Monday, January 27, 2020

A Language Game Can Be Used Philosophy Essay

A Language Game Can Be Used Philosophy Essay A language game can be used as a metaphor for organisations. This is how post modern theorists think we should now look at firms; in terms of text. This will allow them to look and analyse organisations from a different perspective as they believe theories such as Taylorism are now becoming obsolete. This essay looks at language games in terms of three philosophers: Wittgenstein, Foucault and Derrida. The essay will also look at how organisation can be described as a result of such language games. According to Wittgenstein a Language game can be described as language and the actions into which it is woven into (Goldstein, 2004, p. 546). To be able to imagine language in this sense means to imagine a form of life. Forms of life are the various types of activities undertaken by humans, in this sense we look at them as speech, this leads to the perception that our forms of life are complicated because of the complexity of the language games we partake in. In his later work of Philosophical Investigations, section 23, Wittgenstein lists some of the language games that humans play: Giving orders and obeying them, Describing the appearance of an object, or giving its measurements, constructing an object from a description (a drawing), (Wittgenstein, 1958). We unknowingly take part in language games every day and each game has its own rules and goals. Wittgenstein pays little attention to the players in language games, and suggests that it would be almost impossible for two language players to have the same linguistic pragmability, (Kopytko, 2007). This means that each human player is unique in terms of experience in a social context. An example of a player would be a child learning to talk. In Wittgensteins Language games, the words we use to speak are the objects used in the game. For Wittgenstein the rules the most important factor in a language game. Although a rule cannot be defined, Wittgenstein applies it to the family resemblance concept, words which are used in one game may be used in another; they are all deeply intertwined. Each community has a slightly different set of rules for language games, depending on the understanding, certainty and awareness of the rules. Therefore humans that are playing language games they may have different rules and there may be confusion in understanding each other, for example two food retailers may have the same objectives but use different language games between staff to define these objectives e.g. stocktake/inventory. For rules to be followed in language games a certain amount of foreknowledge is needed to be able to understand them, Wittgenstein believes that for one to understand the rule they must be able to apply it (Kopytko, 2007). Grammar within language also enforces a network of rules which determine which l inguistic moves make sense and which do not. For example, one cannot say that I know I have a brain because of the doubt and scepticism about knowing something that has not been seen. Wittgenstein argues that there is not final set of rules that we follow and they are constantly changing. In the beginning of Philosophical Investigations, Wittgenstein criticises his earlier work in Tractatus. In Tractatus he attempts to produce a universally true language about reality, (Jorgensen, 2006, p. 5). The assumption here is that every word has its own meaning and this meaning is in conjunction with the word. Augustines work in Confessions follows this idea, and suggests that there is no difference between kinds of words. However, Wittgenstein now proposes that this is a very primitive way of perceiving how language functions. In Philosophical Investigations, he uses the example of five red apples and questions how the shopkeeper knows what to do with the three words when no such question of the meaning of the words came into thought. These primitive forms of language are used by children when they are learning to talk. The ostensive teaching of words is used to teach children a primitive language; it allows them to associate between an object and a word. To establish differen t understandings using ostensive teaching, a different form of training would need to be used for that particular use of the word. For example, a button, one is used on a computer to switch it on or off, another is used to open doors within a building and a third is a button on a cardigan, which connects the material. The point is that words do not only have one meaning and that there is no one single characteristic that characterizes one word (Jorgensen, 2006, p. 6), leading to the assumption that words are polysemic. By looking at Language in terms of multiple meanings allows us to see that language is not an isolated phenomena (Jorgensen, 2006) but something that is dependent on the experiences that we have had and the way human players perceive things. Wittgenstein describes language as an ancient city: a maze of little streets and squares, of old and new houses, and of houses with additions from various periods; and this surrounded by a multitude of new boroughs with straight regular streets and uniform houses (Wittgenstein, 1958, p. 18). This quote describes how Wittgenstein sees language and suggests that language is not permanent, but something that is constantly changing with traditions. It also describes how new language games come into existence whilst others become forgotten. The change that occurs however is always dependent on history and the contextual rules of the game. This quote also leads to Wittgenstein being able to clarify that no word has a definitive meaning and therefore there is no common essence that characterises language (Jorgensen, 2006). Therefore it can be said that language games do not all have something in common, but they are connected by family resemblance, a rule of language games. This concept, in troduced by Wittgenstein, is a metaphor saying that languages all look alike in the same way family members do. We see a complicated network of similarities overlapping and criss-crossing: sometimes overall similarities, sometimes similarities of detail (Wittgenstein, 1958, p. 66). Thus language is called language as they are similar or look alike, just like organisations. As there is no essential core of a word, to find a meaning for a word, one should investigate the different uses of the word; this common factor is the family resemblance. The Private Vs Public Language argument is a topic which Wittgenstein devotes a section of Philosophical Investigations to. Wittgenstein believes in a public language and that private games do not make sense. The individual words of this language are to refer to what can only be known to the person speaking; to his immediate private sensations. So another person cannot understand the language (Wittgenstein, 1958). Even though private language experiences are real for individuals, the phrase is an oxymoron as it means making sure that the rules of the game are being followed which is an impossible task as the rules are indefinable. The concept of a private