Communication and professional relationships with children, young people and adults Essay Example for Free

Communication and professional relationships with children, young people and adults Essay Explain how you use effective communication in developing positive relationships with children, young people and adults. Why is this important? 1. 1 In developing positive relationships we use effective communication in several ways. We use it to: †¢help us better understand a situation or person which can help to determine our approach when engaging with them. †¢build trust and respect. If individuals feel comfortable speaking with us and feel they can approach us at any time on any subject, they are more likely to co-operate and look favourably on any suggestions made. †¢show that we care about the welfare and future of an individual and will do our best to aid in their success †¢ensure that all parties are agreed upon the same goal, making sure that everyone is clear about the final aim and how it will be achieved. †¢build and maintain a positive working environment where creativity and learning can flourish. It is important to do this because poor communication can lead to misunderstandings, lack of trust and conflict. Without a positive relationship you are unlikely to gain support and co-operation and find it challenging to achieve a good outcome from any situation. Explain the principles of relationship building with children, young people and adults 1. 2 When trying to develop positive relationships there are several principles to follow. Firstly effective communication is essential. You must be clear in what you say and ensure you have been understood correctly. At the end of a communication you can reiterate your key points and if necessary outline responsibilities and actions. Also be sure to use language appropriate to the person with whom you are communicating. When speaking with young children keep key points to a minimum and ask them to repeat what you have said. Secondly, take time to listen to others and try to understand their point of view. Use active listening techniques to show that you are interested in what they are saying and respond appropriately. Also make sure that, if you tell someone you will get back to them, you do get back to them. This will help engender a sense of trust and respect. It is also essential that you show respect for the person with whom you are communicating. Remember their name and details of how they like to be addressed and issues which are personal to them. Recalling details of their lives adds to the feeling that you are genuinely interested in them and their welfare. When communicating be sure to acknowledge the individual. Accommodate any religious and cultural beliefs and show that you value these differences. Be considerate of the person’s situation trying to understand and accommodate any issues which may influence their feelings, actions and responses. Finally, remain positive and retain a sense of humour. Laughter is a good way to break the ice and relieve tension in a stressful situation. Explain how different social, professional and cultural contexts may affect relationships and the way people communicate 1. 3 There are several ways in which social, professional and cultural contexts may affect our relationships and the way we communicate. We must remember that communication is not just verbal and context will influence the way we act, what we wear, how we communicate and what we say. In a social setting our actions, language and dress may be less formal. If we have colleagues and parents from school as friends outside of school, then we might perhaps greet them with a hug and a wave. Our language might incorporate slang and jokes and conversation might be more generic and less serious. We might be more casual in our attire and the situation would suggest whether this is acceptable. For example, you would not be expected to attend a party wearing your best suit. The manner in which we communicate socially is also likely to be different from a professional setting. As well as telephone and face to face conversations we might also engage via text message, email and social media sites and we would be unlikely to write a letter to someone we might see daily. Communications might, for example, utilise text speak and jargon and not necessarily demand an immediate response if any at all. In a professional context you would be expected to act, speak and dress more formally. Your actions language and clothing should match the severity of the issue which you will address and show appropriate respect for the location and people with whom you are meeting. If participating in a parent/ teacher meeting at school for example the same people you greeted with a hug the night before would be better greeted with perhaps a handshake to highlight the position you hold in this scenario. Our language would be more formal and depending who was present we might try to eliminate jargon to ensure clarity and minimise misunderstandings. Similarly again our clothing would be more formal to identify the position we hold and show respect for those involved in any meeting. When contacting people professionally the use of social