Group Work on an Ammonia Reactor Project Personal Statement

Group Work on an Ammonia Reactor Project - Personal Statement Example I would like to start by reflecting on the things we have done well. Our communication system is clear and open and there is a mutual understanding among all members of the group. The group leader coordinates and controls the communication system but all members of the group are given the opportunity to freely air their views. There are consensus and mutual understanding in as far as the division of responsibilities is concerned. Consultations among all members are carried before tasks are assigned to individuals. We realized that this strategy is very effective in minimizing conflicts among the members which can be counterproductive. We treat all completed work for this project as shared responsibility whereby we do not seek to blame anyone should we get something wrong. As a group, we managed to influence all members to develop a positive sense towards the seat goals of the project.However, there are certain things we have done badly in our project. The main problem we have so far encountered is related to documentation of results from the experiments carried. At times these are not recorded on time which often results in wrong figures being recorded. This was mainly attributed to the fact that some members of the group did not like to work as a team since they wanted to do their own things separately. We also encountered some difficulties in coordinating the efforts of all the members towards the same goal since we often failed to meet deadlines to fulfill certain tasks. Some of the tasks required collective responsibilities but some members failed to meet the time for the meetings. Some members were not very good at keeping time which resulted in us failing to meet some of the deadlines.  

Malcomes final speech Essay Example for Free

Malcomes final speech Essay In Malcomes final speech he describes Lady Macbeth as a fiend like queen. Explain how far you think this description of her is justified Lady Macbeth is a very essential character to the play. She is singly responsible for the most tragedy and destruction throughout the play. She is very responsible because she is the one who talks to and persuades Macbeth. But she cannot be purely seen as an evil influence for she is a much more complex character then many would think. We first see Lady Macbeth in act one, scene five when she is reading the letter that Macbeth sent her. When reading the letter, she reads it in an innocent ladylike voice that we will not see much of until later on in the script. As she calmly reads the letter you can see her slowly spiralling towards the more evil sinister way. The letter is read as if he was writing it to his Dearest partner of greatness. He treats her with a lot of respect as if she is an equal. This would seem to be very awkward to an audience in the Shakespearean era for women were seen to be inferior to men. She decides on Macbeths behalf that they are to kill the King Duncan, without Macbeths approval. The only problem is that she thinks that Macbeth is too full of th milk of human kindness to commit such an evil task. She then thinks that she had the power to alter Macbeths mind like an evil conscience. This makes her more evil than seen so far for she is seen as an evil presence. Lady Macbeth feels that in order to commit the murderous task herself she will need to look for help of evil ghosts and spirits to take her body and do the dirty deeds for her. She suggests strong sentences to unsex her and turn her evil. Come to my womens breasts And take my milk for gall. In Shakespeares time the average person in the audience still believed in witches, evil sprits, potions and evil presences, so they would be scared as if it were real. The audience will also look at her in a very strange, different way for she is willing to give up all her femininity for a natural evil. She continues to make obscene comments to hell. Come thick night and pull the In the dunnest smokes of hell. She says this because she wants not to be discovered for it will cost her life if she was discovered. For a stage production I would start with her sitting in darkness on a chair alone with the spot light on her. She would wear a white dress to promote her innocence. The background music would be slow, low and quiet in a solitary tune. As she starts to ponder evil thoughts, I would slowly creep up in tempo and make all the notes more sinister. She would get up and keep