The Challenges Of The Twenty First Century Education Essay

The Challenges Of The Twenty First Century genteelness EssayIntroductionThis chapter refreshens the relevant literature use in this memorise in a thematic and systematic manner. It begins with reviewing texts related to the directionrn-day local and global challenges. It then plowes the national goals of commandment in Kenya relating them to the demands of the twenty-first century. Teacher education in Kenya is then reviewed and finally the system of education in Kenya is examined.2.2.0 The challenges of the twenty first centuryThe twenty-first Century has been conceived as The age of Globalization, the age of Knowledge Economy, and the Information age. Globalization refers to the contemporary sociable reality, which is graphic symbolized by change, uncertainty, unpredictability, complexity, interdependence and diversity. According to Giddens (1990) and Albrow (1994), it refers to the process by which human relations be more and more being intensified. As a result, econom ic, political, pagan and social distinctions argon becoming less and less inhibitive. Advancement, especially in the information and telecommunication sectors has compressed cadence and space and the world is gradually becoming a borderless forum for human inter bendion popularly known as the global village.The educational challenges in a globalized world includeensuring that assimilators acquire the technological skills that enable them to access the global information and telecommunication networks,transforming learner attitudes and dispositions to enable them adapt to change and uncertainty,fostering character traits in learners that make them functional in a cross-cultural and democratic setting. Such traits include frank-mindedness, tolerance and intellectual autonomy,enhancing learners capacity and attitude to think critically and creatively.Knowledge has let the most important factor in economic development in a globalized world, hence the use of the term Knowledge deli verance to refer to the contemporary global economy. Consequently, the ability of a beau monde to produce, select, adapt, commercialise, and use knowledge is critical for sustained economic growth and improved living standards (World Bank, 2002). Education requisites to go beyond nevertheless intercommunicate learners. Learners catch to be enabled to learn on their own, make sense of and apply knowledge innovatively. Learners, therefore, need to have charge of their thought process and direct it towards solving problems as sounds as formulating and pursuing desired goals. Information and telecommunication technologies that facilitate and support knowledge-based activities have become extremely useful. Information has become easily accessible with the use of the internet hence the use of the term information age to refer to the 21st century. tho consuming information uncritically is dangerous in a globalized age. Education should therefore enable learners to select, interro gate, evaluate and utilize information efficiently.2.2.1 The global challengesAccording to Haag (1982) education systems in the world have expanded quantitatively rather than qualitatively making them unable to address current social problems. Although a lot of resources have been devoted to education, it appears like the systems of education have been in rough-and-ready in addressing social ills like inequality, intolerance, resistance to change, crime and violation of human rights among otherwises. These social ills manifest themselves in rising levels of poverty, cultural and racial conflicts and violation of human rights in many parts of the world. Ward and McCotter (2004) argue that developing thinking skills in educational institutions, though necessary, is inhibited by inappropriate program line methods used by teachers, ineffective evaluation procedures and rigorous overload of the curriculum. Other negative factors include ineffective educational policies that emphasize content and structure of education while neglecting quality and process of education. Jelinek (1978) refers to the dominant expository methods of instruction as didacticism in which it is assumed that education is an act of depositing knowledge into learners who atomic number 18 mere depositories. The process of instruction is lifeless, petrified, motionless, static and compartmentalised and frankincense strange to the experience of the learners. The approach is irrelevant to reconstruction of the experience of the learners since they are considered to know nothing. Ultimately the approach tends to turn humans into automatons and therefore negates their dignity and abilities as human beings. With break development of thinking skills, graduates from educational institutions are ob lookd to be limited in analytical, creative and innovative abilities that are essential in the modern knowledge based world of work.Leat (1999) blames inability of education systems to address contemporar y challenges on faulty academic cultures and traditions. For instance, attainment of good grades and certificates using whatever means is valued as opposed to transformation of learners into effective agents of change in society. Unhealthy competition among learners is tolerated instead of developing the culture of cooperation and mutual responsibility. Rigid adherence to existing academic cultures inhibits ability to respond to change. Unhealthy competition among learners promotes enmity and undermines team spirit. According to Perkins (1990) the culture in most educational institutions is characterized by minimal informative feedback and strain on traditional ways of doing things. This diminishes the exercise of unmarried initiative and choice. Consequently learners are denied an opport concurrence to develop essential characteristic of democratic citizenship. Such characteristics include respect for dialogue, freedom of expression and self-determination by individual choice. wheelbarrow et al. (2006) reports that a reading done in India revealed that the main challenges facing teacher education include meeting childrens specific erudition postulate, respecting students cultural and socio-economic context and involving parents and communities in school activities. The teachers therefore require interpersonal and counseling skills that can enable them to empathetically discern the learning demand of pupils. The teachers also need to be able to deal with diversity of learners and forge school-community collaboration. Douglass (2006) perceives preparation of employable graduates as the main challenge of education in the 21st century. According to him, emphasis on employability has led to other challenges. For instance, there are sharp divisions amongst scientific-technological academic disciplines on the one hand and social science and humanities on the other. He argues that there is an overemphasis on the value of scientific-technological disciplines starring(p) to bifurcation of knowledge. According to NCCPPE(2008), the main challenges that education must confront in the world today include preservation of the milieu and sustainability of natural resources the provision of health care renewal of economic vitality coping with change through learning promoting core human determine like justice, peace and lawfulness and p rote learningcting human rights.This study endeavoured to find out the extent to which global challenges mentioned above impact on Kenya. It further desire to establish whether and how the system of PTE in Kenya was responsive to them. The study also designed a framework by which the challenges can be classified for effective examination. For instance, the pursuit categories of challenges among others were be included in the framework cognitive, cultural, political, social, emotional, economic, respectable, technological, and apparitional. Cognitive challenges include obstacles that hinder effective think ing. Such obstacles render learners incapable of analytical, evaluative and creative thinking. Such learners merely copy and reproduce the ideas of other populate without being sensitive to context. Cultural challenges include stereotypes and prejudices that are embodied in traditions and norms of particular social groups. These traditions are passed on from one generation to other without critical scrutiny. In addition cultural beliefs and practices tend to be ethnocentric. As such they promote conflicts and misunderstanding among social groups. policy-making challenges include ideologies and policies that are designed to facilitate acquisition and maintenance of political power. Often such ideologies are propagated in a competitive way without imagine to sufficient