20 Obscure Rhetorical Terms and Figures of Speech

You probably know many figures of speech, such terms as metaphor and metonymy, irony and understatement—all the rhetorical terms that you probably learned in school. But what about some of the less familiar figures and tropes? There are hundreds of them, after all.  And while we may not recognize their names, we use and hear a good number of these devices every day. 20 More Obscure Figures of Speech Lets take a look at 20 uncommon words (most of them Latin or Greek) for some fairly common rhetorical strategies. Accismus  - Coyness; a form of irony in which a person feigns a lack of interest in something that he or she actually desires.Anadiplosis  - Repetition of the last word of one line or clause to begin the next.Apophasis  - Emphasizing a point by seeming to pass over it—that is, mentioning something while disclaiming any intention of mentioning it.Aposiopesis  - An unfinished thought or broken sentence.Bdelygmia  - A litany of abuse—a series of critical epithets, descriptions, or attributes.Boosting  - An adverbial construction used to support a claim or express a viewpoint more assertively and convincingly.Chleuasmos - A sarcastic reply that mocks an opponent, leaving him or her without an answer.Dehortatio  -  Dissuasive advice given with authority.Diatyposis  - Recommending useful precepts or advice to someone else.Epexegesis  - Adding words or phrases to further clarify or specify a statement already made.Epimone  - Frequent repetition of a phras e or question; dwelling on a point.Epizeuxis  - Repetition of a word or phrase for emphasis (usually with no words in between).Hypocrisis  - Exaggerating the gestures or speech habits of another in order to mock him.Paronomasia  -  Punning, playing with words.Prolepsis  - ​A figurative device by which a future event is presumed to have already occurred.Skotison  - Intentionally obscure speech or writing, designed to confuse an audience rather than clarify an issue.Synathroesmus  - The piling up of adjectives, often in the spirit of invective.Tapinosis  - Name-calling; undignified language that debases a person or thing.Tetracolon Climax  - A series of four members, usually in parallel form.Zeugma  - Use of a word to modify or govern two or more words although its use may be grammatically or logically correct with only one.

Human Trafficking - 813 Words

Human Trafficking involves abducting and moving the victim against his or her will. Human trafficking is caused by the dangers of being in a foreign country and poverty. Both of these causes have the same effect: being a victim in human trafficking. Foreign vacationing or wanting to work in a foreign country is very common, but many people do not know the dangers of it. Many people every year hope to go on vacation or dream about living on an island in a foreign country, but they do not understand the dangers in it. Foreigners are very easy to spot out, and that’s how traffickers get their hands on unsuspecting women and children. The traffickers stake out and sometimes drug the victims before they abduct them. Some†¦show more content†¦16, 1967 ï  ¢Ã¯  ¡ ï  £Ã¯  ¤ As long as the mind is enslaved, the body can never be free. Psychological freedom, a firm sense of self-esteem, is the most powerful weapon against the long night of physical slavery. MARTIN LUTHER KING, speech, Aug. 16, 1967 ï  ¢Ã¯  ¡ Human trafficking is very dangerous matter, and should be taken very seriously. People should be prepared to take many precautions when going out of the country. The people whom live in these places that have this going on should also be aware of it and should be very careful. There should also be many different ways to help others who have been victims of these sick and cruel acts, such as creating awareness of human trafficking and giving people in poverty more options. There is not one easy solution to the problem because it involves many issues such as poverty and traveling. Human Trafficking | | Average Slave | 90$ | Sexual Trafficking | 80% | Estimated Slaves | 27 million | Female Slaves | 68% | Average age | Under 18 | | | | | | | | | | |Show MoreRelatedThe Trafficking Of Human Trafficking1061 Words   |  5 Pagesare approximately twenty to thirty million slaves in the world today. Unfortunately due to trafficking being a fast growing crime it is very difficult to identify and locate these organizations and victims. Although there are many groups created to support victims, not enough awareness is being made and not enough action is being applied to stop human trafficking. Sex trafficking is a form of human trafficking that has been a worldwide issue since ancient times, but regularly forgotten, due to it beingRead MoreThe Trafficking Of Human Trafficking886 Words   |  4 Pages(Attention catcher)What if somebody came into your life and guaranteed a better lifestyle, but instead you were enslaved into human trafficking? Human trafficking is when a person is abducted from their current situation and mostly likely used for sex slavery. Furthermore, did you know human trafficking increased over the years? (Listener relevance) Although you may not be as aware in your comfortable surroundings, you should always be aware of suspicious vehicles and people. Even though we enjoyRead MoreThe Trafficking Of Human Trafficking930 Words   |  4 Pagesman. Regardless of the reasons, there are nearly 30 million victims of human trafficking globally. There are more slaves now than ever before. Trafficking of persons is not a subject that should be ignored or tak en lightly. In order to fully understand the enormity of this crisis, we will examine the root causes, facts, and the impact of human trafficking throughout the world. There are several factors to why human trafficking exists: poverty, governmental instability, natural disasters, addictionRead MoreThe Trafficking Of Human Trafficking3494 Words   |  14 Pagesended, never to return, they go back and sneak into our communities in severe forms by human trafficking crimes. When humanity eliminated the phenomenon of human slavery, it returned in different pictures and forms, combining them enslaving people, through the recruitment, transportation, transfer of people by force and threat, and using and exploiting them in different ways. Among the victims of human trafficking crimes, there are those who are subjected to sexual exploitation, labor exploitationRead MoreHuman Trafficking And The Trafficking901 Words   |  4 PagesHuman Smuggling and trafficking continues to be a worldwide plague that has been, thus far been largely ignored by the international community. The paramount reason human trafficking and smuggling has festered and grown roots and spread globally. It started as a grassroots effort on the local level where women and girls (it affects boys as well) would be used and sold for sex. Eventually, greed and corruption tagged along for the ride and at that point the crimes became an organized enterprise. AtRead MoreThe Human Of Human Trafficking Essay1235 Words   |  5 Pagesin 1865, the practice of it is still very alive today. Human trafficking, a form of modern slavery, is the buying and selling of people, whether it s for forced labor or commercial sex. Every year, thousands of adults and childre n, especially girls, are forced into the endless trafficking ring. â€Å"The International Labour Organization estimates that there are 20.9 million victims of human trafficking globally† (â€Å"The Facts†). The human trafficking industry is a worldwide network that is worth an estimatedRead MoreThe Trafficking Of Human Trafficking Essay1752 Words   |  8 PagesIn this essay, the history of human trafficking will be examined, followed by who is affected by trafficking. Next the scope and types of exploitation will be discussed. Human trafficking is an issue that affects countries all over the world. Governments have made an effort to curb trafficking, however these efforts have been very narrowly focused. American ignorance has led to poor handling of the issues by policy makers. Finally the essay will discuss a proposed solution and set some goals forRead MoreHuman Trafficking1355 Words   |  6 PagesRigdon November 16, 2014 Human Trafficking and its Dire Effects. Human Trafficking in the United States is something not a lot of people discuss. Most think it is only something that happens in third world countries, but in fact could be happening in their hometown. According to Protocol to Prevent, Subdue and Punish Trafficking in Persons, human trafficking in the modern world entails transfer of persons by use of applied force. Other methods used to enforce the trafficking include use of deceptionRead MoreHuman Trafficking And Human Sex Trafficking1850 Words   |  8 Pagesof human sex trafficking come to one s mind. The United States of America is not immune to this type of horrific behavior. America is the land of the free and yet something as awful as human sex trafficking occurs in our very own backyard each and everyday. According to the Department of Homeland Security the definition of human trafficking is â€Å"modern day slavery that involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act† (â€Å"What Is Human Trafficking?†)Read MoreSex Trafficking And Human Trafficking Essay1243 Words   |  5 Pages Human trafficking brings in billions of dollars into the U.S and all around the world. â€Å"The prime motive for such outrageous abuse is simple: money. In this $12 billion global business just one woman trafficked into the industrialized world can net her captors an average $67,000 a year† (Baird 2007). The laws around human trafficking are not strict and vary depending on what country it is happening in. Human trafficking is not something that is strictly foreign, it

Organizational Behavior for Theories and Concepts -myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theOrganizational Behavior for Theories and Concepts. Answer: Introduction This paper explores many theories and concepts regarding the organizational behavior. Organizational behavior is referred to the study of the human behavior within the institutional setting. Hence the managers and the employees understand why people behave in different ways. Individuals need to understand various theories and concepts of organizational behavior, to understand the problems experienced by persons who adapt to different working environments. For instance, attitudes help in evaluating the personal feeling. Personality sums up the individual reactions as they interact with others. The personality-job fit theory explains the fit of individuals between the working environment and their personality (Shafritz, Ott and Jang, 2015 pp.22). The perception theory explores the meaning given by individuals to their surrounding by interpreting and organizing their impressions. The attribution theory in organizational behavior explains how individuals judge others based on their behaviors. The contemporary theory of decision-making describes the individual behavior to increase performance. Motivation is a concept discussed within organizational behavior, and it refers to the process of accounting for individuals efforts and intensity to achieve goals (Burke, 2017 pp.15). The goal-setting theory discusses how goals impact actions. Reinforcement theory indicates that behavior determines consequences. Finally, the contingency theory holds that there lacks an effective way of organizing, leading, and making a decision within an organization, hence the best action taken is contingent. There are different types of human behavior in the workplace as discussed. First, the task performers are viewed as people who are conversant with their roles and are goal-directed. The organizational citizenship refers to the behaviors where there are helpfulness and cooperation to support the institutions context (Luthans, Luthans and Luthans, 2015 pp.25). The counterproductive refers to the voluntary behaviors which are intended to harm the organization directly or indirectly. Joining and staying human behaviors implies employing and retaining the productive employees especially when there is heat up concerning the shortages of skills. Finally, maintaining the work attendance behaviors involves presenteeism where employees attend a scheduled work (Pinder, 2014 pp.21). The evidence-based approach is important to management since it helps managers to use evidence and logic in decision-making, leading and advising the employees. Also, evidence-based is important to the organizational behavior since it helps the individuals research the organizational problems, interpret and solve them effectively. The evidence-based approach can be applied to interpret the organizational and management behavior through various ways. To begin with, it determines the interventions applied in various practices and strategies within an organization. The evidence-based approach ranks the managers and guides them towards facing the challenging situations. The evidence-based approach also incorporates the organizational practices as well as the judgments which concern organizations. Through the approach, the organizational and management behavior is interpreted through the managers mindset since it teaches them how to manage the institutions (Armstrong and Taylor, 2014 pp.80). Finally, it is interpreted through the new insight and knowledge from within and out of the organization. Personal practice within the organizational context is viewed as a tool used for linking and understanding the organizational theories in application to the practical tasks. On the other hand, the interpersonal skills refer to the individual emotional intelligence, their capability to understand and know the attitudes within the organizational context. The knowledge to manage overall and others involve sharing, managing, creating, and using information within an organizational context. Teamwork involves the cooperation of individuals, employing their skills to provide a constructive response, regardless of the conflicts which prevails amongst them. Therefore, teamwork is important since it allows the employees to interact with others hence their relationships improve. In this manner, the cohesion among individuals is achieved (Katzenbach and Smith, 2015pp.8). Effective teams are developed through various ways. They are developed if the individuals within the organization focus on their roles. If they value their roles and communicate effectively to each other effective teams are developed. When goals are set, and there is the celebration of the failures and the successes. Finally, teams are developed when individuals interact to know each other. There are various organizational problems such as the loyalty within departments where competition exists, and each wants to outdo the other. New management is a significant problem since the organization is in a dilemma due to the changes which arise. Confusion is also an organizational problem which arises especially during the implementation of new strategies and ideas. Finally, the company goals are organizational problems since the organizations need to use them well to achieve positive outcomes. The theories of organizational behavior help in solving the problems through various ways. For instance, the personality-job fit theory helps the managers to understand the individuals hence the problem of new management is solved (Cheruvelil, Soranno, Weathers, Hanson, Goring, Filstrup and Read, 2014 pp.35). The personality theory guides individuals towards selecting the right working environment which complies with their personalities hence the problems involving loyalty in the depart ments and the new management is minimized. The attribution theories help individuals to scrutinize their judgments about others hence the conflicts reduce and teamwork is enhanced amongst the employees (Northouse, 2015 pp.13). The motivation theories keep the employees engaged, and they work towards the common organizational goals hence the problem concerning the implementation of new ideas and strategies are addressed. The theories in organizational behavior help in solving problems hence peace, teamwork, respect, and loyalty within the organization are achieved which are significant elements of a performing institution. Conclusion In conclusion, this paper analyzes the theories and the concepts of the organizational behavior, the human behaviors which prevail in the workplace and the application of the evidence-based approach to the organization and management. Teamwork, practice personal, interpersonal skills and knowledge to manage people are also significant factors in the organizational behavior. Finally, theories are applied to solve the problems outlined. Bibliography Armstrong, M. and Taylor, S., 2014.Armstrong's handbook of human resource management practice. Kogan Page Publishers. Burke, W.W., 2017.Organization change: Theory and practice. Sage Publications. Cheruvelil, K.S., Soranno, P.A., Weathers, K.C., Hanson, P.C., Goring, S.J., Filstrup, C.T. and Read, E.K., 2014. Creating and maintaining high?performing collaborative research teams: the importance of diversity and interpersonal skills.Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment,12(1), pp.31-38. Katzenbach, J.R. and Smith, D.K., 2015.The wisdom of teams: Creating the high-performance organization. Harvard Business Review Press. Luthans, F., Luthans, B.C. and Luthans, K.W., 2015.Organizational behavior: An evidence-based approach. IAP. Northouse, P.G., 2015.Leadership: Theory and practice. Sage publications. Pinder, C.C., 2014.Work motivation in organizational behavior. Psychology Press. Shafritz, J.M., Ott, J.S. and Jang, Y.S., 2015.Classics of organization theory. Cengage Learning.

