Fitt’s and Posner’s Phases of Learning Essay

Describe â€Å"Fitt’s and Posner’s† phases of learning and explain how you would structure practises to enhance a performance In this essay I will explain Fitt’s and Posner’s phases of learning and how I would structure practises to enhance performance. By practising a skill we can become better. Fitts and Posner theories were that everyone has to go through stages of learning, known as the cognitive, associative and autonomous stages of learning. Depending how good a person is at a particular sport, they will fall into a certain category. An example of this is Wayne Rooney. At a young age he was introduced to football and played amateur football from a young age, becoming one of the youngest strikers in football history. However by learning a skill in sport involves the development of skills by practice. An example of this is shooting practise – you can only become good by practising to kick the ball in between goalposts. Until a person becomes confident enough that they score a goal, they will naturally fall into the next category. The three stages of learning can be divided into two main categories; associationists and cognitivists. Associationists views learning of a sport as the link of particular stimulus and particular responses. Cognitivists see it as a function of the brain, where we learn through the understanding and knowledge of the sport. There are 3 stages of learning according to Fitts and Posner. They are: Cognitive v Associative v Autonomous Cognitive This is the initial stage of learning and is essential if the learner is to process successful through the other stages and is to move a stage where the skill can be performed. The cognitive stage involves formation of a mental picture of a skill. The most efficient way is from a demonstration, which allows them to see the key requirements and to work through the performance mentally. Visual guidance is one of the best ways to make others understand, and so that the person learning can see the correct method to perform the skill. They will then attempt to perform. Success rate is usually 2/3 out of 10. The cognitive stage initially concentrates more on the skill, rather than the game. There is a lack of control and consistency. Trial and error is also a key way to learn. Reinforcement of this can be by giving positive feedback. Questions will arise when learning skills of a sport if the skill is not correctly learnt. The learner will be confronted with some very specific, cognitively oriented problems. Examples of this are, â€Å"How do I score?† â€Å"What is the aim of this game?† â€Å"If so, where are the positions for players?† If the mental picture is not correct the skill will not develop. It is important that the coach explains very thoroughly what is required of each athlete. Associative Learning at the associative stage means that the skill is becoming more consistent, but there are still some errors. The simple element of the skill has been grasped however the performer still refers back to the mental picture. The performer can begin to detect errors and begin to realise his/her mistakes. Feedback should encourage a ‘feeling’ of a well performed skill. This means that the performer will begin to enjoy the sport. Success rate is 5/7 out of 10. Verbal guidance is essential as it is used in the associative stage. Some people never exceed this phase. An example of this is a semi-professional shot-put thrower. Some performers return to the cognitive stage to refer to the mental image of the skill. Also, some professional players return from autonomous stage to the associative stage if they have an injury – they need to work hard and rise up to the expected standard of an autonomous performer. Autonomous Learning at the autonomous stage is where the skill is done without conscious thought. The movements of the performer are fluent, consistent and athletically pleasing. There is an advanced stage of learning where the elements of the skill have become part of long term memory and are automatically produced in response to a an appropriate stimulus. The skill is automatic. The attention of the performer focuses on the next movement, for example tactics. Consistent practise is required to reinforce being at the autonomous stage. Success rate is 9/10 out of 10. In tennis for example a player would be able to perform a serve whilst contemplating what their opponent will do next, rather than being focusing on the technical side of the serve. Not all performers reach the autonomous stage in all skills. For those who do, if practise is not maintained revision to the associative stage will occur. Closed skills such as throwing events can be finely tuned so that a high level of performance can be produced. â€Å"Learning in its simplest form is the development of a position where we can’t perform a skill to a stage where we can perform it.† Knapp, 1973 The quote means that learning is a more or less permanent change in performance brought about by experience. Knapp is suggesting that once something is learnt, it remains with us, thus supporting the statement: Once you learn to ride a bike, you never forget’. Learning in sport involves the development of skills through practice, hence the saying: ‘Practice makes perfect’. Fitts & Posner recognised that as we learn, we do not move directly from â€Å"can’t† to â€Å"can†. They suggest that the learning process is sequential – we move through specific stages/phases as we learn. These stages are hierarchal, in other words each stage must be passed through before the next one is achieved. Ivan Pavlov was a scientist who conducted experiments on the response of dogs. He taught them that when a bell was rung, the dogs would learn to understand that it was time to eat. These findings link into Fitts and Posner’s phases of learning because a particular response with a stimulus can give a great benefit to sports performances. This approach can be used to mentally prepare the athlete for the sport. The player may be taught switching into the ‘zone’ whilst walking onto the pitch. However in order to achieve this, the player would need to gradually progress to that level of conditioned stimulus. In order to teach and improve somebody’s skills at a sport, I would structure a 6 week Personal Exercise Programme (or PEP). A PEP would help improve the skill of the performer, and help the learner to enhance their performance. This way the performer can test to see how long it takes him to master one specific skill. As a trainer I would encourage the performer and give feedback and give a clear understanding to the performer what they are doing right and wrong. Doing something wrong doesn’t mean its negative feedback it would just acknowledge the performer on how to improve, becoming more successful. I would ensure that the performer practices the skill consistently and monitor any improvements in their ability. In a professional football match I would help keep the players to the standard that is required by making them do drills as a team. Warm-ups are essential as they prevent muscles getting damaged. I would also make sure that the stamina of the players is always high; this can be achieved by the Cooper run. In a tennis match the athlete must be able to complete a full match. There are no substitutions so the athletes’ stamina must be high. By hitting a ball for a long period of time every other turn there must be a large amount of upper body strength. In order to help the athlete achieve this, the coach should set the athlete physical training such as sprints, press-up, sit-ups and bicep curls. Technique is needed when serving, volleying; as being able to retain balance quickly is essential. An example of this is Andre Agassi. â€Å"†¦he focused more on physical conditioning than in the past and became one of the fittest players on the tour. His upper-body strength allowed him to bench press 350 lb (159 kg), which helped him retain pace on his shots late into a match, as well as adding to his serve power. He had remarkable endurance and rarely appeared tired on court.† Golf is a sport where the athlete has to be very concentrated on the game. Having a perfect technique allows one to compete to a high level. In order to help raise concentration levels the coach must remove all apprehension and put the athlete in a confident frame of mind. To help an athlete raise concentration before a game the coach could give the athlete a structured diet. Junk food will slow down the concentration rate. Tiger Woods had a bad putting strike so he went home and perfected it. â€Å"Well, that’s one of the worst putting weeks I’ve had in a long time, very frustrating. When I get home I am going to practise until I get it right.† References: * Advanced P.E for Edexcel – Heinemann * http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/pavlov/readmore.html. * http://www.answers.com/topic/andre-agassi * http://www.asapsports.com/show_interview.php?id=410149

Hickory Dickory Dock by Agatha Christie Essay

Hickory Dickory Dock is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie and first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on October 31, 1955[1] and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company in November of the same year under the title of Hickory Dickory Death[2][3]. The UK edition retailed at ten shillings and sixpence (10/6)[1] and the US edition at $3.00[3]. It features her Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. The novel is notable for featuring Poirot’s efficient secretary, Miss Felicity Lemon, who had previously only appeared in the Poirot short stories. Plot introduction An outbreak of apparent kleptomania at a student hostel is not normally the sort of crime that arouses Hercule Poirot’s interest. But when he sees the bizarre list of stolen and vandalized items – including a stethoscope, some lightbulbs, some old flannel trousers, a box of chocolates, a slashed rucksack, some boracic powder and a diamond ring later found in a bowl of a soup – he congratulates the warden, Mrs Hubbard, on a ‘unique and beautiful problem’. It is nevertheless not long before the crime of theft is the least of Poirot’s concerns. Explanation of the novel’s title The title is taken, as are other of Christie’s titles, from a nursery rhyme: Hickory Dickory Dock. This is nevertheless one of her most tenuous links to the original nursery rhyme, consisting of little more than the name of a road. Plot summary Poirot’s solution of the petty thefts is unsubtle but effective: once he has threatened to call in the police, Celia Austin quickly confesses to the pettier amongst the incidents. She denies specifically: stealing Nigel Chapman’s green ink and using it to deface Elizabeth Johnston’s work; taking the stethoscope, the light bulbs and boracic powder; and cutting up and concealing a rucksack. Celia appears to have committed the lesser thefts in order to attract the attention of Colin McNabb, a psychology student who at first regards her as an interesting case study, and then – almost immediately – becomes engaged to her. Celia makes restitution for the crimes and is seemingly reconciled with her victims, but when she is discovered the following morning dead from an overdose of morphine it does not take the investigators long to see through attempts to make her death seem like suicide. Several of the original incidents have not been solved by Celiaâ€⠄¢s confession. Inspector Sharpe quickly solves the mystery of the stolen stethoscope during his interviews with the inhabitants of the hostel. Nigel Chapman admits to having stolen the stethoscope in order to pose as a doctor and steal the morphine tartrate from the hospital dispensary as part of a bet to acquire three deadly poisons. He claims that these poisons were then carefully disposed of, but cannot be sure that the morphine was not stolen from him while it was in his possession. Poirot turns his attention to the reappearance of the diamond ring, and confronts Valerie Hobhouse, in whose soup the ring was found. It seems that the diamond had been replaced with a zircon and, given the fact that it was difficult for anyone but Valerie to have put the ring into the soup, Poirot accuses her of having stolen the diamond. She admits to having done so, saying that she needed the money to pay off gambling debts. She also admits to having planted in Celia’s mind the entire idea of the thefts. Mrs. Nicoletis has been behaving very nervously, as if she were losing her nerve. One night someone gets her drunk and kills her. Poirot focuses his attention now on the cutting up of the rucksack. By comparing an example of the rucksack type destroyed with others, he identifies an unusual corrugated base, and suggests to the police that the rucksack may have been part of a clever international smuggling operation. The rucksacks were sold to innocent students, and then exchanged as a means of transporting drugs and gems. Mrs. Nicoletis had been bankrolling the organisation, but was not the brain behind it. When the police visited Hickory Road on an unconnected issue, the murderer had cut up the rucksack to avoid its being found and removed light bulbs to avoid being recognised. Patricia Lane comes to Nigel an d admits that, in an effort to keep a dangerous poison safe, she has taken the morphine from the bottle in his drawer and substituted for it bicarbonate of soda. Now, however, the bottle of bicarbonate of soda has been taken from her own drawer. While they are searching for this bottle Patricia mentions that she is intending to write to his father in order to reconcile the two. Nigel tells her that the reason for his estrangement from his father is that he discovered that his father had poisoned his mother. This is why he changed his name and carries two passports. Nigel comes to Inspector Sharpe and tells him about the missing morphine, but while he is there, Patricia telephones to say that she has discovered something further. By the time that Nigel and Sharpe get to the house, Patricia has been killed by a blow to the head. Mr. Akibombo comes to Sharpe and says that he had taken Patricia’s bicarbonate to ease a stomach complaint; when he took a teaspoonful of the bicarbonate, however, he had stomach pains and later discovered that the white powder was in fact the boracic powder. By the time Patricia had substituted the bicarbonate, the morphine had already been substituted by the stolen boracic powder. Poirot, whose suspicions about Valerie Hobhouse’s role in the smuggling operation have been proved correct by a police raid on her beauty shop, now closes the case. The murderer has been the most obvious person, Nigel Chapman, who was known to have the morphine in his possession. He killed Celia because she knew about his dual identity and also knew that Valerie travelled abroad on a false passport. He killed Mrs. Nicoletis because she was sure to give the smuggling operation away under pressure, and killed Patricia because she was likely to draw to his father’s attention the recent events. When Poirot outlines to Nigel’s father’s solicitor the case against Nigel, the solicitor is able to provide final proof. Nigel’s mother had been poisoned, not by his father, but by Nigel himself. When the father discovered this he forced him to write a confession and left it with his solicitor together with a letter explaining that it should be produced were there any evidence of further wrongdoing by his son. Valerie confirms Poirot’s solution further. She has placed the call to the police station, apparently from Patricia, after Nigel had already killed her. The green ink was a double-bluff intended to divert suspicion away from him. Valerie is willing to incriminate Nigel fully because Mrs. Nicoletis was actually her mother. Characters in â€Å"Hickory Dickory Dock† †¢ Hercule Poirot, the Belgian detective †¢ Inspector Sharpe, the investigating officer †¢ Miss Felicity Lemon, Poirot’s secretary †¢ Mrs. Christina Nicoletis, the owner of the student hostel at Hickory Road †¢ Mrs Hubbard, Miss Lemon’s sister and the warden of Hickory Road †¢ George, Poirot’s valet †¢ Celia Austin, chemist in the dispensary at St. Catherine’s Hospital †¢ Colin McNabb, a psychology student †¢ Nigel Chapman, a History student, a resident at Hickory Road †¢ Valerie Hobhouse, a resident at Hickory Road and partner in a beauty shop †¢ Sally Finch, a student resident at Hickory Road †¢ Elizabeth Johnston, a student resident at Hickory Road †¢ Patricia Lane, a student resident at Hickory Road †¢ Genevieve, a student resident at Hickory Road †¢ Leonard Bateson, a student resident at Hickory Road †¢ Mr. Chandra Lal, a student resident at Hickory Road †¢ Mr. Akibombo, a student resident at Hickory Road †¢ Maria, the cook at Hickory Road †¢ Geronimo, Maria’s husband

