Meeting the learning needs of all the children Essay

Although these areas seem separate, they are not planned for individually. One activity may cover three or four areas of learning. In my opinion the Guidance Document is very repetitive. This can be due to the fact that one focused activity can cover many areas of the six areas of learning. Children are developing at different rates and in many different ways. Some children will be better in certain areas whereas some children may excel in other areas, and â€Å"the Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation Stage (DfEE/QCA, 2000) recognises this, and therefore identifies a number of developmental stepping stones which identify the relevant knowledge, understanding, skills and attitudes needed to achieve each goal. † (ibid, pg. 5) In reference to my research, I have found that the Foundation Guidance document is inspired by the work of Jean Piaget and his four stages of child development. Piaget believed that children are born with the ability to think and must successfully pass through each stage of cognitive development before beginning the next stage. (Daly, M, etal, 2004, pg. 73-74) In my school and nursery experience, I found that all learning and planning begins at building from previous experiences/learning. I agree with Piaget’s theory that in order for children to develop their thinking they must be able to draw upon prior experiences first. Nursery settings allow children to explore and build upon a variety of different experiences through play and adult initiated activities, which provide a basis for learning when they reach school. My 3-5 placement was based in a nursery which allowed for children aged between 3-4. The nursery has two sessions, one in the morning from 9. 00am to 11. 30am, and one in the afternoon from 12. 30pm to 3. 00pm. Each session catered for a different group of children. The children are not grouped according to ability; they tend to follow friendship groups. The staff invites children to join in focused activities. The children are never forced to do anything they don’t want to. Continuous provision is the principle set up that the nursery follow and the children are free to explore all areas. These include the water area, sand, dough, home, book and construction areas. A painting area is also positioned in a child friendly location set up with primary and secondary colours. The mathematics table, writing table and work shop table is set with different activities on a daily basis. Children are learning through experimentation most of the time. I was surprised to observe just how much the children were learning without even realizing. Learning through play is a simple yet extremely effective way of learning for young children. Staff promotes learning by being well organized, each member of staff has a set responsibility and work on a rota system. All the equipment and resources are at child level and nearly everything has label or has a picture for where things belong. They follow a self tidy up rule which the parents are asked to implement at home also. The teacher ensures in her planning that all six areas of learning are covered throughout all activities which I will discuss in more depth; this includes outdoor play which is also specially planned for. â€Å"Well-planned play, both indoors and outdoors, is a key way in which young children learn with enjoyment and challenge. † (DfEE/QCA, 2000:25) Resources are brightly coloured and are in interesting, familiar shapes. The home corner is quite realistic and the children role play ‘families’ thus developing communication, sharing and turn-taking skills. I also observed that each area for learning e. g. the sand area, are set separately, with at least 100cm between them. I believe this is a good strategy as the children are less distracted when working/playing and finished what they were doing instead of leaving things half done.

