Low-Cost US Airline - Southwest Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Low-Cost US Airline - Southwest - Research Paper Example   This is mainly because of the fact that Southwest airline has adopted various low-cost strategies such as Website reservations and ticketless travel, employee buyout programs, low depreciation costs and administrative expenses, cancellation of flights at profitable routes due to unfilled capacity and use of similar planes at other destinations with temporary higher load factor and other practices etc. Indeed, the company has received the tremendous response in the domestic US market where sales increased considerably because of repeat customers who always enjoy the experience by travelling through Southwest Airlines. The company usually adds 1-2 new cities every year as part of an expansion and sustainable development strategy. After thoroughly reading the case, the researcher has discovered the following three managerial and strategic issues that need to be addressed for betterment and enhancement of Southwest’s business in upcoming years. The first major issue is increasing in oil prices in the international market followed by economic recession after the credit crunch and a debacle of US subprime property mortgage scheme. It is worthwhile to mention that Southwest Airlines would have to face bleak scenario and an extremely challenging business environment in upcoming quarters of 2008 – 2009 because the higher crude oil prices increased inflation followed by the decline in real purchasing power of US consumers. Obviously, this later would lead to production and consumption, thereby resulting in closures of industries. The unemployment would increase, shatter consumer confidence and adversely affect the airline industry for which survival had become the sole priority in 2008. In short, Southwest might not be able to maintain its load factor, average fare revenue per customer and current operating expense structure in 3rd quarter onwards. There is the greater probability that demand for air travel would decrease that might lead to losses to Southwest. An economic recession is an uncontrollable factor because unemployment increases and consumption falls during the recessionary cycle. For instance, the contraction in business activities also reduces the demand for business travelling followed by a steep decline in leisure travelling because of high price elasticity.  Ã‚  

Blood Pressure Woes and Which Electrolyte Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Blood Pressure Woes and Which Electrolyte - Essay Example Therefore, George tested positive for chronic renal failure. The red blood cells are abnormally low. Normal red blood cells (RBC) in men should be between 4.7 and 6.1 million cells/mcl. This sample had a low count of 3.8million cells/mcl which is below ordinary level. There is probability that some red blood cells have been discharged with the urine. Also, regular hemoglobin count in male is between13.8 to 17.2 gm/dL. The count of 11.0 gm/dl is lower than normal and could be as a result of excessive loss of water due to frequent urination. The usual Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR) in a human body is around 90ml/min but in George’s case it was 45ml/min which is low. Protein which is supposed to be 80mg/dl per day is abnormally high (3g/24hr), which is a characteristic of high blood pressure. The operational nephrons in the body determine the level of filtration that takes place in the kidney hence influencing the level of GFR. Considering the level of GFR has dropped from a usual average of 90 to current 45ml/min, the percent of nephron decline is 45/90 of one hundred. This depicts a decline of 50% of the nephrons. At the end phase of kidney failure, the level of GFR goes down to 15 or extreme of zero ml/min. Also, the rate of urination declines to almost zero and all nephrons becomes nonfunctional hence the patient may have to undergo kidney transplant. George should manage sugar in the blood, and reduce level of blood pressure. For example, this can be achieved avoiding smoking and taking physical exercise regularly. This condition can be healed if George implements doctor’s advice and avoid taking food which is rich in cholesterol. Congestive heart failure is a condition where the rate of the heart beat is lower than usual. This condition may result to insufficient â€Å"oxygen and nutrients† in the body. Consequently, the kidney may react by withholding body fluid and salt resulting to clogging of

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

Drama - Essay Example In this case, Jack lies about his brother’s death and makes his relatives to believe the lie. Jack does all this drama by feigning seriousness. He pretends to be mourned by use of costumes and some props Wilde claims that Algernon joins Cecily in making up fairy tales, although they have no intention of deceiving anybody; the lies will definitely hurt some other character (78). The author portrays Cecily and Agernon as the architects of their lives. This is because they are creative and thoughtful on issues, which concern them. The false impressions of the characters like Jack, Cecily and Algernon serve to reveal their true personalities. In this case, Jack and Algernon use hypocrisy and deception to be free of domestic duties. The freedom affords them an opportunity to engage in pleasurable activities and leisure. The characters could not readily embrace the fact that their engagements were to end soon. In this regard, Jack tells Algernon, ‘†¦ You wont be able