media sites would not be appropriate to discuss any matters relating to school, pupils or staff. Text messages might be appropriate to inform parents/carers of a school social event for example but to arrange a meeting or discuss an important matter it would be more appropriate to speak with a parent/carer or write a letter if the contact needs to be documented. When working with outside agencies email, for ease of use and speed, has become the standard form of communication but again when broaching a sensitive or important issue, a phone call or face to face meeting might be preferred. Emails can easily be misread which can lead to misunderstanding and conflict. When speaking we can use tone of voice to help ensure a point is understood correctly and face to face we can use body language in the same way. The timeframe in which we contact someone or reply to a communication can also affect relationships. When someone has taken the time to contact you they will expect a response to show that you value their contact and it should be made in the same manner or more personally. Responding to a phone call with an email, for example, could be seen as rude and deter future contact. Similarly, delaying a response could suggest that you do not value the input of the individual or consider them or their issue to be important and bring about the same result. Finally, we need to consider the cultural differences of those with whom we interact. Different cultures may also have different standards in terms of behaviour, dress, communication and contact. Actions could be misinterpreted and cause offence leading to the breakdown of a relationship. If you are meeting with someone from a different culture it may be worth doing some research and asking their preferred form of contact etc. to show that you value their beliefs. However, whilst it may be detrimental not to account for cultural differences you could see the same consequences if you assume differences because of background or race when actually there are none. What skills do you need to communicate with children and young people 2. 1 Communication is still a relatively new thing for children and young people and they may not be used to asking questions and holding conversations. One skill required to communicate effectively is giving children and young people opportunities to speak. As adults we are inclined to think that we know what children are thinking and feeling and try to tell them this or fill the gaps in their speech. Whilst we should continue to try and communicate with children as often as possible we should ensure it is a two-way conversation and not a one-way stream of instructions. We should remain patient and allow children time to organise their thoughts and formulate their sentences. When a child is relaxed and at ease they will be more forthcoming. Children may be shy and reluctant to say more than a few words if they feel you are not interested in what they have to say. Using positive body language we can encourage children to speak out. We should come down to the child’s level, face them and maintain eye contact. Remaining focussed on the child rather than continuing with another task will confirm your interest and appropriate facial expressions will show that you are listening and have understood what they are saying. Active listening is another key skill. Be interested and make appropriate responses whilst the child is speaking to confirm that you are really listening. Add to this by repeating back what the child has said to ensure your understanding is correct and by giving positive comments when they have finished. Asking open questions will extend the conversation giving the child more practice, boost the child’s confidence so they are encouraged to communicate more and model a real conversation for them to learn from. Finally, we must also ensure that communication is appropriate for the child or young person and be able to adapt the style we use. Depending on the age and ability of the child we may be able to simply converse or might need to incorporate visual support or play into the communication. We should not assume children and young people will not understand but instead make our communication clear, use vocabulary which is appropriate to their age and encourage questioning. Give a detailed explanation of how you adapt communication with children and young people for: 2. 2 aThe age of the child or young person When communicating with younger children you should try choose a setting which is familiar to the child and where they are more confident – their favourite area of the classroom for example. Get down to the level of the child perhaps sitting on the carpet and use body language to make them feel more comfortable – ensure you are facing the child, smile, nod, turn toward them, keep your arms open and remove any barriers between you. Younger children will require more reassurance and perhaps more physical contact. They may feel more confident holding your hand or sitting close together. Vocabulary should be kept simple and sentences short, broken down into easy steps. The same point may need to be repeated several times in different ways and it is helpful to provide examples