her head down as she wanders around the stage reading the letter. As soon as she finishes reading the letter she will raise her head and start to whisper her lines to the audience making eye contact. The lights would be dim as she goes from side to side on the stage. She will get louder and louder until the servant walks in and after he leaves she will continue walking from side to side getting louder and louder until her husband enters and a red light will fade in as she explains the plot to Macbeth. The second time we see her is when she is at dinner acting sweet and innocent when at heart she is completely evil and filled with hate and gall. Duncan ironically and innocently speaks of sweet and good air which has a ironic relationship to Lady Macbeths earlier quote The dunnest smokes of hell in the last scene. In Act 1, Scene 7 we see Lady Macbeth for the third time. She is alone in the bedroom with Macbeth discussing their hidden sinister plan to kill king Duncan and steal his throne. In this scene we can see again how much influence on Macbeth, Lady Macbeth has. Macbeth decides that he wishes not to conduct in this evil scheme any further, but once again Lady Macbeth bends and twists Macbeths mind to see the opportinity the way she does. An audience would again be surprised to see a women taking more or less complete control over Macbeth. Her character would seem very masculine and the power over Macbeth would seem to be some sort of witchs spell, again making her seem more evil than she really is. It would not be surprising to see lady Macbeth fall to even lower levels of murder and in justice for all her goodness and innocence has been completely corrupted by greed, therefore making her nothing more than a victim to her inner evil. Macbeth stands for shining goodness in that moment that he refuses to commit this disruption of the hierarchy for it would not only be a murderous crime, it would also mean that he has turned his back on his God, for the king was seen to be Gods representative on earth. Lady Macbeth uses blackmail to get him to obey her. She starts to accuse him of not loving her and not acting like a real man treats his wife. This is ironic, for she does not treat him as a real husband, but none the less she gets her way through these obscene accusations of him being a coward And live a coward in thine own esteem The last time we see Lady Macbeth is in Act 5 Scene 1, after all planned has successfully happened. In this scene we can see how the aftermath of the killings has actually affected lady Macbeth. The scene begins with lady Macbeth being analysed by a doctor and his decision is that she is suffering mentally. Lady Macbeth is mentally scared and is sleepwalking in anguish. Lady Macbeth is constantantly rubbing and washing this certain spot in her palm because she (and only she) can see a red damned spot of blood. She is conveying images of the murder and she is speaking of the killing of an old man ( King Duncan ). Who would have thought the old man had so much blood in him Through sleep walking and being nervous we can see that Lady Macbeth does have a conscious and is liable to greed instead of being this evil monster which the audience has all seen before. The audience for the first time would start to understand and see that all the evil within her was evil spirits and the greed assigned to every human being. In this last scene with her, as she fall apart we can see all her greed and wickedness being stripped from her just leaving her an image of pure, innocent child like women. As Lady Macbeth becomes mentality ill and losses all her influence and greed it is as if Macbeth and his wife have swooped feelings and brains. Her obsession with a damned spot of blood which she cannot remove from her hand contrasts with her attitude to the blood after Duncans murder, when she says: A little water cleans us of this deed The way an actress would perform this scene would be very different from the way she would act in Act 1 Scene. Her face would be pale and without make-up, and she would wear a white nightdress to suggest return to a vulnerable childlike state. Her voice would be frail and trembling, and some lines, such as The Thane of Fife had a wife would be spoken like child reciting a nursery rhyme. Referring back to the title question, I think that Lady Macbeth cannot be fully justified as a Fiend for she is a normal women who is corrupted by greed and I am sure that many people in the same situation would be very tempted to do something similar.

