The ICT Project Essay Example for Free

The ICT Project Essay Introduction: I have been given a task to find out a real end user for my project who is currently having problems with paper. I am brainstorming different types of techniques to improve the efficiency and quality of the paper based problem. I have found an end user for my project; it is one of my teachers in Sir John Cass, Mr Shah who is a key skills ICT teacher. His currently having a paper problem he needs to input details of individual student of their term report, his currently using a pen and a paper to input all the details such as the whole terms attendance, predicted grades etc. The type of software I will be using is Spreadsheet because it is one of the criteria in my project. Spreadsheet is an application used to input data into table graphs. This application will require basic computer (including input devices) and the spreadsheet application with a connected computer per unit. The way in which the spreadsheet will be constructed is a big factor when deciding its effectiveness and speed of input for example I do not want to overcomplicate the system. I will be using well known software called Microsoft Excel, which is ideal for the creation of tables and graphs as stated earlier. I in this case will be easy to use interface. Although the end user is not adept to the use of ICT I will be creating the system for a user with no ICT skills as this in a sense will speed up the input process further. Why not continue the old methods of registry and late entries: 1. All the work is written down so there are human errors such as spelling and when something like this is to happen you have to start over because on a formal piece of information there cannot be mistakes this can be time consuming. 2. Accuracy will be greatly increased with the user friendly interface which in addition to accuracy increases efficiency. 3. You may not able to make immediate electronic copies of information tables. 4. The special features available with Excel (spreadsheet) are no longer an option such as, immediate calculation, from entry, graphs and charts, etc. 5. Most of the surnames and first names are the same it can be difficult to find phone details, however with this system you can have this information automatically loaded with the name entry. Current System Mr Shah teaches year 7 to year 11 students for Key Skills ICT, the problems his currently facing is filling in individuals students records such as their term report, attendance record, working grade, everything on paper as it is a bit time consuming to find all the records of each students when filling in their report. Mr Shah is a very busy man as he is also the head of year of ICT key skills. The current system involves Mr Shah marking grades by using a pen and filling in term reports by manually and keeping records of individual students which involves writing everything on paper. Therefore I have stepped in to help him with his problems. I will be mainly focusing on year 11 as it is important for them because their about to face their exams. Problems with Current System: By reviewing Mr Shahs problem I have found out what the current common mistakes happened to be, they are: * The current system is inaccurate and most of the time he makes mistakes. For example, when she is working out percentage and grades for each student, she often makes calculation errors. * It is very time consuming, especially the calculation of percentages attained in marked worked and grades obtained overall. * As the names of students are not in order he finds it difficult to find the student to record a mark. * The report could easily get lost. * Also writing in individual names several times, which is time consuming. Interviewed Questions What is your position at this school? What type of system do you use for your mark tracks? What method do you use to mark your student work? What problems are you facing with your current system? How would you want your current system to be improved? What do you think is the major failings in your current system? Have you ever used a computer for tracking marks? Can you give me any samples of your current system? Is there a CD ROM drive in your computer? Do you have a printer? How certain are you when using computers? How certain are you when using Excel? What features and functions are you aware of in Excel? Do you keep all your records? Do you have any additional questions? End User Requirement Statement of user requirements Mr Shah feels a computerized system will solve some of her current problems as she thinks she has some knowledge about Excel. She feels I will be able to create an effective, fast, and easy to use automated system to calculate her students marks for her, which will enable her to solve her problem. They are the following things she expects to get from a computerized system. Input * She wants the new system to enable her to make management decisions that she uses to support student, which need help, whether parents need contacting, whether other action is required e.g. Detention. * The system should automatically calculate the percentage and grades of each student. This system will therefore make her work more accurate and easy to use. * Mr Shah wants the new system to be able to enter student personal details, e.g. DOB, tutor group, surname, etc. * She wants the new system to be able to edit student personal details. Also she wants the system to able to delete student personal details if a student moves form her teaching group. Output * Mr Shah the new system to use colour coding when displaying grades of each student, e.g. Green for A*, Blue for A etc. * Mr Shah would like a report facility where she can select a student from a list and the report will show the students name, gender, from group, overall percentages mark, grade obtained and an automatic comment on progress. * The system should be able to produce chart, which will analysis student overall performance and also compare girls and boys performance. Processing * The system will put the names of student in alphabetical order. * Mr Shah wants the new system to automatically convert numerical marks to percentages. Storage * Mr Shah wants the new system to be able to store 30 students personal detail and also store results for up to 70 tests. * Finally, the new system should not be used by anyone else except Mr Shah, I will make sure the system is safe and I will make sure it has a security code. Backup protocols are a necessity in the event that the master copy is lost or destroyed. Backup up will be provided by an external hard drive, and the system will be backed up periodically, i.e. every week, or in special circumstances, for example, there is a significant in take of data into the system. Furthermore, the backup copy will be stored of site, so that if theres a natural disaster affecting the