language means we are restricted in what we say, as we cannot express all of our experiences, for example only one can know when they are in pain, no one else can share that pain, they can only experience the description of the given pain. A public language is needed otherwise we would not be able to communicate in society therefore the goal of public language is communication between human players. Alongside language games are knowing and doubting games, these games relate to uncertainty in language. Wittgenstein uses the example of here is one hand (Wittgenstein, 1979), this ostensive definition is making an empirical claim which allows us to make sense of things. If humans were to doubt that a hand exists then we would make very little sense of language. Wittgenstein suggests that a proposition such as here is a hand must be looked at in context or it would by meaningless. We take these types of propositions for granted and must accept that these sorts of propositions should not be doubted or questioned. In each language game played, the rules of the game may be doubted if they are unclear or indefinite. In On Certainty, Wittgenstein compares these types of propositions to a river bed, and within a river the river bed must stay in place and not be doubted to allow the river of language to flow smoothly through it, (Sparknotes, 2012). Knowing and certainty link together as if you propose that you know something, you must be certain of it, for if you are not certain of a fact then you cannot be certain of the meaning of the words you are using either. To say you know something removes the doubt from the language game. However we must have a degree of certainty within the language games to make sense and agree on things. One of the overall goals of Wittgensteins Language games is not to solve philosophical problems but to dissolve them. For example although he criticises Augustines theory of pointing and naming things, he does not attempt to replace it with another theory of language but he wants us to see that we do not need a theory to describe the link between language and reality. Another goal of language games is to allow us to see past misleading pictures that our cultures complicate through communication, meaning that by using a public language and understanding the rules of the games we should understand more about language. A second theorist is Foucault who is known for his work on discourse which concerns the manufacturing of knowledge through language (Hall, 1997). For him, a main purpose of his work is to show how individuals in the present are subordinated by particular discourses or language games (Jorgensen, 2006, p. 19). He believes that in modern day organisations power is embedded in the rules of language games and regulates and controls how the games are played. For example, when we begin a new job, we are taught by managers who control and limit how much we know about the company and what we can do within the company through the power they have within the workplace. Having this authoritative voice allows them to judge others. This suggests that the key players in Foucaults language games are professionals: teachers, managers, doctors, Politians and prison guards. These professionals establish the norms of society and create docile bodies within institutions so that the bodies are controllable . One of the rules that Foucault applies to language games is that non-appropriate topics are disregarded within a discourse, for example within a meeting in an organisation it would be appropriate to talk about profit and loss not what you are doing at the weekend. The professionals within institutions use objects as control mechanisms. Examples of these are timetables and the panoptican. The timetable is an object within a language game as they tell people where to go at particular times e.g. the language that is written on the timetable controls the daily routine of a factory worker; they have set times to start work, have breaks and finish work. Another object is the panoptican is a vertical form of surveillance and produces self monitoring of individuals through fear. These objects of language games are there to sustain the games and enforce rules on the individuals and within each of these objects there are different rules to different language games. Leading on from this for Foucault one of the most significant forces shaping our experience is languageWe not only use language to explain ideas and feelings to others, we use it to explain things to ourselves (Danaher, 2000, p. 31). This proposes that everything we do is surrounded or influe nced by language, written or spoken. By affecting everything we do shows how powerful language can be. Knowledge and power are not seen as negative aspects and are produced by episteme which also holds them together. According to Foucault domains of knowledge and relations of power are intrinsically tied together, and this fundamental intertwinement is what is referred to by that hybrid power/knowledge (Oksala, 2007, p. 48). This hybrid is possessed by the professionals within society, they normalise and enforce what should be considered as knowledge. For example when we go to work, we generally accept what the manager tells us to be true and do not question their knowledge about the company or job that needs doing. This leads to the conclusion that truth and knowledge are the result of scientific discourse and that Power and knowledge are fundamental in language as they reinforce truth. It is the goal of language games to shape knowledge and power relations through episteme, this is the mega game which makes all other games possible. Derrida is another philosopher who has studied language and the games that humans play. Derrida believes that we should look at process instead of the structure of things. So deep does structure run in our mental habits that when we try to analyse process we turn it into structure. Derridas task has been to reverse this predilection and show that process is primary to structure (Cooper, 1989, p. 480). This suggests that we naturally look at the structure of things and not the process of how they happen, by looking at the process will allow us to make more sense of things. Derrida believes that humans are the players within his language games of deconstruction and differà ©nce. Derridas views of discourse analysis are exhibited through deconstruction, this refers to moving away from structures towards a processual approach so that one can see and grapple with natural contradictions. Undecidability is used to explain deconstruction through looking at binary opposites e.g. high/low and manager/employee. This leads to the assumption that these terms cannot exist without each other as without them they would not make sense; a common example of this is Schrodingers Cat in the box. Derrida uses the term logocentrism within his work, by this he meant that language is simply a mechanism that communicates thoughts. This is a problem for deconstruction as it is faced with the issue of how to open up a text without merely endorsing the wider framework to which its terms belong (Wood, 