to run down to the country quite so often as you used to do, dear Algy†¦ You wont be able to disappear to London quite so frequently as your wicked custom was†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Wilde 34). This implies that Algernon and Jack always enjoyed the freedom and the end of the freedom caused them pain and sorrow. Hypocrisy is also manifest in the infatuation between Gwendolyn and Cecily. These characters pretend to be in love, but they confirm the contrary, when they disagree on Earnest. The language used by most of the characters in this play has epigrams, which depicts deception. In this regard, the speeches made by the characters do not conform to logical sense. Hypocrisy is prevalent in the Victorian society given that the participants harbor ill attitudes. This is manifest when Gwendolyn and Cecily misbehave before the servants. Additionally, this element is portrayed by Lady Blackwell when she warms to Cecily on account of her richness. Both of them want to marry Earnest but it turns

SHORT ANSWER ONLY Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 5

SHORT ANSWER ONLY - Assignment Example istics, different distribution of genetic variations which are fundamental and necessary to pursue biomedical studies that will address any menacing diseases that will emerge and adversely affect the population.† (Tiskoff & Kidd, 2004). Scientific racialism is â€Å"defined as the use of scientific techniques, that is, employing anthropology, paleontology, anthropometry and other disciplines, as well as hypotheses to sanction the belief in racial superiority, inferiority or racism† (Scientific racism, n.d.) . After World War II, Racism redeemed a new meaning _ â€Å"racial discrimination and a harmful intent. A racist makes prejudicial judgments. Focusing on the said ‘harmful intent’, contemporary scientists, sociologists, and politicians continue to monitor and study how to prevent racism among groups in the context of more controversial issues on â€Å"race and intelligence, race and health and race and crime† ( Savant, 2008). In order to belong to an ethnic group, one can choose from using Primordial or Circumstantial method. Circumstantial view of ethnicity suggests that to be in an ethnic group, one must be raised in that ethnic group or at the very least be adopted into that ethnic group at some point. (Circumstancialist, 2007). On a U.S. daily basis in U.S. culture, â€Å"characterizing police practices as in racial profiling, in explaining voting patterns in terms of racial or ethnic loyalties; when imputing identities or interests into racial ethnic or national groups† are just some o f the model -related examples (Brubaker, et. al., 2004). â€Å"White Anglo-Saxon Protestants (WASP), originally denoted as an ethnic group, culture, customs and heritage of early Western European settlers in what is today in the U.S. WASP vary in religion, from secular to Episcopalian to Congregational. The 21st century saw WASP influence over U.S. social structure particularly major American institutions, cultural, educational, business and financial entities.

Reasoning Behind U.S. Decision to Enter the Korean War Essay Example for Free

Reasoning Behind U.S. Decision to Enter the Korean War Essay Introduction What determined the United States to enter the one of the costliest wars in the twentieth-century is a good topic for foreign policy study. There are several possible explanations as to why the United States participated in the war. The most important explanation is that the western world would be in a greater threat if North Korea won the war. Communist was considered as expansionism by the White House; hence, occupying South Korea might be a move of Communists to expand the Communist territory in the world. To prevent this, the United States needed to deter this possible threat. Another one is the United States is afraid of communist expansion. If North Korea won the war, it might cause countries swinging between Communist and Democratic to become Communist. Moreover, the domestic political situation for the Truman administration at that time was crucial in analyzing why the United States entered the war. These are the most important factors motivating America to enter the war. Despite the profits of the entry in the war, there were some reasons preventing the United States involved in the war. Because North Korea’s invasion was likely backed by the USSR, if the United States failed to handle the situation properly, a World War III might happen; this would lead to huge loss of U.S. personal and substantial financial costs. Other than that, because China borders North Korea and China was another major Communist country, the United States intervention could lead to war with China. In this paper, I would first analyze each major reason individually for entering the war or not intervening. After that, I would put the picture together to explain why the United States eventually chose to participate in the war. Reasons the United States entered the Korean War Fear of Communist Expansion The most important factor that influenced U.S. entry into the Korean War was the USSR’s and other Communist countries’ ambitions to expand. After WWII, the White House had started to consider the Soviet Union as imperialist. The report â€Å"the Truth of Korea† implied that the United States was a free nation and the Soviet Union was intended to build a Soviet empire around the world. By considering the Soviet Union as imperialist, the United States was afraid that if the United States stood aside in the Korean War, Communist