analysis, evaluation and fair-mindedness.Social challenges include the need to accommodate diversity in the contemporary setting that is increasingly becoming multicultural. at that place is need for tolerance, ope n-mindedness and humility in interpersonal interactions. Emotional challenges have to do with inability to understand and deal with ones own feeling as well as the feelings of others. This is especially so in a social context that is propellant, uncertain and stressful. Economic challenges include scarcity of resources and controversial methods of distributing the resources. These challenges are compounded by the increasing needs and wants characterised by the consumerist lifestyles. Ethical challenges arise from disagreements on principles of right and wrong leading to good relativism. Such relativism makes moralistic value difficult to apply across board leading to ethical confusion.Technological challenges include inability to control and manage the use of technology in a way that benefits society without endangering wellbeing. Such challenges include checking blackguard of the internet, regulating the mass media and ensuring that nuclear technology does not get into the han ds of terrorists. Religious challenges include animosity among different faiths that sometimes expresses itself in overt ferocious practices. Religious fanatics often engage in breach of human rights and criminal activities in the name of God. All these challenges cannot be effectively addressed unless education vests the learners and society at large to think for themselves, analyse and evaluate issues, question beliefs and claims as well as develop the ability to creatively solve problems.2.2.2 The challenges in AfricaAssie-Lumumba (2006) perceives the debt burden, ethnic violence, armed conflicts and the scourge of HIV and AIDS as the most visible challenges that impact education in Africa. What is needed is an education system that can empower Africans to participate in the production and application of knowledge relevant in addressing these challenges and promote broad societal advancement. In Ghana, the need to develop thinking skills among learners has been recognize as a viable way of addressing contemporary challenges facing Africa. However in practice, the development of such skills has not been given adequate attention (Acheampong, 2001 Hill, 2000). There exists a mismatch between the professed value of thinking skills in education and actual efforts to develop such skills in teacher instruct institutions. According to Owu-Ewie (2007), schoolroom purlieu in many educational institutions in Ghana inhibit thinking in students. The teachers have been observed to be autocratic and rigid in imposing their views on students. The opinions of students are disrespected and discarded thus discouraging learner participation, curiosity and creativity. Teachers make poor use of questioning and motivation and use the chew method predominantly. The education system fosters rote learning, drilling and exam orientation. Such a system does not facilitate a healthy teacher-learner interaction.According to Barrow et al (2006), studies done in Namibia and Nigeria reveal additional challenges facing education in Africa. In Namibia, although educational policies are strongly based on active learning and learner-centered theoretical foundation, in practice, these lofty theories are not effectively implemented. The educational policies are poorly understood, interpreted and executed. The study findings support school-based teacher victor development programs, associated with whole-school improvement programs, as very promising ways of increasing understanding and effective implementation of active-learning policies. In Nigeria, religious tensions and economic empowerment are the challenges that education needs to address. Teachers have therefore to be empowered to facilitate inter-faith harmony, creativity and self-reliance among learners. In Ethiopia, poor quality of education, insufficient financing, lack of equity and poor worry are the key challenges facing education (Ethiopian National sureness for UNESCO, 2001). Consequently, the ongo ing educational reform encompasses every aspect of the educational system- the curricula, teacher training, educational inputs, educational finance, organization and management, structure of education, career structure of teachers, and evaluation. The reform is aimed at total relaxationructuring of the educational system. This study examined the challenges above and related them to those in Kenya and the rest of the world. It also compared the strategies employed to address the challenges with a view to reconstructing a more responsive approach to the challenges relevant to PTE in Kenya.2.2.3 The challenges in KenyaIn Kenya, some of the 21st century challenges are HIV AIDS, sex awareness, and sensitivity to human rights (K.I.E., 2004a and 2004b). Others include poverty, crime, drug abuse, and unemployment. These challenges require that education empowers the learner to reflect and respond to them pro-actively. While informing the learners about these problems is important, empowe rment of the learner demands a transformation that transcends the cognitive dimension to include all other faculties of the human person. This study explored these non-cognitive dimensions such as the creative, cultural, ethical and social among others.According to RCE (2007), sustainable development in Kenya (as in any other country) is complex since it encompasses social issues such as peace and security, human rights, gender equality, cultural diversity and intercultural understanding. Other issues include poor governance, corruption, increased incidences of diseases, erosion of cultural values and morals, among others. The economic issues include corporate social responsibility and accountability, ethical marketing, increasing levels of poverty and the widening gap between rich and poor. The other issues include trends of unsustainable production and consumption leading to inefficiency and wastefulness, poor enforcement of policies and regulations governing production and market ing. environmental challenges include the energy, nutritional and other domestic needs of an expanding population, unsustainable use of natural resources (water, land), rural/urban migration, climate change, rural development, urbanization, disaster prevention and mitigation concerns. This study examines the extent to which these concerns are addressed in PTE with specific reference to pedagogical approaches employed.Abagi and Odipo (1997) argue that the operation of radical education system in Kenya faces the problem of inefficiency. economic crisis completion rates and national pupil-teacher ratio make inefficiency evident. In addition, teaching-learning time was found not to be utilized efficiently in primary schools. The factors that whitethorn be accountable for inefficiencies include ineffective education policies and management processes, misallocation of resources to various educational levels school based factors such as teachers attitudes, time utilization, school envir onment and household based factors such as poverty. The inefficiencies identified above lead one to question the quality and relevance of education in Kenya. While Abagi and Odipo (1997) discuss inefficiency from the point of view of mismatch between resource inputs and desired output in terms of qualified graduates able to contribute to national development, this study explored another dimension of inefficiency which involves discrepancy between pedagogical approaches and the achievement of educational goals and objectives. The focus therefore was on the process of teaching and learning in addition to other material resources employed to pursue the achievement of educational goals and objectives.2.3.0 Global responsiveness to contemporary issuesShah, (1997) discusses the implications of globalization in the 21st century which include information revolution, dynamic demand of relevant skills, uncertainty of a borderless world economy, and intense competition among others. He suggest s that responsiveness to this reality demands a paradigm flip in the management of human relationships in all spheres of life. Although he takes a political perspective and dwells on how a shift in modes of governance needs to be effected, this study adapts Shahs ideas to a globalized educational context. For instance the shift from management to leadership in political governance can be equated to the shift from authoritarian teaching to helpful teaching in education. In both cases, control (of citizens/learners by politicians/teachers) is discouraged while participation, consultation and involvement