87 Advanced Business Writing Tips [That Actually Work]

87 Advanced Business Writing Tips [That Actually Work] I'm excited to share these top87 business writing tips with you. They were honed while I studied English Literature and Rhetoric, taught writing at the university level, and workedwith thousands of individuals and hundreds of companies to help people write better at work. Many of these tips come directly from our award winning online business writing courses. My hope is these tips help you enjoy writing, better communicate at work, get ahead in your career, and grow your business! Jump to a section This is a huge list with 87 of the best business writing tips. Use these links to jump to a section: PLANNING AND PROCESS TIPSFORMATTING TIPSLANGUAGE TIPSEDITING TIPSGRAMMAR TIPSBUSINESS WRITING TOOLSINFOGRAPHIC 1. Know Your AudienceBusiness writing is all about your reader. Your reader is your focus point, not what you know. 2.Prime Questions Before you write anything, ask yourself these two questions:1) Who is my reader?2) What do I want this reader to know or do?If you can’t answer these two questions, stop. Don’t write the document because it has no purpose. PLANNING AND PROCESS 3.Think FirstBusiness writing is just as much about thinking as it is about writing. 4.Most Time is PlanningYou should spend approximately 50% of your time planning a business document or email. 5. Drafting is EasyDrafting a document is the easiest part and should require approximately 20% of your time. 6. Editing TimeAllocate 30% of your time to editing. 7. Plan First, Then DraftAccept that you want to draft more than you want to plan a document or email. Everyone does. Drafting gives us a (sometimes false) sense of accomplishment. And, drafting is easier than planning. 8. Woody Allen is Right about WritingWoody Allen calls the planning portion of writing the â€Å"pace the floor† part. If you are an analytical thinker, which many business writers are, this is natural for you, but accept that sometimes it makes your brain hurt as your mind has to figure out all the interconnections. 9. Concept Maps are Essential for Business WritersMapping the structure of a complex document will make both planning and drafting much easier. 10. Develop HeadingsWhen you plan your documents, write a heading for each main section of your document. Don’t worry about the wording of the heading as you are planning to document, but verify that you can encapsulate the content of that section into a heading. If you can’t, your content is murky so fix it now before you waste time trying to edit the language when the real problem is disorganization. 11. Start Where It's EasiestYou don’t have to begin writing a document or email at the first sentence. The first sentence is often the hardest sentence to write. Instead, look at your document headings and write the section that is easiest or most interesting for you. Once you begin writing, the interconnectivity of thoughts will ignite, and the rest of the document will be easier to write. 12. How to Jump in and OutIn real life, business writers don’t have the luxury of a half-day of uninterrupted writing time. To maximize your efficiency, refer to the map or outline you created, decide which section you can tackle in the time you have and start drafting. Having a map and headings will prevent you from having to re-engage your thinking all over again each time you exit and enter the document. 13. Back Up When You Get StuckThe best recommendation given to meduring my years of rhetorical studies was: â€Å"The secret of writing is knowing when to back up. Don’t try to edit and polish before something is fully drafted. Don’t try to draft before your thoughts are clear. When you get stuck, back up!† As a business writer, this has saved me lots of frustration. 14. Hire a CoachHire a business writing coach and receive personalized feedback. One-on-one sessions will help you gain confidence in your writing. FORMAT TIPS 15. Paragraphs Seven Lines or Less Online In email or other documents that will be read online, be certain your paragraphs aren’t longer than seven lines. (Lines, not sentences.) Any longer than that and readability studies show that your readers just see a big block of text and jump over it. 16. Dangling Expressions are Funny but Avoid Them Dangling expressions commonly creep in documents in bullets and when copying and pasting. Example:David Corcoran wrote the project plan while traveling to Atlanta on the back of an envelope.(Who knew one could travel on an envelope?) hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(41482, 'bf4ee473-8e6b-46bf-b9e3-368d74d60b44', {}); 17. Use Regular Words to Avoid Non-Sexist WritingAvoid awkward non-sexist constructions like his/her and s/he. Instead, write out the actual words - his or her. 18. Headings Will Allow Your Readers to Scan EasilyUsing headings in email to highlight the organization will allow readers to scan the email more efficiently. 19. Make it Easy for Your Reader to ScanAdd white space to your documents by usingnumbered and bulleted lists. 20. Use Format to Indicate HierarchyIndent paragraphs to visually indicate it is a subset of the information above. LANGUAGEBEST PRACTICE TIPS 21. Write to Express, Not to ImpressIn business writing, your goal is to easily transmit ideas and information, not to flaunt a big vocabulary. 22. ConciseWriting is Skilled WritingConcisewritingis harder to craft thanwriting that has no length limit. Blaise Pasqual stated, "I apologize for the length of my letter. I did not have time to make it shorter." 23. Use Short WordsI’ve long admired Richard Lederer’s writing on language. In his 1991 book, The Miracle of Language, Lederer sings the praises of the short word: When you speak and write, there is no law that says you have to use big words. Short words are as good as long ones, and short, old words- like sun and grass and home- are best of all. A lot of small words, more than you might think, can meet your needs with a strength, grace, and charm that large words do not have. Two tips on clarity I always highlight in ourbusiness writing courses: Never use a big word when a small word will do. Any time a word is not truly needed, cut it. 24. Use Staccato Short Words to Grab AttentionTo grab your reader’s attention at pivotal moments in a document, such as the recommendation or conclusion, deliberately shift one or two sentences to all single-syllable words. A break in varied syllable length has the same effect on reading a document that staccato notes have when listening to music. The short, staccato words subconsciously alert your reader that something has shifted, causing them to pay more attention. 25. Winston Churchill WisdomWinston Churchill wisely stated, â€Å"Big men use little words, and little men use big words.† 26.Verbs = Energy Verbs are the pivot point of a sentence. Strong verbs have real punch. Compare: The famous strong verb example by Julius Caesar: â€Å"Veni, vidi, vici.† I came, I saw, I conquered. Business-speak: I was in attendance, and I conducted a review of the situation and culture, and I made recommendations for acquisition. 27. Use PreciseVerbsTo bring clarity to your writing, use preciseand evocative verbs. Business writers tend to muddle verbs because imprecise verb use is so common in business writing that it sounds normal to our ears. 28. Don't Smother VerbsA common clarity problem in business writing is â€Å"smothered verbs,† which are verbs that were changed to nouns (called â€Å"nominalization†). For example, the verb decide is nominalized into the noun decision. These nominalized verbs require helping words around them that smother their impact, muddle the clarity of a sentence, and increase sentence length. 29. Verbs Used Right Bring ClarityEnhance clarityby using a specific verb, instead of a smothered nominalized word.Example:The core verb in this sentence is â€Å"decide:"We need to make a decision about hiring either Kevin or Kira. - smothered verbWe need to decide about hiring either Kevin or Kira. - unsmothered verb 30. How to Cut 20% - 25% of BloatCutting smothered verbs reduces document length by 20-25% in most business documents. None of the smothering words have any value. Unsmothering verbs is a very powerful clarity technique. 31. "Take" Near a Verb is SmotheredWatch out for the word take near the verb in a sentence or sentence clause. If take is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Example:We need to take the data findings into consideration if we expand the product line.We need to consider the data findings if we expand the product line. 32. "Give" Near a Verb is SmotheredWatch out for the wordgive near the verb in a sentence or sentence clause. If give is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Example:Let me give consideration to your muddled writing. Let me consider your muddled writing. 