Creative Writing (ADD) Essay

For most 14-year-olds, summertime is akin to being in paradise. No homework, no exams, no demanding teachers – just lots of time to relax with friends at the beach and even earn extra money from a part-time job. Indeed, if Christmas is for children, then summer is definitely for the teenagers. It is the season when a teen experiences many things for the first time – first job, first kiss, first beer, etc. Or so they say. If summer really is for the teen, then why am I in a stuffy classroom instead of in the beach? I am taking summer classes – for failing three subjects in the previous school year. And this is not the first time that this happened to me. Fluking subjects and attending summer classes as a result is already a yearly ritual for me. I sometimes think that I am like the rich people who have summer houses, except that mine is furnished with a blackboard, desks, chairs and lockers. But there are instances when not even humor can soften the hurt. Almost all my life, people have been telling me to â€Å"shut up† and calling me names such as â€Å"lazy,† â€Å"stupid† and â€Å"weird.† When I was a kid, my mom used to yell at me because she though that I was not listening to what she was saying to me. But I really was listening to her; it was just that I cannot make sense of what she was saying to me. Everyone at home now knows better than to ask me to do a chore. The only time they ask me to do one is when there really is nobody else who will do it. Perhaps it is because I cannot follow instructions. No matter how many times mom or dad tell me how to do something, I always end up bungling it. There were also instances when I just suddenly lose interest in a certain errand and leave it undone. A couple of months ago, mom asked me to prepare dinner because she was not feeling well. Despite myself, I really love to cook. Salads, one of my favorite foods, are my specialty. And so I chose to make vegetable salad and microwave some frozen fish fingers for dinner. I was already arranging sliced tomatoes in beds of lettuce when I decided to fix peanut butter and jelly sandwiches instead. But while preparing the sandwiches, I suddenly changed my mind again – I went to the living room and watched television. About half an hour later, mom went down to check if dinner was already done. What she saw really upset her – a large bowl of half-prepared salad, along with vegetable peelings and peanut butter and jelly spread on the kitchen counter. She called me from the living room and shouted that I was â€Å"no good† and that I was intentionally making things difficult for her. Although she was not feeling well, she had no choice but to make dinner herself. I ended up going to bed with an empty stomach – the episode robbed me of my appetite. School was much worse. I was nearly expelled from kindergarten because of my â€Å"disruptive behavior.† While the rest of the class was listening to the teacher read a story, I was staring out into the window. Things got worse as I got older. It was extremely difficult for me to focus on exams, homework and projects. I got low grades as a result – the most common complaint written on my report card was I needed to â€Å"focus on getting work done.† I likewise had difficulty making friends. Almost all of my classmates were annoyed at me for just intruding into their conversations. Some of them already told me to â€Å"shut up† right in front of my face. I know butting in is rude, but I cannot help but do it repeatedly. It is like I have a million ideas going inside my mind and I feel like I will explode if I do not open my mouth and share them with others, regardless of whether or not it is appropriate for me to do so. I want to do a lot of things for myself. I want to travel, meet new people and learn how to cook. I see myself becoming a chef in the future – a really good chef that specializes in Mexican food. I would also love to have pets, as I believe that they would make better friends than people. So many dreams, so many goals†¦ Now if only I could stop attending summer classes for good.

International Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

International Business - Essay Example The perspective of the uncle in regards to other nations taking jobs away from the American workers seems to be very truthful based on the effects of off-shoring. Companies in a lot of non-technological industries that require manual labor have left the United States in search of lower labor costs. It is impossible for the United States to compete in terms of labor cost with places such as China which pays its manufacturing workers less than 50 cents an hour. Products that are produced in Mexico such as Corona Extra beer have lower production costs than American made products. These products are flooding the US marketplace with cheaper goods which is hurting the competitiveness of the domestic industries. The jobs in America depend on the success of companies that produce in the United States. International trade has different costs and benefits. One of the most important benefits of international trade is that it lowers the prices of goods in the marketplace. Some countries have com petitive advantages in certain industries which enables them to produce certain goods at lower prices. International trade protects countries against protectionism from elsewhere (Southerncenter). Another advantage of international trade is that it fosters international growth. ... The use of outsourcing helps companies stay in business which is protecting jobs in America. Lower prices are achieved in the consumer markets due to the use of international trade. Countries are able to establish political ties with other countries by becoming trading partners. The use of international trade helps the global economy achieve growth. Overall the perspective of the uncle is too one sided. The uncle is looking at the problem from only one dimension. International trade can have an adverse effect in the job creation in America, but only in certain industries. From a social perspective international trade is helping a lot of poor countries improve the state of their economies. A transnational model is used to characterize MNEs that attempt to achieve high global integration with high local responsiveness (Aboy). These companies utilize a network business structure instead of company divisions. The use of the transnational model can provide companies with competitive advan tages in a variety of business functions. The strategic plans of a company should focus on finding ways to become more efficient by adapting to the needs of the marketplace. Transnational companies realize that the domestic market in which they participate represents an important market opportunity. The marketing function of transnational corporations is not standardized. These companies have to customize their marketing efforts based on the unique attributes of the market in which they participate. Depending on the location these firms must utilize bilingual marketing campaigns. To achieve the goal of obtaining high local responsiveness transnational firms must perform recurrent market research to learn about the tendencies and changing taste of the customers

Application of specific energy and momentum function Coursework

Application of specific energy and momentum function - Coursework Example Conversely, the increase, in short, smooth step with the change in y within the channel and with the given upstream depth and corresponding discharge, y3 is increased. Y3 is increased due to the expansion and energy loss. A hydraulic jump is utilized for energy dissipation that occurs when the flows transitions from the supercritical to corresponding subcritical mainly due to the spillway and the steep slope to the mild slope. The depth of water downstream from the jump and the location of the jump are computed using the conservation of energy equation (Kiselev, Fomin & Vorozhtsov, 1999). It is expected from y1 that the depth of water to escalate as the specific energy of the prevailing reduces slowly. Moreover, the alternate depths at which the specific energies ought to be identical. Nevertheless, the values collected does not depict that as the underlying values were not adequate to produce the correct and expected graph thus the association was not represented as anticipated. The prevailing graphs derived from the depths of the flow, and corresponding specific energy at the section depicts that the depth escalates as the time elapses linearly with the specific energy indicating that the two underlying variables are linearly associated. The percentage relative head loss for the underlying theoretical outcomes is relatively higher than the corresponding practical percentage relative to the head loss. The difference is due to the depth of water subsequent to the hydraulic jump that was higher than that of the underlying experimental values. The energy is lost because of the turbulent flow implying that the real water depth is relatively lower than prevailing theoretical computations. The trend line depicts the positive correlation amidst the escalation of the Froude number and corresponding y3/y1 values. The experiment was undertaken under the controlled situations in order to