The production and the sales of cigarettes should be made illegal Research Paper

The production and the sales of cigarettes should be made illegal - Research Paper Example It is harmful is many different ways. There is nothing positive and healthy about smoking cigarettes. A lot of people around the world are now strongly addicted to smoking and considering the side-effects and long term impacts of cigarette smoking, many people want to quit their habit. Everybody has learned from the very early stage of their life that smoking is injurious to health but not everyone knows the gravity of its effects. People who smoke are not even well-aware of the damage they are causing to their health. According to Casey Holley, â€Å"Smoking cigarettes affects almost every aspect of a smoker's life. Every internal organ is affected by smoking. Many of the effects of smoking are at least partially reversible if the smoker quits smoking†. According to a report published by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it has been estimated that 443,000 each year are caused due to the side effects of smoking. According to the report, â€Å"Smoking causes an estim ated 90% of all lung cancer deaths in men and 80% of all lung cancer deaths in women.† As a result, it should be understood by the smokers that how much loss they are causing to their health. Still we cannot impose a ban on the production and sales of cigarettes because the choice of smoking is solely an individual’s choice for his own health. ... On the other hand, comparing the adverse effects of smoking with alcohol addiction, it can be analyzed that alcohol has been found with more grave and intense side-effects. It not only affects the health but it also causes threat to the lives of many innocent people around. A cigarette smoker may cause harm to its environment, his own health and also, he may effects the health of the other person but at the same time, while smoking in an open environment may restrict him from causing damage to the other person’s health. But alcohol can directly affect the lives of many people. For example, individuals who drink and drive are risking the lives of other people than those who smoke and drive. Alcohol consumers have an unstable family life than those who are intensely addicted to smoking. Similarly, no cigarette smoker can sexually abuse or harass and even, kill a person under the influence of cigarette; however, many cases have been observed where the person has killed, raped or physically abused a person under the influence of alcohol. According to Chris Hawkey (2009), thousands of people die annually due to alcohol-related diseases as compared to cigarettes. Alcohol not only destroys an individual’s health but it also dismantles his self-esteem and dignity. If restricting or banning advertising of cigarettes can be banned then a same rule should be applied on the advertising of alcohol. In some parts of the world including France, a strict ban has been imposed on alcohol advertising. However, in other parts of the world, advertising of cigarettes is considered as an impending threat which can influence the young teenagers and other people to smoke but no one, considers the compelling ads of

Final Letter to the Instructor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Final Letter to the Instructor - Essay Example Thanks to my instructor for facilitating smooth learning process by providing a healthy environment with equal opportunity for every student to learn something new. The experience of this class helped me become more aware of my writing strengths and weaknesses. The content learnt did not only help me identify my weaknesses in writing, but also provided me with tools to strengthen these weaknesses. I would really recommend this course to other students I know who have not been able to identify their writing weaknesses and strengths. Apart from the class teachings, involvement in group work and discussions even played a bigger role in helping me identify my skills. During the course, I worked with several groups on various projects. The group environment enabled me to identify areas that I was strong in and those that I had weaknesses. Through group projects, there was an opportunity to share ideas and opinions with other group members. Once in a discussion, you could be able to identi fy opinion of others that were widely accepted by the group members, which you were not familiar with and put them down as weaknesses. My own opinions that got wide acceptance in the group reflected as strengths to me. A lot of writing principles and elements learn in this class have changed my attitude towards writing and made me feel more attracted to the discipline. My writing skills before enrollment in this course were not as they are today. I could make many mistakes including grammar, styles and punctuation. In writing, there are various writing formats for different types of essays and business writing. I had prior knowledge on formats for such essays as argumentative, persuasive and research papers, which I had done some online research on before. I could write concisely and avoid relative terms but I later realized there was still more I was not familiar with in writing. It was difficult for me to write point of view essays and informative essays since I was not good on th em. Through such difficulties experienced, I was able to identify areas that needed improvement. Throughout the course, my aim has been to improve my writing skills and apply every principle and element learnt in this class. My guiding principle throughout the course has been having a positive attitude towards everything even when challenges come your way. By this, I was always motivated to make it even when faced with challenges. It was a great experience working with such an attitude, in an environment full of encouragement from the instructor and colleagues. I realized it is possible to learn a lot from anything one has interest in as long as he or she is ready to take criticism and understand that it is not personal but a way of helping. Out of the course work, most of my writings skills have changed positively. My writings are more effective because I have understood the importance of considering the target audience before working on any paper. Understanding the targeted audien ce helps one decide the structure and the language to use in writing it. From the acquired skills, writing well-structured professional papers has become easier for me. I have realized some of the major mistakes I used to make when drafting professional documents, for example, my resume had many mistakes and after getting these skills, I managed to make several changes to the document to make it attractive and professional. My confidence in writing memos and letters has improved.

Research Methodologies in Education and professional practice Paper

Methodologies in Education and professional practice - Research Paper Example In practice however, not all children are able to fully develop fluency in the settlement language. While there is growing evidence of the advantages for pre-school education in immigrant children, the enrollment rate remains relatively low. Socio-economic status and financial costs are likely to be the strongest reasons for this occurrence. All of these data reveal the important role of education in the integration and inclusion of immigrant children and families. The school must take on a proactive role in providing support for immigrant children. The research study that will be undertaken was borne out of this perspective. It aims to explore the impact of migration on family, childhood and education institutions in London as reflected in the challenges and difficulties of adaptation in the school setting. It also hopes to determine possible solutions to these challenges and difficulties. The study aims to answer three main questions: This study is of particular relevance to me personally and professionally. I am a teacher assistant, working through an agency, in different schools in London. My professional goals include becoming a foundation stage teacher and this area of research will continue to enhance my knowledge and skills in dealing with immigrant children. My daily interactions with immigrant students allowed me to observe the challenges and difficulties they encounter as an effect of the family transition and adapting to new culture and environment. Although, there are a number of those who successfully integrate into the new educational conditions, there are those whose academic performances fall far below the average. My interactions with parents, teachers and school administrators led me to hypothesise that certain factors (i.e. family and school environment) promote successful adaptation to the school setting. I have observed

Offer of Fixed Interest Investment Funds to the Public Prospectus Assignment

Offer of Fixed Interest Investment Funds to the Public Prospectus - Assignment Example The main purpose of laws is to ensure that businesses meet the needs and wishes of shareholders and the interests of stakeholders in accordance with modern business practices.6 This prospectus promotes the company as a whole and informs shareholders, future shareholders and stakeholders of any risks that are involved in the fixed interest investment funds.7 The issuer is an investment planning company with limited liability, registered under the laws of England and Wales. ... nce of the Funds 23 Tax Implications 23 Charges and Expenses 23 Bibliography 27 Definition of Terms Articles of Association: The contractual document authorising the issuer to offer the fixed interest investment funds. Back-end Fee: A fee payable upon redeeming an investment or share. Common Law: judicial decisions binding the issuer in the administration and management of the fixed interest investment funds. Depository: The Bank or financial institution holding legal title to the fixed interest investment funds. Doctrine of Corporate Opportunity: A major risk factor and concern of investors relative to the risks associated with managers and directors mismanaging any investment funds and the applicable common law and statutory laws safeguarding against this kind of investment risk. Fiduciary Duty: A common law and statutory law prescribing the duty of care and level of competence applicable to and enforceable against managers who have monetary responsibilities in situations where the y have control over funds that are not their own. Fixed Interest Investment Funds: funds invested with a fixed and predetermined interest rate. Investor: The person or body corporate purchasing the fixed interest investment fund. Issuer: The institution offering the fixed interest investment funds to the public. Load Fee: A fee payable upon entering an investment fund and deducted from the initial investment. Maturity Term: The bond’s life or the date at which the terms relative to the investment fund have been satisfied have been fixed. Open-ended Investment Company: an investment company characterised by collective investment schemes under the structure and framework of a company comprised of diverse capital. Statutory Law: Legislation prescribing the policies, practices, rights, duties

The control of legionnaires disease in water handling systems Essay

The control of legionnaires disease in water handling systems - Essay Example More than 90 per cent of the exposed persons become ill, but pneumonia does not take place and full improvement can be expected. Legionella bacteria are obviously dispersed in ponds, streams, lakes, rivers, soil, mud and underground water. In 1976, a conference held at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel, more than 182 Legionnaires developed pneumonia and more than 29 people died from what was then an unidentified disease. Finally, the bacterium that was accountable for the disease was inaccessible and named Legionella pneumophila, and the disease related with it became known as Legionnaires disease. The cause of this particular bacterium was at last exposed to be the hotels ventilation and humidification system. Under favorable circumstances, Legionella bacteria may build up in cooling towers, evaporative condensers, hot water systems, spas and humidifiers. The quick expansion of Legionella pneumophila is supported by a wet, warm atmosphere, stagnation or low water return, high microbial attentiveness including algae, amoebae, slime and other bacteria, existence of biofilm, scale, sediment, sludge, corrosion products, existence of certain materials such as natural rubber fittings which may be a nutrient cause. Legionnaires’ disease is generally passed on when aerosol mists holding high attentiveness of Legionella bacteria are gulped into the lungs. Drinking water and washing in water having small numbers of Legionella is not acknowledged to result in infection. Person-to-person diffusion is also not acknowledged to occur. Sporadic and epidemic types of Legionnaires disease take place in Australia. Legionella infections are thought to account for 5-20% of community-acquired pneumonias. Occurrences in Australia are usually related with man-made water systems as well as water-cooling towers and spa baths. Home and institutional warm water systems are prospective causes of Legionella infectivity but are only infrequently implicated

Multi model project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Multi model project - Essay Example They just want to eject the DVD out of the DVD player or flip the channel if it is on cable network. It would be interesting to take a peek into the kind of work the producers and screenwriters do to create the desired effect in the audience. The impact it makes the viewers say wow. Obviously, everyone is not interested in the technicalities of a film production. However, one should be aware of the perspective that a movie is instilling in the viewer’s mind. Film critics call this the gaze. It tells the point of view of the movie director. Hollywood action blockbusters like the James Bond and Mission Impossible series are very good examples of the male gaze. The protagonist of such movies is a crime-fighting dominant male. He has access to sports car and top female models of the world. The protagonist is living the fantasy of the majority of the male audiences; to live a carefree adventurous life full of beautiful girls and luxury cars. There is no harm in giving the audiences what they want. The problem arises when such movies become the trendsetters. The people who disagree with such fantasies should not consider themselves outcasts but sadly this is the case. Such movies define what a successful person should look and behave like. This is wrong at so many levels. The people who are living â€Å"ordinary† lives should not consider themselves less than the fantasy projected on the cinema screen. Such perspective or gaze is so dangerous that it creates a sense of loss among average people. They want to live a large life but sadly they fall short because what is projected on the screen is just a fantasy. The counter argument that movies are supposed to be fantastical so that people can momentarily get out of their mundane routines and enjoy voyeuristic pleasures, is not valid because there is a difference between confining something and making a fantasy movie. The fantasy movie Lord of the Rings does not have that usual gaze. The values shown

Certificate of Need (CON) Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Certificate of Need (CON) - Case Study Example The CON is crucial in the clinical setting in that it evaluates the competing interests and boost economic value. Without the CON, it is evident that the health care environment would be a free market with open competition. Challenges would emerge when making decisions and expanding medical services. As an outside consultant, I seek to evaluate the diversity issues in this case study and their impact in the clinical setting. The advantage of this position is that it lays a strong ground to be open-minded when giving out the solutions on what should be done to enhance quality care. However, the main challenge is that one does not have the power to make decisions that affects the organization. With this, the chief administrator would be in a better position to oversee what is going on in the organization and implement decisions that enhance the organization’s success. Diversity Issues and their impact The case in consideration is the open heart surgery, which is a highly profita ble service that profits Pennsylvania. From 1996-1997 to 2007-2009, Pennsylvania increased the number of hospitals offering open heart surgery. Despite the progress made, the number of procedures made in the state decreased by 37%. The change attributed to less usage of clinical facilities, skilled surgical teams, and cardiothoracic surgeons. The issue was so severe that it contributed to the termination of three hospitals, which are Medical College of Pennsylvania, Episcopal Hospital, and Graduate Hospital. The main question that emerges from this case is why so many open heart programs would be launched despite the face of declining market. Major Problems and Issue In my opinion, open heart programs would be launched because they bring profit to the organization. As previously mentioned, open heart surgery is a highly profitable service that supports many hospitals. Nevertheless, opening many heart programs in the face of declining market would lead to economic depression. Most ho spitals may not be in a position to meet their financial goals and objectives. The machines used on these programs are costly. Thus, it is important to understand the market before launching or adding them. This would prevent economic problems that eventually may hinder the successful running of the organization (Jonas, & Kovner, 2011). Organizational Strengths and Weaknesses Although the new programs were justified to bring income, the truth of the matter is that there was no market analysis conducted prior to launching the programs. The organization fails to recognize the negative effects that would emerge from launching open heart programs in the face of the declining market. As documented in the case study, the change of these programs resulted into less efficient utilization of clinical facilities and highly skilled surgical teams. In other words, it affected the entire work performance and productivity of the organization. Because of economic depression caused by programs laun ched, the Philadelphia experienced a number of changed such as the closure of three known hospitals. Alternatives and Resolution To rationalize the number of programs in an open and free market I would embrace the CON in effort to increase the access of many hospitals to use the programs. The CON would help to improve quality in major health care services, and in turn this would boost the planning and resource development of the hospital. The services I would recommend this organization to embrace in the CON is preparing, revising, and reviewing rules and regulation for the analysis of medical services application. It is also important to conduct special studies and projects on the major k health issues with special improvement in the

