DNA, mRNA, and Protein Essay Example for Free

DNA, mRNA, and Protein Essay Complete the two questions below. Each question has four parts. This assignment is two pages long. Question 1: For the following double-stranded DNA sequence, -CATTGACCGTAA- -GTAACTGGCATT- Answer the following questions: a) Assume that RNA polymerase will read the top strand of DNA as the â€Å"template† to synthesize mRNA. What will be the sequence of the mRNA synthesized? (3 points) The new mrna sequence will be GUAACUGGCAUU b) Based upon the mRNA sequence above, what is the peptide sequence? (4 points) The peptide swquence will be GUA-ACU-GGC-AUU If there was a mutation in the DNA sequence above resulting in the following DNA sequence, -GATTGACCGTAA- -CTAACTGGCATT- c) What would be the resulting mRNA, assuming RNA polymerase will use the DNA sequence, -GATTGACCGTAA- ? (4 points) Thw new mena sequence will be CUAACUGGCAUU d) Based upon the mRNA sequence above, what is the peptide sequence? (4 points) The peptide sequence will be CUA-ACU-GGC-AUU which will translate to Leu-Thr-Gly-lle Question 2: For the following DNA sequence, -CCCTTAGATGGA- -GGGAATCTACCT- Answer the following questions: a) Assume that RNA polymerase will read the top strand of DNA as the â€Å"template† to synthesize mRNA. What will be the sequence of the mRNA synthesized? (3 points) GGGAAUCUACCU b) Based upon the mRNA sequence above, what is the peptide sequence? (4 points) GGG-AAU-CUA-CCU which will translate to alanine-asparagine-leucine-proline If there was a mutation in the DNA sequence above resulting in the following DNA sequence, -CTCTTAGATGGA- -GAGAATCTACCT- c) What would be the resulting mRNA, assuming RNA polymerase will use the DNA sequence, CTCTTAGATGGA ? (4 points) GAGAAUCUACCU d) Based upon the mRNA sequence above, what is the peptide sequence? (4 points) GAG-AAU-CUA-CCU which translates to glutamate-asparagine-leucine-proline.

Performance Measurement System Of Tm Berhad

Performance Measurement System Of Tm Berhad Performance measurement system is defined as a set of measurable criteria and methodology to enable performance to be measured objectively. It comprises of financial and non-financial manners to establish and monitor the progress of organization towards its vision. In the past, organization used the financial measures to assess the performance of senior managements while non-financial measures were used to evaluate the performance of lower level of management. It is inappropriate to use the financial measure to examine the outcomes and not well-suited for predicting future prospect as the outcomes are the consequences of past performance. Thus, performance measurement systems were developed to merge the financial and non-financial measures at all level of the organization in order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the management. The best known performance measurement framework is balanced scorecard introduced by Kaplan and Norton in early 1990s. The balanced scorecard approach retained measures of financial performance on past performance and supplemented them with the assessment on the strategic planning in order to drive the organization towards its vision. It maps an organizations strategic objectives into performance metrics in four perspectives: financial, internal processes, customers, and learning and growth. The term balanced signifies that the system is balanced between internal measures of business processes, innovation and learning and growth and external performance perspectives measures for customers and shareholders. It is then followed by the term scorecard which signifies quantified performance measures. In a nutshell, balanced scorecard contains four main processes. The process of balanced scorecard is begin with clarify and translate the organizations vision into strategy. Then, the strategic management will communicate and link strategic objectives and measures. Next process is planning, setting targets and aligning strategic initiatives. Lastly, balanced scorecard enhances strategic feedback and learning. Organization quantifies its current performance to identify where it is on its strategic capability building journey and predict possible changing business environment in future. This information provides relevant feedback as to how well the strategic plan is executing so that adjustments can be made as necessary. This article is primarily discussed on the growing importance of balanced scorecard performance systems and exploring the issues faced by the organization in building and implementing balance scorecard systems. b. Challenges in Performance Measurement System The used of balanced scorecard is very helpful in monitoring the management of the organization but it is very challenging as the implementation is very costly. It requires some cost in setting up this system such as software licenses expense and installation cost. This will results in large sum of money being expense before profit is generated. Besides, the needs of expertise to implement a comprehensive and proper system will consequently increases the cost of management as well. Different business unit using the different balanced scorecard measures to achieve its goal. In general, balanced scorecard consists of two types of measure. There are common measure (measures across all subsidiaries or units) and unique measure (measure each business unit). The use of unique measures in order to carry out the system is tough because unique measures are significant in capturing the units business strategy. If the manager does not actively participating in evaluating one units performance, thus significance of the unique measures may not be appreciated. The four perspectives in a well-designed balanced scorecard form a chain of cause-and-effect relationships that determine the effectiveness of the strategy implementation. Proper implementation will results in excellent performance. However, it is not easy to identify and establish the cause and effect relationship. Inappropriate measure will result in negative outcomes. Managers realize and understand that there are strong linkages between customer satisfactions, employees satisfactions, financial performance, internal business process and companys learning and growth activities. Nevertheless, the balanced scorecard system does not provide the detail guidelines on to how to improve performance to achieve organizations goals. In addition, balanced scorecard system need to be updated constantly. This update is useful as it requires repositioning with changing of strategies or company structure in order to keep in pace with the complex business environment. However, constant updating of balance scorecard may be tedious and time consuming. Lastly, lack of integration and communication of the objectives of the organization at difference level of management would cause the lower level of employees cant see the big picture of the system. Implementation of the balanced scorecard requires commitment from all management levels, especially companys top organizational structure. Most of them refuse to coordinate in the system because they may view the system as a threat that implies they have underperformed in the past. c. Advantages of Performance Measurement System First of all, balance scorecard is very reliable as it clearly defines financial and nonfinancial information to all parts of the organization. The traditional financial statements has failed to confine accurately the type of measurements those companies need around a profit sector. This is proven when all the intangible assets such as quality of services and skilful employees do not show on balance sheet compared with the balance scorecard that shows all those intangible assets in the balance sheet. The value of a company will be invisible to the workers, shareholders, customers and the society due to the unwritten intangible assets in the balance sheet. Secondly, balanced scorecard is useful in evaluating and planning for long-term strategy. In a traditional method, organizations only focus on short-term financial measures while balanced scorecard include customer, internal processes and the growth in societys needs. It is useful in a longer term strategic dimension as managers can measure performance in building key capabilities and examining on the overall strategic workability. Thirdly, balance scorecard enhances strategic feedback and learning. In this process of monitoring the system, the management evaluates the present performance of the company, how