Polk Company Review Essay Example for Free

Polk Company Review Essay †¢ In this case, would it be better to use the variable or absorption costing method, and why? In this case, it would be better to use the absorption method because this method incorporates only the overhead that is allocated to the 80,000 units sold. The variable method counts fixed overhead as a period expense, meaning that the fixed overhead for this period is calculated on the basis of the 95,000 units produced, if the absorption method is used. The absorption method only calculates fixed overhead on the basis of the 80,000 units that were sold. This provides management with a more accurate picture of the profitability of the fishing lures. Thus, the absorption costing method is optimal. †¢ What are the benefits of the two methods? Under absorption costing system, the product cost consists of all variable as well as all fixed manufacturing costs.. But when variable costing system is used, the fixed cost (both manufacturing and non-manufacturing) is treated as a period cost and therefore is not included in the product cost. The ability to provide accurate information to management about product costs is the main benefit of the absorption method. The variable method is beneficial because it provides an output (net income) that is closer to the cash flow of the business. This is useful in particular for businesses that might be short on cash flow. Further, the variable costing method provides management with a clearer picture of the effect that fixed costs have on the total profitability of the company (AFM, 2012). †¢ Which method would lead to the best decision when a competitor is submitting a lower bid for your product? Absorption costing is particularly useful for firms that do not sell all of their manufactured products during the accounting period, as is the case with Polk. Under absorption costing, the cost of a good is not shown until the good has been sold (Johnston, 2013). This can be a disadvantage if a portion of the goods produced are ultimately not sold, as management would still have to know the cost of those goods.

Literary Review: Hedda Gabler Essays -- essays research papers

Title: Hedda Gabler Author: Henrik Ibsen Setting: Un-named city in Norway (probably Christiania - the Norwegian capital then) Time Period: 1890 Major Characters Hedda Gabler - (married name: Hedda Tesman) Daughter of an aristocratic general who spoiled her. She’s used to a life of luxury in which she gets anything she wants. She is bored with her life because there’s nothing new for her to see or experience. She marries George Tesman so that she won’t be an oddball in society. She’s nearly thirty and realizes that she’s not getting any younger or desirable. He’s the only one of her suitors who grovels for her hand in marriage, so she chooses him. She immediately sees that she will be able to manipulate him into giving her anything she wants. She puts up with the fact that he’s only interested in past civilizations and he doesn’t satisfy any of her needs. She wants the power to shape the lives of others, and her obvious ennui wrecks not only her life, but the lives of all who come in contact with her as well. George Tesman - very kind and intelligent man. He was raised by his aunts, Juliana and Rina. He remains devoted to them, even though Rina is an invalid. He does everything in his power to give Hedda the life she’s used to. He annoys not only characters in the story, but readers as well. After almost all his sentences he asks the question â€Å"Eh?† (or â€Å"What?† depending on the translation). He is a gentleman and serves Hedda as if he were her slave and not her husband. He even accepts financial support from his aunt Juliana so that he can provide the kind of life Hedda is used to, and to pay for the house he though she really wanted. He even depends on becoming the professor of history so that she’ll be proud of him and they’ll have more financial security. He doesn’t realize Hedda is manipulative, despises him, and doesn’t even want to have their child. He believes her lies that she burnt the manuscript for him as an act of love. Judge Brack - likes to gossip and be know everything going on in people’s private affairs. He has connections around the city and uses that to provide information to Tesman about his candidacy for professorship in history. He informs them of the competition from Eilert Lovborg for the professorship, and also of his death. Brack shares an intimate relationship with Hedda, and she confides in him about her boredom she has with he... ...straight ahead of her and comments, â€Å"So that pretty little fool has had her fingers in a man’s destiny.† Lovborg asks Hedda, â€Å"Was there no love in your friendship for me either? Not a spark--not a tinge of love in it?† In this he expresses that he truly felt love for her, and that is what gave her power over him. Hedda asks herself, â€Å"Oh, why does everything I touch become mean and ludicrous? It’s like a curse!† This comment emphasizes the fact that her ennui is affecting all of those around her. It has caused her to become nihilistic and wreak havoc on the lives of others for her own amusement. Hedda comments, â€Å"I think I have a natural talent for boring myself to death.† She realizes that much of her boredom is self-inflicted, just like when she told Judge Brack that â€Å"as you make your bed so you must lie†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Lovborg tells Hedda, â€Å"It wasn’t secret knowledge you wanted. You wanted life.† They were discussing her curiosity in the past about his sinful life. She replies, â€Å"I want to have the power to shape a human being’s destiny.† Hedda says, â€Å"Yes, there’s something in [the house] of the odor of death†¦Oh, my dear Judge--you can’t imagine how horribly I’m going to bore myself here.†