In Act I of Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead; Essay

In Act I of Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead; there is interplay in an absurd world between light and dark. Using examples from the play, which one achieves primacy in Act I - Essay Example This however does not bother them. They are transported to Hamlet’s castle after their meeting the player on his stage. In a span of time they switch into old English speaking and are interacting with other characters in the play soonest Shakespeare unfolds the story around them. Once alone, the duo is back to modern English speaking even as the player acts in the Hamlet story without their recognition that they are characters in it. Cleverly, Shakespeare does not distinguish them always treating them as a pair without either of them having a name to their identity. Hamlet forges a letter to the King of England that leads to the duo being hanged because of the revelation of their purpose of life which is similar to the story. From his performance knowledge, the player understands and strives to indirectly explain to the duo, but they do not understand their role in the happenings or even the plays purpose (Stoppard, Pg.105). Out of the duo, there is one who is smart and the other stupid though until the play ends, none of them understands the happenings in the play. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern can be any two persons, and this makes the play one of absurd existentialism. By going through life without full knowledge of our roles, our existing purposes and working hard yet being pushed by life to give up and let things happen in and around us. We do not fully understand how we are part of a greater story that we can see even if anyone tried to lay it bare before our eyes we may not see. To determine if light and dark achieve primacy in Act 1, we see that with the constant coin flip by Guildenstern and the same repeated results shows the difference of the play from Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dynamic and comprehensive and are only in play to support roles. In that, essentially the play is not about them they are simply being controlled and this is they show while on stage attempting to discover the stage

Napoleon Exiled to Elba Essay Example for Free

Napoleon Exiled to Elba Essay * 1812 Napoleon launches an invasion against the Russians * 1814, Napoleon forces surrendered and he offered to step down in favor of his son * His offer was rejected and he signed the Treaty of Fontainebleau, he agreed to abdicate in exchange for which he was given the tiny Kingdom of Ebla, a small island in the Mediterranean Sea * May 3, 1814 Napoleon arrives on the island of Elba   He brought ambitious plans to reform government and a personal escorts of 1000 men, and a household of staff * An island of 12,000 inhabitants in the Mediterranean, 20 km off the Tuscan coast * Napoleon attempted suicide with a pill he had carried since a near-capture by Russians on the retreat from Moscow however, its potency had weakened with age, and he survived to be exiled while his wife and son took refuge in Austria * Evening of February 26 , 1815 Napoleon takes advantage of temporary absence of the English custodian, Colonel Campbell * Under the cover of night, he silently slipped away with a from the island and returned to the mainland * He traveled through areas where he knew he had support and about 500,000 volunteers joined him * Escapes with a small army and headed to Paris, proclaimed the renewal of his empire * The French may have found Louis XVIII reasonable, however, they feared the royalists and clergy who were attacking the reforms that had come into effect since 1789 * Also the magic of Napoleon’s name and the glory of his rule been forgotten Battle of Waterloo   Return of Napoleon united the powers at Vienna, and agreed to raise and army under the Duke of Wellington * June 8, 1815 near the town of Waterloo, Belgium the 100 days campaign starts * June 8, 1815 near the town of Waterloo, Belgium 100 days campaign starts * June 18, 1815 Duke of Wellington occupied the ridge of Mont St. Jean (south of Waterloo) and Napoleon was at La Belle Alliance across the valley * Duke of Wellington had inexperienced infantry, cavalry and had 156 cannon and standard gun for infantry * Napoleon built his army on short notice with veterans, peasants and conscripts * The French army under fire from the garrisons at LA Haye Sainte and despite heavy casualties at 11:30am the French launched diversionary attack on Hougoumont * An allied line that hid behind the ridge

Marketing Management Marketing Plan of Asda

Marketing Management Marketing Plan of Asda Introduction Marking planning is one of the main functions of marketing department of an organization (Kotler, 2003). This coursework will focus on marketing strategy and plan of ASDA. The main points of discussion in this coursework are internal and external analysis, SWOT analysis, market targeting and marketing mix. Vision Statement of Asda According to Asda (2009) the main aim of the organization is to serve the customers by offering them lower prices and giving their customers respect for which they deserve. They want to achieve this goal through their staff called colleagues. They are developing their skills. So they can satisfy their customers expectation and make their visit to store more pleasant and joyful. Situation Analysis When an organization works in the competitive market, it has two main types of environment. Internal Environment External Environment To formulate, implement and execute a successful marketing strategy, ASDA management and marketing decision makers have to understand these two types of environments. (ASDA, 2009) Internal Environment The internal environment of an organization is inside of organization. Most of the processes and procedures working in the organization are part of internal environment of organization. Internal environment of an organization contains most of the controllable variables (Sadler and Craig, (2003). Following are the main elements of internal environment of ASDA. Employees The employees of an organization are most important part of organization as they participate in almost all the processes and produces of the organization. Even highly technological intensive organizations, the role of human resources is extremely important to get optimal benefit from that technology. The human resources of ASDA are 150000 of which 90000 are casual and remaining 60000 are full time. The company is managing casual and part timers to save the employees expenses. The marketing employees of organization include customer relation staff, people who work in general market and do surveys to collect market data and executives and managers work in the head office. (ASDA, 2009) Products ASDA is selling large range of products and services to their organization. Before its merger with the Wal-Mart the organization was under performing. As soon as they get the specialized help for their parent company, they started to grow. As a result, in 2003 they have taken over Sainsburys. They are selling their customers grocery, clothes, electronic products and many other type of products through their store based retailing and online retailing. In the online business, customers can get access to the store through ASDA website. The goods are delivered next day to customers at their door step. They are also providing financial services through their stores and website. (ASDA, 2009) Communication Communication within the organization and with the external world is mostly done through company own services. They are using modern technology for this purpose as well to establish social networking and get benefit for the experience and information of other. The internal structure is well defined and all the members know who is reporting to whom. For marketing communication same channels of communication are used. The market research data, different sort of analysis are available to all the people working in organization at the central local on services. (ASDA, 2009) External environment Markets ASDA is occupying 16% of United Kingdom Retail market. Out of these 16% nearly 50.30% people are visiting to their favorite stores everyday and nearly 14.60% people are visit the store two or three times daily. In the busy cities, the organization is continuously losing their customers base due to congestion in the cities. It takes time to go to ASDA and buy the goods. People prefer the corner shop for buying the product of casual use. (ASDA, 2009) Competitive Environment The UK market is very mature market and all the key players in the retail industry have their constant market share. It is very hard to increase the market share. To increase the market share organization has to spend more on the marketing expenses. The cost of marketing campaign is also reducing the profit margin of the owners/shareholders. Same is the problem for the marketing personnel of ASDA. (ASDA, 2009) Economic environment UK and whole world is passing through a world worse economic depression. This economic depression has reduced the purchasing power of the people. Same time it is hard for the organization to get access to the financial resources for their development projects. The per capital income is reducing due to reduction in per capital income. Organizations are facing more pressure from the government in terms of tax as their national deficient are increasing in larger extent. The United Kingdom recently has national deficient nearly 63% of their total GDP. This also has limited the organization marketing activities. They are cutting down the expenses and adopting more pessimistic approach. Though credit crisis has less impact on the retail industry like ASDA, Tesco as they are selling the products of basic needs but still economic impact is visible in their different marketing and business activities. (ASDA, 2009) Social and cultural environment The most of operations of ASDA are in United Kingdom. The society of UK is multicultural society. Keeping the nature of society in mind, ASDA marketing people do not ignore this fact. They have good range of products for different type of people belonging to different countries, religions and cultures. They are serving such customers in their world food department. (ASDA, 2009) Hitt, et al (2008) critically examined that the life style of the people in United Kingdom has changed in during last two decades. They prefer to buy bulk of goods from their favourite stores. This gives them benefit of time saving and less hassle. This also has developed the loyalty culture. The marketers are trying to understand the changing in thinking and taste of people and developing products to satisfy their changed needs. Political and legal environment The government of United Kingdom is thinking about out of town policy for the supermarket. This is negative for the supermarket and they will lose significant part of their sales due to this reason. The people will not come to store for the casual products. The control over the inflection is also function of government. The government of United Kingdom have taken number of quantitative measures after credit crisis. These enable the government to keep rate of inflation under 3%. Fiscal policy, monitory policy, employment policy or taxes are main part of government of United Kingdom. (Hitt, et al 2008) Technological environment Technology is used in many functions of business but use of technology in the marketing is really getting more importance. Marketing data is flowing from marketing personnel working in the field in real time basis. ASDA marketing personnel are using modern tools like mobile computer terminal at different places. The data generated by these machines straightaway comes to the central location. These tools are also helping the marketing managers to analyze the marketing data and give analytical reports. (ASDA, 2009) SWOT analysis Strengths ASDA is well known brand. Their financial strength is also higher due to support of their parent country. They have improved their managerial skills and developed number of best practices which they get from Mal-Mart. The organization is adopting lower price strategy which is best tool to attract more customers in current economic environment. (Lee and Lin, 2008) Weaknesses ASDA is lacking in smaller stores while their competitor Tesco is getting huge sum of money for smaller stores. It is not possible for the company to build bigger stores at shorter distance. The market share of ASDA is constant from number of years. This shows that there is no growth opportunity for the organization in future if conditions remain same. (Lee and Lin, 2008) Opportunities The organization has greater chances to diversify their business to India, China and other emerging economies. There are number of smaller and local chains which are struggling. ASDA can take over these stores and re-structure them to increase their customer base. (Lee and Lin, 2008) Threats the obvious threat of ASDA is its close competitor Sainsburys. If economy goes in further recession then organization is not in the position to reduce further prices as they are selling already at lower prices. (Lee and Lin, 2008) Marketing Objectives The main objective of ASDA is to provide more modern services to their customer. They are aiming to increase their customer base by provision of better services, adding more products in their product range and lastly the development of new channels of distribution. (ASDA, 2009) Through, more control over the prices, they have reduced their cost while quality of services is same. The 30% of the queues have been reduced due to application of more advanced technology at the checkouts. In this way they are willing the customer satisfaction. The organization is successfully implemented the policy of lower prices successfully. They want to carry on executing same policy in future. (ASDA, 2009) Target markets According to ASDA, (2009) The organization is targeting almost all the segments of UK society. However most general customers of ASDA are women of age 20s and 30s. These women buy the goods of day to day use for themselves and their families. The second group of market segment of ASDA are males. They also buy for themselves or for their families. It is showing that marketing campaign of ASDA is not specified on a particular group. Marketing Mix Strategies Product strategies ASDA is enabling their customers to go get access to their favourite products at the cheaper prices. In addition, they are also offering the customers to give their valuable suggestion for the better product development. When new products are launched they are encouraging their customer to participate in the product launching ceremony. When customers get such a care and freedom of suggestion then probability to get loyal is much more. ASDA is giving option to their customers that the person will come with the brightest ideas will get 5% of first year saving. (ASDA, 2009) Pricing strategies The organization is mainly focusing on the lower prices of their products. They are successfully running this policy from last 12 years. However during this time they could only win 0.50% market share from Tesco. (ASDA, 2009) Promotion strategies ASDA marketing people are always curious to adopt new and innovative promotional techniques. They are offering their customers like two for two pound, one for 1.99 and similarly many other techniques. The roll back tags of ASDA are visible to every visitor. The stores are instructed to display reduced price products in front of store so these can catch the attention of customers immediately when they enter into store. (ASDA, 2009) Distribution strategies ASDA have 25 bigger depots national wide scattered around at different strategic locations. In 2008, ASDA came into contract with Gazelle Company Limited who took the responsibility of management of its warehouse and its international marketing. ASDA stores also have their own production and manufacturing stores. (ASDA, 2009) Conclusion The marketing strategy of ASDA is successful especially inspiring the customers through their lower prices strategy. However, more innovation and new ideas are needed to catch the market leader Tesco. They should develop the team of marketing people who take care of their customers at more professional basis. More they will get success to make the customer loyal more they will grab the market share.