Statistic Chapter 2 Sample Question Essay Example

Statistic Chapter 2 Sample Question Essay Chapter 2 Study Guide MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS 1. The relative frequency of a class is computed by a. dividing the midpoint of the class by the sample size b. dividing the frequency of the class by the midpoint c. dividing the sample size by the frequency of the class d. dividing the frequency of the class by the sample size Answer: d 3. The sum of frequencies for all classes will always equal a. 1 b. the number of elements in a data set c. the number of classes d. a value between 0 and 1 Answer: b 5. A researcher is gathering data from four geographical areas designated: South = 1; North = 2; East = 3; West = 4. The designated geographical regions represent a. qualitative data b. quantitative data c. label data d. either quantitative or qualitative data Answer: a 7. A tabular summary of a set of data showing the fraction of the total number of items in several classes is a a. frequency distribution b. relative frequency distribution c. frequency d. cumulative frequency distribution Answer: b 9. If several frequency distributions are constructed from the same data set, the distribution with the widest class width will have the a. fewest classes b. most classes c. ame number of classes as the other distributions since all are constructed from the same data Answer: a 11. The sum of the percent frequencies for all classes will always equal a. one b. the number of classes c. the number of items in the study d. 100 Answer: d 13. The total number of data items with a value less than the upper limit for the class is given by the a. frequency distribution b. relative frequency distribution c. cumulat ive frequency distribution d. cumulative relative frequency distribution Answer: c Exhibit 2-1 The numbers of hours worked (per week) by 400 statistics students are shown below. We will write a custom essay sample on Statistic Chapter 2 Sample Question specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Statistic Chapter 2 Sample Question specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Statistic Chapter 2 Sample Question specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Number of hoursFrequency 0 920 10 1980 20 29200 30 39100 15. Refer to Exhibit 2-1. The number of students working 19 hours or less a. is 80 b. is 100 c. is 180 d. is 300 Answer: b 17. Refer to Exhibit 2-1. The percentage of students working 19 hours or less is a. 20% b. 25% c. 75% d. 80% Answer: b 19. Refer to Exhibit 2-1. The cumulative percent frequency for the class of 30 39 is a. 100% b. 75% c. 50% d. 25% Answer: a 21. Refer to Exhibit 2-1. If a cumulative frequency distribution is developed for the above data, the last class will have a cumulative frequency of a. 00 b. 1 c. 30 39 d. 400 Answer: d 23. Refer to Exhibit 2-1. The number of students who work 19 hours or less is a. 80 b. 100 c. 200 d. 400 Answer: b 25. In constructing a frequency distribution, as the number of classes are decreased, the class width a. decreases b. remains unchanged c. increases d. can increase or decrease depending on the data values Answer: c 27. In a cumulative frequency distribution, the last class will always have a cumulative frequency equal to a. one b. 100% c. the total number of elements in the data set Answer: c 29. In a cumulative percent frequency distribution, the last class will have a cumulative percent frequency equal to a. one b. 100 c. the total number of elements in the data set Answer: b 31. A tabular method that can be used to summarize the data on two variables simultaneously is called a. simultaneous equations b. crosstabulation c. a histogram d. an ogive Answer: b Exhibit 2-2 A survey of 800 college seniors resulted in the following crosstabulation regarding their undergraduate major and whether or not they plan to go to graduate school. Undergraduate Major | |Graduate School |Business |Engineering |Others |Total | |Yes |70 |84 |126 |280 | |No |182 |208 |130 |520 | |Total |252 |292 |256 |800 | 3. Refer to Exhibit 2-2. What percentage of the students does not plan to go to graduate school? a. 280 b. 520 c. 65 d. 32 Answer: c 35. Refer to Exhibit 2-2. Of those students who are majoring in business, what percentage plans to go to graduate school? a. 27. 78 b. 8. 75 c. 7 0 d. 72. 22 Answer: a PROBLEMS 1. Thirty students in the School of Business were asked what their majors were. The following represents their responses (M = Management; A = Accounting; E = Economics; O = Others). A |M |M |A |M |M |E |M |O |A | |E |E |M |A |O |E |M |A |M |A | |M |A |O |A |M |E |E |M |A |M | a. Construct a frequency distribution and a bar graph. b. Construct a relative frequency distribution and a pie chart. Answers: a. and b. Relative MajorFrequencyFrequency M120. 4 A90. 3 E60. 2 O 30. 1 Total301. 0 2. Forty shoppers were asked if they preferred the weight of a can of soup to be 6 ounces, 8 ounces, or 10 ounces. Below you are given their responses. | 6 | 6 |6 |10 | 8 | 8 |8 |10 |6 |6 | |10 |10 |8 | 8 | 6 | 6 |6 | 8 |6 |6 | | 8 | 8 |8 |10 | 8 | 8 |6 |10 |8 |6 | | 6 | 8 |8 | 8 |10 |10 |8 |10 |8 |6 | . Construct a frequency distribution and graphically represent the frequency distribution. b. Construct a relative frequency distribution and graphically represent the relative frequency distribution. Answers: a. and b. Relative PreferencesFrequencyFrequency 6 ounces140. 350 8 ounces170. 425 10 ounces 90. 225 Total401. 000 3. A sample of 50 TV viewers were asked, Should TV sponsors pull their sponsorship from programs that draw numerous viewer complaints? Below are the results of the survey. (Y = Yes; N = No; W = Without Opinion) N |W |N |N |Y |N |N |N |Y |N | |N |Y |N |N |N |N |N |Y |N |N | |Y |N |Y |W |N |Y |W |W |N |Y | |W |W |N |W |Y |W |N |W |Y |W | |N |Y |N |Y |N |W |Y |Y |N |Y | a . Construct a frequency distribution and a bar graph. . Construct a relative frequency distribution and a pie chart. Answers: a. and b. Relative FrequencyFrequency No240. 48 Yes150. 30 Without Opinion110. 22 Total501. 00 4. The frequency distribution below was constructed from data collected from a group of 25 students. Height in InchesFrequency 58 633 64 695 70 752 76 816 82 874 88 933 94 992 a. Construct a relative frequency distribution. b. Construct a cumulative frequency distribution. c. Construct a cumulative relative frequency distribution. Answers: | | |a. |b. |c. | | | | |Cumulative | |Height | |Relative |Cumulative |Relative | |(In Inches) |Frequency |Frequency |Frequency |Frequency | |58 63 | 3 |0. 12 |3 |0. 12 | |64 69 | 5 |0. 0 |8 |0. 32 | |70 75 | 2 |0. 08 |10 |0. 40 | |76 81 | 6 |0. 24 |16 |0. 64 | |82 87 | 4 |0. 16 |20 |0. 80 | |88 93 | 3 |0. 12 |23 |0. 2 | |94 99 | 2 |0. 08 |25 |1. 00 | | | |1. 00 | | | 5. The grades of 10 students on their first manag ement test are shown below. |94 |61 |96 |66 |92 | |68 |75 |85 |84 |78 | a. Construct a frequency distribution. Let the first class be 60 69. b. Construct a cumulative frequency distribution. c. Construct a relative frequency distribution. Answers: | |a. |b. |c. | | | |Cumulative |Relative | |Class |Frequency |Frequency |Frequency | |60 69 | 3 | 3 |0. 3 | |70 79 | 2 | 5 |0. | |80 89 | 2 | 7 |0. 2 | |90 99 | 3 |10 |0. 3 | |Total |10 | |1. 0 | 6. You are given the following data on the ages of employees at a company. Construct a stem-and-leaf display. |26 |32 |28 |45 |58 | |52 |44 |36 |42 |27 | |41 |53 |55 |48 |32 | 42 |44 |40 |36 |37 | Answer: 2 | 678 3 | 22667 4 | 0124458 5 | 2358 7. Construct a stem-and-leaf display for the following data. |12 |52 |51 |37 |47 |40 |38 |26 |57 |31 | |49 |43 |45 |19 |36 |32 |44 |48 |22 |18 | Answer: 1 | 289 2 | 26 3 | 12678 4 | 0345789 5 | 127 8. For the following observations, plot a scatter diagram and indicate what kind of relationship (if any) exist between x and y. xy 27 619 39 517 411 Answer: A positive relationship between x and y appears to exist.

Historical and non

Historical and non Among the problems concerning education and all the issues connected with it, one can single out two basic types of problems. The first one embraces the issues which each generation encounters, no matter how far the progress has stepped, whereas the second type of problems is, vice versa, closely interconnected with the complexities of the epoch.Advertising We will write a custom article sample on Historical and non-Historical Issues in Education specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Among the former, such everlasting issues as cheating during test can be taken as an example; as for the latter, one of the current problems of the modern education is the price which students have to pay for it. Choosing the article which deserves being discussed widely and published in the journal, it is necessary to evaluate each of the issues. Dealing with the problem of the increasing costs for studying, the article describes the state of students who are forced to work and study at the same time in the most impressive way. Thus, the article reveals important social problems brewing in the modern society since the time when higher education has become the major asset of employees. As Martin marks, Unfortunately, the decline in student quality is accompanied by costs that are out of control, a governance system that will not permit any reallocation of resources, and a society that expects higher education to address problems that are well beyond its core competencies.† (Martin 262) Thus, it can be considered that the given article deals with an issue of paramount importance for modern students. However, it must be admitted that the given article does not suggest any way out of the problem – it merely enumerates the difficulties connected with high costs for education and defines the goals of higher education. Compared to the abovementioned article, the second one deals with the subject of lesser social tenseness. Yet the issue of the given article has raised debates since the very foundation of the educational system of the country. As you might have already guessed, the conversation touches upon the problem of cheating at exams. Old as the hills, the problem is considered both from the psychological and the practical point of view in the article. One of the most valuable features of the article is the fact that the author is not moralizing, but merely explains the consequences of cheating.Advertising Looking for article on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Using cribs during exams, students fool themselves first, the author explains. Choosing between the wish to know the subject better and to get a good mark, one must follow the common sense, not the desire to pass the exam and forget everything one has been taught. As Davis mentioned, â€Å"Certainly the stresses and pressures for good grades have not diminished during t he past several decades.† (71) It is also essential that the author tries to make students think of their future professional career and their professional authority. The author also emphasizes the moral aspect, driving an example of a doctor who used to cheat during his examinations. Thus, calling the readers to think of their future jobs and professional ethics, the author creates a vision of studying without cheating. Summarizing the effect produced by both of the articles, one could say that each of them is a valuable study in the sphere of education, yet each touching upon absolutely different issues. In spite of the fact that the abovementioned aspects of studying are both worth serious considerations, it is obvious that the first article deals with the issue demanding urgent solution. Both bearing social significance and enhancing positive changes in the sphere of education, it deserves publishing most. Once people recognize the financial problem of education, they will be able to contribute to its solution, whereas the problem of cheating is far too old to be solved in a blink of an eye. Davis, Stephen F., et al. Cheating in School: What we Know and What We Can Do.  New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons, 2009. Print. Martin, Edward Robert. Cost Control, College Access, and Competition in Higher  Education. Camberley, UK: Edward Edgar Publishing, 2005. Print.

ACT Test Results How to Get and Interpret Your Results

ACT Test Results How to Get and Interpret Your Results SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips If you took the ACT recently, you’re probably eager to see how you did so you can send your scores to colleges or prepare for the next test date. But how do you get your score report, and what’s the best way to interpret your scores? In this article, I’ll go through how and when you can get your report, what’s on it, and how to get the most out of the information you’re given. How Do I Get My ACT Scores? Your multiple choice scores will be available online in your ACT Web Account about two weeks after you take the ACT.If you took Writing, those scores are available about two weeks after your multiple choice scores (so four weeks, give or take, after the test).The ACT says score reports are usually available 2-8 weeks after the test, which seems like a huge window. They're just trying to account for weird circumstances that sometimes cause scores to take longer, like an irregularity at your test center or answer documents from your test center arriving late. Barring anything out of the ordinary, you should expect to see your scores online no later than four weeks after the ACT.After this point, you can start sending them to schools. Unfortunately, there isno way to speed up the actual scoring process; you can only use rush reporting to send scores to colleges after your scores are released. What Will Be on My ACT Score Report? The first thing you’ll see on your score report is your composite score. This is the large number on the top left in the box labeled â€Å"Your ACT Scores†.You’ll also get a set of percentages with your composite score.These percentages give you your score percentile as compared to students in your state (the first bar) and in the US as a whole (the second bar). It's the percentage of students who were at or below your score level on the test. Next, you’ll see your scores broken down by section. English is split into two categories of questions: Usage/Mechanics and Rhetorical Skills Math is split into three categories of questions: Pre-Algebra/Elementary Algebra, Algebra/Coordinate Geometry, and Plane Geometry/Trigonometry Reading is split into two categories of questions: Social Studies/Sciences and Arts/Literature Science doesn’t have any breakdown of categories. It just lists one score for the whole section. For English, Math, and Reading, you'll see a score for each section and then scores for the categories beneath the sections (for Science there's only the one complete score).For each test section score and question category score you'll also see a bar that shows you your score percentile. The question category subscores can range from 1-18, and the test section scores range from 1-36 just like your full composite score.Note that the scores you see for the categories under each test section score don't necessarily add up to the section score. Your Writing score will be listed below all of these scores if you took the ACT with Writing.This score is reported on a scale of 2-12 (starting with the September 2016 ACT). There are four domain categories below the Writing score, each of which is also scored from 2-12. The ACT averages these scores to arrive at your final score out of 12. Just like with the other sections, you'll see percentile bars next to each of these scores to indicate how you compare to other students. Below your main scores, you'll see an "ELA score" and a "STEM score." The ELA score is the average of your English, Reading, and Writing (converted to a value out of 36) scores. The STEM score is the average of your Math and Science scores. Both of these are recorded on a scale of 1-36. Consult the ACT websiteto see an example of what a real score report looks like. What Do I Do With This Information From My ACT Results? So you have all these numbers, but who cares? How can they help you do better next time?If you know where your weak spots lie, it’s going to be much easier to focus your studying.Here are a couple examples of actions you might take based on what you see on your score report: Case #1: You Aced Algebra But Missed a Lot of Trigonometry Questions This indicates that you have a content-based problem with trigonometry. Maybe you didn’t know all the formulas or you're not familiar with the best strategies to solve these types of problems.Review all the formulas you need to know for ACT Math as related to trigonometry. Also review what’s tested on ACT Math, and make sure you’re familiar with all the material. If you see something you feel shaky on, try some practice questions for that topic.Look intothese strategies for improving your math performance as well. Case #2: You Did Well on English, But your Writing Score Was Low The essay can be one of the toughest aspects of the ACT, especially because it comes at the end of the test when you’re tired already. Though the ELA subscore doesn't affect your overall ACT score, many top colleges are still interested in your performance on the essay. If you had trouble with the essay, take a look at these tips for improving your score.Since you did well on the English section, you probably don’t have a problem with grammar and sentence structure. You might just need to work on organizing your thoughts better overall and providing better examples to support your argument. Case #3: You Struggled with Science and Reading If you had issues with these sections, it probably means you need to work on reading passages more efficiently and interpreting them correctly.Check out these strategies for bothscience passages and reading passages.The Science and Reading sections actually require similar skills, namely skimming over information and making fast-paced judgments about the content. If you think the time constraints caused you to miss questions, review these strategies for time management on both sections. Experiment with different strategies for approaching ACT science passages...heh A Final Word on Score Reports Your score report is a helpful study tool that will give you more information about areas on the test where you need to make improvements.It might also be a good idea to order Test Information Release for the ACT, which provides a more in-depth look at your scores and the specific questions you missed. Read more about this service here. Compare your score report to your target scores so you can see how much you need to study before the next test! What's Next? If you're trying to figure out when you should take the ACT again, use this guide to find out which test date is right for you. Check out these study plans to get an idea of how you might plan out your prep in advance of the next test date. Frustrated with your score? Learn how to get a perfect 36 on the ACT, and check out these more detailed guides on doing well on ACT English, Math, Reading, and Science. Want to improve your ACT score by 4+ points? Download our free guide to the top 5 strategies you need in your prep to improve your ACT score dramatically. Have friends who also need help with test prep? Share this article! Tweet Samantha Lindsay About the Author Samantha is a blog content writer for PrepScholar. Her goal is to help students adopt a less stressful view of standardized testing and other academic challenges through her articles. 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ENVIORNMENTAL REGULATIONS Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