the strategies are going on in the company and identify the potential changes in the unpredictable surroundings. This information is useful for the purpose of decision making to ensure the organization is achieving towards its goal. Fourthly, balanced scorecard could be used as a measure of employees reward performance. When the individual exceeds the particular threshold levels, they will be rewarded for the excellent financial performance. It is proven that balanced scorecard makes some improvements if compared with the past performance measurements systems that did not often measure the employees performance which link to corporate strategy. Lastly, the balanced scorecard attempts to evaluate both the internal and external aspects of the organization. It is important to focus on the customers views and the contacts that have been established in the market-place on order to build long-term relationship with the potential customers. The learning and growth perspective encourage creativity and advance in information system in order to response quickly to the rapid changing in the global market. d. Central issue of the articles The first issue is the implementation of balanced scorecard in an organization. Each company should have its own version of the scorecard as different companies require different measurements, which are essential in achieving the company strategy. The most commonly used measurement categories are financial goals, customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, productivity, and growth and innovation. A well-defined balanced scorecard should result in improved internal management system, greater customers satisfaction, educated employees and increased in financial usage. Identification, definition and integration of organizations capabilities with its objectives in all levels of the organization from top to down are essential to sustain long-term superior return in the competitive environment. Interaction within the organization is important to avoid optimizing the results of one business unit at the expense of others. In this stage of planning, setting targets and aligning strategic in itiatives, management will set ambitious but achievable targets for each perspective and initiatives are developed to align efforts to reach the targets. Lastly, the executives receive feedback on whether the strategy implementation is proceeding according to plan and evaluate whether the strategy itself is successful or control and corrective action is necessary to reflect real time learning. These four functions have made the Balanced Scorecard an effective management system for the implementation of short-term and long-term strategic planning. Besides, the four perspectives in the balanced scorecard are inter-dependent. It is not just a balance of measures in essential areas of the business, but also a balance of goals versus accountability. The reluctant of the people in the organization to accept accountability for achievement of the balanced measures and goals of the balanced scorecard will result in failure in balanced scorecard system. In the case study of Big W, has not only built competencies into each step of its performance management system but has now incorporated competencies in all position descriptions for store managers and buyers to extend their experience in areas other than that in which they are presently employed. Therefore, the human capital of the organization is the key to the success of the balanced scorecard system. The second issue is balanced scorecard will evolve as the culture change. Once the balanced scorecard is developed, it should immediately implement into the organizational system. It assists to link groups and individuals to the strategy by understanding the linkage of cause-and-effect relationship. This linkage enables them to understand the overall performance of the organization. For example, advanced in information system will leads to efficiency in information management and eventually save the cost of handling bulky information. Thus, the organizational culture is a one of the key factors of success or failure of implementation of balanced scorecard. Besides, organizational culture has also interceded entity learning. Entity learning is a driving force behind the successful implementation of balanced scorecard. The article mentions that there must be an understanding, commitment and support from the top levels of the company down to the lowest ranks. If there is any change in culture in any level of the organization, balanced scorecard performance will be affected. Therefore, new approach, new tings and new goals have to be developed and be adopted to make the balanced scorecard more balanced and effective. Management need to be alert with the changes in organization culture so that balanced scorecard system is designed in accordance with the culture. The next issue is customers play a significant role in determining the prospect of an organization. The customer perspectives in the balanced scorecard measure on how should the organization present itself to its customers in order to achieve its vision. The four perspectives that introduced by the balanced scorecard are useful to evaluate the overall performance of the business. In conjunction with this, customers are able to see the time dimension of the business that going from the bottom to top and the profitability of the past, present and future. Moreover, balanced scorecard includes the measurement of customers perspective aim to increase customer satisfaction to ensure the ultimate wants of customers are fulfilled. Thus, the objective of the organization must be always being designed according to the current market demand. Conclusion As we embark on the twenty-first century, managers are challenged by sweeping changes in the global arena. The implementation of balanced scorecard is essential to assists in the execution of corporate strategy in order to sustain in the competitive environment. Balanced scorecard encourages employees to act in accordance with desired goals of the company by reward them accordingly to their performance. Management has to be aware of the potential limitations of balanced scorecard and overcome the problems by designing the system that well-suited the organization. In a nutshell, balanced scorecard should be tailored for each part of the organization driven by the objective of the organization to make the balanced scorecard even more balanced and effective in supporting a living, growing, feasible organization in the competitive environment. 2. a. Introduction Telekom Malaysia is the largest integrated communications solutions provider in Malaysia and one of Asias leading Communications companies. Telekom Malaysia has officially changed its global brand from Telekom Malaysia to TM in 2005. The vision is to become Malaysias leading new generation communications by providing customers with innovative and excellent service environment. TM has a monopoly on the fixed line network, data, mobile, internet and multimedia. It combines satellite, terrestrial and submarine fibred-optic cable systems to facilitate the regional and international telecommunications. TMs core businesses are focused in Retail, Wholesale and Global Business. Besides, TM acquired Celcom and TMTouch to raise industry standards, provided product and service benchmarks in the country. Apart from that, TM Net is now the sole DSL broadband provider in the country. It offers a comprehensive range of services and solutions in broadband, data and fixed line. In addition, TMs investment philosophy is to play an active role in its international operations as well as to provide opportunities for wealth creation among the local population for social welfares purposes. b. Discussion of the Performance Measurement System used in the company. TM is using BSC to translate their visions and companys strategies into a set of measureable objectives that can be interpreted into some meaningful form as a check list to monitor the performance of the company. Basically, the BSC used by TM is an e-BSC where it uses an online system called MAPS (appendix) to allow employees to key in their performance according to different areas concerned in the scorecard and monitor by each division managers. The main concern of financial perspective will be to grow revenue profitably and to manage cost effectively, customer perspective is to delight the customers while creating the synergy with partners, internal business process is on execution of