Issues for Multi-national Organisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Issues for Multi-national Organisation - Essay Example Through operating in various economies in the world, these companies have not only enhanced their brand value but have also done the same for the living standard of many individuals worldwide. However, it cannot be ignored that internationalization of business increases the overall risks of the corporate firms in the modern world. The essay will analyze about the various types of business problems faced by the multinational corporations in the contemporary world. Critical Literature Review Comparing and Contrasting Theories Concepts and Research Findings The business challenges and opportunities faced by the multinational corporations in the contemporary world are increasing rapidly overtime. Especially after the emergence of globalization and liberalization, the developing countries have turned out to be the emerging economies in the world. In China, by the year 2003, about 41000 foreign investors had set up their business operations (Weisert, 2001). With the benefits and help provi ded by the World Trade Organization, the country has also rendered several opportunities for these new foreign companies operating in their economy. However, inspite of these lucrative opportunities, most of them set up their business in China through joint ventures or mergers. For instance, Siemens has set its business firm in China long back in 1982 through a representative’s office (Fryxell, Butler, and Choi, 2004). Coca-cola is another company that operates in China through a joint business with a company which provides similar facilities in Tianjin (Weisert, 2001).These economies (emerging ones like, China) have significantly helped to increase the opportunities of multinational corporations. However, it is also observed that with these growing opportunities, the risks of these firms are also increasing over time. A detailed analysis shows that the extent of challenges faced by these giant organizations is unlimited. The context of this essay will focus on only one of th ese issues which are faced by these corporations. The human resource challenges that are faced by the multinational business firms would be discussed in this essay in details. McKinsey Company in Shanghai has reported that the scope of hiring skilled analysts in China is very low (Farrell and Grant, 2005). Ford in Geelong Australia has claimed to cease its manufacturing unit in the country because the nation’s high currency value have forced the employees to demand for higher wage rates that has excessively augmented the operating cost of the company. One of the most important operations that are executed by any multinational corporation is human resource management. Noe, et al. (2006, p.5) stated that human resource management is that segment of an organization which helps to recruit and develop officials in an organization and also facilitates in sufficing an organizations objectives. The use of human resource management model by the multinational corporations has increased in order to reduce the difficulties in of human resource management (Chen and Wilson, 2003). The practice of standardization of human resource management has been abolished because the impact of environmental and structural changes in the multinational corporations has heightened overtime (McGraw and Harley, 2003). Individuals from different economies differ

MBA Operation Management Problemsolving Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

MBA Operation Management Problemsolving - Essay Example b) The lower capital intensity of the mentioned type of firms is explained by the stability of working processes when serving a focus customer. Crews do not need retraining because they do the same thing, for the same customer, all of the time. The machinery factor is also to be regarded: for example, the folding and gluing machine at Focus Packaging handles only one size box, so it never has to be reset. The press stops only to install a new roll of the thin cardboard on which it prints [12]. a) The necessity of the firms with a product focus to plan production and inventory levels further into the future is explained by the vitality of the production plan and inventories for successful supply chain management. It is necessary to plan thoroughly the production basing on the demand forecasts and according to this to make up the corresponding inventories. For the firms with focused production it is especially essential, because their performance depends on demands of particular customers, or one major customer [12]. b) All the above mentioned relates also to the necessity to have more formalized supplier relationships. ... b) All the above mentioned relates also to the necessity to have more formalized supplier relationships. In order for the firm to secure the manufactured product's future sale it is essential to develop clear terms of supplier/customer relationship and validate it formally. c) The low level of inventory accumulation at the work-in-process stage is explained by the simplified scheme of supply chain affording to avoid the overloading of the warehouses by unsold goods (the firm knows more or less precisely what number of goods it should produce). Describe four multi-plant location strategies The four principal location approaches are as follows: Land Use - optimal agricultural land uses based on transport costs to market; optimal distances of residential and commercial land uses from CBD; Industrial Location / Production Orientation - transport-cost minimizing location, profit maximization, optimal combination of inputs & optimal level of production at optimal location (allowing for scale economies and substitutability at any one level of production); Central Places / Market Areas - optimal market areas choosing; Spatial Competition - optimal response in the face of locational competition [11]. Why Colgate Palmolive, and not Campbell Soup be concerned about NAFTA The North American Free Trade Agreement, known usually as NAFTA, is a free trade agreement among Canada, the United States, and Mexico [7]. Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE: CL) is a multinational corporation in the business of the provision of products such as soaps, detergents, and oral hygiene products such as toothpaste and toothbrushes. Under its "Hill's" brand, it is also a manufacturer of veterinary products [3]. Campbell Soup Company

