Q.1 Read an article on current affairs and critically analyze that how social, political and economical aspects of that topic been considered?
To be effective a PEST(ELI) needs to be undertaken on a regular basis. Organisations that do analyses regularly and systematically often spot trends before others thus providing competitive advantage.
Recent political and economic developments and associated changes in the practice and delivery of health and social care have led managers and professionals to recognise the importance and links between problem solving and decision-making skills. In particular, assessing the impact of political, economic, socio-cultural, environmental and other external influences upon health care policy, proposals and organizational programmes is becoming a recognisable stage of health service strategic development and planning mechanisms. Undertaking this form of strategic analysis therefore is to diagnose the key issues that the organisation needs to address.
This form of analysis can be undertaken by reviewing the organisational (external) environment using the PEST-analysis (sometimes known as STEP-analysis), extended to the PESTELI checklist described below. PESTELI Analysis is a useful tool for understanding the “big picture” of the environment in which you are operating, and the opportunities and threats that lie within it. By understanding your environment, you can take advantage of the opportunities and minimise the threats.The term PEST has been used regularly in the last 20 years and its true history is difficult to establish. The earliest known reference to tools and techniques for ‘scanning the business environment’ is by Francis J. Aguilar who discusses ‘ETPS’ - a mnemonic for the four sectors of his taxonomy of the environment: Economic, Technical, Political, and Social. Over the years this has become known as PEST with the additional letters are: Ecological factors, Legislative requirements, and Industry analysis.
PESTELI is known as a ‘trends analysis’. The external environment of an organisation, partnership, community etc. can be assessed by breaking it down into what is happening at Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental, Legal and Industry levels. The same checklist can also be applied inside an organisation.
Initially the acronym PEST was devised, which stands for:
Political factors - both big and small 'p' political forces and influences that may affect the performance of, or the options open to the organisation
Economic influences - the nature of the competition faced by the organisation or its services, and financial resources available within the economy
Sociological trends - demographic changes, trends in the way people live, work, and think
Technological innovations - new approaches to doing new and old things, and tackling new and old problems; these do not necessarily involve technical equipment - they can be novel ways of thinking or of organising
The expanded PESTELI, also includes:
Ecological factors - definition of the wider ecological system of which the organisation is a part and consideration of how the organisation interacts with it
Legislative requirements - originally included under 'political', relevant legislation now requires a heading of its own
Industry analysis - a review of the attractiveness of the industry of which the organisation forms a part.
To be useful as an analysis tool, these environmental factors have to be linked to the organisation's mission: which are helpful or which make it more difficult to accomplish that mission.
Why undertake a PEST(ELI) Analysis
Advantages and disadvantages of using a PEST(ELI) analysis
Advantages
• Simple framework
• Facilitates an understanding of the wider business environment
• Encourages the development of external and strategic thinking
• Can enable an organisation to anticipate future business threats and take action to avoid or minimise their impact
• Can enable an organisation to spot business opportunities and exploit them fully
• By taking advantage of change, you are much more likely to be successful than if your activities oppose it
• Avoids taking action that is doomed to failure from the outset, for reasons beyond your control.
Disadvantages
• Some users over simplify the amount of data used for decisions – it is easy to use scant data
• To be effective this process needs to be undertaken on a regular basis
• The best reviews require different people being involved each having a different perspective
• Access to quality external data sources, this can be time consuming and costly
• The pace of change makes it increasingly difficult to anticipate developments that may affect an organisation in the future
• The risk of capturing too much data is that it may make it difficult to see the wood for the trees and lead to ‘paralysis by analysis’
• The data used in the analysis may be based on assumptions that subsequently prove to be unfounded.
Who should undertake the analysis
Decision-making is more natural to certain personalities, so these people should focus more on improving the quality of their decisions. People that are less natural decision-makers are often able to make quality assessments, but then they need to be more decisive in acting upon the assessments made. PESTELI is almost entirely based on external factors, so ensure at least some members of each team have knowledge of, or are able to consider, the PESTELI factors if you intend using this exercise. PESTELI is a good exercise for marketing people, and is good for encouraging a business development, market orientated outlook among all staff. If you want to use PESTELI with staff who are not naturally externally focused you can have them do some research and preparation in advance of the exercise.
