrimages† makes observers hold the view that they are unreal. Here, it appears that observers measure the authenticity of pilgrimages using physical presence. In essence, this argument holds that a pilgrimage could only be valid if a person went physically to a place that is recognized as sacred by their religion. On the other hand, believers and practitioners of online religion believe that a spiritual journey does not have to bet physical, it can be metaphorical. For example, in addressing silent meditation in Second Life, Connelly states that while participants are meditating online, they are represented by avatars10. These avatars sit cross-legged in a room and they form a semicircle facing the statue of Buddha. Participants in Second Life even prostrate three times before entering the temple, in addition to using such words as â€Å"Namaste† at the final chime, in order to thank the facilitator. Yet, the availability of exceptionally good images and sounds that allows someone to make an electronic pilgrimage inside their head is real to those who believe. Helland states that there are those web developers who take the virtual sacred travels more real by, for example, connect with the actual places. This way, these developers can place sacred words or prayer items that can be read to the online audience during the virtual pilgrimage. In silent meditation, according to Connell

Pervasive Developmental Disorders Essay Example for Free

Pervasive Developmental Disorders Essay The pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs) represent a spectrum of difficulties in socialization, communication, and behavior. Autism is the best recognized and most frequently occurring form of a group of the PDDs. Because most of the research in areas related to communication has been done on autism, we will focus here on this particular PDD. However, we should be aware that autism is probably not the most common disorder on this spectrum. Other types of PDDs include Retts Disorder, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, Aspergers Disorder, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, or PDDNOS (Twachtman-Cullen 1998). This work will also discuss the distinctive features of Aspergers syndrome, which is believed to be genetically related to autism. Much of what can be said about certain features of autism and PDDNOS applies to other forms of non-autistic PDD. The goal of this research is to provide a framework for understanding cognitive development in children with PDDs. The study will cover criteria for early PDDs diagnosis. The best-known type of PDDs is autistic disorder (variously called autism or infantile autism). The symptoms of autistic disorder typically increase gradually through the childs second year, reach a peak between 2 and 4 years of age, and then show some improvement. Young children with greater cognitive ability who receive very early intensive intervention may show dramatic improvement at this age, whereas those who are more impaired will make more modest changes. Persons with autistic disorder exhibit major deficits in their ability to relate to others. The child with autistic disorder often appears content to dwell in a separate world, showing little empathic interest in parents or siblings. Unlike the normally developing baby, the child with autistic disorder may not raise his arms to be picked up or may stiffen in protest when his parents try to cuddle him. The childrens lack of social interest may make some of these babies seem like â€Å"easy babies† because they do not seek parental attention, and appear content to remain in their cribs, watching a mobile or staring at their hands. As they get older, such lack of demandingness is recognized for the relative indifference it actually reflects. The child with autistic disorder may not seek others for comfort when she is hurt or upset, finding little consolation in the gentle words and hugs that are so important to other children. Not only do the children not ask for comfort, they typically are quite indifferent to other peoples distress and do not seem to share their joy. A siblings tears or a parents happiness may elicit no response from the child with autistic disorder. Children with autistic disorder show little interest in the domestic imitation that most children enjoy. For example, unlike the normally developing child, the child with autistic disorder usually does not use his miniature mower to cut the grass like mommy or pretend to shave while he watches daddy. This lack of interest in imitation interferes with one of the primary channels for learning by young children: their ability to model adult behaviors and master them through role play. Social play is one of the primary activities of childhood. A few simple toys can create the backdrop for long hours of companionship. The child with autistic disorder does not know how to join this kind of play, sometimes completely ignoring other children, or perhaps standing on the sidelines, not comprehending how to become part of the group. Not surprisingly, given the range of social deficits they exhibit, children with autistic disorder are very impaired in their ability to make childhood friends. Within the communication domain, impairments are present in a number of linguistic and nonverbal areas, the most fundamental of which are pragmatics and semantics (i. . , the social usage and explicit or implicit meaning of language and gestures). Although linguistic capability varies greatly across the spectrum (from a total absence of speech to highly sophisticated and erudite language), significant impairments in pragmatics and semantics are universal among individuals with PDDs. They communicate primarily to express needs, desires, and preferences, rather than to convey sincere interest in others, or to share exp eriences, excitement, and feelings. Even among those possessing highly sophisticated and complex language, compliments, words of empathy, and expressions of joy in the good fortune of others are very rare. There is little reciprocity, mutuality, or shared purpose in discussions. In addition, speech and gestural forms of communication are poorly integrated, often resulting in awkward and uncomfortable social interactions. Implicit, subtle, and indirect communications are neither used nor perceived. Expressive communication tends to be explicit, direct, and concrete. During discussions, persons with autism often fail to prepare their speaking partners for conversational transitions, new topics, or personal associations. This can result in digressive, circumstantial, and tangential comments and discussions. It would appear as though persons with autism assume that others are implicitly aware of their experiences, viewpoints, attitudes, and thoughts. The fashion in which these deficits are manifest is influenced by age, overall cognitive level, temperament, and the presence of sensory or physical limitations. In toddlers, for example, impaired pragmatics may be manifested by significant limitations in reciprocal eye contact, responsive smiling, joint attention (mutual sharing of interests and excitement), and social imitative play. In addition, socially directed facial expressions, instrumental and emphatic gestures, and modulation of speech prosody (intonation, cadence, and rate) are rarely used to complement speech, communicate feelings and attitudes, or moderate social discourse. Among preschool children, impairments in symbolic functioning (e. g. , language) are accompanied by serious limitations in pretense (e. g. ymbolic, imaginative, creative, and interactive play). Pragmatic impairments among adolescents with Asperger’s syndrome may be manifested by one-sided, pedantic discussions, with no attempt to involve speaking partners by acknowledging and integrating their experiences, ideas, and viewpoints into conversations. Sincere attempts by others to engage in reciprocal conversations may be met with a lack of acknowledgment, annoyance, and disinterest. Comments or questions that are â€Å"snuck in† by the listener may be experienced as rude interruptions, prompting the directive, â€Å"Wait! Im not done talking yet† (Bernabei, Camaioni