Category: Essays

How social media effects decision making and confidence.

BOOK – How Great Leaders Think: The Art of Reframing Assignment 1: Post at least TWO examples where rituals, stories, specialized language, humor and play and/or symbols play an important role in the workplace. Your examples should be in one post. Assignment 2: A. Read parts A, B and C of the case study “The Prince and the Principal” at http://www.leebolman.com/Teaching%20materials/The%20Prince%20and%20the%20Principal%20A%20B%20C.pdf Describe how this case illustrates the political frame. OR B. Describe a situation where the appropriate response is to use the political frame. Explain WHY the political frame is the best approach. Assignment 3: Your textbook gives examples of what management scholar Chris Argyris calls “skilled incompetence” — using well-practied skills to produce the opposite of what you intend” (p. 67). You may choose between two assignments. Please indicate on your post whether you are addressing assignment A or assignment B. A. Read the case study “The Case of the Underperforming Executive” found at http://www.leebolman.com/Teaching%20materials/GBCASEPR%20899.pdf What is your asssessment of Sandy’s effectiveness in the meeting with Bill? In what ways was Sandy effective or not effective? OR B. Describe a situation you observed or heard about where there was “skilled incompetence.” Explain the situation, providing an analysis of why your example illustrates this concept. Assignment 4: Read the Case of Chris Cunningham located at http://www.leebolman.com/Teaching%20materials/Chris%20Cunningham.pdft . How do each of the four frames help explain what is going on in this situation? Write a paragraph or two explanation. Assignment 5: Read Part I of Bolmand and Deal’s How Great Leaders Think: the Art of Reframing. You are to post on Discussion Board: A short paragraph summary of what the authors term multiframe thinking and why they maintain it is important to leadership Your results when you take the “Leadership Orientations” inventory located in the Appendix of the book. What is your dominant orientation? Are your surprised by the results? The first student posting should start the THREAD. BOOK – LEADERSHIP: THEORY & PRACTICE 6th Edition Assignment 6: After reading Ch. 15 of Northouse, you should do the following. Complete the Dimensions of Culture Questionnaire. Post a discussion of how this instrument might be helpful in improving leadership. You should also post comments on your own individual results after you complete the inventory. Post a comment on how you view this chapter. How is it useful and how not useful? Were your surprised by the results? These posts provide evidence that you understand the information in the chapter. Assignment 7: After reading Ch. 14 of Northouse, you should do the following. Complete the Gender-Leader Implicit Association Test. Post a discussion of how this instrument might be helpful in improving leadership. You should also post comments on your own individual results after you complete the inventory. Post a comment on how you view this instrument. Do you believe it is a valid instrument? Also post comments regarding the role of gender in leadership. These posts provide evidence that you understand the information in the chapter. Assignment 8: After reading Ch. 13 of Northouse, you should do the following. Complete the Psychodynamic Approach Survey. Post a discussion of how this instrument might be helpful in improving leadership. You should also post comments on your own individual results after you complete the inventory. Post a comment on how you view this theory. How is it useful and how not useful? Were your surprised by the results? These posts provide evidence that you understand the information in the chapter.

Essay 2: Literary Analysis. ​ • ​ • Due: Tuesday, Oct. 6 • Times New Roman, 12 point font • 5-6 pages, Double spaced • 3 sources (including the novel) cited in MLA format. • 3rd person (do not use I). Overview: Many people are intimidated by writing about literature. They don’t trust their interpretations of the literature, don’t understand some of the more technical jargon that English instructors like to use, and don’t feel like they have anything original to say. Learning to write about literature is, in many ways, a process of learning to trust yourself. We are all readers (or at least will be for this next paper.) We all form opinions on what we have read. And we all have reasons for forming those opinions. Writing about literature is simply expressing our opinions and giving the reasons for our opinions (with evidence). The same concept will be used for other argumentative writing you will do in this and future classes. Assignment: Your assignment is to write a literary analysis of Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut. You will give an argument or interpretation of the book, and back that interpretation up with evidence from the book itself and from scholarly sources (such as books in the library or journal articles from NC Live or Pro-Quest). Your analysis can focus on any aspect of the novel you find interesting or feel you have a strong opinion about. Some options include: • A focus on theme. What is the novel trying to say about war? Family? American values? History and the way we write about it? Fate and free will? Suffering? Masculinity? Time? Morality? The way prisoners of war are treated? Pick any theme in the book and develop it. • A focus on characterization. In this novel, we have a narrator (who serves as a surrogate for the author, Vonnegut), a man (Billy Pilgrim) who travels through time and space, Aliens, soldiers, a porn star, and many others. Pick a character who you find intriguing, and form an argument about characterization. How is the character developed by the author? Why? What purpose does that character hold, and how do they fit into the overall plot or theme? • A focus on structure. As Billy Pilgrim comes “unstuck in time,” so do we. The novel travels back and forth in both time and location. What effect does that have on you as a reader? Why might Vonnegut have chosen to construct the novel in such an intentionally disorienting way? What do critics say about the book’s structure? • A focus on history. Research WW2, especially the firebombing of Dresden (at which Vonnegut was present as POW). How does Vonnegut’s novel describe the events, and how do his descriptions compare to the historical account? Was bombing the city warranted or justified? Why or why not? • A focus on the science fiction elements of the novel. Why are they there, in a novel purportedly about war here on Earth? What do they add to the story, and what do they reveal about Billy and his character? How are the aliens depicted, and why? • A focus on the stylistic elements of the book. The book has a unique style, especially in its use of repetition. What effect does the repetition of phrases like “so it goes” have on the readers? What does the style contribute to the theme? • A focus on tone. What is the tone of the book? How is it developed? Why? Literary terms, Defined: Theme—The central meaning or dominant idea of a literary work. All of the elements of the work (tone, characters, plot, setting, symbols, etc.) often work together to add to or form the theme. This is not the subject of the work—this is an abstract concept that is “made concrete through the images, characterization, and action of the text” (Meyer 2195). Tone—The author’s “implicit attitude” towards the characters or the reader of his works. The tone is revealed by the author’s style (the words he/she uses and the way in which those words are arranged). The tone can be ironic, sincere, happy, sad, bitter, angry, etc. Characterization—The process by which the characters are made to seem realistic and whole to the reader. Often includes a protagonist (a central character the readers sympathize with) and an antagonist pitted against the protagonist. Characterization is developed by showing the readers the actions of the characters and letting the readers infer their personalities and motivations, and by telling the readers about the characters through a first or third person narrator. Symbol—A “person, object, image, word, or event that evokes a range of additional meaning beyond and usually more abstract than its literal significance” (Meyer 2194). Some symbols are universally acknowledged (flags = patriotism, country; cross = faith) while others are developed by writers to strengthen the meanings or themes of a work. Irony—“A literary device that uses contradictory statements or situations to reveal a reality different from what appears to be true.” Contradictions can come in terms of words (verbal irony, sarcasm) or situations (situational irony). Dramatic irony occurs when the readers know something the characters do not. Flashback—A break in the narration that reveals something about the character’s past and then returns to the present day. Often used to fill in gaps in the narration or add additional character development. Image—A word, phrase, or figure of speech (such as a simile or metaphor) that “addresses the senses, suggesting mental pictures of sights, sounds, smells, tastes, feelings, or actions” (2183). Foreshadowing—The introduction of elements early in the work that gives hints of something to come later. First Person Point of View—told using words like “I” that reveals the narration comes from the character itself. Third Person Point of View—Uses “he,” “she,” “they,” and does not participate in the story itself. Can be omniscient (knowing the thoughts and feelings of every character) or limited, knowing the thoughts and feelings of only one character. Websites to avoid Using as Sources. Anything “Wiki” (Wiktionary, wiki-articles, wikihow, etc.) Anything “e” (e-articles, e-zines, e-pedia, etc.) Yahoo (yahoo articles) Yahoo Answers / Wiki Answers About.com Ask.com Squidoo Buzzle Shmoop Howstuffworks Hubpages Urban Dictionary Buzzfeed Sparknotes Pink Monkey Comment sections Reddit Brainyquotes.com or any similar “quotes” site Reviews