Factors Affecting Hidden Curriculum Essay

The concept of hidden curriculum stems from the ideas of John Dewey (1859-1952), notably his concept of â€Å"collateral learning† (Combleth, 1984). The hidden curriculum comprises values, modes of behavior, beliefs, and skills that students learn at school but which are not taught through official channels (Combleth, 1984; Myles, 2001). Researchers and theorists have identified both positive and negative effects of hidden curriculum, ranging from more success in the working world due to competitive environments at school (Wren, 1999), to reinforcing the socioeconomic status into which the students were born (Anyon, 1980), to undermining intellectual development (Combleth, 1984). Because these effects are so pronounced, attention must be paid to recognizing those elements of the learning environment which impact hidden curriculum. This paper examines eight of these factors: teacher expectations, definitions of acceptable classroom behavior, teacher questioning techniques, school culture, segmentation of the school day, tracking, curricular inconsistencies, and gender bias. Teachers’ expectations of their students, in terms of critical thinking skills, undoubtedly play a role in hidden curriculum. Anyon (1980) examined five fifth grade classes in schools of varying demographics. She found that, in schools comprised of students from working-class families, teachers expected nothing more than rote memorization of facts. In schools serving students from middle-class families, teachers expected students to be able to re-explain concepts in their own words. Teachers working with students from upper-class families, however, emphasized critical thinking. Anyon (1984) concluded her study by remarking that the different expectations in these schools reinforce the expectations of the social class into which these children were born. Different teachers have different rules regarding what constitutes acceptable classroom behavior, and these guidelines affect hidden curriculum. In her study, Anyon (1984) also considered classroom behavior. She found that students from upper-class schools were generally allowed to make their own decisions about how best to accomplish their work: they could leave the room when they needed to, they were allowed to get any supplies they needed for themselves, and they were encouraged to ask questions. Through their guidelines for classroom behavior, teachers in these schools emphasized that students were in charge of their own destiny and must decide for themselves their best course of action (Anyon, 1984). One of the negative consequences of the hidden curriculum noted by Wren (1999) and Combleth (1984) is that students often blindly accept what is being taught in the official curriculum. Some students, then, are not learning how to question what is being taught, how to look for inconsistencies in theories, and how to think for themselves. This consequence can result from how teachers ask questions. Questions that require one-word answers would tend to place value on rote memorization of facts and the acceptance of the teacher and textbook as â€Å"authority. † Questions that require short answers responses or questions framed as â€Å"why do you think†¦Ã¢â‚¬  would encourage students to think for themselves and engage with the material in a meaningful way. Wren (1999) remarked that school culture has a powerful influence on the hidden curriculum. For the purposes of his study, he defined culture as the values and symbols that have an effect on students’ and educators’ perceptions of the school environment (p. 593). This culture is manifest in the traditions and rituals of the school that are passed down from generation to generation: pep rallies, graduation ceremonies, the school motto, school policies, yearbooks, school newspapers, and faculty handbooks, to name but a few. Wren did not examine the effect of school culture on hidden curriculum; rather, he encouraged educators to take note of the presence, or absence, of traditions in their own school and encouraged them to appraise the meanings they imparted on the school community. Loporchio (2007) provided an interesting perspective on the yearbook process in particular, mentioning many elements that affect hidden curriculum: the socialization process between teachers and students outside of the classroom, representations of the entire student body or just a select few individuals, and extracurricular activities and their value. Combleth (1984) mentioned the segmentation of the school day – with supposedly separate subjects being assigned fixed time periods – as one of the factors affecting hidden curriculum. Though Combleth did not expand on this comment, one could argue that separating subjects as they are traditionally done leads to a compartmentalization of knowledge. Skills and ideas learned in one class are not necessarily used in another. Though this manner of scheduling is convenient, students are not encouraged to draw links between what they learn in different classes, for example links between historical events and trends in literature. In his book devoted to the subject of tracking and the hidden curriculum, Rosenbaum (1976) argued that tracking is the element that most strongly affects hidden curriculum. Based on their placement in various tracks, students create friends, become involved in extracurricular activities, participate in different types of field trips, and are perceived differently by staff and students. In the same vein, Combleth (1984) claimed that schools, even though purporting to provide equal opportunity for all students, actually convey the message that some students are more equal than others through their tracking procedures. Curricular inconsistencies can also contribute to hidden curriculum. Combleth (1984) gave an example of a hypothetical text book that highlights freedom of speech as a defining characteristic of political democracy and yet ignores or disparages activities of modern dissenters (p. 30). This text book sends conflicting messages to the students: Is freedom of speech and the resultant ability to take issue with prevailing hegemonies a value to be lauded or to be denigrated? Chapman (n. d. ) provided many examples of behaviors and objects that reveal gender bias in education: dividing students by gender; praising girls for being neat and quiet; praising boys for thinking independently; regarding assertive behavior from girls as disruptive; using textbooks with gender bias, and interacting with students differently based on their gender, to name but a few. In all of these instances, teachers and administrators send the message that girls and boys are treated differently, that certain behaviors are not appropriate for girls (or boys), and that girls are unequal to boys. The socialization process is thereby reinforcing gender stereotypes that society at large has striven to eliminate. These eight factors affecting hidden curriculum touch on different elements of the educational system ranging from classroom experiences and interactions between students and teachers to how administrators set up school scheduling and policy. Teachers and administrators must examine the hidden curriculum particular to their school. Are students being encouraged to live up to their potential? Are societal biases related to gender and socioeconomic status being questioned or reinforced? Are students being prepared for the work environments of their future?