Levi 1998). The result is a monologue or lecture that often includes abrupt changes of topic and the introduction of unexplained personal associations. This lack of conversational reciprocity suggests that persons with AS and high-functioning autism inherently assume that the listener is implicitly aware of their own experiences, viewpoints, and intent. Because the relaying of factual and concrete information is the primary goal of â€Å"social† dialog among those with ASD, the communication of subtle attitudes, viewpoints, and emotions (particularly secondary emotions, such as embarrassment, guilt, and envy) are largely irrelevant and superfluous. Therefore, emphatic gestures, informative facial expressions, and vocal modulation lack essential meaning for them. The result is that persons with autism generally disregard nonverbal cues and fail to incorporate them into their own discussions. Because this component of social communication often conveys essential information regarding feelings, attitudes, and opinions, an inability to identify, interpret, and produce nonverbal cues can have a highly detrimental effect on social interactions and relationships. Given these impairments, it is not surprising that verbal and nonverbal aspects of communication are poorly integrated, and that subtlety and nuance are rarely conveyed. Figurative and inferential language is another area of communication that is impaired in autism, largely due to a combination of deficits in abstract and conceptual thought, social reciprocity, and appreciation of the subtleties of social communication. Persons with ASD are highly literal and concrete in their language and thought processing, typically failing to understand metaphor, irony, sarcasm, and facetiousness. As a result, comments are often misinterpreted and discussions misunderstood. In addition, in an effort to remain true to the facts, comments and questions are often presented in an overly direct, straightforward, and â€Å"brutally honest† manner, lacking appropriate tact and sensitivity (Szatmari, Jones, Fisman, Tuff, Bartolucci, Mahoney 1995). This can cause embarrassment and distress for the listener and confusion for the speaker with AS. Both may become angry and resentful; the listener, because of emotional distress and perceived mistreatment; the speaker, because of the seemingly unjustifiable overreaction and a negative attitude displayed by the listener. From the perspective of the person with AS, the listener responded in a rude and ungrateful manner to comments that were intended to be informative, useful, and corrective. The emotional distress, embarrassment, and attack on self-esteem experienced by the listener are relatively foreign to the individual with autism. Interestingly, principles, rules, and codes of behavior can be interpreted in a highly concrete and rigid manner. This can result in insensitive and hurtful comments and behavior, because exceptions to the rule, adjustments to unexpected social contingencies, and appreciation for the spirit (not simply the letter) of the law are relatively foreign to those with autism. There is little awareness that rigid adherence to unavoidably flawed rules can result in a situation that is antithetical to the underlying intent of the rule itself. One of the dinning features of autism and Asperger’s syndrome is that of rigidity and inflexibility in response to minor change and transition in the environment and daily routines. This insistence on sameness and invariance can be highly impairing, because the precipitants of these reactions often are of little social significance and do not disturb the smooth functioning of the social world. It is as though persons with autism depend on these inanimate markers of space and time because the social priorities that typically direct schedules and routines have little meaning and significance for them. Aspergers Syndrome has been associated with cognitive strength since Hans Asperger first described the disorder in the 1940s. When he wrote of children who sounded like â€Å"little professors,† Dr. Asperger (1944/1991) was describing not only their pedantic tone but also their cognitive abilities. The assumption of adequate cognitive skill was reiterated when the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) stated that individuals with Aspergers Syndrome show â€Å"no clinically significant delay in cognitive development† (Willey 2001). Aspergers syndrome (AS) was added as a new â€Å"official† diagnosis when DSMIV and ICD-10 were published. In the past, children with AS were sometimes referred to as having schizoid personality, or schizotypal personality, and PDD, NOS. It is now recognized as distinct from autism. AS differs from autism in a number of key ways: first, children with AS may not be detected as early because they may have no delays in language, or only mild delays. In fact, it is usually not until parents notice that their childs use of language is unusual, or their childs play is also unusual, that concern sets in. Unlike autism, where the vast majority of children also experience some degree of mental retardation, children (and adults) with AS are rarely mentally retarded although many have low-average intelligence. Children with AS are sometimes described as â€Å"active, but odd† not avoiding others the way autistic children often do, but relating in a more narrow way, usually centering activity around their own needs and peculiar interests. In fact, having one or more areas of narrow, encompassing interest is highly characteristic of those with AS. Parents often ask whether AS is the same thing as â€Å"high-functioning autism. Research studies have addressed this question, and the answer is â€Å"no† (Fombonne, Simmons, Ford, Meltzer Goodman 2001). One main difference is that children with AS tend to have fairly comparable verbal and nonverbal levels of intelligence, while higher functioning (that is, less cognitively impaired) autistic children tend to have nonverbal IQs that are markedly higher than their verbal IQs. Another key feature of AS is the presence of intense, preoccupying interests that generally are unusual in nature and highly restricted and narrow in scope and breadth. An impressive store of factual knowledge is accrued on relatively esoteric topics; however, this knowledge is rarely utilized for functional, socially meaningful purposes. Rather, factual knowledge is pursued for its own intrinsic value to the AS individual. In addition, children and adults with AS tend to be physically awkward, uncoordinated, and poor in judging visual-spatial perspective (often failing to maintain comfortable interpersonal space during social interactions). With regard to neuropsychological functioning, verbal abilities are generally much better developed than are nonverbal abilities (e. . , perceptualmotor, visual-spatial). In a majority of cases impairments are present in executive functions, including working memory, organization, and cognitive-set flexibility. Although children with AS are thought to show no general cognitive delay, there is actually a great deal of variability in the specific abilities of individuals. In spite of mass media suggestions that individuals with AS grow up to be scientists or software engineers, we do not yet have data to support this connection. For most children, the PDDs last a lifetime. Although early intervention for many young children with autistic disorder, Asperegers disorder, and PDDNOS has produced major developmental changes, the technology has not yet reached the point where the majority of children make the degree of change that allows them to blend imperceptibly into their peer group. As a result, although most children with PDDs benefit in important ways from treatment, many still become adults with PDDs or some significant residuals of PDDs. There are no details of what causes PDDs. There appears to be a genetic contribution to at least some kinds of autistic disorder. For example, Fragile X syndrome is a chromosomal disorder than long has been linked to mental retardation and more recently has been shown to be related to autistic disorder. This disorder gets its name from a narrowing