Educational Achievement Essay Example for Free

Educational Achievement Essay Using material from Item A and elsewhere assess the view that social class differences in educational achievement are the result of school processes such as labelling. Social class background has a powerful influence on a childs chances of success in the educational system, a child is often labeled from the first year of school based on stereotyped assumptions about their class background, in the society there are significant social class, gender and ethnic inequalities of educational achievement. Differences in cultural and material circumstances operating outside the school environment and processes that take place between working class and middle class students within the schools themselves which involve negative and positive labeling. Some explanations of class differences in achievement focus on internal factors within school and the educational system. Interactionists have taken this approach further, they have examined the way in which labeling is linked to other processes within schools that result in class differences in achievement, these processes include the self-fulfilling prophecy, streaming and the polarization into anti and pro-school pupil subcultures as stated by Item A. The self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that comes true simply by virtue of it having being made, which leads to a student’s underachievement. If teachers have low expectations of certain children and communicate these expectations in their interaction, these children may develop a negative self-concept. They may come to see themselves as failures and give up trying, thereby fulfilling their original prophecy and leads to one’s underachievement. Studies show that self-fulfilling prophecy is particularly less likely to occur when children are streamed. Streaming involves separating children into different ability groups or classes called streams. Each ability group is taught separately from the other for all subjects. Howard Becker carried out an study and found that teachers judged pupils according to how closely they fitted an image of the ideal pupil, he found that teachers do not usually see working class children fit in that margin, they were often labelled as non-academic and ‘difficult’ they tend to see them as lacking ability and have low expectations of them. As a result working class children are more likely to find themselves put in a lower stream. Children in lower streams get the message that their teacher have written them of as no-hopers. Once a pupil is streamed it is much more difficult to move up into a higher stream. This creates a self-fulfilling prophecy in which a student lives up to their teachers low expectations. By contrast middle class students tend to benefit from streaming. They are likely to be based in higher streams, reflecting teachers view of them as the ideal pupil. As a result they develop a more positive self-concept, gain confidence, work harder and improve their grades. Item A mentions about David Gillborn and Deborah Youdell study that examined the role examined the role of educational policies in creating the context for such school processes to take place. Their study shows how schools use teachers’ notions of ability’ to decide which pupils have the potential to achieve five GCSE A*-C. They found that working class and black pupils are less likely to be perceived as having the potential, and are more likely to be placed in lover sets, and entered in lower GCSEs. This denies them the knowledge and opportunity needed to gain good grades and so widens the class gap between working class and the middle class in achievement. Some people argue that the A*-C economy produces educational triage. However, Gillborn and Youdell put the labelling and streaming process into a wider context, they also link the triage system to the marketization policies within the educational system, such as league tables. As a result to the way that pupils have been labelled and streamed, students’ often appear into pupil subcultures. A number of studies have shown how pupil subcultures might play a part in creating class differences in achievement. Colin Lacey’s study displays the concepts of differentiation and polarization to explain how pupil subcultures develop, He states that, differentiation is the process of teachers who categorise pupils according to how they perceive their ability attitude and behavior, differentiation is also a form of streaming, since it categorizes pupils into separate classes. Polarization, on the other hand is the process in which students respond by moving towards one of the two opposite poles’ or extremes. To conclude, there are many different situations that children/students have to undergo, may it have a positive or negative impact on them in the future. As different sociologists have come up with theories that prove these certain situations, I too believe that social class differences do have an impact on educational achievement, the reason being it could internally/emotionally cause damage that other people aren’t aware of. The way a teacher treats its pupil due to thei r different social class is very wrong, and it should never have to happen.