ENVIORNMENTAL REGULATIONS - Coursework Example The absence of minimum wage rate in Singapore is a matter of concern especially for migrant workers. Due to increasing problems of environmental pollution caused by several industries and by industrialization policies pursued since the late 1960s, Malaysia developed its first framework environmental legislation called the Environmental Quality Act 1974. During the start of its life, the act took major steps to curb the ever increasing pollution in the country and it was not until 1987 that the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedures were introduced to undertake preventative measures as well. Section 34A of the Environmental Quality (Amendment) Act 1985 makes it obligatory for anyone who wishes to undertake some activity to conduct a study to weigh the environmental impacts that the activity will have and the measures to be undertaken. The Malaysian EIA procedures are comparable to the National Environmental Policy Act 1969 (NEPA) model of the USA (Memon, n.d.). The number of environmental laws has grown rapidly and may be sufficient in number but not in quality. These laws have been unable to curb the ever increasing pollution in Malaysia. One of the reasons is that the legislation was mainly passed to cover and address situations as they arose with time, not to address the core environmental issues. There are also a significant number of breaches of environmental law but enforcement action is extremely low: to date only 5 cases are reported in the law reports of Malaysia under the heading of environmental law (Bt. Maidin, 2005). Singapore’s environmental issues are typical of an urbanized city. The issues relate to pollution from industrialization and urbanization and the protection of nature areas. The overall environmental management lies with the Ministry of Environment (ENV) established in 1970 which has become a full-fledged ministry and is responsible for a number of areas such as providing infrastructure for waste management, and

School bullying Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

School bullying - Essay Example The types of school bullying can be multiple and usually they are classified into the three which are verbal, physical and emotional offences. As far as kids are pretty inventive, the particular actions they do in order to offend someone can be various from spreading dirty rumors to straight hitting. Although, it is important to take note of the fact that not only school students are those bullies but even teachers and parents can become stakeholders of the conflict. In fact, this tendency is rather strange because adults are expected to be rational and moral but it turns out that grown up people can often use kids in order to boost their self-esteem. Indeed the cruel treatment of peers has always been a problem of children’s communities and, perhaps, the reason for this is that in such way kids learn how to survive later in adult society. The main issue here is that bullying might become rather contradictory thing and might play a role of social identifier of stronger and weaker personalities or even work like a kind of natural selection. On the other hand the kids being treated cruelly can gain many mental traumas and complexes which afterwards will influence their social functioning or even can destroy it. It is important to note that as far as the subject of the issue is actually the bullying that happens at schools, a reasonable conclusion is that bullying doesn’t let children study normally. It turns out that the main educational function of school is being interrupted because kids are simply scared of going to schools. The reason why the bullying should be prevented is because even though it can be a part of natural selection, still we don’t live in wild environment and the traumatized kids are going to stay in our society and form it. Thus, if their amount is growing every day, it is hard to imagine what our society will look like in a decade. Recent

Education in the United States Essay Example for Free

Education in the United States Essay India has made large strides in educating its population of more than a billion people, yet a lot remains to be done. It is commonplace now that education is both intrinsically valuable and also instrumental for economic well-being, and this is true for individuals and entire nations. No country in the world has been able to develop without the spread of mass education. An educated population is a prerequisite for take-off into high economic growth. Table 1 in the appendix shows literacy rates for India as a whole and by sex. It also shows the decadal rates of change from 1901 to the present. 2 Literacy rates have increased for both males and females, and though the latter continues to lag behind the former, there has been a narrowing of the male-female gap in literacy: from 24. 8% in 1991 to 21. 7% in 2001. In 2001, the absolute number of illiterates declined historically for the first time by nearly 32 million. In terms of state-wise performance, Kerala continues to occupy first rank as it has done historically; on the other hand, densely populated states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar are yet to overcome their educational inertia. 3 The average figures for India as a whole hide a great deal of variation among states. Table 2 in the appendix provides literacy rates for states for the years 1991 and 2001, for the population as a whole, by sex and also provides the decadal rate of change. In 2001, Kerala, Maharashtra and Himachal Pradesh had more than 75% of their population of 7+ years literate. On the other hand, even in 2001, less than half of Bihar’s population of seven years and above was literate with female literacy rate only 33. 6%. In terms of zones, states in the South and West outperform states in the North and East. 2. Primary Education Primary education refers to the education of children between the ages 6-11 years (grades 1-5). Universalization of Primary Education (UPE) is a constitutional provision in India and there has been a steady expansion in the spread of primary education since Indian independence in 1947. The Indian educational system is the second largest in the world after China. In 2001-02, there were nearly 0. 66 million primary schools in India 1 This study has been undertaken as part of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals Project. 2 Before the 1991 census, only those belonging to the age-group 0-4 years were excluded from the population in order to compute literacy rates and the basis of the computation was the entire population. From the 1991 census onward, literacy rates were computed based on the population aged 7+ years and above. 3 In Bihar, Nagaland and Manipur as well as Delhi and Chandigarh, the absolute number of illiterates has increased in the 1990s. 4 providing access to 84% of habitations with a primary school located within a distance of one kilometer. Between 1997 and 2002, the gross primary school enrolment rate4 for India was 111 for males and 92 for females. The net primary school enrolment rate5 on the other hand was only 78 for males and 64 for females. The net primary school attendance rate between 1999 and 2002 was 79 for males and 73 for females. However, of the children who entered primary school, only 68% reached grade 5 between 1995 and 1999 (UNICEF, 2004). Table 3 provides data on gross primary school enrolments by sex between 1950-51 and 2001-2002. As can be seen from the table there has been a steady increase in the numbers of boys and girls attending primary school over time. In Table 4, state-wise enrolment of boys and girls as a percentage of their age-group is provided for 1997-1998. Girls’ enrolment has been steadily increasing over time and in 2001-02, nearly 45% of girls in the age-group 6-11 were enrolled in school. These statistics are heartening because at least until the 1990s, one of the most dismal aspects of India’s education system was the large percentage of the population in the younger age groups that were out of school. Socio-economic disparities Despite the strong constitutional backing for the provision of primary education in India6 and its expansion over time, the system is characterized not only by low achievements but also by large unevenness of achievements. Huge gaps remain between rural and urban areas, and the probability of getting any education at all sharply depends on gender, caste and income. Women, scheduled castes and tribes and the poor are faced with formidable barriers when it comes to getting basic education. Of the 200 million children in the age group 6-14, it is estimated that 59 million are out of school. Of these 35 million are girls and 24 million are boys (Ministry of Human Development, GOI). Apart from socio-economic determinants, the educational infrastructure and the management and the governance of the educational system in India are far from efficient or sufficient. The government is the largest provider of education in India with only about 10% of primary schools owned by the private sector. 7 The quality of education provided by the public education system is low which translates into low educational abilities even for those who are able to complete primary education cycle. Moreover, there is a lot of ‘waste’ in the educational system with dropout rates as high as 40% for the country as a whole and in some Indian states, they are as high as 75%. Though the number of primary 4 Gross primary school enrolment rate is computed as the number of children enrolled in primary school regardless of age divided by the population of that age group. 5 Net primary school enrolment rate is computed as the number of children in that age group enrolled in primary school divided by the population of that age group. 6 In 2002, the Supreme Court of India decreed that free primary education was a constitutional right. 7 Around 3% of private schools are aided by the government, which makes government intervention in the education sector even greater. 5 schools in the country increased, more than 1 lakh8 habitations still do not have access to a primary school within a distance of one kilometer. Teacher-pupil ratios are inadequate: less than 2 teachers are available in rural areas to teach a class size of around 100 students. Teacher motivation and teaching incentives are also very weak. India perhaps has the highest rate of teacher truancy in the world. Poverty and Education. Empirical evidence strongly shows that, both at the level of the household as well as at the level of the country, there is a positive relationship between income (and wealth) and educational attainment. More income simply means more resources available to spend on the acquisition of education. With more than 250 million people in India living on less than a $1 a day, poverty remains a major barrier to educational access. Although education is provided ‘free’ by the government, the cost of uniforms, textbooks and transportation costs are beyond the reach of many households (Tilak, 2004). Added to these direct costs are the indirect (opportunity) costs of wage/domestic labor which children perform and the costs of acquiring education become considerable for households. Graphs 1 and 2 in the appendix show simple regressions of literacy rates for sixteen states against state poverty rates and state per capita income for 2001. As is expected, literacy rates decline with poverty and rise with per capita incomes. State per capita incomes seem to explain literacy rates better than poverty rates. Filmer and Pritchett (2001) using Demographic Health Survey data for India find that the gap in enrolment between the highest and the lowest wealth class is as much as 52 percentage points. Gupta (2003) using the 52nd round of National Sample Survey data finds that the percentage of people who have completed five years of schooling declines as one descends consumption deciles. In the lowest consumption decile, the proportion of people who have not completed the primary school cycle is greater than 80%. 9 While poverty status and income class are strong determinants of who goes to school and for how long, they do not make up the whole story. Indian states of Kerala and Himachal Pradesh even with fewer resources at their disposal have been able to achieve much better educational and health outcomes compared to rich states such as Punjab and Haryana in India. This is true even when we look at cross-country outcomes. For example, Sri Lanka and Botswana do much better in education and health terms than would be predicted based on their level of resources; the Latin American countries do much worse given their resources (Mehrotra and Jolly, 1998). 8 One lakh is equal to 100,000. 9. These graphs are meant to be illustrative of the association between resources and education and do not claim any direction of causality. The relationship between resources and educational attainment is bidirectional. The poor cannot afford schooling. With little human capital, the opportunities to escape persistent poverty are very restricted and the poor can be trapped in a low education, low income vicious cycle across generations. A large literature has analyzed both theoretically and empirically persistence of poverty inter-generationally due to lack of resources to invest in education.

Essay --

Gender roles have been a predominant factor in our world since the early emergence of human societies whether they are positive or negative. They are based on expectations that societies have over the people in them. The Epic of Sunjata, shows us how men and women are treated almost equally in different forms. Women are praised for their ability to birth leaders, which is similar to the early Greek Society. In most societies, women are treated less equal than men. This was prevalent in the early Indian society. No matter the gender role, it has been shown that any society cannot survive without both men and women. As we studied in class, early Indian culture and society in 300 C.E., the Hindu society was dominated by the caste system, which influenced almost every aspect of life. Each caste had its own particular dharma, carrying with rights, obligations and restrictions. Beyond this was a generalized dharma applicable to all: deference to the Brahmins, devotion to the gods, and reverence for the Ganges and for sacred cattle (Connections, Pg. 58). Procreation too, was considered a sacred duty: large families were seen as blessings from the gods, and any attempt to limit family size was frowned upon (Connections, Pg. 58). Since reproduction was essential to reincarnation, for most people marriage and parenthood were moral obligations. Naturally, to fulfill their dharma, people had to marry within their caste. Parents arranged proper unions for their children, sometimes at ages as young as eight or nine, before sexual attraction had a chance to complicate things. Indian society was patriarchal, centered on villages and extended families dominated by males (Connections, Pg. 4). The villages, in which most people lived, were admini... ...re treated poorly but they can overcome their circumstances so that they may still contribute to society in a powerful way. Although women in the epic Sunjata, Indian and Greek society are all seen as the subordinate gender, the women in the epic Sunjata are strong people by making the best out of situations. Some could say that women control the story. In the beginning, the hunters would not have killed the buffalo woman if not instructed to. Also, if Sogolon hadn’t pressured Sunjata to stand, he wouldn’t have walked his all his life. Throughout history, women have been mistreated as the weaker gender. It has been evident throughout the epic of Sunjata, the history of Greek society as well as Indian society. It is evident today with the social classes we have formed that there are predominant gender roles in our society; history as we know tends to repeat itself.

Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response in Schools Essay

The professional nurse uses clinical judgment and decision making skills to provide appropriate nursing care and collaborates with other health care professionals responding to the emergency or disaster. The purpose of this paper is to outline the professional nurse’s role and how the nurse works with other responding personnel as well as the community affected in the event of a tornado that affects a school. The Role of the Nurse A disaster is defined as any natural or human-made incident that causes disruption, destruction, and/or devastation requiring external assistance (Stanhope, 2012). Schools are generally considered a safe haven for the children attending, but various types of emergencies can occur within the school walls that impact the school and the surrounding community. Severe weather can be a natural disaster when it produces tornadoes. Tornadoes have proven to be large scale disasters, causing problems ranging from loss of power to major structural damage and resulting in physical injuries, including loss of life. Tornadoes outside of a school setting cause severe damage and casualties, but when the tornado hits a school it becomes a disaster setting for all school personnel and the school nurse. The school nurse immediately is looked at when there is any type of medical emergency. When there is an entire school that has been affected by destruction like a tornado, the school nurse is most definitely overwhelmed with patients. The nurse must be prepared and work closely with all responding personnel to ensure a timely response to all affected, inside the school and the parents affected outside the school. The school nurse is an expert in the nursing process and should utilize these steps in order to care for all involved in a disaster like this. The professional nurse, through her education, should be prepared to utilize the nursing process (assess, plan, implement, evaluate). It is critical the school nurse knows his/her role prior to the disaster. His/her role includes triage, coordination of the first aid response team, and direct hands-on care to the victims of the emergency. The school nurse also plays an important role in the mental health support for the students and faculty involved during the emergency and in the recovery phase of the emergency. The nurse must be able to identify with and be able to communicate with all responding healthcare personnel. The responding will include, but is not limited to, firefighters, both paid and volunteer, EMS personnel, Emergency Management Personnel, law enforcement, and local healthcare providers, such as physicians and nurses. The school board office will also have responding personnel to the scene as well. The main goal of the professional nurse is to communicate with all responding personnel and ensure that everyone involved in the response clearly knows their role and who they should report to. Nursing Strategies Every community can always improve in their response to emergencies and disasters. Planning before the disaster hits is the key. Preparations for a facility’s response to an emergency involving realistic training exercises, (O’Boye, 2006) can greatly reduce anxiety levels and increase the likelihood of more positive results. Some examples of emergency and disaster planning includes, but is not limited to, mock exercises, more interagency cooperation in the mock exercises, identifying how we, as a community, will respond, who would be in charge of communications, who would be in charge of logistics, and a list of every one’s role in the emergency response (Laureate, 2012). The school nurse is in a leadership position to provide continuous coordination and training of all school personnel as well as the communities involved as part of the school’s emergency plan. Implementing the National Incident Command system into the school’s emergency plan is vital. This system includes universal protocols and language (Stanhope, 2012). This system acknowledges the need for mutual aid response and allows for easy to understand communication and description of roles no matter what agency or community the responders come from. This system should be implemented in every school because when a disaster strikes, especially at a school, people come from all over the country to render aid and this system provides a framework that everyone can understand. Summary The school nurse’s assistance in community-wide planning groups is helpful in the facilitation of a rapid, coordinated, effective emergency response within the framework of the Incident Command System. This includes establishing standard emergency response plans and participating in skills, drills and exercises to evaluate the response capabilities of a school, as well as the effectiveness of the plan (NASN, 2013). Disasters occurring at schools create a larger scale disaster because not only is there the disaster inside the school, but there is also a disaster created outside the school from all of the parents wanting answers that sometimes takes hours to produce the answers to. Planning is the key and the school nurse is in the position to help in the planning of the response plan in these disasters.

Cognitive Organizers Essay

Cognitive Organizers are powerful teaching and learning tools. They encourage active learning, demonstrate that knowledge is interconnected, facilitate group work, accommodate individual learning styles and engage students in higher order thinking. They can be used before, during or following instruction. Using cognitive organizers before instruction is an exciting way of introducing lessons and also cues students about the lessons and activities to come after. It also facilitates discussions among the students, as each person is given the opportunity to share their experience or knowledge on the various concepts. Further, cognitive organizers can be used as prereading and prewriting strategies to activate background knowledge or generate interest among the students. Concurrently, when teachers use cognitive organizers, they help students access prior knowledge and previous experiences, hence giving the students a framework of knowledge upon which to build. It may also serve as a motivation for the students as they are involved and interacting in the formation of the cognitive organizer and using their critical thinking skills. Cognitive organizers involve students in predicting relations and also help them make connections between various concepts. Furthermore, when cognitive organizers are use during instruction, students are able to connect better with the information being received. It also clarifies the relationships of ideas and assists many students with remembering the ideas easier. Moreover, students’ comprehension and recall of the concept or subject matter at hand is improved and developed. Additionally, Shalaway (1997), states that cognitive organizers can be used following instruction, as a way of assessment on the concept or area. Students will indeed enjoy this innovative and exciting way of assessment, hence giving way for better grades. Also, after a lesson or unit, a cognitive organizer can help students assimilate and reflect upon the new knowledge gained.

Application of skills †Education Evaluation, Test Administration

Application of skills – Education Evaluation, Test Administration Introduction Educational evaluation is the methodical measurement of educational activities in order to determine the outcome. The starting point of evaluation is based on the instruction program adopted, the goals of education and the initiative of the school towards education. Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Application of skills – Education Evaluation, Test Administration specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Educational evaluation aims at assessing the merits of educational programs as well as the impacts of the initiatives. One way through which evaluation of skills can be achieved is through test administration. There are various types of assessment both formal and informal which can be used by educators to gauge the outcome of educational activities such as reading. Formative Assessment This is a type of assessment where the results of evaluation are used for revision purposes with the aim of improving the performance of learners. This process of assessment is diagnostic in that it provides feedback to teachers as well as learners in the course of instruction. As a result, the skills tested in reading are improved with time (Center for Educational Research and Innovation, 2005, p. 251). Purpose of formative assessment in reading A teacher will often want to know the progress of the students during a reading session. Formative assessment offers grounds for identification of the learning outcome of the students in time. Therefore it is possible to determine their performance. When the teachers are aware of the students’ progress and the problems arising from comprehension, they can use this information in making essential instructional improvements such as remedial teaching, change of instructional methods or reviewing instructional objectives (Boston, 2002, p. 3). Formative assessment is also significant in identifying and helping students who are low achievers as well as those with learning disabilities. This is successful when the teacher adopts different methods which facilitate effective learning for such students. In administering formative assessment, teachers are interested in getting feedback of the learning activities. This feedback helps the learners to be aware of the existing loop holes in relation to the set goals and their current position in terms of skills, knowledge and comprehension. As a result, the student is motivated to take the necessary action directed towards achieving the set goal.Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In administering formative assessment, there are specific considerations to be observed. These include the level of students to be assessed, the content to be assessed and the resources available for assessment. All these determine the strategies to be used in an assessment (Boston, 2002, p. 4). In reading, the b asic skill measured is on the student’s understanding of the read text. A teacher can use brainstorming prior to reading a text for the students to have a picture in mind related to the text. After reading, well ordered questions can be asked concerning the text to gauge the understanding of learners. For instance, in Pollock’s story, ‘Betsy Brandon meets the president’, a brainstorm session would require learners to respond to questions regarding a meeting with a very important person and how they would feel if they were to meet the president. With regard to test 1, of Pollock’s story, the questions are well ordered testing from those which require simple recall of facts by the student such as question one and two. The teacher then goes to question three which tests the student’s vocabulary development and finally to question four, five and six which require the learner to go further by giving a simple critique to test their analysis of th e story. In a formative assessment test such as test 1, every response from the leaner is reinforced by verbal praise or other forms of rewards to encourage participation of learners. Conclusion Evaluation in education is an important aspect worth incorporating. Reading comprehension and formative assessment help both the students and the teachers to know their position in the academic endeavor. Educators should therefore make use of this type of assessment so as to improve learner’s comprehension skills in reading. Reference List Boston, C. (2002). The concept of formative assessment. Journal of Practical Assessment, Research Evaluation. 8(9): 1-5.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Application of skills – Education Evaluation, Test Administration specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Center for Educational Research and Innovation, (2005). Formative assessment. Improving learning in secondary schools. Par is, France: O.E.C.D.

HR Management Organizational Culture Essay

HR Management Organizational Culture Essay HR Management: Organizational Culture Essay Organizational culture can be explained as the sum of beliefs, attitudes, traditions and behaviour of an organization. It is the summation of a company’s goals and the behavioural change of the organization in the process of achieving these goals. It therefore concentrates on human behaviour in organization, how the people interact in the organization and the organization itself (Alvesson, 2002). The arrangement of the organization is also important because it through the structure that issues such as efficiency and effectiveness of the company can be achieved. This is usually done by the process of harmonization and control of the entity. Organizational structure usually deals with issues such as the size, technological aspects, the pattern of activities, strategies, and the concentration of decision making power and also supporting features. It also tries to harmonize these differences for the overall best performance for an organization. People do not work alone but are in contact with other persons and the organization in several ways such as fellow employees, managers, policies and changes put in place by the organization. To make the overall success of an organization, it is necessary to make sure of successful implementation of the policies and harmonization of these factors to the policies and goals. Realistic decision formulation theory: This school of thought puts emphasis on problem identification, action plan formulation, alternative plan formulation and implementation and an overall mechanism for monitoring the progress of the so formulated plans. By going through the problem identification all the way to solution logically helps in proper implementation process of ideas which have been given a proper incubation period to contribute. Decisions made properly will consequently give yield to better results and improve the organization’s performance. According to Plantinga (1993b, 144-145), he put forward the criticism that the level of rationality usually differs from one person to another. Consequently, what appears rational in an organization in respect to another may be different to another. In addition, Plantiga also added that it is in the nature of people to comply with the decisions and rules set within an organization but this does not necessary warrant that they agree with the decisions in regard to the firm. The company can apply the Maslow’s ladder of requirements that was formulated by Abraham Maslow to appeal to the staff, the management needs to concentrate more on what the employees in the firm need. If the management needs the staff to participate in certain activities and behaviour then it should correctly identify and appease the needs of the staff (Maslow, 1954, p. 47). The management needs to identify the needs in a hierarchical order and will need to satisfy the lower hierarchy needs before it proceeds to the next level. Therefore, one cannot achieve self actualization until the lower hierarchical needs are met (McClelland, 1962). By attending to needs such as time to socialise with co-workers and secure work environment only once they have been achieved can the staff achieve better self esteem and hence better staff motivation. Mismatched motivation efforts and hierarchy need then these results to unsatisfied needs and consequently poorly motivated staff. The areas of criticism for this theory may be attributed to the fact that it does not put into consideration the part organizational cultures plays in the success and activity of the firm. The theory also ignores the fact that people who are deprived may still strive to attain self actualization. This is because self actualization is innate in people and this does not necessarily mean that just because one is deprived they cannot attain self realization (Kane-Urrabazo, 2006). How Maslow attained those five categories is also another area that has raised disagreement. The accuracy of the needs and also order of those needs do not include an in depth study of the needs and order from a scientific point of view. There has been no evidence to point of the direction of a study being done by Maslow (Behling Schriesheim, 2001). Another point that is pointed out was the measurements needs. To quantify things such as love, security among other needs is nearly impossible to achieve. In addition, there may be some needs that also overlap like when he states that physical needs and safety needs. These two will have a point of intersection and this can be difficult to tear apart (Kane-Urrabazo, 2006). The personality theory urges that so as to improve group performance, the managers should choose only the staffs that possess the right skills and trait geared more too self achievement. The effort made by a person to ensure that the task at hand is accomplished can be used a san measure of how much they are motivated towards success. Staff with a strong achievement orientation work hard to achieve socially accepted success and activities. Therefore, finished assignment, solved work problems usually means better performance of the organization and a successful one for that matter (Behling, Schriesheim, 2001). The five factor model (openness, extraversion, neuroticism, agreeableness and conscientiousness) (Rita, Richard, Edward, Smith, Bem Susan, 2000) determines the level of performance across most jobs. It is exemplary good at gauging the level of success experienced at any given company. Staff with higher achievement levels set high individual goals and also put in effort and time so as to achieve them. Individuals with such characteristics are on wonder the one getting promotions in the work place. With a staff with such qualities essentially means a greater successful organization that once goals are set, the employees do not settle until they have been achieved. The leaders can only manage to get such group of people right from the hiring process such as getting people with high score. With such, it is expected that an aggressive bosses will set aggressive goals with their staff and the staff will work hard to achieve them. It should not come as a surprise when you find the same staff going back to class or learning other trades related to the organization (Chavan, 2009). One critic of the hypothesis is that personality conversion in individuals is inevitable. The characters that one meets and interacts with in that course of life modify the personality of a person. In addition, it can be very hard to be certain that those same characteristics in the staff are likely to remain the same after a year (Behling Schriesheim, 2001). In addition, the measurements of these five traits do not necessary give a forecast of the individual behaviour. A person may exhibit the personality of being an extrovert but the reality is that the person is an introvert. This will in turn affect the communication transmission within the organization (Ybema, 2011). On the other hand, the personality of a person is affected by the situation one finds them in. During an interview, a potential employee may exhibit those personalities but upon arrival in the work place, the person is different from the expected (Ybema, 2011). Goal setting theory is perhaps the easiest and common theory of improving staff motivation and improving the company’s performance. The leaders should set clearly the performance goals and objectives and device a systematic way into achieving them. Targets and goals demand attention, effort, development of achievement strategies and exert people’s efforts to achieve them. When the goals set have been attained greater and more difficult tasks are even set (Latham, 1979). A study done by Locke and Latham (2006) showed that specific and difficult goals got higher performance and effort compared to those of do the best you can goals. Devotion to the goals and purposes of the firm was also very important. This is directly proportional to the goals individuals help set so long as the leader had authority, set clear performance levels and had confidence in the staff. Giving a summary on the success and failure of the tasks is also essential. Goals can be set for any activity in an organization such as cost reduction, better service and product quality among others (Locke and Latham, 2006) However, care should be observed to avoiding setting goals that are contradictory because staff can only concentrate only such effort at a time. Goals achieved successfully give the staff a sense of satisfaction and the easier the goals are the easier they are to accomplish compared to more tough goals. A the same time extremely easy goals which require less effort lowers performance compared to more tough jobs (Alderfer, 1972). The manager’s goal accomplishment expectation affects the level of performance by the staff and company in general. Therefore to improve an individual and consequently the organization performance, the management should set high but attainable goals and also show confidence and give support to the staff about the job being done (Doyle, 2001). Criticism of this theory have been that , one, the theory has been over praised as being effective across all jobs in an organization but in reality some organizations do not agree with this. This is because there are some departments that goal setting might not be the best way of getting jobs done (Day, Sin, Chen, 2004). The theory focuses very much on the specific task. By doing this, the staff might spend too much time in trying to get these tasks done but ignoring other aspects of the organization hence negative consequences (Coulehan, 2004). It is the inborn trait of individuals to only concentrate at one job at a time. However, since this theory advocates for multiple, small goals, the staff will still only achieve a goal at a time even if those two goals need to be achieved simultaneously to impact the organization performance (Doyle, 2001). In addition, the time horizon of jobs does overshadow one another. Taking that organizations fix attention on short term jobs, the long term goals will be affected. This was not put in mind in advancing this theory (Latham, 1979). It has not yet been determined if there is a linear agreement between the level of toughness of goals and job performance. There are times when jobs that are tough may lead to unwanted results in the organization. If the employees fail to reach the set targets, it might lead to unwanted effects on them in that they may develop poor self esteem among others (Latham, 1979). Generation of counterpoise scorecards is another theory. Financial performance is not the only way to assess the performance of organizations. By concentrating only on one such indicator will affect the other indicators and will suffer in the long run. It can take a short time to indicate the financial performance of an organization but other key organization indicator performance are little mentioned. They include satisfaction of the customer, turnover of employees among others. According to Norton and Kaplan, setting goals for all of such indicators will results to improved operational and financial performance (Coulehan, 2004). This theory has been critiqued in that it lowers the certainty levels in an ever changing environment. There have been investigations carried out and they do affect the manager’s decisions in regard to budgeting plans. Consequently, strategic planning of operational activities is affected in the long run (Doyle, 2001). Conclusion Therefore, strong organizational culture has a positive correlation with the productivity of the organization, the staff, environment of the workplace and even staff motivation. This can be achieved by a strong incentive programs, fairness in policies and also good leadership. A motivated employee works more and harder, gives better results and also maintains a good attitude than a person who is not motivated. To understand the organizational culture in favour of staff motivation and hence overall improvement in the organization performance, the management requires having an in-depth understanding of the goals, needs and expectation of the staff and also the organization. Policy fairness is very important in creating a safe work place and also a great factor that contributes to motivation and hence improved company performance. Therefore, the way the structure of the organization is determines a lot how the culture will be. Feel free to enjoy professional Management essay help from academic experts at if you need a high-quality custom written paper. We guarantee non-plagiarized papers!