near the end of the long arm of the X chromosome that sometimes makes the tip fragile. Fragile X syndrome shows an X-linked (sex gene-linked) recessive pattern of inheritance. As a result, this disorder typically is transmitted to boys by their mothers. Fragile X syndrome accounts for a small but significant number of boys diagnosed with autistic disorder. General support for the notion that the symptoms of autistic disorder reflect underlying physiological dysfunction comes from research showing that autistic disorder occurs more often than would be predicted by chance among children whose mothers had German measles during pregnancy, that these children experienced a higher than expected rate of problems during pregnancy or birth, and that they are at greater risk for seizures than other children. Findings such as these raise important questions about where in the brain abnormalities may occur and how these neurochemical, biochemical, or neurological factors may be linked specifically to the development of the language, social, affective, and behavioral symptoms that characterize autistic disorder and the other PDDs. The process of accurate diagnosis and classification is an essential endeavor in medicine, because it is key to ensuring validity and reliability, enabling etiological research, and identifying effective methods of treatment. Although ASDs are not medical illnesses in the classical sense, they do result from neurodevelopmental abnormalities that affect social, communicative, and behavioral functioning in fundamental ways. The autism is not a unitary condition with a single etiology, pathogenesis, clinical presentation, and treatment approach; rather, it is a group of related conditions that share many clinical features and underlying social-communicative impairments. The fundamental purpose of arriving at an accurate diagnosis is to promote meaningful research that will eventually lead to effective treatment and an ultimate cure. Accurate diagnosis also enables investigators, clinicians, educators, and parents to communicate clearly, effectively, and efficiently. Ideally, a valid and reliable diagnosis should convey a great deal of information about developmental strengths and weaknesses, short- and long-term prognosis, and treatments that are most likely to be effective. Both basic and applied research endeavors are enhanced by improvements in diagnosis and classification. During recent years, efforts have been made to identify ASD as early in life as possible, in order to begin implementing educational and treatment interventions; providing families with education, support, and community resources; and reducing the stress and anxiety families experience as a result of incorrect or misleading diagnoses. The importance of an early diagnosis is supported by findings of improved linguistic, cognitive, and adaptive functioning as a result of intensive early intervention. Studies have begun to appear in the research literature assessing the reliability and stability of autism diagnoses made during the early preschool years. Experienced clinical investigators have demonstrated that an accurate diagnosis of autism can be made in the second and third years of life. However, accuracy depends on the completion of a comprehensive, interdisciplinary assessment, one that includes the use of standardized diagnostic instruments in conjunction with clinical expertise. Nonetheless, even among experienced clinicians and investigators, false positive and false negative diagnoses are sometimes made. Investigators have begun to examine clinical variables that may be predictive of treatment response and general prognosis. For example, Handleman Harris (2001) found that preschool children with autism who exhibited low baseline levels of social avoidance experienced significantly more social and linguistic progress than did their high-avoidance counterparts following 6 months of intensive incidental teaching and pivotal response training (provided in an inclusive setting). A complementary strategy for assessing the validity of AS is to examine the pattern of associated symptomatology. In this regard, a recent study investigated emotional and behavioral disturbance (psychopathology) in 4 to 18-year-olds with HFA and AS. The Developmental Behavior Checklist (DBC), an informant-based instrument completed by parents and teachers, was used to assess psychopathology. The DBC contains the following six subscales: disruptive, self-absorbed, communication disturbance, anxiety, antisocial, and autistic relating. Children and adolescents with AS exhibited high levels of psychopathology, particularly disruptive behavior, anxiety, and problems with social relationships. The best documented approach to the treatment of people with PDDs is a form of behavior therapy called applied behavior analysis. Since the mid-1960s, when Ivar Lovaas and his colleagues demonstrated that children with autism responded to carefully planned applied behavior analytic techniques, there has been extensive research on the use of these methods to treat the PDDs, especially for autistic disorder, Aspergers disorder, and PDDNOS (Durand 1990). Three decades of research have contributed to the development of a substantial array of specific behavioral treatment techniques and of documentation to support the efficacy of these methods in treatment of PDDs. This research also has demonstrated the essential role that parents can play in the treatment of their children by providing consistency of intervention between home and school, or even in some cases as the childs primary therapist.

Heritage Of Christianity In Ethiopia Theology Religion Essay

Heritage Of Christianity In Ethiopia Theology Religion Essay Christianity and Islam have coexisted in Ethiopia since the celebrated first migration in the formative period of Islam fourteen-hundred years ago. Ethiopia has overcome many attempts in the past to overthrow this coexistence, but modern Ethiopia remains a nation which prides itself on a tradition of religious tolerance between its populations of Christian, Muslim and Jewish citizens. This delicate balance however, is facing a threat by interference from outside interests attempting to establish control in the Horn of Africa. These outsiders are using religious non-governmental organizations such as evangelical Christian missionaries and Wahabist Muslim dawahs to influence the population against the traditional ruling Coptic Church. Heritage of Christianity in Ethiopia The Judeo-Christian history of Ethiopia goes back to the time of Israels King Solomon in the tenth century BCE. The Holy Bible (First Kings) records that the Queen of Sheba (modern Ethiopia), visited King Solomon. The Ethiopian epic Kebra Nagast records that she bore a son by Solomon, Menelik, who is said to have brought the Ark of the Covenant to Ethiopia. This was the beginning of the Solomonid Dynasty of Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Coptic Orthodox Tewahedo Church (hereafter referred to as the Coptic Church) claims the Ark still resides in the Chapel of the Tablet in the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion in the town of Axum, Ethiopia (Raffaele, 2007). Axum is also the name of the first Christian kingdom of Ethiopia, which was the first of any world nation to adopt Christianity as the official state religion. The Coptics relate that Christianity was first brought to Ethiopia by an Ethiopian royal official who was converted by Phillip the Evangelist, one of the first seven deacons of Christianity. In the fourth century, the Pope of the Coptic Church in Alexandria appointed Frumentius as the first Archbishop of Axum and Axum became officially a Christian nation. It should be noted that before this time the Coptic Church based in Alexandria (also known as the Oriental Orthodox) had already split off from what would become the Catholic churches and the Eastern Orthodox churches. This split was due to difference in opinion on the nature of the Christ (Gascoigne, From 2001, ongoing). This difference of opinion continues to alienate the Coptics from the rest of Christianity to this day, as will be seen. Muslim Heritage