Assertiveness

Editors view about elections 2008 (Before the Death of Benazir Bhutto)

It is a common thought that a person who reads Pakistani press can not be capable provide a precise idea that what is happing in Pakistan. Secondly the concerns uttered by Musharaf government about media’s responsibility in development of Pakistan, makes the character of media even more suspicious. Third, common men are not able to understand the difference between views of the newspaper and column writers. Most of the people just start reading a piece of writing by selecting their titles. And try to discover the truth. But when after one week if somebody asks what is the main theme is, so they will have no answer. For the reason I thought that there must be a piece of writing which can provide the overall analysis about forthcoming elections. So I selected two English newspapers namely Dawn and The News and copied their Editorials from their web editions from 1st December to 21st December 2007. I just made an effort to get their views about upcoming elections, political parties and Musharaf government. Mostly all the items are in one way or another related to the elections. This article will provide a glimpse of events of three weeks and all at once the reader can judge whether a prediction or analysis made by any newspaper was factual or fictional.

About the holding of elections in January the Dawn (”The task ahead” 1st Dec) believes that possibly the elections will not take place in peace for the reason that the promises made by Musharaf to withdraw emergency and PCO may not make happy all the fragments of the opposition and boycott of elections by the PML (N) and JI will have an effect on the credibility of the elections. One interesting sentence “There is more to the elections than satisfying the APDM. A greater precondition for a fair and transparent election is the need for lifting the curbs on the media”, shows that Dawn supposes that APDM is not seriously working for lifting the restrains on media. That’s why Dawn has set such a proposal to the concerned authorities and general public.

Adopting a very straightforward outlook about the boycott politics the Dawn (”Talks, not threats” 2nd Dec) condemns the APDM in these words “The APDM is far from being clear on what lies beyond the boycott”. And on the other side criticizes the composition of the present caretaker government and election commission of Pakistan. But at the same time shows mirror to the opposition in these words” Looking at the composition of the current caretaker setup and of the election commission, the opposition is justified in casting doubts on the fairness of the polls. But the opposition will also have to share the blame for the current mess in view of its failure to forge a united stance vis-à-vis the dictatorship in Islamabad whose strength is, among others, based on the disunity of its adversaries”. The Dawn not only points out the problems with the portrait but also gives a proposal for the cure of the syndrome. “The only way to set aside all such worries on the part of those willing to contest the election and convince the boycotters to join the fray is for the president to convene a multi-party meeting to iron out all such differences and to make certain changes to avoid aspersions being cast on the election process”. All the opposition parties are putting question mark on the credibility of election process, only putting aside PML Q and Mollana sahib. The Dawn (”The ‘common goal’” 5th Dec) represents this idea as such” Any election held under the circumstances will not be acceptable to the entire opposition, save perhaps Mollana Fazlur Rahman. What credibility an election which only the erstwhile ruling party and its officially designated leader of the opposition regard as free and fair will have is anybody’s guess”? The News (A step into the future” 1st Dec) sees this situation of boycott in different perspective ” At the same time President Musharraf’s firm assertion that general elections would go ahead as scheduled in January, and that “no one would be allowed to create a hindrance in the transition to democracy” are welcome. They give an indication of the resolve to make a full return to the interrupted process of democracy. Given the examples that exist from the past, political parties would be well advised to participate in the process, rather than staging a boycott. Full participation by groups representing all shades of opinion is in fact the best way to strengthen the system “. The News (”Free Aitzaz Ahsan” 3rd Dec) puts an allegation ” Aitzaz is, by any yardstick, a popular politician, a brilliant orator and a successful lawyer — right now he is the man the government is so scared of that he has again been caged for 30 days. He is also a candidate in the Jan 8 election and how can he possibly woo his constituents if he is detained. This would suggest that what the government is doing in his case is nothing more than pre-poll rigging — and that too of the most blatant kind”. Next day The News ( Pressure cooker” 4th Dec) “The one issue on which every party is raising its voice loud and vociferously is the credibility of the regime to hold a genuinely free and fair election. This is the biggest challenge facing President Musharraf and he has already indicated that if the results of the Jan 8 poll are unacceptable, he may quit the scene. This may be seen as a sign of weakness but his best option as the civilian president of the country would be to honestly and sincerely rise above the political fray, stop patronizing some of his past allies, sit down with the main political leaders giving them due respect, create a transparent and fear-free atmosphere and that way he will make the elections non-controversial and more about issues rather than his own person”. Criticising boycott of elections The News (”Mr. Boycott ” 10th Dec) suggests” Boycott is much on the lips of politicians as we move towards the election of January 2008, and it as yet unclear which of the parties, if any at the end of a period of ritualized posturing, will boycott the polls. Boycotts have a very mixed history in terms of success, and any ‘boycott’ of the electoral process by the parties is likely to inflict greater wounds on themselves than on the institutions and processes they are boycotting. It could be argued that in the present case a boycott of the process would move those so engaged even further from the levers of power than they already are, and do little to revive their parties which are still recovering from years of absentee landlordism”.

On the subject of the disagreement among Nawaz and Bhutto camps, the Dawn (Split on boycott 8th Dec) evaluates the reasons as “Technically, the talks were held between the ARD and the APDM. But for all practical purposes it was the two former prime ministers who were exploring the possibility of adopting a joint stand on the general election. The ARD team was relatively homogeneous, but the diversity in the APDM delegation did not seem to have come in the way of a consensus within the Nawaz camp, Prof Khursheed Ahmad’s presence itself symbolizing the hard line adopted by the MMA’s Qazi faction. The two sides also have differed in their attitude towards President Pervez Musharraf. While Benazir Bhutto had implied that she was willing to work with a president out of uniform, Nawaz Sharif made it absolutely clear that President Musharraf, whether in or out of uniform, was not acceptable to him”. And in the end The Dawn validates Nawaz approach,” President Musharraf may be out of uniform, but the state machinery is not out of the dictatorial mode”. In this feudalistic and capitalistic civilization of Pakistan, every facet of life is under their influence. It is evident in the days of elections when party tickets are given to this segment of society. Dawn (”Feudal stranglehold” 9th Dec) raises the curtain from the stage of upcoming parliament in these words ” OVER the decades, society in Pakistan has undergone many changes but one major component of our body politic has resisted all change: the feudal control of the country’s political institutions… According to the report, the three mainstream national parties — PPP, PML-N, PML-Q — and the Sindh-based PML-F have made no efforts to diversify class representation in parliament and have continued to give party tickets in overwhelming numbers to feudal lords”. The News (”Taking the lead” 2nd Dec) shows other side of the came coin in these words ” In recent years, the gradual disappearance of ideology — except that adhered to by religious parties — from politics in Pakistan has in fact left behind a situation where policies regarding key issues such as privatization, welfare and taxation no longer figure in electoral campaigns. Instead, the exercise has been reduced largely to tussles between powerful individuals, whose personal standing, influence and wealth decides the outcome of the contest for a particular seat. In other words, elections have become little more than a kind of wrestling contest between such ’strong men’, and occasionally women, whose success or failure is at best only vaguely related to the programme of their parties”.