countries would take further actions to expand. For instances, China would attack Taiwan, IndoChina would overthrow France and become Communist countries, and the Soviet Union would even build communist regimes in Middle East or West Europe. The worries were likely to become reality unless U.S. intervened. After WWII, the Soviet Union consolidated their power by setting up puppet communist governments in all countries they had liberated, except Yugoslavia. Both force and politics were used to keep East European countries following commands from Moscow. Based on these behaviors of the USSR on other countries, it was reasonable that the United States labeled the Soviet Union as imperialism. Facing a country with desires to control other countries, punishment was a better choice than appeasement according to the deterrence model. If the United States entered the war and secured independence of South Korea, Communist power would be contained. Consequently, when Communist countries were making decisions of territorial expansion, they had to consider the cost and consequence of a war with the United States. Therefore, the intervention could contain Communist power and prevent potential wars from happening. Fear of Bandwagoning The second important reason U.S. entered the Korean War was fear of bandwagoning. It was less important than fear of Communist expansion is because bandwagoning would not directly harm U.S. interests, but would impair the global political leadership of the United States. In the setting of post-World War II, the world was separated as two major political spheres, one Soviet-led and the other U.S.-led. The Korean Peninsula was one of the several places two the major political powers conflicting each other. Other than that, the political landscape in East Asia was towards Communist. In China, the Communist party led by Mao Zedong just won the civil war against Jiang Jieshi’s government supported by the United States. Countries like Vietnam and Laos inclined to join the family of Communist at that time, abd overthrow French colonists. Therefore, if Communist North Korea unified the Korean Peninsula, it would make countries like Vietnam and Laos align with the USSR without hesitati on. The United States was not willing to let that happen. According to historical documents, when the war just started, Truman and his advisors believed that to falter would forfeit world leadership because of bandwagoning and Communist expansion. Moreover, in official reports about Korea situation, concerns about Democratic power weakened if South Korea fell were raised often. In 1948’s report Prospects for Survival of the Republic of Korea,† the result of South Korea lost to North Korea would constitute a severe blow to the prestige and influence of the United States. As a result, the defeat of South Korea would encourage more countries to align with the Soviet Union. The report was before the war, the United States already considered the bandwagoning a severe threat to UN’s influence in the world. From this perspective, in order to maintain the democratic as a stronger power in the world, the United States had strong interests in entering the Korean War. Consolidation for the Truman Administration The domestic political situation for the Truman Administration was not positive before the Korean War. In 1949, the Communists in China won the civil war against the Nationalists backed by the United States. It was painful that White House lost an important country, China, to Communism because the United States had invested tons of resources in the country, but in the end, the United States did not have the expected return. It stirred a debate of â€Å"Who lost China† in the United States. The public was more in favor of McCarthy’s opinion. McCarthyism indicated that losing China to communism was the government’s fault. Based on his analysis of the civil war in China, he believed â€Å"China hands† China specialists at White House plotted Jiang’s defeat, who was the top leader of the Nationalist. Therefore, at the time before the Korean War, the Truman Administration had a lot of pressure from the public due to losing China. If South Korea was def eated by North Korea, the public would strengthen their belief that losing China was a government’s blunder. Hence, losing South Korea would be catastrophic to Truman’s presidency. From the view of domestic political situation, the United States entered the Korean War because the Truman Administration needed to prove its ability in protecting democratic power before losing all trust in the public. This point was less strong than the above two was because it was hard to collect evidence to support the point. Factors preventing the United States from entering the war War with China Entering the Korean War was likely to start a war with China, one of the greatest powers in the world. From the perspective of geography, the Korean Peninsula adjoins China. If a foreign military power of the United States was close to the border of China, China would feel threatened. The worry was validated after the United States joined in the war. On June 27th, 1950, after the Seventh Fleet of the United States was sent to neutralize Formosa, Mao, the chairman of China at that time vowed â€Å"Year after year unsure of when the enemy will attack us. We must repair the house before it rains.