Response paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 14

Response paper - Essay Example As far as gender roles are concerned, this movie has been specific about how women are subjected to abysmal behaviors at the hands of the people all around India and how the men in their lives play a very dominant role which basically destroys their lives more than anything else. Deepa Mehta has emphasized how widows have been at the forefront of being subjected to some of the harshest possible behaviors on the part of the society. Deepa has been vocal about this philosophy emanating out of India with this topic under consideration. The movie has highlighted how the society bears the brunt of such attitudes by its own people and what could be done in order to bring a level of sanity within the relevant quarters. Since these widows are already undergoing an ordeal at the hands of the society that they are a part of, it is the pertinent role of the society to give them happiness rather than inflict one pain after the other one, which has been the case as has been portrayed within this movie. This is one of the most pressing issues that women face within an underdeveloped society in this day and age. The gender roles therefore take the precedence within this movie since women are shown to be in a much shabby state, which does not speak well about their well-being. The manner in which the society has to come out clean is something which will play a positive role all along as far as future domains are concerned. Basically the traditional role of women in India is debated upon by different stakeholders of the society on most of the occasions and Water is one such movie that highlights the related subject (Thomas 2006). The credit for this must rest on the shoulders of Deepa Mehta for bringing a subject which has hurt the cause of the Indian society on more than one instance. In essence, this movie is an eye-opener because it highlights quite a few significant pointers and gives all and sundry food for thought to change the norms which are prevalent within India

Quality managment techniques and their relationship to revenue Research Paper

Quality managment techniques and their relationship to revenue managment - Research Paper Example All of the information connectivity devices are exchanging data. As a consequence, the Internet has evolved into an efficient and effective means of commercial marketing and data exchange. This is applicable as e- commerce . This new phenomenon of e- commerce allows greater free market trade. Smaller suppliers can vie for commerce in the same manner as larger firms, simply by providing a website representing their products and services. By the same means, the consumer who purchases services online has access to a greater selection of products and services. The Internet facilitates communication between buyers and sellers by means of electronic data exchange (EDI). E- commerce is known as the free trade of products and services by suppliers and consumers through the Internet. Consumers and producers are enabled with an opportunity through the free exchange of information and the ability to effect purchases online- to be better informed, in order to acquire the correct product or servi ce at the correct time. Trend setting business people and small to medium sized concerns are leading the way to e- commerce. Research has demonstrated that 90% of all business people are applying the case of data exchange over the Internet, to either promote their products or services and/ or to create new opportunities (Hallin & Marnburg, 2008). The purpose of this research paper is the following: To demonstrate how Internet based services may facilitate the travel and hospitality industry in increased sales and revenue. To demonstrate how the coordination of this procedure can help vacationers receive efficient customer service by means of the Internet. To demonstrate how the introduction of web... The research tells that the travel and hospitality industry is composed of a number of enterprises which are involved in supplying travel services to vacationers, business executives and entrepreneurs. These services may include hotel packages or bed and breakfasts, airline travel packages or services such as guided tours and automobile rentals. An important element is the travel representative, who is the intermediary between the vacationers, business executives, entrepreneurs and the purveyors of travel based services. The expertise of the travel consultant is desired and required by the travel and hospitality consumer. Many individuals select a travel consultant in order to look for the best vacation packages and to establish the travel and hospitality reservation. The travel consultant coordinates a number of travel and hospitality elements and combines them into a single hospitality and travel package. In some instances, government based tourist organizations provide the service s of the travel consultant, disseminating information and pamphlets for the travel and hospitality purveyors in their vicinity. The main function of the travel consultant in all of these instances, is to enable the interchange of information and to facilitate the consumer decision making process. In order to achieve this result, the travel and hospitality suppliers, airline passenger carriers, automobile rental enterprises, hotel and tour guides must all provide the correct information to the travel consultant in an attractive presentation, in order to enable the generation of revenues in the travel and hospitality industry.