Langston Hughes: Harlem a Dream Deferred Essay

A dream cast aside can rankle a person’s will in the deepest of ways. It tends to permeate their every thought and becomes an unshakable burden. In the poem â€Å"Harlem (A Dream Deferred)† by Langston Hughes, the language used describes how a suspended goal can frustratingly linger. The writer first poses a question: â€Å"What happens to a dream deferred?† He then compares a postponed dream to a dried up raisin or a festering sore, giving a reader the idea of how treacherous it can be to put off one’s goals. What only can make it worse is when we have little control over our fate; when the determination of whether or not our goals are achievable is decided by someone else as was done with the African American population in the United States throughout the early 20th century.†¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¨Life for the black population of America throughout the early 1900s was less than ideal. While they’d been free from slavery for nearly 100 years, they remained i n segregated schools and were restricted to menial work nonetheless. Between 1920 and 1930, a movement was followed by African Americans across the United States known as the Harlem Renaissance (see Great Days In Harlem). The movement aimed to establish an identity for blacks in America and gave many hope that they might be seen equal to their white counterparts. The movement lost momentum, but its ideals remained in the hearts of the people; their dreams of equality left behind to fester in the backs of their minds. So what happens when a dream such as this is deferred? If it is a true dream, reflecting our hearts desire, it cannot be forgotten easily. Hughes, an African American in the Harlem Renaissance era, writes a poem full of bitter possibilities reflecting his frustration.†¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¨Evidently, Hughes felt frustrated when he wrote this poem in 1951. It was 30 years after the start of the renaissance movement, and it seemed to him that the black identity had made no steps toward equality. At this point in time, the African Americans were feeling neglected; their goals cast aside and their lives seeming more like a nightmare than a dream. But what happens to a dream deferred? Hughes offers many responses to this question, all equally unpleasant. In using similes, the writer creates imagery allowing a reader to imagine a festering sore or a piece of rotten meat and understand how toxic a postponed dream can be for a person.†¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¨Equally unpleasant is allowing oneself to â€Å"sugar over†, to simply nod ones head and accept the crushing of ones dreams as reality. To be sweet to those who’ve taken away every ounce of one’s dignity can be just as irksome. Then the idea that was once a dream will linger evermore, weighing a person down, sagging like a heavy load. In the final statement of the poem, the writer leaves it as a separate sort of thought, â€Å"Or does it explode?† This final question seems more like a warning, an indication of the author being at wit’s end. A dream deferred can linger so long that a person can no longer bear the load and they may retaliate. In this instance, the writer as well as his fellow African Americans were beyond frustrated with the exhaustion of carrying the load of their unfulfilled dreams. Harlem’s ideals had been forgotten.†¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¨From the language used to the thoughtful structure, â€Å"Harlem (A Dream Deferred)† speaks to a reader. The writer creates strong imagery that can be connected to the situation he’s describing. A dream deferred really takes its toll on a person, or as proved by the context surrounding the poem, a group of people. To have ones goals setback is hard enough, but having them dismissed by another simply makes it linger and inflame. We’re brought back to the question of what happens to a dream deferred? As suggested it can rot like meat and dry up like a raisin but eventually we crack under the pressure. There’s only so much a person can take; in the end our deferred dreams will cause us to explode.

Maam and Regional Colonialism