From the very beginning, foreign hands are involved in Pakistani politics. Dawn (”The real constituency?” 9th Dec) gives details of this situation. “ANSWERABILITY to the people is a basic tenet of democracy. True we are currently living in dictatorial times, but public opinion has been largely inconsequential in Pakistani politics even in times of democracy, engineered or otherwise. Our leaders in recent decades, be it Benazir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif or Pervez Musharraf, have all looked to foreign shores for validation and subsequent consolidation of power. When out of office and on the wrong end of the power equation, our politicians make a beeline for Washington or London in an attempt to destabilise the incumbents in Islamabad. Their true constituency, it seems, is not the people of Pakistan but the US and its allies in Europe and the Middle East — and of course the GHQ in Rawalpindi, in some cases…. The image abroad is clearly more important than opinion at home. When elections can be rigged, losing votes and the confidence of the people is not a primary worry. Ours is a country that has imported two prime ministers, one from the World Bank in Washington and the other from Citigroup in New York. Yet, our leaders talk of ‘sovereignty’ and waste no opportunity to condemn foreign interference… We have only ourselves to blame for any meddling in our internal affairs. ‘Advice’ from overseas has been kowtowed to all along, so why should it be surprising that the Saudi envoy can meet Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry when former prime ministers of Pakistan and the deposed Chief Justice’s colleagues, friends and admirers cannot? Or that foreign diplomats have been dispensing advice to local politicians in the run-up to elections, or visiting the offices of media outlets banned under the emergency? The Turkish president recently met with leading Pakistani politicians, going so far as to coach them on how to deal with the military. No doubt he has some experience in this matter but purely in the context of Turkey”.

Criticizing the boycott politics and suggesting a way for political parties the Dawn (”PML-N in the field” 11th Dec) writes these lines” The boycott drama, which should have been behind us now, has taken a bizarre turn. Having failed to reach a consensus on the boycott issue in their critical meeting on Sunday, the APDM participants had glossed over their disagreements by announcing that all component parties were free to go their own way. Not to anyone’s surprise, the PML-N decided to enter the electoral fray only to find itself being thrown out of the APDM that Mian Nawaz Sharif had himself founded in July… How the participating parties fare in the elections now depends on numerous factors such as their ability to enter into seat-sharing arrangements, the position they adopt on the restoration of the pre-PCO judiciary in their election campaign, and their success in mobilising the voters who have been depoliticised over the years and are, by and large, apathetic and cynical vis-à-vis the game of politics that is being played out in the country”.

PML Q has designed its manifesto with 5 D’s and makes some promises with the nation. Dawn (”The manifesto season” 12th Dec) exposes the party in these words” The two leaders said the PML would never support the presidential system, even though the constitutional system as it exists today has been stripped of its parliamentary character and is presidential in all but name….Like all manifestos, the PML-Q’s programme contains aims and promises that, if fulfilled, can help end poverty, create equality, spread education, give the people a higher standard of living and take Pakistan into the 21st century. However, once in power, the parties tend to ignore their election pledges, and it is the bureaucracy that draws up and implements plans that often conform to the conditionalities imposed by the aid donors”. While The News (”The five D’s” 12th Dec) criticizes the same phenomena in these words ” It is also true that both the two detailed manifestos released so far, with their carefully planned words and their mottos, have something in them that resembles a charter put out by a group of boy scouts or some similar organization. There is something a little childish about the focus of the whole effort, particularly since the document, as is the case with the one by the PPP, makes no effort to provide insight into the ideological basis of the policies the parties hopes to follow, but reads essentially as a list of promises, or solemn pledges. This also says something about the wider role of manifestos in Pakistan’s politics. The fact is that the assertions made in these documents are rarely, if ever, implemented. And the knowledge of this reality is perhaps one of the reasons why parties can afford to allow so many high-sounding words and phrases to dominate them, confident that in a system where checks and balances have increasingly slipped away or been thrust aside, and the powers of people to retain or throw out leaders taken away from them by interventions from the outside, or tampering with the election process itself, they are unlikely to be called on to fulfill the promises made…. Whereas in its manifesto, and in the speeches made at its launch, party leaders of the PML-Q spoke of democracy within and outside the party, the reality is that during its five years in office, the party has done little to build such a culture”. And commenting on the manifesto of PML N the News (”Restoration theme” 17th Dec) writes these words” Using the acronym ‘RESTORE’, the PML-N has joined the sudden flurry of manifesto announcements by political parties, with the stress laid on the return of deposed judges and an end to the military’s role in politics. The seven letters in the word ‘RESTORE’ stand for restoration of the judiciary, democracy and the 1973 constitution; elimination of the military role in politics; security of life and property; tolerance; overall reconciliation; relief for the poor and education and employment. Like the ones announced by the PPP and the PML-Q over the past month, the agenda of the PML-N is quite obviously an impossibly ambitious one”.

Only lawyers are left to stick with their stand of boycott of elections. Rest of the main parties decided to take part in elections. Dawn (”Lawyers and boycott” 14th Dec) describe this situation as ” MR Aitzaz Ahsan’s decision to finally withdraw from the election seems to be in keeping with the legal community’s boycott of the Jan 8 vote. The lawyers’ stand is that those who are taking part in the general election are legitimising the Musharraf government…. The politicians have not shown unanimity on boycott. Maulana Fazlur Rahman’s decision to go for election has divided the MMA, and the boycott camp collapsed when the PML-N virtually defected to the other side. The boycott is now confined to the Jamaat-i-Islami, besides some small parties. The legal community’s principled stand against the president’s March 9 decision and the promulgation of the PCO will go down in history as unprecedented in terms of the sacrifices rendered. However, one often feels uncomfortable about the danger of the legal community getting politicized”. The News (”The middle path ” 7th Dec) raises the issue of the new Judiciary role in lection in these words ” It is a fact, and rightly pointed out by Mr Malik, that hundreds of district judges, additional district judges and civil judges throughout the country were transferred with immediate effect by the chief justices of provincial high courts just before the announcement of the election schedule. It is these lower court judges who will become returning officers and are crucial cogs in the electoral process. Appeals against their decisions will go to the high courts and the current Supreme Court, and all of these are now manned by judges who took a fresh oath under the PCO. Thus the entire election edifice has been constructed in such a manner that any unwanted political candidate can be excised from the process at any stage. That is where the system could be rigged as has been amply demonstrated by the rejection of nomination papers of both Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif”. The News (” In the president’s court” 13th Dec) puts some light on the promices of Musharaf ” Thus the 2008 election is slowly moving to become what President Pervez Musharraf had once described as the ‘mother of all elections’. It is also reassuring that the president has stated publicly that he will accept the results and will try to work with anyone who comes to power after the elections. Though his claim that “I interact with people quite well, I am not such a trouble creator” may sound like an oversimplification or slightly optimistic, at least he seems to be sounding the right notes to work with a genuinely elected parliament….While Ms Bhutto and Mr Sharif have to prove their strength in the polls, Mr Musharraf has a much more difficult task to accomplish. He has to prove his words, repeated frequently, that he is neutral and will not support any political party. This needs more than a few statements to establish, especially if one looks at the way state and government resources have been commandeered by the former Punjab chief minister as he and his party go about trying to gain an “upper hand” in the electorally-crucial province”.

