What Do I Want To Get Out of Communication in Public Organizations Essay

What Do I Want To Get Out of Communication in Public Organizations Class - Essay Example I intend to understand the professional uses of communication from the class. The models of communication form the core of understanding the use language and communication skills in diverse scenarios. Mastery of effective communication skills defines professionalism. The focus on the use of professionalism in communication is essential to the management processes. That justifies my intention to have a perfect mastery of professionalism in communication. Communication for personal attributes also helps individuals by enhancing their relationship with others. I expect to develop good personal relations with everyone with whom I interact. It provides preparation for practical approaches to communicating with people from diverse cultures at the workplace. The classes should help me shape my relationship with other people and professionals through high level of competence in communication. The class should enhance my understanding of various communication models. Understanding the models of communication will help develop desired relations with other people. Further, I intend to master knowledge of public relations for international organizations. The class will enhance my knowledge of creating proper organizational reputation. Attending the class, therefore, constitutes a fundamental aspect of in enhancing my professional

Christian Commission Essay Example for Free

Christian Commission Essay The foregoing discussion showed that during the civil war women served in many capacities. They helped in the war effort even though they only stayed at home by knitting socks and sewing shirts and uniforms; they organized themselves in order to raise funds for the war chest; they acted as medics and field nurses; and some of them, who proved as brave if not braver than the others, literally risked their lives by playing the dangerous game of espionage. However, their participation in the war did not stop there. They defied the law in both the North and the South which prohibited women to join the army as fighting soldiers by posing as men. Both the Union and the Confederate armies were duped into drafting women disguised as men. Although most of them were probably propelled by extreme patriotism, it turned out that many joined the army for other, more personal reasons. One of the most notable women soldiers in the Union army was Sarah Emma Edmonds. Sarah joined the army as a volunteer in Michigan, where she enlisted as a man by the name of Franklin Thompson. (Lewis, 2007) She later served with the 2nd Michigan Infantry for a couple of years. It was reported that there were times when she had to act as a spy disguised either as a black man or as a ‘woman. ’(Hall, n. d. ) She was reported to have seen action in the â€Å"Battle of Blackburn’s Ford, the Peninsular Campaign, Antietam, and Fredericksburg. † According some accounts, she later deserted and became a nurse with the â€Å"U. S. Christian Commission. † (Lewis, 2007) However, there were reports that she voluntarily left the army after contracting malaria and feared that she would be found out if she would submit for treatment. (CivilWarStudies. org, n. d. ) Her application for a veteran’s pension which was approved in 1884 was given under the name Sarah E. E. Seelye, her married name. (Lewis, 2007) She was later named to the â€Å"Grand Army of the Republic,† the lone female to have been so named. (Hall, n. d. ) Another interesting story was that of Malinda Blalock. In her desire to be with her husband, William Mckesson Blalock (known as Keith to friends), she pretended to be William’s brother, Samuel. She then joined F Company of the â€Å"26th North Carolina Infantry† where Keith was also serving. Malinda was a Confederate by heart while Keith was a dyed-in-the-wool â€Å"Lincolnite† and was loyal to the Union cause. Although Keith was pressured by his family and fiends into joining the Confederate Army, he was always entertaining thoughts of deserting as soon as an opportunity presented itself. Malinda, despite being a loyal Confederate subject, was prepared to desert with him anytime. (Hall, n. d. ) However, the opportunity for desertion not having presented itself, the couple fought alongside each other under the Confederate flag (in a total of three battles) until March 1862 when Malinda sustained a shoulder wound. Afraid that they would be separated as soon as it was known that Malinda was a woman and forced out of the unit, Keith covered himself with poison oak to develop skin blisters and high fever. Fearing a case of small pox, the company doctor decided to discharge him for medical reason. The couple left Company F together on April 20, 1862 and went home to the â€Å"mountains of western North Carolina† to rest. The risk of recall to duty remained for Keith, however. So what the two did was hide in the mountains and turned Union guerillas, operating in the mountainous areas of East Tennessee and western North Carolina. Keith and Malinda later functioned as scouts attached to the â€Å"10th Michigan Cavalry. † (Halls, n. d. ) There was also a case involving a 19-year-old immigrant from Ireland. He gave the name Albert D. J. Cashier when he signed up with the 95th Illinois Infantry on August 3, 1862. He was said to have participated in about forty major and minor battles until August 17, 1865. After his stint with the Union army, he found employment as an ordinary laborer and ultimately received a pension. He later lived in a Soldier’s Home located in Quincy, Illinois where, in 1913, he was eventually discovered by a home surgeon that he was actually a she. Albert D. J. Cashier’s being a woman made the headlines. Nobody who knew her during her whole adult life ever suspected that she was in reality a woman. On October 11, 1914, Cashier died in an asylum for the mentally ill. (Blanton, 1993)

Jaquess Perspective in Shakespeares As You Like It Essay -- Shakespe

Jaques's Perspective in As You Like It      Ã‚  Ã‚   A cynic's cynic might declare Jaques no better than the guy who lurks in corners at a cocktail party, lobbing witty barbs at anyone unlucky enough to catch his eye. But this assessment robs Shakespeare's comedy of its sociological depth; what might be pleasant fluff about young people in love is enhanced by Jaques's ability to make stern judgments about the world, yet still respect the people who comprise it.    Indeed, Jaques observes astutely from the sidelines. He separates himself from what he considers the frivolity of making suitable marriage matches. But Jaques's speeches are not merely Shakespeare's devices for explication. There is a psychological middle ground between the court and the forest, and the ideals closest to those who think little are, in Jaques's eyes, admirable. His words make him the most egalitarian character in the play.    From his first speech, Jaques paints himself as a moody loner and as rather disdainful of his benefactor, Duke Senior. He says, "And I have been all this day to ...

Graduation Speech :: Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

Not only are we the class of 2006, but those you see before you now are also the future of our society. Our generation has, thus far, failed to establish the same type of defining characteristic as our predecessors. We are not the Baby Boomers, the Flower Children, or the Generation Xers. Instead, we are the most worldly generation yet to come. There is no doubt that our exposure to a vast array of media has permanently shaped our lives. However, only our futures will tell to what effect. As we look forward into the great "Abyss" that is our future, "Titanic" opportunities surround us. As the end of our "Nine Months" nears, many of us will choose to further our academic educations while still others will further their vocational skills in the workplace. Whatever each of us chooses, we cannot be "Clueless" in that the decisions that we make today will lead us either to a personal "Armageddon" or to becoming "Larger Than Life." Today is our "Judgment Day." At this very moment, our ability to determine our fates is "As Good As it Gets." We are faced with the option of continuing to go "Good Will Hunting." Do we choose to live selfishly, consumed by the present, or plan our lives as though we were going "Back to the Future"? We must take "The Stand" to ensure that, with all due "Speed" the lives that we begin to sculpt for ourselves tonight are worthy of our time and effort, and will be more than just financially rewarding. This is a part of "The Big Picture." If we allow ourselves to be consumed by the things that we've always been told we should want, we quickly find that "Reality Bites." Before chasing after a certain lifestyle, like fortune, "Fame, Mo' Money," or "Absolute Power," we need to determine what we want from life. If these factors are truly important, then by all means, we must chase after our dreams with the attitude of "I'll Do Anything" to achieve my goals. However, we must never allow our morals, ethics, beliefs or goals be compromised. We will never be happy if we allow our individual beliefs to be "Ransomed" by the false ethics of others. We must be true to ourselves, and remember that you "Can't Buy Me Love" or happiness. No matter how well we conform to the ideals of others, we can never be happy if we fail to conform to our own.