main site, the backup copy will remain. Plus, this method of backup can be described as differential backup, which practices a cumulative backup of changes from the last full backup , allowing a full system restore based upon the last full backup. Due to the non existent computer skills of the employees, an introduction into the use of computers is necessary. To accompany the basic skills they will acquire, I will need to develop a user manual which will provide detailed instructions in performing various tasks in the system as well as maintaining it, which is vital to its integrity and reliability. However, Victor has advised me to provide a manual of minimal size and contents in order to avoid confusion and enable the employees to read it swiftly, so they can get on with the job as soon as possible. Source Documents The source document that I have provided is a copy of marks book that Mr Shah uses to record her student marks. As you can see there is a lot of data to be inputted by hand. This is one of the problems that Mr Shah has. The calculations of total mark and overall have to make using calculator, which is time consuming. Objectives of the new system * The new system will perform the following tasks: * It should be able to identify students with poor performance by using a visual alert. * Ability to edit incorrect mark, so whenever Ms Gammon make an accidental mistake, she will have the ability to correct it. * The system should be able to produce average performance percentage of each student for her class. * It should have the ability to Edit and Delete students details if required, thorough the use of data forms. * Easy and clear to use. * It should automatically calculate percentages and grades from the inputted a student marks and maximum mark available for each test. * Cell, formulae protected to prevent accidental deletion. * It should automatically work out a students grade, based on overall percentage for all tests taken. * It should be able to generate an automated report for students showing student performance. * Password (security) on file access. * It should automatically colour code student grades. User Skill Level Mr Shah has used Microsoft Excel but does not use it to calculate percentage, and grades of her marks. She is an average user, which means she does not understand most of the advanced features. Such as Vlookup, IF Statement, Macros, etc. Project Constraints Mr Shah uses school standard PC that I will be using to calculate percentages and grades for the new system. It has a four processor, which has 512 MB of RAM and 30 GB hard disk. It has Microsoft software including the excel 2000. Mr Shah Pc has CD Rom, USB and floppy drive, which are also connected to school network. This will make my work to be easy when loading the new system onto her computer because I can store it on the CD or floppy disk and transfer the system. Ms Gammon has printer in her office, which will be used to print out reports of student performance Performance Criteria These are the performance criteria that are going to be used in the new system that Mr Shah asked for: * MR Shah will be able to correct mistakes that she might make during marking; this will make the system to be more neatly presented and pleasant. * It should be able to add and delete students if required. * The system will generate automated reports of each student by click of a button showing their performance that can be sent to parent. * It will be easy and clear to use. * The new system will produce an average performance percentage for each student. And also it will automatically convert numerical marks to percentages. * It should have protection to prevent accidental deletion of important formulae, numbers, table, chart and text. All the sheet and cells in the system must be protected with security to prevent these. * Graph and charts should be generated quickly and easily to compare boys and girls performance, All student and by form. * The new system will not take more than 4seconds to view performance and grades for each student. * The system will generate automated colour coding when displaying grades of each student. * The system will store 40 student personal details, and also store results for up to 50 tests. * Mr Shah will be able to select student from a list and the report will show the students name, gender, overall percentage mark, grade obtained and an automatic comment on progress. Design Choice of Software I think that Microsoft Excel is the best option of software because it has got many features such as: * It has advanced functionality such as pivot table, sort, forms, Vlookup, average, and write protection. This will make things more automated for the user. * Pivot: this will hold table for charts. This will not need to be seen by the user. When they select the chart that they require on the student summary sheet, the pivot table on the sheet will change to represent that choice. It will also used to summaries archive data for use in charts showing: 1. By gender 2. Form * Data entry form will be able to edit and delete student records. * Conditional formatting will allow automatic shading of cells to give visual message for highlighting grade attained and also table displaying student grades. * Macros can be used to perform complex tasks at the press of a single button. * It can perform complex calculation such as working out the grade for each student. * User Forms for controlling actions with macros using buttons. * Chart /Graph: can be used to display output of information such as averages, predicted grades etc. * The user wants the system to be as error-free as possible. Excels Validation facility will allow me to set up range validation to control data input when entering student personal details, overall mark etc. * Protections of cell so that user cannot accidentally delete information. Statement of Input, Processing Output requirement The input would be: Personal Details: First name Surname Gender Date of Birth Form Roll number Student marks: Assignment marks Maximum /minimum mark Grade Boundaries The Processing would be: Calculating the grades through a Vlookup to the grade boundaries table. Sorting, grouping and summarizing data with a pivot table. Calculate the average of total marks Using Vlookup work out a grade for the average. The output would be: Pivot Chart/Graph showing comparisons between gender, form-by-form and overall year group achievement. Give students their grades using report card. Table displaying student grades. Creating report for using student with performance. School letter, which would be sent out to parent using conditional formatting to highlighting grade attained. Data Set Because of Data Production Act, I cannot be able to use the real detail of Mr Shah Students. For that reason, I will create my own data set of example student details, which I will work with.