MRO Activities in Aviation Industry

MRO Activities in Aviation Industry Definitions: MRO: Maintenance, repair and overhaul organization. OEM: Aircraft original equipment manufacturers. Such as Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier Embraer and others. Airworthiness Authorities: Regulate all aspects of civil aviation. These include the construction and operation of airports, the management of air traffic, the certification of personnel and aircraft. There are two main organizations, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States of America and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). Airworthiness: FAA Part 3 defines Airworthy as, the aircraft conforms to its type design and is in a condition for safe flight. A more generic and non-process oriented definition is required. Airworthiness is defined in JSP553 Military Airworthiness Regulations (2006) Edition 1 Change 5 as: The ability of an aircraft or other airborne equipment or system to operate without significant hazard to aircrew, ground crew, passengers (where relevant) or to the general public over which such airborne systems are flown. Mother airline: In MRO aviation sector mother airline is the core airline from with the MRO unit segregates, for instance British Airways is the mother airline of British Airways Engineering. Virtual airline: Is an airline that has outsourced as many possible operational and business functions as it can, but still maintains effective control of its core business. Line Maintenance: Usually carried out at or near the aircraft dock or parking. The level of dis-assembly is usually limited to what can be reassembled and restored within a short period in order to allow the continuous aircraft operation. A limiting factor is usually the level of Ground Support Equipment and the scope of the revisions reaches to the A-Check. Heavy Maintenance: The mayor level of maintenance with capabilities of disassembling, inspecting, repairing, refurbishment, overhaul and restoration. It is usually carried out into specific installations called Hangars with and extensive source of facilities, tools and equipment. The scope of the revisions in this kind of maintenance is focus in C-Checks and in mayor structural repairs and inspections. Engine Overhaul: Comprises of the whole disassembly of an engine. The overhaul facility inspects the engine, repairs it as necessary, reassembles, tests, clean and approves it for return to service within the fits and limits specified by the manufacturers overhaul data (Lee et al, 2008). This kind of maintenance need to be done in a very specific installations approved by the engine manufacturer. Component Maintenance: Reparation of aircraft components is slightly different from a complete overhaul, as the workshop needs to determine the cause of a given defect, correct that defect, perform bench tests and release the component back to service. Very specific workshops needed for different components such as: Radio transceivers, Hydraulic valves, batteries, passengers seats, etc. Modifications: This kind of maintenance is performed in order a manufacturer option or an authority requirement. During the manufacturing process of an aircraft, improvements have been implemented over time, for early versions, these improvements can be made later in the form of modification, on the other hand civil aviation authorities generates Airworthiness Directives (AD) of mandatory compliance to the aircraft operators , that needs specific modifications. Introduction Maintenance, repair and overhaul in the aeronautical sector is a complicate procedure that has strict and particular requirements defined by airworthiness authorities to guarantee the safety of passengers and aircrew. MRO could be defined such all actions that have the objective of retaining or restoring an item in or to a state in which it can be perform its required function. (Vieira, Loures, 2016). The aviation MRO engineering could be defined such the arm of the aviation industry responsible for the retaining or restoring aircraft parts to a state in which they can perform the required design applications (Al-kaabi, Potter et al. 2007). Chang and Abdullah (2014) states that the business model of the MRO is a combination of technical capacity and logistic configuration counting the level of supply chain vertical integration and outsourcing practices. Chris Markou (2015) estimates the maintenance cost for an airline is 17% of the operational cost. MRO Activities and Models: Al-kaabi, Potter et al (2007) study assesses the decision-making process of an airline when deciding on the outsourcing of maintenance services, the study define three different phases: The first phase corresponds to the activities developed by the MRO, in this section the critical activities of the organization that are included (figure 1). The second phase deals with the study of demand based on a series of entries that will take into account the logistical complexity, the age of the fleet and its use, among others. The MRO have to focus on the actual market and need to develop a plan strategy for short, medium and long term. The third phase addresses the study of capacity and the true need to outsource taking into account the MRO cost, that include maintenance resources such hangar space, qualified equipment , qualified manpower and the dispatch reliability related with technical delays. During 2014 Global Market of MRO spends was value at %62.1 billion, excluding overheads, with a 3.8% increase per annum, the market size is estimated to reach $90 billion in 2024 (Chris MARKOU, 2015). The following graph represents the distribution of cost between MRO activities for the year 2014. Al-kaabi, Potter et al (2007) states that according with the critical activities of an MRO and the level of outsourcing developed, a MRO could be categorized in different models: Fully Integrated MRO: Where all MRO activities are generated and performed internally and in addition the MRO can support other airlines different to the mother airline generating external revenues. Partially Outsourced MRO: Where airlines try to maintains most of their MRO activities internally but some are externalised, for example the outsourcing of the Engine Maintenance. Mostly Outsourced MRO: Where only critical activities are performed internally for instance, generally airlines consider Line maintenance such a critical activity for the relation with the punctuality, for this reason is maintained such as in house activity. Wholly outsourced MRO: Where all activities are outsourced, it is similar to the Virtual airline model and it is highly extended across the new Low-Cost airlines that cannot afford the initial investment to create their own MRO. The following table represents an SWOT evaluation performed by Al-kaabi, Potter et al (2007) of the difference structure models. This variety of organizational models in which certain critical activities are externalized requires a maximum level of coordination between the actors involved, as well as within the organization itself. One of the leading issues in aviation industry today is how information is managed and retained in an organization (Flouris, Oswald 2006). Regarding to the operational aspect of the MRO activities Vieira and Loures (2016) states that the maintenance could be: Scheduled Maintenance: Defined as an anticipatory action to ensure that a product works properly at pre-defined intervals. The intervals can be defined in terms of hours of operation, number of flights or flight cycles. (Figure 5). Unscheduled Maintenance: Defined as not planned or programmed is performed when an unexpected component failure occurs. Actual MRO Scenario in aviation industry Aviation MRO activities cannot be precisely defined solely within manufacturing or service term alone, Given that it is a product of both (Ayeni, Ball et al. 2016). The process are very complex, each component needs to be certified by the competent airworthiness institution which define severe requirements to guarantee safety (Vieira, Loures ,2016). Due to the high quality requirements, there is a very small number of authorized companies to serve parts and services in the sector, this fact generates limitation in the options available when a MRO or manufacturer has to select the provider, creating a lack of influence to discuss commercial conditions. It can be highlighted four stakeholders in the service flow of an aviation MRO: Subtier/Supplier, Aircraft OEMs, Aircraft MRO and Customer. The flow model used by OEMs provides for key suppliers working as system integrator, this means in comparison with other sectors aircraft OEMs have very few suppliers approximately 50. The production parts is very standard and similar compared with other industrial sector, OEMs submit a purchasing order with the system supplier and making and respect a commercial agreement the part is delivered. The complexity increases with spare part due to the logistic and regulatory framework. Customers can purchase orders to the rest of the stakeholders always depending of the type of structure and also can request the MRO services. In order to obtain a complete an actual vision of the MRO sector, the following table shows the top 10 aviation MROs ordered by the number of airframe maintenance hours during 2014. (AWST, 2015) MRO Procedures: Lifecycles: Two main flows can be identified within an MRO Aviation (CHANG, Abdullah 2014): The Physical flow: Is the aircraft maintenance process which comprises: professional methodology, material, machine, manpower and environment. The information flow: Defined as the company management process which comprises the cycle of P-D-C-A (Plan-DO-Check-Action) that includes functions of demand integration and material logistic. These flows have to be analysed through the lifecycle of the different components of the Aviation MRO activity: The previous diagrams show a generic lifecycle for the different elements with which MROs work, they are valid regardless of the level of outsourcing that the organization has, because it is the complete cycle, which would vary the organization that would perform the task in case they were outsourced. Many common characteristics can be seen in the different cycles, such as logistics for the receipt and delivery of the product, personnel and tooling distributions, documentation and various final tests. During the development of the phases, the physical flow and the information flow must be taken care of equally. Is very important visualize the wide intricacy of the MRO organization management (Bierer, Gtze et al. 2016). The two types of flow mentioned above are then analyzed further in detail: Physical flow Regarding the physical flow, the maintenance process does not vary significantly with the product to be treated within the 3 life cycles previously exposed. Chang and Abdullah (2014) divides the aircraft maintenance process in 8 parts: Review Flight history: Make a review of previous maintenance actions and evaluate the current status. Determine Maintenance Items: Following manufacturer requirements and documentation, perform an engineering evaluation and determine the maintenance items. Receiving Process: Accept the aircraft from customer and perform the maintenance previous set-up. Disassembly: Gain access to the maintenance item. Inspection and testing: Perform the evaluations and approved test to ensure the state of the maintenance item. Assembly: Substitute and assembly the relative parts of the maintenance item, including de aces panel to the maintenance item area. Functional test: Perform a functional test of the maintenance item. Flight test: In some maintenance action could be necessary a flight test to ensure achieve the original performance requirement according to the regulatory framework. Figure 12: General Maintenance Process of Aircraft flow shop. Source: (CHANG, Abdullah 2014) It can be seen the easy allocation of the parts to the previous discussed lifecycle in Figure 8. The complexity and the resources used in the maintenance task may vary, however the process remains essentially unchanged. Information Flow The information flow is the company management process, Chang and Abdullah (2014) argues that is composed by two major functions: Demand integration: Divided in three stages: Delivery schedule: Where is necessary the management of customers orders taking into account the delivery date, aircraft model and requirements, this stage makes the link with the investment and business plan. Rough-cut capacity: Consider the information and the overall demand, during this stage the rough-cut capacity for midterm and long term is computed. Material requirement planning (MRP): In this stage inputs are receive from engineering evaluation (Bill of material), current inventory and current capacity, after the pertinent evaluation the detail production schedule is generated. Material Logistic: Divided in three stages: Detail production schedule: Generated in the MRP phase, it is based in the feasibility of the production schedule, taking into account the lead time of the details parts, outsourcing level, procurements and resources. Shop floor control: This phase monitor the progress and daily performance in order to achieve the targets of the detail production schedule. Delivery: After the maintenance task and checks, all the documentation and quality records should be prepared for reviewing and approval. In this section it is necessary to differentiate information from knowledge. The information is the raw content of the metric being used, Gunasekaran, Patel et al (2001) use some of the following metrics in the aircraft maintenance process: Documents rejected, Defects at final inspections, Rework, Tool bag audit among others. Knowledge however is formed through the analysis and study of information, and gives a real vision of the state of the process as well as the achievement of objectives. Significant knowledge construction and application involves information to be accessible and relevant moment and relevant situation (Iyengar, Dharwada et al.). One of the most important factors in the Aviation industry is how information is managed and retained in the organization. The concept of Knowledge Management in an organization is supply managers to with all the tools and knowledge necessary for decision making. Knowledge should be made available to the correct people at the correct time, and it must be sheltered so that this knowledge does not leave the organization. (Flouris, Oswald 2006). Bierer, Gtze et al (2016) indicates that the knowledge management is necessary to obtain a successful generation and correct handling of knowledge, they also emphasize the tendency of MROs to outsource services by aggravating the problem of making knowledge accessible within the company. Little literature exits on information management of the data obtained from various aircraft maintenance process which have direct consequence on the safety of the aircraft. (Iyengar, Dharwada et al. ). Nonetheless, in the publication the authors describe the hierarchy through different levels of the maintenance environment: Senior managers refers to the higher managers who reviews all the maintenance activities. Manager refers to the individual who reviews and report all the maintenance activities to the senior manager. Airline representative refers to the individual who performs day-to-day surveillance at the vendor location. Vendor refers to the independent maintenance operator who performs maintenance operations on the aircraft. Human resources: One of the most critical and most important components within the physical and information flows within an MRO is the human component, two main roles are mainly involved in the whole process (CHANG, Abdullah 2014). Engineer: The role is related with planning, certification liaison, and regulation, specifications to maintain the reliability, relations with financial departments and provide technical and analytical support. Technician: The qualified technician cover three main categories: structure repair, avionics and mechanical. The technicians are the main component of the manpower and they performed the designed maintenance task accourding to the valid regulation. . Mapping information flows is a process for analysing how information is transferred between two points inside an organization (Hibberd, Evatt 2004). There are two types of information flows: Direct information and indirect information, companies have for a long time tried to optimize and improve the physical material flow within the supply chain but is needed also improve the information which is connected to the physical flow (Chibba, Rundquist 2004). Figure 17: The physical material flow and the information flow showing two different Approaches (Indirect and direct information). Source: (Chibba, Rundquist 2004). Hibberd and Evatt (2004) indicates some benefits of mapping information: Enables the understanding of who is the user of information and how is used. It identifies the ultimate client or key stakeholder for various types of information services. Help to focus information services where more necessaries are. Steps: They also pinpoints a process of five steps to perform the information flow mapping: Describe current situation: They suggest a hierarchical chart showing the mission, goals and objectives of an organization, in addition it is also exposed the interaction with various business units and how these units support these goals. Describe potential clients: Identification of potential clients in other business units. Determining the organizational goals and objectives of each unit and identify what information may need. Map potential clients: Listing the units, needs and resources help to analyse the potential overlap areas, the current clients maps is completed with the potential clients information. The map should be completed with suggestions and reallocation of resources, products and services. Rank solutions for prioritization: Make a classification of the possible solutions: Low Risk: Organizations is not making a mission-critical decision. Moderate Risk: Organizational activity involves a complete department and its budget. High Risk: Organizations is making a mission-critical decision. Create an Information map: Mapping the final solution to show each department and the suggestions for their information, the information map will require updating to continue its function. Chibba and Rundquist (2004) argues that a data flow diagram (DFD) could be used to map typical supply chain information flows the article present difference commercial solutions for DFD creation and the characteristics for a process: Is necessary a supplier that contribute with some measurable entity into the process. The process comprises a number of activities that convert the object in a more valuable object. The process should have well defined start and concrete ending. The process should be regularly iterated. The process should use the organization resources. Is good for organization to work with a process model that all the member could understand, they should know how their process are connected, the hierarchy, hat resources are critical to the clients. References AL-KAABI, H., POTTER, A. and NAIM, M., 2007. Insights into the maintenance, repair and overhaul configurations of European airlines. Journal of Air Transportation, 12(2), pp. 27. AL-KAABI, H., POTTER, A. and NAIM, M (2007) An outsourcing decision model for airlines MRO activities, Journal of Quality in Maintenance Engineering, 13(3), pp. 217-227. AYENI, P., BALL, P. and BAINES, T., 2016. Towards the strategic adoption of Lean in Aviation Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) industry: An empirical study into the industrys status. Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, , pp. 38-61. AWST. 2015. Aviation Week Announces Top 10 Airframe MRO Providers: Biennial survey examines MRO developments, 2014 airframe maintenance hours and revenue. Aviation Week and Space Technology, MRO Edition, Aviation Week Ranks. May 2015. BIERER, A., GTZE, U., KHLER, S. and LINDNER, R., 2016. Control and Evaluation Concept for Smart MRO Approaches. Procedia CIRP, 40, pp. 700-705. CHANG, H.M. and ABDULLAH, K., 2014. The Operation Management Model of Aircraft Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) Business. International Journal of Trends in Economics Management Technology (IJTEMT), 3(3), CHIBBA, A. and RUNDQUIST, J., 2004. Mapping flows-an analysis of the information flows within the integrated supply chain. Chris MARKOU Assistant Director, IATA Operations, MRO, December 2015 Airline maintenance cost executive commentary: public mctf An Exclusive Benchmark Analysis (FY2014 data) by IATAs Maintenance Cost Task Force. FLOURIS, T.G. and OSWALD, S.L., 2006. Designing and executing strategy in aviation management. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. HIBBERD, B.J. and EVATT, A., 2004. Mapping information flows: a practical guide. Information Management, 38(1), pp. 58. IYENGAR, N., DHARWADA, P., KAPOOR, K., GRAMOPADHYE, A. and GREENSTEIN, J., DEVELOPMENT OF A KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM TO REDUCE ERRORS IN AVIATION MAINTENANCE. M. TAAFFE, K., WILLIAM ALLEN, R. and GRIGG, L., 2014. Performance metrics analysis for aircraft maintenance process control. Journal of Quality in Maintenance Engineering, 20(2), pp. 122-134. SAHAY, A., 2012. Leveraging information technology for optimal aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO). Elsevier. VIEIRA, D.R. and LOURES, P.L., 2016, Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) Fundamentals and Strategies: An Aeronautical Industry Overview.