Land law coursework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Land law coursework - Essay Example This certificate and the registration as the new owner of the property award him all the rights of the house (Dowden 4). His interests in this case are therefore beneficial interests since he is the proprietor of the instrument and hence the legal owner. In case of any court cases, the registration and the transfer of the certificate of registration and ownership will be proof enough of his binding interests in the property above all the others and it overrides the interests of all. Once the ownership rights have been transferred to him, it is up to him therefore to decide what to do with rest of the people who were intertwined with Abigail especially Thomas (her father) and Michael (the tenant). Thomas is a trustee of Abigail in the registered land and he therefore has his own overriding interests in the land and its instruments. His overriding interests in that property are brought about by the fact that the registrar did not record his interests or agreements with his daughter whe n transferring the property from Gareth and this is according to s 78 of the LRA 2002. Thomas assisted Abigail with one fifth of the payment money required to purchase Heavenly Mews and they drafted an express trust. The form of express trust drafted however was not revealed and hence the interest which Thomas has in the instrument is not known. There are different forms of trust which according to English Law may have been drafted in this scenario by the father and daughter. These trusts must have to mention the beneficiary since it is not a charitable trust that Thomas drafted with his daughter. The interest which Thomas may have on the property of Abigail being a trustee may however not be granted or addressed by the courts. This is because according to the Variation of Trusts Act of 1958, the court lacks power to consent trust ascertained to an individual who is suijuris that is the one who is above the age of consent and who is of sound mind like Abigail (Dowden 64). If the cas e of Savill v Goodall [1993] 1 FLR 755 is to be followed, then Thomas would have claimed his share of the money paid for the house since there was an express trust agreement. The fact that Thomas stayed on and off with his daughter Abigail before she sold the property does not have any effect on the interest according to the act and hence is also not admissible court. The interest therefore remains to be null and void unless Stephen who is the bona fide owner of the property instrument decides to share it or enter into joint tenancy or ownership with him (but it is not a must). The other person who may have an interest on the property once Abigail has sold it is Michael who was a tenant of Abigail for around two months before she sold the house to Stephen. There is no mention of any formality being written that explains the tenancy terms of Michael and Abigail. The case does not state whether the tenancy had commenced or it was to commence in less than three months. In the event tha t it was to commence in less than three months, then the interest will be considered as override interest. If the tenancy in this case was an actual occupation, Michael will have an interest according to Sch 3 para 2 as in the case Abbey National BS v Cann [1991]. If he has this interest, the Stephen will have to assume

Universal truths and God Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Universal truths and God - Essay Example In the essay, On Truth and Lies in a Nonmoral Sense Nietzsche expresses his views on the problem of universal truths and the belief of God as a universal truth. Nietzsche accepts that 'truth' means every idea or view. 'Truth' is exercised by people who have power and can spread it using this power. His various remarks in which terms like 'truth' and God figure can be rendered collectively coherent only if they are viewed as efforts on his part both to accept and analyze the ways in which such terms function in particular domains of discourse.Nietzsche says that something or other means truth of the world, with respect to human nature, or concerning what ordinarily passes for truth, it should not be assumed that his observations about the nature of what ordinarily passes for truth are meant to apply without qualification to these assertions. He considers the latter to have the same sort of warrant that commonplace or scientific 'truths' are suggested to have. (Leary 267). Nietzsche st ates: "every people has a similarly mathematically divided conceptual heaven above themselves and henceforth thinks that truth demands that each conceptual god be sought only within his own sphere" (Nietzsche n.d.). Nietzsche underlines the nature and scope of universal truth, the cognitive significance of perceptual experience and scientific and logical reasoning, and the conditions under which various kinds of knowledge may be considered true, means issues which cannot be settled prior to the consideration of all substantive questions. They can be dealt with properly only within the context of a general understanding of man's nature and his relation to the world, drawing upon their exploration from a variety of perspectives (Leary 270). In the sassy, Nietzsche speaks of 'truth' and 'knowledge", but these terms do not have a single sense and reference in all of their occurrences. In some cases they should be understood as they have traditionally been employed by philosophers with commitments to certain sorts of metaphysical positions of which he is highly critical (Neighbors 227). In other instances they should be understood as referring to what ordinarily passes for 'truth' or 'knowledge' among non-philosophers, and to the most that truth and knowledge can amount to in everyday or scientific affairs. "He [a man] is indifferent toward pure knowledge which has no consequences; toward those truths which are possibly harmful and destructive he is even hostilely inclined" (Nietzsche n.d.). The universal truth holds true of our 'spiritual' faculties - including our cognitive powers, no less than of our more basic functions. He does not present direct arguments for this position; but he would appear to consider at least something of the sort as a consequence of the supposition that there is no transcendent Deity. Once the existence of such a Deity is dismissed, he takes the ground cut out from under anyone who would give a non-naturalistic account of the origin and nature of any of man's faculties (Neighbors 227). There then can be no 'religious sanction and guarantee of our senses and rationality' of the sort to which Descartes and others appealed; and this renders the idea 'that thinking means a measure of actuality' a piece of 'moralistic trustfulness' which is quite without warrant. Thus he considers intellectual integrity to demand not that one refrain from presupposing anything along the lines indicated above (Neighbors 227), but rather that one make these presuppo sitions and not shrink from their consequences for various further philosophical questions, such as those arising in epistemology. "When a god in the shape of a bull can drag away maidens, when even the goddess Athena herself is suddenly seen in the company of Peisastratus then, as in a dream, anything is possible at each moment, and all of nature swarms around man as if it were nothing but a masquerade of the gods" (Nietzsche, n.d.). Any such understanding will

Economic environment effect on Build-a-Bear Essay

Economic environment effect on Build-a-Bear - Essay Example When consumers’ income decrease, then it is expected that their purchasing power will fall thus impacting on the brand negatively. For example, after the financial crisis of 2007/2007, consumers’ income fell remarkably in the United States as a result of closure of companies, laying down of workers and reduction of salaries of wages (Nanto Dick). As a result consumers were unable to spend money buying items in the manner they did before the financial crisis. This is what resulted in the decline in sales of the Build-a- bear company thus negatively affecting its brand. According to the company’s press release the company increased its sales remarkably in the first quarter of 2013 (yahoo finance). Other external factors that affected the company’s brand are savings, debts, employment and credit. All these factors were also greatly influenced by the financial crisis of 2007/2008 thus negatively affecting the company’s brand. This is due to the fact thi s industry dependent highly on consumers’ disposable income (Accuval). How Recent Stock Market Movements have Affected the Company Despite the economic crisis of 2007/2008, the United States of America economy has been recovering gradually. This has been as a result of the austerity and stimulus policies that have been adopted by the United States of America government (Weaver, 189). ... At the same time the company’s sales increased by1.4 dollars more than the previous quarter. This is a remarkable improvement considering the company was performing poorly after the financial crisis of 2007/2008. This is because consumers in the united Sates of America opted for imported toys and other commodities in the industry from countries such as china since they were at a cheaper price. Thus it can be concluded that the recent stock market movements have favored the company. Actions Has the Company been Taking in Response to these Developments and Trends In order to cope with the developments and trends in the economy, the company came up with a number of strategies. Firstly, the company introduced a store design that is new where the company introduced 11 stores which were newly imagined. These stores increased sales to 20 percent in the second quarter. The company expects that by 2013 it will have established the new store design in at least 30 locations and 25 more i n 2014. The company decided to reduce on operational costs by closing up 38 stores in 2012 and transferring the sales of these stores to other stores in the market. The company also remodeled it stores in order to save on cost by reducing the square footage occupied by the stores. It also moved to smaller premises in small malls. Build-a Bear also changed its approach to marketing and advertising in order to increase shopping frequency. The company did this by building their brand through television advertising in its markets in the United States of America 2012 mid October. It also rebalanced its marketing mix in Europe in order to retain existing customers and attract more consumers to their products. This has resulted in the company realizing