† Not a long time after the vow, Mao sent his army to the Korean Peninsula. Moreover, although China just ended its civil war and badly needed time to recover from the war, China was actively looking for a chance to consolidate its status in the world stage. In 1950, most countries in the world only recognized Republic of China led by Jiang and disputed the legitimacy of People’s Republic of China led by Mao. Therefore, Mao was eager to have a war with a strong world power to gain international recognition. The Korean War against the United States was a good opportunity for the communists to show the Mao’s China’s power to the world. For this reason, China was likely to enter the Korean War if U.S. intervened. Regarding the negative results of the war, people in the United States just gained peace; nobody would like to see a war between China and the United States. A war with China would lose many the United States soldiers, breakup thousands of American families and halt U.S. economy growth, hence lowering people’s living standards. Additionally, a war with China was also meaningless because at that time the United States did not want to defeat China, but defend South Korea. The war between China and the United States was predicable if the United States entered the Korean War. A war between China and the United states was undesirable for the reasons listed in this section. Therefore, a war with China was a big factor in not entering the Korean War. Start of World War III The entry into the Korean War might lead to World War III. A possible war with China might drag the Soviet Union into the war. If the Soviet Union entered the war against the United States, the Eastern Europe under control of the Soviet Union would also claim war against the United States. As a result, Western Europe would likely align with the United States to contain the Communist power in the world. People all around the world just tried to recover from the aftermath of World War II. If World War III happened right after World War II, the world would be in chaos again, creating another tragedy in human beings history. The big picture When the benefits outweigh the costs of a decision, one would put that decision into action. The three major benefits Unites States would have from entering the war were preventing domino effect of countries joining in Communist, constraining the ambitions of expansions/ invasions from Communist countries, and securing the domestic administration. The two major costs were an undesirable war with China and a possible start of World War III. It was hard to determine whether the benefits outweighed the costs. However, the listed costs were unavoidable if the United States did nothing in the Korean War. If the United States let South Korea fall, there would still be a war between Communist power and democratic power in the future. As analyzed in the section of fear of Communist expansion, Communist countries led by the Soviet Union inclined to expand their territories if their ambitions were not constrained. Therefore, appeasement to Communist countries was not going to stop them from behaving aggressively. Even though the United States would not participate in the Korean War, finally it was possible to be a day that the Soviet Union would eventually declare a war on the United States for further expansion. The costs would only become more significant than the costs of entering the war at that time. Hence, in order to prevent that from happening, the United States took the initiative to contain Communist power in the world. Additionally, human pride played a factor. Truman might recklessly enter the war in order to secure his status in White House. To him, protecting his reputation and his presidency might be much more important than starting World War III or fighting an undesired war with China. Hence, because of personal emotions, Truman would order the United States to enter the war. Conclusion There are three major reasons encouraging the United States to enter the Korean War. From the perspective of bandwagoning, defending South Korea could win credibility for democracy power and possibly win countries swaying between Communism and Democracy. In the view of the deterrence model, entering the war could constrain the ambition of imperialism of Communism countries. Considering the domestic political condition, intervention in the Korean Peninsula could make the public turn attention to the war instead of the administration’s failure in China and relieve the public pressure from the administration. On the other side, there were two important costs preventing the United States from entering the war. The first cost was an unnecessary war with China. The United States would not benefit directly from fighting against China and U.S. would consume numerous resources and human power in the war. The other cost was starting World War III. The Soviet Union could declare a war on Unites States if the condition in Korea got worse. U.S. decision to entry into the Korea War was made because of two logics. First, the costs were unavoidable if the United States just watched and did nothing in the war. Communist would continue to expand and finally encounter the United States for a war in the future. At that time, the cost would only exaggerate, not minimize. Second, Truman would more likely send U.S. troops to the war field. In order to secure his administration, he needed to turn the public attention away from China and prove his ability in foreign policy. The result of the war was peace between South Korea and North Korea. Judging from the result, U.S. entry into the war had a positive impact on the peninsula. However, whether the peace in the Korean Peninsula could be achieved through other ways at lower cost is worth further discussion.