Ms Bhutto analysis that the ousted judges were doing politics before the promulgation of the Nov 3 Provisional Constitution Order which sent them packing, and her claim that elections will not be fair, the Dawn (Bhutto’s strange logic” 15th Dec) gives history of emergence of political leadership in Pakistan. “A sense of wonderment must also be felt by many over her caveat that the Jan 8 election will be rigged. Is she the only one to be trusted in the whole game plan devised by the devil himself, as it were? This acute sense of paranoia is indeed unsettling…Ms Bhutto surely has a good memory but it tends to fade rather selectively. There has been a historical pattern whereby assertion of independence by civilian players never went unpunished; and the list is long. Of late, it is worth recalling that Mr Zulfikar Ali Bhutto made his debut in politics under a martial law regime and assumed power after an election held under army rule. Mr Mohammed Khan Junejo was handpicked by Gen Ziaul Haq. Both asserted their independence in due course; Bhutto paid for it with his life, Junejo with his job only. Do not the ousted judges merit credit for their stand in 2007″? The News (”Principled step ” 15th Dec) on the other hand supports Civil Society and Lawyers movement and praises Aitaza Ahsan boycott of elections ” The decision taken by SCBA President Aitzaz Ahsan to withdraw nomination papers he had filed from a Lahore constituency as a candidate of the PPP, has immediately raised his status as a man of principle. Explaining his move, which deviates from the line of the party Aitzaz has been affiliated with for decades, he stated that he had decided to stand by the community of lawyers who had so bravely led the struggle for judicial independence”.

Predicting some facts about the next parliament Dawn (”Bhutto’s strange logic” 16th Dec) says” The amendments made in the Basic Law since Nov 3 cannot be undone, except by a two-thirds majority, and all indications are that the Jan 8 elections will give us a hung parliament in which the opposition will find it impossible to garner that many votes. In other words, the lower house that will come into being next month will be presented with a fait accompli. What position the PML (Q) will have in the assembly is difficult to say, but it should not be beyond the president’s power to manage a two-thirds majority with the help of the “king’s party” and those willing to go along. That the president chose not to do this, and the amendments have already become part of the Constitution show he has decided not to give the assembly even rubber-stamp status”. Next day in its editorial (Pakistan in its labyrinth), Dawn suggests that this situation is very helpless for the people of Pakistan, ” As far as the Jan 8 election is concerned, there was precious little in the president’s Saturday night speech to allay the opposition’s fears as to the polls’ transparency, even though Mr Musharraf has invited any number of foreign observers to witness the process. At the same time he made it amply clear that he will not allow any agitation or rejection of election results by anyone. Under the circumstances, poet Faiz’s prophetic lines come to mind: ‘Take a vow of fidelity or of separation, do as you please/ what do we control? What will you have us endorse?’ The people of Pakistan have never been this helpless in shaping their political destiny”. And on the same day in another editorial ” Voters’ list” The expresses its concern over the female voters participation in elections” Here it may be pointed out that an issue that needs to be addressed by the Election Commission and also the NGOs working at the grassroots level and civil society is that of the participation of women in the election process. Over the years more and more women have been taking part in the polls, thanks to the efforts of advocacy groups that have conducted consciousness-raising campaigns to educate women politically. But the aspect that gives rise to major concern is the fact that in some constituencies the female turnout has actually been nil. This has been attributed to a patriarchal culture with male elders forbidding women from casting their ballots. This is reprehensible. The Election Commission must look into this matter and take measures to pre-empt the use of social pressure to stop women from exercising their right to vote”.

Even Dawn criticism of the next hung parliament, it is in favor of taking part in elections.” Participation by a majority of the mainstream political parties in the election is the right decision, though the PPP and the PML-N have said that they are taking part under protest. As the big two failed to agree on a charter of demands as a prerequisite for their participation, the hope that the polls could be held under a more even-handed dispensation is now all but dashed. It is clear that those who have chosen to stay away have left the field open to their opponents, which may achieve little else besides disappointing their committed voters. The JI is perhaps atoning for its sin of being a party to the 17th Amendment and now refuses to do anything that might be seen as approving Mr Musharraf’s tailor-made system yet again. Mr Imran Khan and the nationalists have no faith left in the current system because they believe the next parliament, like the outgoing one, will remain under the president’s thumb”. While the News (”Role reversal” 11th Dec) after Nawaz decision to take part in in election, describe the next parliament in these words” In this situation, a dilemma also arises for the ruling group and indeed for President Musharraf. A two-third majority in the new assembly is essential for the presidential camp, so that the necessary parliamentary stamp of approval can be given to post-November 3 decisions. The decision by the PML-N to take part in polls makes this task harder — at least if a free and fair election is organized”.

Some political parties are expressing their concerns about rigging in election and making threats to launch agitation after election. Dawn (”Rigging and agitation” 21st Dec) recollects the history of Pakistani politics and gives direction for future “The government lifted the emergency on Dec 15, leaving only three weeks for campaigning. The business class is, of course, very happy with the government. The people might have remained poor, but the economic benefits to Pakistan in the aftermath of 9/11 have gone mostly to the business class, which has prospered at the people’s expense. For that reason, this class has no reasons to fund an anti-Musharraf (read anti-American) agitation. In fact, quite a few tycoons are contesting the elections and will most probably make it to parliament because of their power to buy votes. If, therefore, some parties are planning a popular agitation after the Jan 8 vote, they had better read the situation carefully. As the events since March 9 have shown, the lawyers’ and journalists’ agitation has failed to evoke a popular response, and it is unlikely that the people will respond zealously to an anti-government stir the way they did in 1977″.