Knowledge, Skills and Values in Social Work Assessments

Knowledge, Skills and Values in Social Work Assessments Outline the key areas of knowledge, skills and values required to carry out an effective and anti-oppressive social work assessment. Illustrate your answer from one of the following areas of professional practice: Mental Health The key areas of knowledge, skills and values which are required to carry out an effective and anti-oppressive social work assessment within the are mental heath have been set out within the various theories of social work assessment and involve engagement, effective communication skills, good inter-personal skills, non judgemental viewpoints, planning skills, confidence, experience, knowledge of the service user’s case history and an informed approach to assessment of users (Williams, (2002) 1) (Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust (2006) 14). This list is by no means exhaustive and it certainly is the case that there are some skills which merely require common sense and a pragmatic approach to the practice of social work assessment (Cree, V. (2003) 40) (Payne, M. and Shardlow, S. (2001) Ch. 1). From the writer’s perspective, specifically within the area of mental health, these skills arguably need to be more attuned in the social worker who wishes to carry out effective and anti-oppressive social work assessment. The social worker within the area of mental health will also require a firm knowledge base of the ways in which mental illness may manifest itself, and therefore the social worker will be able to identify the symptoms of common mental illnesses such as depression, bi-polar disorder, schizophrenia and others more readily and accurately. In this sense a combination of a good knowledge of the theory and practice of mental health social work will be essential tools for the social worker who wishes to be able to carry out effective and anti-oppressive social work assessment. An effective and anti-oppressive social work assessment in the area of mental heath is a complex process which requires an understanding of the complex socio-legal environment that the social worker often operates within (Beckett and Maynard (2005) 46). This means that the social worker will need to be familiar with the various regulatory and legal frameworks within which they must operate (Higham (2006) Ch 1) (Beckett, C. (2006) Ch. 1) (Davies, M. (2000) 1-20). The social work care ethos is also increasingly making the role of the social worker more onerous and this viewpoint is supported by the presence of more prescriptive practice guidance in the area (Beckett, C. (2006) 4) (General Social Care Council (2006) 1). The Department of Health has issued specific policy guidance in the area and in particular the policy guidance which is of relevance here is that which relates to vulnerable adults and the mentally ill. The General Social Care Council, which was set up in 2001[1], has is sued guidance and codes of conduct for social workers outlining these frameworks and the context in which they should be adhered to, and this is particularly highlighted by the General Social Care Council themselves through their website (http://www.gscc.org.uk). Other bodies such as the Social Care Institute for Excellence have conducted sociological research which has shaped these contexts and frameworks. Within the sphere of mental health care assessment, the Social Institute for Excellence has issued guidance on how the needs of mentally ill older people should be assessed and they have given the following advice about mental health care assessment: ‘Everyone has mental health needs, though only some people are diagnosed as having a mental illness†¦.older people are more likely to experience events that affect emotional well-being, such as bereavement or disability†¦.Health and social care professionals should carry out an assessment of the needs of†¦people they are working with, which means talking†¦about†¦health and any illnesses or disabilities†¦finding out†¦any problems†¦. (www.scie.org.uk)’. This above mentioned guidance has made the position of social worker more complicated. This rationale particularly applies to the area of mental health, because the skills needed to deal effectively in this area require an ability to relate to people across a whole spectrum of ages. In this sense, anti-oppressive and effective social work assessment is key. However, what are the ingredients of an effective and anti-oppressive social work assessment? Perhaps this is a question which invites an extremely broad response, which is open to subjective interpretation. Nevertheless, it is possible to argue that planning and effective assessment are two of the most important competencies when it comes to social work assessment. This is the case, perhaps primarily because the law requires the social worker to be aware of the legal duties which they owe to mentally ill and other patients (General Social Care Council (2006) 1). However, the assessment of mentally ill patients is often associated with a minefield of difficulties. One piece of legislation which is relevant in this regard is the Mental Health Act 1983 which is often instrumental to social workers in their efforts to deliver appropriate care within the area of mental health. However, this piece of legislation places legal responsibilities upon social workers as well as other social care professionals who deliver frontline services to mentally ill people. It is a controversial piece of legislation and it is also regularly invoked by professionals within the field of social care. This makes the responsibilities which are owed by social workers to their service users even more crucial, and it makes good values such as understanding, non-judgemental behaviour and views and honesty even more important within the sector of social work assessments. It is the case that many controversial issues come to light when the Mental Health Act is invoked in the interests of a mentally ill user who lacks the mental capacity to care for themselves. Firstly, there is the issue of deprivation of liberty by virtue of the Mental Health Act, and a social worker will often be asked for their opinion in the execution of the provisions of the Mental Heath Act, or they will be required to support service providers such as doctors who may not know a patient as well as the social worker does. This legislation allows for a mentally ill person to be ‘sectioned’ and brought to an institution against their will in