The Classic Murder Story Essay Example for Free

The Classic Murder Story Essay I believe a classic murder story are things that have a strange murder weapon like Marys leg of lamb, the story must also have lots of detective work but shouldnt stress on it, must have a cliff hanger of some sort or failing that must have a striking finale (I found The Speckled Bands ending was an anti climax). My main things for a murder story in a great detective and an airtight alibi my favorite alibi everything above is included, brilliant.   The story of Lamb to the Slaughter begins with Mary Maloney waiting for her husband to return from work; while she is waiting she is sewing and glancing without at the clock. Then Patrick Maloney (her husband) walked in. Mary poured them both drinks. Mary while sitting down admires her husband and ponders her love for this man. Marys attempts at conversation are quickly halted Patrick shows a distinct feeling of uneasiness and seems extremely nervous. Mary began to talk about dinner but as she tried to start, he sat her down and told her some rather shocking news. This bewildered her and her mind became blank and everything she did was based on instinct. She murmured, Ill get the tea. She went down to the freezer got a Leg of lamb, which was the first thing, her hand made contact with. As she trailed by Patrick again he uttered his last words For Gods sake dont make anything for me .Im going out. With this her fury anger took over and she swung the frozen piece of meat as hard as she could killing him within seconds. She realized that she would get the death sentence but only cared for her baby. She went upstairs and practiced saying her usual sentences and smile. She went to the grocers, to create an alibi. When she returned she phoned the police in a grieved state. Her alibi was checked and was airtight. The police, who knew her, tried to comfort her she used this to feed them the murder weapon. Crafty!!! The prà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½cis of The Speckled Band starts with Dr. Watson reviews his cases of the past years. Holmes wakes him up and takes him downstairs to meet a client. The client is Helen Stoner she tells him abut her familys history in India, about the bereavement of her sister, her violent stepfather and her current engagement. Holmes was worried and asked to investigate the Roylott Manor, she agreed, as her Stepfather would be in London for the day. The trip was arranged and Helen left. Soon Dr.Roylott entered threatening Holmes warning him to stay a way. Holmes left but first went to the Doctors Commons to where he found a motive for the Doctor as possible killer money. He then went to Stoke Moran and investigates in the 3 different rooms the main one being where Julia Stoner was killed. Holmes noticed: a ventilator going in the wrong wall, a fake bell ring, the bed was clamped down and the room was impenetrable. Roylotts room had the ventilator from Julias room the metal safe, a tied up dog leash like a noose and a saucer of milk. Holmes then told Mary to retire to bed early tonight light a candle when Dr. Roylott goes to bed and then withdraw to the to your original room. Watson Holmes then went to a nearby inn The Crown Inn; Holmes then shared his own workings with the good Dr. Watson. The Manor house went dark around 10:00pm and the candle was lit about an hour later. So they went to the house, coming along a baboon on their travels, and entered Julias room with Watson sitting further back than Holmes who had taken it upon himself to sit near the bed. Suddenly there was a bright light and Holmes struck at the bell pull with all his fury and might yelling at Watson You see it yet Watson Then there was a hellish scream and after going to Roylotts room Holmes Watson found Roylott dead with the Snake around his neck. Roald Dahl the author of Lamb To The Slaughter was most well known for his childrens novel such as The B.F.G, Matilda Danny Champion Of The World but this short but exciting story shows me that he was more than just a fringe live off fake words writer as this catapults him into the one of great writers of the 20th century.  The Speckled Band was written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle made famous for his Sherlock Holmes Novels. He was an extraordinary writer by the mere fact Sherlock Holmes is one the most well known fictional characters in the world. He got knighthood to prove his worth the highest award Britain has to offer.