Overview where you are and where you want to be in 3-6 months Essay

Overview where you are and where you want to be in 3-6 months - Essay Example I have also finalized the project plan, methodology, and questions, which were presented for final approval. After gaining approval, I drafted my introduction, literature review, and methodology chapters and finally received my upgrade from MPhil to Ph.D. In the next three to six months, I am planning to apply for ethics approval, which will hopefully present me with the go-ahead to undertake the research activities with human subjects. I am also planning to prepare the course content and material for the intervention training for the EFL teachers, which will draw on foundational theories to set the parameters of how to tackle and answer he research question (Adams & Puetow, 2014). Finally, I want to begin the initial collection of data to carry out a pilot for my research study. It is hoped that the pilot study will allow for the emergence of theoretical concepts and throw up an array of alternatives ideas about what will be observed, which should later coalesce into more articulated concepts (Adams & Puetow,

Child molester and a killer Essay Example for Free

Child molester and a killer Essay As we talk about behavior, we can discuss about how certain behavior runs to becoming evil in such a way that nowadays and even before time, where war has occurred, this behavior exist. McCarthy wrote a book entitled â€Å"Blood Meridian† where he puts all the unprovoked violence by the monstrous Judge, Holden, who is a compulsive child molester and a killer as well. This is an epic novel during the expansion of West America sabotage Western novel and the mythology of the Wild West with full violence and wickedness. In this book, it shows the styles of evil acts and wants us to witness evil for us to fully affirm its mysterious reality. As we studied about the origins of behavior, we can also say that man has a natural evil instinct which can be manifested by certain evil actions. McCarthy expresses human behavior in the same way he talks about the animals in his stories. He used such magnificent language which was cited by the critics, and it merely represents the uncompromised crucial period of American history and McCarthy exclaim in his Blood Meridian, that goes ahead of Gothicism and naturalism, to conjure up a bloodletting feast in the American Southwest. Elie Wiesel comes into picture, who in real life; experience a deep shocking experiences and emotions during the Holocaust in the hands of the Nazis. At these times, he and many other prisoners experience mental and physical torture and they have been stripped of their humanity. According to Elie, prisoners become wild beasts of prey, with animal hatred in their eyes; a strange energy had held them, and their teeth and nails had been sharpened. This elevates humanity from immorality at its separation point. She wrote a book entitle â€Å"Night† which reveals that cruelty raise cruelty. Both McCarthy and Elie have written about the negative side of human behavior and depict the scenario during those times. She said prisoners turn against each other rather than giving comfort to each one of them. Captured from the book itself, when a Kapo is speaking to Eliezer, he saidâ€Å"Here, every man has to fight for himself and not think of anyone else. . . . Here, there are no fathers, no brothers, no friends. Everyone lives and dies for himself alone† which illustrates the wickedness of some human beings. In contrast with Elie and Cormac McCarthy, in woman in the person of Hannah Arendt tries not to compare human behavior to animals. Hannah had written â€Å"Eichmann in Jerusalem† wherein she made an authoritative report about the trial of Adolf Eichmann, a Nazi leader. She takes account of supplementary factual material that gives enlightenment after the trial. She soberly state in her book that Eichman was not actually a Nazi at heart, and he was in fact a meek man because he was not really aware of Hitler’s euthanasia program and he is also helpful to the Jews in Palestinian immigration. Hannah Arendt’s shows that she is not only a thinker but also a moral human being because of putting herself in the place of the judge and jury in the courtroom of Jerusalem to major perpetrators of the murder of European Jewry. Hannah Arendt analyze Eichman’s personality instead of looking at him does not try to psychologically analyze it. It was in the end come out that Eichman is just an ordinary man who has been driven by the call of his career, and it turns out that he doesn’t really have personal hatred with the Jews. As we try to analyze the three authors point, we can generalize that evil behavior of man only comes out when time calls for it and is the result of frustration for human desires, denial human faculty, failure to realize human potential as well lack of education. It is indeed true that mans animal nature or human nature is not basically evil. It just happened when there is an incomplete development, deficient cognition and dichotomous perception of reality that would ultimately direct to misinterpretation and disagreement, obliteration, and wars by the people who the power and has no understanding which we have greatly seen it in this study.