33. "Have" Near a Verb is SmotheredWatch out for the word have near the verb in a sentence or sentence clause. If have is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Example:I have a suspicion some of your verbs are smothered.I suspect some of your verbs are smothered. 34. "Make" Near a Verb is SmotheredWatch out for the word make near the verb in a sentence or sentence clause. If make is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Example:We promise to make an adjustment to your account by tomorrow.We promise to adjust your account by tomorrow. 35. "Conduct" Near a Verb is SmotheredWatch out for the word conduct near the verb in a sentence or sentence clause. If conduct is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Example:We’ll need to conduct a review of the data before the decision can be made.We’ll need to review the data before deciding. (Two smothered verbs corrected.) 36. "Come" Near a Verb is SmotheredWatch out for the word come near the verb in a sentence or sentence clause. If come is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Example:We came to the conclusion that prices had to increase.We concluded that prices had to increase. 37. ":Are we in agreement that clarity matters?Do we agree that clarity matters?Extend an invitation to Karen and Sunita.Invite Karen and Sunita. 38. Avoid Wimpy VerbsAvoid wimpy verbs that need a helping word to enable the verb to do its job in the sentence. Example:Dolores walked into the room slowly and quietly with her head averted, hoping no one would notice she was late.Dolores slinked into the room, hoping no one would notice she was late. Evan planned and worked on the technical aspect of the project plan.Evan engineered the project plan. 39. Avoid RedundancyAvoid redundant verb modifiers.Example:Damian shouted loudly at Clarrisa after she missed the deadline. Damian shouted at Clarrisa after she missed the deadline. (Shouting, by definition, is loud, so no modifier is needed.) 40. Don't Start Sentences with "There is" or "There are."Weak sentences frequently start with â€Å"There is† or â€Å"There are.† Instead, cut to the chase. Find the real subject and start there.Example: There was a strong disagreement between the divisions about the reorganization structure.The two sides strongly disagreed about the reorganization structure. 41. Active Voice is Better than Passive VoiceActive voice is more dynamic and lively than passive voice, typically. 42. Use Reader:We have decided to upgrade the features of our training course.You will automatically receive updated features in your training course. 43. Avoid JargonJason Fried, the CEO of 37 Signals, stated: â€Å"Jargon is insecurity.† I agree. So often, I hear people within an organization parrot each other with phrases that have been used so much they have become meaningless. Examples: Lots of moving parts Give 110% Synergy Think outside the box Tiger team View more jargon examples to avoid Bonus Tip: You can also use our free Jargon Grader to check your writing for over 700 jargon words and phrases. 44. Be Polite. It Echoes.Everything we write at work has a larger echo. This echo is both a worry and an opportunity to advance your career. For example, you may have to deny a funding request to present research at a conference, but the larger echo requirement is maintaining the drive to innovate and research at your company. Don't win a battle and lose the war. 45. Own Your WorkAvoid â€Å"I think†¦Ã¢â‚¬  or â€Å"I suggest†¦Ã¢â‚¬  or â€Å"I wonder if we should†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Instead, confidently write â€Å"I recommend...† or omit the â€Å"I† lead statement and simply write â€Å"Merge the divisions.† 46. Use Standard Grammar, Even When ChallengingSubjects and verbs need to agree in number. In an attempt be non-sexist, some business writers recommend writing, â€Å"Each person did their work quietly.† Each is singular. Their is plural. It’s grammatically incorrect. 47. How to Dodge Awkward His or Her DilemmaTo dodge the awkward his or her dilemma, shift the subject to plural when possible:A manager is trained to support his or her employees.Managers are trained to support their employees. 48. The Right Amount of InformationHelps the Reader and WriterA little extra information provided can resolve repeated questions:As noted on page four of the instruction booklet, photocopying on both sides requires two steps. 49. Equal Respect MattersUse consistency naming people. Mr. Jones and Arlene Kelly should be referred to consistently as David Jones and Arlene Kelly or as Mr. Jones and Ms. Kelly. 50. Avoid ExclusionaryWordsUse neutral job titles that do not imply gender - chairperson, not chairman or chairwoman. 51. Confident Tone TipTo instill a confident tone to your writing, shorten your sentences and avoid the common overuse ofâ€Å", and† in sentences. Which statement sounds more confident to you?Training with us is easy, and you can hand us the job and just walk away. You won't worry about a thing, and you can get back to what you do best. Relax knowing your project is moving seamlessly to completion, and you can simply calculate the savings.ORTraining with us is easy. Hand us the job and just walk away. You won't worry about a thing. Get back to what you do best. Relax knowing your project is moving seamlessly to completion. Simply calculate the savings. Do you hear the difference in confident tone? The second statement sounds much less out-of-breath or desperate to please and more confident and competent. It is calmer and assuring. 52. Take A CourseContinue to hone your skills by taking an effectivebusiness writing course. A structured course can help you develop effective business writing techniques [Learn More]. BUSINESS WRITING TIPS FOR EDITING YOURWORK 53. An Exclamation Point is Already SuperlativeNever use more than one exclamation point at the end ofa sentence. When I studied rhetoric in graduate school, my favorite professor shared this funny statement about using too many exclamation points in general.â€Å"Too many exclamation points make a document feel as if it has been written by an unfocused over-caffeinated cheerleader.† 54. Use Clear Words Rather thanEmphasis PunctuationExclamation points are often used in business writing to generate enthusiasm when the real problem is imprecise information. More accurate, clear information will generate reader engagement far better than trying to spice a murky document with exclamation points. 55. Editing First StepThe first step in editing is verifying that content matches reader needs - not too much, and not too little. 56. Editing SecondStepThe second step in editing is making sure the document is as easy to scan as possible. Add headings, bullet lists, appropriate bold text, and lots of white space. 57. Editing ThirdStepThe third step in editing is correcting grammar, sentence structure, and eliminating bloat. 58. Break Paragraphs FrequentlyEverynew thought needs a new paragraph. When in doubt, break the paragraph. 59. Paragraph Length is VariedA one-sentence paragraph is both correct and emphatic. Don't be afraid to write a one-sentence paragraph. 60. Designate an Editor for Group DocumentsWhen a group writes a document, designate one writer as the final editor to ensure a coherent voice. 61. Planning Eases EditingIf you are spending too much time editing, you probably rushed theplanning of yourdocument. 62. Editing Can'tCompensate for Poor PlanningEditing should need a dusting, not an editorial massacre. 63. How to Proofread a Colleague's DocumentIf a colleague asks you to edit their document, you must ask them about both the purpose of the document and about the audience. Without this information, you can only clean grammar. 64. PunctuationMattersA woman without her man is nothing.A woman: without her, man is nothing. GRAMMAR TIPS AND TRICKS FOR BUSINESS WRITING 65. #1 Most Common Business Grammar ErrorThe most common grammar error we see in client writing during business writing training is fused or run-on sentences. 66. #2 Most Common Business Grammar ErrorThe second most common grammar error we see in client writing is sentence fragments. 67. #3 Most Common Business Grammar ErrorThe third most common grammar error we see in client writing is hyphen errors. 68. #4 Most Common Business Grammar ErrorThe fourth most common grammar error we see in client writing is me, myself, and I errors. 69. #5 Most Common Business Grammar ErrorThe fifth most common grammar error we see in client writing is introductory clause comma errors. 70. Grammar Errors are IndividualEveryone makes different grammar errors. Therefore, to improve grammar, the first step has to be an accurate diagnosis of an individual’s entrenched grammar errors. 71. Wide-Ranging Grammar Training Won't HelpA review of many grammar rules is ineffective in actually improving business writing sentence structure. More effective is focusing on what is incorrect. 