The Simplistic View Of Westminster Models

The Simplistic View Of Westminster Models The argument that the Westminster model is a simplistic view of the British policy process could be said to be true as there have been a number of changes in British politics in recent years. This essay will evaluate this argument and to help do this will look at Rhodes differentiated polity model, Marsh, Richards and Smiths asymmetric policy model and use the policy area of tuition fees to help understand the changes and advancements that have taken place within the policy process. The Westminster model does not have one individually conclusive version as many political scientists have differing interpretations of the model. However there are a few key features that are agreed on. It is agreed that the Westminster model has strong centralised cabinet government controlled by the political party in power at the time. Parliamentary sovereignty is also key with power only within government and Westminster (Richards, 2008). The majority party is the party that implements policy and support for the policies are normally supported by their partys backbenchers. A two party system is present under this model and the opposition party is there to indicate faults of the elected partys policies as the opposition partys aim is to look the stronger party with the intention of being elected at a coming election (Garnett Lynch, 2007). It is also a feature that policies are easily accountable as it is only the government involved in the policy process (Richards, 2008), where m inisters elected by the public are representatives of the public and work for their benefit (Kavanagh, Richards, Smith Geddes, 2006). Civil servants are there to implement policy, they are neutral and defend the government and House of Commons (Garnett et al, 2007). The model is regarded as an elitist, hierarchical, top down system and is seen as the traditional British political way of policy making (Richards Smith, 2002). The model sees the Prime Minister exercising control over government ministers, who control the civil servants. The central government also exerts control of local government (Richards, 2002). These characteristics of governing shows that government have the power to dominate or guide society as they see fit (Kavanagh et al, 2006). The Westminster model has shaped government actions over the years and provides guidance on how public policy and government is effectively run. It has become evident over the past few decades that the Westminster model is no longer completely evident in British politics. According to Kavanagh et al (2006) the period from 1945-1970 the model was apparent as state power was at a high level. However the changing governments and Prime Ministers have continuously changed and altered the way policy is made. The model has become limited and no longer helps us understand the policy process. The fact that Britain has an uncodified constitution may generate problems for the sustainability of the Westminster model. The political scientist Ralph Rhodes developed a critique of the Westminster model which he named the Differentiated Polity Model which included a change to governance rather than government, power dependence, policy networks, a segmented executive, intergovernmental relations and a hollowed out state (Kavanagh et al, 2006). All of these characteristics attempt to explain why the Westminster model could now be said to be a s implistic view of the British policy process. It has been argued that there has been a transition of the state from acting as government of the people to governance of the people. This implies that Westminster no longer makes decisions in terms of following official rules and through government organisations within the core executive, but decision making is done by many actors at a number of levels such as local, regional or national level (Garnett et al, 2007). It is seen as a new way in which the public is governed. Making decisions requires cooperation, negotiation and bargaining with a number of actors within and outside government. Under governance the amount of policy actors has grown with the increase in the use of the private sector and out with the core executive it has extended the boundaries of the state. The aim of a coalition between government and the private sector is to increase their possibility of getting the best outcomes in society (Marsh, Richards Smith, 2003). Therefore the policy process has become fragme nted and government has now adopted more of a regulatory role (Garnett et al, 2007). Some institutions such as schools and universities now have a bigger role in how they operate but are regulated through inspections (Garnett et al, 2007). Universities are given grants to fund teaching and resources however financial circumstances have meant public institutions have been handed over to market forces where it is now over to the individual or the private sector to fund higher education. This coincides with the argument that there is no longer government but governance in Britain. The Browne report which reviewed Englandà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s higher education funding system has recommended a number of changes to this system. The report advised that public funding in terms of the teaching grants should be reduced meaning the state will have less power in universities as there will be higher private funding than government funding. The report also recommended that caps shoul d be lifted on tuition fees where there are no limits on what universities can charge (At a Glance: Browne Report) {online}. This would according to Minister David Willets reduce bureaucracy and increase funding for universities through students and effectively improve education (Students face tuition