Are There Ciphers in Shakespeare Essay Example For Students

Are There Ciphers in Shakespeare? Essay Introductory Note: his is an introduction to an ingenious and creative cipher system to be found in the works of William Shakespeare. Here it is necessary to explain that cryptography is a very old technique. Even in antiquity the rule was, whenever the name of a place or person must be repeated in a message, it must always be misspelled. Therefore Baconquot;s name is never spelled correctly, and there are many alternate forms, but see the 25 letter solution to the dedication of the 1623 Folio which includes BEKAANBACON adjoining. Sometimes the name is preceded by F or FS, as he abbreviated his first name in his signature. Bacon was himself a cryptographer, if not a cryptanalyst as his brother Anthony was. Proofs by cryptanalysis, such as are shown here, do not depend upon comparing styles, or vocabulary counts, or literary opinions. If a cipher be found in such ancient works, and the name of the author is included, proof of authorship must be regarded as conclusive. The probable word attack is most useful in breaking a monoalphabetic cipher. A cryptanalyst, suspecting that the name Bacon might appear in the plaintext, can use that as a useful tool to solve a cipher. Thus, misspelling of this name, and in as many ways as possible, must be done in order to attempt to defeat a solution. Baconquot;s ciphers were steganographic, that is they were designed to be concealed. One artifice was to hide the signifigant letters in the capital letters of a verse or text. This type of cipher is called acrostic and it was a popular method in his day. It may be complicated by substitution. A substitution cipher is a very simple device. Substitute the letter B for the letter A, substitute C for B, substitue D for C and so on. It may be complicated by a key whereby the alphabet is reversed or scrambled, or altered in some other way. And the substitution may be more extreme such as G for A, H for B, I for C, etc. Baconquot;s way was not so simple. Bacon explains, by the use of the Dyersquot;s Hand metaphor in Sonnet 111, why his name except for one instance is always misspelled, but it still belongs to him. All of which brings us to a short article about Francis Bacon, William Shakespeare, and many examples of the name of the author hidden in the ciphertext. Penn Leary, July 1, 1995 Are there Ciphers in Shakespeare? Copyright 1993 By Penn Leary t is considered by some yet certainly not by all academicians that it is a lunacy to question the authorship of the Works of William Shakespeare a comical 1984 thought-crime, a preposterous and radical and specious view of the obvious, a conspicuous deviation from a normal and Politically Correct academic opinion. But Charles Dickens, a student of human nature, had this to say: The life of Shakespeare is a fine mystery, and I tremble every day lest something should turn up. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote: As long as the question is of talent and mental power, the world of men has not his equal to show. . . The Egyptian verdict of the Shakespeare societies comes to mind that he was a jovial actor and manager. I cannot marry this fact to his verse. John Greenleaf Whittier said, Whether Bacon wrote the wonderful plays or not, I am quite sure the man Shakspere neither did nor could. James M. Barrie put it more whimsically: I know not, sir, whether Bacon wrote the works of Shakespeare, but if he did not it seems to me that he missed the opportunity of his lifetime. Samuel Taylor Coleridge said, Ask your own hearts, ask your own common sense, to conceive the possibility of the author of the Plays being the anomalous, the wild, the irregular genius of our daily criticism. What! are we to have miracles in sport? Does God choose idiots by whom to convey divine truths to man? And there yet remains a band of doubters. If someone else wrote the plays and poems, then who? Let us consult a calendar of years: |-Publication of the Plays| 1560 1570 1580 1590| 1600 1610 1620 | 1626 The Reign of Queen Elizabeth I 1558-1603 Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford 1550-1604 Christopher Marlowe 1564-1593 William Shaksper, of Stratford 1564-1616 Francis Bacon 1561-1626The 1623 edition of the First Folio contained twenty new plays. At that time Shakespeare had been dead for seven years, Edward De Vere for nineteen and Christopher Marlowe for thirty. Only Francis Bacon survived the 1623 publication. This is hardly enough to credit the authorship to Bacon, but it arouses skepticism upon the claims of the other three leading contenders. There is also considerable doubt about the facts of Shakespearequot;s own life. Let us read what Mark Twain had to say about that From Is Shakespeare Dead? 1909: He was born on the 23rd of April, 1564. Of good farmer-class parents who could not read, could not write, could not sign their names. At Stratford, a small back settlement which in that day was shabby and unclean, and densely illiterate. Of the nineteen important men charged with the government of the town, thirteen had to make their mark in attesting important documents, because they could not write their names. Of the first eighteen years of his life nothing is known. They are a blank. On the 27th of November 1582 William Shakespeare took out a license to marry Anne Whateley. Next day William Shakespeare took out a license to marry Anne Hathaway. She was eight years his senior. William Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway. In a hurry. By grace of a reluctantly granted dispensation there was but one publication of the banns. Within six months the first child was born. About two blank years followed, during which period nothing at all happened to Shakespeare, so far as anybody knows. Then came twins1585. February. Two blank years follow. Then1587he makes a ten-year visit to London, leaving the family behind. Five blank years follow. During this period nothing happened to him, as far as anybody actually knows. Then1592there is mention of him as an actor. Next year1593his name appears in the official list of players. Next year1594he played before the queen. A detail of no consequence: other obscurities did it every year of the forty-five of her reign. And remained obscure. Three pretty full years follow. Full of play-acting. Then. In 1597 he bought New Place, Stratford. Thirteen or fourteen busy years follow; years in which he accumulated money, and also reputation as actor and manager. Meantime his name, liberally and variously spelt, had become associated with a number of great plays and poems, as ostensibly author of the same. Some of these, in these years and later, were pirated, but he made no protest. Then1610-11he returned to Stratford and settled down for good and all, and busied himself in lending money, trading in tithes, trading in land and houses; shirking a debt of forty-one shillings, borrowed by his wife during his long desertion of his family; suing debtors for shillings and coppers; being sued himself for shillings and coppers; and acting as a confederate to a neighbor who tried to rob the town of its rights in a certain common, and did not succeed. He lived five or six yearstill 1616in the joy of these elevated pursuits. . . Musee Des Beaux Arts EssayPerhaps they are unaware of these quotations collected by Mrs. Henry Pott Francis Bacon and his Secret Society, Schulte Co. , Chicago 1891: It is he that filled up all numbers , and performed that which may be compared or preferred to insolent Greece or haughty Rome Ben Jonson. His Lordship was a good poet, but concealed, as appears by his letters John Aubrey. The author of The Great Assises Holden in Parnassus ranks Lord Verulam next to Apollo . The poetic faculty was strong in Baconquot;s mind. No imagination was ever at once so strong and so subjugated. In truth, much of Baconquot;s life was passed in a visionary world. . . magnificent day-dreams. . . analogies of all sorts Macauley. Few poets deal in finer imagery than is to be found in Bacon. . . His prose is poetry Campbell. The varieties and sprightliness of Baconquot;s imagination, an imagination piercing almost into futurity, conjectures improving even to prophecy. . . The greatest felicity of expression and the most splendid imagery Basil Montagu. The Wisdom of the Ancients. . . a kind of parabolical beauty. . . To the Advancement of Learning he brings every species of poetry by which the imagination can elevate the mind from the dungeon of the body to the enjoying of its own essence. . . Metaphors, similitudes and analogies make up a great part of his reasoning. . . Ingenuity, poetic fancy, and the highest imagination and fertility cannot be denied him Craik. The creative fancy of a Dante or Milton never called up more gorgeous images than those suggested by Bacon, and we question much whether their worlds surpass his in affording scope for the imagination. His extended over all time. His mind brooded over all nature. . . unfolding to the gaze of the spectator the order of the universe as exhibited to angelic intelligences Devey. The tendency of Bacon to see analogies is characteristic of him, the result of that mind not truly philosophic but truly poetic, which will find similitudes everywhere in heaven and earth Dr. Abbott. I infer from this sample that Bacon had all the natural faculties which a poet wants: a fine ear for metre, a fine feeling for imaginative effect in words, and a vein of poetic passion. . . The truth is that Bacon was not without the fine phrensy of a poet Spedding. Sir Tobie Matthew, writing to his friend Francis Bacon in 1618, states: The most prodigious wit that ever I knew of my nation, and of this side of the sea, is of your Lordshipquot;s name, though he be known by another. In the Scourge of Folly, John Davies of Hereford 1565-1618 wrote this epigram: To the Royall Ingenious and All-learned Knight Sr Francis Bacon Thy bounty and the Beauty of thy Witt Comprisquot;d in Lists of Law and the learned Arts, Each making thee for great Imployment fitt, Which now thou hast, though short of thy deserts Compells my pen to let fall shining Inke And to bedew the Baies that deck thy Front ; And to thy health in Helicon to drinke As to her Bellamour the Muse is wont; For thou dost h er embozom; and dost vse Her company for sport twixt graue affaires. So vtterquot;st Law the liuelyer through the Muse . And for that all thy Notes are sweetest Aires ; My Muse thus notes thy worth in evquot;ry Line. With ynke which thus she sugers; so, to shine. Thus John Davies in 1610 states plainly that Francis Bacon was a poet and that he had woven into his works spirited illustrations of the law. John Davies was the same man to whom Bacon had written a letter which concluded, so desiring you to be good to concealed