by all parties is encouraged. This change is so central that Shah refers to it as a cultural transformation. He describes it as followsThe culture of governance is also slowing changing from a bureaucratic to a participatory mode of operation from command and control to accountability for results from being internally dependent to being competitive and innovative from being closed a nd slow to being open and quick and from that of intolerance from risk to allowing freedom to fail or succeed (Shah, 1997)While responsiveness as described above is desirable and even necessary in the world today, it is not easy to accomplish. In developing countries for instance, the reform of the world sector has been attempted in many countries without tangible results. Shah (1997) regards attempts to reform the public sector in many developing countries as an illusion or dream. The command and control orientation is so entrenched that developing a lymph node orientation that emphasizes collaboration and service is difficult to achieve. Consequently human relationships are devoid of a sense of responsibility and mutual respect. Relating these ideas to primary teacher education, responsiveness would mean enabling learners to be self-reliant and self-disciplined as well as actively engaging both teachers and learners as partners in the learning process.Leithwood et al (1994) asse rt that modern education systems have to address broader and complex goals, use a diversity of forms of instruction and strategies for learning to cater for diverse clientele as opposed to the traditional youthful learners. In addition, educational institutions will need technical resources to facilitate independent decision making and collaboration with other agencies. approaching institutions of education will need greater decentralization of authority, empowerment of staff, and increased accountability to the stake holders they serve. Much effort will be employed to review the content of the curriculum and the process of instruction in order to enhance learning as well as forge useful links between the educational institutions and their environment. Specifically the following responses will be neededprovision of higher order thinking skills like analysis, evaluation and creativity.use of flexible client-centred forms of instruction and willingness to collaborate with other educa tional agencies.Addressing of cultural, religious and ethnic diversity and tensions andIncreasing respect for the rights of individual, ability, race, age, sex etc which enhances equity as an education goal as well as equal access to knowledge.Beyer (1997) asserts that the best way to respond to contemporary challenges is to empower learners to learn. This implies facilitation of efficient and effective thinking. Such learning involves careful development of learner inclinations as well as their abilities to think skilfully. Barrow et al. (2006) reports that a research carried out in India suggest that one way of facilitating responsiveness among learners is to create a learning environment in which children are motivated to participate actively and are encouraged to think beyond their own context. This concurs with Beamons (1997) and Beyers (1997) view that the classroom environment should be motivating and provide opportunities for learners to use their cognitive and creative abil ities. In order to develop the thinking skills of learners, the teachers need to use cognitive instruction approaches and learner-centred strategies which pee-pee thinking. This study explored such approaches and strategies and endeavoured to find out whether they were being used in PTE in Kenya.Kea et al. (2006) recommend multicultural teacher education preparation as a viable way of promoting responsiveness to the challenges of the 21st century. Teachers who have learned culturally responsive pedagogy are believed to be more confident and effective in instructing children from diverse social, cultural, religious and economic backgrounds. Culturally responsive pedagogy involves adapting the content of instruction and teaching styles, curriculum, methodology, and instructional materials responsive to students values and cultural norms. Thus, the last challenge for teacher educators is to prepare reflective practitioners who can connect, commit, and practice an ethos of care with d iverse students and their families.According to Douglass (2006), responsiveness to contemporary challenges requires cross-cultural and human rights education. Governments should ensure that their primary and secondary educational systems provide for a balance and integration of national history and identity formation with knowledge of other cultures, religions, and regions. Educational approaches should be suited for transforming the values of young people, their perceptions and knowledge about other civilizations, cultures and peoples across all regions. Critical thinking should be promoted in order to enhance fair-mindedness and objectiveness in a world where information is being generated and disseminated at an amazing rate. Critical thinking is essential for analysing, evaluating and applying information. It is useful in combating misperceptions, prejudices, inaccuracies and outright lies among others. Critical thinking enhances the learners ability to separate fact from opini on, to evaluate information for bias, to construct and deconstruct meaning logically and relevantly. Such skills are important for promoting tolerance, mutual respect and responsible citizenship. This study examines the responsive approaches discussed above in the light of the Kenyan context. It aims at developing and recommending a comprehensive proposal of responsive pedagogies for teacher education that are suitable for addressing contemporary issues in Kenya.According to NCPPHE (2008) the most important educational goal is to facilitate learning by students and the society in general and thus create a learning society. In such a society, learning is a way of life and is therefore life-long. Optimized learning is that which helps strengthen democratic and civic institutions in the nation. This concept of learning extends beyond the education of students in classrooms to include educations impact on societal organizations, businesses, corporations, and cultures. This view is also adopted by federation for the 21st century (2004), which is a conglomeration of public and private partnership focusing on improving education in the 21st century. The partnership reached out to hundreds of educators, business leaders and employers to determine a vision for learning in the 21st century, to reach a consensus on the definition of 21st century skills, knowledge and expertise which will enable learners to thrive in contemporary world. This work endeavoured to bridge the gap between the knowledge and skills most students learn today in school and the knowledge and skills required in the 21st century communities and workplaces.The critical knowledge and skills identified by Partnership for the 21st century (2004) are learning and innovation skills (creativity and innovation, Critical thinking and problem solving, communication and collaboration), information, media and technology skills (information literacy, media literacy and ICT literacy) as well as life and career s kills (flexibility and adaptability, initiative and self-direction, social and cross-cultural skills, productiveness and accountability, leadership and responsibility). The partnership also identified interdisciplinary themes which summarises the content that students should learn in the 21st century. These themes include global awareness, civic literacy, health literacy and financial, economic, business and entrepreneurial literacy. This study used these themes, knowledge and skills to evaluate the success of teacher education in Kenya in equipping primary school teachers to prepare pupils for the demands of the 21st century.2.3.1 reactivity to contemporary issues in AfricaAccording to Barrow et al. (2006) research carried out in Nigeria indicated that responsive approaches in education in Africa should aim at fostering moral values such as patience, tolerance, friendliness, compassion, empathy and fair-mindedness. In addition teaching methods and strategies should create and sust ain a stimulating learning environment. Teachers need to use a vicissitude of teaching methods to reach students at different levels of ability. In Namibia, the research recommended teachers reflection on their practice in order to seek way of improving teaching and learning. Learner-centred teaching, variation of teaching methods and strategies and positive teacher attributes like kindness and courtesy were also