fees rising to  £9,000) {online}. This move from state funding to private funding of universities therefore supports the idea of a change to governance as governing of universities by the state has been reduced and replaced by regulation. The Westminster model has also changed in that government depends on other agencies rather than only those In the political hierarchy (Garnett et al, 2007). These external groups do not have any significant power but can have a say in policy (Dugget, 2009). The term governance implies there has been a shift away from the state control and passed over to individual interests and market forces to influence and enforce policies. There is opinion that inter-governmental relations have weakened the Westminster model. This is the idea that there has been an expansion in the number of governmental organisations involved in policy making and implementation at a number of levels. For instance we have the devolution of powers to Scotland, Wales and London. This has in effect made policy making for these nations more direct to the public (Garnett et al, 2007) and has eliminated a level of responsibility from Westminster (Dunleavy, Heffernan, Cowley Hay, 2006). Therefore devolution has removed much of the centralised parliamentary sovereignty feature of the Westminster model. Devolution has meant Scotland has their own policies on education and tuition fees where Scotland believe in a free education to broaden opportunities for everyone regardless of their income. (Students face tuition fees rising to  £9,000) {online}. Also the introduction of the membership of the European Union in 1973 into British politics has meant there has been a transfer of power from Westminster. The European Union can have a large influence on policy making. According to Dunleavy et al (2006) up to 70% of new policies in Britain are developed by the European Union. This shows again power is lost to other actors and the EU membership has reshaped and challenged British politics. Under the Westminster model local government did not have much impact on policy making (Dunleavy et al, 2006). However it is evident politics is moving away from the traditional Westminster model as local service delivery is being handed to external agencies instead (Garnet et al, 2007). Also the purpose and existence of local government has been questioned as it has limited powers. There are many more institutions and public, private and voluntary departments within policy which has become a new method for implementing policy. Within funding bodies there are a number of government agencies which help fund tuition fees such as the student lo ans company (SLC) and Local Education Authorities (LEAs) who are also included in the instalment of tuition fees and grants. This fragmentation can cause confusion in administration. The National Committee of Enquiry into Higher Education also recommended that funding process needs to be simplified as there are currently four higher education funding bodies in the UK (The National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education) {online}. There are also agencies which help to maintain standards such as the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) and the Higher Education Academy (HEA) (Distinction and Diversity in Higher Education) {Online}. Therefore in the tuition fees policy area we can see that there are now a wide range of organisations that are involved in delivering services. A further criticism of the Westminster model is the argument towards a segmented executive. This explains there are divisions of government departments, ministers and civil servants who posses their own resources which are to be exchanged (Marsh et al, 2003). It is argued the core executive works in exchange relationships and these relationships are not said to be zero sum however, as no actor has equal resources (Marsh, Richards, Smith, 2001). Each actor has resources that another actor requires (Marsh et al, 2003). The structure of the executive has become segmented as the civil service has generated what is called policy chimneys. This phrase originates from the idea that policies are developed by a department but they tend not to take into consideration the effects it may have on any other policy area. According to Marsh et al (2001) departments can be unwilling to work with other departments on a policy which overlaps with other policy areas in government. For example raising t he tuition fees may have an effect on employment policies as rising tuition fees could mean more people looking for unskilled jobs rather than furthering their education to fill jobs that require more skill. However Rhodes points out that the Prime Minister for example can not be concerned with every policy area (Marsh et al, 2003). As the core executive has become segmented the 1997 Blair government wanted to coordinate and control what was going on in the policy arena as there was a lack of direction. However it is believed that this could lead to further fragmentation and ineffective policy making (Garnett et al, 2007). Power has moved away from the centre and into policy networks involving negotiation and bargaining (Dunleavy et al, 2006) where power is shared and making decisions is not solely reserved for the Prime Minister and the Cabinet (Garnett et al, 2007). However although there are many actors involved in the policy process the Prime Minister still remains a key actor. Departments are also a key actor within the exchange relationships as a large part of policies are made at the departmental level (Marsh et al, 2003). Evidence that the core executive is segmented is the fact that there have been attempts to bring back control of the centre by labour. The policy network approach is also useful to use as a criticism of the