Completing a PESTELI analysis can be a simple or complex process. It all depends how thorough you need to be. It is a good subject for workshop sessions, as undertaking this activity with only one perspective can be time consuming and miss critical factors.
What areas of PESTELI are best to use
For most situations the original PEST analysis model arguably covers all of the 'additional' factors within the original four main sections. For example, Ecological or Environmental factors can be positioned under any or all of the four main PEST headings, depending on their effect. Legislative factors would normally be covered under the Political heading since they will generally be politically motivated. Demographics usually are an aspect of the larger Social issue. Industry Analysis is effectively covered under the Economic heading. Ethical considerations would typically be included in the Social and/or Political areas, depending on the perspective and the effect. Thus we can often see these 'additional' factors as 'sub-items' or perspectives within the four main sections. Examples of these have been added to Table 1.
Keeping to four fundamental perspectives also imposes a discipline of considering strategic context and effect. Many of these potential 'additional' factors (ethical, legislative, environmental for example) will commonly be contributory causes which act on one or some of the main four headings, rather than be big strategic factors in their own right.
Q.2 In your point of view how does social exclusion/inclusion affect the education of a child?
Social exclusion in the school environment is increasingly being recognised as a form of relational aggression or bullying, in which a child is exposed to harm through the manipulation of their social relationships and status.
Social exclusion can take many forms, with children reporting a range of experiences from being deliberately excluded from a peer group to having rumours spread about them, being called names and being purposefully embarrassed. In any sense, social exclusion fundamentally entails a lack of connectedness and participation from a peer group. Australian research suggests that approximately 1 in 6 children report experiences of social exclusion, however, this may under-represent true prevalence rates given the difficulties in measuring social exclusion which is often undertaken in covert and hidden ways.
Who does social exclustion affect?
While belonging and connectedness to peers is important at any age, it is particularly relevant in adolescence. Research suggests that adolescents are particularly sensitive to peer rejection and as a group, may experience the most significant mental health effects such as depression and anxiety in response peer rejection. Adolescence is typically a time of increased independence from parents and family and increased dependence on their peer group. Identities are developed in relation to peer groups and peer group differences can become highly salient. The difficulty for adolescents is that ingroup and outgroup rules are fluid and as such, maintaining peer relationships can be fraught with complication.
Studies on the neurological profile of children suggest that their brain areas for emotion become more activated in response to peer rejection with age, peaking in adolescence. In contrast, adolescents show significantly less activation in the brain regions which govern emotional regulation such as the Ventrolateral Prefrontal Cortex in response to peer rejection in comparison with younger children. This unique neurological profile for adolescents suggests that social exclusion at this age may be particularly distressing and that they may have significant difficulty in managing their distress.
Effects of social exclusion
Research suggests that the physical, emotional and mental health of children exposed to social exclusion can be compromised. For example, lower immune function, reduced sleep quality, reduced ability to calm oneself in times of distress, reduced self esteem, feelings of anxiety, depression and aggression have all been observed in children who have been excluded from a peer group.
So what can we do about social exclusion?
Children and adults all have a core need to be loved and valued within secure and lasting positive relationships. Helping children develop and maintain these secure relationships both with their family, peers and wider social group is an important part of their development. Research is telling us that children become aware of social rejection from a young age and can reason as to why it is wrong to exclude others from preadolescence. Thus talking with your child from a young age about the inclusion of others, feelings that occur when exclusion is encountered and strategies to manage social exclusion is important. Some helpful tips are:
For the excluded child:
Be open, available and calm when your child needs to talk with you. Children often worry about upsetting or worrying their parents, so it is important to remain calm and engaged with your child.
Be responsive to your child. Affirm to them that they have the right to be safe and feel secure and that you will help them by talking with the school and providing a safe haven at home. For older children, listen to the action that they would like you to take and negotiate with them when it would be appropriate for you to talk with the school, for example, if they are still being excluded at the end of the week or if things escalate.