crusades Essay -- essays research papers fc

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Crusading, much like Imperialism in the 20th century, was all about expansion. During the middle ages however, it was more about the expansion of religion rather then power, or at least that’s the way it was preached. Crusading by definition is; â€Å" a holy war authorized by the pope, who proclaimed it in the name of god of Christ. It was believed to be Christ’s own enterprise, legitimized by his personal mandate† (1). This essay examines the background of the crusades to offer a better understanding as to why they occurred. It also examines the effects that the crusades had on the world. It is easy to look at the crusades as a violent meaningless act, but one must understand the type of setting this movement occurred during. This was a time when if you took part in the crusades, you were seen as a warrior of god, recruited by the pope. Any man who fought in the name of god would be rewarded in heaven. Popular belief in the 10th and 11th cen turies was that the more you did for god, the less accountable you were for you’re past sins. The more deeds you did, the better your credit in the ‘Treasury of God’ (2). The Treasury of God is a summarization of the good deed outweighing the bad deed principle of the time. Acts of violence in the name of god are far less common in the world today. But, as seen with September 11th, jihad or holy war is still occurring. This essay gives a basic timeline and underlying principles behind the crusading missions. Justification for these acts remains unclear and is simply opinion based.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To understand the effects of crusading one must be familiar with the background in which it took place. The major conflict that initiated the crusading endeavors occurred when the Seljuk Turks aggressively took Syria and Palestine. Turkish Muslims also invaded the Byzantine Empire and subjected all classes of people to their rule, even Christians. At the same time, Popes of the 11th century were trying to extend their religious power beyond its original borders. They did this by forcing religion upon certain groups such as: heretics, pagans, and most all non-Christians. When Pope Urban seen the action of the Muslims he then thought it was his duty to Christianize those people. These facts combined started the First crusade in 1095 (3). At a personal level however, crusading could be unde... ...land; Toronto: Longman 2002), 175.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  9. Nicholson, 134.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  10.Phillips, 347.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  11. Jonathan Phillips, The Fourth Crusade and the Sack of Constantinople (London: Jonathan Cape, 2004), 202.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  12. Nicholson, 120.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  13. Nicholson, 147.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  14. Yvonne, Friedman, Encounter Between Enemies: captivity and Ransom in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem (Leiden; Boston: Brill, 2002), 340.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  15. Nicholson, 166. Bibliography Asbridge, Thomas. The First Crusade: A New History New York; Toronto: Oxford University Press, 2004. Friedman, Yvonne. Encounter Between Enemies: captivity and Ransom in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. Leiden; Boston: Brill, 2002. Nicholson, Helen. The Crusades. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press, 2004. Phillips, Jonathan. The Crusades: 1095-1197. Harlow, England; Toronto: Longman 2002. Phillips, Jonathan. The Fourth Crusade and the Sack of Constantinople. London: Jonathan Cape, 2004. Slack, Corliss. A Historical dictionary of the Crusades. Lanham, Md: Scarecrow Press, 2003.

Teacher Expectations Essay -- Education

The intervening years since court-mandated desegregation of schools have not eradicated the existence of achievement disparities for ethnic children, especially for Latin American and African American students (McKown & Weinstein, 2008). In fact, there is an extensive body of research that suggests that students from minorities do not perform well in the current American public school system (Tyler, Boykin, & Walton, 2006). McKown and Weinstein (2008) note that one often cited contributor to the achievement gap is teacher expectations. The use of the term teacher expectations has been a source of consternation and anger for some educators because of its connection to the concept of self-fulfilling prophecy (Jussim & Harber, 2005). These prophecies are â€Å"erroneous teacher expectations [that] may lead students to perform at levels consistent with those expectations (Brophy & Good, 1974; Rosenthal & Jacobson, 1968)† (Jussim & Harber, 2005, p. 131). Jussim and Harber (2005) detail the controversy that has gone on for more than 40 years over self-fulfilling prophecy. They asserted that, in general, educational psychologists have tended to stress the limited efficacy of teacher expectations to influence students; while, social psychologists have taken the opposite position which asserts both the â€Å"substantial power and pervasiveness of self-fulfilling prophecies† (p. 138). Two of their major conclusions in this regard (a) Self-fulfilling prophecies do exist, and (b) their affects are typically small (Jussim & Harber, 2005). This would seem to be a tidy conclusion to a prolonged controversy; the answers, however, are not so simple or straightforward. There are other issues that complicate matters and must be considered whe... ...3 McKown, C., & Weinstein, R. S. (2008). Teacher expectations, classroom context, and the achievement gap. Journal of School Psychology, 46, 235-261. Retrieved from http://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-school-psychology/ Thomas, J., & Stockton, C. (2003). Socioeconomic status, race, gender, & retention: Impact on student achievement. Essays in Education, 7. Retrieved from http://www.usca.edu/essays/archives.html Tyler, K. M., Boykin, A. W., & Walton, T. R. (2006). Cultural considerations in teachers’ perceptions of student classroom behavior and achievement. Teaching and Teacher Education, 22, 998-1005. Retrieved from www.elsevier.com/locate/tate Zehavi, N., Bouhadan, R., & Bruckheimer, M. (1987). A model of relating teacher expectations and student difficulties. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 13, 185-192. doi: 10.1016/50191-491X(87)80032-9

Elie Wiesel Speech Summary Essay

In the speech Elie Wiesel says that indifference is bad and that it is a crime against humanity .He also said that indifference to a tragedy is not guiltless and that you cant just witness cruelty towards someone or something and not be responsible in some way for what ends up happening instead he said that you have to step in and help the person or thing that someone is being cruel to. He also talks about his experience during the Holocaust, and how people ignored the millions of Jews that were dying. He also said that indifference is more dangerous than anger and hatred when he says â€Å" Indifference, then, is not only a sin, it is a punishment. And this is one of the most important lessons of this outgoing century’s wide-ranging experiments in good and evil.† he is saying that when people were ignoring the fact that Jews were being killed they were committing a sin. Another thing he said was â€Å"But then, there were human beings who were sensitive to our tragedy. Those non-Jews, those Christians, that we called the â€Å"Righteous Gentiles,† whose selfless acts of heroism saved the honor of their faith. Why were they so few? Why was there a greater effort to save SS murderers after the war than to save their victims during the war?† he was saying that after the war people cared more about helping the SS instead of the and there was few people that wanted to help the Jews that were being killed or injured. Also when he said â€Å" Their fate is always the most tragic, inevitably. When adults wage war, children perish. We see their faces, their eyes. Do we hear their pleas? Do we feel their pain, their agony? Every minute one of them dies of disease, violence, famine. Some of them – so many of them – could saved. He was trying to say that that there are a lot of children dying and they really cant do anything about it and they just end up dying.

Frankenstein and Paradise Lost Essay

Shelley’s story of a creature created by Victor Frankenstein has striking similarities to Milton’s ‘Paradise Lost’ from the outset, as the second letter in the novel that documents Frankenstein’s misfortune, is sent from ‘Archangel’. Satan was an archangel before he was banished from heaven for challenging God, and we know that he was supposedly perfect. Frankenstein sought to make ‘a human being in perfection’, although both the creature and Satan fell from grace at the hand of their creators. The opening line of Paradise Lost underpins the correlation between the tales; ‘Paradise Lost’ opens with the lines, ‘Of Man’s first disobedience, and the fruit, Of that forbidden tree,’ this is referring to Adam who took forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge and was therefore exiled by God. This story of Eden and mans downfall has obviously influenced Shelley as Frankenstein’s pursuit of ‘nature to her hiding places’ is what led to the demise of himself and his family. Milton’s Satan challenges God; Adam and Eve are tempted by Satan to eat the forbidden fruit and this echoes in Shelley’s novel and Milton’s poem, as he tells us that ‘heaven hides nothing from thy view. ‘ Yet both Satan and Frankenstein want more than nature has to offer, and the irony in the events leading up to the monsters creation are highlighted, by Shelley’s use of dark and gothic descriptions of foraging in ‘vaults and charnel-houses,’ and how ‘the worm inherited the wonders of the eye and brain.. ‘ This dark depiction echoes the fate of Frankenstein, the monster and Milton’s Satan, as they all endure an experience of Hell; Frankenstein’s personal hell was of ‘of intense tortures such as no language can describe,’ and his endurance of a ‘deep, dark, death like solitude, ironically echoes his creation’s feelings of loneliness and despair. The monster however, ‘considered Satan as the fitter emblem’ of his condition and continued sufferings, but his hell was also a personal one, to be lived out on earth, and unfortunately alone. Satan, at least, had ‘his host of rebel angels’ and had experience of a ‘father’ and being loved, his demise was through choice, as was Frankenstein’s. It is Satan and the monster who initially invoke the readers compassion, as the monster seems of a benevolent nature as he watched the ‘beloved’ De Lacy family and took ‘pleasure’ in aiding their labours. He also shows altruistic behaviour in saving a drowning girl, and lighting a fire to warm his creator, making him possibly more sympathetic than Frankenstein, who forgot his family in his aspirations to ‘become greater than his nature will allow. ‘ The monster states, after reading Paradise Lost and other literature he has found after eating the metaphorical apple, that ‘sorrow only increased with knowledge’, as he became aware from the De Lacey’s, of such things as love and acceptance that he came to long for. His good intent could also be interpreted on his hearing Saphie play music that he found ‘so entrancingly beautiful that they at once drew tears of sorrow and of delight from my eyes. ‘ Satan’s ruin also came from his pursuit of knowledge, leading both ‘men’ to their exile from the people they sought acceptance from. According to Stephen Boyd*, Shelley’s husband believed that ‘men are not inherently corrupt, and that they are perfectible,’ adding to the influence of Frankenstein being to blame for the monster’s feelings of ‘vengeance to all mankind,’ and Frankenstein’s own corruption when trying to discover ‘the elixir of life. ‘ Shelley portrays the monster in child-like ways throughout the novel, as he learns empirically; ‘it was a long time before I was able to distinguish between the operations of my various senses,’ and he burns himself with fire as a child with no awareness would. This allows the reader to feel some empathy towards this ‘wretched creature’, as we imagine an abandoned child, but also reinforces her exploration of human nature as potentially good. Frankenstein and the creature both state they were ‘formed for peaceful happiness’, like Milton’s Adam, making them perfect antiheroes. It could be argued that the monster’s rejection is what made him commit such heinous crimes against Frankenstein’s loved ones, as the rejection he continually faced made him ‘wretched’. We could see Shelley taking the stance that man made a monster, and man also made him monstrous. As the monster lives in a hut, we are reminded that he doesn’t only live outside physically, but emotionally as he is a mere voyeur of family life while watching the De Lacys, and this social exclusion is to blame for his murderous behaviour, again relating to Satan who was excluded my his creator. We could again relate this to Satan who is looking for earth and is also ‘racked with deep despair,’ as are Shelley’s characters. Frankenstein also resembles God, as he created his own version of Adam, and the monster that he constantly refers to as ‘fiend’ and ‘devil’ reminds him; ‘You, my creator, abhor me..’ his plea resounds through the humanity of every reader who has ever felt alone or incomplete, but these feelings however are to be changed as the monster commits heinous crimes against the humanity he once ‘longed for,’ and on his final rejection he cries; ‘oh, earth†¦ the mildness of my nature had fled, and all within me was turned to bitterness and gall. ‘ This is when the role of God is transferred from Frankenstein and to the monster who will now decide his fate.

