Reasons for Imperialism essays

Reasons for Imperialism essays Major European powers had for centuries engaged in colonialism however the phenomenon of the period 1870-1914 was expansion in a form never before witnessed. Competitive industrial nations, Great Britain first and foremost set out on a race to divide the world, at least the parts unoccupied namely Africa and Asia between them. In the three decades after 1870 European nations divided up the remainder of the world; by 1900 Europe controlled almost all of Africa and Southeast Asia. Britain had taken over 345 million non-Britons in Africa, India and the Pacific region, France had raised its flag over 56 million people outside Europe, the Netherlands controlled 35 million and Germany almost 15 million. So what was the actual cause of this unprecedented expansion There are several reasons why the European nations competed with each other for colonies but a prime factor was economic motivation. The colonising country could control important markets for its exports and deny these markets to its competitors. Colonies were also important sources of raw materials providing in particular rubber, as well as being the source of more exotic goods for the affluent European market and as opportunities for investment. A country often also increased its wealth by conquering another civilisation and taking its riches or exploiting the mineral wealth of another land. The discovery of gold and diamonds in Africa greatly increased European interest in the continent. Industrialised countries often produced more manufactured goods than their people needed or could afford to buy. Colonies served as markets for these unsold products; Africa and to a lesser extent Asia were seen as a market for industrialised goods produced in Europe. Production costs abroad were lower than at home. The Europeans began to build plantations where they grew peanuts, palm oil, cocoa and rubber. The Congo produced copper and tin. As industrialis...

Things a Successful School Principal Does Differently

Things a Successful School Principal Does Differently Being a principal has its challenges. It is not an easy profession. It is a high-stress job that most people are not equipped to handle. A principal’s job description is broad. They have their hands in virtually everything related to students, teachers, and parents. They are the chief decision-maker in the building. A successful school principal does things differently. As with any other profession, there are those principals who excel at what they do and those who lack the skills necessary to be successful. Most principals are in the middle of that range. The best principals have a particular mindset and a leadership philosophy that allows them to be successful. They utilize a combination of strategies that make themselves and others around them better thus allowing them to be successful. Surround Themselves with Good Teachers Hiring good teachers makes a principal’s job easier in virtually every aspect. Good teachers are solid disciplinarians, they communicate well with parents, and they provide their students with a quality education. Each of these things makes a principal’s job easier. As a principal, you want a building full of teachers that you know are doing their job. You want teachers that are 100% committed to being effective teachers in every aspect. You want teachers who not only do their job well but are willing to go above and beyond the core requirements to ensure that every student is successful. Simply put, surrounding yourself with good teachers makes you look better, makes your job easier, and allows you to manage other aspects of your job. Lead by Example As a principal, you are the leader of the building. Every person in the building is watching how you go about your daily business. Build a reputation for being the hardest worker in your building. You should almost always be the first one to arrive and the last one to leave. It is essential that others know how much you love your job. Keep a smile on your face, maintain a positive attitude, and handle adversity with grit and perseverance. Always maintain professionalism. Be respectful to everyone and embrace differences. Be the model for fundamental qualities such as organization, efficiency, and communication. Think Outside the Box Never put limitations on yourself and your teachers. Be resourceful and find creative ways to meet needs when issues arise. Do not be afraid to think outside the box. Encourage your teachers to do the same. Successful school principals are elite problem solvers. Answers do not always come easy.  You have to utilize the resources creatively you have or figure out ways to get new resources to meet your needs. A terrific problem solver never dismisses another person’s idea or suggestion. Instead, they seek out and value input from others cooperatively creating solutions to problems. Work With People As a principal, you have to learn to work with all different types of people. Each person has their own personality, and you must learn to work effectively with each type. The best principals are able to read people well, figure out what motivates them, and strategically plant seeds that will eventually blossom into success. Principals must work with every stakeholder in the community. They should be skilled listeners who value feedback and use it to make recognizable changes. Principals should be on the front lines, working with the stakeholders to improve both their community and school. Delegate Appropriately Being a principal can be overwhelming. This is often amplified as principals by nature are typically control freaks. They have high expectations on how things should be done making it difficult to let others take the lead role. Successful principals are able to get past this because they realize there is value in delegating. First of all, it shifts the burden of responsibility from you, freeing you up to work on other projects. Next, you can strategically make individuals responsible for projects that you know fit their strengths and will help build their confidence. Finally, delegating reduces your overall workload, which in turn keeps your stress level at a minimum. Create and Enforce Proactive Policies Every principal should be an adept policy writer. Each school is different and has their own unique needs in terms of policy. Policy works best when it is written and enforced in such a way that very few want to take the chance to receive the attached consequences. Most principals will spend a large part of their day dealing with student discipline. Policy should be seen as a deterrent to distractions that interrupt learning. Successful principals are proactive in their approach to policy writing and student discipline. They recognize potential problems and address them before they become a significant issue. Look for Long-Term Solutions to Problems A quick fix is seldom the right solution. Long-term solutions require more time and effort in the beginning. However, they typically save you time in the long run, because you won’t have to deal with it as much in the future. Successful principals think two to three steps ahead. They address the little picture by fixing the large picture. They look beyond the specific circumstance to get to the cause of the problem.  They understand that taking care of the core problem may head off several smaller issues down the road, potentially saving both time and money. Become an Information Hub Principals have to experts in many different areas including content and policy. Successful principals are a wealth of information. They stay up-to-date on the latest educational research, technology, and trends. Principals should at least have a working knowledge of the content being taught in each grade for which they are responsible. They follow educational policy at both the state and locals areas. They keep their teachers informed and are able to offer tips and strategies concerning best classroom practices. Teachers respect principals who understand the content they are teaching. They appreciate when their principal offers well thought out, applicable solutions to problems they may be having in the classroom. Maintain Accessibility As a principal, it is easy to get so busy that you shut your office door to try and get a few things done. This is perfectly acceptable as long as it isn’t done a regular basis. Principals must be accessible to all stakeholders including teachers, staff members, parents, and especially students. Every principal should have an open door policy. Successful principals understand that building and maintaining healthy relationships with everyone you work with is a key component to having an outstanding school. Being in high demand comes with the job. Everyone will come to you when they need something or when there is a problem. Always make yourself available, be a good listener, and most importantly follow through on a solution. Students are the First Priority Successful principals keep students as their number one priority. They never deviate from that path. All expectations and actions are directed to better students both individually and as a whole. Student safety, health, and academic growth are our most fundamental duties. Every decision that is made has to take the impact it will make on a student or group of students into account. We are there to nurture, counsel, discipline, and educate each and every student. As a principal, you must never lose sight of the fact that students should always be our focal point.