poets. Francis Bacon had a great respect and affection for poetry; here are his words: Poesy cheereth and refreshes the soule; chanting things rare, and various, and full of vicissitudes. So as Poesy serveth and conferreth to Delectation, Magnaminity, and Morality; and therefore it may seem deservedly to have some Participation of Divinenesse, becauwse it doth raise the mind, and exalt the spirit with high raptures, by proportioning the shewes of things to the desires of the mind; and not submitting the mind to things, as Reason and History doe. Why might Bacon have concealed his creations? George Puttenham in The Arte of English Poesie 1589 wrote, I know many notable Gentlemen in the Court that have written commendably, and suppressed it agayne, or else suffered it to be publisht without their owne names to it, as if it were a discredit for a Gentleman to seem learned, and to shew himself amorous of any learned Art. In addition, the Plays were written during a very dangerous period. The airing of some political doctrine might offend a royal sensibility, and death or mutilation was the penalty. In 1591 Greene, in his Farewell to Folly, sneers at the practice of concealing the authorship of plays under other names. Others, he says, if they come to write or publish anything in print, which for their calling and gravity being loth to have any profane pamphlets pass under their hands, get some other to set his name to their verses. And he that cannot write true English without the aid of clerks of parish churches will needs make himself the father of interludes. What did Baconquot;s contemporaries think of his poetic talents? Here is a statement made by Edmund Howes in 1615: Our moderne, and present excellent poets which worthely florish in their owne workes, and all of them in my owne knowledge lived togeather in this Queenes raigne, according to their priorities as neere as I could, I have orderly set downe viz George Gascoigne, Thomas Churchyard, Edward Dyer, Edmond Spencer, Philip Sidney, John Harrington, Thomas Challoner, Frauncis Bacon, John Davie, Iohn Lillie, George Chapman, W. Warner, Willi Shakespeare, Samuell Daniell, Michaell Draiton, Christopher Marlo, Benjamine Johnson, Iohn Marston, Abraham Frauncis, Frauncis Meers, Joshua Siluester, Thomas Deckers, John Flecher, John Webster, Thomas Heywood, Thomas Middleton, George Withers. Thus did Edmund Howes rank Frauncis Bacon with Shakespeare among these twenty-seven contemporary excellent Poets. He put him six names ahead of Willi. Edmust Howes was not alone among Baconquot;s contemporaries to acknowledge his poetic capability. John Stowe 1525-1605 collected manuscripts and books. He published and edited many works, particularly The Chronicles. In a 1615 edition he enumerated twenty-four of Our modern and excellent poets which worthely flourish in their own workes in the Queenquot;s reign. Amongst them he listed: Edmond Spencer, Esq. ; Sir Philip Sidney, Knight; Sir Francis Bacon, Knight; Maister George Chapman, Gentleman; Mr. William Shakespeare, Gentleman; Michael Draiton, Esquire, and Mr. Benjamin Johnson, Gentleman. Bacon spoke of himself and was spoken of by others as a concealed poet. In 1600 Bacon received a visit from Queen Elizabeth at his lodge at Twickenham. At which time, he says, I had, though I profess not to be a poet, prepared a sonnet directly tending and alluding to draw on her Majestyquot;s reconcilement to my Lord .

Latent Defect Essay Example

Latent Defect Paper Mike Christensen December 10, 2009 CM 385: Section 1 Final Paper How Can A Contractor Avoid Liability for Defective Work? Every contract created produces a margin of risk and a platform for success. Depending on how one manages the risk assumed, one may either excel and shine in the glory of success or drown and disappear in the raging waters of error. Nevertheless, to become great one must take that step of faith into the flailing wind. As said by Leo F. Buscalglia, â€Å"The person who risks nothing – does nothing, has nothing, is nothing, and becomes nothing. He may avoid suffering and sorrow, but he simply cannot learn†¦ and grow†¦ and live. † (Buscalglia, 2009) The contractor who is bound to the owner must understand the risk assumed regarding defective work. This understanding will create a critical eye for the contractor that will help mitigate risk. To begin, the contractor must recognize what a defect is and the different categories that a defect may be classified as; the various categories will provide opportunities for the contractor to have future claims barred after acceptance. The two main classifications for defective work are known as: patent defects and latent defects. According to the Steven H. Gifis, the author of Law Dictionary, a patent defect is a â€Å"defect that could be recognized upon reasonably careful inspection or through the use of ordinary diligence and care. † To assist in avoiding claims against the contractor due to patent defects, a contractor will create a punch-list, which list will include specific items that need to be checked; and if needed, corrected, prior to the sale of the project. Usually the contractor will walk through the project with the owner to identify any corrections needed. We will write a custom essay sample on Latent Defect specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Latent Defect specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Latent Defect specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Upon acceptance of the work by the owner, which can be manifest by payment or taking possession of the project (i. e. substantial completion), any future patent defect claims cannot be brought against the contractor. The defect should have been recognized upon a reasonably careful inspection, completed by filling out the punch list. A prime example where a contractor and owner are protected by a future claim of defective work is found in the case, Inman v. Binghamton Housing Authority. It was six years after the completion of the Saratoga Terrace apartment complex when a child ell off the back porch stoop and received severe injuries. The parents of the child claimed that the contractor and owner were responsible due to their negligence in constructing the stoop without a protective railing. The court referenced back to the Campo v. Schofield case, which states, â€Å"We have not yet reached the state where a manufacturer is under the duty of making a machine accident proof or foolp roof. † The court also noted that the complex had been used without accident for six years and that it did not conceal any dangers or defective work that would not have been found by a reasonable inspection. The outcome of the case proved that the pleading did not contain any allegation of a defect, and that the liability rested upon the parents of the child. Consequently, the phrase Caveat Emptor (Buyer Beware) protects the contractor from future claims as long as the defective work existed at the time of inspection and could have reasonably been identified. Nevertheless, a contractor must also understand that if the defective work is classified as a latent defect, the risk and liability associated with this defect may be transferred back to the contractor. Therefore, a contractor must understand what a latent defect is and how risk might be lessened. The Law Dictionary defines a latent defect as a â€Å"flaw that is discovered after delivery; usually, latent defects are inherent weaknesses which normally are not detected by examination or routine tests, but which are present at the time of manufacture or are aggravated by use. † (2003) Consequently, this flaw may not be found until the structure or member fails, which rapidly increases the liability of the project. The most identifiers for these failures are unsatisfactory material, workmanship, or design; all of these produce results that do not comply with the contract requirements. In reference to the three common identifiers mentioned above, the most difficult to resolve is the case where the material is defective – who is responsible – the owner, architect, manufacturer, or contractor? The variety of materials is so vast and the testing so limited, that the various personnel mentioned above try to cut costs without assuming the liability. In the case, Wood-Hopkins Contracting Co. v. Masonry Contractors Inc. , Masonry Contractors Inc. ontracted to install and clean the masonry for an apartment complex in Atlanta, Georgia. Upon substantial completion, water was found leaking into the apartment due to the recently constructed masonry wall. Wood-Hopkins immediately accused Masonry Contractors Inc. for the defective work and requested that they waterproof the entire structure (a c ost of $12,255. 00). Masonry Contractors Inc. recognized that the leak came from the wall constructed by their crew, but affirmed that the contract had specifically called out the means and method of installation and material to be used, and that the material was defective, not their work. In the end, the material was found to be defective, which defect caused a failure in the bond. Thus, if the contractor follows the specifications of the owner, which specifications are found in the contract documents, the contractor is able to transfer the liability back to the owner and proceed with minimal risk. In regards to minimizing the risk associated with latent defects, a contractor should obtain the greatest amount of training to increase his workmanship, and then follow the specifications of the contract. If any questions arise during construction, he should consult the owner and designer so that liability and risk will be transferred. . In the case, Southwest Welding v. The United States, the contractor, Southwest Welding, contracted with the government to build several sections of penstock. Upon completion of each section, the government’s Contracting Officer would approve the section and installation of the section would commence and final payment would be made. The contract clearly stated that welds would be radiographically examined and that the Contracting Officer was the only person authorized to accept the work. After installing 15 sections of penstock, the Contracting Officer requested a different test be performed on the welds, which test required that the contractor remove and replace 348,000 inches of welding, equaling an additional cost of $543,343. 76. The Contractor sent letters of clarification, stating that the work previously performed met the contracted requirements and that the work requested would be additional work and would require extra compensation. After traveling the courts, the appellate court sided with the contractor due to the communication which clearly identified the requested work as extra work, because the contractor met the requirements of the contract. In conclusion, a contractor has the opportunity to take the precautions and steps necessary to bar future patent defect claims by creating a punch-list and walking through the project with the owner. The owner’s power of acceptance enforces the contractual phrase Caveat Emptor. Nevertheless, if the defects are considered to be a latent efect, the owner can still trace liability back to the owner. Because of this, the contractor must provide excellent workmanship and follow the specific language of the contract documents. By so doing, the responsibility and liability of the project flows back to the owner who initially took the risk to live, to learn, and invest in his project. Works Cited Buscalglia, Leo f. (2009). ThinkExist. com. Retrieved 11 25, 2009, from ht tp://thinkexist. com/quotation/the_person_who_risks_nothing-does_nothing-has/148405. html Inman v Binghamton Housing Authority, 3 N. Y. d 137 (Court of Appeals of New York July 3, 1957). Campo v. Schofield, 301 N. Y. 468, 95 N. E. 2d 802 Inman v. Binghamton Housing Authority, 3 N. Y. 2d 137; 143 N. E. 2d 895 Latent Defect. (2003). In The Law Dictionary. Retrieved December 2nd, 2009 from http://www. answers. com/topic/latent-defect Patent Defect. (2003). In The Law Dictionary. Retrieved December 2nd, 2009 from http://www. answers. com/topic/latent-defect Southwest Welsidng Manufacturing Company v. The United States, 188 Ct. Cl. 925 Wood-Hopkins Contracting Co v. Masonry Contractors Inc. , 235 So. 2d 548