Merchant Of Venice Answers

Granting says it is time for them to laugh again and that Antonio should not SE his depressed state of mind to show people he is full of wisdom. He says it is better to behave like a fool than to be serious and pretend to be wise. 5. He compares the world with a Stage where everyone has a purpose or part to play. 6. He is trying to win the lady Portrait's heart by being on an equal standing with her other suitors. He's lifestyle is expensive and he tries to impress everyone with his wealth. 7. From Antonio. 8. He assures him that his money and all he has is available to Bastion.He will help him any way he can – as long as the cause is honest. 9. He wants to end more money from Antonio so that he can win the Lady Portrait's heart (and money) to pay off his debts. 10. He needs the money to compete with Portrait's other suitors and to travel to Belmont, Portrait's home. He thus needs it to buy presents for Portia to impress her. 1 1 . And she is also beautiful and good 12. By bor rowing money, he pretends to be rich, and we know he is not, in fact he is in great debt. He pretends to be interested in Portia – but we can assume he is after her money. 3. No, he is still depressed. He makes true on his promises. He does not pretend to be happy – and he does not hide his linings towards Shylock. 14. From Shylock, a Jewish moneylender who lends money with interest. 5 February The Merchant Of Venice: Act 1, Scene 2 1. Inertias. 2. Inertias says that if you have a lot of money, it makes you quicker than when you have just enough to live on. Portia has never worked and thus not know what it is like to suffer. 3. Portia believes it is good to follow proper advice for the heart is sometimes ruled by emotions. 4.Portrait's father said in his will that the man who wants to marry her must choose one of three caskets. The right one shall have a picture of Portia in it. 5. She refused them cause of her father's will and the fact that she did not like them. 6. Yes, she does. 7. The caskets that is made out of lead, because her father wants a husband for her who doesn't want her for her money, but who really loves her for who she is. 9 February The Merchant Of Venice: Act 1, Scene 3 1 . Shylock means that Antonio is a good man because he is wealthy and it is safe risk to take to give him the money.He always pays his debts. 2. It is shown in Schlock's declaration that he will not eat or dine with them because they might give him pork to eat. 3. Antonio lends money to people without interest, which shows he is a giving, generous, caring and honest man. 4. Own answer -? must be well motivated. (Remember, during the Elizabethan times, it was acceptable. ) 5. Shylock hates Antonio because, 6. He is a Christian, 7. Antonio has openly criticized Schlock's usury because Antonio does not ask it, 8. He has spit on Shylock and treated him like a mongrel's dog. 9.He repeats the terms and conditions of the loan several times. He pretends to have no mon ey (he would borrow it from Tuba) and he greets him too politely. 10. Appearance vs.. Reality, Money lending vs.. Friendship, Mercy vs.. Justice. Love vs.. Friendship, Comedy vs.. Tragedy, Materialism vs.. Spiritualism. 11. He will lend three thousand ducats to Antonio for three months, and if he cannot repay it, Shylock will take a piece of flesh from Notation's body any. Veer he wants to. 12. Bastion does not like the terms at all. It reveals that he truthfully cares more about his friend than the money. 13.Antonio is sure his merchant ships will be in Venice a full month before the end of the contract and it will be worth 9 times the value of the loan. 14. No, he feels a fair bargain from a sly person is worse than an unfair deal from an honest person. He feels Shylock is a villain and not able to be â€Å"fair†. May The Merchant Of Venice: Act 2, Scene 1 1 . They are living under the same sun thus they are both used to a life of luxury. 2. She cannot say that she likes or dislikes it – she is not influenced by her eyes prejudice. 3. She tells us that she places the Prince of Morocco on an equal footing with her other suitors.From the previous act, we know she does not think very highly of them either. This supports the theme of Prejudice. 4. It could make him a man blessed (with a beautiful wife and money) or ill fated. Thus, he dislikes the idea of having fate decide his future. 5. He makes him swear never to marry. May The Merchant Of Venice: Act 2, Scene 2 1. He compares him to the devil himself. 2. Bastion is a kind master and a Christian but Shylock ill-treats him. Bassoon's servants wear beautiful uniforms. 3. Old Gobo treats his son with respect and dignity (â€Å"young master') but Shylock mistreats him.Gobo wants to help his son to a better work, and he forgives his son for playing tricks on him. 4. Lancelot says that Bastion is full of mercy and kindness -? unlike Shylock. Bastion is not there for the money. 5. No, it is very unlik e him. We can forgive him for his rude behavior because that is what makes him unique and his friends do not mind his faults. 3 May The Merchant Of Venice: Act 2, Scene 3 1 . Lancelot was the comic relief to her miserable life. 2. With Lorenz. 3. It is surprising because Lorenz is a Christian and Jessica is a Jew – usually these two religions do not agree.Lorenz is a friend of Notation's and Shylock will thus never approve of their love. It was totally unheard of. 4. She loves him – he is her father – but she does not like his behavior or methods. 3 May The Merchant Of Venice: Act 2, Scene 4 1. She will disguise herself as a boy. 2. She will bring some money – in this case, some of her fathers gold and eels. 3 May The Merchant Of Venice: Act 2, Scene 5 1 . He thinks they want to flatter him because of his wealthy and to thank him for the three thousand ducats. 2. He wants to use the opportunity to secretly scorn and mock the Christians' manners.He wants t o watch in hatred as Bastion wastes the money. 3. We know now that he is only interested in himself, that his daughter is nothing more than a commodity and he is fine with treating his servants badly. He is stingy, materialistic, mean, dull, too serious and filled with hate. 4. Shakespeare wants to show that, if both parties agree, Christians and Jews can get long quite nicely. He tried to bridge the racial prejudice by making a Jew and a Christian fall in love – love can overcome hatred and religious differences. 3 May The Merchant Of Venice: Act 2, Scene 6 1 .He loves her too much and she is wise, fair and trustworthy. 2. Bastion and is on his way to Belmont with a ship and the wind is now favorable for him to set sail immediately. 3. He wants to see Inertias, his love interest. 4. His first concern is the money – he might be infatuated with Portia, but it is not clear yet. 3 May The Merchant Of Venice: Act 2, Scene 7 1. 1)†Who choosiest me, shall gain what man y men desire†. )†Who choosiest me, shall get as much as he deserves†. 3) â€Å"Who choosiest me, must give and hazard all he hath†. 2. A picture of Portia. . 1) He does not want to take a risk with lead – it is worthless and it will be foolish. He does not want to risk everything without gaining something in the process. 2) It says the one who chooses it, will get what he deserves – and he knows he deserves Portrait's hand in marriage because he has a beautiful complexion, good manners and he is a good lover. He does not choose it, because he feels its worth will not be enough include Portia. 3) He feels hat he deserve more than just a casket – wants the casket that is worthy of Portia herself.Gold is more worthy than silver and Portia is worth more than any other woman. 4. He did not choose the right one and he was leaving immediately. 22 July The Merchant Of Venice: Act 2, Scene 8 2. 3. 4. He is angry because she went with a Christian and she took some of his jewels and money. He is also upset because he has lost a daughter. Own answer – it is difficult to say, maybe it was a double blow to him? Shylock might change the terms of their agreement – and if Antonio cannot repay the money, Shylock might not show him any mercy. He might just now claim â€Å"the pound of flesh† immediately.