based around their own experiences. If a child is very reluctant to communicate you may want to use puppets to speak through, include pictures or props to help them engage or perhaps incorporate your communication into a favourite game. The attention span of younger children is very short and you must also account for this. Monitor the length of time you spend together and include attention switches to maintain their interest: change your method of communication, switch speakers, move location, ask questions etc. Older children and young people will still need to feel comfortable in your company but are more independent and will require less reassurance and physical contact. They are more familiar with the school environment so will find it easier communicate in different settings but will more comfortable in a setting they have used before. Older children often view themselves as grown up and will appreciate being treated accordingly. Positive body language will still be beneficial in encouraging a child to speak but it will no longer be necessary to sit on the floor. Language and vocabulary should be more mature and sentences can be more complex. It may also not be necessary to repeat a point so often unless it is something new and above that person’s ability level. Examples can be drawn from a variety of sources as their experiences are wider and additional materials should be more sophisticated such as written texts or †you tube† clips. Older children are more aware of themselves and can be easily embarrassed. They will benefit from confidence boosting reminders of how well they are progressing and positive re-enforcement. They will, however, withdraw and react negatively if patronised, preferring to be treated with respect and spoken to honestly. With age attention span also increases so it is still necessary to include attention switches to maintain focus but not as frequently. bthe context of the communication We will encounter children in a variety of situations at school and it will be necessary to adapt our communication accordingly. Primarily our contact will be made inside school during a learning activity. In this case we need to remain quite formal, be directive and model the behaviour we require through our own actions. Ground rules should be laid down in clear, concise Instructions and the learning objectives highlighted to ensure all children fully understand what we expect and are trying to achieve from the lesson. There will be other children in the same area working on separate activities so we need to make our lesson interesting to retain the attention of our group but not distract the others. We can do this through tone of voice, choice of vocabulary and supplementary resources but must be wary not to overexcite the group because of the other learners present. If your activity is away from other learners then it may be possible to incorporate physical activity and allow greater expression. Distractions will be plentiful and we will need to encourage and focus our learners through positive re-enforcement and challenges. If appropriate to the task we should encourage discussion through questioning but keep discussion restricted to the subject at hand. In a more social setting, for example the playground, we can be less formal and more relaxed in our approach. This would be reflected in our body language, tone of voice and vocabulary. These times can be used as opportunities to build relationships and get to know the children better. Children can be encouraged to discuss outside interests and we might share our own experiences to help form a bond. Whilst it may be necessary to give little reminders of school rules to avoid bad behaviour it should not be necessary to outline them in full and they can be made in a more playful and conspiratorial manner – a helpful friend rather than a figure of authority. Although conversation might be more light hearted we must still remember to maintain the relationship of teacher and pupil. A school trip, however, is a more social event, but still a learning activity and the degree of formality should remain on a similar level to the classroom. The formality of the pupil teacher relationship should remain so the children understand that you â€Å"are in charge†. Children will need to be reminded often of their objectives but communication might be more light hearted and children allowed to speak more freely, discussing outside interests highlighted by the current situation. Outside the school environment they will be excited and more forgetful of their code of conduct. It will not always be possible to speak with the whole group when on a trip so we should communicate through our own behaviour, modelling what we expect from the children: remaining focussed, respectful, and responsible.

Partnerships :: Business Work Job Essays