How Ethical Issues Can Affect Each Component

How Ethical Issues Can Affect Each Component This report aims to describe, how ethical issues can affect each component of the marketing mix. The report starts of by introduction to the ethics in an organisation and the importance of business ethics in the society. The report also examines the various factors which have a impact on the ethical nature of the marketing decisions. Two well-known companies have been taken into account for better understanding and demonstration of the discussion. INTRODUCTION A rose à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. By any other name would smell as sweet. SHAKESPEARE, Romeo and Juliet There is an inevitable and universal cycle between consumers and marketers. The main aim of any marketer is to satisfy customer needs and wants. Marketing provides the exchange link between customers and marketers which would eventually help in increasing return on investment for shareholders. (Smith 1995; Dunfee, Smith, and Ross 1999) Both marketers and the consumers have different mind set while selling or purchasing the products. The sole main of companies is to maximise their profit and consumers is to have a value for money product and services. This difference in thinking leads to conflicts on the basis of ethics. (Smith 1995, 1993) The basic ethical issues like, justice, rights, fairness and equality can be perceived in a different manner by consumer and the companies. (Dunfee, Smith, and Ross 1999) In some instances both consumers and the companies may believe on the same ethical grounds for e.g. in principle, providing a unique, value for money product and services. Whereas, research has shown that there is a wide gap between the ethical philosophies of both consumers as well as marketers, (Singhapakdi et al. 1999) which results in unethical behaviour by consumers including boycotts and protests. (Smith and Cooper-Martin 1997) IMPORTANCE OF ETHICS A CONTINGENCY APPROACH- The ethics era began around early 1980s, when researchers and businesses started giving more attention to the ethical side of the business. (Macchiette and Roy 1994; Smith 1995) Many theories have been proposed since then in order to draw promote consumers rights and moral values. Including- social contracts theory, moral decision-making theory (Laczniak and Murphy 1991), general theory of marketing ethics (Hunt and Vitell 1986) and social contracts theory (Dunfee, Smith and Ross 1999). These theories are basic and are developed over from the old, classical theories including Kantian ethics and perspectives of rights, duties, and justice. The main aim of all these marketing ethics theories and even business ethics in modern world is to increase consumers confidence and develop trust for the companies and thus having customer loyalty. The business ethics also helps companies to gain competitive advantage in the market for instance- Anita Rodick- Body Shop and Richard Bransons Virgin group. REFERENCE NEEDED ETHICAL ISSUES IN MARKETING Marketing in any companies starts with the basic step of marketing research which is then followed by segmentation and targeting the market. Thought marketing research is followed to gain knowledge about the market and the competitors but some how- knowingly or un-knowingly, companies tend to invade the privacy of the consumers by following un-ethical method of gathering information. Even while conducting the research, researchers tend to stereotype among people in order to get the desired result which in turn results in wrong information about customer needs and demands. While s In terms of targeting the market, companies also aim at the young children, who do not have the right knowledge, thus they choose the market audience of their choice knowing they will benefit the maximum. For instance- a chocolate ad will show a kid playing and eating melted chocolate but it never says, brush your teeth after having it. Now, to be more specific, we will look at the ethical issues related to the marketing mix- 4Ps. PRODUCT PRODUCT MIX There are four major issues with products: deceptive packaging, product safety, brand divisive and planned obsolescence Product safety Safety is first. A major impact is being made to make the product safe and secure for the consumers to use. Almost all the products in the market use some or the other form of technology which may or may be harmful for the consumers. It is the duty of the marketers to ensure the safety of the product before placing it in the market. For instance, according to BBC news, 2007, the biggest toy making company in China Mattel had recalled 9 million products due to danger from magnet and lead paint. This violates the consumers right to safety. BBC news, 2007 Planned obsolescence Nothing lasts forever but the question is who and how is to decide the time frame for deciding when is the replacement required. Cars rust, clothes fade or go out of fashion. If companies make efforts to increase the quality of the products, there are many customers who would love to keep their cars for a longer period of time than they can. However, for the producers its a wear-out is positive as it results in increase in demand of their other goods and services/ repeat purchase. Some people argue that if the product has been planned to be obsolete form the market, it violates customers right to choose. The car manufacturers like Ford have recently come up with their latest cars having their body shells much more resistant to rust proving a 3 years minimum guarantee. Ford, 2010 Deceptive packaging This is a very common practice, also known as slack packaging followed by many companies as they show the product to be over sized by packaging effects giving customers an idea of buying more for the same price than the competitor. Product such as- cereals, crisps or even soap powders are such examples. Packaging sometimes also includes misleading