Analysis of Shoeless Joe by by W. P. Kinsella :: W. P. Kinsella Essays

Ray Kinsella helped other people fulfill their dreams by traveling for miles to find them, and bring them back to his field of dreams. In the book Shoeless Joe, W.P. Kinsella wrote about how some people were missing something in their lives, but they found what they had been looking for when they arrived at Ray’s field. Ray built a baseball field to fulfill his unfulfilled dreams of the past. Ray’s father died when he was a teenager, so Ray did not get to spend much time with him. Ray had always longed to see his father again and this dream came true when he built the field. Others had unquenchable dreams like Ray. Archibald Graham never got to bat in the majors, and that was what was missing in his life. When Archie Graham came to Ray’s field, he found the thread that tied the meaning of his life together. Eddie Scissons also had an unrealized dream, all his life he had lied about himself being the oldest living Chicago Cub, but he was only looking for the recognition that he had always dreamt of having. When he came to Ray’s field, he no longer had to lie about himself being the oldest living Chicago Cub, for that’s exactly what he became. Ray’s field of dreams helped fulfill the dreams of other men besides himself, and it made all the men very happy to finally find what they have been looking for all their lives. Ray Kinsella was called upon by forces left unknown to the readers and himself to go on both a physical journey as well as a journey of the heart. After hearing voices proclaiming, "If you build it, they will come," Ray risked the economic and emotional stability of the family he loved dearly to build a baseball field. At first, Ray Kinsella was highly skeptical, but eventually he realized the significance of his obscure calling. Upon the completion of the baseball field, "Shoeless Joe Jackson", the baseball player who had been his father’s hero before he passed away, suddenly appeared in the field to talk with Ray and to play baseball. As the book progressed, Ray continued to receive messages. After each new message, Ray was called upon to further his journey. This journey involved traveling to various cities around the United States, as well as facing issues within himself that he has successfully hidden from for years. He built the field to fulfill his unfulfilled dreams of the past. The one thing that Ray was missing in his life was that he never went to a live baseball game with his father.