British Airways Management of Company Finance

Ahoussou kouadio Jean Christian Student number: 2522706 Management of company finance Analysis of the financial structure of British Airways Name of professor: Tony Kilmister British airways is one of the most valuable company in the world that is why I choose her. With the aim to evaluate the proportion of debt in British airways, we will study his financial gearing: income gearing and capital gearing. In order to calculate the company’s capital gearing according to the book value, we need especially the value of the long-term and short-term borrowings and the value of shareholders’ funds. But, there is several different formulas which arises some issues: the fact that the book value is lower than the market value (the first formula) and provisions can be considered either as liabilities or assets (the second formula), depending on firm. Then I will calculate the Weighted Average Cost of Capital. In 2004, the way of doing the balance sheets changed that’s why there are some differences between two reports. Part ——————————————————————————————1 Measure of the gearing and income ratio Part —————————————————————————– ————-2 Measure of the debt and equity based upon the market value Part ——————————————————————————————3 Estimation of the WACC. I) Measure of gearing and income ratios We will take those expressions: 1. Debt to equity ratio=Long term Liabilities/Shareholders’funds 2. Debt to debt plus equity ratio=LTL/(LTL+ Shareholders’funds) 3. Long Term Borrowings/Shareholders’ funds a) Gearing Ratio Capital Gearing = LTL / Shareholders' Funds    |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Capital Gearing |259. 75% |437. 6% |590. 7% | To set an upper rati o; we can incorporate the LTL at the shareholder value. Capital Gearing = LTL / (LTL + Shareholders' Funds) |   |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Capital Gearing |72. 2% |81. 4% |85. 5% | The provision are incorporates in those 2 formulas. We can consider that the provision can be take as liabilities (highly certain) or as equity (ultra-prudence). Capital Gearing = Long Term Borrowing (LTL – provisions) / Shareholders' Funds |   |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Capital Gearing |193. 5% |341. 4 % |475,40% | Net Debt: Net debt = (Finance debt – cash and liquid resources)/ Equity For British Airways, Net debt = (loans, finance leases and hire purchase arrangements + Convertible Capital Bonds, net of other current interest bearing deposits and cash and cash equivalents – overdrafts) British Airways' definition from the annual report 2006) |? million |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Capital Gearing |1641 |2922 |4158 | The figures of long term liabilities are higher than the net debt that explain the fact that the ratios are different; The company health seem less vital, because of the cash and those equivalent, and deposits. Overdrafts are not representing a big amount, we include them. Since 2004 a policy of high liquidity is developed in order to reduce the debt, they tried to repay the debt earlier. The debt are reduced by the conversion of the 112 millions of convertible bonds. â€Å"The ? 320 million 9 3/4 per cent Convertible Capital Bonds 2005 issued in 1989 matured on June 15, 2005. On that date 47,979,486 ordinary shares were issued in exchange for 112,317,274 Convertible Capital Bonds on the basis of one ordinary share for every 2. 34 Bonds held† (British Airways Report 2006). The capital gearing of the company is around 65% in almost all gearing indicators and more in som of them, as a conclusion we can say that the financial statement of the company is risky and more the company is weak due to the payment on the debt. We can also highlight the fact that British Airways is finance by debt. Its has a important amount of lease and purchase arrangement, which exceeds the bank loans. b) Income Gearing This ratios show us the security of creditor’s fund and the debt exposure. While using Income Ration we highlight the relation of the company’s income and its interest commitments. Income Ratio = Interest payable / Profit Before Interest and Tax |% |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Income Gearing |0,17 |0,26 |0,87 | Interest are taking a lower place in the profit (strategy reduction of debt). In fact, we use the Interest cover to see if the company can meet its interest. Interest cover = Profit before interest and tax / Interest charges |Times |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Interest Cover |5,79 |3,80 |1,15 | The company can afford her interest. 1) Because of the decrease of the amount of debt, 2) The profit before tax and interest increased by 269%, the risk is less important. We can also use another formula, which gives a better image of the finance. It based on the fact that cash has not been received. As a conclusion we can says that: :British Airways reduced its long term debt by 28. 5%, and keep their interest payment low and increase the PBIT strongly. From the shareholder point of view, the company takes high risks so they have a good return on investment although reduction of the debt of the company makes the rate of return lower and lower. II) Measure of the debt and equity based on the market value a) Value of Equity Share Price*:Number of Shares*: 2004: ? 2,181 083 845 000 2005: ? ,941 082 903 000 2006: ? 2,791 130 882 000 *I took those which were in the report. *The difference in the number of shares between 2005 and 2006 is the conversion of the 112 millions of Convertible Bonds into 47,979,486 shares. The value of equity is now: |? |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Value of Equity |3 155 160 780 |2 100 831 820 |2 362 782 100 | b)Rating: Value of Debt [pic ] The rating shows that the company take risks for financing because she invest in high return share in the junk bond or high yield market those are really unstable. This means that the company is highly financing by debt, investor need an important rate of return regards to the risk of non payment. In spite of that, British Airways’s main source of external funding is less sensitive to credit rating than the unsecured bond. The impact of the credit ration is not important for some parts of the debt. We will use the faire value of the debt to calculate the market value of debt. Because of the â€Å"†fair values of the Euro-Sterling notes and Euro-Sterling Bond 2016 are based on the quoted market values at March 31, 2006. The fair values of floating rate borrowings are deemed to be equal to their carrying values. † British Airways Report Example in March, 31st 2006: [pic] Market value of the debt is: |? million |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Market Value of Debt |4 130 |4 682 |5 954 | |Book Value of Debt |4 081 |4 492 |5 716 | The problem is: Those market values are blending the current liabilities. In the purpose to respect the ratios made before, I will deduct with percentage the current liabilities. The new market value of debt is: |? million |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Market Value of Debt |3645 |4216 |5244 | |Book Value of Debt |3 602 |4 045 |5 034 | There is the a market where Debt are trade daily, that explain the difference between years. ) Measure of gearing based on market values We use here the gearing ratio to compare the book value and the market value of the company: Capital Gearing = LTL / Shareholders' Funds |% |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Capital Gearing |115,5 |200,7 |221,9 | We can make a second ratio in order to set an upper limit: Capital Gearing = LTL / (LTL + Shareholders' Funds) % |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Capital Gearing |53,6 |66,7 |68,9 | Figures are lower than the one we made with the book value. The equity are valued in the book value at 25p whereas in the market value at an average price of the three years at 230p This divergence makes the ratios lower, thus with the b ook values the company seems to be less indebted and also less risky to investors. III) Estimation of the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) a) Cost of Equity To estimate the cost of equity, we can use two ways: 1) the dividend valuation model 2) the Capital Asset Price Model (CAPM). In this case, we can not use the dividend valuation model because the company did not distribute dividends since 2001, so the cost of equity will be 0 that would lead to irrelevant results. British Airways has not distributed dividends because: -They wants to strengthen the balance sheet by making new investment, then it invests into the company Quantas and also into the 5th Terminal in Heathrow. British Airways is the 13th highest performing company out of the 93 FTSE 100 companies remaining for the performance period April,1st 2003 to March, 31st 2006. The board of director indicated that the payment of dividends will be resumed at an appropriate time. To calculate the cost of equity, the CAPM is the only model available: Ke = Rf + ? (Rm – Rf) Rf ( the risk-free return; Rm ( the market risk; ? ( quantitative measure of the volatility of a given stock, mutual fund, or portfolio, relative to the overall market. A beta above 1 is more volatile than the overall market, while a beta below 1 is less volatile. For British Airways, the Beta is, for the three years, 0,91. The risk-free return can be found in the website of the Bank of England for each years and the market risk is the caps of the FTSE 100 of year N less years N-1 divided by the caps year N-1: (Caps N – caps N-1) / caps N-1 The risk-free return rate is: 2004: 4,75% 2005: 5,1% 2006: 4,2% The market risk is: |   |31. 03. 2006 |31. 03. 2005 |31. 03. 004 | |Caps FTSE 100 |5964,6 |4894,4 |4385,7 | |year N – year N-1 |1070,2 |508,7 |772,4 | |Market Risk (%) |21,87 |11,60 |21,38 | The Cost of Equity using the CAPM is: |% |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Cost of Equity |20,1 |10,9 |19,7 | ) Cost of debt In order to obtain the cost of debt, the best ratio is to divide the interest payable by the debt: |% |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Cost Of Debt |2,62 |3,01 |3,50 | They leads to the same conclusion decrease in Debt and interest. We can add that no debt has been taken in 2006. All the purchase have been made by internal cash flow. c) The WACC The Weighted Average Cost of Capital is used to measure the cost of capital. The formula is: Ko = Ke (Ve/Vo) + Kd (Vd/Vo) Where: Ke (the cost of equity Ve (the value of equity Kd (the cost of debt Vd (the value of debt Vo (the total value of the firm: |? million |2006 |2005 |2004 | |Vo |7 236 |6 593 |8 079 | The WACC is: |% |2006 |2005 |2004 | |WACC |10,08 |5,41 |8,04 | The amount of Debt decreased but the WACC stay in the average, that because of the high level of the cost of equity. 2005 is discernible by a share price lower than the two other years. This leads to a lower shareholders' funds and also an higher influence of the debt’s drop, therefore the lower WACC. However, the CAPM have some limitations. – He is based on several assumptions: – The investors are rational and risk-adverse who set a level of risk. – The investors have the same single-period planning horizon. – The investors have homogeneous expectations on the future yield. The investors can borrow and lend unlimited amounts at a risk-free rate. – There is neither taxes nor cost of transactions – The investors have all an efficient portfolio which maximize the yield, for a level of risk given. Whole of efficient portfolio form a curve called the efficiency frontier†¦ To conclude, from the point of view of market value, we can say that British airways succeeded to face its commitments in term of debt and equity. Indeed, they took advantage of an increase in share price. The repayment of share allowing to reduce the gearing in debt capital.

Storytelling in Your College and Career Documents

Storytelling in Your College and Career Documents When we were kids, we all loved stories.   Well guess what?   That hasn’t changed!   I recently read the article Storytelling an Effective Training Method! and it sparked me to write this post. The fact is, we all love a good story.   Admissions committees love good stories.   Hiring managers love good stories.   Customers and clients love good stories.   Always remember:   the person you’re writing for is a human being!   How do you get another human being to read your document?   Spin a good yarn! If you’re applying to college, tell a story with a beginning, middle and end.   I had a client who wrote his college application essay about teaching his sister to ride a bike.   His first draft was all rosy about how great the experience was, and it did not have a compelling beginning, middle and end.   He felt lost in the writing, and the essay was boring. What ultimately made the story great was that he started at the beginning, when he was annoyed at his sister for being small and clumsy, then moved through the process of a breakthrough in becoming a teacher, and a better teacher and finally to where he released the seat and the sister took off on her own on the bike.   Victory! A great story. In college applications, many times what makes a great story is to admit to a struggle or fault, and show how you broke through it.   In a cover letter, believe it or not, you can do the same thing. All kinds of people are saying â€Å"No one reads cover letters anymore.†Ã‚   Well, of course no one is reading them – because they are stilted and boring and no one can get through them!   Have you ever considered that if you write a good enough story in your cover letter that it really  will get read! Do you have an example of a time when a project was failing, and you stepped in to fix it?   That makes a great story!   Is there an example of something you achieved that relates to the job you’re applying for?   Don’t be afraid to tell these stories in your cover letters! On your resume, too, tell as much of a story as you can in a bulleted line. What not to write:   â€Å"Assisted scientists with their research.† What to write: â€Å"Conducted genetic, epidemiology, and behavior research on sport fish in Illinois, Canada, and the Bahamas.† Ah, now that sounds kind of interesting! For an example of a professional bio that tells a great story or two, see Senior Investment Analyst Bio on The Essay Expert’s website.   This client reported to me that she loved her bio story so much that she kept reading it to herself after it was done! Whatever the reason, we all love a good story.   Tell one in your college and job applications.   Tell one in your professional bio.   If you do it well, your intended audience will keep reading†¦Ã‚   and reading†¦Ã‚   and reading.

