The Importance of Technology Education in Schools Essay -- Teaching Ed

The Importance of Technology Education in Schools The education world has been greatly influenced by rapidly changing technology and the increasing availability of information. Schools have advanced by leaps and bounds when it comes to incorporating technology into the learning environment, however, many more advances need to be made. In all areas of the country, educators are trying to help students keep up with technology, but there are more changes that are essential for preparing the next generation for the future. By increasing computer usage by students, installing classroom Internet access and providing instructional classes dedicated to software and hardware education, schools have tried to provide an up-to-date education for students. This is all very important, but is it enough? I feel that perhaps this just isn’t going to cut it for the twenty-first century. Michael Eisenberg and Doug Johnson pose the question in the ERIC Digest, â€Å"Can the student who operates a computer well enough to play a game, send e-mail, or surf the Web be considered computer literate?† [1] I believe the answer is yes and no, it depends on whom you are comparing them to. If you are comparing these kids with many adults, then yes they are; however, if you are comparing them to the next younger generation of children that are learning to do these things before they even learn to read, then the answer is a large resounding NO. Schools need to incorporate technology education into all areas of curriculum. Students need to be able to understand not only the how-to of computers, but they need to understand when to use it, where to use it, and why it should be used. Many students only have a basic working knowledge of computer... ... 5. 5. Network systems and data communications analysts 6. 6. Desktop publishers 7. 7. Database administrators 8. 8. Personal and home care aides 9. 9. Computer systems analysts 10. 10. Medical assistants3 Locally, the high schools have begun to understand this growing need and have issued laptops to all students in the freshman classes. This is just a first step. The teachers must now make good use of these new tools and help the students understand the how, when, where, and why of their gifts. It will be awhile before education can afford to catch up to societies needs, but if we recognize the need now, changes can be made to ensure that our next generation will be prepared for the future. A future were bugs are very different from insects, surfing requires no water and viruses have nothing to do with infection.