Brazil Embraer: State-Owned Enterprise to Global Leader Essay

1. SWOT ANALYSIS Strength * Cost advantage * High R&D * Innovation * Aircraft manufacturing * Strong brand equity * Strong financial position * Supply chain * Design if aircraft * Product development * Technical assistance * System integration| Weaknesses * Lacks importance of dependency on international suppliers * Minimal Research and development to aerospace industry * Risk management * Lack of local resources * Privatization were transforming the Brazilian economy * Low content of its production| Opportunities * Emerging markets and expansion abroad * Creating formal relationships with universities to build university based R&D centers in U.S. * Online marketing * developing markers * Set operations in brazil to increase local outsourcing| Threats * Competition of Bombardier * Cheaper technology * Exchange rate fluctuations * Price wars * WTO sanctions * Lack of internal market intelligence units| 2. Brazil Embraer entered the regional jet business by moving up from turboprops and then entered the business jet after achieving success in the regional airline business.Brazilians build jets the world wants to buy. They are selling around the world in a market where a host of would-be US and European competitors have died a lingering death. Both Bombardier and Embraer have been assisted by government export subsidies (procurement and fiscal support).Key factor that made Embraer successful is the location of aircraft in Brazil â€Å"technology Valley â€Å" is where industrial clusters and petroleum sectors execute the assembling of smaller jets . Embraer sells civil and military aircraft and has established plants, sales, and maintenance centers in countries like China, Singapore, and the United States. Embraer used international strategic alliances to gain expertise in aircraft manufacture, and its aggressive marketing of its new regional jets to various airlines. Embraers success in production of military and commercial allowed it to master them in manufacturing regional jets.

Is Chinua Achebe Correct in Asserting That Heart of Darkness Is Essentially a Racist Novel Essay

Chinua Achebe’s’ expresses his view on Heart of Darkness as an essentially racist novel and he is correct in saying this. His essay focuses mainly on the portrayal of the Congo as an ‘other world’ in which Conrad describes it to be an antithesis of Europe and the European standards and overall of civilisation as a whole. The racism presented by Conrad in the novel is evident through his manipulation of perspective and dehumanisation of the native Africans as discussed in Achebe’s essay. Joseph Conrad manipulates the perspective of the reader and the attitude they have towards the natives and Europeans alike through the bestowal of human expression to Europeans and the withholding of it from the Africans, as Achebe explains. When comparing the description of the two women, the African woman and European woman, the reader is able to depict a subtle yet definite difference in the way each woman’s expression is characterised. The African woman, who is seen to be as a mistress to Mr Kurtz, is illustrated as a very mysterious figure ‘’with an air of brooding over an inscrutable purpose’’ making her character unidentifiable. Whereas the European woman is talked about more clearly and the reader can easily recognise her character because she is given emotions and feeling, ‘’she had a mature capacity for fidelity, for belief, for suffering’’. In Conrad characterising each woman in such different ways, the reader feels as though the European woman is more relatable as opposed to the native woman who is not expressed with feelings. This lack of human expression in the description of the African woman, as commented on by Achebe, created a noticeable barrier between the complexity of natives and Europeans. For the most part, the natives are not given any dialogue but instead their speech is replaced with ‘’a violent babble of uncouth sounds’’. Achebe however, refers to two significant parts of the novel when native Africans are given English dialogue. These are when the cannibals request the humans to eat, ‘’catch ‘im. Give ‘im to us. ’’. As well as the famous announcement, ‘’Mistah Kurtz—he dead’’. When first read, the reader thinks of these as high points for the natives because they appear to be at the same level as the Europeans in terms of getting dialogue ithin the novel. Chinua Achebe opposes this by stating that in reality they constitute some of his best assaults as these examples of dialogue in fact degrade the natives. This changes the reader’s perspective into assume that through the use of grunts and incoherent speech they are inferior and inarticulate in comparison t o the language used by the Europeans. This difference in amount and quality of dialogue between the Africans and colonising Europeans contributes to making Heart of Darkness an essentially a racist novel. The novel reveals the Africans being reduced to metaphorical expanse of dangerous and dark jungle of animals into which the European colonists venture. Chinua Achebe is correct in criticising Heart of Darkness as a racist novel, this is seen particularly through Conrad’s dehumanisation of the Congolese natives. Throughout the novel Conrad’s descriptions of the natives are used to create the idea of uncivilised, savage being whom cannot be of the same standards as the Europeans. Conrad’s most effective way of dehumanising the African people is through his use of imagery, ‘’a whirl of black limbs, as mass of hands’’. This does not give the impression that these are human beings but instead that they are just parts of humans, therefore making them seem incomplete and inferior in comparison the way Europeans are described. This imagery is also important when Conrad describes native workers as ‘’decaying machinery’’, this creates the image that the Congolese are not valued as humans, as Europeans are, but rather as disposable articles who can easily be replaced after they have done their work. The language choices in which Conrad has made also have a great impact on the way the natives are perceived. By using phrases such as ‘’the beaten nigger groaned somewhere’’, the Congolese natives are referred to in a very uncivilised manner. A way in which no European would ever be described leads the reader to believe that the Africans are in fact inferior to the Europeans, making them less of a human. These descriptions make it evident that Conrad’s writing involving the natives made them appear beast-like and savage therefore dehumanising them in a way that can only be seen as racist. Although these racial depictions may not be used to knowingly dehumanise and objectify the Congolese people, Chinua Achebe rightly criticises Heart of Darkness as a racist novel. The constant comparison between the two cultures, African and European, are simply explained as one being civilised whereas the other is portrayed as savage. The unavoidable reality that Conrad’s descriptions of the natives were accurate expressions of the European perspective justifies Achebe’s assertion that Heart of Darkness is essentially a racist novel.