The Bride Price essays

The Bride Price essays This book was a story about a Nigerian family and the tradition of the bride price. Part of the story takes place in Lagos where Aku-nna, the protagonist, grew up. After her father dies she is forced to move to Ibuza to live with her father's brother in a whole different culture from her own. Her mother, Ma-Blackie married her husband's brother, Okonkwo, making him Aku-nna's step-father This entitled him to her bride price, which was expected to be exorbitant amount. Okonkwo needed this bride price to gain his Eze title. Unfortunately for him, Aku-nna fell in love with, Chike, the school teacher. But, because he was a son of a slave the Ibos wouldn't give their approval of a marriage. It is an Ibo tradition superstition that if a woman is married without the bride price being paid that she will die with the birth of her first child. Aku-nna and Chike ran away from a man that Aku-nna was forced to marry, and they got married. When Chike's father tried to pay a large bride pric e to Okonkwo he would not accept, wishing death upon his stepdaughter. In the end Aku-nna was pregnant and she died in childbirth. This book taught me more about African culture. I think that the bride price and the superstition behind it are interesting concepts. The idea that you can die because a certain amount is not paid to your father is a little absurd. This book basically ended up being a folk tale about the bride price, because at the end the author says that because she died, it was thought that this superstition was true and now the Ibos believe it as fact. The end of the book reminded of Farewell to Arms. The way in which Aku-nna died, the scene with rain, it was very closely related to the scene in which Catherine dies. Yet the baby lives in The Bride Price and the father can live on with a happy memory of his wife. It seemed like after all the obstacles that the characters face and once they are finally hap ...

How to Make a Lichtenberg Figure

How to Make a Lichtenberg Figure Lichtenberg figures are branching structures formed by an electrical discharge on or inside of an insulator. The structures take their name from Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, the physicist who discovered and studied them. Although you can  make your own Lichtenberg figure using polyethylene sheets and talcum powder, there is an easier method you may wish to try. Lichtenberg Figure Materials Sharp metal object (e.g., awl)Insulator (e.g., sheet of acrylic)Photocopier toner Make a Lichtenberg Figure Position the metal object so that only its tip is touching the surface of the insulator.If you have a Wimshurst machine or Van de Graaff generator handy, discharge it through the metal point into the acrylic. (Gray Matter has a cool video of what happens if you use a particle accelerator to create the Lichtenberg figure. Note that the hammer is insulated, thus preventing that persons skin from displaying a Lichtenberg figure. Be careful!)If you dont have a machine, youll have to generate static electricity another way, like by dragging your feet through a shag carpet and zapping yourself on the metal object... fun!In either case, you will create a Lichtenberg figure across the surface of the acrylic, radiating outward from the metal point. However, you probably wont be able to see it. If you (carefully) blow toner powder across the surface of the acrylic, the Lichtenberg figure will be revealed.

Article reviews Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Article reviews - Essay Example It revealed that children and teenage Hispanics were 28.9% obese ab 20.5% in the case of black people. Children who were considered severely obese as profiled above the 95th BMI percentile were prone by as much as 2.8 times of having hypertension compared to those who has moderate obesity. The study also revealed that approximately 5.6% of community population is severely obese that runs the risk of having hypertension. This is relevant because it shows how prevalent obesity is in our population. Imagine a staggering 5.6% of pediatric community population who has severe obesity. The media may only portray the aesthetic consequence of being obese as being labeled â€Å"fat† but medically, it has a morbid consequence of contracting hypertension which the media should also portray. 4. What is the method? How was the research collected? The data gathering was made through interviews of children and adolescents coming from different ethnic backgrounds. Qualitative research was conducted and data was extracted through focus group discussion. The study revealed that a child and adolescents social circle has different attitudes, motivations and behavior about their eating habit and this has significant influence among the other members of the peer group. This is unfortunate because most peer group adopt an unhealthy eating habit that is pass on to other members of the group. Every teenager can relate to this study. It basically says that social pressure induces a teenager to eat unhealthy food. Media is partly guilty of this issue too because they portray eating unhealthy foods such as burgers and pizzas to be the â€Å"in† food for teenagers and most of us buy it. Cnabers, Stephannie; Lobb,Alexandra; Butler, LaurieT; Traill, W. Bruce (2008).The influence of age and gender on food choice: a focus group exploration. International Journal of Consumer Studies, Vol. 32 Issue 4, p356-365, 10p Lo, J. C., Chandra, M., Sinaiko, A., Daniels, S. R.,

How Ecotricity has obtained considerable business achievements within Essay

How Ecotricity has obtained considerable business achievements within a short period of time - Essay Example The paper tells that globalisation and the associated changes in the business environment greatly encouraged both cross border trade and small business enterprises. A small business represents a privately owned and operated business venture having small number of employees and comparatively low sales volume. Small business is fondly termed as ‘mom and pop store’ in the United States. In the view of Fay, generation definition of an SME can be stated as â€Å"a small firm is one that has only a small share of its market, is managed in a personalised way by its owner or part-owner and not through the medium of an elaborate management structure†. Hence, a small firm does not have access to capital market for the issuance of public securities because of its insufficiency in size. As Macgregor and Vrazalic point out that the UK Companies Act 1989 does not allow a small business enterprise to be the subsidiary of any other company. The legal definition of a small busines s enterprise varies from country to country mainly in terms of annual turnover and number of people employed. The emergence of the concept ‘small business’ greatly stimulated entrepreneurs to commence their venture with minimum investment and labour. Low and MacMillan have defined entrepreneurship simply as the formation of new enterprises. Ecotricity was founded by Dale Vince in 1995 using a single wind turbine. Within 15 years, the venture grew into notable heights. As Loveless (2011) reports, Ecotricity was selected as one of the twenty five British small business firms in the first phase of the European Business Awards in 2011. Dale Vince is an innovative entrepreneur who is very different from other contemporary entrepreneurs including James Caan and Steve Jobs. The Telegraph reports that Dale Vince â€Å"is a professional hippy of the kind the establishment used to deride† (Telegraph). He was a former new age traveller and had protested against cruise missi les before he arrived at Gloucester. He always had his own interests and views but never paid attention to external suggestions. Although this trait irritated the credit lending institutions and other concerned parties, his strong decisions were evidently the keys to his success. Vince was never willing to accept failure and this attitude assisted him to overcome threatening troubles with equanimity. Start-ups The push and pull theory clearly describes the concept of entrepreneurship. This theory claims that people are motivated to create innovative ventures by external factors. However, the external factors can be either positive or negative. As Dana (2004, p.134) opines, newly arising opportunities and potential elements of the industry are some of the positive factors that would inspire individuals to create new ventures. In contrast, an individual may also be motivated by negative factors to start a new business (ibid). For instance, unemployment is a negative motivational facto r. The push-pull theory also contends that an individual’s family background can be a strong motive for starting a new business. Experiences show that poor and troubled family relations persuade people to be independent and this need leads them to innovations. The first wind farm established in Cornwall was the major inspiration for Dale Vince, the founder of the Ecotricity to create his own venture. Referring to the push-pull theory, Vince was attracted to

Leadership and Management in Banks | Case Study