order to receive treatment for mental health problems. In this particular regard, the principles of effective and anti-oppressive social work assessment are very important, not least because the input of social workers will often be considered key where a doctor or other senior health care professionals will be required to invoke p owers under the Mental Health legislation. A mentally ill person often may not appreciate what care is best for them, and interventions are often necessary to deliver the care that is required. However, this power of intervention can be abused, misused and conversely it may negligently not be invoked when it should have been. This is where effective communication and interpersonal skills are pivotal to the social worker who wishes to carry out an effective assessment. The powers which may be affected under the Mental Health Act require the support of two of more health care professionals, one of whom must usually be a doctor. This means that the social work must be capable of communicating their opinions on the most sensible intervention, the service user’s history and background, to the various actors who will be involved in the process whereby the need of a mentally ill person will be assessed (Scottish Executive (2006) Section 1.3) (Hill, M. (1991) Ch. I) (Philpot, T. (1998) 1-10). Communicating their opinions may n ot always be a direct process, which is why social workers are often required by law to keep adequate records and case histories of their contact with vulnerable people in their capacity as social workers, so that information can be communicated to other professional actors who need to rely upon it through record keeping. On another level and in terms of communication and interpersonal skills, the social worker must also be able to communicate with the service user themselves. This is particularly difficult for the social worker, as they will often be the first individual who will be informed that a mentally ill service user is perhaps in need of the intervention of social care providers. In this context, and from the personal point of view of the writer, planning the interaction between social worker and service user through reading the background and case history of the person involved, if this information is available will be pivotal. This process is all the more difficult as the service user may lack any communication, and or inter personal skills. Mental illness is often a very absorbing process, and the service user may also be frightened or delusional, and consequently not capable of effective or any communication. Therefore the social worker’s communication and inter personal skills are often tested immeasurably within the context of a mental health care assessment, and are crucial tools if assessment is to be carried out effectively and anti-oppressively. The interpersonal and communication skills which are needed must also be non judgemental, and this is very important if an anti oppressive assessment is to be carried out. The social worker must be prepared to distance themselves personally from the situation, and not to take any unwarranted criticism from the service user with mental health too personally. The person will inevitably feel very threatened by interventions from outside agencies and actors, and this will often lead to an angry reaction from the service user involved. It must also be remembered that communication between social worker and user may not always be through language, and therefore a calm outlook on life, as well as confidence and experience are also key factors which must be considered by the social worker who wishes to carry out appropriate assessments. These factors will often be picked up on, even sub consciously by the mentally ill service user, who may feel more threatened if they feel that the person wh o approaches them to assess their needs is not entirely confident of their own abilities. In conclusion therefore, there are many skills which are critical when the needs of a mentally ill person are to be assessed and these may often be described in terms of knowledge, skills and values. This essay has argued that out of all the competencies that a social worker must have, communication skills, interpersonal skills, record-keeping and planning are arguably the most important. Sound values and skills such as administrative and managerial skills are also pivotal, but this essay has argued that without good communication skills, in particular a social worker’s ability to carry out effective and anti-oppressive assessments will be compromised. Bibliography Books Beckett, C. and Maynard, A. (2005) Values and Ethics in Social Work. Publisher: Sage Publications. Place of Publication: UK. Beckett, C. (2006) Essential Theory for Social Work Practice. Publisher: Sage Publications. Place of Publications: UK. Cree, V. (2003) Becoming a Social Worker. Publisher: Routledge. Place of Publication: UK. Davies, M. (2000) The Blackwell Encloyopedia of Social Work. Publisher: Blackwell. Place of Publication: Oxford, UK. Higham, P. (2006) Social Work: Introducing Professional Practice. Publisher: Sage Publication. Place of Publication: London, UK. Hill, M. (1991) Social Work and the European Community: Social Policy and Practice Contexts. Publisher: Kingsley Publishers. Place of Publication: UK. Payne, M. and Shardlow, S. (2001) Social Work in the British Isles. Publisher: Kingsley Publishers. Place of Publication: UK. Philpot, T. (1998) Caring and Coping: Guide to Social Services. Publisher. Routledge. Place of Publication: UK. Articles Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust (2006) Strategy for Social Work and Social Care. Publisher: Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust. Place of Publication: UK. General Social Care Council (2006) GSCC Welcomes Healthcare Professional Regulation Reviews. Publisher: General Social Care Council. Place of Publication: UK. General Social Care Council (2006). Social Worker Cautioned Following Hearing in London. Publisher: General Social Care Council. Place of Publication: UK. Scottish Executive (2006) The Need for Social Work Intervention. Publisher: Scottish Executive. Place of Publication: UK. Williams, C. (2002) A Rationale for an Anti-Racist Entry Point to Anti-Oppressive Social Work in Mental Health Services Critical Social Work, 2002 Vol. 3, 1. Websites http://www.scie.org.uk/news/mediareleases/2006/200406.asp http://www.gscc.org.uk/Good+practice+and+conduct/ Footnotes [1] (under the Care Standards Act 2000).