72. Best Grammar ResourceBy far, the best grammar resource on the Internet is Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab. It includes explanation and exercises. 73. Best Grammar AnalysisGrammar Girl is an excellent resource for current grammar use and rationale. 74. Best Business Grammar ResourceInstructional Solutions’ Business Grammar category in their Business Writing Info blog is an excellent resource for business-specific grammar use. 75. Oxford Comma Yes or NoGrammarians will never agree about whether or not to use the Oxford Comma (also called a Serial Comma.) I recommend that business writers use it because of consistency and clarification advantages. 76. Grammar Rules are InflexibleGrammarianswho believe a grammar rule should never be broken are called prescriptivists. 77. Grammar Rules are FlexibleGrammarians who believe language is more flexible, and grammar rules may be broken, are called descriptivists. 78. My Recommendation on the Prescriptivist vs. DescriptivistDivideIn business writing, it’s best to stick with established grammar rules because a client or potential customer could see what they perceive as an error and believe your work is simply sloppy. USE ABUSINESS WRITING TOOL For all the best business writing tools check out our full article here. 79. Best Grammar and Editing ToolGrammarly is our top business writing tool recommendation. Use it as the last check before you send anything. It will also detect plagiarism. Don't forgetplagiarism applies to text as well as images. 80. Cut the Bloat ToolHemingway is a free app that detects bloat in your writing. 81. Best Tool You Already HaveMicrosoft Readability Measurement Tool, already embedded in Word and Outlook, provides helpfulbusiness writing clarity measurements. Grammarly is better. 82. Tone AnalyzerTone Analyzer assesses the tone of your business writing. 83. Jargon DetectorUnsuck It is a rude, but useful, tool that assesses business writing jargon. 84. Free Concept Mapping ToolFreemind is free mind mapping software that is very easy to use. 85. How to Easily Learn Concept MappingThis tutorial will teach you to use Freemind in ten minutes. 86. Hire the Better Writer In his insightfulbook, Rework, Jason Fried stated: All things being equal, hire the better writer. Good writers know what to include and what to omit. They understand people and motivation. They can express complex information in a way it can be shared. Whether the position is sales, engineering, software development, or HR, always hire the better writer. I agree with Jason Fried. However, business writing is a skill that can be honed. Since 1998, my company, Instructional Solutions, and I have helped thousands of individuals and hundreds of companies write better at work. 87. Subscribe to Our Blog We wanted to add one last tip! If you liked this article you can subscribe to our blog here. We often write articles focused on helping you become a better professional writer. That's the list! If you have a tip that I missed please comment below! I would love to hear what tips you have! Bonus: 19 Actionable Writing Tips Infographic:

Baroque essays

Baroque essays The Baroque Period The Baroque Art began in Italy between the sixteen hundreds and the seventeen hundreds. Classicism of the High Renaissance has been replenished during the Baroque period. During the Baroque period of art, the exploration of the fundamental components of the human nature and the realm of senses and emotions were very crucial. The Baroque era was very vast and dynamic, radiant and colorful, dramatic and intense, passionate and ardent, and sensual and overpowered by emotions. The superficial form of light was fascinated during this period due to the thoughts of godlike sun or the truth of the Holy Spirit. The Baroque naturalism maintains the religious themes in content. The elements of perception in the Baroque art are how we perceived the natural human figures are in motion through space, time, and light. We present and analyze the extent of human actions and passions in all its degrees of lightness, darkness, and intensity. One of the most well known Italian painter s from the Baroque period was Annibale Carracci. One of his famous works was from the Gallery of the Palazzo Farnese in Rome. The Farnese ceiling had a big impact in the modification of High Renaissance painting. It revives the Renaissance in human themes and emotions and the concentration of human nature and anatomy; therefore, forming a connection between the Renaissance and the Baroque. It creates the naturalistic and classical art and form in the paintings. He greatly influenced another Italian painter named Carlo Dolci, who painted Virgin and Child with Saint John the Baptist. In this painting, strong feelings and emotions are being greatly expressed without words. We see that Carraccis painting of the Farnese ceiling was painted in rich, brilliant colors, just like the Virgin and the Childs clothing in Dolcis painting. The emphasis of the human body and emotions are greatly displayed. Human nudity and beauty was also an important fac...

The Nursing Care Management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

The Nursing Care Management - Case Study Example When she is stressed, anxious, or having manifestations of manic depression despite having regular medications, extra support from a community nurse is available on the grounds of deterioration of her mental health. In this work, the care of Pat will be analyzed on the basis of the theoretical framework of nursing process where the role of learning disability nurses would be examined as far as clinical governance, ethical issues, and evidence from current research are concerned. This would also include critical analysis of emerging issues and implications on professional practice when it is delivering a care that is person-centred along or in collaboration including therapeutic interventions that are suggested by evidence from research. The planned care would then be critically analyzed and evaluated based on the principles of clinical governance and research evidence. Finally, everything should culminate into learning as far as learning disability nursing is considered. Theoretical framework to provide structure: This is the story of a young woman with learning disability, where her clinical situation has been complicated by detection and diagnosis mental health disorder such as manic depression and other medical disorder. This is a complex process due to her limited vocabulary and insights, and skill deficits. Therefore, the nursing assessment process that would lead ultimately to a care plan would need to include details of her skills and abilities, nature and pattern of behaviour in a diverse range of environments, relationships and understanding of her own emotions and of other people around her. To be able to implement these in practice, a theoretical framework is very necessary. These theoretical frameworks for practice have been derived from nursing theories.... This paper approves that medical history indicating stressors of long-term illness of complex partial seizures, mental illness of manic depression, medications against mental illness and seizures, and learning disabilities. A combination of these would lead to emotional disabilities. Conditions such as these can isolate individual who feels disconnected from others, resulting in difficulty relating in social situations. Presence of visual or hearing impairments are to be noted since presence of these in her case may lead to a situation where she may find communication barriers are increased, social interaction is affected, and interventions need to be designed to promote involvement with others in positive ways. This report makes a conclusion that the nursing care management must take care of the need to establish therapeutic relationship using positive regard for the person, active-listening and providing safe environment for self-disclosure. Client who is having difficulty interacting in social situations needs to feel comfortable and accepted before she is willing to talk about self and concerns. Client needs to learn social skills, because she has never learned the elements of interacting with others in social settings. Role-playing one-on-one is less threatening and can help individual identify with another and practice new social skills. Having client to participate in a controlled group environment, for example Pat and Jim, provides opportunities to try out different behaviours in a built-in social setting where members can make friends and provide mutual advice and comfort. Positive reinforcement for improvement in social behaviours and interactions should be provided since this enco urages continuation of desired behaviours/efforts for change.