projects and plans on whether they are done effectively and the organizational learning and growth is to boost human capital execution capacity. The implementation of BSC in TM consists of three stages, which are business planning, performance cycle and then finally lead to a performance-based rewards system. In business planning, BSC and individual Key Performance Indicator (KPI) are developed in this stage where the KPI is used to measure the key performance in a specific division of the company. BSC is developed through a process of six steps which include: Firstly is to understand and develop the business strategic direction of TM and for example the vision of TM is to be Malaysias leading new generation communications provider, embracing customer needs through innovation and execution excellence and the mission is to strive towards customer service excellence, enrich consumer lifestyle and experience, deliver value to stakeholders and improve the performance of our business customers. From these two statements it is clear that TM is stressing highly on customers satisfaction and so its direction is clearly stated in its vision and mission statement (TM Annual Report, 2008). Next is to decompose those TMs visions and missions into smaller components called objectives that can drive the performance and measurable. With those components, TM Group top management now will be able to create a strategy map using cause-effect linkages for example, how an objective is dependent on another objective. A strategy map (appendix) is important in BSC as it is the fundamental part of it to achieve towards the objectives of the company and drive it towards the vision. In step 5 is to develop KPI (appendix) to measure and target to track strategic and operational progress of the company to see if it has achieved the desired outcomes of the objectives. Lastly is to identify the key strategic initiatives as a way to ensure the achievement of strategic objectives for example funding of resource and implementation mechanisms. In MAPS System, an individual employee will log into the system and key in their personal information and then the division scorecard will be displayed. This is the part where employees are required to submit their performance into the online system MAPS for the company to track their performance into a KPI template (appendix) provided in the system. Then, employees are required to choose the areas that are relevant to his/her field for each perspective. In the individual scorecard, the employee has to key in the target that is challenging but achievable. In performance cycle phase, he/she will then be required to key in the actual result and comment on the target. This performance scorecard will then linked to the reward system to reward the employees accordingly. c. Issues, Challenges and Advantages of BSC Issues The e-BSC used by TM is emphasizing a lot on the performance of its employees driving towards the vision and missions of the company which are mainly customers satisfaction and growth of the business. The biggest issue of BSC in TM is that it emphasizes too much on the internal business and performance rather than the quality of services provided to the customers. Each of the perspective emphasized by the BSC is not really focusing on the quality services. This is very important particularly for a service company like TM who provides telecommunication services to the public. For example does BSC implement by TM actually concern on the quality of its networks for the broadband services of TM Net, a division of TM? Measuring the quality of the services of TMs products is significantly important to be able to achieve the objectives of the company. Challenges A challenge faced by the BSC is where it could not answer some of the important question that a telecommunication company needs to know. For example, a manager can developed a set of measures for the scorecard, but it can never answer the question of what the competitors are doing out there (Andy Neely, 1995). This means that BSC has missed out one of the most important perspective which is the competitor perspective. In Malaysia, telecommunication industry is very competitive and TM is no longer the monopoly in the industry since the presence of other telecommunication companies such as Maxis and Digi. Thus, TM might risk itself if depend solely on the scorecard of not knowing what is happening with other competitors and might lose their market shares to them due to this reason. Advantages The BSC of TM has successfully provide a complete measurement on the four perspective which comprises of financial, customers, internal business control and organization and learning growth. Through the implementation using MAPS system, BSC in TM is done over the online system and electronically (e-BSC). The MAPS system provides a good way for the employees to set their own target, track their performance and finally evaluate their performance and give comments on whether is it hard to achieve the target. This is an advantage to TM as the managers from each division will be able to get direct feedback from the employees on their performance and able to report them to the top management to evaluate further on what can be done to improve and identify problems. This also enables long-term organizational learning at the same time to achieve continuous improvement on performance of the company. d. Recommendation Since the issue faced by TM is the quality of service, Total Quality Management (TQM) is able complement the shortcoming of BSC. A quality service is vital for a telecommunication company especially in such a competitive market in Malaysia. TQM is a type of performance system that is used as a long-term measure to reduce errors in a service or manufacturing process and focusing on customers satisfaction by ensuring workers have the highest level of training and modernization of equipment and limit errors to 1 per 1 million units produced. ISO 9000, the international standard defined that TQM as a management approach of an organization that centered on quality with participation of all members aiming at long term success through customers satisfaction and benefits to the members of the organization and society (Subburaj, 2005). TQM definitely benefits TM in many ways. It can apply this to the engineering of its telecommunication networks such as its fixed line division, cellular services division as well as the broadband division to improve the quality of services. Say for example, an uninterrupted broadband service for the customers that only allows 0.0001% of down time, same applies to the cellular networks and fixed line services. This definitely provides benefits and robust solutions to the company to enhance customers satisfactions on quality services. To achieve the TQM, TM must always from time to time send its engineers and other employees for training and make sure that they are experts in their field. Also, TM must spend more resources on its RD division, known as TMRND, to provide the latest equipment for the engineers to ensure that they have the best equipment to maintain the network to provide uninterrupted services. This is a long-term implementation for TM and it requires continuous improvement over time not only by the top management but also all the members of the organization working together. Also, TM will be benefited in the long run and enhanced its branding through attaining the TQM certification of ISO 9000. Conclusion In order for TM to remain dynamic in the globalization market, should always review its performance measurement system and constantly seek for improvement to better achieve its objectives and remain competitive. Performing well financially, increase in customers satisfaction, constantly improving the internal business process and improve in organizational learning and growth are equally important and TM has been doing well with its e-BSC and MAPS system. TM is also an innovative player in introducing new products and services such as the latest on the news, Unifi, a fiber optic solution for home and business which provide 5 to 20 Mbps of internet speed to the consumers and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) (TheStar Online, 2010). However, innovative products and services are nothing if the service quality is not good enough. Now is the time for TM to embark on a new challenge in providing quality service through the implementation of TQM in its organization to achieve long-term success and customers satisfaction.