Be affirming. Tell and show your child that they are unconditionally loved and valued as a person. Enlist the support of family friends to share positive messages about your child and engage in their gifts, talents and interests. Build a circle of security around your child.
Make your home a safe haven. Minimise the risk of online social exclusion and bullying by monitoring technology use and using privacy settings and parental controls. The change of email addresses and mobile numbers may be necessary.
Help your child manage emotional distress but talking about their feelings and developing some self-copying statements such as “relax, don’t take it personally”. Help your child focus on their gifts, talents and interests.
Build your child’s friendships. Having one close friend has been shown to strengthen a child’s connectedness to school and self-esteem. Help your child identify a friend or friends that share similar interests and foster friendship through play dates and scheduled activities.
Use the high five principle. Help your child identify five people that they can seek support from and /or things to do, one for each finger if they are being excluded. For example, seek out a special teacher, find a friend in an older year, go to the library or offer their help to the teacher on duty.
Develop ways your child can have some clear boundaries. Help your child communicate their distress and name the inappropriate behaviour of others through statements such as “I don’t like what you are doing and you need to stop” , “That is bullying and it is not right”. Help your child know that they need to seek support if the social exclusion continues.
Q.3 In your point of view what are purposes of cooperative learning? On which basis you will recommend/not recommend this teaching strategy?
This type of learning strategy uses small group tasks and activities as a learning experience. Each member is responsible for learning new information and skills, and at the same time, assisting teammates in learning.
Types of Cooperative Learning
Cooperation among coworkers in an organization will rarely occur naturally. It is up to employers to make an effort by taking steps that bring employees together.
Cooperative learning is divided into three types, with a different implementation of each.
1. Formal Cooperative Learning
It involves the assignment of tasks and projects to a team by an employer. The team members have a clear structure of what is to be done and stay together until the project is complete. It can range from a few hours to several weeks.
2. Informal Cooperative Learning
This type of learning involves quickly forming teams for short periods to complete a small task at hand. They require no prior planning and have very little structure. They can help bring closure to a day’s work or a small project.
3. Group-Based Learning
It is the most common type of cooperative learning implemented in organizations. It involves long-term groups that can last up to a year or more with members giving each other support, encouragement, and assistance.
Some good examples are the different departments in an organization, each with a group of people expected to make productive progress. It also works in long-term organizational projects.
Purpose of Cooperative Learning
The more employees continue to work cooperatively, the more their corporate environment becomes productively beneficial. The following are some of the primary purposes of implementing cooperative learning culture in an organization:
• Development and acquisition of necessary life skills
• Sharing of information
• Building a team that cooperates
• Increases tolerance and acceptance of diversity
• Improving output by employees
Benefits of Cooperative Learning
Cooperative learning has a massive positive impact on employees and their working environment. It enhances productivity and improves employee knowledge.
Below are the benefits of cooperative learning:
1. Gaining leadership and decision-making skills
For a team to succeed, the individuals in that group need to show some leadership abilities.
In every organization, several tasks need someone to be in charge to run smoothly. Some of them are:
• Delegating and organizing work
• Ensuring the company’s set targets are met
• Supporting team members
Some people may turn out to be natural leaders but are not inclined to lead. The employer can assign leadership roles to different members of the group.
In a corporate setting, there are many decisions to be made among team members. A decision-making process should involve every member airing out their opinion on the matter, but the final say lies with the leader.
2. Acquiring conflict management skills
Conflict management focuses on positive results while minimizing negative ones. This process, by which disputes are solved, can impact an organization positively when done correctly.
There are five conflict management styles that can be applied in every specific situation.
How members of a team handle conflicts remain embedded in their minds. They can implement any of the above styles in another similar situation in the future.
3. Increases employee work engagement
Employees become more satisfied as they continue to get the opportunity to learn new skills. They will become eager to continue learning and growing.
A growth in productive engagement is evident in work hence an increase in efficiency and output.