Wholesale Marketing Channel Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Wholesale Marketing Channel - Case Study Example Furthermore, these retailers create delays in order to frustrate the customers and tarnish the reputation of the company in the market. As a result, the most appropriate marketing channel for FOXXY is the use of the wholesalers. Unlike in Canada whereby the company was able to use internal sales representatives to distribute products in different parts of the country, the US market requires a different approach. The reason is that the target market requires different segmentation strategies in order to position the products strategically in the market. Therefore, the use of wholesalers will offer the company with an opportunity to focus on the production system. Therefore, the company will produce high quality products which meet the tastes and preferences of the target market (Keillor, 2013). The reason is that majority of the target customers are young people who have a disposable income that they are willing to spend on high quality products. However, this group has access to information especially from the social media. As a result, they can easily shift their loyalty to new entrants in the market. Local wholesalers understand the market dynamics in the United States. With the increasing levels of globalization, it has become critical for the company to focus its attention towards customers’ satisfaction. However, due to the fact that FOXXY is an external company, many of its subordinates do not understand the US market. Each market has its unique culture which must be taken into consideration while marketing and distributing the products. Therefore, in order for FOXXY to achieve this objective, the company should have to employ local subordinates who understand the local consumption culture. This would delay the expansion program and affect the future plans of the company. Moreover, the US market prefers to be associated with products that have been produced locally (Reidenbach & Goeke,  2006).

Approaches to Motivation at Work

Approaches to Motivation at Work Motivation is a general term used to describe the process of starting, directing, and maintaining physical and psychological activities. The word motivation comes from the Latin movere to move. It is also an internal state of being, or an internal condition that activates ones behaviour, giving it direction. Motivation is to encourage people to work, individually or in groups in the ways such as to produce best results. It is the will to act and the willingness to exert high levels of effort towards organizational goals, conditioned by the efforts and ability to satisfy some individual need. The managements important task is to motivate others. It comprises the abilities to communicate, to set an example, to challenge, to encourage, obtaining feedback, to involve, to delegate, to develop and train, to inform, to brief and to provide a just reward. There are mainly two kinds of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation is internal it occurs when people are bound to do something out of satisfaction, significance or need. Extrinsic motivation occurs when external factors make the person to do something. A work place is the most common place where we can apply need of motivation. Motivation also plays a key role in leadership success at work place. Motivation propels life it plays a major role in nearly everything we do without motivation we would simply not care about outcomes means, accomplishment, education, success, failure, employment etc. Motivation is our group topic and we have covered many sub topics in motivation like Meaning of motivation, Maslow hierarchy of needs theory, Approaches to motivation and influences of motivation, Alderfers modified need hierarchy model, Equity theory of motivation, Vrooms expectancy theory, Herzbergs motivation -hygiene theory. And as a member of group I have covered the topic Approaches to motivation and influences of motivation. APPROACHES TO MOTIVATION AT WORK AND INFLUENCES OF MOTIVATION There are number of different approaches to work motivation, most of which can be broken into either content theories or process theories. Content theories focus on what motivates people to perform and are concerned with identifying the different rewards that people seek in their work. Process theories focus on how rewards control behaviour. These theories are concerned with the dynamics or process aspects of work motivation. The content theory of motivation mainly focuses on the internal factors that energize and direct human behaviour. Maslows hierarchy of needs, Alderfers ERG theory, Herzbergs motivator-hygiene theory (Herzbergs dual factors theory) and McClellands learned needs or three needs theory are some of the major content theories. The most famous content theory is Abraham Maslows hierarchy of human needs. Maslow introduced five levels of basic needs through his theory. Basic needs are categorized as physiological needs, safety and security needs, needs of love, needs for self esteem and needs for self-actualization. Just like Maslows hierarchy of needs, ERG theory explains existence, relatedness, and growth needs. Through dual factors theory, Herzberg describes certain factors in the workplace which result in job satisfaction. McClellands learned needs or three needs theory uses a projective technique called the Thematic Aptitude Test so as to evaluate people based on three needs; power, achievement and affiliation. People with high need of power take action in a way that influences the others behaviour. Process theory is one more type of motivation theory. Process theories of motivation provide an opportunity to understand though processes that influence behaviour. The major process theories of motivation include Adams equity theory, Vrooms expectancy theory, goal setting theory, and reinforcement theory .Goal setting theory suggests that the individuals are motivated to reach set goals. It also requires that the set goals should be specific. Reinforcement theory is concerned with controlling behaviour my manipulating its consequences. There are four different types of approaches to motivation. Economic needs motivation. Social concept of motivation. Self-actualization needs. Complex man concept of motivation. ECONOMIC NEEDS MOTIVATION According to Taylor man is a rational economic animal with maximising his economic gain. Taylor had a simple view about what motivated people at work is money and no other factor motivate as much as money motivate people. In this approach man form of motivation is high wages. In short, the more money you offer the worker, the more motivated they will be to work. And the weakness in this approach is money is an important motivation at work for many people, it isnt for everyone. Taylor overlooked the fact that people work for many reasons other than financial reward. SOCIAL CONCEPT OF MOTIVATION In this type of motivation approach people are believed to be motivated by human needs and achieve their satisfaction through social groups with whom they interact. Encouraging team building, providing supportive practices, and permitting co-workers the opportunity to interact socially on the job, Also people are motivated by giving day off or special bonuses on religious or family festival. By doing this people are more motivate and encouraged to do his best possible thing for the work assigned to them. Difficult to participate and connect with the group cause elevation of turnover of people resulting into lowering of moral, psychological fatigue, reduced levels of performance, SELF-ACTUALIZATION NEEDS According to Maslow: desire to become more and more what one is, to become everything one is capable of becoming It is about the question of reaching ones full potential as a person unlike lower level needs, this need is never fully satisfied as one grows psychologically there are always new opportunities to continue to grow. Organizations can help employees satisfy self actualization needs by encouraging creativity, allowing risk taking decision making and supporting workers in their efforts to develop their skills. Self actualized individuals are often motivated by a strong sense of personal ethics and responsibility. They enjoy solving real world problems and are often concerned with helping other people improve their own life. Also self actualized persons have frequent occurrences of peak experiences, which are energized moments of profound happiness and harmony. According to Maslow only a small percentage of the population reaches the level of self actualization. COMPLEX MAN CONCEPT OF MOTIVATION In this type of motivation approach people are unique, different and their approaches also vary. Complex man is based on the fact that people are variable, they change the ways they seek fulfilment, respond in a variety of ways. There are large numbers of variables which influence organizational performance. It is not limited to social or monetary rewards. In this type of approach sometimes people are motivated by verbal acknowledgement and sometimes people are not satisfied by promoting to higher post. CONCLUSION An understanding of motivation approaches theories can help mangers increase employee performance. Employees generally fall into two types: self motivated, and those that require external motivation to stay motivated. Self motivated employees tend to exhibit good performance even if they are never provided with much external motivation, but their performance increases still more if they are provided with that motivation. Employees that do require external motivation certainly improve in performance when skilfully motivated. Highly motivated employees are highly productive employees and they are superior. Last but not least I would like to tell something about my group we are in group 9 including 6 people. We were divided in a group by college authority we were aware about each other but not so familiar. Initially when we were formed in a group all were working with their own method which resulted into conflict between team members. Due to more interventions of each other we appointed one person as a group leader. Now all the conflicts are settled and all members resist the task with full cooperation. We all have work very hard as team members to give our best and make this topic interesting. All have dedicated their time from busy schedule and gather at one place to prepare for the topic. As a group the level of motivation was very high as our group leader have worked very hard to coordinate with each team member and execute the order to be in the loop with each other so we can solve our difficulty by consulting each other. All team members were very cooperative and dedicative which resulted into good quality of work.