Partnerships Businesses and schools have been involved with each other since the late 1800s, and their relationship formalized into partnerships since the late 1970s. However, the conditions in the United States in the early 1980s-the education crisis in public schools, the low skill level of entry-level workers, and the demands of an evolving economy-accelerated the development of these partnerships. "Between 1983-1984 and 1987-88, the number of business/education partnerships rose from 42,200 to 140,800" (Grobe et al. 1993, p. 4). As they expanded in number, these partnerships also expanded in dimension, from simple one-to-one agreements to complex multiagency collaborative arrangements. This expansion of partners and agendas has resulted in an expansion of benefits for all of the partners embracing the partnership goals. This Digestis designed to bring new perspective to an understanding of business/education partnerships. Traditionally, these partnerships have been viewed from the perspective of the benefits to education. This Digest highlights the ways in which partnering with education benefits business. History of Partnerships Initially, educational partnerships were created by school system staff to "foster school-community cooperation, provide incentives for students, supplement curriculum and staff, and obtain equipment" (Clark 1992, p. 2). Business gains from these relationships were primarily in improved public relations and enhanced community image (Grobe et al. 1993). In the early 1980s, school reform reports called for changes that would ultimately transform the nature of education and business partnerships. Schools were faced with the need for educational reform measures that would better prepare a diverse student population for the higher order thinking and reasoning skills required in an increasingly knowledge-based, service-driven economy. Businesses were faced with the threat of an inadequately prepared work force that would jeopardize their competition with other industrialized nations. Motivated to improve the academic and technical skills of the future work force, businesses and schools joi ned in partnerships of various sizes and types to achieve their common and separate goals. Types of Partnerships The type and nature of business/education partnerships vary depending upon the need the partnership is created to serve. In the one-to-one institutional partnership, the needs of one school and/or one business drive the agreement. Traditionally, business is the benefactor and the school the beneficiary. With this arrangement, schools benefit from the generosity of their business partners by receiving up-to-date equipment, incentives for student attendance and scholarship, and opportunities for students to learn about the real-world application of knowledge and skill. Businesses' involvement in

Analysis of the Epic of Gilgamesh Essay

The Epic of Gilgamesh is an extraordinary poem showing the tragedy of mortality. The poem is the earliest primary document discovered in history dating back to 2000 B. C. E. The document tells a story about a King named Gilgamesh who was created by gods as one third man and two thirds god. The epic tells the advetures that Gilgamesh goes on throught his life to determine his meaning. A lot of people in Mesopatamia in this time period felt as though they needed to dicover why they were here and what was going to happen after they died. The culture in which Gilgamesh existed did not believe in an afterlife, and if they had any thoughts that there was anything after death it certainly wasn’t a pleasant thought. Gilgamesh’s journey beings with the creation of the city Uruk. The great king built the magnificent city that his achievements occur. Being that Gilgamesh is two thirds god he has incredible strengths that have never exsisted before. Gilgamesh is young and arrogant and treats the people of Uruk very harshly. Because of the way Gilgamesh mistreats his people it causes them to call out to the sky god and ask for someone as strong and immortal as Gilgamesh. Their hope is that this person will be Gilgamesh’s match and will show him he is not as mighty as he believes. The gods create a wild man who is named Endiku who lives in the intense forest surrounding the land of Gilgamesh. Endiku was made with the strength of no human. He is discovered by a trapper running through the forest naked among wild animals. The trapper is so afraid by this that he goes to tell his father. His father tells his to go to Uruk and find a horlot to take with him back to the forest. When she sees Endiku she is to tempt him with her womanly ways. The trappers father said that if Endiku succumbs to her he will no longer be amazingly strong and wild. The harlot named Shamaht meets Endiku at the watering hole where he comes to drink with the wild animals. She offers herself to him by stripping naked and flaunting her womanly traits. He is upset that this harlot has caused him to lose his strength and rowdiness so the harlot explains to him what he could have if he became more civilized. Shamahat offers to take hi to the city of Uruk where all the delights of civilization show true. She offers to take Endiku to meet Gilgamesh who has similar strengths as him. Meanwhile Gilgamesh has dreams showing him signs of what is to come. In the first dream he is shown a meteorite falling to Earth which is so abundant that he cannot move it. The people come together to celebrate the meteor and Gilgamesh welcomes it as he would a lover or wife but Gilgamesh’s mother wants him to compete with the meteorite. It the second