The earliest radio stations were essentially radiotelegraphy webs and did not carry audio. The first drafted do audio transmission that could be termed a advertise eventuated on Christmas Eve in 1906, and was drafted by Reginald Fessenden. While more early experimenters attempted to write webs interchangeable to radiotelephone tools where simply couple parties were meant to acquaintance, there were others any person who denoted to transmit to enlarged audiences. Charles Herrold started spreading in California in 1909 and was sustaining audio by the next year. (Herrold’s station lastly became KCBS.)
For the next decade, radio tinkerers had to build their have radio receivers. Dr. Frank Conrad started spreading from his Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania garage with the call letters KDKA. KDKA’s first commercial advertise was drafted from Saxonburg, Butler County, PA on November 2, 1920. Later, the gives was transferred to the seal of an office makeup in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and purchased by Westinghouse. KDKA of Pittsburgh, on the floor heading down Westinghouse’s tenure, started spreading as the first licensed “commercial” radio station on November 2, 1920.In The Hague, the Netherlands, PCGG started spreading seal to a year quicker, on November 6, 1919. The commercial selection came from the breeding of license; advertisements did not sky until years later. The first advertise was the results of the U.S. presidential election, 1920. The Montreal station that became CFCF started program assertions on May 20, 1920, and the Detroit station that became WWJ started program assertions innovation on August 20, 1920, even so neither held a license at the time.
Radio Argentina started usually scheduled transmissions from the Teatro Coliseo in Buenos Aires on August 27, 1920, producing its have priority claim. The station received its license on November 19, 1923. The hold back was due to the scarcity of official Argentine licensing techniques in the past that date. This station persisted regular spreading of entertainment and cultural fare for numerous decades.
When Internet-based radio became feasible in the mid-1990s, the novel medium wanted no licensing and stations could advertise from anywhere in the world without the deficits for through the sky transmitters. This greatly diminished the atop for placing a station, and in 1996, George Maat started ‘A’ Net Station (A.N.E.T.) on the floor heading down the now defunct administrators Advice-Net.com, and started spreading commercial-free from Antarctica.
MIT devised the “Radio Locator” List of Radio Stations. After stations started streaming audio on the Internet, Radio-Locator supplemental this to their track down spread so anyone could locate a station’s website and listen to a station offering a global stream. This items also tracks “terrestrial” radio stations any person who may not have survive audio on the net, or even a website, but are able to pinpoint station learning by various other track down queries
One of the gains of AM is that its unsophisticated indication can be detected (turned into sound) with basic equipment. If a indication is determined enough, not even a vitality lineage is needed; makeup an unpowered glass utensils radio receiver was a regular childhood endeavour in the early years of radio. Another gain to AM is that it includes a leaner bandwidth than FM.
AM assertions eventuate on North American airwaves in the medium wave frequency range of 530 to 1700 kHz (known as the “standard advertise band”). The waist band was enlarged in the 1990s by adding nine channels from 1620 to 1700 kHz. Channels are spaced every 10 kHz in the Americas, and commonly every 9 kHz everywhere else.
AM transmissions cannot be ionospherically brought higher during the day due to determined absorption in the D-layer of the ionosphere. In a crowded channel setting this process that the vitality of regional channels which detail a frequency must be diminished at night time or directionally beamed in lead to leaving interference, which diminishes the probable nighttime audience. Some stations have frequencies unshared with other stations in North America; these are summoned clear-channel stations. Many of them can be perceived across much of the countryside at night. (This is not to be confused with Clear Channel Communications, merely a brand call, which now owns more U.S. radio stations.) During the night time, this absorption largely departs and sanctions indications to tour to much further away placements by including ionospheric reflections. However, fading of the indication can be severe at night.
AM radio transmitters can transmit audio frequencies higher to 15 kHz (now limited to 10 kHz in the US due to FCC administers drafted to diminish interference), but bulk receivers are simply capable of reproducing frequencies higher to 5 kHz or less. At the time that AM spreading started in the 1920s, this bestowed passable fidelity for existing microphones, 78 rpm recordings, and loudspeakers. The fidelity of utterances gives subsequently transformed notably, but the receivers did not. Reducing the bandwidth of the receivers diminishes the cost of manufacturing and creates them more sick diagram prone to interference. AM stations are never divided alongside channels in the same service area. This prevents the sideband vitality produced by couple stations from interfering with each other. Bob Carver written an AM stereo tuner enlisting notch filtering that showed that an AM advertise can pinpoint or exceed the 15 kHz baseband bandwidth allocted to FM stations without objectionable interference. After numerous years, the tuner was discontinued. Bob Carver had fled the business and the Carver Corporation later cut the diagram of models effected in the past discontinuing demonstration completely. AM stereo assertions diminished with the advent of HD Radio.

In Customer Service, the outcome for the Customer and for the Company is in the hands of the professional Customer Service person. How well they perform in each contact with their Customers depends on a number of factors. Their training will have an impact, as will their knowledge, skills and motivation. One of the strongest influencer on their performance with the Customer will be their ATTITUDE.

If you are a Customer Service person, or are building a Team of Customer Service people, it is important that you work at developing the RIGHT attitude, values and beliefs. We all recognise someone with a bad attitude, someone who thinks Customers are stupid, or annoying, or someone who hates their job or their Company. These types of attitudes ensure that these Customer Service people are guaranteed to give their Customers a very bad experience.

Identifying the IDEAL Customer Service attitude is important, so that we can build this ideal attitude in ourselves and in our Teams. We call this attitude an Assertive Customer Focussed Attitude.

An Assertive Customer Service Team

In Customer Service, the ASSERTIVE zone is one of mutual respect, having a positive, respectful attitude to the Customer, the Company and to themselves.

This compares to –

Assertiveness in a Customer Service Team is that zone of quiet confidence and helpful competence that Customers will like and trust.

Identifying Positive Customer Focus

To identify the right Customer focus for ourselves or our Team, we again look at the place we do NOT want to be. We will compare 3 types of attitudes typical in Customer Service Teams –