How to Be a Good Freelance Writer

How to Be a Good Freelance Writer How to Be a Good Freelance Writer A freelance writer is a self-employed basis position that may include wide specter of writing activity. Usually, these people are not attached to one employer and work on two and more projects simultaneously. However, a freelance writer can build relations with a particular company that orders written content on a regular basis. Speaking about how to be a freelance writer, it is important to keep in mind that the job requires high self-discipline, excellent time-management skills, as the salary is heavily dependent on writer’s own productivity and motivation. Becoming a freelancer is challenging because this profession demands the ability to operate with priorities, self-organizing and constant self-improvement. Currently, there are thousands of office-based job places, but being a full-time freelance writer is not an easy thing to do. People choose this job either for part-time hobby or for an additional source of money. However, this occupation requires the specific set of skills or abilities which can help a person to be a successful freelancer, and create positive reputation and respect-worthy portfolio. First of all, being a good writer means being an expert in grammar, punctuation, and stylistic nuances. Moreover, the wide and rich vocabulary is a must for a writer, as it is the main instrument for making money. The writer’s profession requires deep expertise in the discussed topic and excellent knowledge of appropriate terminology. With preparation to becoming a freelancer a person has to consider following notes: Decide the direction to develop the text, either it is fiction or nonfiction, or even both. It is also worth mentioning that nonfiction genre, that corresponds with analytical or informative articles, is much easier to sell to people than imaginative papers. Thus, it is necessary to keep this in mind when making a choice, because in this way the writer has more job offers, consequently, more opportunities to earn money. A candidate for a freelance job should know why he or she needs this job. Whether there is a desire to write to make money for living, to get some extra money, or just for pleasure and self-education. The outcome of the choice can affect the level of efforts that a person needs to put into the freelance operations. Full-time workers apply additional force into their vocation than those who seek for extra cash. If a person has a diploma in the related field, it is important to that knowledge when necessary. In the modern freelance market, there are many people who cannot guarantee proficient expertise on specific topics. However, the academic degree can help person be a certified professional who can give the appropriate level of analysis towards specific topics. Finally, it is possible to conclude that a future writer should work on the personal portfolio. Thus, a freelance candidate should collect best-written pieces of text, however, unpublished texts are also worth the attention. However, he or she ought to adjust the portfolio for each job according to position requirements. For instance, it is not necessary to show poems if a person wants to get a job in writing analytical articles and essays in politics.