4. Enhancing communication skills
Members in a cooperative learning group need to learn how to speak productively with one another. Ethical commitment and communication keep the members on track and enhances efficient teamwork.
5. Personal responsibility
Cooperative learning increases individual responsibility in employees. They know that they have a specific task they should perform for the entire team to succeed.
They also gain accountability as they are aware of a backlash from team members if they fail to play their part.
6. Gaining confidence
Some employees find it more comfortable to speak up in small groups. They can express their ideas and ask questions, which enables them to gain confidence. This confidence improves from addressing a few people to a large crowd.
7. Positive attitude towards colleagues
In every organization, there are those few employees that grow a dislike towards each other with or without reason. Cooperative learning creates a more positive attitude towards workmates as they continue working together within a group.
Q.4 Describe in detail types of in-classroom debating techniques. For each type, develop a scenario.
While debate is an adversarial activity, it provides numerous positive benefits for students. Debate increases opportunities for speaking and listening in the classroom.
During a debate, students take turns speaking in response to the arguments made by their opponents. At the same time, other students participating in the debate, or in the audience, must listen carefully for arguments made or evidence used in supporting a position.
The cornerstone of classroom debate is the ability of students to present their positions and to convince others of those positions. Particular forms of debate are well-suited to first-time debaters as they focus less on the quality of speaking and more on the evidence presented in arguments.
Debate topics of interest to high school students range from human cloning and animal testing to changing the legal voting age. For middle school students, debate topics may include the abolishment of statewide testing or whether school uniforms should be required. To prep students for their first debate, review debate formats, show students how debaters organize their arguments, watch videos of actual debates, and go over the scoring rubrics for each form of debate.
The debate formats presented can be adapted to the length of a class period.
The Lincoln-Douglas debate is dedicated to questions that are of a deep moral or philosophical nature.
The debate format for a Lincoln-Douglas debate is one-on-one. While some students may prefer one-to-one debate, others may not want the pressure or spotlight. This debate format allows a student to win or lose based solely on an individual argument rather than relying on a partner or group.
An abbreviated version of a Lincoln-Douglas debate runs about 15 minutes, including time for transitions and claims to be made during each stage of the process:
• First Affirmative Speaker: Two minutes to introduce the topic
• First Negative Speaker: Two minutes to restate the opponent's viewpoint
o Example: "It is often said" or "Many people assume that my esteemed opponent believes that"
• Second Affirmative Speaker: Two minutes to disagree
o Example: "On the contrary" or "On the other hand"
• Second Negative Speaker: Two minutes to explain position (using evidence)
o Example: "For example" or "This is why"
• Break for Rebuttal Speech Preparation: Two minutes to transition
• Negative Summary/Rebuttal Speaker: Two minutes to conclude (including thesis)
o Example: "Therefore" or "As a result" or "Thus it can be seen"
• Affirmative Summary/Rebuttal Speaker: Two minutes to conclude (including thesis)
o Example: "Therefore" or "As a result" or "Thus it can be seen"
Role-Play Debate
In the role-play format of debate, students examine different points of view or perspectives related to an issue by playing a role. A debate about the question "Should English class be required for four years?" might yield a variety of opinions.
The points of view expressed in a role-play debate might include opinions that would be expressed by a student (or two students) representing one side of an issue. This type of debate could feature other roles such as a parent, a school principal, a college professor, a teacher, a textbook sales representative, or an author.
To role-play, ask students to help identify all stakeholders in the debate. Create three index cards for each role. Write the role of one stakeholder on each index card.
Students choose an index card at random, and those holding matching stakeholder cards gather together. Each group formulates the arguments for its assigned stakeholder role.
During the debate, each stakeholder presents her point of view.
In the end, the students decide which stakeholder presented the strongest argument.
Tag-Team Debate
In a tag-team debate, students work in small groups, and there are opportunities for every student to participate. The teacher organizes two teams of no more than five students to represent two sides of a debatable question. Each team has a set amount of time (three to five minutes) to present its point of view.