Write a 1,050- to 1,400-word paper discussing the current view that race is a social construction supported by political realities. Include the following: How does this view compare with the traditional, biological view of race? How did the traditional view assist or inhibit the assimilation of undeserved groups into the overall American majority? Which approach – assimilation, melting pot, fusion and/or pluralism – matches most closely to the new definition of race in contemporary America? Which definition of race do you support? Why? Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines, and include at least two sources in addition to the textbook. Submit your paper to the Assignment Files tab.

Write a 1,050- to 1,400-word paper discussing the current view that race is a social construction supported by political realities. Include the following: How does this view compare with the traditional, biological view of race? How did the traditional view assist or inhibit the assimilation of undeserved groups into the overall American majority? Which approach – assimilation, melting pot, fusion and/or pluralism – matches most closely to the new definition of race in contemporary America? Which definition of race do you support? Why?

Write a 1,050- to 1,400-word paper discussing the current view that race is a social construction supported by political realities. Include the following: How does this view compare with the traditional, biological view of race? How did the traditional v

Space debris – What is it? How can the problem be solved? Possible problems for space crafts

Reading Assignments A. “Story of an Hour”B. “Sorrowful Woman” C. “Secret Sorrow” Paper Assignment In this first essay you will showcase your analytic and critical thinking skills through an examination of two of these thought-provoking short stories. Draw a connection between specific social issues addressed in two of the three readings. Use what you’ve learned about feminist literary criticism to help you make connections and support your analysis. The required length of this essay is 4-5 pages in length, and as always, a works cited page is required. You should continue to engage with the text to support your opinions, thoughts and ideas. Do not make claims lightly; ensure that these claims can be supported through strong selections of quotes from the readings. Be sure to avoid plot summary or a re-telling of the story because this silences your narrative voice and frankly, I have already read the story so do not need it retold. Instead, focus on the analysis of the events or the characters. Examine the purpose of the writer and possible the intended reaction of the reader audience. Plot summary will deeply impact the grade for the assignment, so please avoid it at all costs

Syrian refugees.

Policy Paper As part of the requirements of this class you will each be required to write a 10-12 page paper where you discuss a specific policy area using the policy process model discussed in class and in your textbook. The policy areas from which you may choose are listed below. Economic policy Energy policy Environmental policy Foreign policy Healthcare policy Tax policy Welfare Policy For each policy area, you will need to specify which particular element of the policy you plan to discuss. Your paper should include a discussion of the following elements (examples of some questions you may want to answer appear in parentheses beside the element): • An introduction to your policy. (What area does it pertain to? What’s the problem or issue? Why is it important?) • A discussion of how your policy made it onto the government’s agenda. (Who were the policy entrepreneurs? Was there a particular event that galvanized public support, etc.? What caused this policy issue to be chosen?) • The key factors in its formulation. (Were there hurdles? If so, what were they? What method of policy formulation was used?) • The specifics of its implementation. (Which level of government was responsible for implementing the policy? Why? What were your policy’s outputs?) • An evaluation of your policy. (Did your policy work? If not, why? Was it due to formulation or implementation problems? What were your policy’s impacts?) • Whether or not you feel a change in policy is necessary. (Should the policy be changed? Terminated? If so, why?)