Collaborative Learning

Collaborative Learning Free Online Research Papers The value of collaborative learning has been recognized throughout human history and its effectiveness has been documented through hundreds of research studies. Collaborative learning is now widely recognized as one of the most promising practieces in the field of education. Collaborative learning (CL) is an instructional method that makes use of small, heterogeneous groups of students who work together to achieve common learning goals (Johnson Johnson, 1992). Within group learning, students benefit from sharing ideas rather than working alone. Students help one another so that all can reach some measure of success. The purpose of this review of research is to illustrate the various aspects of collaboration and how collaborative learning reinforces second language acquisition with reference to the theories. In this brief review of research, I first discuss two major theoretical perspectives of collaborative learning. I establish few major themes of collaborative research and review representative research studies that address collaborative activity in classroom settings. Finally, I connect research findings to the theories and outline some critical areas where research is needed on collaboration and language learning in classroom settings. Theoretical Orientation / Motivational Perspective Motivational perspective on collaborative learning focuses primarily on the reward or goal structures. In this perspective, collaborative learning creates a situation in which the only way group members can attain their own personal goals if the group is successful. Social interdependence theory, the most influential theory of the perspective, on collaborative learning suggested that the essence of a group is the interdependence among members (created by common goals), which results in the group being a â€Å"dynamic whole†, so that a change in the state of any member and an intrinsic state of tension within group members motivates movement toward the accomplishment of the desired common goals (Kurt Lewin 1935). Similarly, Skinner’s behavioral learning theory assumes that students will work hard on those tasks for which they secure a reward and will fail to work on tasks that yield no reward or yield punishment. Cognitive Perspective Whereas motivational theories of collaborative learning emphasize the cooperative goals change students’ desire to do academic work, cognitive perspective emphasizes that the interactions among students will increase achievement due to the mental processing which takes place. Cognitive-Development theory can fully illustrate the notion. Vygotsky proposes a central concept zone of proximal development in his theory; it has a great significance to language acquisition. He defines the zone as â€Å"the distance between the actual developmental level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers† (1978, p.86). In his view, collaborative activity among learners promotes growth because learners of similar ages are likely to be operating within one another’s proximal zones of development. In other words, unless students work cooperatively, they will not grow intellectually. Vygotsky’s concept corresponds with the Input Hypothesis which attempts to answer the important question of how we acquire language. The hypothesis states that a necessary condition for language acquisition to occur is that the acquirer understands input language that contains structure â€Å"a bit beyond† his or her current level of competence. The hypothesis also presumes that acquisition happens when learners understanding the message instead of form (Krashen 1981). This illustrates the superiority of collaborative learning in language acquisition since its activity establishes an environment where the students communicate with each other to solve problems in a meaningful context. Similarly, Piaget (1926) held that social-arbitrary knowledge – language, values, morality and etc. can be learned only in interactions with others. In his views, learners must engage in some sort of cognitive restructuring or elaboration of material if information is to be retained in memory. Many Piagetians have called for an increased use of collaborative activities in schools since students will learn from one another because in their discussions of the content, cognitive conflicts will arise, inadequate reasoning will be exposed and higher-quality understandings will emerge. Generally, all perspectives on collaboration have common ground; they all predict that collaborative learning will promote higher achievement than would individualistic learning. The following sections discuss a number of representative studies and research findings about collaborative learning. Social Cohesion With the respect to the social interdependence perspective, collaboration promotes group cohesion and a supportive social climate. Some research studies are reviewed in the following to illustrate how collaboration fosters social interdependence among classmates and it gives expression to the motivating effects of working together toward a common goal. Hijzen, Boekaerts and Vedeer (2006) examined relationships between the quality of cooperative learning (CL) and students’ goal preferences and perceptions of contextual factors in the classroom. The researchers expected students’ perception of the quality of CL depends to their goal preferences that they bring into the classroom. The subjects of this study were 1920 students from different secondary and vocational schools in Netherlands. Subjects were invited to complete several self-report questionnaires regarding their goal preferences and perception of contextual factors in the classroom and the quality of CL. The study found that subjects gave most preference to mastery goals, followed by social support goals and belongingness goals. Social support goals had the strongest relationship with the quality of CL. In other words, students who value helping and supporting each other rated the quality of CL higher. The study also found that there is a strong relation between the quality of CL and students’ perceptions of contextual factors, as defined by the type of task, reward systems and CL skills they were taught, in the classroom. Despite the evidence that CL encourages social interdependence, there are conditions under which the kinds of interdependence emerge different effects. In a study by Johnson, Johnson and Stanne (2001), it demonstrated the conditions under which positive interdependence enhances or interferes with individual success and overall group productivity. Two types of positive interdependence were studied: positive goal and positive resource interdependence. Forty-four black American high school students were randomly assigned to the experimental task. It was to master information on map reading and to apply their knowledge in deciding what actions to take to solve the problem. The independent variables were positive goal interdependence and positive resource interdependence. Goal interdependence was operationalized by telling the subjects to work together as a company and resource interdependence was operationalized by dividing the information required into three parts and giving each part to a different member of the group. Thus, in order to complete the task, each group mate had to obtain the information required from other group mates. The findings provided evidence that two sources of positive interdependence promote stronger effects than either source of positive interdependence alone. The presence of positive resource and goal interdependence would promote higher individual achievement than would the presence of positive resource interdependence only. Therefore, when resource interdependence is used, it should be done in combination with positive goal interdependence. Another study by Ghaith (2003) supports the claim that collaborative learning has positive effects on achievement. The study intended to investigate whether CL has more effective than whole-class instruction in promoting the English as Foreign Language reading achievement and the academic self-esteem of the learners. Participants in the study were 56 secondary school EFL learners in Beirut and they were randomly assigned to control and experimental groups. In the study, subjects in the control group were taught by the teachers who carried out reading lessons with using traditional teaching instruction while subjects in the experimental group were taught by teachers who used collaborative learning. The study lasted for 10 weeks and a pretest-posttest control group design was employed and it focused on the variables of academic self-esteem and academic achievement. The study did indicate that the CL is more effective that traditional textbook instruction in improving the EFL reading achievement of the students. Thus, reading achievement in L2 can be improved through small group cooperative interaction among peers in a supportive environment. However, academic self-esteem is unlikely to be improved in the course of short experiments and cooperative interventions. The study by Shachar and Shmuelevitz (1997) differs from the above research. Their study focuses on teachers’ collaboration instead of students’ and how this relates to students’ learning. The study assessed the effects on teachers’ sense of efficacy of a year-long in-service teacher training program on CL. The study hypothesized that teachers who acquire competence with CL methods were reported as having high frequencies of these methods in their classroom and experience high levels of collaboration with colleagues. Their sense of efficacy which can also affect students’ learning and social relation. One hundred twenty-one teachers from nine junior high schools in Israel were selected and trained that they acquired skill in implementing CL methods. This study was conducted over a period of 3 months at the beginning of the second year of the project. During the time, the teachers’ instructional behavior was observed. Two questionnaires about patterns of teacher collaboration in the school and measures of teachers’ efficacy were administered to all the teachers during the second half of the second year. The findings showed that teachers who employed collaborative learning in their classrooms expressed a significantly greater degree of efficacy in promoting the learning of slow students compared to teachers who continued to employ traditional instruction without using CL. The finding also reported that teachers who participate in collaborative staff work are more likely to feel capable of promoting cooperative relations among their students. Therefore, collaboration affected personal teaching efficacy and promoted students’ social relations. Collaborative Discourse Cognitive perspective claims that language is best acquired when it is used in a way that is meaningful to the student. The collaborative learning setting provides opportunities for students to use the language for a specific purpose and express themselves in a functional manner. Especially, a type of language use which is called ‘exploratory talk’ emerges from collaboration when partners engage critically but constructively with each other’s ideas. In the ‘exploratory talk’, learners work together to solve linguistic problems and co-construct language or knowledge about language. The following research studies illustrate how ‘exploratory talk’ enhances language acquisition and development of knowledge. The study by Chinn, O’Donnell and Jinks examined how the discourse of group interaction is structured and whether the discourse structure mediates learning. One hundred and nine students in seven fifth-grade classes in New Jersey participated in the study. They were asked to conducted experiments with electrical circuits in groups of four. After writing their own individual conclusions based on the two circuits they constructed, the students were provided with three conclusions from other group mates to evaluate and discussed the quality of these conclusions. The results of the study indicated that some type of collaborative discourse were significantly associated with reasoning, exploration and explanation. These features can be viewed as the elements of argumentation structures. Thus the fifth graders’ discussions about the quality of the conclusions could be analyzed as argument networks. The results also suggested that more complex argumentation promotes learning, both when the complex arguments are individually constructed and when they are collaboratively constructed. The study by Cohen, Lotan, Abram, Scarloss and Schultz (2002) tested the proposition that providing students with evaluation criteria will improve the character of the discussion as well as the quality of the group product and individual performance. The hypothesis in this study is that the better the quality of the group discussion and product, the better will be the individual performance of group members. In the five classrooms, there were 39 groups of 4-5 students who performed the same experienced group tasks. The subjects had to perform a series of complex instruction regarding the topic of the Afterlife in Ancient Egypt. They are expected to discuss and answer several higher order questions requiring them to deeply explore their resource materials. The subjects were audiotaped for the entire lesson each day and this required 5 days of implementation so that students could rotate through the tasks, give a presentation and discussion. It was found evaluation criteria have a direct effect on the nature of the group discussion in which subjects tended to have more exploratory talk in the group discussion. The study also illustrated that evaluation criteria are a motivational tool helping groups to be more self-critical and increasing their effort to create a superior group product. Through evaluation, the group discussion emerged productive explorative talk which improved the group’s performance. Verplaetse (2000) examined what particular discourse strategies the teacher use to create an interactive classroom during full-class and teacher-fronted discussions. Three middle-school science teachers were selected and their lessons were being observed with three interviews with the teachers afterward. The finding provides a good example of how the teacher’s use of paraphrase and repetition produced a supportive environment where the contributions of all students were accepted and valued. Moreover, it was found that the teacher modeled the process of scientific inquiry aloud for his students and thereby authorized the right to wonder, raise questions and engage in exploratory talk on science topics. In addition to the collaborative discussion that modeled scientific inquiry, another important aspect of this study was the consequence of this dialogic collaboration on the participation of English language learners who volunteered more frequently and participated more actively in the full class discussion. This study illustrates how classroom relations and collaborative were forged through the teacher’s validation of student contributions. Teachers play a critical role in promoting interactions between students and engaging them in the learning process. The study by Gillies (2006) sought to determine if teachers who implement collaborative learning in their classrooms engage in more facilitative, learning interactions than teachers who implement group work only. The study also sought to determine of students in the collaborative groups model their teachers’ behaviors and engage in more positive helping interactions with each other than their peers in the group work groups. Twenty-six high schools’ teachers in Australia volunteered to establish cooperative, small-group activities in their Grades 8 to 10 classrooms for 6 weeks. The teachers were audiotaped twice during these lessons and samples of the students’ language, as they worked in their groups, were also collected at the same time. The results showed that teachers who implement collaborative learning in their classrooms asked more questions and engaged in more mediated-learning behaviors than teachers who implement group work only. The students in the collaborative groups engaged in more verbal behaviors that are regarded as helpful and supportive of group endeavors than their peers in the group-work groups. Thus, when teachers implement collaborative learning, their verbal behavior is affected by the organizational structure of the classroom. Wegerif, Mercer and Dawes (1999) supports the claim that social experience of language use shapes individual cognition. The study assumed that the use of exploratory talk will help children to reason together more effectively when they jointly tackle the problems of a test of reasoning and to develop better ways of using language as a tool for reasoning individually when they work alone on a reasoning test. Sixty British primary school children aged 9-10 and their teachers took part in an experimental teaching programme, which designed to develop primary children’s use of language for reasoning and collaborative activity. Children’s subsequent use of language when carrying out collaborative activity in the classroom was observed and anaylsed and effects on their performance on an individual reasoning test were also investigated. Comparative data were gathered from children in matched control classes. It was found that using exploratory talk helps children to work more effectively together on problem-solving tasks. Children who have been taught to use more exploratory talk make greater gains in their individual scores on a test of reasoning than do children who have not had such teaching. Language Development In this section, a number of research studies are reviewed from the cognitive perspectives which claims that cognition and knowledge are constructed though dialogically interaction. For this reason I have limited the studies in which one can link collaborative dialogue to a particular aspect of second language learning. Reading Kim and Hall (2002) reported on Korean children’s participation in an interactive book reading program and their development of pragmatic competence in English. During the book reading, the researcher promoted with questions, elaborated on the children’s utterances and repeated the children’s contributions by paraphrasing and shaping what they said into a coherent discourse. After completing all collaborative reading sessions, the children engaged in interactional role-play situations based on school-related events. These interactions were analyzed for quantity of words used, context-based vocabulary, utterances and conversational management skill. It was found that the participation of these children in collaborative book reading led to significant changes in their pragmatic ability dealing with a number of words and utterances and conversational management features. Kim and Hall suggested that in the context of interesting texts and collaborative talk, meaningful opportunities for the development of children’s second language competence arise. The procedure used in this study reflects discourse features similar to Verplaets’ study, with similar developmental consequences, i.e., expanded participation in interactions and the children’s growing ability to manage conversation. Collaborative dialogue has also been shown to help students apply comprehension strategies and co-construct knowledge while reading in the study by Klingner, Vaughn and Schumm (1998). They investigated the effectiveness of a cooperative learning approach designed to foster strategic reading in grade four heterogeneouse classrooms. Eighty-five students in 11 day experimental condition were taught by the researchers to apply reading comprehension strategies (â€Å"preview†, â€Å"get the gist† and â€Å"wrap up†) while reading social studies text in small student-led groups. Fifty-six students in control condition did not learn comprehension strategies but receive researcher-led instruction in the same content. A standardized reading test and a social studies unit test were administered as dependent measures to all participants. All of the groups in the intervention condition were audiotaped during the CL strategy implementation sessions for purposes of analyzi ng student discourse Qualitative analysis of the students’ discourse showed that through interacting in their collaborative strategic reading groups, the fourth graders assisted one another in vocabulary comprehension, found the main idea and asked and answered questions about their text. The tests results also indicated that the students in the experimental condition made greater gains in reading comprehension and equal gains in content knowledge. This study implies that students in the intervention condition spent significant time discussing academic content and consistently implemented the reading strategies. Speaking In a conversational analytical study of talk-in-interaction, Mori (2002) examined 12 hours of classroom interaction across two instructional contexts in a university upper-level Japanese as a foreign language classroom. In this study, two contexts were analyzed to understand how talk was constructed in collaboration with peers during a planning sessions and a future discussion with native speaker visitors to the class afterward. It was found that the design of the task (step-by-step requirements for the interview) was the obstacles for the creation of contingent discourse and coherent discussion with the native speaker guests. During the visits, the students’ discourse was highly structured and lacked the contingency-based features of conversation. Ironically, Mori finds that student discourse during the pretask planning involved a mutual exchange of ideas. Moria’s study implies that collaboration is constituted in particular kinds of contingently organized talk. The study by Shachar and Sharan (1994) focused on students’ verbal interaction in multiethnic groups after the students had participated for several months in history and geography classes. The study was conducted with the Group Investigation method or in those taught with the traditional Whole-Class method. Students’ social interaction with members from their own or another ethnic subgroup and their academic achievement were evaluated. The study involved 351 Jewish students from Western and Middle Eastern backgrounds, with 197 in five classes taught for 6 months with the Group Investigation method and 154 in four classes taught for 6 months with Whole- Class method. It was found that all students from the Group Investigation method expressed themselves more frequently and used more words per turn of speech than their peers from classrooms taught with the traditional Whole-Class method. This finding also suggest that students from different ethnic groups in the same class can learn to cooperate and give each other the opportunity to participate in the work of the group without the ignorance of the members of lower status groupmates. It seems that all students in CL classrooms learned to interact constructively, displayed more positive, fewer critical verbal and social interactions with their peers. Face-to-face interaction in speaking activities also can assist learners along the continuum of language acquisition. Lynch (2001) studied whether the transcribing and the discussion of reflection and change result in long-term language acquisition and whether they would be feasible in a classroom setting. In the study, four pairs of college students were asked to transcribe a 90-120 second recorded extract of a role play they had performed in front of the class. After