Maritime Policy Essay

Maritime policies are set and managed so as to ensure the safety of ships while on the open seas. Furthermore maritime policies also have control over ports and the policies for docking, shipments, monies, what can be imported or not. Liabilities and values are managed and in some respects so are ethics. The policies are to designate water rights and boundaries. Shipping has inherent risks associated with the trade that needs to have emergency plans in place should something go wrong. There are environmental factors to take into consideration. 1 Add to this list, insurances, warranties and the laws that bind and by far, but not even the least, hazmat with the MSDS sheets of chemicals being transported, inspections, proper loads and bills of lading. Piracy isn’t much of an issue in today’s modern times but yet there are policies on piracy though much of this is outdated back to 1800-1900. Let us start with the safety aspect of shipping. Safety always starts and ends with the human element. Without human intervention there is no guarantee of proper safety procedures being followed. Granted there are no guarantees anyway but a plan to follow is by far better than not having one. Maritime safety policies offer a protection not only to humans but to the environment and each territory or country has its own maritime safety policies and their own policies in general. In following safety as put in the policies this can also promote economic development and activity. 2 If safety procedures set forth in each policy are adhered to then the smooth sailing into and out of ports and countries, taking into account the shipment, humans and wildlife and water handling as well as obeying water boundaries and the knowledge of these policies per each are of sailing then one can be fairly presumptuous in a smooth transaction. Smooth transactions will enable a stable and economical trade for a long time. Funny how safety and policies are a direct relation to simply sailing right? On top of written policies as mentioned, maintenance is also a huge safety concern. Without proper and timely maintenance of sea faring vessels, catastrophes can happen, shipments can be late which can in turn affect contracts of imports or exports which of course goes straight into the economics of shipping. As mentioned, the MSDS of chemicals is hugely, astronomically important in safety! The MSDS sheets give an abundant amount of information relating to any and all chemicals with regards to properties, explosiveness, stability, storage, shipping, proper handling, exposures to human and animals, what to do in case of accidents, medical issues and who to call for questions and answers. MSDS furthermore gives information as to protective wear and the immediate emergency criteria. While the MSDS (material safety data sheet) is one of the most important aspects in the USA for chemicals, even if they don’t seem dangerous, transport and safety factors, other countries will also have their own individual regulations for shipments containing dangerous chemicals. These regulations must be followed as well. This is to ensure safety precautions from both levels. Simply not following, even the MSDS instructions can cause severe issues. Explosions can happen, people and animals may become ill or death may occur. Long term lasting effects may happen to both humans and wildlife. If the safety practice is not followed with regards to whatever is being transported, whomever did not follow the instructions will be held liable and an end result can mean cancelled contracts, economic loss and soured politics with one person or country or even company. You must see the broad picture and how all of this relates to successful shipping, economics, policies and in general to the world. The economics of shipping is like a well oiled machine when operated correctly and with the use of good teamwork throughout all ports, countries and waterways and once again the following of policies at each port, within each territory. Economic welfare consists of the sum of consumers’ surpluses and producers’ surpluses plus or minus any relevant externalities. 3 The economy also requires a strong organizational skill of the shippers, producers and purchasers, not necessarily meaning consumers. The transportation of goods being shipped must be organized in respects to sea, air and freight transport, the production of making and delivering the goods, the ability to produce contracts in a timely manner, even the ability to put together a contract and keep it. Economics also requires the knowledge of knowing port fees and taxes in the other ports being frequented. Market trends will also play a large part in a successful economic empire. If you do not know the ever changing markets and the different economies at each port then the dismals failings are easily found in the shipping industry. This will slide right into the sociological factors of shipping. So how does this part of the shipping management work? How does it prosper? The entire shipping industry, to run in a smooth way uses all of the above but then there is an ultimate management of it all. The human resources management, the industry management, the social management, it all plays a huge part. The items in which are shipped, the taxes and prices of the different items all vary. The weight allowed for each ship, rail car or air transport matter in all ways. Social change denotes this. Social change can also be a dangerous happening to an industry if not prepared. When social change happens, this is similar to the industry changing and the industry and companies must be ready to absorb losses and be prepared to switch gears at a moments notice in their decisions of what to ship to who and when. Contracts may have to be renegotiated and in some cases when they can’t be then there is once again the absorption of the possibility of losing monies, contracts, and in worse case scenarios, allies from other countries. Maybe contracts won’t renew or no new contracts accepted. 4 The sociological side of a shipping industry and all involved are yet again directly correlated with the ecological aspects. There is an ecological factor to also take into consideration, both of the environment side and the human side. The environment side is in relation to protecting the seas, plant and animals within and against leakages that poor maintenance and unnecessary pollutions can cause. If maintenance is not done in the fashions that need to be, ships can fail at sea, shipments can be late. This is a small factor in the ecological side. The bigger problems are with lack of maintenance causing a fuel spill or oil spill then the natural inhabitants of the sea are affected, plant life is affected thus in the end so is the human life. Humans, whether spending the time to cleanup up or from suffering from the damages in a physical way, it is all apart of the ecology. On the human side, and back to the sociological side, which is a direct line to discrimination in today’s world, is the interdependence of the people. This means the people who work together in close quarters and those who work on the ports in far away countries or locally. Interdependence is a vital role in today’s world. If one person discriminates against another, that person loses an interdependence thus making for an unhappy person and in the end this can result in suits being filed. The interdependence of companies relies on maintaining a good policy and ethics as well. On the psychological level of this, companies who cannot maintain all the aspects of maritime policies lose their internal interdependence thus causing the loss of business and potentially causing conflicts that no one ever needs. Conflicts, no matter how small, have too many variables that affect to many avenues. The normal human resources departments of any business must have a good grip on the social aspects of management as well. This doesn’t just include the inter office workings but also all the working at sea, in the air or ground transportation involved. With regards to all the different ports and lanes that a shipping company must deal with there is always the word monopoly that comes to mind. Just like any other person who owns businesses, they are not allowed to corner the market and create this monopoly. Large shipping empires that have attained a level of success would love to monopolize. In a monopoly they would have the most control thus thinking that they have the most power which is an obvious factor to the God complex and this mentality can backslide back hundreds of years to a piracy level. Piracy in any form is not healthy for any economy worldwide. Another issue, especially since the 911 attack, is the threat of terrorist activity. These two play a part in negotiating contracts and between the US and other countries contracts can be quite difficult in forming before they are signed. Hand in hand with this can also be the social aspect. Considering the many parts to a shipping contract, not all parties are going to agree, not all parties are going to easily find the synergy needed to help one another and if a contract is negotiated wrongly, this can, in an astute way cause a port war which can engage much more than the initial port issue thus quickly embroiling itself into wars of territorial or world wars. The security involved policies is to prevent against this form of uprising and thus security issues are addressed in contracts as well. Our history shows that it doesn’t take much to cause a full fledged