Youth Empowerment Scheme for Poverty Reduction

Youth Empowerment Scheme for Poverty Reduction The depiction of Nigeria as a paradox by the World Bank (1996) cannot be faulted. The paradox is that the level of poverty is a contradiction of the countrys enormous wealth. Nigeria is immensely endowed with human, oil, gas, agricultural, and untapped mineral resources, just to mention but a few. Unfortunately, despite these endowments, the country remains one of the poorest in the world. In its 2000 Human Development Report, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) placed Nigeria among the 30 least developed countries (LCDs) of the world (UNDP, 2000). Although poverty is rampant in Nigeria, it is more prevalent in certain areas; and with a much more devastating dimension in rural communities. One of these areas is the Niger Delta region, which is the mainstay of the Nigerian economy because of its significantly high level of oil reserves. The region has vast oil reserves but remains poor, underdeveloped and torn apart with conflict (Eweje, 2007). Amnesty International (2005) confirmed that the Niger Delta remain among the most deprived oil communities in the world with 70 per cent living on less than US$1 a day, which is the standard economic measure of absolute poverty. Decades of political and economic marginalization that resulted from the neglect of the Niger Delta region by successive Nigerian governments, and the initial hesitation of multinational companies (MNCs) to attend to their social responsibility and contribute to social development, enshrined poverty in the region (Idemudia, 2007). According to Orogun (2009), the many years of oil production has benefited the federal, state, and local governments as well as the multinational oil companies, yet this huge profit has yet to improve the deplorable human condition, misery index of the indigenous inhabitants; nor has it fostered sustainable economic development in the oil producing communities. Sequel to this, the youth of the region have incessantly expressed their grievances by attacking deployed law enforcement and security agents, vandalizing oil installations, kidnapping and taking foreign oil workers hostage, bearing arms against the state, and forming militia groups in order to draw governments and multinationals attention to their plight. Globally, there have been growing demands on MNCs to provide community development programmes and assistance to their host communities, especially in developing countries in other words, meeting locally defined social and economic goals. This is primarily because developmental projects and other social infrastructures are lacking in most of these countries; and most of the time they are not provided by the state. Multinational corporations, as Etheredge (1999) believes, have an obligation to act as responsible members of the societies which grant them legal standing. He goes on to say that MNCs good corporate conduct does not only imply responsibilities that are only within the bounds of minimum legal requirements but also social responsibilities that are both acceptable and beneficial to various social constituencies that surround business enterprises. In developing countries, MNCs are expected to provide some social services and welfare programmes in addition to their normal economic activities. Although these are not the functions of businesses in economic terms; but in the developing countries, as Eweje (2006) stresses, these roles are expected from MNCs as an expression of demonstrating corporate social responsibility (CSR). Elucidating this view, Wasserstrom and Reider (1998) maintain that oil and gas companies in Asia, Latin America and Africa, for instance, are facing demands from the local community to provide education and healthcare programmes. They continued, saying that, these programmes are not give-aways, but involve training and working with community members to allow them to plan for meeting their own needs in the future. Wasserstrom and Reider (1998) further noted that by establishing such programs and working with the demands of the community, firms find less resistance to their operations, not only from the local community but from environmental and human rights special interest groups as well. Against this background, the Multinational oil companies in the Niger Delta have demonstrated commitments to the reduction of poverty through their respective community development initiatives. The study, therefore, evaluates the youth development strategies of Shell (normally called Shell Petroleum Development Company SPDC) in the Niger Delta. From the foregoing, it suffices that MNCs have a role in development not only through capital investment but more importantly by investing in human capital and providing local people with the tools to drive their own economic development (Nelson, 1996). Statement of the problem The high incidence of poverty in the Niger Delta is in sharp contrast to the regions critical importance to the Nigerian economy. The Niger Delta oil contributes enormously to the well-being of the Nigerian state, which depends on the oil industry for approximately 95% of export earnings and 80% of government revenue (SPDC, 2009); yet the poverty level in the region is higher than the national average (Clark et al., 1999; NDDC, 2004). Zandvliet and Pedro (2002) illustrated the picture of the region in the following words: About 70 per cent of the community lack access to clean water, has no passable roads or electricity supply, a shortage of medical facilities, a large number of dilapidated schools and suffers from severe environmental degradation due to oil production. After over 40 years of oil exploration and hundreds of billions of dollars of oil revenue, the oil producing communities have received little attention from successive administrations, particularly in the areas of socio-economic and infrastructural development. The cumulative circumstances have led to perceived alienation, and the result of which is the frequent social disorder as the only means by which attention could be drawn to them. Obi (2008) states the following as being responsible for the regions agitations: Oil pollution, extreme poverty, high levels of youth unemployment, pollution, perceived discriminatory employment practices against locals by oil companies and socioà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ economic and political marginalization and neglect by successive administrations constitute the main grievances against the oil companies and the government. The prevalence of poverty is very high in the Niger Delta, with over 70% living on less than a dollar per day in the rural areas. This soaring incidence of poverty is in sharp contrast to the regions position as the treasure base of the nation. This, notwithstanding, it is a political culture of governments at all levels in Nigeria and the elites to lay blame on the multinational corporations for the poverty situation in the region. Such culture of blame goes further in inciting the community members into believing that the MNCs are the architects of the regions poverty, and believing that the companies are massively exploiting them, but giving too little or nothing in return to them in form of development. Consequently this has occasioned persistent community protests, agitations and conflicts. The widespread poverty afflicting the people of the region has led to a condition of despair and the recourse to violence against the state and multinationals by the youth. The youths resentment stems from the regions loss of their traditional means of livelihood which are farming and fishing, caused by the activities of the oil companies, such as environmental degradation, oil spillage and gas flaring. Similarly, faced with massive unemployment and a bleak future due to absence of both government and private employment, the youth, which constitute a larger proportion of the region, have persistently expressed their frustration through hostage taking, arson directed at oil installations and attacks on the Nigerian state. Although successive Nigerian governments at different times have put up a lot of poverty alleviation programmes, yet all attempts to put the Niger Delta on course of development have been unproductive. Among the ills that hamper the development of the region are corruption and bad governance. For instance, while the institutions of the state at all levels (federal, state and local governments) are very corrupt, making it difficult for budgeted funds to trickle down to the target population; politics on the other hand is used to promote individual and sectional interests, as against the pursuit of public good. Therefore, due to this lack of significant government commitment to the development of the region, poverty has remained a pervasive problem in the Niger Delta. Hence, conditions have continued to worsen and poverty has become a major issue in the region in spite of her rich resource base. This failure to provide the developmental needs of the communities has led to the reliance by the region on the multinational oil companies to step in and fill this wide development gap. Accordingly, MNCs in the Niger Delta have responded to this challenge by employing community development strategies geared towards poverty reductions in their host communities. The need for MNCs involvement in poverty reduction cannot be overemphasized. As Ite (2004) pointed out, foreign direct investment flowing to developing countries has the potential to make important contributions to the development of local economies, including creating jobs, capacity building, and the transfer of technology. As a