transcribing the role play scripts, the learners could make changes to their original scripts through collaborative negotiation. The teacher then reformulated the revised scripts through correcting grammar and lexis and making necessary changes to clarify meaning. As a final step, the learners compared their own revised scripts with the reformulated version and discussed the differences between the two transcripts with each other and with the teacher. The result indicated that transcribing and editing the transcripts gives learners the chance to renegotiation meanings and draws the learner’s attention to language form and use in a relatively natural way. The study supports the claim that the feedback in the form of self-correction, teacher intervention and peer correction all supported student’s language learning. Writing Other studies in the literature show how collaborative dialogue in reading activities can also result in L2 learning. Swain and Lapkin (2003) examined a pair of grade seven French immersion students’ collaborative work in term of completing a jigsaw story task orally and in writing, comparing their written stories to a reformulated version and responding to a stimulated recall task. The data were coded for all the language-related episodes, defined as any part of the dialogue where learners talk about the language they are producing, question their language use or correct themselves. The analysis of discussions surrounding reformulated texts indicated that approximately two-thirds of reformulations were accepted. During the later independent revisions, both learners were able to revise accurately 78% of the post test items. This indicates the power of collaborative dialogue during the composing, noticing and recall procedures. Vygotsky’s concept of zone of proximal development (ZPD) serves as the theoretical basis for the study of peer collaboration in ESL writing classroom. The purpose of the study by De Guerrero and Villamil (2000) was to observe the mechanisms by which strategies of revision take shape and develop when two learners are working in their respective ZPDs. The participants in this study were two male intermediate ESL college learners, native speakers of Spanish, who were enrolled in an ESL writing course. In the course, the students participated in two revision sessions during which pairs of students revised a composition written by one of them. The pair of subjects was simply instructed to revise the draft and to record all their comments on a tape recorder. The focus of analysis was the dyad’s audiotaped conversation, between a ‘reader’ and a ‘writer’, which was transcribed to the written mode and divided into 16 episodes. The results were found that both the reader and writer became active partners in the revision task with guided support moving reciprocally between each other. The reader played a crucial role as mediator displaying several supportive behaviors which facilitated advancement through the task. Some of these behaviors included explicitly instructing the writer on issues of grammar and recruiting the writer’s interest throughout the interaction. The writer incorporated the majority of the changes discussed with his partner and further revised on his own. The reader also made progress in aspect of L2 writing and revising. As the researchers noted, the opportunity to talk and discuss language and writing issues with each other â€Å"allowed both reader and writer to consolidate and reorganize knowledge of the L2 in structural and rhetorical aspects and to make this knowledge explicit for each other’s benefit† (p.65) Storch (2001) noted that the nature of peer assistance is an important factor to consider in terms of the impact collaborative work can have on learning. His study examined the pattern of pair interaction and whether there were links between the way the dyads interacted and the quality of their written product. The study was conducted in an advanced ESL writing classroom in an Australian university. Most of the students were Asian with writing proficiency ranging from low to upper intermediate. The task used in this study was a writing task given to students in class in preparation for a report. Students worked on the task in self-selected pairs and pair talks were audiotaped and being observed by researchers. Three dyads of conversations were then chosen for analysis. It was found that 3 dyads approached the task differently and the interaction patterns can be defined in a range from non-collaborative to collaborative. In the collaborative pattern, both students contributed to the task and reached co-constructed solutions. The dominant/dominant pair was one in which though both students contributed to the task, assistance is often rejected as there is an attempt of control and domination on the part of both students. In the case of dominant/passive pair, there was one dominant student who appropriated the task and his partner had little contribution. In the expert/novice patter pair, one participant seemed to be more in control of the task but unlike the dominant/passive pair, the expert participant acknowledges the novice and encouraged participation. An analysis of relationship between the text produced by each dyad and language development showed that in collaborative and expert/novice dyads, there were more instances evidence of knowledge development than in other dyads. These findings confirm the importance of the nature of pair interaction for the learning opportunities available to the students. Status Crisis Researchers have shown that collaborative learning can induce many beneficial outcomes. However, some research studies have also shown that the differential status of individuals affected their social interactions and their capacity to solve problems together. These inequalities are related to academic status and cultural differences and personalities between students. The following research studies illustrate the harmful impact on lower status students in the group. Duff (2002) illustrated how classroom interaction in an ethnically and linguistically diverse grade 10 Canadian social studies class attributed identities to students. The research site was a Canadian high school where 50% of the students were ESL learners, most of them are Asian. The researcher observed and recorded the Social Studies class lessons once a week with six-month duration; some of the participants, including the class teacher, were interviewed about their in-class behaviors. There were 17 non-native English speakers out of the 28 students in the course. The class teacher presented social issues and encouraged student to share their perspectives and opinions. Interview comments, combined with observations of in-class social interactions provided evidences that the interactional behaviors of teachers and students during discursive collaborations on social issue created conditions that marginalized some students while reinforcing social recognition to others. For example, non-local students were being silent or provided limited response about their cultural rituals because they were afraid of being criticized in class and being laughed at their English. She emphasizes that â€Å"large numbers of minority students in schools world wide are at considerable risk of alienation, isolation, and failure because of the discourse and interactions that surround them on a daily basis† (Duff 2002, p.216). Matthews and Kesner (2000) investigated the impact that a child’s status among peers has on interactions with other children during collaboration. In the study, six grade-one children of a primary school in southeastern U.S. area were being observed throughout the whole school year. Data was collected from classroom observations with audio and video recording of children participating in literacy events (collaboration) with their classmates. Data also included artifacts of the children’s work, information about the children’s social status among their peers and assessments of the children’s reading ability. The researchers were in the classroom an average of once every 3 days. The information presented in this study focused on a child, Sammy, one of the six focal children. Sammy was characterized as a shy boy by his parents. He had low proficiency of reading ability so reading is the worst academic subject for him. Sammy also received assistance from the school language specialist of minor speech problem. The results of peer nomination and the teacher’s assessment of Sammy’s social status indicated that he is an unpopular student in his class. The classroom observation showed that Sammy was a follower during collaboration activities. He rarely made a suggestion during the literacy events. However, Sammy never appeared upset when his peers assigned him the role of follower or they did not respond to his suggestions. At the end of the school year, he could read only 20 of the 60 words on a first-grade word list and his text reading had only progressed slightly. This implies that participants may not get the most benefit from collaborati ve learning due to the social hierarchy. Chiu’s study (1998) supported that status differences among students yield positive and negative effects for individuals and the group as a whole. In her study, eight students in 9th grade algebra classes in a high school were selected to solve an algebra problem in groups of four. The students filled out pre-activity questionnaires regarding mathematical status and social status and a leadership post-activity questionnaire. At the group level, the results showed that mathematical ability predicted correct solutions whereas quantity of interaction and status did not. Polite evaluation (redressed criticisms) facilitated group work while impolite evaluation (naked criticisms) hindered it. At the individual level, social status positively predicted leadership, negotiation turns and polite redressed criticism in a group whereas mathematical ability positively predicted naked criticisms. These results supported the claim that students with higher social status were socially skillful and polite whereas students with higher mathematical showed their status by being less polite. Baines, Blatchford and Kutnick (2003) suggested that collaborative learning is beneficial to particular age of learners. Their study examined the relationships between the age of students and the grouping practices employed by teachers within classrooms in primary and secondary schools. The data in this study come from three separately paralleled studies that used the same methodology. One project, the Primary Classroom Groupings Projects, examined grouping practices in junior levels. The focus of the second study was on the effects of class size one students learning experiences and group practices in senior primary levels. The third study examined grouping practices in secondary school with junior and senior levels. All three projects involved the use of a grouping questionnaire to collect quantitative data on the nature of the groupings as used in classes. The results showed that there were changes in grouping practices with student age. Students in junior primary classrooms were most likely to be working alone. During the years of senior primary level, students were more likely to experience whole class interactions with the teacher assistance. At the secondary school’s level, group practices were frequently happened since secondary school age students were more likely to engage in peer interaction than primary age children. Training Many educators have observed that participants frequently fail to behavior collaboratively in groups. Some groups reveal negative and insensitive behavior as well as refusal to assist one another. Therefore, some educators strongly recommend team-building or skill-building activities prior to collaborative learning stage. The research in this section show that preparation and time spent on group can definitely make for more productive groups. The study by Naughton (2006) focused on the effect of a cooperative strategy training program on the patterns of interaction that arose as small groups of students participated in an oral discussion task. Five intact classes of high school graduates were randomly assigned to the experimental or control condition. In the control group, this division was random whereas in the experimental groups, students joined the 8 hours of the CL strategy training program. All students took part in the same pretest and posttest discussion task which lasted for 8 minutes. Data taken from the videotapes were analyzed in order to measure changes in overall participation and strategic participation. The pretest showed that prior to strategy training, students generally failed to engage in the types of negotiation moves that have been identified as important for language acquisition. However, the posttest indicated that the strategy training program was largely successful in encouraging students to engage in the act of requesting or giving help; this type of interaction is clearly related to CL. The result also implies that small group work in the L2/FL classroom can be beneficial when learners engage in collaborative dialogue. The study by Gillies and Ashman (1996) compared the effects on behavioral interactions and achievement of cooperative learning in which group members were trained to collaborate to facilitate each other’s learning and cooperative learning in which members were not trained but were merely told to help each other. The study involved 192 Grade six primary school children assigned to one of two experimental conditions. In the Trained condition, students were taught how to collaborate in small groups while in the Untrained condition, children were provided only with the opportunity to work together but were not instructed in the process. The group activities for the two groups were developed around the social studies unit which required students to solve problems. Each group’s student behavior and verbal interactions during the study were videotaped and coded. The results showed that the children in the Trained condition were consistently more cooperative; higher level of motivation, responsive to the need of their peers and provided significantly more explanations to assist each other than their peers in the Untrained condition. In addition, the children in the Trained groups used inclusive language (‘we’ and ‘us’ rather than ‘I’). This provides strong evidence that training children to collaborate facilitates group functioning and has a positive effect on student achievement. Veenman, Denessen, Akker, and Rijt (2005) investigated whether student-teachers who participated in the teacher-training program provided more elaborations during small group work and performed better on a cooperative task than the student-teachers who did not participate in the training program and the effects of the training program on affective-motivational resources of students in collaboration. Participants in the study were teachers from seven primary schools and 24 dyads of sixth-grade students. There were 12 dyads in the treatment group where their schools used CL instruction and practices based on a 2-years staff training of CL with a supplementary teacher-training program focusing on effective helping behaviors. The control group with 12 dyads used CL based on a 1-year staff CL training without a supplementary teacher-training program. All of the students’ dyads were asked to cooperatively solve a math task, which required formal reasoning and discussion. At pre test, Version A of the math task was used; at posttest, Version B was used. All of the sessions were video and audio recorded and later transcribed. After completion of the math task at pretest, all of the students were also administered a questionnaire addressing their help-seeking intentions and the nature of their achievement goals. A statistically significant treatment effect was found that the treatment dyads provided more high-level elaborations than the control dyads. The use of high-level elaborations was also positively related to student achievement. The results of the study underline the need to structure learning in small groups; discourse features as help seeking, help giving, provision of reasons and exploratory talk must be practiced and reinforced. Implications for Classroom Practices and Further Research Several implications for language pedagogy can be drawn from the findings of these studies. First, as language teachers, we have to ensure that students are provided with multiple and varied opportunities to engage in meaningful interactions in the target language. To make the interactions meaningful, we need to encourage learners to relate the topical content to those personal experiences and social relationship that are real thus of significance to them. Motivating learners to make connections between their own and others’ background knowledge and to share these connections with each other promotes their extended engagement in their interactions. Second, in the opportunities for interaction that we make available, we must ensure that not only the cognitive but the affective dimensions are considered. As shown in these studies, making interpersonal connections with each other in their classroom interactions fostered a sense of community among the members; this helps to cr eate a motivating learning environment. Third, language learners of all ages and levels are able to construct rich interactions. Thus we need to create opportunities for them to demonstrate their interpersonal skills without the explicit help or directed attention of the teacher. Finally, several questions for possible study are suggested by these studies. First, given the significance of interpersonal relationships to language learning found in these studies, how do we create and sustain rapport among individuals who come from varied backgrounds or who are reticent to participate? Moreover, in the century of high technology how social processes are enabled by new communications tools and resources such as the Internet, e-mail and videoconferences. In addition, how these relationships and processes interact with language learning. The last concern is the need for more longitudinal data. Although most of the studies link language development to the particular practices, they do not actually document specific changes in learners’ use of language in their data. The only way to truly understand the occurrence of language development in oneself is to require more long-term investigations. References Baines, Ed., Blatchford, P., Kutnick, P (2003). Changes in grouping practices over primary and secondary school. International Journal of Educational Research, 39, 9-34. Chinn, C.A., O’Donnell, A.M. Jinks, T.S. The structure of discourse in collaborative learning. Department of Educational Psychology. The State University of New Jersey. Chiu, Ming Ming (1998). Status Effects in Group Problem Solving: Group and Individual Level analyses. Educational Resource Information Center. The Chinese University of Hong Kong. Cohen, E., Lotan, R, Abram, P., Scarloss, B Schultz, S (2002). Can Groups Learn? Teachers College Record, 104(6),1045-1068 De Guerrero M.C. Villamil O.S. (2000). Activating the ZPD: Mutual scaffolding in L2 peer revision. The Modern Language Journal, 84, 51-68. Duff, P.A. (2002). The discursive co-construction of knowledge, identity, and difference: An ethnography of communication in the high school mainstream. Applied Linguistics, 23(3), 289-322. Ghaith, G. (2003). Effects of the Learning Together Model of Cooperative Learning on English as a Foreign Language Reading Achievement, Academic Self-Esteem, and Feelings of School Alienation. Bilingual Research Journal, 27:3 Gillies, R.(2006). Teachers’ and students’ verbal behaviors during cooperative and small-group learning. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 76, 171-287 Gillies, R Ashman A (1996). Teaching collaborative skills to primary school children in classroom-absed work groups. Learning and Instruction, 6(3), 187-200 Hijzen, D, Boekaerts, M Vedder, P (2006). The relationship between the quality of cooperative learning, students’ goal preferences and perceptions of contextual factors in the classroom. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 47, 9-12. Johnson, D.W., Johnson, R.T. Stanne M.B (2001). Impact of Goal and Resource Interdependence on Problem-Solving Success. The Journal of Social Psychology, 129(5), 621-629 Johnson, R.T. Johnson, R.T. (1992). Implementing cooperative learning. Contemporary Education, 63, 173-180. Kim, D, and Hall, J.K. (2002). The role on an interactive book reading program in the development of second language pragmatic competence. The Modern Language Journal, 86(3), 332-348. Klingner, J.K., Vaughn, S., Schumm, J.S. (1998). Collaborative strategic reading during social studies in heterogeneours fourth-grade classroom. The Elementary School Journal, 99, 3-22. Krashen, S. D. (1981). Effective Second Language Acquisition: Insights from Research. The Second language classroom. Oxford University Press, Inc. Lewin, K. (1935). A dynamic theory of personality. New York: McGraw-Hill. Lynch, T. (2001). Seeing what they meant: Transcribing as a route to noticing. ELT Journal, 55, 124-132 Matthews, Mona Kesner, John (2000). The silencing of Sammy: One struggling reader learning with his peers. International Reading Association, 53(5), 382-390 Mori, J. (2002). Task design, plan, and development of talk-in-interaction: An analysis of a small group activity in a Japanese language classroom. Applied Linguistics, 23(3), 323-347. Naughton, N.(2006). Cooperative Strategy Training and Oral Interaction: Enhancing Small Group Communication in the Language Classroom. The Modern Language Journal, 90,(ii). Piaget, J. (1926). The Language and Thought of the child. New York: Harcourt Brace. Shachar, H Sharan S (1994). Talking, Relating, and Achieving: Effect of Cooperative Learning and Whole-Class Instruction. Cognition and Instruction, 12(4), 313-353. Shachar, H Shmuelevitz, H (1997). Implementing Cooperative learning, Teacher Collboration and Teachers’ Sense of EFFICACY IN Heterogeneous Junior High Schools. Contemporary educational psychology, 22, 53-72 Storch, N.(2001). How collaborative is pair work? ESL tertiary students composing in pairs. Language Teaching Research 5, 29-53 Swain, M. Lapkin, S. (2003). Talking it through: Two French immersion learners’ response to reformulation. International Journal of Educational Research, 37, 285-304 Veenman, S, Denessen, E, Akker, A Rijt, J (2005). Effects of a Cooperative Leraning Program on the Elaborations of Students During Help Seeking and Help Giving. American Educational Research Journal, 42(1), 115-137 Verplaetse, L.S. (2000). Mr. Wonder-ful: Portrait of a dialogic teacher. Second and foreign language learning through classroom interaction, 223-241 Vygotsky, L.S. (1978). Mind in Society (ed. M. Cole, V. John Steiner, S. Scribner, and E. Souberman). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Wegerif, R, Mercer N, Dawes L (1999). From social interaction to individual reasoning: an empirical investigation of a possible sociocultural model of cognitive development. Learning and Instruction. Walton Hall. Research Papers on Collaborative LearningThe Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug UseStandardized TestingResearch Process Part OneEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenOpen Architechture a white paperBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesThree Concepts of PsychodynamicHip-Hop is ArtAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into Asia