war as it is, so a good democratic person, or many, with a political mind and good business sense partnered with common sense may be a good one to deal with the different contracts and ports. The biggest issue seems to be the limits of liability. How much liability is each player going to accept if a shipment goes wrong? The factoring of circumstances that control this will help make this decision but in the end no one ever wants to be liable. We must work with and against liability issues such as warranties, lost or late shipments, unexpected happenings, transportation failures and the like. Someone has to be liable at all times and this liability shifts constantly from one person or company, to another. In the end someone has to pay for the negative liability caused. Another, much harder issue to deal with is the contract of intermodal transport. The ships provide transport but contracts also have to be written for the air and land travel as well. Who is responsible and the timeliness factor and costs at each port. Who becomes responsible when arriving at a port and suddenly the shipment isn’t available per unexpected intervention? This becomes a frustrated contract and thus many people lose in this instance. Intermodal transport requires high organization from many variables. Time, type of shipment, weight of shipment, cost of the transport, who can better do the transport with quality and quantity are all important roles. When transportation details are being negotiated, no matter if land, sea, air or a culmination of them all, it is imperative that all operates as expected. When something fails, it affects facets of the industry itself as well as families and all inbetween. With any maritime traveler there is a large and sometimes very emotional, ongoing issue in direct relation the sociological factoring and that’s the families of these travelers. There is a lot of time spent at sea, more so than at home by a wide margin. Even though wives, and sometimes husbands may marry a sea traveler, accepting that lifestyle can be a time of intense and long term distraught. Families have been interrupted and torn apart, simply because the other partner is not there as often as the other one wants them to be. While one partner is striving to provide the economical balance for the family, both parties must also have their own brand of political reasoning in order to maintain that family status. Now it seems crazy that a seafaring family would have politics within their home but it is definitely inevitable to a much higher degree than normal family politics as much more is at stake and much bigger changes happen. The one contract at this point that is generally easier to dissolve is the marriage contract and this happens frequently. â€Å"In this New World [of globalization] there is no room for national industrial policies and shipping is no exception. National shipping policy is dead – or it should be. † (Sletmo, 2001, p 334). While Sletmo may state that specific policies do not broaden the economics of the shipping industry but yet the government keeps making policies does not mean that the whole shipping industry policy is dead or needs to be dead. There are many policies that we may be unaware of that indeed do not strengthen the economics of this industry. The policies were put there for a reason and even if it is the policy on piracy it remains. This is a check and balance system that will always be ever changing. Can you imagine what would happen if all references to piracy were exonerated in maritime policies? Bounce right back to history of The Boston Tea Party or of the days of pirates stealing ships and cargo and the deaths involved, the families destroyed. It is a requirement to have the government involved to a degree. To have policies in place is needed. This is the only way, even in a globalized world, to survive whether it be industrial of nature or not. National shipping policy is not dead; just not agreed upon as much. From the Federal standpoint of maritime laws, shipping policies will remain in place as it desperately needs the protection that it affords. This protection encompasses regulation safety issues, contracts, ecological and sociological issues, water borders, individual countries port rules and much more. Policies affect the world wide shippers to some degree, even if only contemplating the policies in the USA. With larger shippers from Germany, Japan, Netherlands, China and Hong Kong present, it is imperative to have policies in place, especially when considering the past issues of wars between the USA and some of these countries. There is no room for error, no margin for a lack of agreed upon policies to maintain a profitable shipping policy. These countries must get along; one slip can create chaos and the loss of the economy even more so than ever, the loss of allies, and an uprising. This can even inadvertently and directly affect our stock markets and jobs world wide. If one thinks about the logical, in-depth reasons for policies, one will also recognize that many of the USA products, to include our actual ships, come from other countries. Without a policy in place for protection then shipping ports begin to lose. Without a policy, taxes may not be agreed upon, shipments may not be considered as satisfactory, maybe someone would decide to usurp someone else’s authority thus the possibility and likelihood of angering a different country or a specific port. It is somewhat recognizable that there will be a never ending aspect to problems that can happen and their effects which only go to prove that yes, policies, in all arenas of shipping need to be made under all circumstances. There is an abundant amount of pressure in shipping. One specific example is where we obtain our ships. Most of the ships the USA or other countries uses or owns are built in Germany. With Germany building the ships we buy or lease there is the maintenance and warranty to consider. Without proper maintenance a warranty is void, with a voided warranty, as with anything, tempers flare as each party believes another to be responsible. When proper maintenance of a ship is adhered to per policy then generally it leaves little to no room for argument when it comes time to file against a warranty. Warranties in everyday life, for little items are sometimes hard enough to get honored as it is; imagine enforcing a warranty for a multi million dollar freight ship. It becomes obvious how important it is to follow the shipping policy of just maintenance alone. Once again, think of the broader picture of maintenance and how it is related to safety as already discussed. Another example of shipping is actual the lower cost of labor for production in countries such as Japan and China. What if one day the shipping industry was paying 10 cents on the dollar for the labor to produce the items for shipment and then the next day that labor cost shot up to 50 cents on the dollar because of a suddenly strained atmosphere between countries? This rise would affect everything involved with contracts, timeliness, allies, shipments, sociological factors and who knows what else may happen that we don’t see. In summary, yes there are many policies for both the USA shippers for sea, land and air shipping but there are also policies for ports and countries abroad. There are many contracts to consider, many safety precautions to follow. There is a lot of political and economical pressure from all parties involved in the shipping industry and without policies in place there is no way that the shipping industry would survive. This lack of survival would affect all of us, world wide. Companies, persons, ports and countries would do as they saw fit, each persons view would be different and there would be nothing in place to prevent severe consequences from happening. While nothing is ever perfect in our imperfect world, the world of maritime policies must be complete in every aspect and almost perfect. Policies are ever changing as needs arise and in the end, if terms cannot be agreed upon to form a new policy then this can go anywhere from losing a contract before it is signed, to losing part of an economy to a full out war. Globalization demands policies at all levels. The statement of there being no room for industrial shipping policies is a huge fallacy. Make room for the policies needed for the safety, economical, political reason on all levels throughout the world, that, or have a mess on hand that will be a hard cleanup. List of References MSc in Maritime Security, Safety and Enviromental Management (2005) http://www.deu. edu. tr/DEUWeb/English/Icerik/Icerik. php? KOD=6756http://www. maritimesafetymanagement. com/AboutMSEM/AcademicProgram/Unit3SafetyandEnvironmentalManagement1/tabid/723/Default. aspx Maritime Transport Policy (2006) Barrott, Jacques http://ec. europa. eu/transport/maritime/doc/maritime_transport_policy_en. pdf pg 2 Gross, Richard (2004) Economic Welfare and Maritime Economics (http://web. deu. edu. tr/smbm/RGoss. pdf Scollick, Andy. Maritime Regional Sustainability http://web. pml. ac. uk/globec/structure/fwg/focus4/symposium/posters/S5-P8. pdf Norfolk Southern Railway Co. v. Kirby, 125 S. Ct. 385 (2004). Federal Maritime Jurisdiction Pushes Inland http://www. olemiss. edu/orgs/SGLC/National/SandBar/4. 