Baldwins Effects of Narration and Analysis in Notes of a Native Son Es

Baldwin’s Effects of Narration and Analysis in â€Å"Notes of a Native Son† Personal stories and descriptions of major events are narrated throughout James Baldwin’s works as he analyzes the nature of the relationship between white and black America. The marriage of narration and analysis are especially evident in Baldwin’s essay, â€Å"Notes of a Native Son.† As Baldwin describes his father and their relationship until his father’s death, he simultaneously comments about the relationship between white and black America. Baldwin compares the events of his experience with concurrent American events to conclude about the nature of his personal relationships and the relationship between races; namely, that one must come to accept the reality of mankind, yet must strive to fight the injustice inherent in mankind’s nature. Baldwin begins with a brief description of the 1943 Detroit and Harlem riots and his father’s funeral. Both riots were centered on resistance to injustice, while the death of Baldwin’s father marked the end of oppression in Baldwin’s life as seen later in the work. These two events juxtaposed in the opening paragraph propose the questions that Baldwin works to answer by the end of his essay. Baldwin concludes his opening paragraph with â€Å"we drove my father to the graveyard through a wilderness of smashed plate glass† (63). The first question is â€Å"why death?† while the second question is â€Å"why resist?† Baldwin’s father is never named in the work but is always referred to as â€Å"my father.† This ambiguity allows Baldwin’s father to play dual roles throughout the work as both the oppressor and as the oppressed, symbolizing both white and black America. Almost immediately, Baldwin points out ... ... one must acknowledge mankind for what it is and the associated injustice without reserve; however, one must also resist the injustice inherent in mankind. This applies to the struggle between races as well as it applied to Baldwin’s relationship with his father. The initial questions proposed by â€Å"Notes† are answered in a general warning: hate breeds death and destruction, so resist the injustice where hate is conceived while accepting the unjust for who they are. It is through both personal and general experiences that Baldwin arrives at his final conclusion, offering a warning to society and the individuals within: hate only causes destruction and must be put aside before positive gains may be achieved. Works Cited Baldwin, James. â€Å"Notes of a Native Son.† 1955. James Baldwin: Collected Essays. Ed. Toni Morrison. New York: Library of America, 1998. 63-84.