Leadership and Management in Banks | Case Study Introduction Soneri Bank was incorporated on September 28, 1991 the first Branch of Soneri Bank Limited formally opened doors for operations in Lahore on April 16, 1992 followed by Karachi Branch on May 09, 1992. The bank now operates with 145 branches spread all over Pakistan including the Northern Areas of the country where no other private bank has ventured so far. Expansion of branches is based on a policy of maintaining a balance between the urban and rural areas with a view to offering services even in the remote areas of Pakistan. Pleasant and sophisticated atmosphere has been provided in the branches which are all fully air-conditioned and computerized. The essence Soneri Bank business philosophy is to cater to the banking requirements of small medium sized entrepreneurs, providing them qualitative competitive services with emphasis on encouraging exports. Nearly forty percent of our credit portfolio is related to export financing and credit decisions are taken within 48 hours Mission Statement: To develop Soneri Bank Ltd into an aggressive and dynamics financial institution having the capabilities to provide personalized service to customer with cutting edge technology and a wide range of products and during the process to ensure maximum return on assets with the ultimate goal of serving the Economy and society. Slogan: We have more time for you Progress to Date: Soneri Bank Ltd was incorporated in 1991 as a public ltd company with paid up capital of Rs: 300 M. Over the last 16 years it has achieved a sustained growth with a network of 90 branches across country. The equity stand at PKR 7.6bn and total asset stand at PKR 88bn at the first quarter of year 2009. Top level management and their Names Boards of Directors: Chairman Legal Advisor Mr. Alauddin Feerasta Manan Associates, Advocates Chief Executive Officer Mr. Safarali K. Lakhani Directors Registered Office Mr. Nooruddin Feerasta Rupali House Mr. Inam Elahi Upper Mall Scheme Mr. S. Ali Zafar Anand Road, Lahore 54000 Mr. Abdul Hayee Registrar and Share Mr. Shahid Anwar (NIT Nominee) Transfer Agent Mr. Manzoor Ahmad (NIT Nominee) THK Associates (Private) Ltd. Company Secretary Ground Floor Mr. Abdul Hayee State Life Building No. 3 Audit Committee Dr. Ziauddin Ahmed Road, Mr. Nooruddin Feerasta (Chairman) Karachi 75530 Mr. S. Ali Zafar (Member) UAN: +9221-111-000-322 Mr. Shahid Anwar (Member) Fax: +9221-5655595 Mr. Abdul Hayee (Member Secretary) Auditors: KPMG Taseer Hadi Co.Chartered Accountants PLANNING Definition Planning defines organization goals and objectives establishing overall strategies for achieving those goals. Developing a comprehensive set of plan to integrate coordinate organization work. Type of plan Soneri bank use both formal and informal type of planning Informal In informal planning, their planning is not written down, short term focus and specific to an organization unit Formal In formal planning their planning is not written down, specific long term focus involves shared goals for an organization. Goal/objectives: Financial strength and profitability by making profitable advances Customer satisfaction by providing higher quality of service at an affordable cost. Growth by expanding branch network deposit base Short term objective Profitability Long term objective Profitability MISSION To develop and deliver the most innovative products, manage customers experience, deliver quality service that contributes to brand strength, establishes a competitive advantage and enhances profitability, thus providing value to the stakeholders of the bank. STRATGY Strategy of Soneri Bank are giving loans and accepting deposit. PLAN Plan of Soneri Bank are short term advance and deposit. PROGRAMME Program of Soneri Bank are up to one year or more then one year advance, fixed account, current account, etc POLICIES Policies of Soneri Bank are profitability by making profitability advance and customer satisfaction by providing best services at on affordable cost. RULES Their rules are depending upon by upper level of management according situation. BUDGET Soneri Bank allocates its budget for the following area 1. Diversify products services Anticipating customer needs, Soneri is increasing its focus on new products and services through leveraging its extensive branch network. The Bank is introducing various types of financing structures tailored to the capital investment requirements of its corporate clients as well as small medium sized enterprises. 2. Focus on consumer banking Making use of its computerized network of branches, the Bank plans to enhance its market share and profitability via focusing on consumer banking products and services as well as integrating e-banking into its delivery channels. 3. Increase employee productivity though training new techniques The Bank seeks to increase employee productivity through a combination of training and implementation of modern human resource techniques. Frequent in-house and external training programs are expected to help the Bank in maintaining and developing an efficient work force. 4. Improve credit assessment, loan monitoring debt recovery The management intends to improve asset quality by implementing strategies for identification, measurement and mitigation of risk, which will result in reducing the quantum of non-performing loans. ORGANIZING Manage work in organization but while is an organization? An organization is a deliberate arrangement of people to accomplish some specific purpose. Your banks, Universities is an organization, college, Govt. department all organization because they have three common characteristic. First Each organization has a distinct purpose this purpose is typically expressed in term of goal or set of goals that the organization hopes to accomplish. Second Each organization composed of people. One person working alone is not an organization and it takes people to perform the work thats necessary for the organization to achieve its goals. Third All organization develops some deliberate structure so that their member can do their work. Purpose of organization Work to be done into specific jobs and department in Soneri Bank Co-ordinate diverse organization task in Soneri Bank. Establishes former line of authority in Soneri Bank. Allocates and deploys organization resources in Soneri Bank. Organizational Deign: It means developing or changing an organization structure. A process that involves six elements: Work Specialization, departmentalization, Span of Control, Chain Of Command, Centralization and Decentralization, and Formulization. Work Specialization: The degree to which tasks in an organization are divided into separate jobs, also known as division of labor. Work Specialization in Soneri Bank: At Soneri Bank high work specialization exists. The whole is divided into number of repetitive task. There is division of labor according to the task specification. They perceive that work specialization is an unending tool to do work efficiently and effectively. Secondly they assume that work specialization is helpful in maintaining effective internal control, because if there is fraudulent move by any person regarding particular task, manager can counter that person on the spot. Work specialization is also helpful to maintain organization mechanism. For Example: In case of credit issuance if one person is responsible for checking Security Documents of pledged property and he recommend incorrect document manger of credit issuance can spot him out. Departmentalization: The basis by which jobs are grouped together is called departmentalization. It means the extent to which we need to divide jobs into different department. Departmentalization at Soneri Bank: Departments at Soneri Bank are minimal. Only few departments exist which are listed below IT department Credit Department International Banking Department Domestic Banking Department Accounts and Audit Department IT department facilitate all other department regarding IT services and fixing out problems of IT. Credit department is one which provide loan to businessmen, general public and for agriculture development as well. This department provides a full range of Corporate and retail banking services with special emphasis to provide qualitative and competitive services to small and medium entrepreneurs. The department scrutinizes the whole process of issuing loan and in case of borrower default this very department is responsible to take legal action against defaulter party. A complete range of products for trade finance, is one of core banking activities of Soneri Bank International banking department deals in import, export, foreign exchange and issue Letter of Credit. Domestic Banking department serves in cash, government bonds and securities, deposits, and provide locker facility .A wide range of attractive saving scheme to suit all segments of investors, consumer finance scheme, and Islamic banking products catering to the needs of variety of customers. Accounts and Audit department maintain the books of all discussed department. Marketing activities: There is no separate department for marketing activities rather these are presided by Executive Vice President (EVP). HR Activities: All affairs relating to HR are controlled by Inam Qazi. There is no separate department of Human Resource Management. Financing Activities Financing activities are handled at Central office Karachi. Span of Control: The number of employees a manager can manage efficiently and effectively. Span of control is important to a large degree because it determine the number of levels/layers and managers in an organization. All things being equal the wider the span of control is more efficient the organization is. Span of Control at Soneri Bank: The span of control at Soneri Bank is usually kept short. Bank has vertical and tall span of control. According to bank correspondent sometime span of control is also dependent upon workload in the bank. More work load may lead to wide span of control. Chain of Command: It means the line of authority extending from upper organizational level to the lowest level which clarifies who reports to whom. Chain of Command at Soneri Bank: Chain of command at Soneri Bank is tall or vertical. Flow of information from top to bottom or from bottom to top is slow because information is supposed to pass from each channel. There is no direct interaction between top level managers and front line managers neither through E-mail nor through telephone regarding the exchange of information. For Example if a branch manger wants to communicate information to BODs then 1st he will interact with Controller of Branches (COB), then COB will contact with Divisional General Manager of concerned division, then divisional GM will report to Central office and central office will send information to the Head Office or BODs. In the same way if BODs want to contact branch manager the whole above discussed process will be followed in reverse order. Centralization and