argued to contribute to responsiveness to contemporary issues in education.Ethiopian National Agency for UNESCO (2001) describes responsive education from the Ethiopian perspective as characterized by access to basic education for all, production of responsible citizens who can solve problems and cooperate with others in productive socio-economic activities. Other characteristics of responsive education include equity, community participation in education, and suitability of academic disciplines to the needs of the country. Quality and quantity need to chase each other in educational matters for instance, new educational institutions should be established and the existing ones strengthened in order to produce professionals at a quantity and quality levels that match the requirements of the country.2.3.2 Responsiveness to contemporary issues in KenyaIn Kenya, attempts at making education responsive to contemporary issues and challenges is reflected in the various educational reports that have been generated since license (Republic of Kenya, 1964, 1976, 1981, 1988 and 1999). This is evident in the review of the said reports below.The Ominde Report (Republic of Kenya, 1964) was the first commission of independent Kenya to address matters of education. It made a lasting constituent by articulating, among other issues, the goals of education in Kenya which are reinforced in the commission reports that followed. Among the recommendations that the report gave included that partnership should be forged between disposal and regional and local authorities in the planning and administration of education educational policy should be consciously directed towards promoting national unity religious instruction should be handled as an academic subject on educational lines dissociated from the sectarian objectives of any religious group primary education should provide training in the rudiments of citizenship education should be responsive to contemporary needs and modern educational practice education should be child-cantered and child study experts should be included as lecturers in teacher training colleges. The Ominde Report (Republic of Kenya, 1964) identified a number of issues of which the following are relevant to this study and remain relevant to the current situation in KenyaEducation in Kenya should foster as sense of nationhood and promote nationhood. The post 2007 election violence revealed the fact that nationhood and national unity have not yet been successfully achieved in Kenya(Republic of Kenya, 2008a) and education, to b e relevant must develop among learners and teachers alike patriotism, tolerance and mutual social responsibility.Education should serve the people and the needs of Kenya without discrimination. It should develop in learners the traits of fair-mindedness, empathy and justice.Education should enable learners at all levels to adapt to change. This requires analytical and evaluative skills that enable one to examine ones context, get word and define problems clearly and accurately. It also requires creative skills to enable one to formulate and implement relevant solutions to problems.The teaching methods prevalent in educational institutions after independence were faulted by the Ominde Report (Republic of Kenya, 1964) because they neglected learner participation, imagination and understanding and emphasised drilling and authoritarian teaching. Little attempt was made to adapt instruction to the needs of learners. In teacher training colleges, few lecturers were well grounded on the c rucial question of how children learn or fail to learn. The report appealed for a paradigm shift in teaching and learning as indicated in the followingWe do not believe that the students will effectively break loose from the old bookish, rote methods until they have themselves shared in the exhilaration of autonomous learning and have discovered how much more complete is their final mastery (Republic of Kenya, 1964, p.116)Gachathi Report (Republic of Kenya, 1976) expounded on the implications of the ideology of African Socialism on education in Kenya. The Report recommended the following issues which remain relevant to the contemporary Kenyan context Education needs to continue promoting national unity in order to address social and economic challenges facing the country education should be a tool for removing social and regional inequalities and creating international consciousness education should enhance adaptability and management of change education should foster mutual respons ibility and cooperation and education should develop positive attitudes and values that motivate people to serve diligently, honestly and efficiently. The Report recommended that all educational institutions should give increasing emphasis on problem-solving teaching methods that have a accusation on the real life situation of the Kenya environment. This study examines the extent to which PTE has addressed the concerns and recommendation of the Gachathi report.The Mackay Report (Republic of Kenya, 1981) was mainly concerned with the establishment of the second university in Kenya. It recommended the establishment of the 8-4-4 system of education. It reiterated the importance of the following objectives of education in Kenya fostering national unity based on the adaptations of the rich cultural heritage of the Kenyan people facilitation of the needs of national development development of skills, knowledge attitudes, talents and personalities of learners fostering positive internatio nal consciousness and promotion of social justice and morality. The Report observed that white-tie education had tended to concentrate on imparting knowledge for the sake of passing examinations instead of facilitating problem solving.Kamunge Report (Republic of Kenya, 1988) addressed education and manpower training for the rapidly changing Kenyan society. It recommended

Organizational Culture And Change Management

Organizational finis And Change ManagementThe world has become a ball-shaped village and so do the businesses. Competition among industries is becoming to a greater extent and more global and businesses argon facing ever climbing pressure to compete at this level. The market indispensablenesss are changing rapidly and continuously and to cope with this, organizations have to keep on changing themselves to meet the untried demands. The stir usher out be a channelize in product or service, marketing strategies, tack in trouble or IT system etc. but the approximately unenviable thing to change is the determine and beliefs of the people because its natural that people resist change. Cultural change is a difficult thing to do as there are people involved in it.British Air right smarts had g one through a cultural change which started in early 80s when the company was in bad condition and was about to go bank corrupt. The newly appointed CEO Colin marshal wind instrument the c hange and took the company out of the crises and made it one the most respectable gentle windlines of the world in less than 10 years time. This paper leave talk about the problems with BAs leadership and organizational culture which lead the company to those crises and its affects on performance and this paper will interchangeablewise talk about the successful implementation of the change. The paper will demonstrate the analysis of the change process and flaws in the change which could have lead to better results if managed properly.Organizational CultureCulture is the beliefs and set of people. The collective political platformming of the mind which dissimilariates the one throng of people from another, culture in this sense includes system of values. Culture comprises of language, religion, customs, manners and education (Bode 2008). Language is the most important right smart of understanding cultures as this is the way information flows. Many scholars have been trying t o define culture and they have defined it but it is always said that it is difficult. Culture is a very labyrinthine a phenomenon and toiletnot be captured in a few dimensions (Bode 2008).Organizations do have a culture and in simple words it was defined by spile and Kennedy (1996) that the culture is the way things get done around here. Organizational cultural is influenced mainly by the leaders of the organization and also by the personal values and beliefs of the people. It is basically the system of mutually shared beliefs and values by the people of the organization. Organizational culture is a key component in achieving the organizational goals and strategies, modify the organizations competitiveness and effectiveness and management of change (Adeyoyin, 2006).BAs HistoryBritish Airways came into