Basic College Writing Enhances Business Course Outcomes

Business relies heavily on communication skills used in varying fields of study. Students often lack fundamental writing skills that can transfer into credibility, effectiveness and opportunity in the future. According to a 2013 paper by Dr. Carolyn Sturgeon colleges can do a better job at teaching students higher levels of written communication skills that can translate into productive projects. 

Students often resist courses in writing and English composition because they view these skills as secondary to their goals. Similar to the difficulty of getting your teenage children to throw out the trash these students are not excited about the tedious tasks of grammar, spelling, formatting, sentence structure, and citations. There is no denying that such classes are often boring and uninspiring and on the surface appear to be unnecessary.

Some students may need to complete 5-6 composition courses before effectively moving into their respective fields of study. There are other students that may not have mastered basic writing in high school and will need further remedial courses to perform at a college level. High school graduates who start at a lower rung will naturally need additional time, money and resources to improve their skills. Poor high school preparation equates directly to higher college costs. 

From the authors experience she has seen 90% of students avoid thesis writing and move more toward projects.  There is a natural avoidance of written work in classrooms as students lean more heavily on other skills. She suggests that students should be required to learn writing skills before entering their majors as this will make them more effective in their programs. 

The paper doesn’t move into this concept but it is possible to see an integration of more writing into traditional courses. For example, instead of 5-6 composition courses it may be possible to have 3 compensation courses and integrate graded writing into the colleges classes. This would require professors to understand the use of language and provide appropriate direction to students once their English composition requirements have been fulfilled to ensure they are developing their grammar, spelling, tense, clarity, formatting, and depth skills. 

Furthermore, online education is more heavily reliant on writing as part of the curriculum. It makes one wonder if graduating students are stronger at writing from an online institution than those coming from other types of universities.  Students are more likely to be judged on their individual writing skills than relying on an elite writer of a group assignment or a few assignments.

Sturgeon, C. (2013). Service courses: forays to bridge the gulf and invite new “citizens”.  CEA Forum, v42 n1 p208-245.

Sending Brain Waves over the Internet

Concepts such as remote viewing, transference of brain waves over the internet and actually controlling another person’s movements through technology have now become a reality.  University of Washington scientists Rajesh Rao and Andrea Stocco have developed a brain-to-brain communication method over the internet. As one participant thinks of an action the other will move their finger from some remote location. 

Before the brain can send the signal it takes some time to train it to send the right signals that the computer can capture. The sending participant thinks about shooting at some object on the screen and the cursor begins to move as the computer picks up on this signal. As the sender thinks such information the receiver in a different location will take the information from the internet and know to press the “shoot button”. 

Previous studies have shown similar results between rats, a human and a rat, and for the first time human to human. Since the beginning of man the only way to transfer thoughts was through language or actions. Now humans are able to directly control the actions of another person over the Internet. Both participants have to be willing and trained participants. 

There are some advantages for learning in the future. Complex concepts transferred through words often take high levels of energy and time to master. Yet with the use of new technology it may be possible to show people how to complete certain functions remotely and in ways that help them learn quickly. If this technology gives you a bit of a shiver you might not be the only one. At least for now no one can tell you how to act over the Internet.

University of Washington Press Release

Hegel: Reason in History

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel was a German-Prussian romantic in the sense that he saw the finite man as an element that moves toward the infinite. To him self-consciousness comes from thoughts thinking about themselves and this becomes a path to Absolute Knowledge. Absolute Knowledge is the highest form of spirit as a free thinking and logical rationality. Society is seen as pushing people closer and closer to the development of an ideal where thoughts and reality are intertwined. Understanding history helps mankind to understand the overall development of society and governmental systems as synonymous with the development of the freedom of spirit. 

Hegel discussed three analytical approaches to understanding history in his work Reason in History. His argument is that history can be seen as original history, reflective history, and philosophical history. Each provides a different vantage point and way to look at historically significant events. 

Original History: The unadulterated history as offered in manuscripts, facts, etc… of the time. 

Reflective History:  Reflective thought and interpretation of history. 

Philosophical History: Using philosophy to see events as a path to development. 

The author argues that all actions within the world are based upon reason. It was reason that caused the events and it is reason in which they are interpreted. Even the plans of God should be interpreted through the philosophy of development and reason. 

The only true form of freedom that people can realize is the freedom of spirit. As human actions and passion are subjective experiences they can be interpreted in many different ways. Yet as these passions and actions mesh with underlying principles (truths) the true freedom of spirit comes to know itself and become aware of its existence. 

The spirit can realize itself within the State. The State is the governmental and cultural systems of people. The State is a material aspect in which the spirit comes to actualize itself in varying forms. The historical development of people is based within the development of the state through the course of history. As the spirit changes so will the state or that state will decline as it no longer manifests the development of spirit. 

Human kind is on a continually path to realize its spirit in self-conscious, rational freedom. Societies may come and go but all will be subject to the manifestation of spirit.  To look and analyze history is the same as analyzing the development of citizens and their spirit. Where humans are not developing the nature of the state begins to decline. 

If we look at places in the world that are suffering under the weight of their own existence we may come to find that true development of the inhabitants is generally lacking. Using Hegel’s philosophical framework it is possible to see that a contained spirit is one that is not manifesting itself into higher states of existence. The development of society and the human spirit is also the development of the innovative and economic development of an area. Societies that allow thoughts, words, and constructive actions to flow freely are also likely to develop economically and socially. Those that are bent on control or subjugation are likely to decline and suffer the weight of impoverishment. Thus, the thoughts and actions of leaders impact the lives of their followers and this can only change through environmental forces or the forces from within people themselves. History determines the success of all social experiments.