1. Poor Customer Focus

Characteristics of someone with poor Customer focus are –

2. Overly Accommodating Focus

Characteristics of someone who is overly accommodating to  Customers are –

3. Positive Customer Focus – the ideal

Characteristics of someone who has the RIGHT Customer Focussed Attitude are –

This article will provide brief overview about definition, conceptual views as well as possible environmental actions related to the notion of business’s social responsibility. Example will be cited to highlight successful facilitation of a socially responsible business.With ever increasing concern on environmental hazards and issues related to various products and services, it is becoming an undeniable fact that a business should ensure its social responsibility to facilitate a societal sensitive corporate image. Koontz & Weihrich (1990) asserts that corporate social responsibility is nothing more than seriously considering the impact of company’s action on society. However a more comprehensive definition refers social responsibility with the degree to which a company recognizes what being a good community and global citizen means and acts accordingly (Slocum, 1995:17). It was further asserted that there are three basic conceptual views of social responsibility are generally acknowledged. First ‘traditional social responsibility’ is referred to the perception that by serving the interests of shareholders, organization is fulfilling its social responsibility. Second, ‘stakeholder social responsibility’ perceives that managers and employees have obligations towards identifiable group (stakeholders) that are affected by or can affect organizational efforts to achieve its goal. The difference here is replacement of group definition ‘shareholder’ with ‘stakeholder’ where latter covers broader range of members including shareholders, customers, competitors, government agencies, unions, employees, debt holders trade unions, suppliers and consumer groups. Third, ‘affirmative social responsibility’ initiates dimension broader that organizational stakeholders by arguing that business has obligations to avoid problems by anticipating changes in its environment, blending goals with both stakeholders as well as public and promoting their mutual interests (Papers4you.com, 2006).To fulfill environmental obligations, social audit is a tool corporate can adopt. Social audit is to identify, measure, evaluate and more importantly report on with continuous monitoring the effects of organization on society and is not manifested through financial statements (Weiss, 1994) . Organizations may carry various affirmative environmental policies to ensure the environmental issues relate dot different areas. For instance in area of accidents, open disclosure of accidents, usage of homogenized standards worldwide can be some options (Papers4you.com, 2006). Pollutions can be reduced by providing incentives internally as well as externally and green teams can also be evolved. Moreover wastes can be minimized through waste disposal services and taking back it from customers. Similarly environmentally safe substitutes can be used in product with minimum and safe packaging (Corbett & Wassenhove, 1993).Now considering these standards, example of Body Shop can be taken as most suitable case. Body Shop has developed its corporate image as provider of environmentally friendly and natural cosmetics (Slocum, 1995). It was further asserted that company sales and profits were ever rising however the business opposed animal testing, sell most products in reusable bottles with refilling services and always supported recycling process written on their packaging.So the discussion and example of Body Shop asserts that by fulfilling social responsibility, businesses can win society’s heart and remember customers are always associated with society.ReferencesCorbett. C, J, & Wassenhove, L, N, (1993),’The green Fee: Internalizing and operationalizing environmental issues’, California Management Review, Fall 1993, 116:135Koontz, H, & Weihrich, ‘ Essentials of Management’, Fifth Edition, New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing CompanyPapers For You (2006) “P/B/641. Theoretical issues of CSR”, Available from http://www.coursework4you.co.uk/sprtbus32.htm [22/06/2006]Papers For You (2006) “C/B/353. Literature Review on CSR”, Available from Papers4you.com [21/06/2006]Slocum, h & Hellriegel, D (1996), ‘Management’, Seventh Edition, Ohio: South-Western College Publishing

Tyrus L. Doctor & William Allan Kritsonis 

Introduction

 Nationwide school communities are faced with the extreme and gut wrenching task of successfully meeting state and federal accountability guidelines. Upon the passing of the No Child Left Behind Act, the onus of reaching these goals lies in the hands of district superintendents, principals, teachers and students.  This has put extreme pressure on superintendents and principals to ensure that their students perform at an exemplary level. 

An educator’s main goal shall be to provide students with the best education possible, while providing them with the skills needed to be successful in their future endeavors. In an effort to achieve students’ success and reach state and federal accountability standards, it is imperative that educators have a detailed plan to achieve these goals. To assume that these goals may be reached without Postmodernistic forethought and planning would prove to be catastrophic to the entire school community. Thus, it is the obligation of educational leaders to implement a “Postmodern” organizational plan that will assist in the success of our schools and, most of all, the success of our students.

 Purpose of the Article

 The purpose of this article is to express the significance of postmodernism using the six realms of meaning found in the Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning (2007) by Dr. William A. Kritsonis.  Upon reading The Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning, it becomes apparent that each of the Realms explained in this text may be applied to each postmodern educational entity.  Postmodernism will provide students with an educational experience comprised of strong academic skills, effective teachers and opportunities for growth.

  Symbolics in Instructional Management

 The postmodern principal of an effective school serves as an exceptional educational leader, who is a highly valuable and consistent communicator with parents, students, and staff. The ability for a principal to articulate well with each stakeholder is imperative for the overall success of the school. This type of postmodern leadership ability allows principals to develop relationships with students, parents, and staff in nontraditional ways, which Blankstein asserts by stating that “Relationships are at the core of successful learning communities (2004).  This postmodern notion unites the knower and the known, abolishes objectivity and subjectivity, and erases the line between fact and fiction leaders and followers (English, 2003).

Principals also provide opportunities for others to share in leadership roles in that the principal and staff must work collaboratively to articulate and stress the importance of learning, establishing high expectations for students, teachers, and principals (California Center).  Likewise, English validates such communication by asserting that “Such leadership [transformation] occurs when one or more persons engage with others in such a way that leaders and followers raise one another to higher levels of motivation and mortality” (2003, p. 42).  With educators under extreme scrutiny and higher accountability standards, the determination that every child will succeed could be a postmodern thought because while we recognize the enormity of this task, we also know it can be accomplished. There is not one person (Principal) who can handle this job alone. Thus, it is important for instructional leaders to develop postmodern leaders within their school. Developing these leaders will be beneficial to the success of the entire school community. One thing that superior school administrators have in common is that they “trust and have confidence in both the capabilities and the motivation of subordinates and believe that they want to accept responsibility and work hard” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 152). Blankstein concurs with this idea in stating that when you invest power in other people; it inevitably comes back to you (2004).

 Empirics in School Organizational Moral

 Bardwick’s question, “What is the business of our business?” (as cited in Blankstein, 2004, pg. 65). It is an important question that should be asked by any postmodern institution before addressing students’ needs.  Having a clear and focused mission is vital to student success. Without such a mission, one cannot know which direction to go to address the entire school community and its stakeholders.  English supports the importance of this business by stating that by “Moving into a postmodern view of theories of educational administration, the dominant scientific modality has to be decentered, pushed aside” (2003, p. 140).  The concept that “Mission and purpose give guidance to what people work toward on a daily and weekly basis” (Deal & Peterson, 1996, p. 12) serves to promote the notion of establishing a focus for all stakeholders.

The strategic plan must have a postmodern school mission that is clearly stated. It shall include postmodern campus level goals, expectations and standards.  It is important to have the school’s mission clearly stated, but we must also ensure that others are knowledgeable and understand the postmodern mission.

“The second realm empirics, includes the sciences of the physical world, of living things, and of man” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 12).  By implementing this postmodern realm, educational leaders will ensure that they provide each stakeholder with the information necessary for the implementation of their postmodern goals and mission. Kritsonis further states that “The essence of physical science is the discovery and formulation of general patterns among quantities derived from the process of physical measurement” (p. 178).  In establishing a clear and focused mission it is important that what is determined to be necessary  must be measurable.  To have a goal that cannot be measured would be irrelevant and unnecessary. Blankstein’s (2004) idea that effective missions are measurable and define learning coincides with Kritsonis’ statement that “Precise calculations depend on precise data” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 188). The ability to measure a school’s success and its mission depends on concise data; otherwise, your school and the success of your students will be catastrophically affected.