result, multinational corporations (MNCs) can have a positive impact in developing countries, especially through corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives focusing on sustainable development and co-operation with civil society. As corporate citizens, multinational companies have contributed in various ways to local community development in the area as a way of addressing the unemployment, poverty and squalor that are stacking realities of daily living for the people of the area. For instance, Shell has been involved in educational initiatives, healthcare services and youth development projects, just to mention but a few. The main focus of the study which is on youth development scheme is a vocational training programme in which participants acquire necessary skills for self employment or eligibility for employment, such as welding, auto mechanics and electrical work. The study, therefore argues that the youth development scheme is an empowerment scheme that has improved the livelihood of the participants; although the efforts of the multinationals are constrained by factors which are political economic and social. However, the strategies must be sustainable if they have to make long term impact on poverty reduction. Has the vocational training on the youths been empowering? Have the youth been empowered by the vocational training? Do the community participate in the scheme and what is the level of their participation? RESEARCH QUESTIONS The following questions will be addressed: To what extent have youth vocational training been empowering? How much does the community participate in the scheme? What are the barriers that hamper MNCs community development efforts in the area? OBJECTIVE OF STUDY The general objective of the study is to evaluate the youth development initiatives of Shell multinational, aimed at poverty reduction among the youth of the Niger Delta. To evaluate the impact of youth development strategies on the participants To examine the level of participation of youth in the projects To identify the barriers of CD efforts of the multinational oil companies in Niger Delta 1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY The study seeks to be a contribution to the already existing literature on Niger Delta. It will serve as a reference source to the authorities of Nigeria, multinational oil companies, and other Niger Delta stakeholders in gaining more insights into the root causes of the persistent conflict in the region; and consequently look in a new direction for a more effective approach aimed at addressing the crisis. There is minimal evidence in literature about community development initiatives of the multinationals in Niger Delta. This research adds to the literature on MNCs CD assistance in the region. It also shows that business has an obligation to help in solving problems of public concern. In addition to spurring economic growth and prosperity to the Nigerian state, the community assistance of multinational corporations in Niger Delta should be commended. However, the condition of the region demands a more vigorous corporate social responsibility by the MNCs in the pursuit of community development. Poverty reduction is an important development concern, which requires sustained involvements of the stakeholders in addressing community needs. The study highlights the usefulness of the MNCs corporate social responsibility in reducing poverty among the youth, which represent one of the major assets of any community. In this respect, the study contributes to knowledge on poverty in Nigeria. SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF STUDY The study evaluates the impact of vocational and skills training programmes employed by Shell to empower the youth. It will also examine the level of youths participation in the programmes. Thirdly, it will identify the factors that constrain the CD efforts of the multinationals in the Niger Delta. It will examine several government intervention programmes in the region and why they yielded no positive results. Among the limitations of this study is inability to cover the entire oil producing communities of the chosen state of study due to time, financial constraint and proximity. The geographical terrain of the communities and the presence of security personnel also constitute an impediment to reaching certain key individuals. Further, the volatile condition of the area poses difficulties to the researcher as fresh conflict is capable of springing up at any moment. Hence, the researcher would, as a matter of caution avoid some locations, that otherwise would have provided useful information to the study. OPERATIONALIZATION OF CONCEPTS In this section, the important points and variables to be considered are described to foster a clear understanding of the proposed inquiry. Niger Delta Niger Delta is defined both geographically and politically. The former comprises of states in the South-South geo-political zone, namely, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River States; while the political Niger Delta extends to the neighboring oil producing states of Ondo, Abia and Imo, for reasons of administrative convenience, political expedience and development objectives (UNDP, 2006). The study focuses on the geographical Niger Delta, with River State as the case study. Multinational Corporations (MNCs) and Multinational Oil Corporations (MOCs): Multinational Corporation is a firm which control and organize production using plants from at least two countries (Caves, 1996:1). Multinational oil corporations are corporations operating in more than one country for the purpose of exploring for, producing, refining, and marketing oil. In Nigeria, there are many of these multinationals oil corporations such as: Shell, Texaco, Chevron, Elf, Exxon, Mobil, Agip, Fina, and Total, just to mention a few. For the purpose of this study, Shell multinational will be my case study; although references will be made to other multinationals, where necessary. Poverty: Poverty connotes a condition of human deprivation or denial with respect to the basic necessities of life food, shelter, and clothing. It is above all a symptom of embedded structural imbalance, which manifests in all domains of human existence (Hamdok, 1999). The author also believes that poverty is highly correlated with social exclusion, marginalization, vulnerability, powerlessness, isolation, and deprivation. Community Development (CD): Community Development means improving the quality of peoples lives and expanding their ability to shape their own futures through improving their access to opportunities to better themselves (Soubbotina, Sheram World Bank, 2000). Community development in this study refers to the provision of capacity to the youth of the Niger Delta, through vocational training, with the ultimate goal of reducing unemployment among them. Corporate Social Responsibility (CRS): The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD, 2000) defines CSR as the commitment of business to contribute to sustainable development, working with employees, their families, the local community and society at large to improve their quality of life. According to Idowu and Papasolomou (2007), CSR addresses the fundamental role that business plays, or ought to play in society. Corporate social responsibility in the current study refers to Shells community development programmes targeted at youth, with the view of improving their livelihood through job creation programmes. Capacity Building: Capacity building is the process by which individuals, groups, organizations, institutions and societies increase their abilities to perform core functions, solve problems, define and achieve objectives; to understand and deal with their development needs in a broad context and in a sustainable manner (UNDP, 1997). UNDP. (1997). Capacity Development Resources Book. New York: UNDP Eade (1997) is of the view that within the concept of capacity building is the idea of development, which is an empowering process; while the notion of overcoming poverty is part of the process of development [Eade, D. (1997]. Capacity Building: An approach to people-centered Development. Oxford: Oxfam Publication. Capacity building as employed in this study refers to the process of equipping the youth with skills such as welding, electrical work, auto-mechanics, which will enable them to become gainfully self-employed, thereby reducing poverty. Chapter three: Methodology This chapter presents the research methods used to guide and accomplish the study objectives. It discusses the research design, how the researcher intends to gather his data, the type of techniques to be employed in assembling the information, the respondents, and the method of analyzing the data. The appropriateness of the design, the target population, the sampling frame and the size of the sample are also discussed. 3.1 Research Design The study will utilize the qualitative research approach, using in-depth interview, and will be analyzed descriptively. Qualitative in-depth interview provides a valuable means to probe intensely into subjective realities; covering a wide range of topics because of its flexible formality. According to Kvale (1996), qualitative in-depth interviewing approach is comparable to wandering together with interviewees; while interviewers who genuinely want to understand are on a journey with interviewees, giving the later an opportunity to communicate stories in their own perspectives. Kvale, Steiner. (1996). Interviews: An introduction to qualitative research interviewing. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Potter (1996) confirms that the ability of interviewing to explore the subjective perception has made in-depth an essential data collection tool in research. Potter, W. J. (1996). An analysis of thinking and research about qualitative methods. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. The method enables the researcher to understand the experience and viewpoint of the interviewee and gather information about issues that cannot be comprehended by other means. On it flexibility feature, Lindlof and Taylor (2002) advised that it can be conducted wherever two people can talk in relative privacy. Similarly, Fontana and Frey (1998) are of the view that it can take the form of face-to-face interviewing and telephone interviewing. Rubin Rubin (1995) further maintain that another quality of in-depth interview is its malleability in redesigning the study by the researcher based on new information emerging from his probing. In-depth interviewing is most appropriate for this study because of the aforementioned merits; and more importantly, because of its distinctive ability to generate rich information on topics that have limited literature and topics that have been relatively understudied as the current study. Lindlof, T. R., Taylor, B. C. (2002). Qualitative communication research methods (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Fontana, A., Frey, J. H. (1998). Interviewing: The art of science. In N. K. Denzin Y. S. Lincoln (eds.) Collecting and Interpreting Qualitative Materials (pp. 47-78). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Rubin, H. J., Rubin, I. S. (1995). Qualitative interviewing: The art of hearing data. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. 3.2 Population and Sample The population of the study will be drawn from Obia-Okpor community of River State. The youth of this community who have been involved in the Shell projects will constitute the sample frame. A total of seven respondents will be selected from among the sample frame to make up the sample size for the study. This number is considered suitable for the in-depth interviewing, as the interview itself will cover a wide-range of questions. It is hoped that the diverse contributions of the seven respondents will provide extensive information to the researcher. In qualitative research, a sample is chosen, not to be representative of a larger population but rather for the depth and insights the sample can offer the researcher on the topic of interest (McCracken, 1988). [McCracken, G. (1988). The Long Interview. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.] Also, an official of the multinational company who is directly involved in the youth projects will be interviewed in order to have his insight into t he impact of their projects on the youth. 3.3 Data collection: The research will use both primary and secondary sources in collecting data. Semi-structured interviews will be employed as primary data collection method. This is the type of interviewing conducted with a written list of questions and probes that are used as an interview guide (Bernard, 1988). [Bernard, R.H. (1988). Research Methods in Cultural Anthropology. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications] McCracken (1988) discusses many benefits of conducting semi structured interviews with interview guide. Some of these benefits include the fact that the guide ensures that the researcher discusses all the topics that are vital to the understanding of the issues under study. Also the guide allows the researcher to focus attention on listening to the informants responses, thus offering more understanding of the testimony and better probing by the researcher. McCracken (1988) also stated that the guide does not hinder the open nature of the interview process. There is still opportunity for the researcher to follow the informants interesting lines of thought and their unexpected explanations of the issues. A semi-structured interview is the most useful interview format for conducting qualitative research. This is because the interview is neither highly structured as is the case of an interview comprising of all closed-ended questions nor is it unstructured such that the interviewee is simply given the permission to talk freely about whatever comes up. Semi-structured interviews present topics and questions to the interviewee, but are carefully designed to draw out the interviewees ideas and opinions on a given topic, as opposed to leading the interviewee toward preconceived choices. They rely on the interviewer following up with probes to get in-depth information on topics of interest. This study will also rely on secondary data obtained from textbooks, journals, periodicals, newspapers, reports from both the government of Nigeria and multinational corporations. 3.4 Data Analysis: After data collection, notes and recorded interviews will be transcribed and descriptively analysed. Interview transcripts and notes will be copied and pared down to represent major themes or categories that describe the topic being studied. Transcripts are also coded as they are transcribed. This involves assigning a particular theme or idea a number or keyword (the code) and then marking the code next to any text on the transcript that concerns the relevant theme. Otherwise called thematic analysis, it is a process for coding qualitative information. A thematic approach will be employed in the analysis of the transcribed data. According to Gibson (2006), thematic Analysis is an approach to dealing with data that involves the creation and application of codes to data. The data being analyzed might take any number of forms an interview transcript, field notes, policy documents, photographs, video footage à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ there is a clear link between this type of analysis and Grounded theory, as the latter clearly lays out a framework for carrying out this type of code-related analysis. This general approach to qualitative data analysis was first developed by Glaser and Strauss (1967) and termed grounded theory to refer to the fact that the data for analysis (in the proposed study, the transcribed responses of interviewees) are grounded in their experiences and the context of the topic under study. The researcher will create codes to label the findings, and will analyze the interview data obtained from each participant independently. The notion of Capacity Building Capacity building is in some sense as old as development assistance itself. Slogans such as helping people to help themselves and the proverb, teach a man to fish point directly at capacity building. Capacity building is a relatively new concept in the field of development, emerging in the 1980s (Lusthaus, Adrien Perstinger, 1999). Lusthaus, Adrien Perstinger. (1999). Capacity Development: Definitions, Issues and Implications for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation. Universalia Occasional Paper, (34), p.1 As with the concepts such as globalization, development, and sustainability, the term capacity building is an ambiguous concept that means different things to different people, groups and organizations. Although many people use these terms, their definitions do not conform to the same, as each puts emphasis on a certain aspect of capacity development (James, 2001). (James, R. (Ed.). (2001). Power and Partnership: Experiences of NGO Capacity Building. Oxford: INTRAC Publication. However, a group of these definitions have emphasized that capacity building is a tool to build and improve the skills, resources and ability of people to implement, monitor and assess a project. Thus, capacity building is seen as a process by which individuals, groups and organizations, institutions and societies increase their abilities to perform core functions, solve problems and define and achieve objectives; to understand and deal with their development needs in a broad context and in a sustainable manner (UNDP, 1997) UNDP. (1997). Capacity Development and UNDP: Supporting Sustainable Human Development. New York: UNDP. Morgan (1993) conceives capacity building as the ability of individuals, groups, institutions and organizations to identify and solve development problems over time. Another definition sees capacity building as an approach to development which encompasses all the fields that influence the development sphere (Eade, 1997) Eade, D. (1997). Capacity Building: An Approach to People-Centered Development. Oxford: Oxfam Publications. In this approach to development, capacity building identifies the weaknesses that people experience in achieving their basic rights, and finding proper means through which to build up (develop) their ability to overcome the causes of their exclusion and suffering. To have successful capacity building is attainable through a strong process of learning and education. And for capacity building to be sustainable, new technologies, new knowledge and information need to be introduced, especially in this period of globalization. This is because development is not comprehensive without sufficient knowledge in this age of globalization and information and technology. Capacity building is a comprehensive process that involves all dimensions of life. It is not so much a matter of just implementing a project or enhancing a particular aspect of life. It is an approach to development which aims to enhance the capability of people in its broadest and in a comprehensive manner. As a people-centered activity, capacity building is a process of community development where people are the focus of capacity enhancement. It creates an enabling environment where people are developed in order to manage themselves and contribute to their societies. To this