existence in result of a merger of two British carriers, BOAC (British Overseas Airways Corporation) and BEA (British European Airways) in 1970s (Marriott 1998). British Airways is one of the most respectable and preferred airlines in the world today. British Airways won the Airline of the year award in 2007 on 25th OAG awards (BBC news). This success of the airline is the outcome of a successful cultural change started in early 80s. Before 1980s BA was doing best as there was little competition in the market and BA controlled 60% of the UK domestic markets and faced competition on only 9% of the routes in and out of the UK (Redman Wilkinson 2009). Due to little or no competition BA didnt guidanceed on node satisfaction and other issues and carried on the traditional way of doing things which lead them to disastrous situations when they felt the need for change.In 80s the rivalry among the airlines was limited in concerned to BA because BA was controlling 60% of the routes (Business Economics 1982). The affrights of the substitutes was also limited for BA because BA has covered most of the routes and had large number of destinations and left the custome rs some times with no other choice. BA didnt have the focus on customer satisfaction and profit maximization and this caused major customer dissatisfaction. Lack of punctuality and uncomfortable flights were the reasons for this dissatisfaction (Warhurst 1995). BA geniused monetary losses of 140m and this leaves a threat for the new entrant in the market. So the threat for the new entrant was there.Drivers for changeHumans change with the passage of time as per the requirement and situation at hand. Similarly organisations need to change as well to adapt to the changing internal and external environment. A need of change can arise from two kinds of factors i.e. Internal and External factors. External factors include the competition, technological advancements, innovation, and deregulation of application, labour costs, and access to resources, international economic changes, and government policies. Internal change factors tend to follow on from the external ones, and include ad apting to shifts in corporate missions, changes in technological equipment and processes, shifts in employee attitudes and behavior and corporate culture. In BAs case the initiating factors were both internal and external. The external factors were the competition, the governments threat of privatization, and access to cheaper resources and increase prices of oil. The internal factors involved in pushing BA towards going for a change were the internal fuddled culture, Change of equipments and staff related issues.How the culture was formed?BAs cultural change was a success and still it is being used as a quotation or a guide for the firms who go for cultural change (Mills et al 2008). There were four major companies who went through cultural change and some of the reasons among them were common, e.g. threat of privatization. Those companies were mountain lion, British Airport Authority (BAA), British Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL), and British Airways (BA). The founders of a compa ny or the forefathers have a significant influence on the culture formation of a business. The way they do things leave a long lasting impact on the followers thus become the get of the culture (Poole et al 2004). Jaguar and BAA for example have always had charismatic leaders. Sir William Lyons and Sir Norman Payne were both charismatic leaders and autocratic in name (Salama 1995). This leaves the impression on the follower managers and showed its effects in their decision making styles.BNFL and BA till 1984 didnt have any charismatic leader like Jaguar and BAA (Salama 1995). There was variation in departments which shows the values of each of the departmental head. Christopher Harding was appointed as the chairman in 1984 and before him there wasnt a champion dominant character at the top management level. Because BA had its origin from the ministry of defence, there was a strong civil service influence in the company. BA had a strong and close contact with Royal Air Force and b oth pilots and managers were recruited from RAF frequently. These militants left a very operational flavour to the organizations culture. In a survey a manager said that we couldnt get away from the fact that we are on a mission and that mission is everything to us and the customer are just an unfortunate add on. The management and leadership style was not participative as the CEO and the former chairman personally were very distant from the staff. The technical knowledge was considered to be very vital and the managers were recruited and promoted on the basis of their technical abilities instead of managerial abilities.All these factors made the culture of BA very unshakable and a critical cultural change became the only solution for the company to survive.The Change ScopeBackground Other than the increase competition and fuel costs, sometime(a) fleets, and high staff costs in 80s, BAs management had to tackle these issues in order to avoid going bank corrupt,Improving the compa nys financial performance fundamentally, pre-tax losses were showing a figure of 240m in 81 and 82 (Annual report 1st April 1983). CEO of BA said in 1982 that their money is draining at the rate of 200 every minute (Mills et al 2006).Convincing the workforce of the supreme importance of customer run for the success of the company.Improving the perceptions about BA in the market.Maintaining momentum and regaining the focus which will allow them to meet new challenges.The main reasons for this crisis on BA were its culture and history. BEA and BOAC came together to form BA in 1981 (Staniland 2003). They remained sovereign till 1976 when the group division was changed to a structure based on functional divisions. Still a distinctive split at bottom BA persisted until the mid 1980s. This improper assimilation disallowed BA to achieve the desired benefits of the merger, could not attain a common focus, created management segregation squabbles and resulted in a lack of a unifying corpor ate culture (Doganis 2002).The funny side of the merger was that most of the BEA and BOAC employees were war veterans who used to fly ball military aircrafts and they had a keen influence on shaping the culture of BA. BAs culture was influenced by military mentality with a purely operational focus. The employees believe that their job is only to fly the plan safely and land it on time. Customer satisfaction and customer care, profit maximization and productivity were not considered as top priorities (Bowhill 2008).BA had financial support from the government and was doing a profitable business in the 70s (Parker 2009). These were the reasons which made it easier for BA to neglect its increasing inefficiencies over time. It was getting even more difficult to persuade the workforce and the management towards the need of a fundamental change. The competition was rising in the market and customer dissatisfaction plus the employees absenteeism were on the rise and the need for change wa s critical.The 1981 survival plan The merger in 1981 leaves the company overstaffed and the staff expenses were unaffordable. The survival plan involves downsizing and the staff was reduced from 52000 to 43000 through conscious measures. A 20% decrease in workforce in 9 months was a major downsizing (Thompson Martin 2009). Freezing pay was increased for a year which caused more volunteers leaving the job than was required. 