Writing Style of Scarlet Letter Essays

Writing Style of Scarlet Letter Essays Writing Style of Scarlet Letter Paper Writing Style of Scarlet Letter Paper Essay Topic: The Scarlet Letter Adultery, betrayal, promiscuity, subterfuge, and intrigue, all of which would make an excellent coming attraction on the Hollywood scene and probably a pretty good book. Add Puritan ideals and writing styles, making it long, drawn out, tedious, wearisome, sleep-inducing, insipidly asinine, and the end result is The Scarlet Letter. Despite all these things it is considered a classic and was The Scarlet Letter is a wonderful and not so traditional example of the good versus evil theme. What makes this a unique instance of good versus evil is that either side could be considered either one. Hester could very easily have been deduced as evil, or the bad guy, as she was by the townspeople. That is, she was convicted of adultery, a horrible sin of the time, but maybe not even seen as criminal today. As for punishment, a sentence to wear a scarlet A upon her chest, it would hardly be considered a burden or extreme sentence in the present day. Or Hester can be seen as rebelling against a society where she was forced into a loveless marriage and hence she would be the good guy, or girl, as the case may be. Also the townspeople, the magistrates, and Chillingworth, Hesters true husband, can be seen in both lights. Either they can be perceived as just upholding the law -she committed a crime, they enforce the law. On the other hand are they going to extreme measures such as wanting to take Pearl, Hesters daughter, away just because Hester has deviated from the norm, all to enforce an unjust law that does not. Although the subjects of the novel do apply to important issues in history and could have had influences on the time period, they were not great.