E-commerce project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

E-commerce project - Essay Example It is evident that many companies now realize the importance of websites as a tool to gain market share and improve sales. Most flourishing companies like unique home decor, Paul Michael company, Bensons would not have reached the places they are without their websites (BAJAJ, 2005).The Martha Stewart management structure consists of activities such as the allocation of tasks, supervision and coordination, which are directed towards the accomplishment of the aims of the company. The company structure mainly participates in the accomplishment of the company goals this is because the company has several dedicated employees whose main agenda is to assist the company to achieve his company's goals. Martha Stewart has several supervisor is in each and every department, this ensures the employees work up to the required standard. This contributes to the making of designing high quality decor products because the management has catered everything governing the employees work. The company us es various business models to make it distinct from other companies. The business models also help to describe the organizational architecture of capture mechanisms, delivery which are employed by the company's enterprise. The company has applied business models such as, collecting intelligence, user generated content, and improving the available systems. It also uses transport services such as airline and private courier services to ensure their products are available all over the continent. The goals of the business are primarily marketing the products on sale and making sure they increase their profits though online sale and delivery. The company also seeks to be capable of running consumer satisfaction surveys so as to assist they gauge their progress. Finally, the ultimate goal is to ensure that the company becomes a reputable and among the most respected and successful in this field of business. Supply chain underscores on cutting down of resources and various expences inorder to improve their bottom lines with more effective supply chains. In order for companies, to be the best and out do its competitors in the market it has to define the most effective supply chain. This would improve how the business operates, in fact the supply chains do work well with the ERP systems which are involved in conducting various business activities, which include production planning and customer service which are not part of the supply chains. Technology plays a main role in the accomplishment of the supply chain concept pre-dates the internet, and they use web based application and communication can it truly reach its fully potential. The website will, therefore, be designed so as to make sure the company achieves most of its goals in the most efficient way possible. The website will become a partial platform for the marketing department. This is because many people nowadays depend on the internet for many things, making it an easier place to access customers. The produ cts will be marketed by posting them on the website and giving information on the latest home decors awaiting release and those already in the market. In order to enhance marketing, the company will have to alias with the most visited websites and have accounts in social platforms such as Facebook, linked in, twitter and MySpace among others. Secondly the company will should be able to give customers the ability to purchase items and request them to get delivered to supported locations. The products shall be priced ant the availability of a customer to purchase the items collectively using a virtual card. This will allow them to shop for many products easily. The third aspect of this website is customer support.