Decentralization: Centralization means the degree to which decision making authority lies in the hands of upper level of organizations individuals or managers. It also means decision making with no/low input from lower employees. Decentralization means to what extent the decisions making authority is delegated to lower level employee. Centralization and decentralization at soneri bank: The decision making authority is delegated to employee up to some extent. They can make their decision by using that delegated authority For example If a credit manager of branch has authority to sanction loan up to Rs 4 million when borrower demand is more than Rs 4 million than credit manager of that branch contact COB (controller of branch) who has authority to sanction loan above Rs 4 million, if COB recommend then credit manager will issue loan and so forth. Formalization: Formalization means to what extent organization jobs are standardized and the extent to which behaviors of employees are guided by the rules and procedures. Formalization at Soneri Bank: Formalization at Soneri Bank is high. All the rules and procedures are clearly defined covering work processes which employees are supposed to follow, And employees have less discretion over what is to be done when it is to be done and how it is to be done. Employees are expected to handle the same input in exactly the same way resulting and uniform output. Types of Organization Design: There are two types of organization design Mechanistic design: Mechanistic is a machine like structure, it is rigid and human involvement is minimums. Organic design: Organic structure is highly flexible, humanistic activity is maximum. Elements of Organizational design Mechanistic Structure Organic Structure Work Specialization High Low Departmentalization High Low Span of control Short Wide Chain of command Long Short Centralization High Low Formulization High Low LEADING Leadership The process of influencing a group of people toward achievement of preselected goals is called leadership. Leader The person who makes this purpose is who can influence other / groups of people and who has managerial authority is called leader. The Soneri Bank has formal way of leadership style Traits of leader The leader of Soneri Bank has the following Traits Skills in themselves. Decision making Risk taking Risk bearing Stress taking Stress bearing Communication Power Honesty Strong vision Inter personal skill Step forward Discipline Believe of on equality Type of Leader Democratic leader The leaders, Soneri Bank have, are the types of Democratic. Because the major portion of bank is De-centralized thats why the each leader have the complete power of decision making, but the are working Collaboratively in whole organization with each other. All leaders of bank are involved in decision making, delighting their authority to their higher qualified employees, encouraged the participation of their employees in work and gives them opportunities coaching in well manner. Task Structure Every leader is giving the formal/ formalizes job or task to his employees, for getting the best result. Thats why the task structure also strong in the Soneri Bank. CONTROLING Controlling is the process of monitoring activities to ensure that they are being accomplished as planned and of correcting and significant deviation. Importance of control: Control is very much important because it is the final link in the management function. It is the only way manager know whether organizational goals are being met or not and the reason why? In Soneri Bank the importance of control can not be neglected because its a services base organization and deals with finance. Every employee in this organization has direct and indirect interaction with financial activities and finance playing the key role in the progress of the bank. Types of Control: Following are two main types of control. Feed forward control: In feed forward control problem is identified and resolved before accruing. Concurrent control: In contemporaneous control problem is identified and resolved while that is accruing. Division in Soneri Bank for Controlling: Following are two divisions in Soneri Bank for controlling purpose. Credit Monitoring Division: Credit monitoring division monitor all the activities related to following areas Credit card Debit card Auto loans Homes Loans RTC Money Gram Audit and Inspection Division; this division in Soneri Bank conduct the internal audit at the inspections of all the activities in the Soneri Bank to insure the accuracy of work and the performance of the bank. Control at Supervisor and Managerial Level: At lower level in the Bank supervisor and manager ensure the proper handling of the activities and they assign the targets to their subordinates to achieves in a given time and at those bases, they asses the performance of the employee. PROCESS OF CONTROL Measuring actual performance There are two ways to measuring performance in the Soneri Bank. Qualitative Quantities In measurement of performance employees of the organization are being measure qualitatively 40% and quantities 60%. Comparing actual performance with standards The comparing performance of the degree of variation between actual and standards performance Standards In Soneri Bank following standards are set to compare actual performance. General standards Compliance with law Reasonable assurance and safeguards Integrity, competence, and positive attitude SPECIFIC STANDARDS: TEAM LEADER In the Soneri Bank mostly every executive is working together with employer under him/her, and every manager is also working together with employer under him/her and they all are working collaboratively with each other in all the department of whole organization. TRANSFORMATIONAL and TRANSACTIONAL LEADER The leader of Soneri Bank is giving guide line and direction of established goals of these followers by clarifying the rate and task requirements for the best possible unit. Thats why these leaders of bank are TRANSACTIONAL LEADERS but not TRANSFORMATIONAL leader. GOALS OBJECTIVES Goals and objectives are factors through which the companys devotion and commitment to the job can be seen. If the goals are realistic and achievable, than surely that organization is doing its job. Soneri Bank also has certain goals and objectives which it is trying to achieve, through its various strategies and operations. The goals and objectives are mentioned below: To create a sound base, and through efficient systems achieve modern banking through out Pakistan. By the end of every accounting year there is an increase in deposits. As the deposit rate of during 2008 was approximately 72 Million and the same has been increased in 2009 by 97 Million. To create unit banking network in all the branches of Soneri Bank, the end of the year. This means that all the operations of the bank, i.e. deposits to advances, imports, exports, L/C Opening, foreign currency and many more aspects under one roof, so that the customer can be facilitate in one visit. Islamic Banking is one of the goals of Soneri Bank though it has been initiated in the last fiscal year and it is very acceptable for general public. However, there is a lot of work to do for successful implementation of the Islamic Banking Plan. In this regard the Bank is opening specific Islamic Banking Branch under the supervision of its Islamic Banking Division. STRATEGIES Soneri Bank has formulated certain sets of strategies to enable it to achieve its goals and objectives. These strategies are mentioned below: In order to achieve its goals of creating a sound base and presence of efficient modern banking system, Soneri Bank has started operation of Automated Teller Machines (ATM) in all the major areas like Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and other cities of Pakistan. Soneri Bank is committed to building long-lasting relationships through an assertion to service excellence and providing innovative products to meet the changing needs of our valued customers. Although still in its infancy, compared to the exalted banking standards, Soneri Bank inspired by the vision of its Board and Management, has built up a strong customer base. The Bank provides a full range of banking services to corporate clients, while applying leading technologies. Today the Bank is well-positioned to provide appropriate banking services to customers. The main focus is building relationships and being known by the way they do business. Management recognizes that a banking relationship requires compatibility, communication, and cooperation and that each customer deserves nothing less than full attention and available resources to meet their financial objectives. Core value and corporate culture is based on the belief that superior personalized service is the most important product. Bank is in the process of getting to know customers by name and understand their business and personal financial needs. This one-on-one, personalized service quality has served as Soneri Bank unique signature since inception and continues to separate it from other financial institutions. The Soneri Bank team comprises of some of the most highly skilled and professional financial experts in banking industry. Managers, lenders and trust advisors offer the unique perspective of knowing and understanding in the local economy. The Management focuses its attention on making informed and feasible economic decisions, bringing better returns and more profitability for investors and customers. To acquire the reputation and status of bank which operates on international standard, Soneri Bank was to get the credit rating of Pakistan Credit Rating Agency, which gave it the AA- and A1+ in the long term and short term respectively. SWOT Analysis of Soneri bank (S)trengths Strengths are the core competencies of any organization as far as SONERI is concerned the core competencies of this organization are: Target Achievement Policies Procedures Controlling Standards Priorities Rewards Benefits Job Security for the Employees Favorable, friendly Healthy Working Environment Documentation System is so much accurate Accounting Banking System is Accurate Reliable One (W)eaknesses Weaknesses are the lacking points which every organization must avoid in order to make its operational effectiveness. Hectic Working Environment Work load Lack of Self Marketing Department Low Training Coaching Low incentives like bonuses overtime pay etc. Human Resource Department is not so much effective Appraisal is not done frequently Low salary packages as compared to other banks (O)pportunities In fact, when we study all our weaknesses critically deeply than we come to know that we can convert our weaknesses into strengths. So basically these are our opportunities. The opportunities for SONERI bank are: On the job