Westminster model. Policy networks have grown along with the need for state intervention. Policy networks have been a simplifying device in the policy process as they can effectively deny access to groups who do not abide by the rules of the game in the policy process. Policy networks examine an individual policy area. Around the policy area networks are present where a variety of actors are included. This emphasises that it is not only government that is involved in policy formation but other actors such as pressure groups used for information on the policy area. The network approach breaks down policy to a number of actors to provide the best advice for better policy delivery and better policies for the public. Government depends greatly on organisations in networks for service delivery (Marsh et al, 2001). There are different kinds of policy networks; the first being policy communities where there are limited and consistent members as too many groups to consult is undesirable in the network, power of the members is equal, interaction is frequent and of a high standard. Members are dependent on each other as all have resources and therefore exchange relationships as all have resources. Additionally bargaining and negotiation is involved in the exchange of resources. Another form of policy network is an issue network which are the opposite of policy communities. There are a number of participants, membership changes and is more open. There can be conflict and negotiation deriving from consultation rather than negotiation of resources. Power is said to be a zero sum game as members have differing levels of power and resources (Kavanagh et al, 2006). Within policy networks government tends to be the key actor as they usually have considerably more resources (Marsh et al, 2001). As the policy networks involve exchange relationships, the more resources external groups have to exchange the tigh ter the relationships tend to be. These groups also depend on government as government has better resources which these groups cannot access (Marsh et al, 2001). Furthermore the features of policy networks do change over time because governments opinions on policy networks differ. For example the Conservative government was ideologically against consultation with others as it believed this was a sign of weak government. Thatcher used the market to implement services which fragmented the policy process (Rhodes, 2007). This decreased government power and limited their role as the negotiator. These changed again under the Labour government as Labour approved of policy networks and were revived under Blair (Marsh et al, 2003). This contrasts the Westminster model as resources have moved away from the core executive to different actors and therefore it seems governing is not as straightforward as the Westminster model implies (Marsh et al, 2003). Furthermore although the policy process h as changed, central government does continue to have a large impact on which policies are implemented (Marsh et al, 2003). Policy networks determine who they wish to be involved in the policy process. It is very rare for the government to deliver policy on its own therefore government is very much dependent on other interest groups and there are strong dependency relationships in the policy process. Policy networks relating to tuition fees include a number of groups who try to influence policies through the network process. The private report by Lord Browne has managed to influence government into changing how education is funded. The key actors in the policy network would be the Prime Minister, the current deputy Prime Minister and education ministers. Negotiations had to be made between these two actors as Nick Clegg had previously signed an agreement which agreed to no increases in tuition fees. However with much negotiation and bargaining it was agreed the deal for increases wer e better than the previous funding system. (Nick Clegg regrets signing anti-tuition fees pledge) {online}. Ministers depend on agencies for resources such as the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA). Pressure groups such as the National Union of Students have also played a key role recently in attempting to influence the stop to the rise of tuition fees policy using mass demonstrations to get their views heard that they are against the public funding cuts. The government also depends on students for information. The Browne report recommends students are used more and will therefore have more of a say in how their future is shaped (Independent Review of Higher Education Funding Student Finance in England). Teachers Unions are also against the rise in tuition fees and believe it will result in poorer people being denied access to universities and result in damages within society (NUT) {online}. Another move away from the Westminster model is the idea of Rhodes hollowing out of the state. It is claimed the British state has been hollowed out as of the changes in government which have arguably reduced central governments authority, autonomy and power (Kavanagh et al, 2006). It is described as the most radical aspect of the differentiated polity model as the boundaries of the state have changed (Marsh et al, 2003). According to Rhodes (cited in Marsh et al, 2003) the policy networks approach has been the most influential aspect of hollowing out of the state in what he terms sideways, and also intergovernmental relations has led to hollowing out downwards. Additionally the Rhodes model believes power has adjusted upwards to international organisations as a result of joining the EU and globalization as it has meant these institutions have more of a say on British policies and British government is restricted (Marsh et al, 2003). The European Parliament and the European Courts po