labelling. In terms of missing information on package about various ingredients or even a sentence which could be useful in consumers decision making process leads to violation of consumers right to information. Brands Divisive Branding is something that is used by companies to differentiate their product than that of the competitors. The well known sports brand NIKE is supposed to be sport-wear of high quality, durability and is also proposed to be in the top segment in the market. Some people argue that Nike is a brand rather than a product, much similar to the Apple ipod from Apple. Nike does not produce anything of its own. The entire production is outsourced to less developed countries like India and Indonesia. The retail price of a Nike today may be  £100 on an average but according to a report from 2001, the full time wages for an employee were around the legal minimum of 17,000 Rupiahs ( £1.22/) per day. The problem with branding is that big brands like Nike, Apple have all the power, even though they get their products made in poor countries, wealth is still in few hands only. Working is Nike leads to a disproportion of profits and power on a global level due to which poor countries are left with low margin production units. PRICE Price is something of value charged by the producers in exchange of his products or services. The various un-ethical pricing practices are: Price fixing: It is a situation where the competitors agree to charge a fixed, raise or maintain price, in simpler terms manipulate price. Price fixing can be done for different reasons- to discriminate against small firms, remove competition by fixing price in specific areas and enjoying monopolistic market. Thus in 1980, the Sherman Act was introduced to ensure fair pricing between both consumers and businesses. http://bizcovering.com/business-and-society/price-fixing/ Bid rigging This is a situation or fraud where the commercial contracts are promised to only one party even if there are other bidders present. Price rigging is a form of price fixing itself and is illegal in many countries. Usually occurs in big tenders for governments or private companies for construction. The ill-effects of price rigging fall on the local consumers [tax payers] as well as the agencies who seek to bid and thus effects the overall economy. Price discrimination It is often referred to as price differentiation due to the fact that different price are being charged by companies for the same product or service to different customers depending on the market segment and rules set prior to the service, for instance in the travel industry a flight may charge $160 from destination A to B and the same flight may charge $200 to the same destination due travelling on a weekend. Another example can be if u book British Airways from A to B for next day travelling you might end up paying almost double, what you could have paid if you would have booked in 2-3 months in advance. Price skimming Many companies follow price skimming strategies in order to gain more revenues before competitors enter the market. Apple iPhone could be the best example to explain the skimming of prices. iPhone was launched with the buzz marketing and unique technology. They made sure that their target market will jump on the products whenever they launch. Having a high introductory price for one year, Apple gain the all the money and confidence of consumer of a superior product and later slashed the price to gain more markets. Price skimming is a temporary form of price discrimination allowing companies to recover their sunk cost. Dumping: Dumping or selling lower than the fair value is a situation/act where companies charge less in the foreign markets compared to that from the home markets for the same products. Dumping according to WTO is condemned but not prohibited PROMOTION Promotion plays a very important role in welfare of the company and thus sometimes companies do anything possible to promote their offered product and services even by unscrupulous means. Advertisements tell the consumers what they would want to hear about the product. No company would ever promote or say negative aspects of their products. The Ads thus, lack in honesty and the complete truth about the features of the product. Some times while promoting certain products, companies need to make sure, they do their homework by knowing about the culture of the country in order to telecast any ad on the television as no person in Saudi Arabia would like to see women advertising about suits and fairness creams. Or no person would like to see promotion of beef burgers by McDonald in India. Competitive ads sometimes can be misleading and create controversy. Ads also have a Some Taste and controversy Negative advertising False and misleading advertising Creating demand for vice or unwholesome products Tobacco? Alcohol? Fattening foods? Pornography or sexually explicit material? Intrusive promotions PLACE Slotting allowances: The fee charged to have their products placed on the shelves by the retailers to produce companies or manufacturers is called a slotting fee, slotting allowance, pay-to-stay, or fixed trade. It depends on factors such as the product, market conditions and the manufacturer of products and so varies greatly. For instance while the initial slotting allowance in a regional group of stores for a new product can be approximately $25,000 per item in high demand markets it can go as high as $250,000. Promotional, stocking and advertising fees are amongst the other fees that can be charged by the retailer. This practise, according to an FTC study, is widespread in the supermarket industry. Many grocers even earn more profit from agreeing to carry a manufacturers product than they do from actually selling the product to retail consumers. Buyback / stock lift / lift-out Gray market merchandise: Generally, it is a single importer a manufacturer