training coaching sessions can be conducted. Work sharing activities should be started so that a person who is working continuously for 9 hours can get relax. Marketing department should be started in order to promote the name of SONERI. Appraisal should be conducted frequently so that employees get motivated do their work as a loyal employee. Attractive salary packages should be awarded. (T)hreats Though Soneri bank has a strong footing and maintain a good number of loyal customer, still bank has threats in various sectors. The threats are prevailing such as: The conventional banks those having high growth rate and high market share are always being a threat. There is an average not low turnover rate, mainly because of low incentives as compared to the other banks. Absenteeism: Definitions and Categories Absenteeism: Definitions and Categories The purpose of the literature review is to justify absences in order to determine its fundamental causes. The amount of research which exists on school absenteeism witnesses both the existence and consequences of the problem. This issue is without doubt a very critical problem whose consequences is not restricted to students only but extends to the progress of the entire community and stands as a threat to the national economic growth. As a result, not only is the identification of the factors important but the proposed strategies for the improvement and gradual elimination of the problem are equally vital. The first part of this section shall reveal a representative discussion on some of the various categories of definitions on students absenteeism published during the last few years from a variety of perspectives. The second part discusses on previous research on students absenteeism and the causal factors that are considered as sources of such issues. DEFINITIONS AND CATEGORIES OF ABSENCES Absenteeism is the continual interruption of attendance (Gove: 6). It can be simply defined as a failure to appear, especially for work or any other duty. Therefore, based on my research the term student absenteeism refers as a situation where a learner is not at school for an entire day. But this definition is certainly too unclear to give a complete view of the problem. In order to avoid confusion regarding definitional issues the present study has categorized it into specific terms. Excused absences are justified absences from school for any reason recognized as legitimate, for example, attendance at religious ceremonies, illness of the pupil or a member of the pupils family, or death in the home (Good:3). On the other hand, unexcused absences refer to absences from school for reasons that are not recognized as legitimate, for example, absence because of play, truancy, illegal work, etc. (Good:3). However, one of the most common forms of unexcused absences is truancy (Brandibas, 2005; Broadwin, 1932; Johnson et al., 1941; Phelps et al., 1992; Warren, 1948) which is a vague term. Gabb (1994) argues that a child is said to play truant who is absent from school without leave. Truancy refers to the persistent, habitual and unexplained absence from school of a child of compulsory school age that occurs without parental knowledge or consent. Also, unauthorized absences may include truancy, occasional absenteeism, school refusal, school withdrawal and dropping out. Suspensions and expulsions may also be accounted as unauthorized absences. On the other hand, the term fractional truancy has been used to refer to unauthorized absences from school due to lateness, leave early or skip of specific lesson or groups of lessons which seems to be uncontrollable. Researchers like Stickney and Miltenberger (1998) and Malcolm et al (2003) have also used the term school refusal synonymously with a bsenteeism. School refusal refers to absence by children who refuse to attend school in the face of persuasion and punishment by parents, and possible school discipline. This form of absenteeism is widely recognized as a disorder involving persistent non attendance at school, excessive anxiety and physical complaints. Thus, the review of the various categories of definitions of absenteeism is not enough, as the main focus of this study is on the different factors that contribute to this problem. Consequently, not only is the identification of the causal factors significant but the plan of strategies for the improvement and eventual eradication of the issue are equally important. With the abundance of academic literature on the causes and solutions of the phenomenon, this will surely help to clarify my study with a better guidance and proper use of energies and resources in the right direction. This is so, as different researchers have taken different possibilities in investigating the problem from the psychological, social, economical and management perspectives. Hence, the subsequent sections that will follow shall demonstrate various literatures on these perspectives. CAUSAL FACTORS THE PSYCHOLOGICAL PERCEPTION From past research, it has been noted that psychologists have taken a great interest in the causes of, and solutions to, absenteeism. Accordingly, this has led to a deeper understanding of the phenomenon. Within the context of this particular perception, a number of causal factors have been identified. A considerable part of the literature on the psychological dimensions of absenteeism has argued that the problem comes from different aspects. Corville et al. (1998); Lotz Lee (1999) find that students that are frequently absent from school have low self-esteem, are less competent in their social relations, perceive less cohesion in their families, less parental acceptance and inconsistent discipline, and indicate less satisfaction regarding school characteristics and personnel. Within the school system, it may be the result of labeling and tracking that create this low self-esteem and negative self-image and hence this becomes a cause for absenteeism for the students. While students with low self-esteem have an ability to feel part of the school culture, they may become frustrated and bored with school, and dislike the teachers, and any form of authority (Bell et al, 1994; Scott Dinham, 2005). Skues, Cunningham, and Pokharel (2005) note that students bullied by peers tend to exhib it less self-esteem and are less motivated to perform well at school. Low motivation, expressed as lack of interest and lack of engagement is linked with the notion of self-esteem and the intrinsic sense of belonging and self-worth. Thompson and Perry (2005) suggested that students who experience low motivation often perform poorly in academic situations. Further, Johnson (1941) and Daleiden Chorpita (1999) believe that school phobia is also an important factor that contributes to absenteeism. The term school phobia is termed as a separation anxiety: that is, intense distress following anticipated or actual separation from others, especially the mother. The child develops a feeling of acute anxiety and begins to feel guilty about leaving the mother to attend school. Moreover, Lauchlan (2003), Egger, Costello, and Angold (2003) examined the association between anxious school refusal, truancy and psychiatric disorders in middle school students and found that the majority of the sample had a psychiatric disorder. Also, some physical factors including physical health and psychological well-being may contribute to the phenomenon. Closs (2000) contends that the major cause of absence, namely, health reasons may be addressed both to support the education of students whose absence is inevitable and to improve the school attendance of students whose health may not otherwise permit it. As it can be noticed from the above declaration, psychological variables are key determinants of absenteeism. Within the context of this finding, one of the solutions to absenteeism appears to lie in the reinforcement of students sense of belonging both through the enhancement of teachers levels of professional commitment and the design of school cultures which will bring about a sense of attachment and reliability among the students. THE SOCIAL PERCEPTION The literature on psychological factors influencing absenteeism is hardly restricted to an analysis. Thus, an investigation of the sociological variables is of great importance. This is so as not only the students themselves contribute to the problem but their school as well as their family backgrounds plays an important role. Nowadays, with the process of rapid development that is taking place, we have more and more working parents. As a result, students receive less supervision at home than in the past (Lotz Lee, 1999). Not only absence of parental supervision but also parents condoning absences by ignoring or supplying excuses when no valid reason is apparent, explains high rates of absenteeism (Kilpatrick, 1996). Reid (1999) found that families are becoming increasingly ill-equipped to provide a home environment that is conducive to academic achievement. Stability at home is one of the major factors that affect absenteeism. He further suggests that parents should be educated to understand the value of their role in reinforcing practices which includes providing incentives for students who attend school regularly, while providing disincentives for non-attendance. Parenting style may therefore have an impact on a childs school behavior and motivation to attend school. It is found that the authoritative parenting style is the most conducive to academic success and high motivation levels. Fragmented and reconstituted family structures and family size are also considered variables in the discussion on absenteeism (Wheatly Spillane, 2001). Research conducted by Butler (2003) found that adolescents experiencing absenteeism revealed a tendency to have single, separated, divorced or remarried families. Statistics also indicate that the greater majority of school children either come from single parent or two-parent-working homes, with the implication in either case being that the primary caregiver is often absent from the house and therefore, not in a position to supervise education and attendance. Of greater significance is the fact that the absence of the adult primary caregiver generally means that the children in question have to perform a number of chores around the home, including, in the case of older siblings, the responsibility of the younger children in the house. In such instances, the children in question are often left too stressed out or tired to wake up in the morning and attend school on time (Pope, 2003). The sociological interpretation of absenteeism tends towards the identification of class and familial conditions as the root causes of the phenomenon. Thus, to gain a fuller picture of the problem, it is imperative to review the literature on the economic