1987, p. 32). To prevent this occurring Derrida employs overturning and metahporization. These are processes of deconstruction which allow us to look at language as the product of meaning through diffà ©rence and dissemination. Diffà ©rence comes from Saussures concept of signs and it is an important concept to Derridas view of process. Differà ©nce embodies two meanings which govern the production of meaning; diffà ©rer can mean to be deferred or to differ in space. Differed relates to Derridas Semiotics. A sign and its meaning are both members of diachronic or temporal series of that signs occurrences and the simultaneous patter of that related to signs in language. The reference to both of these is essential to the signs meaning. The meaning of each sign is relative to this combination of present and absent signs (Cahoone, 2012). This means that signs can be looked at in two ways, the first is by looking at the historical path of the word, the second is by looking at what other signs are related to it. For example when we look up a word in the dictionary it leads us another meaning of a word, it is an endless chain of meanings, i.e. signs are polysemic. From this, leads us to one of Derridas rules of language there is no outside of the text, by this he means there is no access to the real world except through language (Bennett, 2004, p. 30), therefore there cannot be any meaning outside context because there is nothing we know or have experienced that isnt in context. The second meaning to differ in space, refers to a differentiation which he also terms spacing and which prevents any sign from having a self-enclosed identity, (Deutscher, 2005, p. 31). This suggests that a fixed meaning of a word cannot exist and a sign can have more than one identity based on the context in which it is placed, for example the word organisation has different meanings depending on the context in which it is being used. The above links to the objects of language games, in terms of Derridas work they are the meanings of signs, and having already concluded there is no one meaning to a sign, the goal of Derridas game is to therefore look at meanings or rules of signs and attempt to understand them by stabilising the rules. To do this humans must have experience in the context of the sign they are trying to understand and the meaning they come to will be based on past experiences of that. It is clear that comparisons can be made between the authors on their theories of language games. Firstly, a contrast in Wittgenstein and Derridas work. Wittgenstein suggests that language games should be played through speech and his work reflects this, however Derrida proposes that language games should be in the form of writing. Although both theorists do agree on the concept of multiple meanings as they both believe that words/signs have an indefinite number of meanings depending on the context in which the word is being used. Another comparison is between Foucault and Wittgenstein who both think that we are constrained by our language and that we can only speak based on the language we have experienced, this links with private language games. A final comparison is of Derrida and Foucault who both use timetables in their work to describe forms of control through language. By using the work of all three theorists I think that organisations can be described in terms of language games. Organisations can be described using Wittgensteins and Derridas theories of multiple meanings in this way as when problems occur new solutions are found, however these solutions come with more problems so it is an endless cycle where no one solution will solve a problem, just like there is no one meaning of a word, this relates to Tamara, an endless story. A family resemblance may also be used to describe an organisation as although they do look the same, there are vital differences between each organisation, such as management structures and shift patterns. Also by using the private language argument, each individual within an organisation will have had different experiences within their job role, meaning that they cannot express all of their thoughts as there will not be a common public language at all times, this also links to Tamara as each individual experience is uni que. Using Derrida and Foucaults example of a timetable within language games is another way of interpreting an organisation, as it is something that is used everyday within an organisation, such as specifically timed lunch breaks and clocking in cards. This form of self surveillance is regulated by language from managers and superiors within the organisation. In addition, in line with Derridas work, it is important to look at organisations in terms of arenas of processes and to look at the outcomes, not look at them as structures. Finally Foucaults players within a language are the professionals. Within an organisation these are the managers and it is their voices that set the rules of the language game within that organisation i.e. we accept what they say as the truth because of the power and knowledge that the manager has. In conclusion if organisations were to be looked at in terms of text it would allow us to interpret organisations differently and look for different ways of so lving problems. This linguistic turn is a way of using text as a metaphor to give us the correct tools to use in organisations.

Sunday, January 19, 2020

High School and Education Essay

1a) Cultural Deprivation -Intellectual Development: development of thinking and reasoning skills. Theorists would argue that many WC homes lack educational books, toys and activities that would help stimulate a child’s intellectual development. Douglas- WC pupils scored lower on test of ability, as their parents are less likely to support their children’s intellectual development. Bernstein and Young- mothers choose toys that influence intellectual development. Criticism: WC may not be able to afford these toys etc. -Language: children fail to develop necessary language skills and grow up incapable of abstract thinking and unable to use language to explain, describe, enquire and compare. Restricted & Elaborated code; Bernstein. MC have an advantage as the elaborated code is used by teachers, text books and exams. Also MC pupils are already fluent speakers (socialisation) so they ‘feel at home’ in school and are more likely to succeed. Criticism: Bernstein describes WC speech inadeq uate. -Attitudes and Values: Parents attitudes and values are a key factor affecting educational achievement. Douglas- WC parents place less value on education. Feinstein- the lack of interest is more important than financial hardship or factors within school. Many WC subcultures have different goals, beliefs, attitudes and values from the rest of society. Hyman- WC subculture is a self-imposed barrier to educational success. Sugerman- Fatalism, Collectivism, Immediate Gratification, Present-time Orientation. WC children internalise the beliefs and values of their subculture through the socialisation process meaning under-achievement. -Compensatory Education: Policy designed to tackle the problem of CD by providing extra resources to school and communities in deprived areas. E.g. Sure Start, Education Action Zones etc. Criticism: Don’t see the real cause of under-achievement (poverty and material deprivation). -Criticisms: Keddie; CD is a myth and blames victims. A child cannot be deprived of their own culture they are just culturally different. Troyna and Williams; teachers have a ‘speech hierarchy’ where MC speech is highest. Blackstone and Mortimore; parents attend fewer parent evenings as they may work longer hours/less regular hours or put off by school’s MC atmosphere. Also may not help their children’s progress as they lack the knowledge. -Studies show that WC children are more likely to leave school from the age of 16 and are less likely to go on to sixth form and university. Also working-class children are more likely to start school unable to read, and are more likely to fall behind in reading, writing and number skills. 