Impact of Globalization on Ford Motor Company

Impact of Globalization on Ford Motor Company The motor vehicle industry offers a unique perspective on globalization because of its massive employment, huge corporations and iconic product, it seem to reflect the countries identity. GM and FORD for the united states, FIAT and Ferrari for the Italy, Toyota and Honda for Japan. Globalization has impacted almost all the companies. Some of who managed to survive the various incidences of history like the world war and the great depression have set industry standards for the companies to follow. I am going to demonstrate the effect of globalization by taking Three instances from the Ford motor company. The following essay will try to give an insight of how political, economical, social and technological factors affected Fords strategies under the changing business environment that helped it stand out from the other rival car manufacturers in the world. Ford created some of the finest works of automobile engineering and came out with various eco-friendly innovations making it the only motor company to secure its place in the list of 100 most ethical companies of the world. About the company: Henry Ford had experienced a grand success especially with the early models like the T Model . he went on explained his business overseas and by the early 1910s, with production facilities in France, Denmark and England ,Germany and Austria. After the First World War started, Ford produced half of the cars being sold in the US. During the war, Ford produced many of its cars to serve the army. 1938: The German consul at Cleveland awards Henry Ford the Grand Cross of the German Eagle, the highest medal Nazi Germany could bestow on a foreigner By 1941, Ford became the worlds largest assembly plant owner and Ford produced from standard military vehicles, to B-24 Liberator bombers and tanks during the World War II After the WWII, was the period when Ford company developed and evolved very fast. Ford came out with latest technologies and development for their cars. During the Cold War they were the most important carmakers in the world. It was during period that the Ford Motor Company looked for other possible investments and continued to expand overseas. In 1979 they acquired a one fourth Mazda, the Japanese carmaker in 1987. Ford added Aston Martin and in 1989 Ford acquired Jaguar under its umbrella brand. Ford Motor Company onits 100th birthday in 2003 and showcased a series of special edition of cars, such as the all new Ford Mustang. Ford faced financial crisis when it reported losses of over $12 billion for the 2006 fiscal year .It led to the selling of some of the brands from the Ford group: Aston Martin, Jaguar and Land Rover. After the third Restructuring process The Way Forward, Ford started to Divest its subsidiary business in order to focus on the core FORD brand. It sold its Jaguar and Land Rover brand to Tata Automobile of India in 2008. Major events that shaped FORD in the changing global environment: 1914: Ford introduced $5 workday minimum wage double the existing rate. Background: In 1914 ford innovated the 5 dollar workday. 5 dollar was just twice the wages being paid at that time. The interesting thing about this was it was far more than the balance between demand and supply. The number of worker willing to work exceeded the required. The ford company came to be associated with good wages in 1914. This policy of high wages and mass production gave rise to a new term Fordism . Factors affecting decision: (P)olitical: Henry Ford was a strict anti-union, and believed in authoritative way of government system. (E)conomical: In the 1913 the availability of labors must have increased as the national economy and Detroit hinterland suffered a significant downturn. This is evident from the following table 1 which shows the number of people receiving the special unemployment relief in the country including Detroit increased about two third between the period of July 1912 June 1913 Fords high wage policy is in by the efficient wage theory. There are various theories for these changes like the Dual labour market theory. Although the same efficient wage theory also says the in a competitive market some people must be stuck in bad, low paid jobs or unemployed (Gintis, 1998). The alternative to the Fords offer of 5 dollar wage was unemployment or very low paid job hence can be the reason why workers showed up. (S)ocial: In 1913 Fords worker turnover rate increased to 380 percentage. High turnover rate during the twentieth century was a common problem faced by many manufacturers. The reason for dissatisfaction of labours according to ford management repost Too long hours Low wages Bad housing conditions Undesirable shop conditions . Fords method of 5 dollar wage made workers motivated, punctual. This although should have been a costly affair turned out to be profitable step for the business. The higher the wage rate offered by firms, the more effort will be supplied by the employees, with other things being the same (T)echnological: Dramatic evolution in production technology by Fords assembly line technique. The high efficiently of this system raised the importance of High worker turn over, high worker effort, and high worker quality. By 1910 two third of the fords workforce were either workmen or mechanics who were over rated as highly skilled or skilled this was because ford was not a manufacturing company rather assembling company. This problem was suppressed by 1996: Ford certifies all plants in 26 countries to ISO 9000 quality and ISO 14001 environmental standards Background: World War II gave birth to the idea of quality assurance. The first formal quality control programs in the world was instituted by the United States Defense department , in order to deal problems related to manufacturing of defense equipment as quality was the main consideration. Industry standards then became popular and reached the other parts of the world. They formed the basis for a set of quality assurance standards which was adopted by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) members . Those standards were called the Allied Quality Assurance Publication (AQAP) (http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/encyclopedia/Int-Jun/ISO-9000.html). Finally at the close of World War II, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) was created in 1947, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. ISO 9000 ISO 14001: In December 1996, Ford became the largest automotive organization in the world to receive ISO 9001 quality certification, for quality management and quality assurance. On Sept. 9, 1999, Ford Motor Co. became the first U.S. automotive company to require all of its production and nonproduction suppliers to become certified to ISO 14001 international standards for environmental considerations. Factors affecting decision: (P)olitical: Governments may have actively promoted ISO 14001 if their economies relied on exporting to countries with high levels of ISO 14001 adoption rates .United States formed the Registrar Accreditation Board (RAB) to standardize procedure for certification. The US Congress adopted the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act requiring federal agencies to adopt International Standards where they exist, instead of creating their own. Intergovernmental networks played limited role in diffusion of ISO as it was nongovernmental regime. Adversarial legalism approach was practiced in the U.S . In this system, the parties to a controversy develop and present their arguments, gather and submit evidence, call and question witnesses, and, within the confines of certain rules, control the process. The fact