Online learning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Online learning - Essay Example The most effective way to learn these skills is to develop those while one is still a student. Life after education is a lot more complicated than what most students think especially when there is a need to deal with many things all at the same time. Oftentimes, there is a need to meet hectic deadlines and perform tasks that need to be studied thoroughly. On such situations, one needs to organize the things that should be done according to their importance. While organization skill in online learning allows the students to prioritize their goals, in the workplace, it allows one to focus and meet the deadlines without compromising the quality of the work (â€Å"Organizational Skills,† n.d.). Organization skill, as used in the workplace, improves my efficiency as it enables me to finish the necessary work load. As organizational skill develops my efficiency, time management skill improves my productivity as it enables me to maximize my time and effort. As applied in the workplace, time management skill allows one to exercise full control over his/her schedule and allocate ample time for different tasks that need to be done (Foltynek & Motchyka, 2009; Roper, 2007). In relation to organization skills, effective time management skill improves my professional career as it develops my productivity. Aside from the skills previously mentioned, effective communication skill is also important in online learning and in the workplace. Professionals highly depend on their effective communication skill as it determines whether or not their message is clearly understood by the receiver or they clearly understood the message of their leaders (Johnson, n.d.). Effective communication skills would enable me to express my ideas and comments effectively, objectively and politely. In addition, communication skill helps me establish connections

Religion and Society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Religion and Society - Essay Example Bureaucracy is the regularized procedure, and formal divisions of responsibility characterize its structure and set of rules and regulations to control activity in the government and large organizations.Bureaucratization of religion is seen in Middle East over past half-century. In Middle East three religious processes have grown together. Two things are seen in Middle East:1.Growth of fundamentalism that has received worldwide attention both by the international establishments and journalists. 2. Bureaucratization of religion and the state co-optation of religion. The bureaucratization of religion focuses on the chain of command of religious professionals and the state co-optation of religion focuses on their neutralization as political rivals. Fundamentalism, the bureaucratization of religion and state co-optation of religion has become intertwined in equally supportive as well as in hostile relations in Jordan. Bureaucratization of religion and politics is also seen in contemporar y Iran where there is due to emphasis on Shia radicalism, national character and revolution. In Iran, the relationship between politics and religion is because of historical context from the past time, and the role of religious leaders in the Iranian political movements and setup. It is said that the Iran has introduced radical sect of Islam for its national character of independence and for its historical culture and tradition to show itself as a great regional and world power. Shi'ism is an end product of the Iranian historical traditions of state, religion, and politics, and of its cultural contributions to the Islamic and world civilizations. Therefore, a remarkable continuity in Iran's past heritage of asserting her independence in the modern world of global transformation which is led by the superpowers of this modern world. Just like Zoroastrianism was of the ancient Sasanid Persia, Iran is the motherland of Shi'ism and Shi'ism is an integral part of Iran (Johnstone,2008). Another example for the Bureaucratized religion is Saudia Arabia.Although Saudi Arabia is thought to be the most religious among all Muslim countries, the question of who in the kingdom determines its central Islamic tract has been the subject of controversy since its foundation. The formation of Saudi Arabia in the early twentieth century involved the unique requirement of the Wahhabi da'wa in the service of the political aims of the Saudi family, Al Sa'ud. The regime has not been without its enemy, but for the most part the Al Sa'ud has been able to contain them. However, since the Gulf War, the social and economic problems that have inundated the country have led to the rise of a radical Islamic fundamentalist movement that has challenged Saudi Arabia's public role as the one Islamic country that has successfully combined culture, tradition and modernity (Wilson, 1986). Religiosity is a term used in sociology that refers to many faces of religious activity, belief and dedication. Religiosity refers more with how religious a person is, and less with how a person is religious in terms of practicing certain rituals, telling the myths, knowing some specific symbols, or accepting certain doctrines about his/her duites and life hereafter. Most of the debates in the study of religion have grappled over conceptualization issues that are really measurement issues. Much had been written in press in the 1960s and 1970s for the typology of the church-sect. Following that period people have seen similar disagreements about secularization which depend heavily on how one decides to measure the concept. Now we argue on what leads to a strict church (Hill & Hood,1999). Life would be more simpler if we could all use the same set of conceptual measures, apply them consistently, and be able to compare our findings systematically (Harvey Whitehouse,2000). Emile Durkheim(1858-1917) is considered to be the father of sociology. He is recognized for making sociology a science, and making it part of the French academic