Pharmacology ( Paramedic ) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Pharmacology ( Paramedic ) - Essay Example the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of Ipilimumab as obtained from a similar research, the cost effectiveness of ipilimumab was found to be $78,218 per life year gained (Barzey et al. 2012, p. 73). This means that the ipilimumab is more cost effective. Adrenergic drugs are the pharmacological compounds that stimulate adrenergic nerves directly. They do this by mimicking the action of epinephrine or adrenaline in the body or stimulating their release. These drugs are used I treatment of life-threatening disorders including asthma, cardiovascular conditions such as cardiac arrest and in allergic reactions. Adrenergic receptors are widely distributed in the body and these drugs act on these receptors. However, their selectivity determines the receptors that the drug group will act on and hence the efficacy and side effects. There are two major groups of adrenergic receptors, which are alpha-receptors and beta-receptors. Those that act selectively on alpha-receptors are associated with constriction of blood vessels especially in the bronchial mucosa and relaxation of gastrointestinal smooth muscles. Those that are beta selective relax bronchial smooth muscles and dilation of bronchi. The beta-adrenoceptors also increase the heart rate and contractility of the heart. This means that using a drug such as salbutamol, which is a beta-adrenergic receptor agonist in asthma will be effective in causing dilation of the bronchi and hence relieve of symptoms. In addition, the drug will cause a considerable increase in heart rate and heart contractility as side effects due to its action on the heart muscles (Baker 2010, pp 1048-1061). The enzyme phosphodiesterase-5 is responsible for the degradation of cGMP in the smooth muscles of small blood vessels especially in the corpus cavernous of the penile shaft. The enzymes are also present in the arterial smooth muscles of the lungs. Inhibitors of this enzyme relieve erectile dysfunction and pulmonary hypertension. Since

What impact has the war on drugs had on women Essay

What impact has the war on drugs had on women - Essay Example This essay would further analyze the impact of the war on drugs on women in this century (Solovitch 2006 & Bloom et al 2004). Figures taken from Women’s Prison Association showed an increase of 592 percent cases of women jailed for abusing drugs from the year 1977 to 2001 (Solovitch 2006). This shows a dramatic increase in the number of women jailed and the impact of the new legislative policies regarding drugs on the women. It is noted that women are the ones who are suffering the most at the hands of the war on drugs. An example of pregnant women can be considered here as when legislations were introduced it was seen that women who were using drugs were snatched of their parenting rights and were not allowed to bear the child (Bloom et al 2004). The pregnant women are at times even referred to child welfare authorities and in some states it is noticed that these women are sentenced to death. Not only this, the whole system of rehabilitation has also largely been only made to suit the male population living in this world. The women who are affected by drug abuse are not even given proper treatment when they are caught and yet again have to suffer because of the so called war on drugs (Solovitch 2006). In conclusion it can be said that although the number of men imprisoned for drug abuse are still higher than the women imprisoned for drug abused but even then the women are suffering the most from the new legislations. It is seen that many of the rights of these women are snatched without even being provided with their basic rights. Rehabilitation centers are specially made in line with the requirements of men and not women and that is why the women are not fully able to cure themselves from this problem. But on the contrary it can also be said that because of this war many women tend to avoid getting into the drug business as they are afraid of being punished and this seems like an

What are the strengths and limitations of the methods of 'political Essay

What are the strengths and limitations of the methods of 'political economy' in offering us insights into the operation of t - Essay Example Studies depict that the media units reach the reader through catchy information that propels the purchases and drives out competition. However, the act is often a tricky affair as the media may employ propaganda to enrich the information and reach the reader with the desired degree of perception (Skinner, 2005, p. 2). The context documents the theories and theorists on the limitations and strengths of the media in relevance to the political economy method and the general environment. The Political Economy Method Media channels release news to the environment meant to convey information on the actual outcome of events that affect the lives of individuals. In the competitive media industry, the channels shift concerns towards profitability rather than practice the right approaches to the environment through abiding by the code of conduct. For example, the readers do not expect that the information conveyed to them could be ill yet interesting, but on the other hand, it is a criterion a pproach that only catchy information would sale to the readers profitably (Mcchesney, 2008, p. 45). The practice implies a conflicting situation to the ethical code of conduct and the prevailing cultural values and the extent upon which the media practices further contrast with the will to deliver information and that of amassing profits (Plappert, 2010, p. 3). The media practices of the political economy method meant to derive the following set of views. The media industry depicted a continuous overflow in the market that threatened concentration, as this would normally implicate negative returns on revenues. The media depicted that globalization pursued the industry and based on the decreased diversity, chances were that the international audience would tend to react towards information in a similar manner (Wasko, Murdock and Sousa, 2011, p. 24). Prospects were that the method would hinder any negative influence from the opposition and other groups that would perceive a chance to indict charges towards the media practices. According to the team on political economy, Raymond established that the media and the public established different interests, but the extent to which the public would affect the media, was dependent on private interests of the media stakeholders (Winseck and Jin, 2011, p. 76). The Problem Approach of the ‘Political Economy’ Method in Relation to the Media The method of political economy in relation to the actual consciousness of the society through media communication raised a heated debate in the 1970s. The theorists of the political economy approach outlined the importance of the method and that it enhanced the welfare of the individual society members negatively. In a way, the media would articulate communicative programs to monetary related objectives and ensure that the public felt the salient role of the information in the society (Wasko, Murdock and Sousa, 2011, p. 28). The media would evolve accordingly through the pr ocesses and programs that related inversely to the economic propulsion but ethnically contrasted with societal beliefs and norms. The theory of ‘political economy,’ as initially indicated by Marx and Engels, targeted to realize ethics alongside economic values. This would further imply the aspect of consciousness towards the society. The contrast is that towards the end of implementation of the theory, the result was a positive economic approach to the business culture with less relation to the societal welfare, thus

Aid is abused by both donors and recipients. Nothing should be counted Essay

Aid is abused by both donors and recipients. Nothing should be counted as Official Development Assistance until it has been proved to reduce poverty. Discuss - Essay Example with these aid in such a manner that the positive impact of the aid in the recipient countries is nullified, the very essence of the institutional structures, policies and corruption in the recipient countries even make worse the situation by aggravating the ineffectiveness of the aid received. This has resulted to disappointing results over that past where actually the aim of development or poverty reduction were only recognized in a few countries that had favourable conditions to work with (Pettersson, 2007). Schabbel (2007:2) in his analysis of foreign and poverty reduction notes that World Bank statistics shows that though the number of poor people in extreme poverty has reduced from 40.4% in 1981 to 21.1% in 2001, most of this reduction was traced from China. Excluding China from the analysis showed that in actuality extreme poverty rose. For instance in sub Saharan Africa, poverty rose from 41.6% in 1981 to 46.4% in 2001. And this has been the trend over the past in such a mann er that it attracted global debate in effectiveness of such aid and necessitated a number of agreements, one in 2005 and the other in 2008 to help in achieving higher effectiveness. Indeed the effectiveness of aid, has been high on political agendas with a several agreements on how to make aid being more effective adopted by various governments both donors and recipients: that is the Accra Agenda for Action of 2008 and the Paris declaration of 2005 which provide commitments and principles for ensuring that ODA provided are effective and efficient in meeting their objectives (OECD Observer, 2007; OECD, 2008:1). The Reality of Aid Report (2010:9) though note that the manner in which these agreements are implemented is too technical to actually transform the manner in which aid is governed to actually make it more effective and relevant to the poor for whom it is aimed. It shows that the agreements have not changed the reality of aid relationships since what is actually practised are

What are the strengths and limitations of the methods of 'political Essay

What are the strengths and limitations of the methods of 'political economy' in offering us insights into the operation of t - Essay Example Studies depict that the media units reach the reader through catchy information that propels the purchases and drives out competition. However, the act is often a tricky affair as the media may employ propaganda to enrich the information and reach the reader with the desired degree of perception (Skinner, 2005, p. 2). The context documents the theories and theorists on the limitations and strengths of the media in relevance to the political economy method and the general environment. The Political Economy Method Media channels release news to the environment meant to convey information on the actual outcome of events that affect the lives of individuals. In the competitive media industry, the channels shift concerns towards profitability rather than practice the right approaches to the environment through abiding by the code of conduct. For example, the readers do not expect that the information conveyed to them could be ill yet interesting, but on the other hand, it is a criterion a pproach that only catchy information would sale to the readers profitably (Mcchesney, 2008, p. 45). The practice implies a conflicting situation to the ethical code of conduct and the prevailing cultural values and the extent upon which the media practices further contrast with the will to deliver information and that of amassing profits (Plappert, 2010, p. 3). The media practices of the political economy method meant to derive the following set of views. The media industry depicted a continuous overflow in the market that threatened concentration, as this would normally implicate negative returns on revenues. The media depicted that globalization pursued the industry and based on the decreased diversity, chances were that the international audience would tend to react towards information in a similar manner (Wasko, Murdock and Sousa, 2011, p. 24). Prospects were that the method would hinder any negative influence from the opposition and other groups that would perceive a chance to indict charges towards the media practices. According to the team on political economy, Raymond established that the media and the public established different interests, but the extent to which the public would affect the media, was dependent on private interests of the media stakeholders (Winseck and Jin, 2011, p. 76). The Problem Approach of the ‘Political Economy’ Method in Relation to the Media The method of political economy in relation to the actual consciousness of the society through media communication raised a heated debate in the 1970s. The theorists of the political economy approach outlined the importance of the method and that it enhanced the welfare of the individual society members negatively. In a way, the media would articulate communicative programs to monetary related objectives and ensure that the public felt the salient role of the information in the society (Wasko, Murdock and Sousa, 2011, p. 28). The media would evolve accordingly through the pr ocesses and programs that related inversely to the economic propulsion but ethnically contrasted with societal beliefs and norms. The theory of ‘political economy,’ as initially indicated by Marx and Engels, targeted to realize ethics alongside economic values. This would further imply the aspect of consciousness towards the society. The contrast is that towards the end of implementation of the theory, the result was a positive economic approach to the business culture with less relation to the societal welfare, thus

Strategic Management and Leadership of General Motors Case Study

Strategic Management and Leadership of General Motors - Case Study Example GM, along with strategic partners manufactures automobiles and trucks in thirty-four nations, and trade and service these vehicles through its numerous brands.   Its biggest national market in the United States. China, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia, and Germany are the other nations which follow America in this context.   GM’s OnStar ancillary is one of the leading industries in vehicle safety, security and information facilities. On 10th July 2009,  General Motors Company obtained functions from General Motors Corporation. The General Motor Corporation established its place in the automobile manufacturing industry with the manufacturing of luxurious cars, which are classy at the same time superior from the other rival manufacturers of automobiles. Due to their high brand name and reputation in the market, the cost prices of cars from General Motors are generally very high and sometimes unreachable for general customers. (Global Operations, n.d.; General Mot ors, n.d) The General Motors Corporation held the first place as an automobile manufacturing company with respect to its sales for around 77 years until; Toyota took its place in the year 2008. The downfall of the company from the number one position is due to its negligence in terms of designing new innovative cars. There was a lack of creative innovations in terms of designs as they only have done some slight or minor changes in the designs to satisfy the customers. Some are of the view that the downfall is due to the poor strategic management of the company. The company faced difficulties in coming up with the internal and external pressures, like the accessibility of loans for the customers, the pressure from the Government and Labor Unions, crisis of oil, other competitive technologies such as electric cars, etc. (Global Operations, n.d.; General Motors, n.d) These difficulties clearly suggested that the company needs to re-strategize its  operations.