 Ethics in Safe School Environment

 In recent decades we have noticed an increase in the amount of instances of school violence: “Since the 1992-1993 school year, 270 violent deaths have occurred in schools within the nation. However the number of deaths in 1999-2000 was almost one quarter the number that occurred in 1992-1993 (Kelly, 2009). School violence has moved from just a couple of kids having a fist fight on the playground to one or more students armed with weapons killing teachers and fellow students. This has caused extreme concern and caution among school personnel. Educational leaders across the country are participating in postmodern mock drills, bus evacuation, and shelter in place, in an effort to prepare students and staff in the event that there is a threat on the school. Although it is important to have such drills, it is even more important to provide students with the skills needed to prevent possible violence. Educational leaders should be advocates for programs that implement Character Education or Conflict Resolution strategies. Skills developed through these programs provide students with the tools needed to handle conflict with the absence of violence.  This type of strategic plan works because, according to Kanigel (1997) “The concept of best practice, which is the equivalent of Taylor’s one best way, are both derived from empirical work of the match between methods and means and determined not by teachers (workers) but by experts (researchers)” (as cited in English, 2003, p. 65).

According to Kritsonis (2007), “The fifth realm, ethics, includes moral meanings that express obligation rather than fact, perceptual form, or awareness of relation” (p. 452). To implement programs such as Character Education and Conflict Resolution alone would not assist in the success of a schools safety. We must address the moral and ethical issues of our students. We must teach them to be empathetic and caring of others, as Kritsonis further states in saying that students must be able to relate with others and with oneself in acceptance and love, to act with deliberate responsibility, and to coordinate these meanings into an integrated vision and commitment (2007).

It is imperative that educational leaders of effective schools create a postmodern safe and orderly environment.  It is not a surprise that students who are in  a safe and conducive environment will be more successful both academically and socially. Incorporating each of these will in turn provide the type of school culture necessary for academic success.

 Synoptics in Student Management

 Many educators scream with conviction that “every child can learn” when among their educational counterparts. Do they, however, really believe that every child  can  learn?    Do they  have  these  same convictions  when in  their  own  home,  community, or classroom? Do they exhibit the mentality that every child can learn among their students, despite their diverse backgrounds whether low socio-economic, cultural or linguistically?

It is important as instructional leaders for us to ensure that students and staff members alike understand that their past circumstances do not have to dictate their future, which Kritsonis further supports in asserting that “The appropriate mode of discourse for history is the past tense” (2007, p. 41). Yes, every child can learn, and will learn under postmodern leadership.

“The sixth realm, synoptics, refers to meanings that are comprehensively integrative. This realm includes history, religion, and philosophy” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 484). The postmodern strategic plan will exhibit a climate of expectation in which the staff believes and demonstrates that all students can attain mastery of essential academic skills. This is a postmodern philosophy among effective schools.

The school climate will also be affected by the way administrators carry out their postmodern administrative duties. According to Kritsonis, “a primary role of school principals is to be a child advocate, manager, instructional leader, disciplinarian, human relations facilitator, educator, conflict manager, collective bargaining agent, staff developer, change agent or innovator, and community relations liaison” (Kritsonis, 2002, p. 252). To maintain a postmodern environment and climate that is conducive to learning, principals must not dismiss the importance of each of these roles. To neglect one of these primary roles will have a catastrophic affect on the school climate and effectiveness of the school.

In a postmodern school, you must continuously monitor students’ progress by utilizing different methods of assessment. The school’s ability to make improvement plans is directly tied to the quality of its data. Without clear, quantifiable information, leaders will find it very difficult to create focused improvement plans (Blankstein, 2004). Blankstein further asserts that the value of any instructional practice should be judged according to its results.

 Esthetics in Positive Community Relations

 “The third realm, esthetics, contains the various arts, such as music, the visual arts, the arts of movement, and literature. Meanings in this realm are concerned with the contemplative perceptions of particular significant things as unique objectifications of ideated subjectivities” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 275). Esthetics is based on one’s senses or feelings, which makes having a positive community relationship a postmodern essential to student success.  “Postmodernity does expand the idea of leadership to broader perspective than has usually been the case. But English suspect that it will be stoutly resisted as “irrational” or “subjective” (English, 2003, p.26).

Principals who have established Postmodern Relations will endure the benefits of such a partnership. They will notice and increase in student achievement and motivation and thus academic success. In an effective postmodern school, parents are provided with a clear understanding of the school’s mission and are provided with a strategic plan to support the mission. 

The age old proverb, “It takes a village to raise a child”, plays an intricate part in the education of our students. The education of our students is a shared responsibility and should be treated as such. Educators must not view children as simply students.  If educators view children in this way, “they are likely to see the family as separate from the school. That is, the family is expected to do its job and leave the education of children to the schools. If educators view students as children, they are likely to see both the family and the community as partners…” (Epstein, 2009, p. 20).  To establish this partnership would be to honor and acknowledge that we share common interests and goals.

 Synnoetics in Organizational Improvement

 In a highly effective school, postmodern teachers allocate an ample amount of time to relevant instruction.  This allows students to have an increase in their opportunities for learning because relevance make rigor possible for most.

Although direct instruction plays an essential role in the success of student learning experience, students’ motivation to complete the task assigned is as important.  Those who have taught know and understand that keeping a child motivated is not always an easy task. With an increase in environmental issues such as poverty, abuse, and domestic violence (to name a few) violating the lives of many of our youth, it is of no surprise that they are not always motivated.  It is our duty and obligation as educators, however, to ensure that we make every attempt to increase students’ motivation.

It is in the fourth realm that engagement is required. “The fourth realm, synnoetics, embraces what Michael Polanyi calls “ ‘personal knowledge’ ” and Martin Buber the “ ‘I-Thou’ ” relation” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 394).

   Concluding Remarks

 In conclusion, in an effort to increase student achievement and effectiveness of schools, the utilization of the six realms in relation with postmodern thinking will provide a framework that will assist in the achievement of those goals. Remarkably, the Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning (Kritsonis, 2007) may be applied to any aspect of education. 

It is the obligation of each educational leader to provide students with the tools needed to succeed; this may not be done on a whim. We must plan to reach our goals, thus we must have a postmodern strategic plan.  Blankstein states,

The research is abundantly clear: Nothing motivates a child more than when learning is valued by schools and family/community working together in partnership…These forms of involvement does not happen by accident or even by invitation. They happen by explicit strategic intervention. (2004, p.167)

REFERENCES

Association for Effective Schools (1996).  What is effective schools research? Retrieved July 9, 2009, from Association for Effective Schools Web site: http://www.mes.org/esr.html

Blankstein, A.M. (2004). Failure is not an option. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

California Center for Effective Schools (n.d.).  Effective schools.  Retrieved July 9, 2009, from Connections for Success Web site: http://effectiveschools.education.ucsb.edu/correlates.html

Deal, T. E., &  Peterson, K.D. (1999). Shaping school culture:  The heart of leadership. San Francisco, CA:  Jossey-Bass.

English, F.W. (2003). The postmodern challenge to the theory and practice of educational administration. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.