1b) Material Deprivation -Referred to poverty and lack of material necessities (housing/income). -Stats; 32% of WC students were considering moving out of the family home to attend university. 90% of failing schools are in deprived areas. 33% of those receiving free school meals got 5 or more A*-C GCSE grades. 90% of ‘failing’ schools are located in deprived areas. -Housing- overcrowded housing means less space to do work, play, sleep etc, and greater risk of accidents. -Diet and health- lower intakes of energy, vitamins and minerals. Poor nutrition -> weaker immune system -> lowering children’s energy levels -> get ill easier (poor attendance at school). WC children are more likely to have behavioural or emotional problems. -Financial Support- WC children lack equipment and miss out on school trips. They also make do with hand-me-downs (results in being stigmatised/bullied). Children living in poverty take on jobs (baby sitting, cleaning, paper rounds) which has a negative impact on their school work. Also very few go on to university. The government has tried to tackle this problem, e.g. EMA, raising the school leaving age and providing free-school meals. -Criticisms: Ignores internal factors and cultural deprivation. 1c) Cultural Capital -Bourdieu suggested MC culture is as valuable in educational terms as economic capital. The forms of knowledge, values, ways of interacting and communicating ideas that MC children possess are developed further and rewarded by the education system (qualifications).WC have a lack of cultural capital which leads to exam failure. They also ‘get the message’ that education isn’t meant for them thus they truant/leave school early/provide no effort. -Education, economic and cultural capital can be converted into one another. E.g. MC children with cultural capital are better equipped to meet the demands of school and gain qualifications. Wealthier parents can convert their economic capital into educational capital by sending their children to private schools, and paying extra tuition. -Gewirtz: sees how greater parental choice of school has benefited one social class more. Study; 14 London schools with interviews from parents and teachers. She found that differences in economic and cultural capital lead to class differences in how far parents can implement choice of secondary school. She identifies three main types of parents; privileged-skilled choosers (MC parents who used their economic and cultural capital to gain educational capital for their children), disconnected-local choosers (WC parents whose choices were restricted by their lack of economic and cultural capital), and semi-skilled choosers (mainly WC who were ambitious for their children but lacked cultural capital). Internal Factors (class difference) 2a) Labelling -Attaching a meaning to someone. Teachers often attach labels regardless of their ability or attitude. -Howard Becker- Did a study based on interviews with 60 Chicago high school teachers; they judge pupils to what they think is the ‘ideal pupil’. WC children were furthest (regarded as badly behaved). -Cicourel and Kitsuese- Did a study of educational counsellors in an American high school; they claimed to judge students according to their ability, however, they judged students on their social class/race- MC have more potential than WC children. -Rist- Did a study of an American kindergarten; the teacher used information about children’s background and appearance to place them into separate groups. At the front was the ‘tigers’ (MC, given complex work), ‘cardinals’ and then the ‘clowns’ (given easy work like drawing). -Sharp and Green- Did a study about a ‘child-centred’ primary school; children picked their own activities, teachers felt when a child is ready to learn they will seek help. However, teachers believed that children who weren’t ready should engage in ‘compensatory play’. Their findings support the interactionist view that children of different class background are labelled differently. They argue that the negative labelling of the WC is also the result of inequalities in wider society. 2b) Self-Fulfilling Prophecy -A prediction that comes true because it has been made. Step 1: Teacher labels pupil and makes predictions. Step 2: Teacher treats the pupil accordingly. Step 3: Pupil internalises the teacher’s expectation which becomes part of their self-concept/image, and becomes the kind of pupil the teacher believed (prediction is fulfilled). -Streaming: involves separating children into different ability groups (streams). Each group is taught differently. Studies show that the self-fulfilling prophecy is likely to occur once streamed. WC children are usually put in a lower stream as they aren’t ‘ideal pupils’. It is difficult to move up into a higher stream thus are locked into their teachers expectations -> self-fulfilling prophecy as the children live up to their teachers expectations by under-achieving. 2c) Pupil Subcultures -A group of pupils who share similar values and behaviour patterns. They emerge as a response to the way pupils have been labelled (reaction to streaming). -Lacey: Differentiation- process of teachers categorising pupils according to their ability/attitude/behaviour. Polarisation- process in which pupils respond to streaming by moving towards one of the two opposite extremes. Pro-school subculture- placed in higher streams, remain committed to the values of school and gain status through academic success. Anti-school subculture- placed in lower streams, have inferior status. -Hargreaves: There are two distinctive subcultures: Conformists and Non-conformists delinquents (a delinquent subculture that helped guarantee their educational failure). -Woods: argues that rather than seeing pupil subcultures as either conformist or deviant, it is more realistic to see a variety of possible adaptations/responses to the schooling process. Pro-school: Ingratiation (pupils who try to earn the favour of teachers), Opportunism (those who vary between teacher and peer approval), Compliance (pupils who conform for instrumental reasons), Ritualism (pupils who go through the motions), Colonisation (pupils who avoid trouble, but will deviate if there