16 routed were closed, 8 online stations and 2 engineering bases were shut down (Carleton Lineberry 2004). The survival plan was all about minimizing the costs and expenses as the company was heading towards bankruptcy. The activities involved in minimizing the costs also includes the halting of cargo service and selling the fleets and massive cuts in number of offices, administrative serve and staff clubs etc (Jones and Lockwood 2002). Things were not going right and the survival plan was amended and staff was reduced by another 7000 and the total number than was approximately 35000. The voluntary laying off schemes cost the company around 150 million and the company ended up with more volunteers than necessary because of no job security and sinking conditions of the company (Carleton Lineberry 2004).Changing range of mountains of the Airline British airways had a bad range of a function in the customers mind dew to unsatisfactory services and relatively higher(prenominal) prices. A survey by the International Airline Passengers Association put BA at the top of a list of the airlines to be avoided. (Redman Wilkinson). To improve the image of the organization BA launched its Manhattan Landing and The worlds favourite Airline campaigns and raised the advertising budget which was 19m to 31m for the year 1983-1984 in order to signal a clear freight to changing the corporate image (Leban et al 2005).Building its turnaround team 30% of the old employees had left the organization voluntarily which involved senior mangers as well (Barsoux Manzoni 1997). Culture is formed by leaders and now these leaders were not there which helped the cultural change process. Newly appointed CEO Sir Collin marshall was a very charismatic leader. He brought in some new blood to give the company a fresh perspective and to regain focus. In 1983, Colin Marshall made customer service a personal crusade (Reichheld 1996). Customer services were something absent in the BAs culture which was very rigid and he wanted to achieve a shift from a strongly British, engineering, and operationally driven culture to one that expressd productivity and simoleons while increasing the value placed on customer service.Support from top management To shuffling a change successful the leaders need to play the section ride. Leader inevitably to be the one, who actually put the change terms in practice, supports his team and give them freedom of expression (Cameron 2004). Collin Marshall in this bear upon was very concerned and he used to spend lot of his time in terminals with staff communicating and reinforcing the desired culture for the organization and its mutual and separate advantages. Employees were given the freedom to share their ideas and thoughts and give their suggestions about helping the change to carry forward. Employees feel listened to and feels themselves as part of the companys success.Education and Training Change needs to be reinforced and communicated regularly to make it feel happening. A continuous training needs to be done to help employees adapting to the new culture. BA in this regard conducted a training program named PPF (Putting People First). This training program was aimed at the people to examine their interactions with other people. The main focus of the training was to seduce positive relationships and customer services. Nearly 40000 of BAs employees attended the training program (Leban et al 2005). Another training program conducted by BA was MPF (Managing People First). This training progr am was aimed at other issues like culture and its importance, the leadership, trust, vision and feedback. These behaviour moulding programs resulted in good and BA was able to move on towards cultural change. afterward one year of training with TMI (training consultants), BA moved into profit (Senior Fleming 2006).Make the Change in sight Change needs to visible to the outside world. British Airways expose their new planes at Heathrow Airport and their new uniforms to give the world an impression that they have gone through a change and now they are a better organization (Leban et al 2005). With in 10 years the cultural change program succeeded in creating a strong commitment to productivity, profits and customer services. The morale was higher and the companys image in the market was better and this change lift the company out of bankruptcy to become one the worlds most see airline. British Airways have launched a new campaign in 2009 named ONE DESTINATION. The CEO said at the time of launch that we started our journey towards responsible air travel in 1984 and we have discovered that our customers love to fly with us but are concerned about their impact on the environment (BBC news). acquire over the resistance with the help of fitted change modelsKurt Lewins change model comprises of three steps, i.e. Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze. The first breaker point in Lewins change model is unfreezing that is when manager develops a felt or need for the change which can be because of declining profits or shrinking market shares etc. In BAs case both profits and market shares were declining. This is where the CEO Collin Marshall felt the need for the change. The unfreezing stage is very crucial as this is when managers are making the workforce ready for the change. This is the advertising bod where the vision and content of the change is communicated which inspires the workforce and gains their commitment. Brirish Airways in this regard conducted the behaviour moul ding conferences named PPF and MPF to change the behaviours and make the people ready for the change.The next stage in Lewins model is the change it self. This is the stage where the terms of the change are practically implied and practiced. The survival plan discussed above aimed at cost reduction and than the activities like increasing the advertising budget, hiring new blood and educating and training the people was the change process which was very well lead by the CEO. At this stage continuous feedback and reinforcer is required to make the change feel happening. Collin Marshall himself used to talk with the employees in small groups and spent his most of time reinforcing his vision and desired culture.Refreezing is the stage when people start to embrace the change and the organization has moved to the new culture. This is the stage where the change should be visible and BA made the change visible by inaugurating their new fleets and uniforms.John P. Kotter in his 8 step chang e model says that a strong enough team is required to carry the change process forward. BA did create a team of new blood managers who gave the company a fresh ad current perspective of business. Kotters model emphasize on communicating the vision of the change and BA was up to the task and had a great support from the senior management as the employees had the freedom of overlap their ideas and thoughts.Leadership StylesAs mentioned above that leadership of BA was heavily influenced by the retired army officers and co ordination and co operation was missing and leaders were like dictators. When the new CEO took over he changed the way of leading as in the process of downsizing, some senior managers were also removed from their positions because of the out go out leadership techniques. The success of the change was because of the new leadership who acted as mentors, and by adopting the democratic, consultive and persuasive, and transformational styles of leadership.Analysis of the Change at BAThe Thatcher Governments announcement of privatizing British Airways was the sign trigger which started the whole process of change (Staniland 2003). The need for the cultural change in BA arises in the transitional phase of the economic environment. The airline industry in UK was facing a severe competition which was an outcome of the privatization. Airline industry in UK was put to work under highly deregulated market which historically used to work in highly regulated market. The privatization decision changed the historic values and beliefs of BA dramatically as the organizations mission in the past was to make sure that planes fly safely and land safely. Profit maximization and competition were not much of an issue.Changing the culture is an ongoing process (Schabracq 2007) and even it is richly achieved, it still goes on in the form of monitoring and continuous inspection. British Airways since 1984 is in the transition phase and is replacing some of its main hi storical values and beliefs to be consistent with the new mission (Salama 1995). Collin Marshall was appointed as the CEO in order to accomplish this required cultural change. Training and behaviour changing programmes and evaluation systems have been introduced to motivate and stimulate changes. But in some areas other managerial career subsystems such as selection and promotion, had experienced minor modifications. Despite BA had put great deal of effort into encouraging certain behaviours, staff did not collate its employment policies and practices around the new culture (Coles et al 2000). BA failed to institutionalize the change through their stabilisation action plans. Management techniques were certainly impressive, but not everyone benefited from them. In areas such as marketing, the criteria for choosing Managers had changed from technical to managerial skills. However, some managers still preferred the old fashioned recruitment procedure based on promoting and selecting pe ople who were good technical individuals, therefore BA had difficulties maintaining the change. At the corporate level, the managers were now rewarded based on performance. The new appraisal system varies across functions as the criteria for good performance was different among different departments. This issue arises from the HR departments ignorance towards the different subculture. The HR department had been