Brunos Change Essay the Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas

How does Bruno grow and change in the novel, if at all? Bruno does grow and change in the book but slowly; it is only in the end that he truly evolves. Does he change when he moves to Out-With? And the first time he sees the camp, does he see it for what it is? When he meets Shmuel that’s when he really changes. The writer has Bruno change so he develops personality. This is important because you need to get to know him when you read the book. Bruno does change a little bit when he moves to Out-With. He does get bored more easily (which anyone would if you had to move to the middle of nowhere) and he feels sad that he had to move away from his friends. So Bruno does change but it’s hardly noticeable. When Bruno first sees the camp he doesn’t know what it is. It is only near the end when he goes inside that he actually sees that it’s a cruel, dirty and racist place. Gretel is also confused by it at first, â€Å"A group of children being shouted at by soldiers†¦Ã¢â‚¬ËœIt must be a rehearsal’ suggested Gretel† (page 37) this shows how clueless she was but then later in the book she knows what it’s all about. When Bruno meets Shmuel he changes massively. He starts to forget what his three friends were called. He understands things more. But the main thing to make him change was FRIENDSHIP! Without friendship he wouldn’t have changed. When he finally sees the camp for what it is he changes in a way not many people would. When he dies he holds hands with Shmuel. That is true friendship. â€Å"He took hold of Shmuel’s tiny hand in his and squeezed it tight ‘You’re my best friend Shmuel, my best friend for life’†¦and despite all the chaos that followed, Bruno found he was still holding Shmuel’s hand and nothing in the world would have persuaded him to let go. † So Bruno Does grow and change throughout whole book. But in the end it was friendship that really changed him.

Paint Your Wagon

Paint Your Wagon (1969) is a musical movie adaptation of the stage play musical of the same title by Lerner and Lowe. The movie is set in California during the gold-rush era and stars the Lee Marvin as Ben Rumson, Clint Eastwood as â€Å"Pardner† (Julio in the stage play) and Jean Seaberg as Elizabeth. The movie details how a small tent-city (No-Name-City) becomes suddenly populated when Ben (Marvin) discovers gold in the soil. The story is complicated by the arrival of other characters such as the Mormon with two wives – one of which he auctions off (Elizabeth) to Ben.A love triangle forms when Ben leaves to kidnap seven â€Å"French tarts† from a neighboring town and leaves Elizabeth in the care of Pardner. The two eventually fall in love and comes up with a strange arrangement of sorts through Elizabeth’s convincing argument that if a man can have two wives, surely a woman can have two husbands. Everything bodes well until the gold starts to dwindle and in desperation, Ben and the other miners decide to mine under the buildings believing that gold is dropping through the floorboards.This eventually leads to the destruction of the town, the abandonment of the settler’s and Ben’s renewed search for prospective land. The movie offers a (musical and colorful) window into the phenomenon known as the North-American western frontier that occurred as a result of North-America’s newly attained independence and the formation of the United States. The movie, through its comical portrayal of the gold-rush, demonstrated the Laissez-faire or free trade trend of modern American economics.This is demonstrated by the free and unregulated movement of settlers of the town of No-Name-City who are all looking for gold. The economy during this time was one of risk taking and speculation, which accounts for the migrant behavior of settlers and prospectors, risking resources traveling through the great plains of America in search of fortune and lands to reclaim (Effects of the American Frontier). Another aspect of the frontier era that the movie offers a window to is in the area of Politics and social tolerance.The movie offers a glimpse on Frontier politics through the portrayal of how the settlers of No-Name-City keep order. The movie demonstrates how the political system can be individualized, with people and leaders dealing with situations as they are encountered and making the best of the situation (Effects of the American Frontier). Social tolerance in the movie is demonstrated in the way that cultures and races can freely mix in the settlements formed in the movie (e. g. the mixing of Mormons, Americans, French etc. ).This is highly representative how the frontier era was highly racially and culturally tolerant. Lastly the movie also offers a glimpse into the stature of women during the frontier era. This is demonstrated through the character of Elizabeth. Though in the beginning of the movie her charact er was marginalized, even reduced to mere property (through the auctioning) she establishes that women are somewhat equal in status with men when she manages to convince the two male protagonists that she too can also avail of â€Å"privileges† reserved for men in the way that she too can have two husbands.This is reflective of how, during the frontier era women were treated as practically equals since in the wild west, with nature offering constant challenges to the settling population, women were expected to perform roles similar to those of men (Effects of the American Frontier). Work Cited â€Å"Effects of the American Frontier. † Cyberessays. com. 11 December 2008