The Goods Service Tax In Malaysia

The Goods Service Tax In Malaysia IS THE INTRODUCTION OF THE GOODS SERVICE TAX (GST) IN MALAYSIA GOOD OR BAD? Chapter 1 1.0 INTRODUCTION. In the new global economy, more companies are operating cross border, and as such are faced with the need to deal effectively with many different taxes, often in many different countries, each with different rates, ruling and application. Coupled with this, the regulatory environment is increasingly challenging. The IMF has been trying to push for all countries to adopt the Goods Service Tax (GST), or also known in certain countries as Value Added Tax (VAT), so as to create a more level playing field amongst trading nations. Direct taxes have in the past been used to camouflage à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"protectionism policy of certain countries. High tariff on certain product like motorcar has prevented healthy competition amongst trading nations. The general populations of that country are left without a choice but to consume the local products, as imported products have become more expensive with the high tariff. Often, because of this, the local products tend to be inferior in quality as the re is no real incentive to compete. In the 2005 Budget, the Government of Malaysia announced that GST will be implemented on Jan 1 2007 to replace the current sales and service tax (SST). Following public outcry, on 22 February 2006 it announced a deferment to allow lead time to businesses for potential changes in processes, development of software and personnel training. The first reading of the GST Bill was tabled in December 2009 and the second and third reading is expected in April 2010. The Prime Minister recently announced that the increase in revenue expected from the introduction of GST will be used mainly to finance the hike in Civil Servants salary and to finance other infrastructure works for the benefit of the nation at large. Problem Statement Is GST really needed for Malaysia? If so, how does it affect the general public and the country as a whole? The aim of this paper is to discuss and bring to attention the problems which we might face with the implementation of the GST, or if we are to remain status quo with the SST. Chapter 2 Literature review The Ministry of Finance presented the following information to highlight on GST. It stated that it would be part of the overall tax reform to overcome the inherent weaknesses in the SST and to reduce the reliance on revenue from direct taxes and petroleum. GST is a more efficient and effective tax system as it is self policing and has an in-build cross checking features. It enhances tax compliance and deals with less bureaucracy. It is also a more stable source of revenue compared to income tax and less susceptible to economic downturn due to the consumption nature of the tax. The main types of taxes are direct and indirect taxes. Direct taxes are: Corporate Tax, Personal Income Tax, Real Property Gains Tax and Stamp duty whilst indirect taxes are Tariff (or Customs Duty), Excise Tax, SST (currently practiced in Malaysia) and GST. Contribution from petroleum revenue to total revenue increased from 29.1% (1990) to 40.1% (2008). The current high petroleum revenue is not sustainable as it is a depleting resource therefore and alternative source have to be sought. With the present average birth rate of 2.2, it is expected that by 2030, 12% of the population will be above 60 years old which almost double the current number. The working population paying taxes will therefore reduce, putting a greater burden on a smaller group of people. GST is a broad-based tax that distributes the burden of taxation among a larger section of the population based on consumption. GST preserve the incentive to work and encourages enterprise as it is not a progressive income tax. The tax rate does not increase according to income level; it is flat at the determined rate. It is levied at the production and distribution stages, thereby incorporating a self-policing mechanism that facilitates administration and makes it more difficult to avoid or evade. This further reduces the possibility of revenue loss through understatement of tax evasion. The GST model implemented in Malaysia is not expected to have cascading, or pyramiding, effect as the tax on a particular good depends upon its final value, and not the number of production and distribution channel it passes through. Furthermore, the output tax to be paid will be offset against the input tax, and there is no GST levied over GST. GST is expected to provide a more stable source of revenue as consumption is less affected by economic cycles compared to income tax. It can be an effective tax on the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"shadow economy, as those involved would consume, and thus pay indirect taxes through GST. It is likely that those involved in such activities would buy luxury goods, which would be subjected to GST. The government is cutting its operating expenditure for 2010 by 13%. This shows it is aware of the growing deficit that has widened due to the stimulus package. Recently, Fitch rating agency has cut the rating of the ringgit, which may cause imported inflation if it depreciates, and the International Monetary Fund commented that the GST needs to be implemented urgently. Malaysias budget 2010 reports on GST; is that, it is currently at the final stage of completing the study on the implementation, where analysts are measuring the social impact of its presence in Malaysia. The Malaysian government said that it could be possible for them to implement this in the near future. Looking at Malaysia in a broader scale, GST will not only affect big businesses, but small and medium enterprises (SME) as well. Although there were nimble of past information saying that a food outlet can only charge GST if its annual turnover is above RM3 million (3,000,000 Ringgit Malaysia), the GST compliance requirements and thresholds has not been officially announced. If we were to take into account GSTs implementation into goods and services, we have to assume that it will happen to all stages of the supply chain; which means from the purchase of raw materials or start-up goods all the way to end-user (consumer ready) products available for sale. Ultimately in a product, GSTs charged to every level are passed on to the next person and ultimately, the consumer. A Tax Review Panel was formed in middle of 2005, and it has come out with a Discussion Paper intended for businesses to understand the basic administrative requirements and procedures when GST is implemented so that they know the impact of GST. Secondly, the Tax Review Panel invites the business community and other relevant organizations and associations to review the proposal in that paper. Thirdly, by having a public consultation, it provides an appropriate forum for both the public and private institutions to exchange views with members of the Tax Review Panel so as to understand the rationale behind the proposals initiated. The GST was supposed to be implemented in Malaysia in the year 2007; however the government has to defer the move due to critical reviews by certain quarters. After losing four States to the opposition, it has to tread on a careful path in order not to lose more public support. It cannot afford to make any more major mistake in the wake of its dismal performance in the last General Election. GST is generally known as a tax system which results in regressivity (i.e. people with less pay a greater share of their resources than those with more), in contrast with the ideal aim of progressivity which is generally sought when implementing a tax. It is sometimes argued that a GST system does not work in a poor region such as Africa, where most countries have heavy external debt burdens, malnutrition, civil wars and lack of food and medicines which often result in inhuman living conditions. Nevertheless, with the support of the IMF, VAT/GST systems were designed in many African countries to combat or at least alleviate the adverse effect of VAT/GST regressivity by having a list of exemptions and zero-ratings which apply (generally speaking) to basic foodstuffs and other basic necessities. GST is not always simple to administer, contrary to what the advocates of GST would want countries to believe during the transformation stage. Unless a proper GST administration, supported by modern technology and electronic communication systems can be implemented, GST administration will inevitably be costly for both the Revenue Authorities and the business sector. The output/input mechanism of the GST system, coupled with GST refunds, may provide the ideal opportunity for fraud where corrupt officials and unscrupulous businesses exploit weaknesses in the system. This again results in a defensive attitude from the Revenue Authorities, resulting in bad communication, cash flow and other GST cost. In 1992, a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was signed which reduced import tariffs between ASEAN member countries. In the first three years of the FTA, exports amongst the ASEAN countries grew from US$43 billion to US$80 billion. In 1997, the leaders of ASEAN adopted the vision to build a stable, prosperous and highly competitive economic region, in which there is a free flow of goods, services and investments, a freer flow of capital, equitable economic development and reduced poverty and socio-economic disparities. The plan is to remove all tariffs for the six more developed countries by 2010 and for all countries by 2015. The summit also progressed the efforts to integrate ASEAN with the much larger economies of Asia- Pacific, specifically China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, and New Zealand. China signed a pact to introduce the worlds largest free trade zone by 2010, covering almost two billion people. Japan signed a similar agreement to take effect by 2012. India agreed to join in by 2011. Australia and New Zealand have agreed to talks starting next year to free up trade within a decade. The master plan is to have a free trade zone that can compete with the US and EU. In South East Asia, Malaysia remains one of the few countries yet to adopt the GST system, which would indirectly be in the way, if we want to be part of this master plan. In Malaysia, it was announced that essential goods and services will not be subjected to GST, but fears that GST will spark a chain reaction that will increase the prices of most non-controlled items should not be dismissed. We have seen numerous examples of when there is an increase in a certain commodity; it sparks a price rise in most goods and services. For example, when the petrol price increased to RM2.70, prices of most goods, foods and services were hiked. But after the petrol price dropped, there has not been a substantial correction in the prices of goods, food and services. The relevant ministries are powerless to mitigate the situation and curb the necessary inflation. A recent example is on the removal of the subsidy on white bread resulting in price increase of one loaf of bread by 20 to 30 cents. The Deputy Domestic Trade, Cooperative Consumer Affairs Minister can only comment that the price adjustment was not necessary, urge traders to practice corporate social responsibility and call on the consumers to execute their power in hand. All these statements will not effectively curb excessive profiteering and traders taking opportunity to increase the price of goods and service. The public would want to know how the government intends to avoid the similar predicament What is GST and how does it work? GST is a consumption tax charged on a wide range of domestic international products, goods and services. Its a broad-based tax imposed on every level of a product, from raw materials all the way to finished goods. The proposed implementation of GST will replace the current Malaysian service tax and sales tax. Broadly, GST works by offsetting GST paid on purchases (input tax) against GST due on sales or supplies made (output tax). This is referred to as the credit offset mechanism. The multi tier stages of tax helps to ensure that GST paid by businesses for purchases does not end up being a permanent cost. However, the consumer ultimately bears the burden of the tax. Conceptually, GST is imposed on the value added to goods or services by each separate processor in the production and distribution chain. This can be seen in the simple illustration below. GST to Government RM 4 + RM2 = RM6 (i.e. 4% x RM 100) i.e.4% x RM 150 = RM6 Output tax i.e. 4%x150 Less RM4 Input tax RM2 Net 4% is the assumed standard rate of GST. It is assumed that the entire output is taxable and all input taxes are creditable. FINAL CONSUMER Cost to consumer = RM 156 SUPPLIER Selling price = RM100 GST(4%) = RM 4 Total = RM 104 MANUFACTURER Cost = RM 100 Value added = RM 50 Total = RM 150 GST (4%) = RM 6 Total = RM 156 2.1 SOME CONCERN ABOUT THE INTRODUCTION OF GST. There were some concerns that Malaysians could suffer even more with the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). GST-driven inflation would be a calamity that the struggling lower-income group could do without. The GST Bill was tabled in Parliament at the end of the Budget sitting that ended on 17 December 2009. At its first reading, the bill was just mentioned, but there was no explanation of the bill or any debate. The second reading is when the bill is open for debate and proposed amendments. This may come as early as March 2010 for the GST Bill. Once approved, the new tax can be implemented as early as 2011. The table below lists the governments tax revenue for 2008 which contributed RM112.9 billion or 70 per cent of total government revenue. Government Tax Revenue in 2008 Personal Income Tax  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM 15.0 bil Company Tax  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM 37.7 bil Petroleum Tax  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM 24.2 bil Export and import duties  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   5.4 bil Excise duties  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM 10.7 bil Sales and Services Tax  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM 11.7 bil As shown in the table, the biggest source of tax revenue is company tax, which at 26 per cent of declared profits, currently brings in RM37.7 billion into government coffers. Petroleum tax makes up the second biggest tax item while the tax levied on the 1.5 million individuals who are now currently paying personal income taxes in Malaysia makes up the third biggest. All these taxes are deemed progressive for they tax the richest individuals and the companies that are making profits. Progressive taxes do not burden the poorer sectors of society. Progressive taxes tend to equal out income differences between the rich and the poor in society. It was argued that regressive tax regimes, on the other hand, burden the poor. Sales taxes are generally regressive as they tax consumption and not income. But sales tax in Malaysia has different rates for different types of goods and the government can make them less regressive by levying sales taxes exclusively on good that are consumed by the richer sectors of society such as expensive cars, big houses, overseas travel, expensive restaurants and other luxury items. The Goods and Services Tax, however, is perceived to be even more regressive for it is levied at a flat rate on a very wide range of products including many items that the poorer people need to buy. It might lead to a rise in prices and would definitely hit the poorest the hardest.   As in most countries with the GST in place, a reduction of corporate tax and personal tax will follow suit. This then, is seen as the real reason that the GST is being brought in à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" to make Malaysia more business friendlyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? by cutting corporate tax (which has already been reduced markedly from the 40 per cent level in 1988 to its current 26 per cent). 2.2 LACK OF INFORMATION AND CONFUSION ON GST. The piecemeal release of information is creating great concern among the people and in the business sector. For example; Will the authorities furnish an extensive list of item that will be charged GST, and what will be exempted? If a product, like rice or chicken is exempted, does the exemption apply across the board regardless of the form of the product? For example, is cooked rice or cut, frozen or marinated chicken also exempted? What is the difference between exempt and zero-rated GST? Will there be any reduction in personal and corporate tax? What changes will be made to the sales and service tax? There is a perception that as GST is a multistage tax, it would result in higher effective tax rate than 4%. As GST is very technical, most people are unaware how it will impact them. When will the GST rate be reviewed? Recent media statement on its impact did not improve opinion on the introduction of GST. It is reported that under the sales and services tax system, the burden on the poor is 2.38%, but under the GST it will be 2.17%. For the higher income group, the tax burden will be reduced from 13% to 2.74%, according to the Finance Ministry. The overall savings for households will be between RM14.52 and RM346.92 yearly. This clearly contradicts other statement from politicians, and the public perception, that the GST will be inflationary. But as no further details are provided on how the savings are arrived at, public sentiment remains negative on GST. CHAPTER 3 EXPECTED IMPACT OF GST 3.1 Impact on the people in the street. The public is generally concerned that the introduction of GST will hit their wallets directly. In an initial assessment, as the GST is expected to be lower than service tax, the bill for a restaurant meal will be 1% lower as the service tax rate is 5% and GST is 4%. For other services liable to service tax, a GST rate lower than service tax should result in a slight decrease in charges if the cost of the other components in providing the service remain the same. On goods that attract sales tax, the current rate seems higher than the proposed GST, hence there might be a reduction if there is no further adjustment. Current rates are as follows; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Fruits, certain foodstuff and building materials (5%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ General goods, including motor vehicle (10%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Liquor and alcoholic drinks (20%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Cigarette and cheroots (25%) For hawkers; even though they do not have a turnover of RM500,000 yearly, so are not required collect GST, the material procured, for example, noodles, fish balls, processed meat, chicken, equipments for the stall may be subjected to GST, resulting in price hike. But without detailed knowledge or mapping, or even information on the duties charged, the people are uncertain whether the prices of goods and services will remain stagnant, increase or decrease. 