wers have increased meaning many British policies have become Europeanized (Marsh et al, 2003). However there are many who are against the hollowing out of the state argument such as Holliday (2000, cited in Marsh et al 2003) who believed the centre were more able to control policy outcomes it tried to obtain in the twenty first century (Marsh et al, 2003). The recent further use of policy networks has meant the increase in the private sector and market testing (Kavanagh et al, 2006). Privatisation has meant that government has lost power and exists more as regulatory body as the private sector now has a bigger role in providing public services. (tuition fee;s) The number of quangos, non departmental public bodies and Next Step agencies have grown and hollowed out the state and given power below the core executive. This has led to fragmentation in the policy process as power has moved from the centre. Quangos and agencies help deliver policy as they have specialist knowledge of spec ific policy areas as different policies have to be approached differently (Kavanagh et al, 2006). These changes within the British political system have meant accountability for policies has become more difficult as there are many more actors involved in implementation than previously. This goes against the Westminster models assumption of parliamentary sovereignty where the executive are the main political actors (Marsh et al, 2003). The argument that the state has been hollowed out can be seen in relation to tuition fees. The number of external agencies that fund university fees has grown as there are four regulatory bodies; the higher education funding council for England (HEFCE), the Scottish funding council (SFC), Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW) and the Department for Employment and Learning, Northern Ireland (DEL). Under Lord Brownes report these would be scrapped and replaced by one Higher Education Council which would regulate standards, students and the i nstitutions (Politics) {online}. Globalisation has also had an impact on tuition fees as institutions now need more funding to keep up their status as one of the worlds best for higher education. The removal of the caps on tuition fees would mean more funding for universities as the government have to reduce the public contributions as of the current economic climate and therefore institutions would depend more so on student contributions. It is claimed the rise in tuition fees would improve education and increase choice (Students face tuition fees rising to  £9000) {online}. Marsh, Richards and Smith criticised Rhodes differentiated polity model and came up with their own angle on the changes of the Westminster model that Rhodes assessed called the Asymmetric power model. Key features were structured inequality, the British political tradition, asymmetric power, a pattern of exchange relationships, a strong segmented executive and a limited pattern of external constraints. In sum the asymmetric power model marginally agrees with Rhodes model to an extent. However Marsh et al believe the idea of pluralism is over pronounced. The asymmetric model believed more in the direction of the Westminster model and argue the dominant actors in the policy process are the core executive. Their main argument and focus is the asymmetries in the exchange relationship (Marsh et al, 2003).

The guidelines of the law :: essays papers

The guidelines of the law There are many different guidelines of this law that each state and school systems have to follow. The first of many is to hold states, school systems, and individual schools accountable for their test scores. â€Å"It sets a new standard for measuring achievement and has real consequences for schools that fail to make progress over time† (Heath, 2002-2004, para. 2). Each state will have to implement school testing and report their finding back to the government. The government will then send out the results from the tests. The government is very lenient on how the states set up their plans for improving their schools. School systems are allowed to build off their programs already in use. The government allows the use of systems that are already in place but it also states to send them their plans for improvement. If school systems fail to send in a report and a plan for change to the Department of Education, the government can take away their Title 1 funding (Hombo, 2003). The purpose of holding schools accountable for test scores is to show the teacher, parents, and other staff members what the school needs to work on improving. This will help to limit teachers passing children who are not up to the proper grade level because the person feels bad for the child because of his or hers living situation, (Sclafani, 2002-2003). The tests will be given to every student from grade four through grade eight. The National Assessment of Education Progress administers the test every two years. â€Å"NAEP has a new role: to act as a serious discussion tool in evaluating results of state assessments, and in providing a common base for comparison between states† (Hombo, 2003, p.4). This goes back to states being held accountable for their students test scores. States that do not receive the proper federal funding do not have to develop or implement the test (Boehner, 2001-2002). The No Child Left Behind legislation focuses on improving students reading levels, especially in the elementary years. â€Å"Only 32% of fourth graders are proficient readers who read at a fourth grade level,†(Heath, 2002-2004, para. 3). If school systems receive the money, they can then in turn apply for the Reading First Grants. These grants are used to pay for classroom reading instructions. They have to be used with programs that have been researched and are proven to work.