is less punishment). Anti-school: Ritualism, Retreatism (not opposed to school values, but not concerned about achieving success), Colonisation, Intransigence (deviate and aren’t bothered about the consequences), Rebellion (pupils have little regard to school values and reject school teachings). -Ball: found that when the school abolished banding, the basis for pupils to polarise into subcultures was largely removed and the influence of the anti-school subculture declined. However, differentiation continued. As a result, class inequalities can continue due to teachers labelling. -Limitations: Deterministic: assumes that once pupils are labelled, they have no choice but to fulfil the prophecy and will inevitably fail. Ignores wider structures of power: blames teachers for labelling pupils but fails to explain why. 2d) Marketisation and Selection Policies -Marketisation is a policy that introduces market forces of supply and demand into areas run by the state. Marketisation has brought in; Funding formula (giving a school the same amount of funds for each pupil), Exam League Tables (ranking schools based on their exam performance), Competition among schools to attract pupils. -A-C Economy: Schools need to achieve a good league table position to attract pupils and funding. However, this widens the class gap in achievement. The A-C economy is a system in which schools ration their time, money, effort and resources to those who will get 5 A*-C GCSEs to get a high rank. -Educational Triage: sorting pupils; ‘those who will pass anyway’, ‘those with potential’, ‘hopeless cases’. Those classed as hopeless cases are ignored (self-fulfilling prophecy and failure). -Competition and Selection: Schools with a good league table position will be placed to attract other able/MC pupils. Thus improves the school’s results and makes it more popular which increases funding. Popular schools can afford to screen out less able and more difficult pupils, unpopular schools are obliged to take the, get worse results, and get less funding. Cream skimming: selecting higher ability pupils, who gain the best results and cost less to teach. Silt-shifting: off-loading pupils with learning difficulties, who are expensive to teach and get poor results. -Attraction: creating school contracts to attract parents, buying things like pipe organs to get a ‘traditional’ image of the school (attracting the MC), grant maintained and city technology colleges provide vocational education in partnership with employers (another route to elite education). Ball et al suggests that schools spend more on marketing themselves to parents, and spend less in special needs in other areas. -Marketisation and selection – created a polarised education system, with successful, well-resourced schools at one extreme, and failing un-resourced schools at the other; blurred hierarchy. External Factors (ethnic differences) 3a) Cultural Deprivation -Intellectual and linguistic skills: Major cause of under-achievement. Many children from low-income black families lack intellectual stimulation and enriching experiences. This leaves them poorly equipped for school because they have not been able to develop reasoning and problem-solving skills. Also the language used by black children in inadequate for educational success. Also those who don’t speak English at home may be held back educationally. However, Mirza and Gillborn note that Indian pupils do very well despite not having English as their home language. -Attitudes and Values: Lack of motivation is a major cause of the failure of black children. Many children are socialised in a mainstream culture of ambition, competitiveness and willingness to make scarifies to achieve long-term goals. Black children are socialised into a fatalistic subculture. -Family structure: Failure to socialise children adequately is the result of dysfunctional family structure. Many black families are headed by a lone-mother; their children are deprived of adequate care because she has to struggle financially due to the absence of the male breadwinner. The absence of the father also leads to the absence of the positive role model. Charles Murray: would lead to the under-achievement of some minorities. Pryce: Asian pupils are higher achievers because their culture is more resistant to racism and gives them a greater sense of self-worth. Black culture is less cohesive and less resistant to racism. Thus they have low self-esteem and under-achieve. -Asian families: Driver and Ballard: they bring educational benefits as the parents have more positive attitudes towards education, higher aspirations and are therefore more supportive. Lupton: respectful behaviour towards adults was expected from children, and had a knock-on effect in schools. Khan: parents are ‘stress ridden’, bound by tradition, and controlling. -Criticisms: Driver: ignores positive effects of ethnicity on achievement. Lawrence: black pupils under-achieve because of racism not self-esteem. Keddie: victim-blaming theory. They under-achieve because schools are ethnocentric and favour white culture. Compensatory Education: it is an attempt to impose on the dominant white culture on children who have a culture of their own. Critics propose 2 alternatives: Multicultural education: recognises values of minority cultures and includes them in the curriculum. Anti-racist education: challenges the prejudice and discrimination that exists in schools and wider so ciety. 3b) Material Deprivation -Stats: 1) Pakistani and Bangladeshi women are more likely to be in low-paid jobs. 2) 15% of ethnic minority households live in overcrowded conditions. 3) Unemployment is three times higher for African and Bangladeshi/Pakistani people. -Gillborn and Mirza argue that social class factors don’t ignore the influence of ethnicity. When we compare pupils of the same social class but different ethnic origins, we still find differences in achievement. 3c) Racism in Wider Society -David Mason: ‘Discrimination is a continuing and persistent feature of the experience of Britain’s citizen’s of ethnic minority origin’. -Rex: shows how racial discrimination leads to social exclusion and how this worsens the poverty faced by ethnic minorities. E.g. housing; minorities are more likely to be forced into substandard accommodation than whites. -Noon: two people with the same qualifications and experience applied for a job. However, the white person got the job, rather than the Indian. Thus shows that ethnic minorities are more likely to face unemployment and low pay. Internal Factors (ethnic differences) 4a) Labelling and Teacher Racism -Interactionists: They see that teachers picture an image of the ‘ideal pupil’. But they see that black and Asian far from the ideal pupil. This leads them to label black pupils as disruptive and aggressive, and Asian pupils as passive and a problem they can ignore. -Gillborn and Youdell: due to racialised expectations, teachers were quicker to discipline black pupils than others for the same behaviour. -Black pupils: Teachers misinterpreted their behaviour as threatening/challenge to authority. Pupils then responded negatively and further conflict resulted. This may be why many black pupils are excluded, and their stereotypes may cause them to be in lower sets (under-achievement). -Asian pupils: Teachers assumed that they would have a poor grasp of English and left them out of class discussions or used simplistic childish language. They also felt isolated when teachers mispronounced their names or teachers expressed disapproval of their customs. 