1maritime. htm SLETMO, G. K. 2001. `The End of National Shipping Policy? A Historical Perspective on Shipping Policy in a Global Economy`, International Journal of Maritime Economics, 2001, 3, (333-350). Sletmo (2001) The Economic Effects of Shipping policies http://www. porteconomics. nl/docs/the_economic. pdf Shipping Management Plan VS 1 (2003-2005) http://www. amsa. gov. au/shipping_safety/great_barrier_reef_and_torres_strait/gbr_review_report/Documents/shipmgt1. pdf The New York Times ( 1919) http://query.nytimes. com/mem/archive-free/pdf? _r=1&res=9504E7D6163AE03ABC4C51DFB3668382609EDE&oref=slogin National Shipping Fleets and Access to Shipping Markets (1950-1960) http://www. unescap. org/ttdw/Publications/TFS_pubs/Pub_1988/Pub_1988_Ch5. pdf Law of the Sea. Murdoch University (1901-1988) http://weblaw. edu. au/display_page. phtml? WebLaw_Page=Law+of+the+Sea Traveling by Sea. Traveling Advice for Shipping and Ports (2008) http://www. smartraveller. gov. au/zw-cgi/view/Advice/shipping_and_ports Department of Transport. Shipping and Ports (2007) http://www. dft. gov. uk/pgr/shippingports/ State of Connecticut Maritime Policy (2006) http://www. ct. gov/dot/cwp/view. asp? a=2314&Q=309828 Maritime Affairs (2008) http://ec. europa. eu/maritimeaffairs/ Ferguson, Allen R. Refom on Maritime Policy: Building blocks of an Integrated Program http://www. cato. org/pubs/regulation/regv17n2/reg17n2-ferguson. html BioMarine: Integrated Maritime Policy (2008) http://www. marinelink. com/Story/BioMarine:+Integrated+Maritime+Policy-213236. html Maritime Areas of Practice http://www. klgates. com/practices/ServiceDetail. aspx? service=77 The Transportation Institute http://www. trans-inst. org/EuropeanMaritimePolicies. htm Word count=3069

Explain how Disability May affect learning Essay

The rate of development is dependent on many factors and can differ greatly from child to child. The main areas of development are: 1. Physical development 2. Social development 3. Intellectual development 4. Language development Read more:  Personal factors that affect child development essay Below is a short list of how they might develop in specific age ranges: 0-3 months: Smile, turn their head at familiar sounds, shake and hold a rattle, 6-12 months: Make noises and show feelings of joy and sadness, begin to crawl, recognise their name, look for dropped objects, reach towards food, show affection to familiar people 1-2 years: Begin to walk, begin to pick food up with fingers, wave, say no, hold drawing materials, shows preference for one hand, mostly cooperative, play alongside other children, use phrases 3 years: want to do things for themselves, demanding attention, jump, climb, paint, eat by themselves, understands how to do 2/3 things at once,  vocabulary extends, more controlled use of drawing materials, asking questions, making sentences, can walk on tip toes, pours liquid, kick and throw a ball, sense of humour. 4 years: Pedal a bike, throw with aim, confident with scissors, more cooperative with adults, likes to help with everything, sociable and starts to show concern for others 5 years: grammar more accurate, able to communicate own ideas, recognise their own written name, use pictures to follow stories in a book, questions become more complex, hold drawing material steadily and copy shapes and lettering 5-7 years: fluent speaker, can make up stories, handles books, start to read 7-12 years: team games, climb confidently and swing, hit a ball, skip run and jump, becoming less dependent on adults, aware of own gender, starts to form close friendships at about 8 years, can be shy, arrogant, bossy, uncertain, take an interest in certain subjects by 9, may need help with spelling but vocabulary will grow, know different tenses and grammar. 12-19 years: Adolescence is said to start for girls at age 11. At this stage they still lack clearly defined roles and feelings of anger, insecurity and frustration may surface. Rate of growth is different in children and a 15 year old girl can be physically mature by the time she is 15. Boys usually reach adolescence later at age 14 when their voices may break and they will develop body hair. Co-ordination and strength will increase greatly in both sexes. Their bodies are experiencing dramatic changes and they also become less worried about adult approval generally seeking peer approval in its place. Their pace of intellectual development depends now on what guidance they are given to make the connections between knowledge and practical application in daily life. The more they are supported the quicker they will grow. Task 2: Explain the difference between sequence of development and rate of development and why the difference is important The difference between sequence and rate is that the sequence of development is a process where one development is followed by another and achieves a certain level with a series of changes or growth that leads to a matured state. The rate of development is the pace of something that compares to something else. Although children follow the same pattern of development,  every child has a different rate of development. So sequence will mostly be uniform and rate is very likely to be different in each child. The difference is important because these principals run through all the areas of development from physical, social, intellectual and language no matter what the age of the child. If one or other is skipped or is slow it can be a cause for concern and may lead to a child being given a special recommendation or having a special need in or outside school. Task 3: Explain how children and young people’s development is influenced by a range of personal factors Home environment, relationships with carers/parents and siblings, the child itself, behaviours and health as well as personal characteristics, are all factors that can impinge on a child’s development, personal and external. If there are negative experiences in any of the factors it can be harmful to brain development and affect a child’s ability to gain the core skills that are necessary to reach developmental milestones. Developmental delays can happen in all areas of a child’s development or just one or two areas. Prenatal care can have a serious impact on a child’s development. Certain risks factors before birth can be avoided if the mother takes care of herself by not smoking or heavily drinking alcohol which could affect impact on brain development. Richard H. Schwarz, MD from American Baby states that ‘children whose mothers drank heavily during pregnancy may have problems with learning, memory, attention, speech, and hearing, as well as severe behavioral problems’ Health – is a very important factor in development. If a child has any serious health issues it can have a detrimental effect on their learning ability across all spheres of development. For example a deaf child will have language and communication issues and this will significantly slow down the learning process. Learning Difficulties – A child with learning problems may be many developmental years behind their peers; this will have a big impact on what they can do in all areas of development including physical skills, social skills and intellectual skills. Task 4: Explain how children and young people’s development is influenced by a range of external factors There are many risk factors which can impinge on a child’s development. Home environment is key to development and learning by positive experience can make a huge difference. Much of what a child learns comes from the culture around them, early exposure to books, parental involvement and informal education in the home will be positive in a child’s development whereas poverty and neglect will have the opposite effect. This may mean a child develops poor social skills, may live in cramped housing where there is no room for play or to develop, unable to afford resources in and out of school, therefore not encouraging the child to progress in development outside school. Inability of parents to care for a child properly providing a positive home environment can influence how the child behaves at school. Community environment can also have a big part to play. Available resources and structure and in the community as well as the home make a difference to how a child can perceive the world. Task 5: Explain how theories of development and frameworks to support development influence current practice The many different theories of development are all equally important as they help us to understand children’s behaviour, reactions, and ways of learning and therefore influence practice. Jean Piaget was the first psychologist to make a study of cognitive development using detailed observational studies of cognition in children, and a series of simple tests to reveal different cognitive abilities. Before Piaget’s work, the common assumption in psychology was that children are less competent thinkers than adults. Piaget showed that young children think in very different ways compared to adults. His theory is that a developing child builds mental maps for understanding and responding to situations. Development is therefore biologically based and changes as the child matures. Cognition develops in all children in the same sequence of stages. Piagets work influenced t eaching practices to provide more hands on and relevant tasks for children where they learn through play. Piaget has been extremely influential in developing educational policy and teaching. For example, a review of primary education by the UK government in 1966 was based strongly on Piaget’s theory. The result of this review led to  the publication of the Plowden report (1967). The idea that children learn best through doing and actively exploring was seen as central to the transformation of primary school curriculum1. Unlike Piaget’s theory that children’s development must necessarily precede their learning, Vygotsky argued, â€Å"learning is a necessary and universal aspect of the process of developing culturally organized, specifically human psychological function† In other words, social learning tends to come before development and the environment in which they grow will influence how they think and what they think about. He places more emphasis on social contributions from peers, family and teachers believing this has a greater contribution towards lea rning than development. Vygotsky’s idea was â€Å"reciprocal teaching†, used to improve students’ ability to learn from text. In this method, teacher and students collaborate in learning and practicing four key skills: summarizing, questioning, clarifying, and predicting. The teacher’s role in the process is reduced over time. He believed that children could guide and develop each other by completing tasks together such as reading buddies which is widely used in schools today. Maria Montessori is associated with an educational method that encourages education through movement using multi sensory educational materials. Montessori also championed the concept of multi-age classrooms. She stated â€Å"The idea is for each child to move as quickly or as slowly as they need to move (in terms of learning).