History of Sepak Takraw

HISTORY OF SEPAK TAKRAW In 1935, during the Golden Jubilee Celebrations for King George V, the game of sepak raga was played on a badminton court, in the Malaysian State of Negeri Sembilan. The development of the game was interupted by the war. In 1945 in Penang the net was again introduced and the popularity spread to surrounding areas and then countries. n 1965 Malaysia hosted the South East Asian Peninsular games (SEAP) and sepak raga was introduced. There were lengthy discussion between Malaysian and Singapore delegates, on the one hand, and Laos and Thai delegates, on the other, with regard to the official name of the sport. An agreement was subsequently arrived at and it was decided that the sport would be known as â€Å"Sepak Takraw†. Sepak means KICK in Malay and Takraw means BALL in Thai word. Almost every nation that played this game knew it by a different name. In Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, it's called ‘sepak raga', whereas in Thailand it's commonly known as ‘takraw'. The same game goes by the name of ‘sipa' in the Philippines, ‘da cau' in Vietnam, ‘rago' in Indonesia, and ‘kator' in Laos. Since sepak takraw was played and enjoyed in several countries, there were a lot of inconsistencies in terms of how the game was played and judged. In 1960, representatives from Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Lao and Thailand met in Kuala Lumpur to standardise rules and regulations for the game. And after a long and heated debate, consensus was reached that the sport would henceforth be officially called sepak takraw. They also formed the Asian Sepak Takraw Federation (ASTAF), and translated the rules into English, setting the stage for the first international competition, held in Malaysia in 1965, at the Southeast Asian Peninsular Games, or SEAP Games, the predecessor to today's Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games). This chain of events set the stage for the international development of sepak takraw. However, it was the replacement of the natural rattan ball, which tended to splinter and warp, with the more standardised synthetic plastic ball that really kicked the game's popularity into high gear. In 1990, sepak takraw was included at the Asian Games in Beijing. Women also got in on the action with the first women's championships in Thailand hosted in 1997. Today, more than 20 countries have national sepak takraw associations with representatives on the board of the global governing body, the International Sepak Takraw Federation (ISTAF). * FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT Court The standard court of the Sport Sepak Takraw is an area of 13. 4m X 6. 1m free from all obstacles up to a height of 8m. It is advisable that the court is flat concrete surface. The width of the lines that determines the perimeter of the court should not be more than 0. 04m measured and drawn inside the measurements of the court. The lines of the court should also be at least 3. 0m away from any obstacles. Each side should have a 6. 7X6. 1m area. The centerline of the Sepak Takraw court, measuring about 0. 02m, divides the court into two equal halves. A quarter circle must also be drawn at the intersection of each of the sidelines with the centerline, measuring 0. 9m in radius. The quarter circle must be drawn outwards from the edge of the measured radius. The court should also have a service circle of about 0. 3m in radius. This circle is drawn on the left on the left and from the sidelines. The 0. 04m line will be measured on the right court and should be drawn outward from the ledge. The sideline facing the net should have a 2. 45m distance from the center of the circle and 3. 05m from the side. Posts The post height differs with males and females. The official height of the posts for males is 1. 55m from the floor and 1. 45m for the females. It should be made using very strong material and shall not be more than 0. 04 in diameter. The position of the posts should be 0. 3 m away from the sideline and should be positioned in line with the centerline. * Both male and female players are required to wear shorts and sleeved t-shirts. Players must tuck-in their shirts. The t-shirts for all players must also be numbered permanently in which numbers are only ranged from 1 to 15. The captain of each regu (team of 3 or 4 players) is required to wear an armband on their left arm. Any apparel that could endanger opponents is not allowed. * RULES AND REGULATION 1. THE COURT 1. 1. Area of 14. 4m (7. 2m X7. 2m each side of the court) x 6. 5m free from all obstacles up to the height of 8 m measured from the floor surface. The surface of the court must be beach sand. 1. 2. The width of the lines bounding the court should not be more than 0. 04m measured and drawn inwards from the edge of the court measurements. A tape or rope can be used to be the boundary lines. All the boundary lines should be drawn at least 3. 0m away from all obstacles. 1. 3. The Centerline of 0. 2m should be drawn equally dividing the right and left court. 2. THE POST 2. 1. The posts shall be 1. 55m (1. 45m for women) in height from the ground and shall be sufficiently firm to maintain high net tension. It should be made from very strong materials and shall not be more 0. 04m in radius. 2. 2. The posts shall be erected or placed firmly 0. 3m away from the sideline and in line with the Centerli ne. 3. THE NET 3. 1. The net shall be made of fine ordinary cord or nylon with 0. 06m to 0. 08m mesh. The net shall be 0. 7m in width and not shorter than 6. 50m in length and taped at 0. 5m from tape double at the top and sideline, called boundary tape. 3. 2. The net shall be edged with 0. 05m tape double at the top and the bottom of the net supported by a fine ordinary cord or nylon cord that runs through the tape and strain over and flush with the top of the posts. The top of the net shall be 1. 52m (1. 42m for women) in height from the center and 1. 55m (1. 45m for women) at the posts. 4. THE SEPAKTAKRAW BALL 4. 1. The Sepaktakraw ball shall be spherical having 12 holes, 20 intersections. It shall be made of synthetic fibre of one woven layer covering with synthetic rubber. The circumference shall not be less than 0. 0m and not more than 0. 44m. The weight before play shall not be less than 170 gm and not more than 200 gm for men and women. 4. 2. All world, international, region al competitions sanctioned by ISTAF, including but not limited to, the Olympic Games, World Games, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and Sea Games, must be played with ISTAF approved sepaktakraw balls. 5. THE PLAYERS 5. 1. A team comprises four players and two reserves. The game is played by two â€Å"REGU's† consisting of four players (per team) on each side. 5. 2. The player serving will position himself behind the baseline of the court. Any one of the four players can execute the serve. 5. 3. The other three players shall be in their respective court. 6. PLAYER’S ATTIRE 6. 1. The players are allowed to wear anything besides jeans, long pants, and as long as the attire is decent. It is forbidden for players to wear anything that endanger themselves or their opponents during the game. 6. 2. Players wearing earrings, chains, watches and any other form of accessories are not allowed to play in the court. 6. 3. For women swimming costume is allowed but shorts or bermudas must be worn to overlap the costume. Jerseys T-Shirt, Singlet Round neck shirts Bermudas Shorts Tights Caps Sunglasses or Visors Goggles 6. 4. The players are permitted to use sun visors, goggles and caps to protect their eyes from the sun. 6. 5. The entire apparel of a player is regarded as part of his/her body 6. 6. The regu captain is identified with a marking or an armband on the left arm. ) 6. 7. Anything that helps to speed the ball or movement of a player is not allowed 7. SUBSTITUTION 7. 1. Substitution of a player is allowed at any time on request made by the Team Manager to the Official Referee when the ball is not in play. . 2. Each â€Å"Regu† is allowed to make one substitution per set only. 7. 3. A Player who has been sent off by Referee during a match may be substituted, provided no substitution has been made. 7. 4. Any player having played in the starting line-up or as a substitute in the current game is not allowed to play again. 7. 5. Any â€Å"Regu† having less than 4 players will not be allowed to conti nue the game and will be considered as having lost. 8. OFFICIALS For International Tournaments, the game shall be managed by the following officials: i) 2 Technical Delegates ii) 6 Jury ii) 1 Official referee (Seated behind the referee’s chair) 2 Referees (1 Referee seated in an elevated position and the other also seated in elevated position to help the referee. ) iv) 2 Linesmen Standing at the baseline facing the Referee 8. 1. Two technical delegates to the Sea Games, Asian Games and World Championships and any other international competitions that are sanctioned by ISTAF. The expenses of the Technical Delegates involving round trip air tickets, accommodations, meals and allowances of US$75. 00 per day shall be paid by the organizing committee. The host country must guarantee proper accreditation for technical delegates who have been appointed. The technical delegates must be allowed to inspect the competition venue, facilities and equipment to insure that they conform to ISTAF regulations 8. 2. ISTAF Members Jury of Appeals – 4 members to be appointed to a Jury of Appeal to any ISTAF sanctioned competitions including Asian Games, Sea Games and other International and Continental competitions sanctioned by ISTAF. The host country shall provide accommodations, meals and internal transportation during the competition period. Members of the Jury shall be paid US$20. 00 per day for their services. Two (2) members of the Jury of Appeal are to be appointed by the host country of whom one of them is the technical committee chairman and shall act as the chairman of the Jury of Appeal. As for the other member of the Jury of Appeal from the host country, he will act as secretary without vote. 9. THE TOSS AND WARM UP 9. 1. Before commencing the game, the Referee will toss a coin or disc and the side winning the toss will choose side or service. The side that loses the toss will abide with the decision. The side winning the tossshall â€Å"warm-up† first for 2 minutes followed by the other â€Å"Regu†. Only 5 persons are allowed to move freely in the court with the official ball. 10. POSITION OF PLAYERS DURING SERVICE 10. 1. At the start of play, the players of both â€Å"Regu's† must be in their respective courts in a ready position. 10. 2. The Player serving the ball must have both feet outside the base line. 10. 3. The other three players shall be within their side of the court and remain in one spot, while ‘serve’ is being made. 10. 4. The opponent or receiving Regu is free to be anywhere within its court. 11. START OF PLAY AND SERVICE 11. 1. The â€Å"Regu† that chooses â€Å"service† shall start the match. 11. 2. Once the Referee calls the score, the player doing the service will toss the ball in the air and kicks the ball over to the opponent. The ball can be kicked in any manner using the foot. If the Tekong throws the ball before the Referee calls the score, it shall be a re-throw and a warning will be given to the thrower. The serve can be executed anywhere along the baseline. 11. 3. During the service, as soon as the Tekong kicks the ball, all the players are allowed to move about freely in their respective courts. 1. 4. The service is valid if the ball passes over the net, whether it touches the net or not, and inside the boundary of the two net tapes and boundary lines of the opponent's court. 12. FAULT 12. 1. The Serving Side During Service 12. 1. 1. The â€Å"Tekong† plays about with the ball (bumping, giving to other player, etc. ) after the call of score h as been made by the Referee. 12. 1. 2. The â€Å"Inside† player lifts his feet or steps on the line or crosses over or touches the net while throwing the ball. 12. 1. 3. The â€Å"Tekong† does not kick the ball on the service throw. 12. 1. 4. The ball touches his own player before crossing over the opponent court. 12. 1. 5. The ball goes over the net but falls outside the court. 12. 1. 6. The ball does not cross to the opponent side. 12. 1. 7. The tekong foot touches the baseline or any other markings in the court before he kicks the ball to serve? 12. 1. 8. A player uses his hand or hands, or any other parts of his arm or arms to facilitate the execution of a kick even if the hand or arm does not directly touches the ball, but it touches other objects or surfaces instead when doing so. 12. 2. For Both Regus During The Game 12. 2. 1. Stepping on the centre line (except during a follow through) 12. 2. 2. Any player who touches the ball on the opponent side. 12. 2. 3. Any part of player's body crosses over into opponent's court whether above or under the net except during the follow through of the ball. 12. 2. For Both Regus During The Game 12. 2. 1. Stepping on the centre line (except during a follow through) 12. 2. 2. Any player who touches the ball on the opponent side. 12. 2. 3. Any part of player's body crosses over into opponent's court whether above or under the net except during the follow through of the ball 12. 2. For Both Regus During The Game 12. 2. 1. Stepping on the centre line (except during a follow through) 12. 2. 2. Any player who touches the ball on the opponent side. 12. 2. 3. Any part of player's body crosses over into opponent's court whether above or under the net except during the follow through of the ball. 15. SCORING OF POINTS 15. 1. A point is given to the Regu when its opponent have committed any fault 16. SCORING SYSTEM 16. 1. The winning point for the match is a maximum of 21 points 16. 2. The change of side shall occur whereby one Regu has reaches 11 Points 17. TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF PLAY 17. . The Referee can suspend play temporarily in the event of obstructions, disturbances or any injury to a player who needs immediate treatment, for not more than 5 minutes. 17. 2. An injured player is allowed up to 5 minutes injury time-out. If after 5 minutes, the player is unable to continue, a substitution must be made. If the injured player's team has already made a substitution, the match will be declared a forfeit in favor of the opposing team. 17. 3. In the course of such suspension, all players are not allowed to leave the court 18. DISCIPLINE 18. 1. Every player must abide by the rules of the game. 8. 2. Only the Captain of the â€Å"Regu† is allowed to approach the Referee during the game. 18. 3. Players are not allowed to wear any jewelry or accessories e. g. earrings, chains, watches etc. in the court. 19. PENALTY 19. 1. Players disobeying rules will be penalised by the Referee 19. 1. 1. Showing dissent by words or action towards any officials, with regards to any decision and to any players or spectators 19. 1. 2. Using foul or abusive language to any officials, players or spectator 19. 1. 3. To take any improper step or action in order to influence any decision made by the officials 19. 1. 4. To leave the court without the permission of the Referee 19. 1. 5. To commit ungentlemanly conduct 19. 1. 6. To disobey orders and rules of play The Referee may use one of the following cards: Yellow Card – Caution Red Card – Expulsion Red card shall be given to the following offences committed â€Å"INTENTIONALLY† 19. 1. 7. Persist in misconduct after receiving a caution 19. 1. 8. Violent conduct (eg. Striking, kicking the opponent, spitting, etc) 19. 1. 9. Using foul or abusive language Note: Any player who is shown the Red Card shall be sent off the court and disciplinary action shall be taken against him. The Player concerned shall not be allowed to play in any game until sanction has been made. 19. 2. Fouls and misconduct are penalized as follows: Disciplinary Sanctions – 19. 2. 1. Cautionable Offence A player is cautioned and shown the yellow card if he commits any of the following six offences: 19. 2. 1. 1. Is guilty of unsporting behavior by the display of such action that can be reasonably regarded as either a mitigated or unmitigated violation of the norms of sporting ethics, which can be considered as having or will have a detrimental effect on the proper conduct of the match as a wh19. . 1. 4. Delays the restart of play. 19. 2. 1. 5. Enters or re-enters the court without the referee's permission. 19. 2. 1. 6. Deliberately leaves the court without the referee’s permissionole. 19. 2. 1. 2. Shows dissent by word or action. 19. 2. 1. 3. Persistently infringes the Laws of the Game 19. 3. Sending-off Offences A player is sent off and shown the red card if he commits an y of the following five offences: 19. 3. 1. Is guilty of serious foul play. 19. 3. 2. Is guilty of violent conduct, including an act executed with deliberate intent to cause injury to his opponent. 9. 3. 3. Spits at an opponent or any other person. 19. 3. 4. Using offensive or insulting or abusive language and/or gestures. 19. 4. A player who commits a cautionable offence either on or off the court, whether directed towards opponent, team-mate, the referee, an assistant referee or any other person, for which a yellow card is awarded for each the offence committed is disciplined as follows: 19. 4. 1. Offence: First Yellow Card: Penalty: Normal Caution 19. 4. 2. Offence: Second Yellow Card received by the same player in different matches, but in the same tournament. Penalty: a) One Match Suspension 19. 4. 3. Offence: Third Yellow Card received after suspension for the first two Yellow Cards in the tournament by the same player. Penalty: a) Two (2) Matches Suspension b) A Fine of US$100 (One Hundred Dollars is to be paid by the club or any other body the player represent in the match. 19. 4. 4. Offence: Fourth Yellow Card Yellow card received after two matches' suspension for the earlier Third Yellow Card in the same tournament by the same player. Penalty: Immediate suspension from playing in the next or subsequent matches in any tournament sanctioned by relevant Sepak takraw controlling authority until a Disciplinary Committee is convened and a have been reached on the matter. 19. 4. 