4b) Pupil Responses and Subcultures -Fuller: Study of a group of black girls in year 11. Found that the girls conformed as far as school work was concerned. They worked consistently, but gave the appearance of not doing so (positive attitude to academic success, but preferred to rely on their own efforts than teachers). Fuller sees that pupils may still succeed even when they refuse to conform, and negatively labelling doesn’t always lead to failure (no self-fulfilling prophecy). -Mirza: Study of ambitious girls who faced teacher racism. The study failed as their coping strategies restricted their opportunities and thus under-achieved. She found that racist teachers discouraged black pupils from being ambitious through the kind of career advice that was given to them. The colour blind: teachers who believe all pupils are equal but allow racism got unchallenged. Liberal chauvinists: teachers who believe black pupils are culturally deprived and had low expectations of them. Overt racists: teachers who believe blacks are inferior and discriminate against them. -Sewell: Four ways in which boys respond to racist stereotyping: Rebels (rejected both the goals and rules of school, conforming to the stereotype of the ‘black macho lad’. Saw white boys as effeminate), Conformists (keen to succeed, accepted the school’s goals and avoided stereotypes from teachers or their peers), Retreatists (disconnected from both school and black subcultures), Innovators (pro-education but anti-school). 4c) The Ethnocentric Curriculum -Ethnocentric: attitude/policy that gives more value to one culture and ignores the rest. -The curriculum is very ethnocentric (favouring white culture). E.g. in teaching languages; non-European languages are ignored (also other cultures in literature, art and music). However, in history, black history is taught, but it is focused on slavery. This may produce lower self-esteem to black pupils as this image of black people as inferior undermines them and may lead to failure. 4d) Institutional Racism -Institutional racism: discrimination that is built into the way institutions operate. -Schools tend to set schemes for the gifted and talented, and vocational schemes for the less academic e.g. black and Asians. External Factors (gender differences) 5a) Girls -Feminism: McRobbie shows that magazines in the 1970’s emphasised the importance of getting married. Whereas, nowadays, they contain images of assertive, independent women. Also soap operas now highlight the importance of self-esteem and personal choice for young women. -Family: Sine the 1970’s there have been major changes in the family. For example: an increase in divorce rates, increase in cohabitation and a decrease in the number of first marriages, increase in the number of lone-parent families (female-headed) and smaller families. These changes affect girl’s attitudes to education. Such as: the increase in female lone-parent families may mean more women need to take on the breadwinner role. This creates a new adult role model for girls- the financially independent. To achieve this, women need well-paid jobs, and thus good qualifications. Also the increase in divorce rates suggests that girls can make their own living. -Employment: 1970 Equal Pay Act (illegal to pay women less for the same job as men), Sex Discrimination Act. Women’s employment has risen due to the service sector and flexible part-time work. 1975- The pay gap between men and women has increased. Women are now breaking through the ‘glass ceiling’ (keeps them out of high-level professional managerial jobs). -Ambitions: Sharpe- study involved conducting interviews with girls in the 1970’s and 1990’s. In the 1970’s the girls felt that education with unfeminine and if they were interested, it would make them unattractive. In the 1990’s, the girl’s ambitions had changed, and thought careers are more important as they can support themselves. 5b) Boys -Feminisation of education: Schools do not nurture ‘masculine’ traits such as competitiveness and leadership. Also coursework has created differences in educational achievement. -Shortage of male primary school teachers: Strong positive male role models both at home and at school cause may cause under-achievement. 16% of men are primary school teachers. 42% said they made them work harder. Yet, Myhill and Jones found they felt male teachers treated boys harshly. -‘Laddish’ subculture: WC boys are more likely to be labelled as sissies and subjected to homophobic verbal abuse if they appeared to be ‘swots’. Boys were more concerned to be labelled by peers than girls, as it is a threat to their masculinity. Thus, WC boys rejected schoolwork to avoid being called ‘gay’. Epstein- ‘real boys don’t work’ if they do, they get bullied. Internal Factors (gender differences) 6a) Girls and Achievement -Equal opportunities policies: Policies such as GIST and WISE encourage girls to pursue a career in non-traditional areas. The National Curriculum has removed one source of gender inequality by making girls and boys study mostly the same subjects. Also schooling has become meritocentric. -Positive role models: The increase in female teachers shows that women can achieve positions of importance and giving them non-traditional goals to aim for. -GCSE and coursework: Girls are more successful in coursework as they are more conscientious and better organised. Sociologists argue that these characteristics and skills are the result of early gender socialisation. E.g. girls are likely to be encouraged to be neat, tidy and patient. This puts girls in a better place as they achieve greater success. Elwood- not the only cause of the gender gap. -Teacher attention: Teachers paid more attention to boys as they are attracted to reprimands. This may explain why teachers have more positive attitudes to girls, whom they see as cooperative, than to boys, whom are seen as disruptive. This may lead to self-fulfilling prophecy in which successful interactions with teachers promote girls self-esteem and raise the achievement levels. -Challenging stereotypes in the curriculum: Sexist images have been removed from learning materials. This may help raise girl’s success levels- more positive images of what women can do. -Selection and league tables: Girls are more likely to be recruited from good schools as they are more attractive to schools. This may create a self-fulfilling prophecy. -Feminists: Liberal- See that further progress will be made by the continuing developments of equal opportunities, and see education is a meritocracy. Radical- System still remains patriarchal. E.g. sexual harassment continues, education still limits their subject choice and career options, females are less likely to become head-teachers.