† Montessori believed that her ultimate aim would be accomplished by allowing the children to manipulate their environment. She believed it was not only important to Montessori to teach children the practical life skills necessary to live in society, but also to integrate the family into the learning process. Like Voygotsky, Montessori said that it was the union of the family and the school in the matter of educational aims that would enhance student learning and be beneficial to both the parents and the child. Montessori said that both home and school were places of social processes and it was important to educate children in both contexts to allow them the skills to generalize any lessons learned to their future schooling career and ultimately the greater society. Multi-age classes that are part of the Montessori method allow younger children to learn from older ones. The older children in a class are able to practice their skills by sharing them with younger children. The span of ages makes it easy for a younger  child with advanced skills in a particular area to be able to work at a higher level than other children of the same age. Older children build self-esteem by serving as class leaders.2 Schools now increasingly use â€Å"hands-on† methods to teach math and science. Though those schools may not use Montessori materials, the idea of using concrete items that children can manipulate is one promoted by Montessori. Many of these theories have come together and helped create a framework for learning and development. The Early Years Foundation Stage Framework for example uses some of these theories, positive relationships to encourage parents and carers to take an active part in their child’s learning (Vygotsky, Montessori), enabling environments, and the theory that every child learns and develops at different rates (Montessori). Children being allowed to play and explore by themselves as per Piagets theory, The Early Years Foundation Stage Framework states there are 3 prime areas for learning: communication & language: physical development: personal, social and emotional development: all of which our theorists believe in and articulated throughout their research. Task 6: Explain how to monitor children and young people’s development using different methods There are both summative and formative methods of assessment Summative monitoring such as SATS tests which are used to record progress and academic knowledge and general tests in class for example spelling and maths tests which will indicate a rate of progress. Formative methods such as different child observational methods such as focus child where the focus is on one child for a set amount of time, checklists where development is checked against specific milestones, time sampling recording information at regular intervals, structured which will monitor a child completing a pre set activity, naturalistic which a child will be observed during the normal course of events and a general diary record of the childs progress. An observer will evaluate the development of the child being measured against specific ‘milestones’ that should have been reached by a certain stage. The child is observed in the classroom or playground in their natural surroundings and also in the classroom to ascertain how they are progressing with their studies. The observer will gather a lot of information on behaviour patterns, interaction with peers and teachers, how the child co-ordinates and solves any problems. Specific emphasis should be  put on social behaviour, learning and motor skills. Sharing information with parents/carers and colleagues can be invaluable as they will see the child in a different setting perhaps to you and can also therefore make informed observations. An older child may need to be involved, according to their understanding, in any assessment of their development. This might include recording their feelings wishes and views. They would need to be monitored in different contexts (depending on which areas of their development is giving cause for concern). Culture and a different language being their first language must be taken into consideration. A child may not have developmental needs when using their first language and this will need to be noted and addressed. Any observational monitoring outcomes must be fed back to the parents/carers of a child. If developmental delays were found during the monitoring the SEN Code of Practice rules and guidance would need to be applied. There are many ways to monitor a child’s development and it is important that this monitoring is carried out throughout the early years and primary/secondary school to mitigate the risks of developmental delays. Task 7: Explain the reasons why children and young people’s development may not follow the expected pattern There are naturally many risk factors for development not following the expected pattern. These can be, but are not exclusive to, an emotionally unsettled family life, one parent family, disadvantaged environmentally, cultural differences, disability, learning difficulties, communication and language issues, lack of early exposure to informal education to name a few. Emotional difficulties can effect expected patterns of development. A child who experiences difficult relationships in the home, perhaps parents who argue or a one parent family situation where the single parent may have other children and no time for the individual child. If a child does not have a solid relationship with the adults in its life from an early stage they are more likely to develop low self esteem and are less likely to try new activities that would help their development. Parents who don’t talk or read to their children can also affect the child’s development educationally and socially. Environmental factors such as poverty and lack of facilities could affect a child’s development, if a family’s finances are  low some opportunities such as nursery will not be available and therefore reduce their exposure to early informal and formal education. If a disability is neglected or unidentified this could significantly affect a child’s development process. Not having the correct facilities or resources ca n obstruct a child’s development if a child or young person is physically not able to progress any further due to the severity of their learning need. Deafness will affect speech and communication. A child that is unable to use certain parts of their body will encounter developmental delays physically and possibly emotionally. A basic example is a child in a wheelchair will not be able to use a climbing frame and their physical development won’t be able to develop in the expected way. In addition the school they attend may lack facilities for their particular needs. Culturally there could be reasons for development delays for example girls in many cultures are not given the same opportunities as boys and this will limit their development, although that is unlikely to be the case in the UK it certainly is the case in some countries. Girls in certain cultures are perhaps not expected to do as well as boys as they will marry early and be taken care of by a husband and his extended family. Where this is ingrained into a child they might try less hard at school. Particular learning difficulties will have a huge impact on development without the correct help early on. A child having difficulties with reading and writing and understanding basic instructions will fall behind its peers. Communication difficulties, for example children with a different first language to that of the school where they attend may experience developmental delays due to lack of understanding on both the child’s and teachers part. In addition, incorrect/lack of communication resources can impair a child’s communication development. If the child or young person is physically unable to communicate, they will be unable to develop this area. This may lead to a lack of social skills or confidence which can negatively influence a child’s development. Taking all of the above examples into consideration it is vitally important that the risk factors are identified and where possible, mitigated early on.