would work in a particular area to sell and support their products. The importer further has local dealers and distributors to whom he resells the imported products; this results in a distribution channel. Gray Market, on the other hand, refers to use of methods other than these normal channels to sell and import merchandise. Items thus sold may not be meeting mandatory safety and certification codes, and so are not supported by the authorized importer and are not designed to be sold in a particular market. It also follows that as there is not a particular market for these items they may not function properly, or the authorized importer may not be equipped to provide service, support or software. OR the unofficial trading of securities that have not yet been formally issued Diverted merchandise Exclusive geographic territories Exclusive dealing agreements Tying contracts Refusal to deal Ethics and the supply chain A claim to be an ethical firm would be hypocritical , if a firm turns a blind eye to the unethical practices of suppliers in a supply chain. In particular: The use of child labour and forced labour Production in sweatshops Violation of the basic rights of workers Ignoring of health, safety and environmental standards An ethical producer has to be concerned with what is practiced by all firms (upstream and downstream) in the supply chain. CASE STUDY On July 4, 1977, a boycott was launched in United States against the Swiss based Nestle corporation over the companys marketing of its infant formula (breast milk substitute) particularly in less economically developed countries. Protesters claimed that the infant formula caused unnecessary death of suffering of babies, largely among the poor. The movement quickly spread throughout United States and expanded into Europe as well in the early 1980s. Professor Derek Jelliffe and his wife Patrice, who had contributed to establish the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA), were particularly instrumental in helping to coordinate the boycott and giving it ample visibility throughout the world. Did you know that the most efficient step in fighting infant deaths is breast milk? Breast milk works as natural vaccinations against many diseases. If all mothers in poor countries would breast feed their children for the first 6 months, and partially the next 6 months, millions of children would survive. They would develop a natural resistance against deadly diseases. Baby bottle disease, according to the finding by WHO, kills more than 1.5 million children every year. The cause of this is that the substitute for breast milk is made with unclean water and in an unhealthy environment. Even mothers with HIV would be better of breast feeding their children. In these countries breast milk substitute is lethal! They are poisoning their own children to death! This is murder! This is child murder! So why do these poor mothers give their children breast milk substitute? Nestle told them to Nestle tells them their own breast milk is unhealthy Gives away free samples Buy their way into hospitals to push their product Against the law uses direct advertise to mothers. Because companies like Nestlà © uses unethical methods to get mothers hooked on their products, World Health Assembly (WHA) made a resolution called the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes which Nestle and other manufacturers have signed. Still Nestle do not follow this code, and is reported every single year for violations. Primark tops list of unethical clothes shops in poll that shames high-street brands by Jennifer Whitehead, 08-Dec-05, 15:00 LONDON Low-price fashion success Primark has been named the least ethical clothes brand in the UK, with Marks Spencer also scoring poorly, by a new survey highly critical of the way high street brands source their wares. The survey, which has been conducted by Ethical Consumer magazine, found that only five high street brands scored 10 or over out of 20 assessing their ethical standards. Primark was the worst offender, according to the survey, with a score of 2.5. It is followed by Mk One, at 3 points, with Marks Spencer, Debenhams and Gap filling out the bottom five. http://www.brandrepublic.com/News/532319/Primark-tops-list-unethical-clothes-shops-poll-shames-high-street-brands/ Child labour On 23 June 2008, Panaroma, a BBC show, broadcasted a programme that showed unethical manufacturing practices in Primarks supply chain. Child labour practise was exposed by undercover reporters in three of Indias garment factories sub-contracted by Primark. The BBC alerted Primark to their findings, to which Primark replied: Under no circumstances would Primark ever knowingly permit such activities. Primark has since halted business with the mentioned suppliers, but this action by the company was criticised by child protection groups as being irresponsible and likely to cause additional hardship to the labourers. They argued ensuring better working conditions would have been a better solution. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primark#Criticism CONCLUSION All in all, it can be seen that in developing countries ethical issues in are highly sensitive to cultural, social and ethnical issues. Thus it is not just an issue of the orient versus the occident. The onus lies on the marketers themselves to not indulge in unethical practices and to respect local values and morals, in order to be a good ethical citizen in the marketing fraternity. Counterfeiting: imitation, faking, pre-emption, prior registration. Consumer ethics: warranty deception, mis-redemption of vouchers, returns of merchandise, recording of music and videos, software copying, false insurance claims RECOMMENDATIONS With public attention focused on ethics, there is a need for stricter controls in business practices, right from framing marketing strategies to finally delivering a product to the consumers.