dream Gilgamesh dreams that an axe appears at his door, the axe is so vast that he cannot lift or move it. As in the previous dream the people come to celebrate the axe and Gilgamesh embraces it as he would a lover. Again his mother wants him to compete with the axe. Confused Gilgamesh tells his mother his dreams and asks her what they mean. She tells him that the meteor and axe symbolize a great man with incredible strengths coming to Uruk. Gilgamesh will take in this man as he would a wife and the man will assist Gilgamesh perform many great things. Endiku comes to the city or Uruk during a celebration. Gilgamesh the great king is claiming the right to have sexual intercourse with every new bride first on the day of her wedding. Endiku is disgusted with this and decides that he is going to block the kings way into the marital chamber. This enrages Gilgamesh and the two men fight viciously until Gilgamesh wins. Endiku excepts Gilgamesh’s authority and the two become great friends. The two men become lazy and weak living in the city so Gilgamesh proposes an adventure. He wants to venture to the Cedar Forest and cut down all the cedar trees. In order to do this they must defeat a giant wild beast named Humbaba. The elders of the city, Endiku and Gilgamesh’s mother disagree with the adventure and try to talk him out of proceeding. Gilgamesh decides to go anyways and Endiku follows as a honorable friend should. Should Gilgamesh defeat the monster Humbaba, his name will forever be remembered. After an extremely long journey the two kill Humbaba Right before Gilgamesh cuts the head off of Humbaba the monster shouts out a curse on Endiku that out of the two men Endiku will die before Gilgamesh and never find peace in the world. With the defeat of Humbaba the men cut down the cedar trees and use the wood to build a great gate for the city of Uruk. After the voyage to the Cedar forest Gilgamesh’s fame is spread wide attracting sexual attention of the goddess Ishtar and offers to become his lover. Gilgamesh rejects her with insults due to her ugly past of lovers. Gilgamesh’s encounter with Ishtar shows how risky the relations of humans to gods can be at least for humans. He has the right to reject her but should not have done so as insultingly as he did. He ends up paying a heavy price for bad manners. Ishtar is very offended by Gilgamesh’s response that she goes to her father, the sky-god Anu, and asks for the Bull of Heaven so that she can have vengeance on Gilgamesh and his city. Working together again Endiku and Gilgamesh slay the Bull of Heaven. The gods decide that someone must be punished for killing Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven. So out of the two conquerors the gods decide Endiku should pay the price. Upset with the unjust decision Endiku curses the Cedar Gate, the harlot,Shamhat, and the trapper for introducing him to civilization. He is reminded that he has enjoyed his life and done many things. After twelve days Endiku finally dies. Endiku’s death causes Gilgamesh to realize his fear of mortality and tries to find a way to live forever. On his quest he figures out that the gods will not grant him immortality and he must accept his destiny. A man named Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh that death is essential because of the will of the gods and that all human effort is only temporary. Utnapishtim is the only man that has been blessed with immortality and tells Gilgamesh the secret as to how he became. The gods had met and decided that the humans were out of control and to destroy mankind with a giant flood. The flood lasted for seven days and seven nights in the city of Shurrupak which stands on the banks of Euphrates. At the end of Utnapishtim’s story he offers Gilgamesh a chance at immortality. If he can stay awake for six days and seven nights he will become immortal but as soon as he sits down he falls asleep so he failed the test. Utnapishtim offers another chance, Gilgamesh must go to the bottom of the ocean and receive a plant of youth. He does this and goes on his way back to Uruk but as he rests on a shore the plant is stolen by a serpant so this test as well is failed. At the end of the poem Gilgamesh lays before the gates to Uruk and admires the city he built and at the base of his cities gates lay a stone of lapis lazuli explain the reason for his notable deeds. In reviewing this story, you are able to determine the ways it has entertained, educated, and enlightened the Mesopotamian culture in ancient times. It shows examples of gender roles, the way you were supposed to live, and idealistic leadership. The epic uggests that ancient Mesopotamian’s perspective of an ideal kingship by illustrating uncivilized behaviors of the Sumerian ruler. The epic reflects on the rulers past explaining Gilgamesh disappoints his gods and the Sumerian city with selfish behaviors like sleeping with many women, spending money, and treating his people like they were nothing. From this, we can determine that Mesopotamians believed a successful leader needs to be able to create responsible relationships with his people and obtain the ability to show respect towards those who do not have as much, if any, political power.