in Ethiopia In the year 613, the Companions and Family of the Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) were being persecuted by the Qurayshi clan in Mecca. One of the leading Companions was an Ethiopian slave. The Ethiopian king at this time was known to be a just leader and the Prophet was convinced that his followers would be safest in a Christian country where the people followed the scriptures of the Book rather than among the pagan tribes of Arabia. The Prophet ordered his Companions to migrate (hijra) to Ethiopia for their safety. During the six years the Companions stayed in Ethiopia, many Ethiopians converted to the new religion of Islam. In the sixth year of the first hijirat, a nephew of the Prophet, Amir ibn Umayya visited Ethiopia with an invitation to Negus, the king of Ethiopia to accept Islam. Amir was warmly received by Negus, who against the will of the rest of the royal family and the Coptic Church, converted to Islam. The royal family revolted against Negus and when Negus died, the Prophet off ered the first ever in-absentia funeral prayer (Salatul Ghaib) in his honor (Mohammed, 2012). Islam had established itself in Ethiopia, but Ethiopia would remain officially a Christian nation. The Solomonid Dynasty would continue to reign until the Marxist revolution of 1974 and the royal position was that there were no Muslim Ethiopians. The position of the royal family was that Muslim Ethiopians were foreigners living in the country (The First Hijrah Foundation (FHF), 2012). This foreigner label on Muslim Ethiopians is in part strengthened by ethnic and racial divisions within Ethiopia. Racial and Ethnic Federalism Ethiopia is currently divided into ethnically-based autonomous federal regions. For example, the Somali ethnic region is the most populous and takes up roughly the eastern third of the country with its population 97% ethnically Somali. The Somali people are a Cushitic (black African) ethnic group and predominately Muslim (98%). The next most populous region is Oromo. The Oromo are also a Cushitic ethnic group whose population is religiously divided between predominately Muslim in the eastern portion of the region and evangelical protestant (referred to as Penty) Christian in the west. The Amhara ethnic group is Semitic (like the Hebrew and Arabs) and lives in the highland region of Amhara (Population Census Commission, Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, 2008). The royal family of Ethiopia was of Amharic ethnicity and this ethnic group still maintains dominance in the Ethiopian federal government. The Amharic people are predominately Coptic and the Coptic Church in Ethiopia is p rimarily led by Amharics. This historical dominance of the Amharic people over the other ethnicities of the region has been the cause for some of the conflict in the region that to outsiders may appear to be simply religiously based. Past Religious Conflicts With the emergence and rapid growth of Islam in the sixth century, Ethiopia quickly became an isolated Island of Christendom in a Sea of Islam (Gascoigne, From 2001, ongoing). Although geographically isolated, Ethiopia maintained strong ties to the rest of Christendom. The Ethiopian Patriarch has always been appointed by the Oriental Orthodox Pope in Alexandria and monks from the Ethiopian Coptic Church maintain the unique right of being co-custodians of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. By the end of the thirteenth century, Ethiopia was the only non-Muslim state in northern Africa. During the fifteenth century, Ethiopian monks from Jerusalem attempted to attend the Council of Florence to discuss the re-unification of the Christian Churches. They were denied entry to the council by both the Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox Churches because of the theological differences which had caused them to split off originally. The presence of the Ethiopian monks at Florence did, however, serve to attract the attention of Rome resulting in a Jesuit mission being sent to Ethiopia. This Jesuit presence would last nearly two hundred years and ultimately result in the Ethiopian king, Susenyos, renouncing the Coptic faith as heresy and adopting the Roman Catholic faith. After the departure of the Jesuits, Susenyos succumbed to pressure and reverted back to the Coptic faith. During the sixteenth century when the Jesuit presence was at its strongest, Ethiopia was also facing jihads from the Muslims. The first jihad was from the Sultan Graà ± (aka Ahmad ibn Ibrahim) who had based his sultanate in Harar. His decision to declare holy war on Ethiopia was due in part to marginalization and discrimination against the Muslims influenced in part by the Jesuit missionaries. Graà ± moved an army of Somalis west and destroyed a great many of the Christian shrines and holy places (Gascoigne, From 2001, ongoing). In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries Ethiopia fought to maintain its independence from the colonial powers of Portugal and Italy. The Ethiopian emperor, Haile Selassie, led in the formation of the League of Nations and the Organization of African Unity. After the second world war, Ethiopia backed by the United States, who was looking for a possible Red Sea port annexed Eritrea. Eritrean opinion was divided on this between Christians who were pro-unification and Muslims who were for Eritrean independence. This led to nearly 40 years of conflict. As part of the larger global cold war, a Marxist element emerged in Eritrea. This Marxist element eventually performed a military coup against the royal family, deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974. A period of instability prevailed until 1991 when the current constitution was affirmed and Eritrea was granted independence in 1993. From 1991 until 2012, Ethiopia was under the control of the Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. Occasional wars continued to break out along Ethiopias borders and the conflicts would spill over into the neighboring countries of Somalia and Sudan. Meles supported, and was supported by, the Coptics and the Amharic population. Although no longer in power by law, the Coptics and the Amharic peoples still hold much influence. Meles support of the Coptics and marginalization of the Muslims and Penties is part of the cause of recent violence in the country (Heinlein, 2012). Recent Events On the second of March, 2011 in Asendabo, a Penty allegedly desecrated the Koran. It was believed by the Ethiopian Government that the Kawarja Muslim sect used this alleged act to incite a riot that resulted in up to 10,000 Christians fleeing the area. Approximately fifty churches and many Christian homes were burned to the ground. This was the largest in a series of Muslim attacks against Christians, especially Penties in Muslim dominated regions. In November of 2010, Christian residents of Besheno found warnings nailed to their doors to convert, leave the city, or be killed. On the twenty-sixth of February, 2011, a Muslim mob attacked seventeed Penty college students with rods and sticks for attempting to distribute Bibles in a Muslim village (Macedo, 2011). Although freedom of religion is guaranteed in the Ethiopian constitution, each autonomous region may interpret that freedom in its own way. In November of 2011, the Ethiopian Government identified the Kawarja sect with Al-Qaeda and expressed concern over a growing force of Wahhabi Muslims promoting violence against moderate Muslims and Christians with the aim of making Ethiopia an Islamic country governed by Sharia law. Wahabist teachings would upset the balance between Christians and Muslims and challenge United States interests in the region as well. The Ethiopian Government responded by backing a competing Muslim sect, Al-Ahbash. Al-Ahbash was founded by an Ethiopian and is very anti-Wahabi/Salafi in its beliefs, going so far as to declare takfir against them (declaring the Wahabi/Salafi as heretics). The Ethiopian Government appointed an Islamic Affairs Supreme Council (IASC) that was Ahbash heavy with no representatives from the Wahabi or Salafi sects. This council seeks to create Ahabash based Islamic