finder, usually a judge or jury, remains neutral and passive throughout the proceeding. This was slow and cumbersome. Relations between environmental groups, government regulators and industry were characterized by varying levels of hostility and high levels of mistrust. (E)conomic: International standards were important trends in business practice. During the Early 20th century, quality was viewed as an additional cost of production for the business. But, the quest for quality became their major consideration, as companies realized that high quality leads to more efficient and less expensive production processes. Both ISO 9000 and ISO 14001 helped companies to increase their market share. Encouragement by World Trade Organization for creation of supranational standards helped cut down barriers on trade and investment. As a consequence of which Foreign Direct Investment from international Market started pouring in. Changes were also happening at domestic levels which led to Rise in intercompany (trade within value the value chains of the company) trade Because of presence of dual trade linkage there might be a Possibility of California effect which means that if country A absorbs a significant proportion of country Bs exports, then country B can be expected to mimic or respond to the policies of country A (S)ociological: Employee morale improved as they felt part of the process. Managers and employees accepted responsibility for quality. This created better co-operation and communication among workers to do a better job and increased companies efficiency. This in turn led to improved customer satisfaction and trust. It helped reduce the need for customer audits (This can result in major savings). However, many citizen and activist groups were wary of EMS standards and viewed them as private regimes that were outside public scrutiny and claimed that adopting ISO 14001 will become a de facto condition of doing business: firms that outsource their operations sometimes require that their suppliers adopt ISO 14001. (T)echnological: Development of pollution-prevention techniques and company-specific EMSs to reduce waste production as well as disposal costs .Presence of new form of Information and technology and greater interaction among people of different countries led to the diffusion. Ford was perceived as good corporate citizens producing higher quality products. Hence, they gained goodwill that helped retain old customers while attract new ones. (L)egal: There was NO legal implication were there on the companies to adopt such standard but since EMS had become a gold standard for CSR conscious firms therefore most of the MNCs adopted them. (E)nvironmental: In the 1980s, environmental regulations on hazardous waste disposal at both the local and national levels became more stringent. This forced companies to change their method for hazardous waste disposal from placement in landfills to treatment and recycling. 2008: Ford sells Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata Motors: Background: After facing a loss of North American market share to Asian rivals like Toyota, Ford CEO Bill Ford declared to cut 25,000 to 30,000 jobs and idle 14 facilities by 2012 thus declaring the resurgence of Ford Motor company.. Bill Ford had instituted a Revitalization Plan in 2002, after the automaker lost $5 billion a year earlier. But the plan failed to meet the goals set for 2005. Later in 2006 the new CEO Allan R. Mulally announced the Third restructuring plan known as The Way Forward. The targeted areas of improvement were marketing and sales, Technology development and Human resource. Factors affecting decision: (P)olitical: Allan R. Mulally succeeded Bill Ford as the new president CEO of Ford Motor Company on September 5, 2006. on September 5, 2006. One of Mulallys first decisions at Ford was to bring back the Taurus nameplate. (E)conomical: Ford reported a loss of 1.2 Billion Dollar with a decrease in the market share from 23.7% to 15.5% since the year 2000.It faced tough competition from Asian manufacturer such as Toyota which had manufacturing capacity of over 1.5 million vehicles in North America alone. High prices of oil posed a threat that global economy might slip into recession and would create high uncertainty for the business as customers were switching over from sport utility vehicles to smaller, more fuel efficient cars. Because of high increase in labour and material costs, United States parts manufacturing company like Delphi declared bankruptcy in 2005. Ford did not want to sell its jaguar and land rover brand to similar automaker company which had wide range of product in order to avoid competitive pressures on fords other auto lines. (S)ocial: Stringent relationship between united auto workers and American car maker as the domestic car manufacturers bore the burden of heavy pension and health care costs. This was the scenario for both for current and retired workers, as stipulated in contracts with the UAW. This was not the case with Japanese manufacturers. UAW member at fords allowed non union workers to perform certain tasks and did not pay them even for overtime some of which fell on weekends and furthermore 6000 salaried jobs were cut in September, 2006 and additional 30,000 jobs scheduled for 2012. Customer purchases are driven by perceived value derived from brand reputation and an individuals personality and living standards, lack of differentiation between Ford, Lincoln and mercury brands resulted in cannibalization of sales. (T)echnological: U.S governments new rule in august, 2005 brought a change in the existing fuel efficiency standards. Though ford lacked innovation in mid sized and small cars it projected that by 2015 one half of the vehicles on road would have a six speed automatic transmission, which would result in increased mileage. (E)nvironmental: Pressure from environmentalist on car and truck manufacturers to clean up emissions by adopting to fuels like bio diesel, electric motors, compressed natural gas and solar energy. How globalization  impacted FORD: We see from the examples globalization effected fords strategies from the time it was setup till date. They were able to maintain their competitive advantage over the other companies either by innovating new technologies likes the assembly lines, approaching to new International standards or by focusing on the core Ford brand. By adapting such processes, FORD motor company contributed toward Corporate social responsibility and created remote social value in the eyes of the customers. Although there is some probability of window dressing and a quest for better profits. These can be understood by strategic behavior theories like market imperfections (Stephen Hymer (market imperfections, 1960s) and role of oligopolies (Market Imperfections, 1960s). Which explain that MNCs expand abroad ,exploit specific advantages over their rivals and remove conflicts with their rivals. (IBE, Lecture 8, slide 33) The Ford company explored new horizons of business across cross border market either by value crating or value capturing activities (lecture 6 slide 31). Expanding overseas specially towards emerging economies may not only increase corporate profits and shareholders returns but also provide employment to host countries and develop these economies at the base of the pyramid all of which have noble CSR dimensions. Ford quickly merged and acquired some of the big brand under its umbrella and came out come with some best of the cars leaving a long lasting impression on the consumers. Despite of debate, Globalization has led to a greener and safer environment where MNCs are under continuous process of giving their consumer even better products and creating flagship cars.