end, community development becomes the ultimate output of capacity building process. Thus, capacity building is a response to community development needs. Capacity building therefore is seen as women and men becoming empowered to: bring about positive changes in their lives; about personal growth together with public action; about both the process and the outcome of challenging poverty, oppression and discrimination; and about the realization of human potential through social and economic justice. Above all, it is about the process of transforming lives, and transforming societies (Eade Williams, 1995). Eade Williams. (1995). The Oxfam Handbook of Development and Relief. Oxford: Oxfam Publications. In this process of capacity building, people acquire and improve their abilities. This creates an avenue for them as individuals and as members of the community to achieve their development objectives. Capacity Building and Sustainability The concept of sustainability has generated varied interpretations in literature, just like other development concepts. Although the concept emerged as a human response to the human destruction of the environment, it has been argued that sustainability cannot be an issue for a solely social and natural science (Kohn, 1999). Notwithstanding the myriad definitions and interpretations of sustainability, the ultimate goal of the concept is to improve human well being (Sachs, 1999). Capacity building, therefore, as an approach to development is linked to sustainable development. While sustainable development is an attempt to provide improved livelihood for the people, it is through the process of capacity building that the potential of people to achieve sustainability in their lives can be realized. Eade (1997) likened achieving the objectives of sustainable development to the outcome of capacity building, and maintained that both cannot be differentiated. Kohn, J., Goody, J., Hinterberger, F., Straaten, J. (1999). Sustainability in Questions: The Search for a Conceptual Framework. Northampton: Edward Elgar Sachs, W. (1999). Planet Dialectics: Explorations in Environment and Development. Halifax: Fernwood Publishing. Capacity Building and Empowerment Empowerment is a cross-disciplinary term, mainly used in fields of Education, Psychology, Community Development, Economics, among others. The understanding of the concept varies among disciplines, too. Based on this many meanings of the term, it has been seen as a construct easy to define by its absence but difficult to define in action, based on the idea that it takes different forms in different people and contexts (Rappoport, cited in Page Czuba, 1

Life in the Hands of Natue The Pefect Storm :: Essays Papers

Life in the Hands of Natue The Pefect Storm The perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger presents the perception of risking one’s life, to earn money in order to survive everyday living; through the men who take that risk, their families who endure great emotional distress while they await for their arrival home, which is not guaranteed, and the men of the Coast Guard and the Air National Guard who anticipate disaster. In this book the risk taken by the fishing men baffled me. Yes, the money was good, but the risk seemed to out weigh the money. The men of The Andrea Gail all had their doubts of their last trip into the Atlantic, which would cost them their lives. Such tragedy can be a useful learning experience for those who survive. The perfect Storm also brought to my attention the mental state of one who is on the edge of life and death. I learned a great deal about the fishing industry lifestyle from The Perfect Storm. The men of the Andrea Gail risked their lives on every trip they set out on. They took this risk to support them selves and their families. One thing I would have accepted as a justification of this risk is if every catch resulted in a plentiful amount of money. There was no guarantee of how much one would bring home proving to me that the money was out weighed by the risk. It seems that those who take part in swordfishing have a sense of denial. They put aside the risks of the business and go on with their work. When disaster does strike out at sea man is in the hands of nature, the most powerful force. There is only so much one can do to prevent a natural disaster. When one’s life is on the line the natural instincts of the body take over. When one is drowning they voluntarily hold their breath to prevent their lungs from filling with water. As they hold their breath the body is starting to feel the effect of too much carbon dioxide in the blood. At this moment it is said to be the â€Å"break point†. The body knows that as the carbon dioxide builds, time is running out, resulting in an involuntary breath in most cases flooding the lungs with water ending any chance of survival. Life in the Hands of Natue The Pefect Storm :: Essays Papers Life in the Hands of Natue The Pefect Storm The perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger presents the perception of risking one’s life, to earn money in order to survive everyday living; through the men who take that risk, their families who endure great emotional distress while they await for their arrival home, which is not guaranteed, and the men of the Coast Guard and the Air National Guard who anticipate disaster. In this book the risk taken by the fishing men baffled me. Yes, the money was good, but the risk seemed to out weigh the money. The men of The Andrea Gail all had their doubts of their last trip into the Atlantic, which would cost them their lives. Such tragedy can be a useful learning experience for those who survive. The perfect Storm also brought to my attention the mental state of one who is on the edge of life and death. I learned a great deal about the fishing industry lifestyle from The Perfect Storm. The men of the Andrea Gail risked their lives on every trip they set out on. They took this risk to support them selves and their families. One thing I would have accepted as a justification of this risk is if every catch resulted in a plentiful amount of money. There was no guarantee of how much one would bring home proving to me that the money was out weighed by the risk. It seems that those who take part in swordfishing have a sense of denial. They put aside the risks of the business and go on with their work. When disaster does strike out at sea man is in the hands of nature, the most powerful force. There is only so much one can do to prevent a natural disaster. When one’s life is on the line the natural instincts of the body take over. When one is drowning they voluntarily hold their breath to prevent their lungs from filling with water. As they hold their breath the body is starting to feel the effect of too much carbon dioxide in the blood. At this moment it is said to be the â€Å"break point†. The body knows that as the carbon dioxide builds, time is running out, resulting in an involuntary breath in most cases flooding the lungs with water ending any chance of survival.

Genocide Essay -- History, Hitler, The Holocaust

Living through genocide is a horrific tragedy that no one should ever have to endure. While there have been numerous genocides within the last century, the holocaust was a genocide that killed over 12 million innocent people and segregated them by religion, sex and age. Since the end of the holocaust, many survivors wrote their stories accounting the horrific lives they led, while some eliminated parts of their story, others felt that it was necessary to show the entirety of what had occurred. With these first hand accounts, the reader is able to see the differences between how men and women lived their everyday lives as well as how they were treated by Hitler’s regime. In Elie Wiesel’s, Night, and Sara Nomberg-Przytyk’s, True Tales from a Grotesque Land, Auschwitz, men and women prisoners lived lives that the everyday reader would find impossible. By reading these accounts, the readers can question themselves as to why this occurred as well as to why it matter s. While people heard stories about the atrocities that were going on within the camps, many families did not want to believe them. Other families did not want to immigrate into other countries that were considered safe because they felt that they were too old to start a new life in a new country. Entering the holocaust at a young age, Elie Wiesel’s only reliance was his family. Separated from his mother and sister as soon as they arrived at the camp, the only person he had by his side was his father. Having to depend on his father, Elie made decisions that would benefit them as a pair such falsifying his age when he entered the camp. By making these decisions there would be a better chance that they would be able to stay together as a family. After entering the camp... ...and terrible sores all over their bodies† (Nomberg-Przytyk 95). With the author stating that she still had a heart makes the reader understand that people truly cared about others inside the camps, they did not want others to die. Throughout the holocaust, men and women prisoners lived lives that the everyday reader would find impossible. While men and women were treated differently during the holocaust, the overlying image of genocide is what is important for people to learn about. By reading Elie Wiesel’s, Night, and Sara Nomberg-Przytyk’s, True Tales from a Grotesque Land, Auschwitz, the reader is able to answer why reading the stories of the past still matter. By preserving the history of the men and women within the holocaust, the following generations will be able to remember the 12 million people killed during Hitler’s regime.