Ban On Assault Weapons & High Capacity Magazines Essay Example for Free

Ban On Assault Weapons High Capacity Magazines Essay What is a high capacity magazine exactly? It is any magazine for a semi-automatic weapon that can hold more than 10 bullets. Pennsylvania voters want stricter laws on guns, including background checks on all purchases and bans on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Democrats controlled both the House and Senate, and the nations crime rate was a major concern. The assault weapons ban was part of an extensive crime bill that included money to hire additional police, build new prisons and fund crime prevention programs. By 3 to 2 margins, people favor a nationwide ban on assault weapons (60 percent to 37 percent) and a ban on the sale of ammunition magazines that hold more than 10 bullets (59 to 39 percent). But when the first assault weapons ban was approved outlawing 19 specific weapons it was a very different time. Personally, I’m for guns. I do NOT think they should ban assault weapons and high capacity magazines. That’s not fair to the true gun lovers out there. Plus all of the hunters that may need a high capacity magazine or an assault rifle. I personally think that this law won’t pass everywhere, especially in Alaska. People need to learn how to use a gun before they lay their hands on one. That’s the only issue. I also think you need to register your gun in your name as soon as you get it. I personally think if someone has a bad record or a timeline of bad deeds then they shouldn’t own a gun. Simple as that. Banning assault weapons and high capacity magazines can have its ups using it for hunting or just shooting but it also has its downs killing people, or hurting someone, but I’m all for guns. So I think this law doesn’t need to be made. One needs to register it and make sure you don’t have a bad record, and know how to use a gun. That’s the law I think they should make.

Green Logistic Or Sustainable Logistics Management Environmental Sciences Essay

Green Logistic Or Sustainable Logistics Management Environmental Sciences Essay Logistics is a physical distribution, it is an area of high potential cost savings, improved customer satisfaction and competitive effectiveness. Following are coming under the logistic systems 1) Ware housing 2) Inventory control 3) Materials handling 4) Order processing 5) Transportation. 1. A Definition of the study: A widely accepted definition is the one provided by the council of Supply Chain Management professionals (CSMP. Previously Council of Logistic Management. CLM) in the USA is Logistic is the part of the supply chain process that plans, implements and controls the efficient, effective flow and storage of goods, services and related information from the point of origin to the point of consumption in order to meet customers requirement. (P 195) (Business Administration for Students and Managers. Dr. Lawerence Mensah Akwetey 2011. Logistics is concerned with the efficient flow of raw materials of work in process inventory and of finished goods from supplier to customer. In addition to transportation logistics entails inventory control, warehousing, materials handling, order processing and related information activities involved in the flow of products. (Regan et al 2000) Green logistics is a traditional logistics seeks to organize forward distribution that is the transport, warehousing, Packaging and inventory management from the producer to consumer, environmental considerations opened up markets for recycling and disposal and led to the entire new subsector of reverse logistics. The reverse distribution involves the transport of waste and movement of used materials. While the terms reverse logistics is widely used. Other names have been applied such as reverse distribution reverse flow logistics and green logistics (Byne and Deep 1993). Freight transport provides the link in the supply chain between echelons that enable products to be available to the customer in the right place at the right time (Potter and Lalwani 2005) 1. B.Objective of the study: Review and analysis out how the logistic systems affect the environment. In the Green logistics, we have to make ensure the achievement of transport logistics compatible with the environment. The ideas of sustainable development originate from the 1987 Brundtland report (ACE 2004) also known as our common future. This report alerted the world to the urgency of making progress toward economic development that could be sustained without depleting natural resources or harming the environment. Example: Over recent years Irelands per capital have been house gas (GHG) emissions have risen to be one of the highest in Europe. This rise in emission is no small part attribute to the 165 % increase in transport emissions in the period 1990 to 2006.The focus of this study is on the development of environmentally conscious supply chains in Ireland through the studying the harmful impact that logistical activities have on the environment with this in mind the following section will define the Green or Sustainable supply chain and introduce the concept of sustainable logistics. Supply chain management was defined by Christopher (1998) is Supply chain management involves the management of upstream and downstream relationships with suppliers and customers to deliver superior customer value at less cost to the supply chain as a whole. Supply chains have been shown to high contributors to the carbon footprint of most goods (van Hoek 2001) with Eyefortransportv (2008) claiming that up to 75 % of a companys carbon footprint is derived from supply chain activities. The Green or Sustainable supply chain is an approach which seeks to minimise a product or services ecological footprint (Bearing point 2008). The concept covers all the phases of a products life cycle from the extraction of raw materials through the design, production and distribution phases to the use of the product by consumes and their eventual disposal of same. Sustainable logistics is a key element in the development of environmentally conscious /Green supply chain design. Green Design: Green design can be described as an approach which seeks to reduce a products environmental impact throughout its complete lifecycle through the design of the product. Green sourcing or Green Procurement: It is where environmental criteria are included in the decision making process when sourcing products or services. Green manufacturing: Has the goal of reducing the environmental impact of the manufacturing function in supply chains through the reduction of the environmental impact of the use of materials and energy. Green logistics: Has the aim of meeting cost targets and customer service levels with reduced pollution from the transport, warehousing, inventory management and distribution function in the supply chain. Sustainable logistics is a key element in the development of environmentally conscious/ green supply chain design. Reverse Logistics: It represents all operations related to the reuse of products and materials. It is vital component of green supply chains providing a means for products/materials to be returned from the user to the producer in order to be recycled, reused or reconditioned. Logistics and the Environment Freight transportation by road is the dominant mode of freight transport in many economies due mainly to the flexibility and speed that the movement of freight by road offers When compared to railway, inland waterway or Sea transport (Mason and Lalwani 2004).This is particularly true for Ireland as 90 % of freight traffic occurs in the road( Ryan et al 2003). In freight transport the burning of petrol and diesel fuels in internal combustion engines leads to the chemical by-product of Nitrous Oxide, Methane and most importantly Carbon Di Oxide. Transport in Ireland is a major contributing factor to Irelands overall emissions accounting for a 20.8 % share of total emissions in 2007, 97% of which is from road transport (EPA 2008) Aronsson (2006) highlighted major source of environmental problems have received during the last decade by transportation. Recommendation: As highlighted by Tenekcioglu (2004) certain mode of transportation such as rail and maritime transport are considered green modes because their effects are less detrimental to the environmental to the environment. These modes produce less pollution, less noise and account for less accident. GLOBAL WARMING The stern (2006) report on climate change outlines that it is now widely accepted that if no action is taken on reducing GHG emissions and in particular carbon Dioxide (co2) emissions that based on current trends in the next 50 years or so 2-3 Celsius increase in global temperature can be predicted causing disastrous effects in the areas of Food sources, water, Health, Land, Environment. For example Ireland National Climate change strategy 2007- 2012 report states that continued emissions of green house gases at or above rates would result climate system over this century than those observed to date. The department of transport Ireland (2009) estimate that over 30 % transport emissions in Ireland come from freight transport. If atmospheric concentration of green house gas had been stabilized at 2000 levels, warming and sea level rise would continue at least until the end of this century due to the time scales associated with climate process and feedback. (Department of the Environment heritage and Local government Ireland 2007) Effects: 1) A temperature increase of 0.2 Celsius per decade for the next two decades with a warming of 1.8 to 4 Celsius by 2100. 2) Global average sea level rise in the ranges 18- 38 cm for the low emissions scenario and 26-59 cm for the high emissions scenario. 3) It is very likely that hot extremes, heat waves and heavy precipitation events will continue to become more frequent and likely that future tropical cyclones will become more intense. 4) Increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations lead to increasing acidification of the ocean. Standards, Tools Methodologies for sustainable supply chain management Sustainable supply chain implementation requires standards to allow measurement of environmental impact methodologies and support tools to allow adoption of environment practices. This provides an overview of standards, tools and methodologies for the implementation of sustainable supply chains. Environmental Management system EMS standards have been developed as tools to allow the management of organizations to better identify, manage and control their activities that can impact the environment.EMS standards were developed in the early 1990s in several countries. The standards was approved by the British Standards Institution (BSI) IN 1992 and became a model for the ISO standard 14401, which was elaborated in the years 1991-1996.The European Eco-Management and Audit scheme( EMAS) was adopted in 1993.(EEB 2003). ISO 14000 Specifies a set of measures to be incorporated into a companys management system aimed at dealing with environmental aspects in a systematic way including the following major elements. Definition of an environmental policy including performance objectives Assessment of environmental aspects Identification of legal obligations Establishing an Environmental management programme. Definition of procedures to achieve the objectives Monitoring of the systems and improvement The European EMAS scheme is based on the international standards but contains additional requirement Initial environmental review. Independent verification An accreditation system for verifiers Validated environmental statements Employee involvement Industrial carbon foot printing standards and Methodologies. A carbon footprint is The total set of green house gas emissions caused directly and indirectly by an individual event, organisation, and product expressed as carbon Di Oxide (Carbon Trust 2007) The British standards Institute (BSI) developed the publicly available specification (PAS) 2050 as a method for measuring the embodied GHG emission from goods and services. Conclusion and Recommendations: Tackling waste in Freight transport. Lean supply chain management is a technique that analyses ways to eliminate wastes in the production process thus increasing efficiency. In supply chain management Mason and Lalwani (2006) identify some hidden wastes in transport and logistics management which eventually have to be paid for by supply chain customers. These wastes includes Slow vehicle turnaround times Low back haul levels Low fill rates Duplicated administration Poor fleet utilisation. If we avoid all those things we can maintain the sustainable logistics without damage the environment or with minimum damage of the environment.