Epstein, J.L. et al. (2009). School, family and community partnerships. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Kelly, M. (2009). School violence. Retrieved July 9, 2009, from About: Secondary Education Web site:

http://712educators.about.com/cs/schoolviolence/a/schoolviolence.htm

Kritsonis, W.A. (2002). William Kritsonis, PhD on schooling. Mansfield, OH: BookMasters, Incorporated.

Kritsonis, W.A. (2007). Ways of knowing through the realms of meaning. Houston, TX: National FORUM Journals.

McEwan, E.A (2003). 10 traits of highly effective principals. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

National FORUM Journals have about a 15% acceptance rate

Tyrus L. Doctor & William Allan Kritsonis, PhD – Faculty Mentor 

Introduction

Nationwide school communities are faced with the extreme and gut wrenching task of successfully meeting state and federal accountability guidelines. Upon the passing of the No Child Left Behind Act, the onus of reaching these goals lies in the hands of district superintendents, principals, teachers and students.  This has put extreme pressure on superintendents and principals to ensure that their students perform at an exemplary level. 

An educator’s main goal shall be to provide students with the best education possible, while providing them with the skills needed to be successful in their future endeavors. In an effort to achieve students’ success and reach state and federal accountability standards, it is imperative that educators have a detailed plan to achieve these goals. To assume that these goals may be reached without Postmodernistic forethought and planning would prove to be catastrophic to the entire school community. Thus, it is the obligation of educational leaders to implement a “Postmodern” organizational plan that will assist in the success of our schools and, most of all, the success of our students.

Purpose of the Article

The purpose of this article is to express the significance of postmodernism using the six realms of meaning found in the Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning (2007) by Dr. William A. Kritsonis.  Upon reading The Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning, it becomes apparent that each of the Realms explained in this text may be applied to each postmodern educational entity.  Postmodernism will provide students with an educational experience comprised of strong academic skills, effective teachers and opportunities for growth.

Symbolics in Instructional Management

The postmodern principal of an effective school serves as an exceptional educational leader, who is a highly valuable and consistent communicator with parents, students, and staff. The ability for a principal to articulate well with each stakeholder is imperative for the overall success of the school. This type of postmodern leadership ability allows principals to develop relationships with students, parents, and staff in nontraditional ways, which Blankstein asserts by stating that “Relationships are at the core of successful learning communities (2004).  This postmodern notion unites the knower and the known, abolishes objectivity and subjectivity, and erases the line between fact and fiction leaders and followers (English, 2003).

pected of them or what they should take away from any conversations you may have. The use of ordinary language by educational leaders’ would assist in developing a clear line of communication. Communication between all stakeholders that is unambiguous and distinct is imperative to the success of the school.

Principals also provide opportunities for others to share in leadership roles in that the principal and staff must work collaboratively to articulate and stress the importance of learning, establishing high expectations for students, teachers, and principals (California Center).  Likewise, English validates such communication by asserting that “Such leadership [transformation] occurs when one or more persons engage with others in such a way that leaders and followers raise one another to higher levels of motivation and mortality” (2003, p. 42).  With educators under extreme scrutiny and higher accountability standards, the determination that every child will succeed could be a postmodern thought because while we recognize the enormity of this task, we also know it can be accomplished. There is not one person (Principal) who can handle this job alone. Thus, it is important for instructional leaders to develop postmodern leaders within their school. Developing these leaders will be beneficial to the success of the entire school community. One thing that superior school administrators have in common is that they “trust and have confidence in both the capabilities and the motivation of subordinates and believe that they want to accept responsibility and work hard” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 152). Blankstein concurs with this idea in stating that when you invest power in other people; it inevitably comes back to you (2004).

Empirics in School Organizational Moral

Bardwick’s question, “What is the business of our business?” (as cited in Blankstein, 2004, pg. 65). It is an important question that should be asked by any postmodern institution before addressing students’ needs.  Having a clear and focused mission is vital to student success. Without such a mission, one cannot know which direction to go to address the entire school community and its stakeholders.  English supports the importance of this business by stating that by “Moving into a postmodern view of theories of educational administration, the dominant scientific modality has to be decentered, pushed aside” (2003, p. 140).  The concept that “Mission and purpose give guidance to what people work toward on a daily and weekly basis” (Deal & Peterson, 1996, p. 12) serves to promote the notion of establishing a focus for all stakeholders.

The strategic plan must have a postmodern school mission that is clearly stated. It shall include postmodern campus level goals, expectations and standards.  It is important to have the school’s mission clearly stated, but we must also ensure that others are knowledgeable and understand the postmodern mission.

“The second realm empirics, includes the sciences of the physical world, of living things, and of man” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 12).  By implementing this postmodern realm, educational leaders will ensure that they provide each stakeholder with the information necessary for the implementation of their postmodern goals and mission. Kritsonis further states that “The essence of physical science is the discovery and formulation of general patterns among quantities derived from the process of physical measurement” (p. 178).  In establishing a clear and focused mission it is important that what is determined to be necessary  must be measurable.  To have a goal that  can

not be measured would be irrelevant and unnecessary. Blankstein’s (2004) idea that effective missions are measurable and define learning coincides with Kritsonis’ statement that “Precise calculations depend on precise data” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 188). The ability to measure a school’s success and its mission depends on concise data; otherwise, your school and the success of your students will be catastrophically affected.

Ethics in Safe School Environment

In recent decades we have noticed an increase in the amount of instances of school violence: “Since the 1992-1993 school year, 270 violent deaths have occurred in schools within the nation. However the number of deaths in 1999-2000 was almost one quarter the number that occurred in 1992-1993 (Kelly, 2009). School violence has moved from just a couple of kids having a fist fight on the playground to one or more students armed with weapons killing teachers and fellow students. This has caused extreme concern and caution among school personnel. Educational leaders across the country are participating in postmodern mock drills, bus evacuation, and shelter in place, in an effort to prepare students and staff in the event that there is a threat on the school. Although it is important to have such drills, it is even more important to provide students with the skills needed to prevent possible violence. Educational leaders should be advocates for programs that implement Character Education or Conflict Resolution strategies. Skills developed through these programs provide students with the tools needed to handle conflict with the absence of violence.  This type of strategic plan works because, according to Kanigel (1997) “The concept of best practice, which is the equivalent of Taylor’s one best way, are both derived from empirical work of the match between methods and means and determined not by teachers (workers) but by experts (researchers)” (as cited in English, 2003, p. 65).

According to Kritsonis (2007), “The fifth realm, ethics, includes moral meanings that express obligation rather than fact, perceptual form, or awareness of relation” (p. 452). To implement programs such as Character Education and Conflict Resolution alone would not assist in the success of a schools safety. We must address the moral and ethical issues of our students. We must teach them to be empathetic and caring of others, as Kritsonis further states in saying that students must be able to relate with others and with oneself in acceptance and love, to act with deliberate responsibility, and to coordinate these meanings into an integrated vision and commitment (2007).