What Are Insects Basic Insect Anatomy

Insects are the largest group in the animal kingdom. Scientists estimate there are over 1 million insect species on the planet, living in every conceivable environment from volcanoes to glaciers. Insects help us by pollinating our food crops, decomposing organic matter, providing researchers with clues to a cancer cure, and even solving crimes. They can also harm us by spreading diseases and damaging plants and structures. How Insects Are Classified Insects are arthropods. All animals in the phylum Arthropoda have hard external skeletons called exoskeletons, segmented bodies, and at least three pairs of legs. Other classes that belong to the phylum Arthropoda include: Arachnida (spiders)Diplopoda (millipedes)Chilopoda (centipedes) The class Insecta encompasses all of the insects on the earth. It is most often divided into 29  orders. These 29  orders use the physical characteristics of the insects to group similar insect families. Some insect taxonomists organize the insects differently, using evolutionary links instead of physical traits. For the purpose of identifying an insect, it makes more sense to use the system of 29 orders, since you can see the physical similarities and differences between insects you observe. Here is an example of how an insect, the monarch butterfly, is classified: Kingdom  Animalia: the animal kingdomPhylum  Arthropoda: arthropodsClass  Insects: insectsOrder  Lepidoptera: butterflies and mothsFamily  Nymphalidae:  brush-footed butterfliesGenus  DanausSpecies  plexippus The genus and species names are always italicized and used together to give the scientific name of the individual species. An insect species may occur in many regions and may have different common names in other languages and cultures. The scientific name is a standard name that is used by entomologists around the world. This system of using two names (genus and species) is called binomial nomenclature. Basic Insect Anatomy As you may remember from elementary school, the most basic definition of an insect is an organism with three pairs of legs and three body regions: head, thorax, and abdomen. Entomologists, scientists who study insects, might also add that insects have a pair of antennae and external mouthparts. As you learn more about insects, you will find there are some exceptions to these rules. The Head Region The head region is at the front of the insect’s body and contains the mouthparts, antennae, and eyes. Insects have mouthparts designed to help them feed on different things. Some insects drink nectar and have mouthparts modified into a tube called a proboscis to suck up liquid. Other insects have chewing mouthparts and eat leaves or other plant matter. Some insects bite or pinch, and others pierce and suck blood or plant fluids. The pair of antennae may have obvious segments or look like a feather. They come in different forms and are a clue to identifying the insect. Antennae are used to perceive sounds, vibrations, and other environmental factors. Insects can have two types of eyes: compound or simple. Compound eyes are usually large with many lenses, giving the insect a complex image of its surroundings. A simple eye contains just a single lens. Some insects have both kinds of eyes. The Thorax Region The thorax, or middle region of an insect’s body, includes the wings and legs. All six legs are attached to the thorax. The thorax also contains the muscles that control movement. All insect legs have five parts. Legs can be different shapes and have different adaptations to help the insect move within its unique habitat. Grasshoppers have legs designed for jumping, while honey bees have legs with special baskets to hold pollen as the bee moves from flower to flower. Wings also come in different shapes and sizes and are another important clue to help you identify an insect. Butterflies and moths have wings made of overlapping scales, often in brilliant colors. Some insect wings appear transparent, with just a web of veins to identify their shape. When at rest, insects like beetles and praying mantids keep their wings folded flat against their bodies. Other insects hold their wings vertically, like butterflies and damselflies. The Abdomen Region The abdomen is the final region in the insect body and contains the insect’s vital organs. Insects have digestive organs, including a stomach and intestines, to absorb nutrients from their food and separate waste matter. The sexual organs of the insect are also in the abdomen. Glands that secrete pheromones for marking the insect’s trail or attracting a mate are in this region as well. Take a Closer Look The next time you observe a lady beetle or a moth in your yard, stop and take a closer look. See if you can distinguish the head, thorax, and abdomen. Look at the shape of the antennae, and watch how the insect holds its wings. These clues will help you identify a mystery insect, and provide information about how the insect lives, feeds and moves.