Friday, January 10, 2020

What Challenges Does the Traditional Public Administration

WHAT CHALLENGES DOES THE TRADITIONAL PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION ENCOUNTER IN A CHANGING PUBLIC SECTOR ENVIRONMENT The traditional model of public administration (TPA) remains the longest standing and most successful theory of management in the public sector which pre-dominated for most of the 20th century.The TPA can be characterized as an administration under the formal control of the political leadership which was based on a strictly hierarchical model of bureaucracy, staffed by permanent, neutral and anonymous officials, motivated only by the public interest, serving any governing party equally, and not contributing to policy but merely administering those policies decided by the politicians. Its theoretical foundations were mainly derived from Woodrow Wilson and Frederick Taylor in the United States, Max Weber in Germany, and the Northcote–Trevelyan Report of 1854 in the United Kingdom.It is now being replaced by the New Public Management (NPM) due to the fact that the traditio nal model has been discredited theoretically and practically. The adoption of new forms of NPM means the emergence of a new paradigm in the public sector. This new paradigm poses a direct challenge to several of what had previously been regarded as fundamental principles of TPA. The aim of this presentation is to discuss the challenges that TPA encounters in a changing Public Sector environment. The discussion will focus on hierarchical structures, bureaucracy, political control, rigidity, one best way, meritocracy and technological change.The term administration is narrower and has a more limited function than that of management and in consequence, changing from public administration to public management means a major change of theory and of function. According to Hughes (2003:6), â€Å"public administration is an activity serving the public, and public servants carry out policies derived from politicians. † The Oxford dictionary defines administration as, â€Å"an act or p rocess of organising the way that something is done. According to Coulter (1996:8) â€Å"management refers to the process of getting activities completed efficiently and effectively with and through other people. From these various definitions it is argued that, administration essentially involves following instructions and providing service, while management involves the achievement of results and personal responsibility by the manager for results being achieved. The terms administration and management are not synonymous, neither is their application to the public sector. These two elements were not necessarily present in the traditional administrative system. Public administration focuses on processes, procedures and rules of etiquette, while public management involves much more.Instead of merely following instructions, a public manager focuses on achieving results and taking responsibility for doing so. It is this paradigm shift from Traditional Public Administration to the New Public Management which has exposed the weaknesses of the Traditional Public Administration Model as discussed below. The use of hierarchical structures which were not necessarily the best or efficient forms of organisations if comparing output and input was one of the problems or inadequacies of the Traditional Public Administration model.However, the hierarchical system meant that everyone knew his or her place and extent of authority. Someone is always technically accountable for all actions, from the lowest level to the highest. The system was reasonably efficient and effective in a narrow sense and meant instructions were carried out, especially when given clearly. It was also reasonably free from the temptations of diverting, eg, public funds for the personal use of the bureaucrat. When tasks were administrative and relatively simple, when the environment was stable, the system worked well.On the contrary, this system is not workable in big organisations. Many strata in a hier archical structure have a potential of slowing done work progress. The results or output take long to be realised. The Kavran Report of (1989:16) reported on hierarchical delays in the public service especially when processing business documents, water and electricity bills requests and others. According to Vecchio, (1991:510), to change the existing public system into one that is speedy, risk-taking, output-oriented, innovative and efficient requires a total change in organizational culture.The focus of subsequent reforms in the public service has been to move away from the idea of a rigid and bureaucratized career service, towards a more fluid structure. An example is that Foreign Direct Investment into Zimbabwe has been put under one roof to speed up processing and approval of projects. Bureaucracy is another problem associated with the TPA model. In small organisations like Civil Aviation of Zimbabwe, bureaucracy is ideal for control of human resource due to its defined reportin g and communication channels, it allows for certainty.Work is standardised due to laid down procedures, rules and regulations. The spans of control are scientifically calculated. However hierarchical structures are not good for management, is usually slow in moving, that is, work takes long to be accomplished and innovations are almost nonexistent. Any deviation from the norm through innovation can be punishable by law if ever anything goes wrong and investigations indicate that there was a deviation from the stipulated regulations or work procedures.However, Weber, in Hughes(2003:35) noted that, â€Å"every bureaucracy seeks to increase the superiority of the professionally informed by keeping their knowledge and intensions secret†, adding that the concept of official secrecy is the specific invention of bureaucracy. This concern still exists today, for example, in the ZRP any press release is done through their spokes persons. The Kavran report of 1989:17 reported that ther e were difficulties in obtaining information from the government. The same report indicated that one had to make innumerable visits and memorandum to get information even on a simple matter.There are now marked changes in the external environment functions with the greater external focus on NPM, through both strategy and managing of external constituencies, than was ever the case with TPA. Public service anonymity has certainly declined. Public servants are much freer to speak out in public, to appear at professional forum, to write articles in journals and generally to be visible and be public figures. The problem of political control or interference in public administration was also found to be one of the of TPA model challenges.Politics and administration are interlinked. Politicians make policies and administrators implement the policies. However, politicians are not necessarily administrators whereas public administrators are professionals in their work and are supposed to be a political; hence they need to be separated. Dahl (1998:59) argues that, â€Å"politics is