Maam and Regional Colonialism Maam and Regional Colonialism Maam and Regional Colonialism By Maeve Maddox Where I come from, children are taught that responding to grownups with a mere yes or no is impolite. Yeah is unforgivably rude. As a child I was taught to say yes, sir, no, maam and when I grew up, I continued to say it. When I lived in England, women whom Id addressed as maam would sometimes smile and tell me that over there maam was reserved for the queen. A recent segment on National Public Radio (Sept. 8, 2010) has alerted me to the fact that in some regions of the U.S., women perceive maamas a put-down. NY Times reporter Natalie Angier apparently wants the honorific wiped out of American speech altogether. This attack on the use of maam is an example of what I call regional colonialism. In every country, the people who live in the major population centers ridicule the speech and manners of those who live in other parts of the same country. Parisians laugh at French southern accents just as much as New Yorkers make fun of southern American speakers. Now that everyone in the country consumes the same news and entertainment media, the continued existence of regional vocabulary and pronunciation is at the mercy of the speakers and writers who control the media. An example of the media driving out previous southern terminology is that of the word soda to meansoft drink. When I was young, a soda was an ice cream treat. The first time I heard the word soda used to mean cold drink from the vending machine was in the mouth of a character on Law Order. Now all grocery stores, North and South, have soda aisles where one finds Coke, Dr. Pepper, RC, and other carbonated beverages. (I did notice a fairly recent sign in a local supermarket that listed soft drinks on the same sign as sodas.) Angier wrote an article, The Politics of Polite, in which she lambastes the use of maam. She acknowledges that maam usage varies by region. She even quotes a Georgetown professor: Southerners and Midwesterners will maam with greater frequency than do the residents on the East and West Coasts but having made this obligatory nod to regional usage, she goes full steam ahead to argue that nobody should maam anybody. In theory, ma’am is a courtesy term, meant to convey respect and graciousness lightly salted with deference. Yet much evidence suggests that when it comes to fomenting a sense of good will ma’am fails even more spectacularly than â€Å"Have a nice day.† The evidence Angier presents consists of the results of a completely unscientific poll of her own, and the following examples from the media: Barbara Boxer to Brigadier General Michael Walsh of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who addressed her as maam. She told the general that she preferred to be called senator: â€Å"I worked so hard to get that title, so I’d appreciate it, Helen Mirren, playing Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison on the crime series Prime Suspect: â€Å"Listen, I like to be called governor or the boss. I don’t like ma’am. I’m not the bloody queen, so take your pick.† Kate Mulgrew as Capt. Kathryn Janeway to a young male ensign: â€Å"ma’am is acceptable in a crunch, but I prefer captain.† In each of these examples, the context is a that of a woman asserting her right to a title previously reserved for men. If I were in a gathering in which all the male academics were being called Dr. and someone addressed me as Ms., Id be annoyed too. Angiers fourth example from the media of a character who rejects the use of maam is from a television series called Nurse Jackie: when a policeman struggling to help subdue a disturbed patient [makes] the mistake of referring to Edie Falco’s eponymous character as â€Å"ma’am,† Nurse Jackie [shoots] back, â€Å"So help me God, do not call me ma’am - uncuff him!† According to reviews, Nurse Jackie is an irascible drug-addicted curmudgeon who uses language as a cudgel. I wouldnt read too much into her objection to maam. I have no illusions as to what the outcome of the assault on maam will be if the East Coast and West Coast media take it up as a cause. A pleasant and civilized idiom native to my region will give way to a more abrupt manner of address that is preferred by those who control the national media. Meanwhile, Ill just continue to say Yes maam to my four-and-a-half-year-old granddaughter so that shell acquire the habit. She can deal with regional colonialism when the time comes. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Coordinating vs. Subordinating Conjunctions50 Diminutive Suffixes (and a Cute Little Prefix)Confusion of Subjective and Objective Pronouns

Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 6

Case Study Example ight or poor rescheduling of the flight, it is a bit hard to communicate the change he will be able to state it clearly and can be seen through his emotions and explanation of the whole problem. In addition, some customers even become very rude and try to express their feelings through throwing tantrums and abuse to the customer service provider leading to serious emotional balance to the customer (Goleman, 2009, p. 23). The solving of the problem of the customers may involve the use of surface acting. For instance, on the day that I encountered the rude customer, I had family issues that were bogging me down, but I had to pretend everything was alright. In fact, the use of surface acting has helped me shape my professional approach to issues. The development of surface acting techniques has helped hide emotional challenges in the workplace. As a customer care service personnel, it is vital to ensure that personal emotions does not affect the customer attitude. In the case of delayed flights, customers vent their anger on you instead of the management. As a customer care executive, you act as the manager and try to ensure that there is positive public image despite the differences brought about by the delayed service. In my case, the challenge was to cool down two clients who insisted on travelling the same day while there were no flights available for the day (Stanley, 2009, p. 23). They could not understand the challenge faced and were not willing to listen to reason and could not tone down their argument and emotions. It was hell trying to cool them and get them to reason and come down to understanding. At one point, they almost pushed me over the cliff of emotions, but I was composed and tried not to reflect the anger in my heart. Surface acting came to my rescue in the case and enabled self-control to rule. In addition, it was very difficult to communicate in an atmosphere where tempers were flaring and logics were thrown to the dogs. In dealing with

Reflection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 28

Reflection - Essay Example One is significantly disturbed by the facts that were shown in the video regarding increasing patterns of childhood obesity. The information which discloses that at early stages, there are still remedial strategies which could avert the greater tendencies for weight gain. The recommendation to avoid obesity really starts with lifestyle change. This means that there are collaborative measures that must be instituted to avoid and prevent childhood obesity: the observance and adherence to balanced and healthy diet; the need to emphasize the value of physical activity and regular exercise; as well as the change in personal outlook and perspectives (focus on engaging in outdoor activities, rather than over indulgence in watching television or playing in personal computers). Society has a role to play in terms of changing focus of advertisements to children, especially for food and products which are healthy and of natural