schools in Ethiopia so that Ethiopians will not have to go to Arabic countries to learn to become Imams (Fentaw, 20 12). With the death of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi in August of 2012, some Ethiopian Christians and Muslims are hoping for unity in the future. Ethiopian college students of both Christian and Muslim faiths joined together to found the group Concerned Ethiopian Students to work toward peace. When Egypt and Libya saw riots in September of 2012 because of the film Innocence of Muslims produced by Coptic Christians living in the United States, Coptic leaders were quick to denounce the film. On the fifth of November, 2012, the new Pope of the Oriental Orthodox Communion was elected and took his place ruling the Coptic Church in Alexandria. The next day he issued a statement stating that the Coptic Church has no political role, but that he fears Sharia law will threaten the religious freedom and safety of the Christian community (Schiava, 2012). On the seventh of November, 2012, the Ethiopian Government announced the newly elected members of the IASC. The government hopes the IASC can bring pe ace within the Muslim community (VanDerWolf, 2012). Muslims, especially Wahabis, had been protesting the elections for months. The Wahabis had requested the elections be held in mosques instead of public meeting halls. The Wahabi fear is that the elections were influenced by the government which they say is trying to ban the Wahabi sect and promote Ahbash (Heinlein, 2012). More than one hundred Muslims are being held on terrorism charges for the protests (VanDerWolf, 2012). The Way Ahead for United States Interests The United States involvement in the Horn of Africa, particularly Ethiopia sits in the same delicate situation as the Coptic Church. With the United States alliance with the Amharic ruling parties of Ethiopia, any move by the government against Islam or any sect of Islam, such as Wahabi, is seen by the radical Muslims as an act backed by or even directed by the United States and Israel (The First Hijrah Foundation (FHF), 2012). The evangelism of the Penty churches into Muslim and Coptic areas is seen by some as interference from the United States, though through such entities as the Ku Klux Klan (comment to (CBS News, 2012). While this may seem ridiculous, it conveys the fear that is bred in the minds of some Ethiopian Muslims. The Ethiopian Coptics may be facing the greatest struggle in their nearly two-thousand year history. If an Islamist faction gains control of the nation, many will flee the country much as most Christians have fled from Iraq and most recently Egypt. Any move by the United States government or American based organizations to aid the Christians in Ethiopia will only strengthen the resolve of the Islamist sects to eliminate the Christian powerbase. Perhaps they may find peace in true democracy in the post-Zenawi era.

The Knowledge is Power Program Essay examples -- Education, KIPP Schoo

The Knowledge is Power Program (hereafter referred to as KIPP) has been the recipient of much praise. In the recent documentary, Waiting for Superman, KIPP was lauded as one of a handful of educational programs for poor children of color that is making a difference in closing the achievement gap. Diane Ravitch wrote in her recent book, â€Å"[T]he charter schools with the most impressive record of success are the KIPP schools† (Ravitch, 2010, p.135). Washington Post Education Columnist, Jay Mathews wrote an entire book on the schools, calling them â€Å"the most promising schools in America.†(Mathews, 2009) So, why is KIPP garnering all of this attention and is it really narrowing the achievement gap? KIPP was started in 1994 by Teach for America alumni David Levin and Michael Fienberg, who had been working in inner-city Houston schools. KIPP was created with a singular goal in mind; to get low-income students of color to college. The data would suggest that these schools have been successful in achieving that goal. During the 2008-2009 academic year, KIPP enrolled 21,831 students, 95% of whom were African-American or Latino (KIPP Foundation, 2009). Of those students who finish 8th grade at a KIPP school, 95% graduate from high school and 88% of them matriculate to college. These compare to national rates of 70% high school graduation and 40% college matriculation for low-income students (KIPP Foundation, 2009). According to a recent study of 22 KIPP schools, within three years, half of all KIPP schools in the study closed one half or more of the black-white achievement gap in math, and one third of the black-white achievement gap in reading. In these KIPP schools, student gains are equivalent to 1.2 years of additional growth i... ...the tools to significantly close the achievement gap, but they won’t likely be responsible for a radical upward mobility of low-income students of color. So, what role can KIPP play in the larger picture? Diane Ravitch offered sage advice in a recent speech at Rice University when she challenged KIPP co-founder Mike Fienberg in saying, â€Å"Don’t compete. Collaborate with public schools. Share whatever you know that works. Work with public schools. Help them get better. We all share the same goal and that is to ensure that every child in America gets a great education† (Ravitch, 2010). Perhaps KIPP schools are best utilized as â€Å"laboratories† where methods are tested, refined and readied for export to the public school system at large and utilized by all students. This collaboration could contribute to real public school reform and be the lasting legacy of KIPP.

my first ride in a cop car :: essays research papers

The first time I rode in a police car was about a year ago in Myrtle Beach. My friend Richard and I were there for about a week before senior week. On about our third day we found a seller of questionable goods and Richard bought some of his merchandise. Little did we know that it would come back to bite us.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  On our way back to our hotel Richard, in his eternal wisdom, said, â€Å"Hey I‘ve got it, let’s go get trashed and wander around!† Of course, I’m always one to get along. So I said, â€Å"Okay!†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  We met some lovely young ladies, two blondes and a red head, that we had seen earlier on our way to a club and asked them, â€Å"Hey girls, we’re headed out, you wanna come with?† The reply was not what we expected, one of the blondes, Ashlee, I believe, said â€Å"What do you boys plan on doing?† I replied, â€Å"We’re probably gonna go lick shots and do some other stuff.† The red head, Brianna, then says, in a definite Boston accent, â€Å"Why don’t youse guys come wit us to our hotel?† I give Richard a questioning look and say jokingly, â€Å"Hey man, what if they’re rapists?† Rich then gives me an â€Å"are you a dumbass† look and whispers, â€Å"Do I look like I give a fuck?†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  While we were headed to the girls’ hotel we saw our â€Å"friend† from earlier. He stopped us and asked, â€Å"Hey’d you guys like the stuff from the other day?† Both of us shook our heads. â€Å"Want to get some more?† this question was followed by a display of his merchandise. Richard said, â€Å"Okay hook us up.† After money exchanged hands we were once again on our way.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  About ten minutes later we arrived at the girl’s hotel and went up to their room. As we entered the other blond, he name was Justice, casually says, â€Å"Just ignore the mess.† All of a sudden, I blurt out, in my best gay impersonation, â€Å"Oh my god this is so messy!† when in reality the room was spotless. This out burst gets a very mixed response, I get laughs from the blondes, Ashlee and Justice, but I think Brianna was confused. Richard just hit me and said, â€Å"Shut the hell up man.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After a couple of hours of recreational time, Richard yells at me â€Å"Come on man, we gotta go!† We get up to leave and halfway out the door one of the girls, probably Brianna, calls after us, â€Å"Give us a ring!† I reply, â€Å"Yeah okay.