3.2 IMPACT ON BUSINESSES. The implementation of GST is expected to impact business in the following manner: Compliance costs are expected to be incurred as there is requirement to track the input tax and output tax to determine refund or tax to be submitted. Even though some Malaysian companies are already paying sales tax or service tax, there was no input tax to be monitored and accounted for to offset against output tax. Business process and procurement need to be mapped out, especially with respect to suppliers and promotional items. For example, a new car attract GST, but items provided for free during promotion like sports rims or a GPS system à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" may not be eligible for an input tax claim. Likewise the corporate souvenirs and hampers given out by businesses may not be eligible. The procurement department should start detailing the sales tax or the existing tax paid for their items used a raw material. As the GST is expected to be lower than most current indirect tax, there should be some potential cost savings. This is also to avoid being overcharged by supplier that intends to add the GST over the existing price of its supplies after sales tax, there should be some potential cost saving. Human resource factor: New staff may need to be employed to ensure a business is compliant and conversant with the GST requirement. As most staff have not been exposed to GST, training needs to be conducted. Accounting system and account payable: The business would require an appropriate accounting system to keep track of the GST amounts. Most systems could be upgraded, and it is important to notify software vendors to test run the data to avoid any potential complication. Cash flow management: Businesses should be aware that output GST may have to be settled before settlement of sales invoices by customer. Meanwhile, payables on which input tax has been claimed but remains unpaid after six months have to be accounted as output tax and are to be reclaimed as input tax only after payment is made. Businesses are concerned about the timeliness of the refund process as delays would results in a higher working capital cost. In addition, businesses that have thin margins are worried about the speed of the refund for input tax, especially if the business is mainly exported-oriented and procure its raw material locally. 3.3 OTHER IMPACTS: The expected impact on corporate and income taxes are as published in the news recently. Deputy Finance Minister Chor Chee Heung quoted that Malaysia will see a gradual reduction in its corporate and income tax rates once the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) is in place by mid-2011. He does not think that there was a timeline for achieving this reduction in corporate and income taxes, as this is a long-term objective of the government. Once the GST come into play, it will be a broad based tax and the trend is, once GST is implemented, corporate and income taxes will gradually be reduced. Chor also disclosed that businesses related to services such as those in the food and transportation sectors, would be exempted from the proposed GST. He gave assurance that the cost of living and lifestyle of the people would not increase or be affected with the implementation of a GST. He also added that the implementation of GST would not cause inflation. Once the GST is in, the service tax and sales tax (now imposed) would be abolished. Both taxes are quite high at 10 per cent and five per cent respectively. The GST at four per cent is considered very low. Meanwhile, the Finance Ministrys Tax Review Panel Chairman, Ms. Kamariah Hussain, said there would be revenue gains of about 1.0 Billion Ringgit for the government with the GST implementation. She explained that the introduction of the GST was part of an overall tax reform in the country. With the GST, the government would have a better mix of revenue, and not be too dependent on income tax and petroleum income. Second Finance Minister, Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah had indicated that while the GST would replace the existing sales and services taxes, it would not put pressure on prices and to ease the burden of consumers, staple foods such as rice, sugar, cooking oil and flour would be exempted from it. 3.3.1 IMPACT OF GST ON SMALL MEDIUM ENTERPRISE (SME). SMEs form the backbone of the business activities of a nation. Other than encouraging the growth of new industries such as tourism and biotechnology-based industries, the Government (2004 Budget Proposals) too has singled out SMEs to spearhead domestic growth. However, there is a group of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"unhappy people representing non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the public who have expressed their non-approval for the introduction of the proposed GST. Their main argument is that GST favours the rich and burdens the poor at large. Their contention is that it will burden the people and contribute to the widening gap between the rich and the poor, not to mention the rise in the inflation rateà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. However, tax practitioner, Beh Tok Koay is of the opinion that perhaps this small group lacks an understanding of the whole system of GST. It is supposed to be broadbased and will replace the service and sales tax system, and this in turn will help to reduce income tax ratesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. There could be two GST rates: a lower rate for SMEs and a higher rate for large enterprises. Imposing two GST rates is, however, difficult to administer as they provide ample room for tax avoidance and increase compliance cost. Lowering the compliance cost of GST would ease the burden of SMEs. If there is convincing data to show that the compliance cost of SMEs are lower if the accounts are computerized, then the Government could provide software packages to the licensees to enable them to correctly compute GST. Free training and seminars including visits should be extended to SMEs to enable them to have a better understanding of the compliance requirements. One other option is to exempt small busine sses from GST altogether but such a decision too has its drawbacks. The Government has to analyze the revenue gain as compared to the compliance cost before making a decision to determine the threshold limit. With the two-year window period before GST is in force, all of us have a role to play in contributing towards the development of a better broad-based consumption tax system which ultimately would help reduce the rates of income tax. No doubt, everyone especially the SMEs will eagerly await the final introduction of the GST system and the extent of the expected income tax rate cuts. The business community, NGO and charity organization are concerned about the ability of the authorities to implement GST smoothly. Australia, for example, had to bring in foreign experts to help in rollout of GST. It would undermine investor confidence if the GST is not implemented in a structured manner with minimal hiccup. Burdening the poor and those economically vulnerable: Some 32% of the household in Malaysia have an income under RM2,000 per month. The introduction of GST without the necessary revamp of subsidies will result in a heavier financial burden on poor and low-income families. Families with an income below RM2,000 a month do not have to pay personal income tax. With GST, things that are not basic necessities toys, processed food, can food, packet drinks, and so on, could increase existing inflationary pressures. The ongoing restructuring of the subsidy will also create the tension, discomfort and dissatisfaction as people eligible for subsidy could unintentionally be left out as the government establishes and tries to refine its method of distribution. CHAPTER 4 4.0 CONCLUSION GST is unavoidable. It will just be a matter of time when it will be implemented. It may not be a perfect system, but has worked well as a revenue base for other countries. Malaysias problem may lie more in public education, implementation and enforcement. To move forward, Malaysia has to conform to the free trade vision of ASEAN and cannot lag behind the other countries. As of today, apart from Malaysia, only Myanmar and Brunei has yet to implement the GST. GST modernises the tax system by addressing tax evasion committed by free riders who want every benefit but refuse to pay for it, or rather have others to pay for them. GST will certainly be a good platform to increase the Governments revenue. Concerns of it being regressive can be overcome by careful and prudent classifications of zero rated supplies and exempt supplies for essential items as against standard supplies for non essential and luxury items. One good point of starting late is the ability to learn from the mistakes of others. The government has to be fully transparent in the implementation of the proposed GST. In this borderless world, news and knowledge cannot be curbed. The masses are getting more intelligent and informed. It will not be prudent for the government of the day not to move forward towards a more modern tax system. Rather than blind opposition, critics should provide examples and lessons learnt from the weaknesses of other nations in the implementation of GST or VAT. However, based from past experience, the skeptism voiced is understandable. We have heard of past Auditor General Reports on the wastage and the leakage of public funds into the pockets of the well connected; of RM 25 screw drivers being bought through tender at a price of RM200; commissions running into millions of ringgit for the purchase of Sukhov jets and submarines; and billions swallowed in the PKFZ scandal. The sums involved are astronomical. Then we have newly built hospitals that cannot be used, court room complexes with leaked ceilings and stadium roofs that collapsed in the absence of even a small earthquake. So, whether the GST will finally proved to be good or bad for the country will remain a question mark until its actual implementation. The actual salary increase as promised by the government might not be the expected pot of gold at the end of the rainbow if the GST is not properly implemented. The Goods Service Tax In Malaysia The Goods Service Tax In Malaysia IS THE INTRODUCTION OF THE GOODS SERVICE TAX (GST) IN MALAYSIA GOOD OR BAD? Chapter 1 1.0 INTRODUCTION. In the new global economy, more companies are operating cross border, and as such are faced with the need to deal effectively with many different taxes, often in many different countries, each with different rates, ruling and application. Coupled with this, the regulatory environment is increasingly challenging. The IMF has been trying to push for all countries to adopt the Goods Service Tax (GST), or also known in certain countries as Value Added Tax (VAT), so as to create a more level playing field amongst trading nations. Direct taxes have in the past been used to camouflage à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"protectionism policy of certain countries. High tariff on certain product like motorcar has prevented healthy competition amongst trading nations. The general populations of that country are left without a choice but to consume the local products, as imported products have become more expensive with the high tariff. Often, because of this, the local products tend to be inferior in quality as the re is no real incentive to compete. In the 2005 Budget, the Government of Malaysia announced that GST will be implemented on Jan 1 2007 to replace the current sales and service tax (SST). Following public outcry, on 22 February 2006 it announced a deferment to allow lead time to businesses for potential changes in processes, development of software and personnel training. The first reading of the GST Bill was tabled in December 2009 and the second and third reading is expected in April 2010. The Prime Minister recently announced that the increase in revenue expected from the introduction of GST will be used mainly to finance the hike in Civil Servants salary and to finance other infrastructure works for the benefit of the nation at large. Problem Statement Is GST really needed for Malaysia? If so, how does it affect the general public and the country as a whole? The aim of this paper is to discuss and bring to attention the problems which we might face with the implementation of the GST, or if we are to remain status quo with the SST. Chapter 2 Literature review The Ministry of Finance presented the following information to highlight on GST. It stated that it would be part of the overall tax reform to overcome the inherent weaknesses in the SST and to reduce the reliance on revenue from direct taxes and petroleum. GST is a more efficient and effective tax system as it is self policing and has an in-build cross checking features. It enhances tax compliance and deals with less bureaucracy. It is also a more stable source of revenue compared to income tax and less susceptible to economic downturn due to the consumption nature of the tax. The main types of taxes are direct and indirect taxes. Direct taxes are: Corporate Tax, Personal Income Tax, Real Property Gains Tax and Stamp duty whilst indirect taxes are Tariff (or Customs Duty), Excise Tax, SST (currently practiced in Malaysia) and GST. Contribution from petroleum revenue to total revenue increased from 29.1% (1990) to 40.1% (2008). The current high petroleum revenue is not sustainable as it is a depleting resource therefore and alternative source have to be sought. With the present average birth rate of 2.2, it is expected that by 2030, 12% of the population will be above 60 years old which almost double the current number. The working population paying taxes will therefore reduce, putting a greater burden on a smaller group of people. GST is a broad-based tax that distributes the burden of taxation among a larger section of the population based on consumption. GST preserve the incentive to work and encourages enterprise as it is not a progressive income tax. The tax rate does not increase according to income level; it is flat at the determined rate. It is levied at the production and distribution stages, thereby incorporating a self-policing mechanism that facilitates administration and makes it more difficult to avoid or evade. This further reduces the possibility of revenue loss through understatement of tax evasion. The GST model implemented in Malaysia is not expected to have cascading, or pyramiding, effect as the tax on a particular good depends upon its final value, and not the number of production and distribution channel it passes through. Furthermore, the output tax to be paid will be offset against the input tax, and there is no GST levied over GST. GST is expected to provide a more stable source of revenue as consumption is less affected by economic cycles compared to income tax. It can be an effective tax on the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"shadow economy, as those involved would consume, and thus pay indirect taxes through GST. It is likely that those involved in such activities would buy luxury goods, which would be subjected to GST. The government is cutting its operating expenditure for 2010 by 13%. This shows it is aware of the growing deficit that has widened due to the stimulus package. Recently, Fitch rating agency has cut the rating of the ringgit, which may cause imported inflation if it depreciates, and the International Monetary Fund commented that the GST needs to be implemented urgently. Malaysias budget 2010 reports on GST; is that, it is currently at the final stage of completing the study on the implementation, where analysts are measuring the social impact of its presence in Malaysia. The Malaysian government said that it could be possible for them to implement this in the near future. Looking at Malaysia in a broader scale, GST will not only affect big businesses, but small and medium enterprises (SME) as well. Although there were nimble of past information saying that a food outlet can only charge GST if its annual turnover is above RM3 million (3,000,000 Ringgit Malaysia), the GST compliance requirements and thresholds has not been officially announced. If we were to take into account GSTs implementation into goods and services, we have to assume that it will happen to all stages of the supply chain; which means from the purchase of raw materials or start-up goods all the way to end-user (consumer ready) products available for sale. Ultimately in a product, GSTs charged to every level are passed on to the next person and ultimately, the consumer. A Tax Review Panel was formed in middle of 2005, and it has come out with a Discussion Paper intended for businesses to understand the basic administrative requirements and procedures when GST is implemented so that they know the impact of GST. Secondly, the Tax Review Panel invites the business community and other relevant organizations and associations to review the proposal in that paper. Thirdly, by having a public consultation, it provides an appropriate forum for both the public and private institutions to exchange views with members of the Tax Review Panel so as to understand the rationale behind the proposals initiated. The GST was supposed to be implemented in Malaysia in the year 2007; however the government has to defer the move due to critical reviews by certain quarters. After losing four States to the opposition, it has to tread on a careful path in order not to lose more public support. It cannot afford to make any more major mistake in the wake of its dismal performance in the last General Election. GST is generally known as a tax system which results in regressivity (i.e. people with less pay a greater share of their resources than those with more), in contrast with the ideal aim of progressivity which is generally sought when implementing a tax. It is sometimes argued that a GST system does not work in a poor region such as Africa, where most countries have heavy external debt burdens, malnutrition, civil wars and lack of food and medicines which often result in inhuman living conditions. Nevertheless, with the support of the IMF, VAT/GST systems were designed in many African countries to combat or at least alleviate the adverse effect of VAT/GST regressivity by having a list of exemptions and zero-ratings which apply (generally speaking) to basic foodstuffs and other basic necessities. GST is not always simple to administer, contrary to what the advocates of GST would want countries to believe during the transformation stage. Unless a proper GST administration, supported by modern technology and electronic communication systems can be implemented, GST administration will inevitably be costly for both the Revenue Authorities and the business sector. The output/input mechanism of the GST system, coupled with GST refunds, may provide the ideal opportunity for fraud where corrupt officials and unscrupulous businesses exploit weaknesses in the system. This again results in a defensive attitude from the Revenue Authorities, resulting in bad communication, cash flow and other GST cost. In 1992, a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was signed which reduced import tariffs between ASEAN member countries. In the first three years of the FTA, exports amongst the ASEAN countries grew from US$43 billion to US$80 billion. In 1997, the leaders of ASEAN adopted the vision to build a stable, prosperous and highly competitive economic region, in which there is a free flow of goods, services and investments, a freer flow of capital, equitable economic development and reduced poverty and socio-economic disparities. The plan is to remove all tariffs for the six more developed countries by 2010 and for all countries by 2015. The summit also progressed the efforts to integrate ASEAN with the much larger economies of Asia- Pacific, specifically China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, and New Zealand. China signed a pact to introduce the worlds