It is imperative that educational leaders of effective schools create a postmodern safe and orderly environment.  It is not a surprise that students who are in  a safe and conducive environment will be more successful both academically and socially. Incorporating each of these will in turn provide the type of school culture necessary for academic success.

Synoptics in Student Management

community, or classroom? Do they exhibit the mentality that every child can learn among their students, despite their diverse backgrounds whether low socio-economic, cultural or linguistically?

It is important as instructional leaders for us to ensure that students and staff members alike understand that their past circumstances do not have to dictate their future, which Kritsonis further supports in asserting that “The appropriate mode of discourse for history is the past tense” (2007, p. 41). Yes, every child can learn, and will learn under postmodern leadership.

“The sixth realm, synoptics, refers to meanings that are comprehensively integrative. This realm includes history, religion, and philosophy” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 484). The postmodern strategic plan will exhibit a climate of expectation in which the staff believes and demonstrates that all students can attain mastery of essential academic skills. This is a postmodern philosophy among effective schools.

The school climate will also be affected by the way administrators carry out their postmodern administrative duties. According to Kritsonis, “a primary role of school principals is to be a child advocate, manager, instructional leader, disciplinarian, human relations facilitator, educator, conflict manager, collective bargaining agent, staff developer, change agent or innovator, and community relations liaison” (Kritsonis, 2002, p. 252). To maintain a postmodern environment and climate that is conducive to learning, principals must not dismiss the importance of each of these roles. To neglect one of these primary roles will have a catastrophic affect on the school climate and effectiveness of the school.

In a postmodern school, you must continuously monitor students’ progress by utilizing different methods of assessment. The school’s ability to make improvement plans is directly tied to the quality of its data. Without clear, quantifiable information, leaders will find it very difficult to create focused improvement plans (Blankstein, 2004). Blankstein further asserts that the value of any instructional practice should be judged according to its results.

the development, continuance, or termination of programs or strategies that are used within a school. 

Esthetics in Positive Community Relations

“The third realm, esthetics, contains the various arts, such as music, the visual arts, the arts of movement, and literature. Meanings in this realm are concerned with the contemplative perceptions of particular significant things as unique objectifications of ideated subjectivities” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 275). Esthetics is based on one’s senses or feelings, which makes having a positive community relationship a postmodern essential to student success.  “Postmodernity does expand the idea of leadership to broader perspective than has usually been the case. But English suspect that it will be stoutly resisted as “irrational” or “subjective” (English, 2003, p.26).

Principals who have established Postmodern Relations will endure the benefits of such a partnership. They will notice and increase in student achievement and motivation and thus academic success. In an effective postmodern school, parents are provided with a clear understanding of the school’s mission and are provided with a strategic plan to support the mission. 

The age old proverb, “It takes a village to raise a child”, plays an intricate part in the education of our students. The education of our students is a shared responsibility and should be treated as such. Educators must not view children as simply students.  If educators view children in this way, “they are likely to see the family as separate from the school. That is, the family is expected to do its job and leave the education of children to the schools. If educators view students as children, they are likely to see both the family and the community as partners…” (Epstein, 2009, p. 20).  To establish this partnership would be to honor and acknowledge that we share common interests and goals.

Synnoetics in Organizational Improvement

In a highly effective school, postmodern teachers allocate an ample amount of time to relevant instruction.  This allows students to have an increase in their opportunities for learning because relevance make rigor possible for most.

Although direct instruction plays an essential role in the success of student learning experience, students’ motivation to complete the task assigned is as important.  Those who have taught know and understand that keeping a child motivated is not always an easy task. With an increase in environmental issues such as poverty, abuse, and domestic violence (to name a few) violating the lives of many of our youth, it is of no surprise that they are not always motivated.  It is our duty and obligation as educators, however, to ensure that we make every attempt to increase students’ motivation.

It is in the fourth realm that engagement is required. “The fourth realm, synnoetics, embraces what Michael Polanyi calls “ ‘personal knowledge’ ” and Martin Buber the “ ‘I-Thou’ ” relation” (Kritsonis, 2007, p. 394).

Concluding Remarks

In conclusion, in an effort to increase student achievement and effectiveness of schools, the utilization of the six realms in relation with postmodern thinking will provide a framework that will assist in the achievement of those goals. Remarkably, the Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning (Kritsonis, 2007) may be applied to any aspect of education. 

It is the obligation of each educational leader to provide students with the tools needed to succeed; this may not be done on a whim. We must plan to reach our goals, thus we must have a postmodern strategic plan.  Blankstein states,

The research is abundantly clear: Nothing motivates a child more than when learning is valued by schools and family/community working together in partnership…These forms of involvement does not happen by accident or even by invitation. They happen by explicit strategic intervention. (2004, p.167)

REFERENCES

Association for Effective Schools (1996).  What is effective schools research? Retrieved July 9, 2009, from Association for Effective Schools Web site: http://www.mes.org/esr.html

Blankstein, A.M. (2004). Failure is not an option. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

California Center for Effective Schools (n.d.).  Effective schools.  Retrieved July 9, 2009, from Connections for Success Web site: http://effectiveschools.education.ucsb.edu/correlates.html

Deal, T. E., &  Peterson, K.D. (1999). Shaping school culture:  The heart of leadership. San Francisco, CA:  Jossey-Bass.

English, F.W. (2003). The postmodern challenge to the theory and practice of educational administration. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.

Epstein, J.L. et al. (2009). School, family and community partnerships. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Kelly, M. (2009). School violence. Retrieved July 9, 2009, from About: Secondary Education Web site:

http://712educators.about.com/cs/schoolviolence/a/schoolviolence.htm

Kritsonis, W.A. (2002). William Kritsonis, PhD on schooling. Mansfield, OH: BookMasters, Incorporated.

Kritsonis, W.A. (2007). Ways of knowing through the realms of meaning. Houston, TX: National FORUM Journals.

McEwan, E.A (2003). 10 traits of highly effective principals. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

One of the toughest jobs in today’s world is being a single mother. And a lot of people can assert to the fact that being a single mother is definitely not easy. And to try to juggle being a single mother and wanting to go back to school can be a tough task.

This doesn’t always have to be a tough task if you know what to do. There are three things you need to understand if you want to make your dreams a reality.

The three things you must do are:

The last thing you want to do is to realize that you lost a great opportunity because you were procrastinating. Procrastination will get you nowhere in life but staying assertive and on top of things will. To get to the point where you want to take your education to the next level shows that you are already very assertive.

Next most important thing to understand is to follow the general deadline dates. Submit your required information before the deadline and not on the day of the deadline. It is much better to get things done early and not at the last-minute. In life things happen, accidents happen and emergencies happen.

The next single most important thing you need to understand is to stay positive. Sure there will be women just like you out there wanting the same thing, but you should stay positive throughout this entire process in order to keep your head on right track. There are a multitude of scholarship offers given out on a regular basis, who knows you just might be the next one.