Organizational change at Shlar of Newton

Shlar of Newton is an organization catering to patients’ dietary needs. The company’s mission is to seek new ways everyday to improve the lives of patients. The decision to implement steam table serving system just started out as a simple initiative to improve the quality of life of patients. Initially, the top management did not realize the magnitude of change required to implement this system. However, when they gradually began to understand the various interconnected variables involved, a decision to make a significant organizational change to facilitate the new system was finalized.It was agreed that organizational change would be effected in accordance with the company’s mission and values (Free Management Library 2008). The company also decided in advance that organizational change would not come at the cost of weakening or compromising established and successful operational methods that have been its cornerstone for years, unless a significant reason is pu t forth. This included current practices in the kitchen floor, dining room or managerial functions.The cost factor involved in organizational change was analyzed and sufficient funds were allocated in the yearly budget to pursue the necessary actions. However, no expansion in manpower was initially foreseen by management as the new equipment did not need expert assistance. Introduction of Steam Table To begin with, new steam table equipment, utensils and other allied accessories had to be purchased. There were a lot of choices in brands as well as features to consider when it came to choosing the right hardware. The senior staff members in the kitchen were consulted in this regard to understand their requirements.Steam tables could be powered by gas, hot water bath, as well as electricity. Each one had its fair share of advantages and disadvantages. Steam tables functioning on water bath were comparatively inexpensive, but not very efficient for our requirements. The gas-powered ste am table was quite efficient, but it lacked in features. The electric steam table was finally chosen for its efficiency as well as features; certain models of electric steam tables also had a cold-storage compartment, which could be useful to store fruits and refreshments (Steam Table world 2008).After conducting an exhaustive research on the numerous brands available in the market, â€Å"Eagle Group† brand was selected based on its reasonable pricing, durable hardware, favorable customer service reputation and free installation offer. The steam table is an expensive piece of machinery which needs professional maintenance from time to time. Hence, an annual maintenance contract was signed with the same company to facilitate periodic maintenance, repair and refurbishing. The new equipments installed in the facility also were insured to cover for accidents and unforeseen events.The steam table system required a more robust power supply to meet the added power requirements. Henc e, this required hiring electricians to upgrade the power supply in the premises. A training program was also designed to make kitchen staff comfortable using and cleaning the new steam table equipment; its features as well as emergency measures to handle a hardware malfunction were also clearly demonstrated. As steam tables as well as steam table pans needed regular cleaning, a staff member was needed to accomplish this task.The same staff member who was responsible for cleaning the trays in the previous tray passing system received appropriate training and took over the new responsibility. Soon after installing the steam tables, there was a noticeable raise in temperature due to the heat generated by the new equipment. So, the management decided to rectify the situation immediately before it started making patients uncomfortable. Hence, additional air-conditioning equipment was installed to lower the temperature to comfortable levels.These problems were solved smoothly because the management understood that organizational change was a long process that needed to be approached with extreme caution and sensitivity. It anticipated unforeseen expenses and was well-prepared, as it viewed the expenses an investment towards its stable future. Merits of Steam Tables The primary advantage of implementation of the steam table system is the availability of fresher food, which is tastier and more nutritious to the patients. The steam table also acts as a quality-check mechanism, wherein food items that are not preferred are not requested by patients and they stay on the counter.Hence, food items that are not favored by patients can be avoided or improved in future, thereby eliminating food wastage. In the conventional passing tray system, the food items that are not preferred by patients would have been served anyway and eventually wasted. This system also helps understand patients overall food preferences better and more effectively cater to their needs. Moreover, redu cing food wastage would eventually benefit the patients as cutting down on our expenses would translate to cheaper food bills on the long run.The steam table system affords patients the freedom of choice to consume the food they want. This has been shown to psychologically as well as physiologically improve the patients’ condition (Hay 1932). Shlar of Newton also firmly believes that right food, in combination with medical treatment, plays a critical food in treating a person’s illness. Although talking a small stroll to the steam table counter to take food may sound insignificant to the average person, it can serve as a mild form of exercise that is critical for most patients.In the field of health care, it is important to understand that even the minutest of factors can add up and lend a patient a better lifestyle. Hence, the most marginal benefits could be treated as significant when it comes to health care, since the quality of life of a human being is at stake (Su llivan & Atlas 1998). Organizational Resources Our management team is spearheaded by the Nutrition Care Manager and Director of Dining, working in coordination with a dining service agency named Morrion Service Dining. The Nutrition Care Manager, Tina Miller works out the menu by rigorously analyzing our patients’ nutritional needs.She constantly experiments with different combination of food items to ensure that the menus do not stay stale, while also meeting nutritional needs of patients. Hence, the responsibility of managing the fine balance between taste and nutrition is handled by her. Tina Miller gives a lot importance to ensure that the quality of food served meets the higher standards of hygiene and health, since we understand the importance of food in healing patients and improving their quality of life. Nutrition Care Manager also briefs the serving staff about specific food allergies of various patients, thereby eliminating any food-allergy related incidents.The Di rector of Dining, Timothy Smith takes care of maintaining the dining hall that serves the patients food. He keeps operations in dinning hall running smoothly by handling infrastructural demands of the facility by making sure that the water, electricity and staff charges are paid on time. He also coordinates with staff to ensure that the dining environment comprising of basic amenities and furniture is well kempt. He also interacts with patients to get their perspective on things, and duly works on their complaints and suggestions.The Director of Dining also conveys the patient’s grievances to the dining service agency and constantly works with them to bring about changes. Timothy Smith also functions as a company representative while dealing with public relation initiatives and external agents such as Health Inspectors. Teamwork at Shlar of Newton Morrion Service Dining is very customer-friendly and takes frequent inputs from our managerial team. The company has been working seamlessly well with them for quite sometime and are satisfied with the quality of their food as well service.The Director of Dinning and Nutrition Care Manager often pay surprise visits to asses their kitchen conditions, and until now they have fared quite well on our satisfaction scale. The company also frequently interacts with the nursing staff to get their inputs on patients’ specific requirements. It employs only legitimate chefs and other kitchen staff, while paying a lot of attention to kitchen hygiene. The kitchen staffs also have been well-trained to cater to patients’ unique demands and also exhibit the highest standards of professionalism expected in this sector (Kongstved 2007).Besides all these resources, we have also accumulated a powerful knowledge base over time, by learning from patient feedback and behavior. Post-implementation Phase Although a lot of positive changes were envisioned out of the stream table system, a monitoring mechanism had to be de signed to measure the impact of the new system and justify its implementation. The company already had a system for regularly measuring its performance, so as to constantly improve service and ensure business sustainability.It was designed in-house as quality measuring system based on several aspects such as patients’ satisfaction, nutritional value, and nurses’ feedback. Patients, nurses and doctors were also encouraged to fill out questionnaires to measure improvement in quality of service to improve on the current system Quality-check Mechanism Patients as well as the nursing staff reported that they were more satisfied with quality of food, after the enforcing organizational change. Some doctors also reported subtle improvements in few patients’ psyche, although there is no empirical evidence to support this claim.It was also observed the overall quality of food factor went up from 3. 77 in 2007 to 4. 1 in 2008. This improvement was quite steep compared to l ast year’s marginal improvement from 3. 58 to 3. 77. Although a multitude of elements had contributed to our success, this year’s surge in performance can most certainly be attributed to the steam table system. These figures explicitly convey that the organizational change has impacted the company positively. Hence, the efforts and expenses incurred have been worthwhile in improving the company’s brand image as well as quality of service.