Questionnaire Format

Introduction Before executing any survey a researcher should ask himself few questions in particular: * why you are asking the questions * who the results are for * what you expect to ? nd from the answers * how you are going to analyse the data when you get them If you re? ect on these questions, it will be easier to compose more appropriate, accurate questions that provide useful ? ndings. This re? ection should also help to understand which method will be the most appropriate for particular needs.The choice of method therefore depends on the questions that researcher want answered. If he want to know what people do in a particular situation then a questionnaire will probably be suf? cient. If its to identify why something has occurred, a questionnaire will provide less valid responses than in-depth interviews or focus groups because in-depth interviews and focus groups allow the respondent the freedom to express things in context that may not have thought of before. This course wo rk is dedicated to the questionnaire method of research in management.The work is separated into two parts: part one is giving an overview information of about questionnaires and part two is consider questionnaires as a research method in different type of management. Questionnaire is a formalized set of questions, usually paper based or delivered online, submitted for replies that can be analyzed for usable information: * social research * marketing research * management research Questionnaire design process 1. Specify the Information needed 2. Specify the Type of Interviewing methodAs it was said before each research should begin with some common steps such as specifying the necessary information and deciding which method of interviewing should be conducted for this particular research including all the advantages and possible obstacles. Also the researcher should assess what information will be sought after a thorough scanning of secondary sources of data and determine the target respondent. 3. Decide on the type of questionnaire and its structure 4. Evaluation of question content. Before including a question in the schedule, examine whether: * This question is really essential The respondent can understand the question. (i. e. is it too technical, ambiguous, or advanced for the target respondent? ) * The respondent can answer the question. (Say, the respondents possess sufficient knowledge. As such, it is better not to ask too much of factual data or about past history. ) * The respondent will answer the question. Specially, if it invades into one's privacy or it requires too much effort to answer, then they usually refuse to cooperate 5. Check question phrasing. For Example * Do words have ambiguity in meaning? Are there any implied alternatives in the question? * Are there some assumptions to be made to answer the question'? * Will the respondents approach the question from the same frame of reference as designed by the researcher? 6. Determine form of r esponse to each question: The response format may be open or closed ended. In general, the type of response format will depend on the objective of the research, nature of data to be collected and analysis to be performed. 7. Determine sequence of questions. * Use simple and interesting opening questions * Put the questions in logical manner Ask for classificatory data at the end 8. Assess the physical layout of the questionnaire. Naturally, the questionnaire must be printed properly; put in elegant form and facilitate handling. 9. Pre-test the questionnaire. It is normal practice to pretest a questionnaire on a small number of target respondents. The pretest is done to assess both individual questions and their sequence of response pattern. Accordingly, a researcher must revise questions which cause problems. While developing a questionnaire, researcher must: * Use simple words in framing the questions Avoid ambiguous- questions * Avoid implicit alternatives * Avoid questions that r equire too much memory recall and calculation * Avoid double barreled questions * Ideally, a questionnaire should first secure' some basic information to get the respondent's cooperation and gradually try to collect more information about the phenomenon of interest. * It is easier to administer a multiple choice response categories that requires one simple tick. Questionnaire format Questionnaire format depends upon the amount of structure and disguise required during data collection:Structure At the time of fronting the questionnaire the researcher must appropriately determine the degree of structure to be imposed on the questionnaire. A highly structured questionnaire is one in which the question to be asked and the responses permitted are explicitly pre-specified. On the other hand in a non-structured questionnaire the questions to be asked are kept flexible in their own words and also the respondents are allowed to answer the questions in a manner they like. The response pattern may vary from open-ended to closed-ended.In open-ended question the respondent is free to choose the possible response, whereas in the closed ended from the researcher pre specifies certain options and the respondent is allowed to choose the alternatives from the given options. Disguise Disguised questions is one where purpose is not made obvious to the respondents and is asked in an indirect manner. Non-disguised questions, on the other hand, are ones which are direct and the purpose of asking them is known clearly is the respondents. Disguised questions are used in the conditions when the issues concerned are such that respondents may not give correct answer to direct questions.Questionnaires by the format can be divided into the following categories: Structured non-disguised questionnaire| Structured-disguised questionnaire| * Questions are listed in a pre-arranged order * Respondents are told about the purpose of collecting information| * Questions are listed in a pre-arranged order * Respondents are not told about the purpose of conducting survey| Non-structured non-disguised questionnaire| Non-structured disguised questionnaire| * Questions are not structured. * Researcher is free to ask questions in any sequence he/she wants. Respondents are told about the purpose of collecting information| * Questions are not structured * Researcher is free to ask questions in any sequence he/she wants. * Respondents are not told about the purpose of conducting survey| Structured, non-disguised questionnaires are very popular in marketing research studies. These are more applicable when large sample sizes are there. Non-structured, non-disguised questionnaires, on the other hand, are used when a freehand is to be provided to the respondents so that in-depth information on the subject could be solicited e. . in industrial marketing research wherein number of respondents would also be low. Non-structured, disguised questionnaires are mainly used in `motivation research' . ‘Wore Association Test', ‘ Sentence Completion Test', `Thematic Appreciation Test', ‘Cartoon Test', etc. may be used in this category, Structured disguised questionnaires are more appropriate where responses are required towards certain sensitive issues like attitude towards aids patients, abortion etc. Questionnaire length and structure It is commonly accepted that a questionnaire should not be over long.People’s short attention spans mean that long questionnaires are completed less accurately as people rush to ? nish them. This is also true for obvious question repetition with respondents biased towards simply repeating what they said before whether it is accurate or not. One major problem with very long questionnaires is the likelihood of participants skim reading them, which increases the likelihood of participants misinterpreting complex questions. This is also a problem with back-ground information or instructions given at the beginning of the questi onnaire.Many of these problems can be counteracted with careful design of the questionnaire. The amount of motivation felt by participants to complete the questionnaire can affect how much they are prepared to concentrate on completing it. For example, participants who feel the outcomes of the research will directly bene? t them may feel more motivated to complete a questionnaire and vice versa. Since a spread of different types of users is often required, it is important to understand these variations when designing and piloting the questionnaire.To increase the usability and effectiveness of the questionnaire tool it is important to consider questionnaire is structured. This means reviewing the sequence of questions very carefully. Grouping questions together under a common theme heading will help the respondent contextualize the subsequent questions. This approach will also help identify how the sequence is likely to affect the respondent. The order in which questions are present ed may bias your respondent to give more or less favorable responses.This can also happen with the response scales whereby a respondent gives the same answer throughout a section without reading the questions. To counteract this can either counterbalance the questions or can counterbalance the response. Piloting the questionnaire should help identify these problems and correct them in the ? nal version. Question wording When designing questions it is important to consider if each question will have the same meaning for everyone. It is, therefore important to make sure frame of reference is clear. Providing de? nitions or examples is a useful way to