Alice Walkers Everyday Use :: essays research papers

What’s Your Background?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Alice Walker’s life as an African-American novelist and poet has led to many award winning short-stories and books. She was raised in the southern state of Georgia and her parents were sharecroppers. This taught her that being an African-American can have its rough times. After being shot by a BB gun when she was eight, Alice remained blinded in one eye. Her ailment caused her to seclude herself from other children her age. Alice’s feeling of being older than she was shows in her writing of the short story “Everyday Use';.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the story’s main character’s, Maggie, is a direct relation to the beginning of Alice Walker’s life. Maggie, though we don’t know her exact age, appears to be a young woman. The story tells of her past as though Alice Walker was telling a slightly altered version of her own life up to that point. Maggie was burned in a fire that was, though never proven, thought to be set by an older sibling. After the fire, Maggie walked “chin on chest, eyes on ground, feet in shuffle';, ashamed of her looks (Perrine 91). In relation, Alice’s older sibling shot her in the eye. This blinded her and made her feel like she was unpleasant to look at. She secluded herself and felt ashamed. These events led to the other, non-social activities.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Alice Walker, after being blinded by the BB gun, turns to reading stories and writing poetry. Many of her writings are related to her life as a young black woman. In “Everyday Use';, Alice uses the character of Maggie to express her own internal struggles. Maggie is taught by her grandmother to make quilts, and quilts are made to put to everyday use. The opposing character in the story, Dee, only asks for the quilts to hang them and display them as a piece of her heritage. Alice shows both girls opinions to prove that either of the girls could be right. Dee could try to preserve her heritage, if she actually cared about it, by hanging the quilts. However, Maggie has been raised to know that she can use the quilts and still preserve and continue her heritage by repairing the quilts with new scraps, which have their own meaning. Alice wanted to show the relation between African-American people who actually know and live their heritage, as opposed to just pretending for trend’s sake.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Dee’s character in the story is a direct relation to the number of people in modern society that does not know their true heritage.

First Accomplishment in My Life Essay

It is so difficult to live in the United States, the land of opportunity, without education and the English language. Without these two things, our lives seem like meaningless. My family is one of the victims of this problem. Two years ago, when I was a senior student in high school, I almost could not graduate from high school with diploma in hand because of failing the exit exam twice and my lack knowledge of English. At that time, I really wanted to give up and ended my education at that level, but the encouragement of my parents had helped me go through this challenge to succeed the first accomplishment in my life. The first challenge started out when my family immigrated to this country. Indeed, living in an unfamiliar place is not easy at all. Everything is totally different from my own country such as the weather, culture, food, communication, and education. My first educated place in America was Rancho Cordova High School which is located in Rancho Cordova county of California. Truthfully, when I first began to learn English with eleventh grade in High school, I was just like a deaf and mute person in the class. I didn’t understand what people were saying, and of course I could not speak English as well as people here. The second day of school, I carried the schedule around the school with innocent face and lost my direction to get into the classes. At that time, I even could not express my feeling by asking the only basic question such as â€Å"Would you please tell me how to get into this class.† In that moment, I recognized myself was an alien who came from another planet. My feeling was so down, and I felt so lonely in the world. One day, when I was sitting alone in the bench at school, a white girl with a pretty blond hair whose name is Sarah dropped by to say hi and wanted to make friend with me. She asked me whole bunch of questions, but I didn’t know how to response. After few minutes, she knew that I couldn’t speak English, and she just walked away. I almost cried out in the public, and I felt myself so stupid. Time by time, I began to be familiar to the new life and my studying at school. At that moment, the goal of graduating from high school was important than anything in the world. This is not only my dream and also a significant promise to my lovely parents, because I wanted them to be proud of their only daughter in the family. Besides that, I wanted to bring an honor to my family, take fully care and support sufficiently for the rest of their life with certain status in the community. A year later, the last year of high school, I should be very happy instead of the anxiety and sadness which were carried on my face. Unfortunately, something happened out of control; everything turned out bad to my goal. The other obstacle had come to me again, and I know that I had to deal with another challenge. In that year, class of 06, the educational law had changed in California. The government had required all the students to pass the California Exit Exam to graduate or we could not walk stage. I was so worried about this problem because I already failed it twice. I only had one more chance to take it in February. Actually, with two years of learning English, this test was really a struggle for me. I totally lost self-confidence at that time. I was so upset about the promise I made. I always asked myself â€Å"what can I do now?† When my parents received the news, they didn’t feel so disappointed about me. Furthermore, they encouraged me to work harder and try all my best to do the exam as good as I can. With their support, I completely got back self-confidence to struggle with the next challenge. The morning of the exam day, I got up as early as I could to prepare spiritedly for the test that will take four hours. When I walked into the kitchen, I could sniff out the smell of delicious sunshine up egg with bread, which is ever my favorite food for breakfast, that mom cooked in the early morning. When I was ready to leave the house, my parents gently said to me that â€Å"Loss is experience of success. Mom and dad always stay behind to support you. Don’t worry! My sweetie† I looked at her with tears in my eyes and said,† Mom, I won’t disappoint you.† After two months, the result of exam was coming on May 10. At that day, when I walked into the counselor’ office to receive the result, my hand was shaking, my heart was pounding so fast, and I entered into Mrs. Tiger’s office with extremely worried face. Meanwhile, she announce my result with smiling face that â€Å"Congratulation, you pass the exam with the score 361†. At that moment, I was so surprise, excited and happy. Rapidly, my tears kept falling, and I couldn’t even hold it. Finally, my dream had come true, and I told myself that I did it. Absolutely, I could have a graduated invitation for my parents. The graduation of my senior year was celebrated at the gorgeous park in Cal-Expo. Obviously, I was so nervous and excited on that big day. There is one scene always store in my mind which was my parents’ joyfulness during the whole night. On that big day, they gave me a really big bundle of red roses. For me, whatever presents which I had received are not valuable than their happiness. After I went through this difficult time, I recognized that it was only the threshold of my life. For an English learner like me, I know that there is more obstacles will happen in the life of college. Therefore, it helps me to prepare more strength and spirit to struggle to a lot of other challenges in college. Besides that, I also received the valuable lesson of two characters that a person need to have which are persevering and hard working are so important for us. These both characters will lead us to the way of success. Also, the most valuable lesson I had learned from this challenge that parents is extremely part of my life; my parents are ever significant people in my life because they are always by my side to support me whenever I overcome the challenge or difficult problem. Without them, there is no life at all for me.