factors influencing absenteeism among school children. THE ECONOMIC PERCEPTION The literature on the economic causes of absenteeism compliments the literature on both its psychological and sociological causes. As Mcewan (2000) suggests, the economic causes rarely operate in isolation but tend to give rise to already existent sociological or psychological factors. Zierold, Garman and Anderson (2005) admit that familial and communal culture influence absenteeism but suggest that economic factors are at the roots of the stated. There is the predominant belief that students would benefit more from employment than they would from education. The implication here is that economic circumstances often force school students to seek part-time employment and as a result they have to shoulder other responsibilities other than their school work. Parcel and Dufur (2001) maintain that students who come from lower socio-economic class than the majority of their classmates are generally subjected to verbal taunts which, besides undermining their self-esteem and affecting their academic performance, influence them towards deliberate absences. Further, DeKalb (1999) suggests that this phenomenon is also due to the socio economic reasons such as the traditional marginalization of the poor and minority students. Thus, there is a lack of effort to attach these students to school as well as a lack of communication with the parents. In this case, the students develop no sense of belonging for their school and tend to be absent for long periods of time. THE ENVIRONMENTAL PERCEPTION According to Osterman (2000), if students do not feel at home in their school environment, they take it upon themselves to reduce the number of hours they spend in that environment per week, either by being tardy or absent. In line with that, Kirkpatrick, Crosnoe and Elder (2001), arrived at the same conclusion. They suggest that school attendance is significantly impacted by the extent to which students sense of belonging. Usually, students who feel comfortable and at ease in their school environment tend to have relatively lower rates of absenteeism compared to those who do not. Also, Crosnoe (2000) reported that lack of sense of belonging at school is also partly dependent on peer influence. Those with high attendance reported that they had many friends at school and felt a sense of social belonging there and those with low attendance reported the opposite. As we are aware for proper motivation of students, there is a need for professional commitment. Hung and Liu (1999) argue a correlation between student engagement with learning and teachers professional commitment. Teachers who exhibit a strong sense of professional commitment usually influence their students towards higher levels of engagement in their learning process and, more significantly, tend to have much higher classroom on-time attendance rates. Also, the punctuality of the teacher, his teaching style, his degree of verbal admiration and warning are all factors associated with pupils finding class interesting (DeKalb, 1999). Moreover, school factors often relate to students experiences of the school environment, and the body of literature consistently identifies several common experiences, including boredom with schoolwork, inadequate student-teacher relationships, being bullied, under threats or involved in fights (Wheatley and Spillane, 2001). Further, Wheatley and Spillane (2001) make the important point that the same characteristics, as outlined in various sources and linked to non-attendance, are similarly linked in a range of research reports as factors contributing to underage school leaving. Furthermore, with the new era of rapid development and competition, there has been a drastic innovation regarding the acquisition of knowledge. Various ways and means are available nowadays for fulfilling the demand for education. Besides, with such alternatives available this has created a downfall significance regarding school and its environment especially regarding regular attendance of students. According to Petroski (2008),ÂÂ  this independent approach to learning has become increasingly viable and accessible for all students through distance learning initiatives such as video conferencing, web casts, pod casts, blogs, Wikis, Twitter and privatized online learning programs such as Nova Net and Plato. These innovations allow students the freedom to access and respond to the information within a flexible timeframe and without the necessity for face-to-face synchronous experiences. Petroski (2008) also states that there are existing colleges whose students never attend a cour se on a physical campus. However, some have serious concerns about the pedagogical implications of introducing or casting audio or visual files of classroom content. Most of the concerns center on the potential drop in classroom attendance or in-class participation (Meng, 2005; OConnor, 2005). Another overarching fear is that educators overprotect immature learners to become ever more passive in their learning and thus retard their development as self-learners. Regarding other typical aspect of acquiring knowledge nowadays is through private tuitions commonly used in almost every country of the global world. According to Hai-Anh Dang and F. Halsey Rogers (2008), private tutoring is now a major component of the education sector in many developing countries, yet education policy too, rarely admits or makes use of it. Also, Hai-Anh Dang and F. Halsey Rogers asked themselves whether private tuitions increase parental choice and improve student achievement, or does it worsen social inequalities and impose heavy costs on households, possibly without improving student outcomes. This survey of the literature examines the extent of private tutoring, identifies the factors that explain its growth, and analyzes its cost-effectiveness in improving student academic performance. In the same direction regarding academic performance, Trevor Cobbold (2009) states that many other factors outside the control of schools also influence a schools results. These include student absenteeism and mobility between schools, the extent of parent involvement in learning at home, and the extent to which students are engaged in after hours tutoring. For example, if a higher proportion of families are engaged in private tutoring in any one year a school will receive a boost to its measured performance. However, private tutoring unfortunately has been institutionalized and has become a threatening feature. It is the source of lack of interest for class work, uncontrollable conduct at school, outright truancy and induced absenteeism because of frustrations and tiredness (Ministry of Education, Mauritius, 1997). In line with this, Sylvain E. Dessyy, Pascal St-Amour and Desire Vencatachellum (1999) carried out a research about the reasons behind private tuitions and the various measures that will effectively reduce private tuitions. The result shows that private tutoring arises mainly because of the expected rewards obtained by skilled workers, and the use of human capital as a selection device for these positions. Also, pupils use private tutoring to complement the education they receive in public schools, and to increase the likelihood of winning the best-paid position in future. The proposed solutions of the research was finally about raising public teachers wages and changing their selection mechanism to limit private tutoring. FINDINGS From the above, even though in brief, the review of this literature has tried to establish useful inquiries about how researchers have, with near-unanimity, defined absences as one of the most severe problem currently confronting the nations schools and its children, the demand of designing and implementing corrective strategies for the reduction and elimination of absences are indisputable and widely accepted. Prior to that, however, it is important to acquire a complete understanding of the causes of absences and the factors which affect it. Thus, the above mentioned literature reviews have not only analysed the theoretical and definitional issues but have also provided a sound theoretical support. With this for the present research, it will be possible to build further knowledge and understanding about the phenomenon. Academic literature and studies on absences have established a huge number of causal factors, divisible into three broad categories: (1) psychological (2) social and economical, (3) environmental. The causal influence of each of these factors, not to mention how they may be struggled or eradicated , shall be explored within the context of this dissertation using both primary and secondary data sources. In the next section, the researchers strategy for the collection and analysis of this data will be outlined. Effect of Age on Friendships and Family Patterns | Proposal Effect of Age on Friendships and Family Patterns | Proposal 1) The Title of the Project Family and Friendship: an investigation of the relationship between age and patterns of friendship within and outside the family: a discourse analysis. 2) Rationale, Aims and Objectives Friends and family are clearly important components of everyones lives. They can increase self-esteem, well-being and provide opportunities for socialising. Evidence from the psychological literature suggests that friendships are beneficial, if they are of the right type (Hartup Stevens, 1997). This study will examine the attitudes that two different age-groups have towards friendships and their families. There has been increasing discussion in the sociological literature by some authors (Weeks, Heaphy Donovan, 2001) that friendships are taking over the traditional place of the family in peoples social networks. This study aims to examine this idea in two age-groups, one 18-28 years old and the second, 50-60 years old. It will also aim to look at an aspect of the detraditionalization hypothesis and judge whether the evidence supports it. The objectives in order to reach this aim are to carry out a series of interviews with people in those two age-groups and then carry out a discourse analysis of that data. This will pinpoint the different ways in which people think about their families and friends in two different age-groups. 3) Research Questions The research question will be to examine whether there is a clear difference between the types of friendships formed at different ages. Do younger people rely more on their friends for support in times of crisis than older people? Do older people include more of their kin as their closest friends? How do both groups view their families generally in terms of who they rely on? Alternatively, is there little evidence for a difference in the way people separate and view their friends and their families? 