Hegel, G. (1837). Reason in History. NJ; Prentice-Hall, inc. ISBM 0-02-351320-9

Call for Papers: 2014 Fifth International Conference on E-Education, E-Business, E-Management and E-Learning.

2014 Fifth International Conference on E-Education, E-Business, E-Management and E-Learning.

Paper Deadline: September 5^th, 2013

Journal: International Journal of e-Education, e-Business, e-Management and e-Learning (IJEEEE)

Description:

IC4E is an international forum for state-of-the-art research in e-Education, e-Business, e-Management and e-Learning. 2014 5th International Conference on e-Education, e-Business, e-Management and E-Learning (IC4E 2014) will be held in Toronto, Canada during January 13-14, 2014. It is one of the leading international conferences for presenting novel and fundamental advances in the fields of e-Education, e-Business, e-Management and E-Learning. It also serves to foster communication among researchers and practitioners working in a wide variety of scientific areas with a common interest in improving e-Education, e-Business, e-Management and E-Learning related techniques.

All submissions will be peer reviewed and evaluated based on originality, technical and/or research content/depth, correctness, relevance to conference, contributions, and readability. Submissions will be chosen based on technical merit, interest, applicability, and how well they fit a coherent and balanced technical program.

Website/Submission Location

Leading and Learning as a Cure for Pathological Management Styles

Learning organizations are likely to be more successful in developing new methods to compete on the market. Research by Michie & Zumitzavan (2012) furthers the argument that those organizations that foster learning and are managed by learning leaders are more successful than those who are reactive and focused on pathological styles. Learning leadership is progressive, open-minded, humanistic, and goal orientated that results in higher firm development and profits.  

Leadership and learning are two components that come together to foster development. The way in which leaders learn has an impact on how they act as administrators. Those that engaged in all four learning styles action, thinking, feeling and assessing others are more capability of using multiple leadership styles such as challenging, inspiring, enabling, modeling, and encouraging (Brown and Posner, 2001). 

Learning is one way in which organizations can continually renew themselves versus accepting the fate of a rigid decline. According to (Johnson and Scholes, 2002), organizations that are willing to continue learning throughout their lifecycles become more sustainable in the sense that they can adjust to new market trends, structures, and realities. If such organizations are not willing to learn and change they will be eventually crushed under new market realities by more competitive and nimble organizations. 

Leaders have the ability to prime the behavior of their followers. When leaders have a healthy respect for learning they can influence the expectations and behaviors of managers who further impact the social structure of employees. Creating a culture that respects and fosters learning, helps to enhance both the employees’ abilities, as well as the ability of the organization to adapt to market changes. 

The researchers Michie & Zumitzavan (2012), attempted to see how the attributes of managers impacted the learning and leading styles that influence organizational success. Twenty North Taiwanese firms were selected for the overall interviews and questionnaires.  They found that there was no relationship between learning styles and the demographics of the organization or location. In other words, learning leadership is not tied to organizational demographics. The impact of organizational learning styles was influenced by the leadership styles within the organization. 

Effective Organizations: Managers within effective organizations believed that technology and cost reduction were two important factors. However, they agreed that by developing employees skills their organizations could be enhanced. Thus, they sent people to seminars, workshops, training, educational outlets, etc… to improve their skills. They welcomed open opinions, managed workplace problems progressively, delegated for employee enhancement, and continued to forecast the needs of their organizations into the future. 

Less Effective Organizations: Less effective organizations are marked by their short-sighted thinking that focused on day-to-day issues. They were less able to forecast the future of the organization or able to solidify the goals of the organization. They rarely sent people for enhancement training or education and did not do well in managing employee problems. Furthermore, they were not willing to delegate authority and did not encourage employee opinions. 

The research results indicate that short-sighted behaviors, whereby individuals are not learning, are more prone to poor performance. With such results it is important to understand how training and development has an enhanced place in the most successful organizations.  Such training doesn’t need to be formal but does need to encourage constant learning and development to be effective. The learning style of the leaders and their level of expectation setting appear to foster organizational learning. 

Micromanaging leads to poor results and creates a systematic structure that damages the organizations ability to effectively compete on the market. Some have argued that micromanaging is a pathological behavior rooted in the manager’s childhood experiences, perceptions of incompetence, and their inability to think beyond their most immediate needs. Such managers foster fiefdoms in the workplace, manage by fear, and often take credit for others work. Many times their policies, procedures, and departmental approaches are based in the need for self-validation. For investors and executives who desire to see their organization succeed, they should take considerable care in fostering learning within their organizations and limit the advancement of those with the least capacity to lead. New ideas bring opportunities for organizational advancement. Where profits are low, adaptation slow, and employee development under toe….you may just have an abundance of pathological management styles.

Brown, M. and Posner, Z., (2001). Exploring the relationship between learning and leadership.

Leadership and organizational development journal,  22 (5–6), 274–280.

Johnson, G. and Scholes, K.,(2002). Exploring corporate strategy. Essex: Pearson Education.

Michie, J. & Zumitzavan, F. (2012). The impact of learning and leadership management styles on organizational outcomes: a study of Tyre Firms in Thailand. Asia Pacific Business Review, 18 (4).