The teacher reads aloud the issue to be debated and then gives each team the opportunity to discuss its argument as a group. One speaker from each team takes the floor and speaks for no more than one minute. That speaker must "tag" another member of the team to pick up the argument at the end of his time or before his minute is up. A team member who is eager to pick up a point or add to the team's argument can raise his hand to be tagged.
No member of a team can be tagged twice until all members have had an opportunity to speak. After all teams have presented, students vote on which team made the best argument.
Inner Circle-Outer Circle Debate
In the inner circle-outer circle debate, the teacher arranges students into two groups of equal size who take opposing sides in the debate. Each group has an opportunity to listen to the other group discuss an issue and formulate conclusions, as well as discuss and formulate its own conclusions.
The students in Group 1 sit in a circle of chairs facing out, away from the center, while the students in Group 2 sit in a circle of chairs around Group 1, facing the center of the circle as well as the students in Group 1. Once the students are seated, the teacher reads aloud the issue to be discussed.
The students in the inner circle have 10 to 15 minutes to discuss the topic. During that time, all other students focus their attention on the students in the inner circle. No one else is allowed to speak during the inner circle's discussion time.
As the outer circle group observes the inner circle group and listens to the discussion, members of the outer circle group create a list of the arguments made by each member of the inner circle group. The outer circle students also prepare their own notes about these arguments.
After 10 to 15 minutes, the groups switch roles and the process is repeated. After the second round, all students share their outer circle observations. The notes from both rounds may be used in a follow-up classroom discussion and/or as an editorial writing assignment for students to express their positions on the issue at hand.
Q.5 Describe in detail the salient features of Peter’s Four Step Model of professional development.
The Peter Principle is an observation that the tendency in most organizational hierarchies, such as that of a corporation, is for every employee to rise in the hierarchy through promotion until they reach a level of respective incompetence.
In other words, a front-office secretary who is quite good at their job may thus be promoted to executive assistant to the CEO which they are not trained or prepared for—meaning that the secretary would be more productive if they had not been promoted.
The Peter Principle is thus based on the paradoxical idea that competent employees will continue to be promoted, but at some point will be promoted into positions for which they are incompetent, and they will then remain in those positions because of the fact that they do not demonstrate any further competence that would get them recognized for additional promotion.
According to the Peter Principle, every position in a given hierarchy will eventually be filled by employees who are incompetent to fulfill the job duties of their respective positions.
• The Peter Principle observes that employees rise up through a firm's hierarchy through promotion until they reach a level of respective incompetence.
• As a result, according to the Peter Principle, every position in a given hierarchy will eventually be filled by employees who are incompetent to fulfill the job duties of their respective positions.
• A possible solution to the problem posed by the Peter Principle is for companies to provide adequate skill training for employees receiving a promotion, and to ensure the training is appropriate for the position to which they have been promoted.
The Peter Principle was laid out by Canadian educational scholar and sociologist, Dr. Laurence J. Peter, in his 1968 book titled The Peter Principle. Dr. Peter stated in his book that an employee's inability to fulfill the requirements of a given position that he is promoted to may not be the result of general incompetence on the part of the employee as much as it is due to the fact that the position simply requires different skills than those the employee actually possesses.
For example, an employee who is very good at following rules or company policies may be promoted into the position of creating rules or policies, despite the fact that being a good rule follower does not mean that an individual is well-suited to be a good rule creator.
Dr. Peter summed up the Peter Principle with a twist on the old adage that "the cream rises to the top" by stating that "the cream rises until it sours." In other words, excellent employee performance is inevitably promoted to the point where the employee's performance is no longer excellent, or even satisfactory.
According to the Peter Principle, competence is rewarded with promotion because competence, in the form of employee output, is noticeable, and thus usually recognized. However, once an employee reaches a position in which they are incompetent, they are no longer evaluated based on their output but instead are evaluated on input factors, such as arriving at work on time and having a good attitude.
Dr. Peter further argued that employees tend to remain in positions for which they are incompetent because mere incompetence is rarely sufficient to cause the employee to be fired from the position. Ordinarily, only extreme incompetence causes dismissal.