trying to impose its own values and beliefs on the rest of the organization and this was identified by Marshall and a new structure for HR was developed later on in order to give the department units more autonomy. This conflicting situation reflects a lack of consensus regarding the desired organizational culture as viewed by top management.Recent IssuesBA had won awards for Best Airline and Best Business Class, a total of 7 awards (Investors Report BA.co.uk). However, BA was also on top of the list of the companies that had complaints, made by the AUC (Air Transport Users Council), totalling 117. Air France came second with 110 and Ryanair third gear with 77, EasyJet had 42 total complaints (BBCnews.co.uk 20 Aug 2002). If BA adopt a strategy for focus differentiation, tighter controls on the safe handling of baggage, more effective booking services would require to be implemented in order to provide this quality service, thus gaining customer satisfaction and justification of price differentiation. This would inevitably enhance its image and reputation (Johnson et al 2008).CONCLUSION/RECOMMENDATIONBritish Airways had gone through many changes in order to promote this cultural change. British Airways lacked a holistic approach while implementing the change because despite of the HR departments attempts towards forming policies and procedures around the new culture, there was evidently a gap between HR and middle management. some(prenominal) managers were still using the traditional approaches of reward system and recruiting people. British Airways n eeded to adopt a partnership model within HR. This model is about establishing a common interest in order to secure the competitiveness, viability and prosperity of an organisation. Economic tensions appreciated within this model, are fitting to British Airways unstable environment. The Partnership model talks about getting a commitment from employees to improve quality and efficiency and the acceptance by the employers as stakeholders with interest to be considered when decisions are made. In the beginning it will require a top to bottom approach in order to promote and advertise the change. However promoting good strategies which are suitable for all the departments and areas of the organization, as opposed to some areas, is the key to its success. British Airways need to adopt this model to promote teambuilding and working together kind of environment. This model will help in identifying the organizational goal by mutually sharing the values and beliefs of the people and they wil l start moving in same room and the outcome of the change can be seen in the whole organization.British Airways is once again in crisis at the current time and is showing record 401 million pre tax losses (BBC news). Flights are late and customers are facing some sort of the same issues as there were in 1980s. British Airways has a good history and current image in the consumer market. They might need another change in the organization.The change started in 1984 and still things need to be done. Therefore it can be said that changing culture is a complex and long term undertaking (Thomas 2005). It involves coordinated efforts by the top management to change its own values and behaviour and communicates it to the followers and others in the organization. Such changes must be reinforced by shifts in management education, selection and promotion. Culture cannot be managed on its own or as separate from the rest of the organization.

Analysis of The Lamb and The Tyger by William Blake Essay -- William B

William Blake was a first generation Romantic poet. Many of his poemswere critical of a society who thought themselves to be someperfect, a society run by, not their own free will, but the use oftechnology. He wanted people to question what they had always done,and whether it was morally right. He did so by using varyingtechniques that set up clashes between ideologies and reality. Hispoems allow us to see into the eternal world of the spirit and hisdreams of the sacred England he had always wanted, a place undamagedby technology, a place that is peaceful and tranquil. But not all hispoems reflect this. In fact, from Blakes Songs of whiteness and ofExperience there are a number of poems, describing what life could be corresponding and in reality what life is like. Two examples are The love andThe Tyger. We fire see he uses poetic techniques to set up suchclashes. These two poems demonstrate exactly Blakes views on the illsof society, mainly referring to the industrial revolution and theimpacts and consequences it brought.The Lamb and The Tyger are both poems written in the form of alyric which describes the capturing of a particular moment and mostimportantly the mood or sagacity it stimulates in the poet. Blakethought that a lyric gives the freedom to tell anything and explorethe emotions and ideas that some incident has created. Blake shows theoriginal meaning of lyric by actually titling his wad Songs ofInnocence and of Experience.The Songs of Innocence are poems which bring out happy feelings andshow the greatness in life. They represent innocence and a child -like vision, thus The Lamb is about God creating a lamb who is aspecial and holy creature. The So... ...and symmetry do not rhyme unlike the differentrhyming couplets. This is also to cause confusion and bring about ssense of unease, the same confusion Blake felt through his life andchild cap when he had visions and the society around him waschanging. The Tyger and The Lamb are two poems writ ten along the same linesbut ending up to be completely different. nevertheless both poems show thesame beliefs and opinions of William Blake perfectly and emphasizewhat he wanted everyone to remember and the lesson he wanted everyoneto learn. This was that no matter how far man gets with technologicaladvances and no matter how far the industrial revolution takes peopleit will never be able to beat down the tool of human imagination,which is by far the strongest, and natures wild spirit, found increatures such as the fierce tyger and meek & mild lamb.

Animal Rights Speech :: essays research papers

Our case is that if we dont prove on animals then progress in scientific fields would be halted. As first speaker for the negative I will speak about the benefits of animal interrogatory in prevalent and then Ill talk in detail about animal testing in medicine. My second speaker will talk about the opinions on testing and the food chain and my third speaker will summarise our points and rebut.Safety tests are conducted on a wide feed of chemicals and products, including drugs, vaccines, cosmetics, household cleaners, pesticides, foodstuffs, and boxing materials. Higher order animals are used in research, article of belief and testing because of the benefits they bring to both animals and people. Those benefits are the reasons why a research, teaching or testing procedure is make in the first place. Research using animals has various broad aims which includeSafety tests are conducted on a wide range of chemicals and products, including drugs, vaccines, cosmetics, household clea ners, pesticides, foodstuffs, and packing materials. Higher order animals are used in research, teaching and testing because of the benefits they bring to both animals and people. Those benefits are the reasons why a research, teaching or testing procedure is done in the first place. Research using animals has various broad aims which include modify the health and well-being of people. Improving the health, welfare and productivity of farm animals and other production animals. Finding better ways to preserve protect and manage a range of animal species to defend a balance that is ecologically stable. Developing more humane and effective pest control methods to protect endangered animals and many more.Doctors, nurses, animal care personnel, veterinarians, farmers, saving managers, teachers, zoo keepers and others engaged in animal-related activities all benefit in animal research to broaden their knowledge. Testing is done as a check on the safety of new drugs or substances for hum an or animal use, and to check whether new batches of drugs and other agents like vaccines work. There is a legal requirement to test how safe and effective chemicals, drugs and other agents are before they can be sold.Animals have played a major part in medical breakthroughs. such as the development of anesthetics, which are the chemicals used to make you unconscious during an operation. . Before that surgery was little more than refined butchery. Amputations, removal of bladder stones, caesarean sections and others were done with the conscious patient strapped to the operating table and screaming.