overcome these problems.Some researchers provide scenarios at the beginning of sections to contextualize the questions. Keeping questions as short and simple as possible will increase the likelihood that they will be understood as well as the accuracy of responses. Questions that are complicated by double negatives or loaded words are par ticularly hard for a respondent to answer. It is also important not to ask more than one question at once (e. g. ‘How do you rate the system response times to urgent and non-urgent request? ’). Similarly it is essential not to ask a question that requires them to interpret meaning of a term (e. g. Do you attend online tutorials on a regular basis? ’ What is meant by the concept ‘regular basis’, is it once a day or once a week? ). Providing a range within which to choose a response will help to clarify these choices. Ranges can also help respondents feel happier about answering some questions. For example, being asked to write down age can feel far more invasive than choosing from a selection of age ranges. Ultimately, it is always important to consider what biases you may be relaying through the wording of a question. Leading questions are frequently the major problem with most questionnaires (e. . ‘Why do you think online assessment is wrong? ’). Similarly questions that invite a socially desirable response will produced a biased set of responses. Finally, assuming a respondent will be able to remember accurate details of events several months ago is unrealistic and will produce inaccurate responses. Question types Contingency questions – A question that is answered only if the respondent gives a particular response to a previous question. This avoids asking questions of people that do not apply to them (for example, asking men if they have ever been pregnant).Matrix questions – Identical response categories are assigned to multiple questions. The questions are placed one under the other, forming a matrix with response categories along the top and a list of questions down the side. This is an efficient use of page space and respondents’ time. Closed ended questions – Respondents’ answers are limited to a fixed set of responses. Most scales are closed ended. Other types of closed ended questions include: * Yes/no questions – The respondent answers with a â€Å"yes† or a â€Å"no†. * Multiple choice – The respondent has several option from which to choose. Scaled questions – Responses are graded on a continuum (example : rate the appearance of the product on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the most preferred appearance Open ended questions – No options or predefined categories are suggested. The respondent supplies their own answer without being constrained by a fixed set of possible responses. Examples of types of open ended questions include: * Completely unstructured – For example, â€Å"What is your opinion on questionnaires? † * Word association – Words are presented and the respondent mentions the first word that comes to ind. * Sentence completion – Respondents complete an incomplete sentence. For example, â€Å"The most important consideration in my decision to buy a new house is . . . † * Story completion – Respondents complete an incomplete story. * Picture completion – Respondents fill in an empty conversation balloon. * Thematic apperception test – Respondents explain a picture or make up a story about what they think is happening in the picture Question Sequence Items on a questionnaire should be grouped into logically coherent sections.Grouping questions that are similar will make the questionnaire easier to complete, and the respondent will feel more comfortable. Questions that use the same response formats, or those that cover a specific topic, should appear together. Each question should follow comfortably from the previous question. Writing a questionnaire is similar to writing anything else. Transitions between questions should be smooth. Questionnaires that jump from one unrelated topic to another feel disjointed and are not likely to produce high response rates.Most investigators have found that the order in which q uestions are presented can affect the way that people respond. Questions in the latter half of a questionnaire were more likely to be omitted, and contained fewer extreme responses. Some researchers have suggested that it may be necessary to present general questions before specific ones in order to avoid response contamination. Other researchers have reported that when specific questions were asked before general questions, respondents tended to exhibit greater interest in the general questions. It is not clear whether or not question-order affects response.A few researchers have reported that question-order does not effect responses, while others have reported that it does. Generally, it is believed that question-order effects exist in interviews, but not in written surveys. Some general rules about question sequence: * flow logically from one to the next * researcher must ensure that the answer to a question is not influenced by previous questions * flow from the more general to the more specific * flow from the least sensitive to the most sensitive * flow from factual and behavioral questions to attitudinal and opinion questions * flow from unaided to aided questionsCoding and Tabulating Coding is the technical name used to categorize the data collected. It involves specifying the alternative categories or classes into which responses are to be placed and assigning code numbers to the classes. In fact, coding closed-ended questions are simple, depending on the response pattern one may design the various codes for different responses. Open-ended questions are, however, very difficult to code. Here no uniform rules exit. The researchers have been found to apply their own discretion in developing the coding procedure..Tabulation consists of simply counting the number of cases that fall into the various categories. It may take the form of simple or cross tabulation. Simple tabulation involves counting the responses based on one variable. One may apply various statistical tools like mean, median, mode, standard deviation or variance to condense and interpret the data. To present the data in graphical form one may make use of various forms of statistical graphs like histogram, frequency polygon, ogive etc. A brief description of these tools is given below.Histogram: It is a form of bar chart where the values of the variable are placed on the X-axis and the frequency of each distinct occurrence is indicated on the Y-axis. Frequency polygon: Figure obtained from the histogram by joining the midpoints of the bars of the histogram with straight lines. Ogive: This graph shows the number of cases having a value less than or equal to specified quantity; that is, the cummulative frequency is generated. Afterwards the cummulative frequencies are plotted along the Y- axis against the given combination of values of the variable (or X-axis).Advantages and Disadvantages of Questionnaires Advantages| Disadvantages| The researcher is able to contact larg e numbers of people quickly, easily and efficiently using a postal questionnaire | The format of questionnaire design makes it difficult for the researcher to examine complex issues and opinions. Even where open-ended questions are used, the depth of answers that the respondent can provide tend to be more-limited than with almost any other method of research. This makes it difficult for a researcher to gather information that is rich in depth and detail. Questionnaires are relatively quick and easy to create, code and interpret (especially if closed questions are used). In addition, the respondent- not the researcher – does the time-consuming part of completing the questionnaire| With a postal questionnaire, the researcher can never be certain the person to whom the questionnaire is sent actually fills it in. For example, if your research is concerned with finding-out the opinions of women on a range of issues, it would be less than useful if an unknown number of the question naires sent by the researcher were filled-in by men| A questionnaire is easy to standardise.For example, every respondent is asked the same question in the same way. The researcher, therefore, can be sure that everyone in the sample answers exactly the same questions, which makes this a very reliable method of research. | Where the researcher is not present, it's always difficult to know whether or not a respondent has understood a question properly. | Questionnaires can be used to explore potentially embarrassing areas (such as sexual and criminal matters) more easily than other methods. The questionnaire can, for example, be both anonymous and completed in privacy.This increases the chances of people answering questions honestly because they are not intimidated by the presence of a researcher. | The researcher has to hope the questions asked mean the same to all the respondents as they do to the researcher. This is a problem that can – to some extent – be avoided by conducting a Pilot Study prior to conducting the real survey | Relatively inexpensive method, does not require any investments| The response rate (that is, the number of questionnaires that are actually returned to the researcher) tends to be very low for postal questionnaires.A 20 – 25% return of questionnaires is probably something that most researchers would happily settle for and this may mean that a carefully-designed sample becomes unrepresentative of a target population. | | The problem of the