largest free trade zone by 2010, covering almost two billion people. Japan signed a similar agreement to take effect by 2012. India agreed to join in by 2011. Australia and New Zealand have agreed to talks starting next year to free up trade within a decade. The master plan is to have a free trade zone that can compete with the US and EU. In South East Asia, Malaysia remains one of the few countries yet to adopt the GST system, which would indirectly be in the way, if we want to be part of this master plan. In Malaysia, it was announced that essential goods and services will not be subjected to GST, but fears that GST will spark a chain reaction that will increase the prices of most non-controlled items should not be dismissed. We have seen numerous examples of when there is an increase in a certain commodity; it sparks a price rise in most goods and services. For example, when the petrol price increased to RM2.70, prices of most goods, foods and services were hiked. But after the petrol price dropped, there has not been a substantial correction in the prices of goods, food and services. The relevant ministries are powerless to mitigate the situation and curb the necessary inflation. A recent example is on the removal of the subsidy on white bread resulting in price increase of one loaf of bread by 20 to 30 cents. The Deputy Domestic Trade, Cooperative Consumer Affairs Minister can only comment that the price adjustment was not necessary, urge traders to practice corporate social responsibility and call on the consumers to execute their power in hand. All these statements will not effectively curb excessive profiteering and traders taking opportunity to increase the price of goods and service. The public would want to know how the government intends to avoid the similar predicament What is GST and how does it work? GST is a consumption tax charged on a wide range of domestic international products, goods and services. Its a broad-based tax imposed on every level of a product, from raw materials all the way to finished goods. The proposed implementation of GST will replace the current Malaysian service tax and sales tax. Broadly, GST works by offsetting GST paid on purchases (input tax) against GST due on sales or supplies made (output tax). This is referred to as the credit offset mechanism. The multi tier stages of tax helps to ensure that GST paid by businesses for purchases does not end up being a permanent cost. However, the consumer ultimately bears the burden of the tax. Conceptually, GST is imposed on the value added to goods or services by each separate processor in the production and distribution chain. This can be seen in the simple illustration below. GST to Government RM 4 + RM2 = RM6 (i.e. 4% x RM 100) i.e.4% x RM 150 = RM6 Output tax i.e. 4%x150 Less RM4 Input tax RM2 Net 4% is the assumed standard rate of GST. It is assumed that the entire output is taxable and all input taxes are creditable. FINAL CONSUMER Cost to consumer = RM 156 SUPPLIER Selling price = RM100 GST(4%) = RM 4 Total = RM 104 MANUFACTURER Cost = RM 100 Value added = RM 50 Total = RM 150 GST (4%) = RM 6 Total = RM 156 2.1 SOME CONCERN ABOUT THE INTRODUCTION OF GST. There were some concerns that Malaysians could suffer even more with the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). GST-driven inflation would be a calamity that the struggling lower-income group could do without. The GST Bill was tabled in Parliament at the end of the Budget sitting that ended on 17 December 2009. At its first reading, the bill was just mentioned, but there was no explanation of the bill or any debate. The second reading is when the bill is open for debate and proposed amendments. This may come as early as March 2010 for the GST Bill. Once approved, the new tax can be implemented as early as 2011. The table below lists the governments tax revenue for 2008 which contributed RM112.9 billion or 70 per cent of total government revenue. Government Tax Revenue in 2008 Personal Income Tax  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM 15.0 bil Company Tax  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM 37.7 bil Petroleum Tax  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM 24.2 bil Export and import duties  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   5.4 bil Excise duties  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM 10.7 bil Sales and Services Tax  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   RM 11.7 bil As shown in the table, the biggest source of tax revenue is company tax, which at 26 per cent of declared profits, currently brings in RM37.7 billion into government coffers. Petroleum tax makes up the second biggest tax item while the tax levied on the 1.5 million individuals who are now currently paying personal income taxes in Malaysia makes up the third biggest. All these taxes are deemed progressive for they tax the richest individuals and the companies that are making profits. Progressive taxes do not burden the poorer sectors of society. Progressive taxes tend to equal out income differences between the rich and the poor in society. It was argued that regressive tax regimes, on the other hand, burden the poor. Sales taxes are generally regressive as they tax consumption and not income. But sales tax in Malaysia has different rates for different types of goods and the government can make them less regressive by levying sales taxes exclusively on good that are consumed by the richer sectors of society such as expensive cars, big houses, overseas travel, expensive restaurants and other luxury items. The Goods and Services Tax, however, is perceived to be even more regressive for it is levied at a flat rate on a very wide range of products including many items that the poorer people need to buy. It might lead to a rise in prices and would definitely hit the poorest the hardest.   As in most countries with the GST in place, a reduction of corporate tax and personal tax will follow suit. This then, is seen as the real reason that the GST is being brought in à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" to make Malaysia more business friendlyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? by cutting corporate tax (which has already been reduced markedly from the 40 per cent level in 1988 to its current 26 per cent). 2.2 LACK OF INFORMATION AND CONFUSION ON GST. The piecemeal release of information is creating great concern among the people and in the business sector. For example; Will the authorities furnish an extensive list of item that will be charged GST, and what will be exempted? If a product, like rice or chicken is exempted, does the exemption apply across the board regardless of the form of the product? For example, is cooked rice or cut, frozen or marinated chicken also exempted? What is the difference between exempt and zero-rated GST? Will there be any reduction in personal and corporate tax? What changes will be made to the sales and service tax? There is a perception that as GST is a multistage tax, it would result in higher effective tax rate than 4%. As GST is very technical, most people are unaware how it will impact them. When will the GST rate be reviewed? Recent media statement on its impact did not improve opinion on the introduction of GST. It is reported that under the sales and services tax system, the burden on the poor is 2.38%, but under the GST it will be 2.17%. For the higher income group, the tax burden will be reduced from 13% to 2.74%, according to the Finance Ministry. The overall savings for households will be between RM14.52 and RM346.92 yearly. This clearly contradicts other statement from politicians, and the public perception, that the GST will be inflationary. But as no further details are provided on how the savings are arrived at, public sentiment remains negative on GST. CHAPTER 3 EXPECTED IMPACT OF GST 3.1 Impact on the people in the street. The public is generally concerned that the introduction of GST will hit their wallets directly. In an initial assessment, as the GST is expected to be lower than service tax, the bill for a restaurant meal will be 1% lower as the service tax rate is 5% and GST is 4%. For other services liable to service tax, a GST rate lower than service tax should result in a slight decrease in charges if the cost of the other components in providing the service remain the same. On goods that attract sales tax, the current rate seems higher than the proposed GST, hence there might be a reduction if there is no further adjustment. Current rates are as follows; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Fruits, certain foodstuff and building materials (5%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ General goods, including motor vehicle (10%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Liquor and alcoholic drinks (20%) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Cigarette and cheroots (25%) For hawkers; even though they do not have a turnover of RM500,000 yearly, so are not required collect GST, the material procured, for example, noodles, fish balls, processed meat, chicken, equipments for the stall may be subjected to GST, resulting in price hike. But without detailed knowledge or mapping, or even information on the duties charged, the people are uncertain whether the prices of goods and services will remain stagnant, increase or decrease. 3.2 IMPACT ON BUSINESSES. The implementation of GST is expected to impact business in the following manner: Compliance costs are expected to be incurred as there is requirement to track the input tax and output tax to determine refund or tax to be submitted. Even though some Malaysian companies are already paying sales tax or service tax, there was no input tax to be monitored and accounted for to offset against output tax. Business process and procurement need to be mapped out, especially with respect to suppliers and promotional items. For example, a new car attract GST, but items provided for free during promotion like sports rims or a GPS system à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" may not be eligible for an input tax claim. Likewise the corporate souvenirs and hampers given out by businesses may not be eligible. The procurement department should start detailing the sales tax or the existing tax paid for their items used a raw material. As the GST is expected to be lower than most current indirect tax, there should be some potential cost savings. This is also to avoid being overcharged by supplier that intends to add the GST over the existing price of its supplies after sales tax, there should be some potential cost saving. Human resource factor: New staff may need to be employed to ensure a business is compliant and conversant with the GST requirement. As most staff have not been exposed to GST, training needs to be conducted. Accounting system and account payable: The business would require an appropriate accounting system to keep track of the GST amounts. Most systems could be upgraded, and it is important to notify software vendors to test run the data to avoid any potential complication. Cash flow management: Businesses should be aware that output GST may have to be settled before settlement of sales invoices by customer. Meanwhile, payables on which input tax has been claimed but remains unpaid after six months have to be accounted as output tax and are to be reclaimed as input tax only after payment is made. Businesses are concerned about the timeliness of the refund process as delays would results in a higher working capital cost. In addition, businesses that have thin margins are worried about the speed of the refund for input tax, especially if the business is mainly exported-oriented and procure its raw material locally. 3.3 OTHER IMPACTS: The expected impact on corporate and income taxes are as published in the news recently. Deputy Finance Minister Chor Chee Heung quoted that Malaysia will see a gradual reduction in its corporate and income tax rates once the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) is in place by mid-2011. He does not think that there was a timeline for achieving this reduction in corporate and income taxes, as this is a long-term objective of the government. Once the GST come into play, it will be a broad based tax and the trend is, once GST is implemented, corporate and income taxes will gradually be reduced. Chor also disclosed that businesses related to services such as those in the food and transportation sectors, would be exempted from the proposed GST. He gave assurance that the cost of living and lifestyle of the people would not increase or be affected with the implementation of a GST. He also added that the implementation of GST would not cause inflation. Once the GST is in, the service tax and sales tax (now imposed) would be abolished. Both taxes are quite high at 10 per cent and five per cent respectively. The GST at four per cent is considered very low. Meanwhile, the Finance Ministrys Tax Review Panel Chairman, Ms. Kamariah Hussain, said there would be revenue gains of about 1.0 Billion Ringgit for the government with the GST implementation. She explained that the introduction of the GST was part of an overall tax reform in the country. With the GST, the government would have a better mix of revenue, and not be too dependent on income tax and petroleum income. Second Finance Minister, Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah had indicated that while the GST would replace the existing sales and services taxes, it would not put pressure on prices and to ease the burden of consumers, staple foods such as rice, sugar, cooking oil and flour would be exempted from it. 3.3.1 IMPACT OF GST ON SMALL MEDIUM ENTERPRISE (SME). SMEs form the backbone of the business activities of a nation. Other than encouraging the growth of new industries such as tourism and biotechnology-based industries, the Government (2004 Budget Proposals) too has singled out SMEs to spearhead domestic growth. However, there is a group of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"unhappy people representing non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the public who have expressed their non-approval for the introduction of the proposed GST. Their main argument is that GST favours the rich and burdens the poor at large. Their contention is that it will burden the people and contribute to the widening gap between the rich and the poor, not to mention the rise in the inflation rateà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. However, tax practitioner, Beh Tok Koay is of the opinion that perhaps this small group lacks an understanding of the whole system of GST. It is supposed to be broadbased and will replace the service and sales tax system, and this in turn will help to reduce income tax ratesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. There could be two GST rates: a lower rate for SMEs and a higher rate for large enterprises. Imposing two GST rates is, however, difficult to administer as they provide ample room for tax avoidance and increase compliance cost. Lowering the compliance cost of GST would ease the burden of SMEs. If there is convincing data to show that the compliance cost of SMEs are lower if the accounts are computerized, then the Government could provide software packages to the licensees to enable them to correctly compute GST. Free training and seminars including visits should be extended to SMEs to enable them to have a better understanding of the compliance requirements. One other option is to exempt small busine sses from GST altogether but such a decision too has its drawbacks. The Government has to analyze the revenue gain as compared to the compliance cost before making a decision to determine the threshold limit. With the two-year window period before GST is in force, all of us have a role to play in contributing towards the development of a better broad-based consumption tax system which ultimately would help reduce the rates of income tax. No doubt, everyone especially the SMEs will eagerly await the final introduction of the GST system and the extent of the expected income tax rate cuts. The business community, NGO and charity organization are concerned about the ability of the authorities to implement GST smoothly. Australia, for example, had to bring in foreign experts to help in rollout of GST. It would undermine investor confidence if the GST is not implemented in a structured manner with minimal hiccup. Burdening the poor and those economically vulnerable: Some 32% of the household in Malaysia have an income under RM2,000 per month. The introduction of GST without the necessary revamp of subsidies will result in a heavier financial burden on poor and low-income families. Families with an income below RM2,000 a month do not have to pay personal income tax. With GST, things that are not basic necessities toys, processed food, can food, packet drinks, and so on, could increase existing inflationary pressures. The ongoing restructuring of the subsidy will also create the tension, discomfort and dissatisfaction as people eligible for subsidy could unintentionally be left out as the government establishes and tries to refine its method of distribution. CHAPTER 4 4.0 CONCLUSION GST is unavoidable. It will just be a matter of time when it will be implemented. It may not be a perfect system, but has worked well as a revenue base for other countries. Malaysias problem may lie more in public education, implementation and enforcement. To move forward, Malaysia has to conform to the free trade vision of ASEAN and cannot lag behind the other countries. As of today, apart from Malaysia, only Myanmar and Brunei has yet to implement the GST. GST modernises the tax system by addressing tax evasion committed by free riders who want every benefit but refuse to pay for it, or rather have others to pay for them. GST will certainly be a good platform to increase the Governments revenue. Concerns of it being regressive can be overcome by careful and prudent classifications of zero rated supplies and exempt supplies for essential items as against standard supplies for non essential and luxury items. One good point of starting late is the ability to learn from the mistakes of others. The government has to be fully transparent in the implementation of the proposed GST. In this borderless world, news and knowledge cannot be curbed. The masses are getting more intelligent and informed. It will not be prudent for the government of the day not to move forward towards a more modern tax system. Rather than blind opposition, critics should provide examples and lessons learnt from the weaknesses of other nations in the implementation of GST or VAT. However, based from past experience, the skeptism voiced is understandable. We have heard of past Auditor General Reports on the wastage and the leakage of public funds into the pockets of the well connected; of RM 25 screw drivers being bought through tender at a price of RM200; commissions running into millions of ringgit for the purchase of Sukhov jets and submarines; and billions swallowed in the PKFZ scandal. The sums involved are astronomical. Then we have newly built hospitals that cannot be used, court room complexes with leaked ceilings and stadium roofs that collapsed in the absence of even a small earthquake. So, whether the GST will finally proved to be good or bad for the country will remain a question mark until its actual implementation. The actual salary increase as promised by the government might not be the expected pot of gold at the end of the rainbow if the GST is not properly implemented.