Navy NCDU Teams Essay -- essays papers

Navy NCDU TeamsOn the beach invasions of Normandy, one of the marines commented, Jesus, we dont even have control of the beach yet and already the tourist are here. This is the normal response that the men of UDT get, during WWII in the pacific campaign. They would tonality themselves with steaks of blue and white. They were the first ones on the beach and the last ones to leave. They carried no weapons except for a combat knife used for cutting, and crimping the fuses of their explosives. Some say that you would have to be half nuts and half fish to join the UDT. But, besides being courageous and saving the lives of many a thankful marine(although they will not train it) the UDT did something historical that NO HISTORY BOOK for that matter has cared to mention. They launched the United States into a whole new type of warfare, consisting of underwater commandos who could rise up out of the water and devastate an enemy, and disappear just as fast, or slip onto an enemy held beach, undetected, and bring back almost any type of breeding you needed. The latter probably saved hundreds upon thousands of marines lives alone. My report will show you the mysterious, and secret world of the UDT.The first Naval scrap Demolition Unit started with thirteen volunteers who were near the end of their basic training in the Dynamiting and Demolition School at Camp Perry, Virginia. They were sent to the Naval amphibious Training Base at Solomon Island, Maryland, in Chesapeake Bay where they were joined by other enlisted demolition men and eight collide withicers. Lieutenant Fred Wise from the Sea Bees (Construction Battalions) was designated policeman in Charge. They were given a quick, intensive course in blowing channels through sandbars with explosive hose, and in working from rubber boats to place explosive charges on underwater obstacles which had been modeled by Army engineers. Then they sailed for the assault on Sicily. Twenty-one men under LT Wise debarked from three attack cargo ships off Scoglitti, Sicily, on the morning of July 10, 1943 and waited patiently for orders that never came. The landing waves either found enough water over the sandbars or used alternative beaches. For the next twain days the demolition units did useful work salvaging stranded boats, buoying channels through the sandbars, and surveying the be... ...tion units received the only Navy Unit Commendation awarded for the Normandy landing. Navy Crosses were awarded to Ens. William R. Freeman, Gunners partner off Robert W. Bass, Gunners Mate John H. Line, Chief Jerry N. Markham, Chief Aviation Ordnanceman Loran E. Barbour, LTJG William M. Jenkins, and Ens. Lawrence S. Karnowski. There were also a number of Silver Stars and Bronze Stars to others who were especially outstanding in a day of widespread heroism.The NCDU regrouped and Lieutenant Commander Herbert Peterson, in charge of Naval Combat Demolition Force U, with ten veteran UTAH units, embarked in a Medit erranean-bound convoy for Salerno. Here they trained for the upcoming invasion of Southern France. As these combat demolitioneers proved once again the need for and the success of underwater demolition, the newly organized Underwater Demolition Teams, UDT, were proving their worth in Saipan. Many NCDU men stayed in demolition and got to the Pacific in time for the occupation of Japan, merely the end of World War II brought the end of Naval Combat Demolition Units. Many NCDU men brought their experience and expertise to the Underwater Demolition Teams.

The Telephone :: Free Essay Writer

The Teleph angiotensin converting enzymeA number of inventors believed that voice and sounds might be carried over wires and all worked toward it but there was only one that finish up figuring it out. The first to achieve this everlasting success was a Scottish-born American inventor , Alexander Graham Bell, a teacher for the deaf in capital of Massachusetts, Massachusetts. Bell was born on March 3, 1847, in Edinburgh, Scotland, and was taught at the universities of Edinburgh and London. He moved to Canada in 1870 and to the United States in 1871. In the United States he began doctrine deaf-mutes, publicizing the system called visible speech . His father, who was a Scottish teacher, developed visible speech, Alexander Melville Bell. Visible speech shows how the lips, tongue, and throat are used in the making of sound out of the mouth. In 1872 Bell opened a school to train teachers of the deaf in Boston. The school soon became part of Boston University, where Bell was assigned the professor of vocal physiology. He became a U.S. citizen in 1882.Since Bell was 18 years old, he was trying to come up with the motif of transmitting speech. In 1874, he figured out the basic parts of the telephone. The experiments with his assistant Thomas Watson finally was successful on March 10, 1876, when the first set down sentence was transmitted Watson, come here I want you. There were lots of different demonstrations showing the invention, but the most popular one was the one at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This was when the telephone was introduced to the world and led to the organization of the Bell Telephone lodge in 1877. When the Bell Telephone Company finally got going the company strongly dheld its patents so it will exclude others from the telephone business. After these patents expired in 1893 and 1894, independent telephone companies started up in many cities and most small towns.

Diverse Australian Biomes Adapting :: Adaptation Australia Essays

Diverse Australian Biomes Adapting Australia is a land of rather extreme weather conditions and widely diverse climates that force the plant living there to adapt in many interesting ways. Australia is the driest continent, and biomes such as grasslands and savannas are prime sources of widespread catastrophic fires. The plants that grow in the bulky arid and semi-arid regions of Australia are prone to fires simply because of the desert climates that they grow in. High temperatures combined with low discharge moisture contents, little humidity and drying winds that sweep across the landscape encourage many of the plants living in these areas to burst into flames at fairly frequent intervals. Serotinous cones, protective bark, intricate underground reco really systems, unique sow in distributions and even the necessity of fire for reproduction are just some of the amazing ways that the major plant families which grow in these fire-prone areas have erudite to adapt to their envir onments.History of fires in AustraliaAustralia is currently the driest continent in the world and has a vast history of fire to prove it. Bushfires in the Adelaide Hills were first depict and recorded in 1827, and have occurred at frequent intervals since that time. Fire weather can reach extremes in places such as Rudall River National Park in NW Western Australia. Temperatures are often above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), dew points can drop to 37 degrees Celsius, and the winds, uninhibited by trees, can reach speeds of 50-60 km/h (31-37 mph) at any given time in the year. The fuels there may appear to be completely dead, and gaps between plants may be a verse or more (Gill, 1995). In 1966 a massive fire at Brooyar, Queensland had flame heights of 20-25 meters (65-82 feet). In addition to being devastating, the fires are also very unpredictable. A bushfire in the Baulkham Hills in January of 1975 completely destroyed property and some homes, while leaving others u ntouched. Serious fires occur in the Dandenog Ranges at frequent intervals, and living accommodations there has always been a difficult problem with fire control 3. Fire has also been used for centuries as an important tool for land vigilance (ONeill, 1993).Necessary Conditions For FirePlants that grow in the vast arid and semi-arid regions of Australia are prone to fires simply because of the desert climate they grow in. High temperatures, low fuel moisture contents, little humidity and drying winds that sweep across the landscape encourage small patches of plants to burst into flames.