self-selecting sample is particularly apparent in relation to questionnaires. When a response rate is very low the responses received may only be the opinions of a very highly motivated section of the sample (that is, people with strong opinions who take the time and trouble to complete and return a questionnaire)|Questionnaires in Management Management questionnaires are an important way of knowing about the productivity, sales and morale of the company. It provides an opening i nto the hearts and minds of the employees and enables the management to take corrective steps to change and improve the work environment for enhanced productivity. Managers need to prepare questions for recruitment of staffs, which involves all type of questions from technical to personal. Even managers themselves have to answer questions for their own appraisal process.Before designing the management questionnaire, it is necessary to understand the goal of the questionnaire? What are benefits of the questionnaire to the management and company as a whole? Start with a brief introduction, highlight the objective and motive of the questionnaire and what you aim to achieve from this survey. You can define a wide range of questions on strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to make it comprehensive. Make sure the questions are independent in nature and easy to understand.Top level managers need to question their subordinates about their work and need to know about their psychol ogy Thus management questionnaires prove to be very beneficial for various different types of organizations. These questionnaires are not only important for employers but for employees as well. Management questionnaires are used in different type of management such as: * Performance management A performance management questionnaire is an essential instrument for collecting data. This data can be used to enhance management performance.By carrying out a survey on performance management, companies are in a better position to identify areas that require improvement and implement ways through which improvement of performance can be achieved. * Project management A project management questionnaire covers various areas in line with a particular project, the strategic processes of project management, how management processes are coordinated right from their initiation to their eventual completion. This helps to keep track of the progress that is being made and what else can be done. * Time ManagementA time management questionnaire is formulated for the purpose of evaluating individuals on their time management habits and character traits. Time is an essential resource and effective time management has a significant impact on performance. A time management questionnaire helps people identify areas of their life in which they can improve. * Supply Chain Management Supply chain management is the sensitive procedure being initiated by the corporate to ensure the growth process in which the raw material is supplied to the concerned department to boost the production.In supply chain questionnaire, the concerned department will follow certain working standards to answer all the questions. On the basis of the outcome of this questionnaire, an organization can easily evaluate the percentage of success of the supply chain department. * Human Resource Management A Human Resource Management Questionnaire is a set of questions regarding the management of the human resource departm ent of an organization. It has information regarding the number of employees involved and the structure and functioning of the human resource department.Examples of questionnaires can be found in Appendix Bibliography 1. Kinnear, Thomas C. and James R. Taylor, † Marketing Research – An Applied Approach† McGraw-Hill International Edition. 2. Adams, Anne and Cox, Anna L. (2008). Questionnaires, in-depth interviews and focus groups. In: Cairns, Paul and Cox, Anna L. eds. Research Methods for Human Computer Interaction. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press 3. Questionnaire Design. A. N. Oppenheim Continuum International Publishing Group Ltd. ; New edition edition (17 Aug 2000) 4.Developing a Questionnaire (Real world research). Bill Gillham. Continuum (1 Jun 2000) Appendix Performance Management Questionnaires Company Name †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Industry †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Number of employees †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Company position †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Rate the following using this key: * Unsatisfactory *Average *Good *Excellent Efficiency in the use of resources †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Assurance of quality performance †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Employee satisfaction †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Employee training and development †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Customer service †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Quality of products †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Quality standards †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã ¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Safety standards †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Rate of product delivery †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Staff punctuality †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Corporate social responsibility †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Project Management Questionnaires Is there a project management process in existence? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ What is the scope of the project? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. What project phases are put in place? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Upon the undertaking of projects, is there further delegation of tasks? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Who is responsible for the realization of project objectives? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Which processes of project management currently exist? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚ ¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ What are the financial implications of these processes? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Are there guidelines in place for project organization and quality assurance? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Do processes related to the projects meet the needs of key stakeholders? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Is the project independently carried out? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Time management questionnaire Do you prioritize your tasks? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Do you allow interruptions to take your attention away from important tasks? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Do you take on tasks even when the time is not sufficient? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Do you take on other people’s tasks? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Do you take breaks during the day? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Do you take a long time to complete normal tasks? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Do you find yourself working o ver the weekend or during holidays? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Do you easily find your things? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Do you spend a lot of time on recreational activities? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Supply Chain Management Name of the department: ____________________ Head of the department: _____________________ Date of the questionnaire: ____/____/_____Q1: Is supply chain management having all the address of the developer branches of the company? Yes No Q2: Rate the working strategies of supply chain management department on the basis of the current programs? 10. Outstanding 9. Excellent 8. Good 7. Average Q3: Is the supply chain management department is having sufficient transportation? Yes Not sufficient Q4: According to the current growth process of the organization, which of the following needs much attention and progress to boost the production? Operational activities Tactical activities Current programming strategiesQ5: Choose the right option, wher e the supply chain department is facing problem in taking care of the raw material? During storage Packaging Testing of packaging Evaluation of defective raw material Q6: How do you rate the delivery activity of the department? 10. Excellent 9. Very effective 8. Good 7. Average Q7: Is there any case recorded by the supply chain department in which the production department complained late delivery of raw materials? Yes No Human Resource Management Questionnaire Name____________________________ Address________________________ Name of organisation ______________________Sector __________________ Address of organisation ___________________ city __________________ Email id of employee _____________________________ Contact number ______________________________________ Q1. State the number of employees in your organisation _______________________ Q2. How many employees are in the HR department _______________________? Q3. What sort of structure does your HR department have? _______________ ___________________________ Q4. What are the responsibilities and scope involved? _____________________________________________________________________