In Ernest Hemingway's Hills Like White Elephants Essay

In Ernest Hemingway's Hills Like White Elephants - Essay Example The choice of parenthood, while serious and permanent, is NOT the same thing. These two choices are not comparable for a number of reasons, no matter how much anti-abortionists might like to claim that they are. First of all, "embryonic" stem cells don't commonly actually come from conceived embryos. The cells used for research are "typically done by using frozen embryos left over from in-vitro fertilization" (Quindlen). This fact negates the anti-abortionist "life-begins-at-conception" claim (Quindlen). Conception has not taken place so, even an anti-abortionist would have t admit that no life is being lost. In fact, there was no life to begin with. The only lives that are being lost are the critically and/or terminally ill who might benefit from stem cells. If abortion, according to those who oppose it "stops a beating heart," then the embryos used for stem cell research do not apply. As Quindlen says, "There is no heart to stop in this pre-implantation embryo." Simply put, you cannot stop something that is not present to begin with. That part of the body hasn't even developed yet because it is not a body. These frozen embryos, if not used for research, would likely be disposed of. At this stage, however, "they are the earliest undifferentiated collection of cells made by the joining of the egg and sperm" (Quindlen). Th

Capital Investment Process Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Capital Investment Process - Essay Example Therefore, it was always implied that despite techniques used to make the future more clear, capital investment decision requires a manager to use intuition. This study of a Boston Mayflower - a residential social landlord with about 5,000 houses - indicates that more accent must be put on qualitative appraisal techniques. The essay begins with building a theoretical base to get the reader familiar with some basic concepts of capital investment appraisal theory. The second part of the essay is devoted to a step-by-step analysis of the investment project of Boston Mayflower. This part of the essay is devoted to the description of methods used in the analysis of capital investment. Developed theoretical frameworks include several different techniques of analysis varying mainly in measures of investments. In other words, it is clear that the ultimate goal of every investment is maximisation of owner's wealth; however specific characteristics of every project oblige management to choose carefully and with correspondence to the most vital needs of the business. The most typical example is the choice between long-term investment project with high return value and short-term project but with lesser return. Although the first development plan will lead to better profits in the end, sometimes a company chooses the second one. That means the time factor is more important for owners than greater profits in the illustrated case. Generally, capital investment decisions are always connected to the following list of specific features: a significant outlay of cash; long-term involvement with greater risks and uncertainty because forecasts of the future are less reliable; irreversibility of some projects due to their specialised nature, for example, plant which having been bought with a specific project in mind may have little or no scrap value; a significant time lag between commitment of resources and the receipt of benefits; management's ability is often stretched with some projects demanding an awareness of all relevant diverse factors; limited resources require priorities on capital expenditure; project completion time requires adequate continuous control information as costs can be exceeded by a significant amount. (McGrath, 1998) These characteristics make the managerial decision even more important, as it must be connected with the strategy of a company. Simply, a manager should choose not the most profit-making project, but the most suitable one for the business strategy of his/her company. This statement leads to a careful choice of the evaluation technique used to determine, which investment plan complements best the chosen strategy. There several factors, which should be taken into consideration during evaluation of investment opportunities: initial cost of the project; phasing of the expenditure; estimated life of the investment; amount and timing of the