5. Offence: Two Yellow Cards received by the same player within the Same match. Penalty: b) Two (2) Matches Suspension c) A Fine of US$100 (One Hundred Dollars is to be paid by the club or any other body the player represent in the match. d) A Red Card will be given for a third disciplinary offence committed in any other matches in the tournament. 19. 5. A player who commits a sending-off offence either on or off the court, whether directed towards opponent, team-mate, the referee, an assistant referee or any other person, for which a red card is awarded for each of the offence committed is disciplined according to the nature of the offence committed is disciplined as follows: Offence: 19. 5. 1. A Red Card Penalty: Send-Off from the game and immediate suspension from playing in any tournament sanctioned by the relevant controlling authority for Sepak takraw until a Disciplinary Committee is convened and a decision has been reached on the matter. 0. MISCONDUCT OF TEAM OFFICIALS 20. 1. Disciplinary action will be taken against Team Officials or his team for any misconduct or disturbances committed by the official or team during a tournament whether in or outside the court. 20. 2. Any team official who commits misconduct or disturbances will be immediately escorted out from the arena by the tournament officials and the official referee and will also be immediately suspended from being a team official, until a Disciplinary Committee is convened and a decision has been reached on the matter. 21. GENERAL 21. 1. In the event of any question or any matter arising out of any point, which is not expressly provided for in any of the rules of the game, the decision of the Official Referee shall be final. BASIC AND FUNDAMENTAL SKILLS: Inside Kick. Arguably it is the most important skill. This is the kick you will use the most. Watch any top class players in action and you'll see that this is the control kick of choice. This move sets up all the killer spikes. While doing an inside kick, you should stand in a good athletic stance. Feet shoulder width apart. Remember to bend your support leg at the knee. And, it is important, always keep an eye on the ball! The kicking motion is easy and don't swing at the ball too hard. The ball is bouncy and you need to just hit it in the right spot on your foot as well as with the proper motion. Try a few times of simply tossing the ball to yourself. Focus on the ball and pop it back up to your hands. Catch the ball and then try again. Do this until the ball is consistently coming back up with ease and pop it back up to your hands. Once you have gained consistency in this drill you can begin to try to link some kicks together. Try dropping to your strong foot, popping the ball up and then kicking with your weak foot before catching the ball. Try to link three kicks together, on alternating feet. You should be able to see your progression. All rights reserved. Spiker Dek is owned by Sport Action International in the promotion of sepak takraw in the Takraw Thailand League. All rights reserved. Knee/Thigh kick. The knee and thigh is used when the ball comes fast towards the area between your knees and your waist. This skill is used to â€Å"bump† or deflect the ball up enough to use an inside kick to control the ball. It is also used when kicking consecutive kicks or in a circle and the ball gets to close to your body. The motion is like a high step marching motion. Simply raise the leg with your hip allowing your knee to bend. Try to contact the ball on the thigh where possible instead of the knee as it provides better control. Make sure the ball hits the fleshy part of the thigh to â€Å"bump† the ball up and out a bit. Try a few back up to your hands. Once you feel comfortable, try to link with one inside kick, and then catch the ball. Do this over and over until it comes naturally. Once you get this combination and doing it naturally without thinking, you will be aware of your improvement in skill. Header. The header is probably the second most important skill to have, especially in the net game. The header is used to pop up a ball that comes higher than the waist. The best way to learn the header is like the inside kick. The contact point should be just above the forehead at the hairline, not too much on the forehead and not too much on the top of the head, right in between. Toss the ball to yourself, hit it with your head and then catch it. Do this several times until you feel comfortable with this skill. When doing the header, remember to bend your knees and get low beneath the ball. Like the other kicks, you don't need to focus on power but on accuracy and placement. The next step in this skill drill is to toss the ball higher and again control it with your head before catching the ball. It hurts a bit at first, but you'll get use to it. The graduating step is to a header from a high inside kick or from a header to a controlling inside kick. Try both combinations as you will be using both of them as you begin to play more Front kick/Toe kick. The toe kick is a defensive kick, great for saving a ball that has gotten out in front of you. It is not, however, a good control kick. Those who play soccer may disagree, but in sepak takraw the inside is the right way. Learn the toe kick for saves, the inside for control. The toe kick is achieved by placing the foot out for the ball and depending on the height of the, either lifting the foot with your hip or just letting the ball bounce off. You don't need much power because the ball tends to fly off uncontrollably. Do it slow and take it easy. Like the other kicks, do the same toss and catch drill. Then try with different combinations. Do the same progression. * TERMINOLOGY : Block: Blocking is a defensive skill used to counter a spike coming from close to the net. Block is usually made by jumping in the air and raising a leg and/or back to divert the ball back into the opponents court. A block counts as one contact. Center Line: Divides the length of the playing court into two equal halves. Dig: The act of fielding hard hit ball successfully, usually a spike or block, to regain control. i. e. The Dig by Thailand came at crucial point in the game.. Dink: A soft hit ball -usually either a â€Å"dink serve† or a â€Å"dink spike† Fault: A violation of one of the rules of the game. Feeder: Person who â€Å"sets† the ball to the â€Å"spiker†. First Ball: Term used to describe receiving the serve by the opposing team. Killer: Same as Spiker. Common in international terminology. Quarter Circle: Place on court where the serving team's forwards (left inside and right inside players) must remain until the ball has been kicked by the server or back player. Regu: Malaysian word for team. In takraw, a team of 4 players (3 starters plus 1 reserve) is known as a â€Å"Regu† and a squad of 3 â€Å"Regu's is known as a â€Å"Team†. Roll Spike: Spike in which the player jumps with his back to the net, rotates in the air and kicks the ball over the opposite shoulder from the kicking foot with a flip like motion. The most dramatic and famous move in the game! Service Over: When the serving team fails to return the ball over the net or commits a fault or foul. The opposing team becomes the serving team but a point is not awarded to either team. USA also uses the same term as volleyball – â€Å"Side Out†. Serving Circle: Circle of 1 foot radius located in both halves of the court. The server is required to have one foot touching the ground inside the serving circle during a serve. Set (1): A period of play which is concluded when one team reaches 15 points. Matches consists of the best of three sets. Set (2): A high pass by one player to a team-mate or to self to enable a spike. Service: The act of putting the ball into play by the back player. Service (Hand) Toss: A hand throw of the ball by one of the forward â€Å"inside† players to the â€Å"back† who must kick the ball into play in one try. Spike: A powerfully hit shot directed into the opponents half of the court by the foot or head. Sunback Spike: Spike in which the player jumps with his back to the net and kicks the ball over the same shoulder as the kicking foot. In soccer this is known as a â€Å"bicycle kick† or â€Å"bike† for short. * STRATEGIES: The strategies in Sepak Takraw are very similar to those in volleyball. The receiving team will attempt to play the takraw ball towards the front of the net, making the best use of their 3 hits, to set and spike the ball. THE GOAL The goal in any form of takraw is to keep the hand-woven ball off the ground for as long as possible using any part of the body except hands and arms. Takraw challenges an individual's assumptions of what they are, and are not, capable of doing. As you gain control of the takraw ball, you will find it very rewarding when you can easily whiz through a string of consecutive kicks or place an accurate pass to another player. While amazing yourself and your friends, you will also be having fun, greatly increasing your eye-foot coordination and overall ball control (super for enhancing and refining soccer skills), strengthening your legs and really increasing your flexibility. GETTING STARTED: Try the FIVE BASIC KICKS/HITS shown here. These kicks may seem awkward at first, but be patient and practice each kick individually. What was impossible yesterday, can be achieved today. Once the basics are learned, try the free style kicks (and make up some of your own), then you can play a whole series of games, including the ones below. . INSIDE KICK There are 5 basic kicks/hits that any good Takraw player will have mastered. The most important of these is the inside kick, for it provides maximum ball control. Use this kick to field a ball dropping in front of you. With your planted leg flexed at the knee, lift up your other leg and swing the foot and lower part of the leg in and up sideways like a pendulum in fro nt of you, turning the ankle so that you hit the ball with the flat surface of the inside of your foot. The inside kick is commonly used for passing and setting the ball up high for a spike. 2. THE OUTSIDE KICK The Outside Kick is used when the Takraw ball drops outside your shoulders and slightly behind you. It is similar to the Inside Kick in that your leg swings like a pendulum, but out and upward (rather than in and upward). Shift weight to ball of support foot as you lift kicking leg up away from body. Turn your ankle so that toes are pointing out (not down), which enables you to kick the ball up with the flat, outside surface of your foot. Avoid swinging or kicking your leg forward (only lift it upward). 3. FRONT FOOT KICK This kick is primarily used to save a low ropping ball in front of you. To propel the ball upwards most consistently, the front of your foot must be flicked up in a quick smooth motion as the ball is contacted (remaining loose at the ankle, not stiff). 4. THE KNEE BUMP The Knee Bump is usually used to deflect upwards a low angle pass or a fast serve to the mid-body. Lift your knee up very quickly, with the foot following underneath (not kicking out) . The ball is contacted at about waist level with the front of your thigh, just behind the knee, for maximum upward thrust and height. Contact with ball in mid-thigh area will serve he same purpose, but ball will not be thrust up as high. Note: both the Front Foot Kick and Knee Bump are used for added control when making a save or controlling a pass. They do not always provide consistent control. 5. THE HEADER The fifth basic hit is the Header, and it is used frequently in games to deflect upwards a high angle pass or fast serve to the upper body. With legs flexed at the knees, put the top of your forehead in front of the ball, lifting up your chin and spring up from the legs as the ball strikes the forehead so as to deflect it up high in your own court. General Helpful Hints: aIways be in a ready stance, with feet pointing ahead and shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent, weight low and slightly forward. – with the basic kicks/hits, usually you should face the direction t hat you want to direct the ball to as you contact it. – approach contact with the ball in a slow, easy and relaxed fashion, it is more important to first develop good timing (knowing when and how to contact the ball) than it is to kick the ball hard. – the support leg provides your balance so should maintain a low profile and be flexed at the knee as your other foot executes the kick. ambidexterity is key to being a more versatile player, when ball approaches your right side, kick it with your right foot – left side, left foot. FREE STYLE This is your chance to expand on your basic kicks and come up with some more challenging moves of your own. Here are a couple to get you started. FLYING CLIPPER Leap off the same foot that you'll use to kick the ball. Cross your kicking foot behind and under your other leg. Lift your kicking foot, turning your ankle and making contact with the ball with the flay surface on the inside of your foot. HAND LOOP This move can be don e with a number of kicks. Position our arms to form a loop. The idea is to have the ball first fall through the hand loop then kick it back upward through the loop. Different Games SOLO PLAY The object of play is to keep the takraw ball in the air as long as possible without using hands or arms, anything else goes! CIRCLE GAME The object of the traditional â€Å"Circle Game† is the same as â€Å"SoIo Play†, except with a group of players standing in a circle. This activity was played as far back as the 14th century in India, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar (Burma), the Philippines and Thailand using a similar ball that was woven out of a rattan material, available in abundance there. SEPAK TAKRAW – THE NET GAME â€Å"Sepak† is Malay for â€Å"kick† and â€Å"Takraw† is Thai for the â€Å"hand-woven ball† that is used. In 1945 enthusiasts added a court and net with the same dimensions as in doubles badminton, and a set of rules similar to volleyball (without using hands or arms) to form a fantastic spectator sport with world championship tournaments held in both Malaysia and Thailand. In western countries it has been mostly Laotian immigrants who have first introduced Takraw to others. Now ASEC INTERNATIONAL is also happy to help introduce, promote and organize this fun and exciting recreational activity/sport! PLAYER'S POSITIONS: 1. The serving team's forwards must remain in their quarter circles' while the back player must have only one foot in the ‘serving circle' until the ball is contacted by the servers foot. 2. The receiving teams players may stand anywhere in their side of the court, but usually the back player stands just in front of the serving circle with the forwards on either side of him. 3. Players are allowed to move freely on each half of the court once the ball is has been served. TO BEGIN PLAY: The game begins by one of the forwards tossing the takraw ball to the back player. The back player must then kick the ball, with the foot that is outside the serving circle, into the opponent's court in one try (usually with an extended version of the inside kick). The serve is still good if the ball hits the net as it goes into the other half of the court. SCORING: 1. Only the serving team can make a point. 2. A fault by the team possessing the ball constitutes a loss of serve'. 3. A set is won by scoring 21 points, unless the points are tied 20 -20, then the set shall be decided on a difference of two points, up to a ceiling of 25 points. 4. A match is won by winning two out of three sets. . If each team wins one set, the tie breaker set only goes to 15 points,unless the points are tied 14 – 14, then the set shall be decided on a difference of two points, up to a ceiling of 17 points. FAULTS: 1. The back player does not kick the ball over the net on the service toss. 2. The ball falls to the ground inside or outside of the court. 3. The ball is hit more th an three times in succession by one side. 4. The ball hits the net but does not go over it. 5. The ball hits the hand or arm of a player. 6. Any part of the body touches, crosses the plane, or goes under the net. . The ball rolls on the body or is stalled. Note: One player may hit the ball twice, or even three times, consecutively. The ball may be hit up to 6 feet outside court's perimeter. CONTROL: When receiving a serve, stay low and deflect the oncoming ball upwards (head and thigh shots are highly effective for this purpose). SETTING: Setting is a skill which is executed by propelling the ball high above the net to enable the same, or another, player to smash the ball into the opponent's court. Usually the player with the best ball control is setter. SPIKING: After the ball has been set, it can be spiked down into the opponent's court by the spiker's head or foot. This is the most effective and dramatic move in the sport. Usually one of the forward players is designated as spiker during the game so that no confusion will arise as to who will spike the ball. BLOCKING: A block is a defensive skill used mainly for the purpose of preventing a spiked ball,that is coming from above and close to the net, from flying into the defending side. A block is usually made by jumping and raising the side of one's foot and leg above the net, or by turning and jumping up with the back to the net. OFFICIALS: a. Member of Referees' Committee b. Referee c. Assist. Referee d. Reserve Referee e. Standby Referee f. Team's Manager g. Team's Coach h. Players i. Spectators Referees shall avoid getting themselves involved in dispute members of the public, the press, Sepak Takraw officials or players on matters pertaining to refereeing. An unpleasant incident encount ered must promptly be reported to Chairman Referee. Referees must at all times uphold the Laws of the Game, The Rules and Regulations. Referees must at times observe the 3Fs – Firm, Fair and Fit. The level of physical fitness must always be maintained to ensure consistency with the requirements of good refereeing. Referees must behave as professionals and conduct themselves in a manner that will bring honour to themselves and the country. Referees detailed to officiate in a sepak takraw tournament must report at the venue at least 30 minutes earlier for local games and 1 hour earlier for International Games. Official Referees must ensure that all referees stay behind until all games have ended before giving a short briefing and officially release the referees to go home. Official Referee is responsible to record down the names of