ubiquitous†. This means that politics cannot be completely separated from administration. Hughes (2003:32) argues that, â€Å"The reform movement in the United States was not able to separate policy from administration, or politicians from administrators.It was only able to clarify the point where political appointments to the public service were to be separated from career appointments. † According to (Hughes 2003:26) â€Å"politicians should rule while public officials should do their bidding. Political offices should be filled competitively in the political arena whereas; bureaucratic offices should be filled competitively in the bureaucratic arena. Political officials should be selected on the basis of their political competence; bureaucratic officials should be selected on the basis of their bureaucratic competence.The separation of political and career routes should be inst itutionalised by legal or constitutional prohibition on concurrent office holding and interchange. Politicians should be judged by the electorate or their political peers whereas officials should be judged by their political overseers or their bureaucratic peers. Political office should be of limited tenure and subject to frequent elections and bureaucratic office should be of unlimited tenure, subject to good behaviour. According to the Zimbabwe Public Service Act, the Public service functions independently and is not answerable to the minister, however the minister can direct the commission on certain issues. Political interference has raised its head in a number of areas of the Zimbabwe Public Services like, the mining sector (ZISCO) where ESSAR was awarded a tender to run the mine and politicians interfered resulting in the withdrawal of the tender. The TPA model was rigid and bureaucratic, narrowly focused and preoccupied with structures and process..Rigidity to rules, regulati ons and order of doing work has a tendency of stifling innovation which is necessary for work effectiveness and efficiency. Robert Merton (1968: 260) argued that, â€Å"rigid adherence to rules could have unanticipated consequences, including a reduction in efficiency. The rigidity and bureaucracy of the system posed a problem to the NPM system which is result based and managers are accountable for their action. To maintain one’s job, is now dependant on one’s performance. The new pubic management encourages flexibility which is intertwined with innovation and increased output.The TPA model assumed there was ‘one best way’ of administering. Gulick’s POSDCORB and Taylor’s scientific management were ‘popular manifestations of this one best way theorising. ’ According to Stillman, (1991: 9) in Hughes (2003:25), the one best way, â€Å" is a methodology by which a few simple nostrums/remedies were followed in all circumstances. â⠂¬  Hughes (2003:33) argues that, â€Å"the one best way was determined by examining all the steps involved in a task, measuring the most efficient and, most importantly, setting out this method as a set of procedures.In the public services, the procedure manuals became ever larger with the method for dealing with every conceivable contingency spelt out in great detail. Once this was done the task of the public official was purely administrative, merely involving consultation of the manual and following the procedures laid down. There was little thought involved and no creativity other than that of finding the right page of the manual. Administrators by definition have no responsibility for results; one best way thinking allowed them to evade responsibility altogether. The results or output was also ignored by this notion of one-best way.This is prevalent in most government departments of Zimbabawe especially the military where things are done according to the book. There is very little room for innovations and accountability as demanded by the new public system. Meritocracy/ Professionalism. The TPA was based on non professional ways of recruitment. It was once common for those aspiring for employment by the state to resort to patronage or nepotism, relying on friends or relatives for employment, or by purchasing offices. This is still prevalent or being practised in most developing countries Zimbabwe included.This compromises standards, affects output and de-motivates professionals resulting in high labour turnover. The Zimbabwe Public Service Act requires that people be employed according to their professional qualifications or their merit. For example in the health sector, for a doctor to practice must be licensed, the same applies with lawyers. Weber formulated the theory of bureaucracy, the idea of a distinct, professional public service, recruited and appointed by merit, politically neutral, which would remain in office throughout changes in governmen t.One of the major challenges of TPA was that it was manual based hence slow moving. According to Muid, (1994:125). Technological change affects management, including the management of government. This should be regarded as one of the main driving forces both towards new forms of public management and away from traditional bureaucracy. With the adoption of forms of e-government (electronic government) technologically driven change is likely to accelerate.The use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) such as distributed computer systems, Internet linkages, new databases could lead to a re-conceptualization of the very way that bureaucracies work. The changes have the potential to be beneficial, even though there are issues of privacy and security yet to be dealt with. It is inarguable that management of the public sector changes with the kinds of information technology currently available. In Zimbabwe the Presidential Computerisation programme is a typical example of p ublic sector effort.In conclusion, the traditional model of administration was an outstanding and widely emulated by governments all around the world . However with passage of time the TPA has been increasingly superseded by the NPM. The new model is not fully in place, there is now a greater focus on results rather than process, on responsibility rather than its evasion and on management rather than administration. This transition has its own challenges that it encounters during the process. The challenges include bureaucracy, political interference, meritocracy/professionalism and one best way and technological changes.It was only later,when NPM come into existence and managers became responsible for results, that there was any real thought that different methods could lead to different results and those methods and actions should be tailored to circumstances. According to Behn (1998:140), in reality there is no one best way but many possible answers. | Nostrum ineffective remedy: a remedy for a social, political, or economic problem, especially an idea or plan that is often suggested but never proved to be successfulMicrosoft ® Encarta ® 2009.  © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. ||

Thursday, January 2, 2020

The Impact Of Television On Our Future Generations

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