Aviation Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Aviation - Case Study Example Most people avoid the airport if they have urgent business. The reason for these delays has been blamed on the capacity of the airport visa vie the growing demand. Possible revenue has been lost by the airport due to the delay. The problem has been identified and, therefore, measures to curb the problem should be developed. The airport has a potential market and, therefore, investment for redesigning of the terminal and ground access (runway) will be recouped faster. Expansion of the terminal will enhance the speed of security check and other services requisite for the passenger. Ground access give the chance for planes to land and take-off, and this delays plane from landing and departing, extra runways should be constructed for take-off and landing off planes. If the two elements are taken into account ALICE Spring Airport will be more efficient and more passengers will be lured into the airport. Passengers are always time conscious and will choose an airport where processes will be

Staff Turnover in Hong Kong's Hospitality Industry Essay

Staff Turnover in Hong Kong's Hospitality Industry - Essay Example The phenomenon of employee turnover is considered as one of the natural outcomes of conduct of business in modern organizations. Thus it is said that achieving zero percent turnover is not practical and should not even be attempted in today’s rapidly changing employment environment (Branham, 2000). It is also said that some turn over may be desirable as it would enable a shake out amongst the employees avoiding bunching up of a large number with similar pay scales, salaries and capabilities making a pyramid (Branham, 2000). To retain all such employees will be extremely expensive for the organization. New employees are also said to bring in fresh ideas, approaches, abilities, attitudes and also prevent the organization from remaining stagnant (Branham, 2000). 2.3 Brief introduction of Hong KongHong Kong is said to be a very vibrant metropolis which has a life and dynamism of its own making it one of the unique cities in the World. It has a typical Chinese culture which has rem ained unaffected by British influence over the years (Hong Kong, 2006). It offers a mix of the modern and the ancient, the Oriental and the Western and therein lies its charm. At the same time the employment environment in Hong Kong follows a very flexible tendency. Thus employees in Hong Kong are not inhibited by generally accepted norms of loyalty and life long service which is characterized by some Eastern management cultures such as the Japanese (Hong Kong, 2006).

Time and Travel in The Dispossessed and Kindred Term Paper

Time and Travel in The Dispossessed and Kindred - Term Paper Example Butler would agree with Asimov; when asked to label her novel, she has called it â€Å"a grim fantasy.† How time travel occurs in Kindred is never explained; the novel’s protagonist Dana simply feels dizzy from time to time and travels back in time, to pre-Civil War America. It is a mystery to her and to her husband, but they try to deal with the situation they have found themselves in, anyway. The only way she is able to return back to her own time is to feel threatened and in danger of dying. She even tries slitting her wrists in order to return to her own time. Each time she travels back in time, her stay on the plantation becomes longer—at first only a few minutes, and then several days and months. She disappears from the present as she travels, but at first for a few seconds and then for several hours. It seems as if Dana time travels to the past every time Rufus is in some kind of mortal danger. The first time she travels, he is drowning; the second time, s he saves him from dying in a fire. She discovers that the reason he â€Å"calls† her to the plantation is that he is her ancestor and it is her duty to save him so that she is preserved in the future. At the end of the book, however, she ends up killing him and experiences horrible consequences as a result—the mangling of her arm when she returns to the present. Perhaps the real reason she has to time travel is because it is Rufus’ destiny to die, and there is nothing she can do to prevent it. Although Butler was already established as a successful science fiction writer, one of the few African Americans in a white male-dominated field, the time travel in Kindred, is incidental. It is simply something she uses to illustrate her thesis about the horrors of slavery. When the novel is shelved in libraries or bookstores, even though Butler is well known as a writer of science fiction, it tends to be placed with African American literature because that creates the sa me feelings as the works of other female African American writers. Like all science fiction, though, Kindred is speculative: What would happen if a modern person got the opportunity to experience slavery first-hand? Time travel is used as a literary device to pursue her thesis, and to investigate how a sympathetic modern character would react in the setting of slavery. An example is Dana’s reaction to seeing a slave being whipped: I shut my eyes and tensed my muscles against an urge to vomit. I had seen people beaten on television and in the movies. I had seen the too-red blood substitute streaked across their backs and heard their well-rehearsed screams. But I hadn’t laid nearby and smelled their sweat or heard them pleading and praying, shamed before their families and themselves (Butler 36). Even though it definitely science fiction/fantasy, Kindred has the feel and structure of a slave narrative. Dana, and Butler’s audience along with her, travels to the pas t so that they can experience it and understand the impact of history, and more specifically, of slavery. Dana travels from freedom to enslavement, like her ancestors did when they were taken from Africa and enslaved in America, never to return. She goes through the same horror as her slave ancestors, and the time travel she experiences is just as confusing as the voyage they experienced. Dana attempts to explain this to her white husband, after reacting to him with fear after she returns: â€Å"