ESL Lesson Plain for a Class Job Fair

Putting on a class job fair is a fun way of exploring English skills related to employment. The following lesson plan extends much further than just a lesson. This series of exercises can be used over approximately three to five hours of classroom time and takes students from a general exploration of jobs students might be interested in, through vocabulary related to specific positions, into discussions of ideal employees and, finally, through the job application process. The class can be fun or focus on working on professional skills development. Students will learn a wide range of vocabulary related to work skills, as well as practice conversational skills, tense usage, and pronunciation. This series of exercises include using an informational employment website. I recommend using the Occupational Outlook Handbook, but for more general classes its a good idea to visit a listing of unique jobs that students might find more interesting. Jobsmonkey has a unique jobs page which lists a number of fun jobs. Aim: Develop, extend and practice work-skills related vocabulary Activity: In-class Job Fair Level: Intermediate through advanced Outline Write a number of professions on the board or brainstorm as a class. Its a good idea to have a mix of professions in order to generate a wider range of vocabulary (fire fighter, manager, engineer, programmer).Have a quick discussion of each type of profession. What skills does each profession require? What would they have to do? What type of person should they be? Etc.Put students in pairs or small groups and pass out the adjectives matching sheet. Ask students to match each adjective to a definition. Help students by making descriptions of professionals who are diligent, precise, etc.Correct as a class. Ask students to discuss which professions would require which characteristics using the vocabulary they have learned.Discuss as a class, or have students each stand-up and give an answer for the profession of their choice.Ask students what type of job they (would like to) have. Using one students job as an example, navigate to the Occupational Outlook Handbook or similar job descript ion site. Search for or choose the students position, and navigate the resources provided. Its a good idea to focus on the What do they do? section, as students will learn vocabulary related to the profession. Make sure the students get the url for any job site you recommend.Provide the worksheet on finding an ideal job. Students should name the job, write a brief overview of the job, as well as do research on the principal responsibilities of the job they have chosen.With their research in hand, have students pair up and interview each other about the jobs they have chosen.Ask students to find a partner to write up job fair advertisement. Together students will decide which job theyd like to create an announcement for.Using their informational sheets, ask students to create a job advertisement to announce a job opening based on the materials below. Provide large sheets of paper, colored markers, scissors and any other necessary equipment. If possible, students can print out or cut out pictures to accompany their poster.Students post their job advertisements up for other students to browse. Each student should choose at least two jobs theyd like to interview for.As a class, brainstorm typical questions they might be asked in an interview. Discuss possible answers with students.Get students back into the job poster pairs. Have each pair write up at least five interview questions about their position using their original information sheets including work duties.Have your job fair! It will be chaotic, but everyone will get a chance to practice using vocabulary they have learned throughout this activity. The job fair can be free form, or you can have students trade off roles at intervals.To expand the job interviewing of the aspect use this job interviewing practice lesson. Match each adjective to its definition bravedependablediligenthard workingintelligentoutgoingpersonableprecisepunctual someone who is always on timesomeone who can work steadily and with accuracysomeone who gets along well with otherssomeone who people like to likesomeone who people can trustsomeone who is smartsomeone who works hardsomeone who doesnt make mistakes Can you think of more? Answers punctual - someone who is always on timediligent - someone who can work steadily and with accuracyoutgoing - someone who gets along well with otherspersonable - someone who people like to likedependable - someone who people can trustintelligent - someone who is smarthard working - someone who works hardbrave - someone who isnt afraidprecise - someone who doesnt make mistakes Job Worksheet Questions Which job did you choose? Why did you choose it? What type of person should do this job? What do they do? Please describe with at least five sentences describing the positions responsibilities.