4) Literature Review Individualization is a sweeping social change that has been seen to affect many societies around the world. Beck Beck Gernsheim (2001) point to two different meanings of individualization. The first refers to the weakening of traditional social forms used in the analysis of societies; these include class, gender and the family. Beck Beck Gernsheim (2001) identify this change as occurring as a result of the weakening of tradition, religion and state. The second aspect of individualization is the way in which modern societies are placing new demands on their citizens. This can be seen in the huge numbers of regulations that attempt to control every aspect of our lives. Levels of mobility, argue Beck Beck Gernsheim (2001), are higher than ever in many societies and, as a result, people move freely for economic reasons as there is greater emphasis on individual fulfilment. A natural corollary of this movement is that family ties are frequently left behind in the search for economic opportunity. And so, in the struggle for individual human relatedness, if the family is left behind, to where does the modern member of society turn? Weeks, Heaphy Donovan (2001) point to so-called families of choice, which are essentially groups of friends. Weeks et al. (2001) see society as being at a transition point, from more traditional ideas of family to this notion of the family that has been chosen from a group of friends. People are specifically choosing their family of friends to fit in with their own personal beliefs and attitudes and sometimes choosing to get away from their biological families who do not represent their attitudes and beliefs. This process of choosing friends is seen by Weeks at al. (2001) as a process by which people are shaping their own identities. While Weeks et al.s (2001) research concentrates on non-heterosexuals, they argue that these families of choice are in fact taking over from families of fate throughout society in the UK and elsewhere. This has been similarly understood by Giddens (1992) in terms of transformations in the interpersonal domain. In particular, Giddens (1991) sees these kinds of changes arising from what he terms the emergence of pure relationships (Giddens 1991:58). A pure relationship occurs where the more traditional connections through obligation that are present in family relationships are replaced with relationships based on what each can get out of the other. These changes have been referred to by Giddens (1992) as democratising in nature such that these changes are also affecting the family. Pahl Spencer (2004) explain that this detraditionalization thesis normally draws upon a range of social statistics that appear to demonstrate widespread societal changes. These include higher levels of education, higher rates of divorce, greater mobility both socially and geographically and a larger participation by women in the workforce. These conclusions are, however, disputed by Pahl Spencer (2004) who argue that the use of other research sources can lead in a different direction. They quote research carried out by Park Roberts (2002) which found that the family appeared to be in good health. Their respondents tended to suggest the family represented the first port of call in an emergency for people. Indeed, Pahl Spencer (2004) carried out their own research into friendships which avoids a standard quantitative analysis, asking about length of time known and other such variables, and concentrating more on content. Pahl Spencer (2004), then, look at peoples personal communities. Personal communities, for Pahl Spencer (2004), relate specifically to two main aspects of the relationship: communication and belonging. Pahl Spencer (2004) carried out 60 interviews in different parts of the UK and, in order to access these concepts, they used a map of concentric circles on which people indicated where their friends lay. These friendships were then examined through interviews. As a result, Pahl Spencer (2004) found that it was actually very difficult to separate the notions of friendship from that of family and that one easily flowed into the other. From their detailed findings, Pahl Spencer (2004) assert that there is little evidence for the idea that people are moving away from their family group and towards their chosen friendship groups. There is also little evidence, in Pahl Spencers (2004) view, for the idea that people place more importance on their friendships than their family. Taking a more wide-angle quantitative viewpoint, Pahl Pevalin (2005) use data gathered from the British Household Panel Survey over ten years to analyse potential changes in family and friends. Here, instead of finding a shift to friends away from family, they find that the family still provides a large number of peoples friends. There is a change seen across age-groups, however, with older respondents more likely to nominate family as close friends than those in younger age-groups. The question is, does this represent a change that people go through as they age, or is this a social change that can be seen emerging? Pahl Pevalin (2005) suggest the longitudinal data shows that it is actually a change happening with age, therefore suggesting that this does not support a social change of increasing friendship choices outside kin-groupings. Gross (2005) argues, like Pahl Pevalin (2005) that the extent to which the detraditionalization hypothesis is true has been exaggerated. Its important to note that throughout the literature on families and friendships it is clear that there are certain overlaps in meanings. One clear example is that of partners. For those over the age of 30, Pahl Pevalin (2005) argue that a partner provides the most important relationship. Does this person count as their friend or a family member? Pahl Pevalin (2005) argue that partners form a kind of hybrid category. Partners sit on the cusp of the debate because if they count as members of the family then they add weight to the importance of the family. But, if they count as friends, then they add weight to the idea that people are moving towards greater reliance on friends. There is probably a good argument for each view but certainly excluding partners from the analysis is a mistaken approach. Pahl Pevalin (2005) also criticise Weeks et al.s (2001) findings because they focus on non-heterosexual respondents. It is hypothesised that non-heterosexual respondents will tend to have a greater degree of reliance on friends rather than family as, perhaps, the family will not have been accepting of their sexual orientation thus necessitating an appeal to a group outside their confines. This study should, therefore, take this into account in balancing up the sexual orientations of the respondents. 5) Methodology Carry out a series of semi-structured interviews with participants to ask them about their family and their friendships. This would be carried out with a small group of younger people who are 18-28, as well as with a small group of older people who are 50-60 years old. Interviews will be semi-structured and so will start with questions asking specifically about participants close social ties, who they tend to confide in, who they share attitudes and beliefs with. This will be achieved through the use of maps of personal networks on which people indicate where their friends and family lie. Also, questions will be asked about attitudes and feelings towards the family and how family members fit into this picture. Latter questions will be more open-ended, so that participants are able to speak more freely about their friendships and families. Participants interviews will be transcribed and then analysed using discourse analysis to extract meanings and relationships. 6) Ethical Considerations Ethical approval for carrying out this study will be obtained from the relevant authority. All respondents in the study will be told that taking part is optional and that they may withdraw at any time. Further, they will be assured that they will remain anonymous in the reporting of the results. Personal information relating to individual friendships will, of course, remain completely confidential. Respondents will be reminded that they are entitled to see any of the data that is held by the researcher which specifically relates to them. 7) Costings The project will require a voice recorder and the researchers time involved in carrying out the interviews, transcribing, analysing and writing up. It may also require the cost of travelling to respondents in order to carry out the interviews. Some stationery costs will also be incurred. 8) Communication plans Respondents for the research will be solicited through standard university notice boards. For the older age-group, if suitable respondents cannot be identified in the university, it may be necessary to call on the researchers personal networks of friends and family members. 9) Users and Beneficiaries The ways in which friendships and families operate is of perennial interest to the government. Examining the ways in which personal communities coalesce provides insight into important notions of social support and social capital. For those who work in professions with direct contact with younger age-groups, it would be useful for them to know who young people rely on in times of stress. Is it members of their family, or is there a shift towards relying on friends in hard times? For those who work in professions who care for the elderly it would be extremely useful to know how patterns of friendships change with advancing age (Pahl Pevalin, 2005). For example, do older people rely more on siblings as a result of their partners passing away or do they develop other networks of friends outside their kin relations? References Beck, U., Beck Gernsheim, E. (2001) Individualization. London: Sage Publications. Giddens, A. (1991) Modernity and Self-identity: Self and Society in the Late Modern Age. Cambridge, Polity Press. Giddens, A. (1992) The Transformation of Intimacy: Sexuality, Love and Eroticism in Modern Societies. Cambridge, Polity Press. Gross, N. (2005) The Detraditionalization of Intimacy Reconsidered. Sociological Theory 23(3), 286-311. Hartup, W., Stevens, N. (1997) Friendship and Adaptation in the Life Course. Psychological Bulletin, 121(3), 335–370. Pahl, R., Pevalin, D. J. (2005) Between family and friends: a longitudinal study of friendship choice. The British Journal of Sociology, 56(3), 433-450. Pahl, R., Spencer, L. (2004) Personal Communities: Not Simply Families of ‘Fate or ‘Choice’. Current Sociology 52(2), 199–221. Park, A., Roberts, C. (2002) The Ties that Bind. British Social Attitudes: The 19th Report. Aldershot: Ashgate. Weeks, J., Heaphy, B., Donovan, C. (2001) Same Sex Intimacies: Families of Choice and Other Life Experiments. London: Routledge.