William Thomson Essay -- biographies biography bio lord kelvin

Born on June 26th 1824 in Belfast Ireland, William Thomson was one of many children. He was primarily raised by his father, James Thomson, as his mother died when he was six. James Thomson raised his family in a strict Presbyterian fashion. Although his father was strict and demanding, William mangaed to maitain a close relatioship with his father. James Thomson was the professor of engineering in Belfast and later was appointed to the chair of mathematics at the University of Glasgow. He taught his son mathematics at a very early age and as a result, William Thomson became an accomplished mathematican beyond that of universities. William Thomson enterd Glasgow University at the age of ten. That was not as uncommon as it is today because back then the universities were competing for the best junior pupils. In 1838, when Thomson was 14, he began what people today would consider university work and when he was 15, his essay called An Essay on the Figure of the Earth won him a gold medal from the University of Glasgow. Thomson then went on to publish his first papers at ages 16 and 17. These papers were defending the work of Fourier who was being criticized by british scientists. Following his years at Glasgow, Thomson entered the University of Cambrige in 1841. He graduated in four years with a B.A. honors degree and was second wrangler. Further work in 1845 saw him become first Smith's prizeman and he was elected a fellow of Peterhouse. From there he went to Paris because of his interest in the French approach to mathematics and he wanted to gain practcal experience and competence in experimental work. Before leaving Paris, Thomson got involved in many discussions which led him to study th... ...that of electrical current flow which helped him solve the problems with trasmitting electrical signals over long distances. Following this project, thomson invented the mirror galvanometer which he patented in 1858 as a long distance telegrah reciever. These projects not only led him to a great deal of fame but also a lot of money. Because of the great success he had from his work, Thomson was Knighted by QueenVictoria in 1866. He then retired from Glasgow in 1889 after being a professor for 53 years. In 1890 he became president of the Royal Society and held that position for five years and in 1892 he was created Baron Kelvin of Largs and recieved the Order of Merit in 1902. William Thomson, better know as Lord Kelvin, eventually died at his home December 17th, 1907, in his estates close to Largs, Scotland, and was buried at Wetminster Abbey, London.

The History of Computers :: Computers Technology Essays

The History of Computers Computers have been around for quite some time and were developed over many years with contributions from philosophers, inventors, engineers, mathematicians, physicists, technicians, visionaries, and scholars. The first computers were calculating machines and over time evolved into the digital computers as we know them today. It has taken over 180 years for the computer to develop from an idea in Charles Babbage head into an actual computer developed today by many different companies. Therefore, it was a long and tedious path in order to make the computer into what we now use today. Before computers, people had to do calculations using such tools as a Chinese abacus or a slide rule to work out problems by hand. One day in 1821, Charles Babbage decided that he didn feel like working out tedious mathematics problems anymore and wanted to compute numbers using what he called a machine with steam(Palfreman and Swade 16). For the next ten or so years Babbage worked on designing the Difference Engine, however it was never built as it would have weighed several tons and taken entirely too many parts to put together. A few years later, Babbage came up with the Analytical Engine, which he designed to do arithmetic operations. This machine was programmable and the information was stored on punch cards (Palfreman and Swade 20). Charles Babbage never did get to build one of his machines, however, his son Henry Babbage built a machine, which was based on his father ideas. The next step in the development of computers was commercial machines. In the early 1820, Thomas de Colmar came up with the first successful commercial calculator, called the arithmometer, and it was able to perform the four basic arithmetic functions (Palfreman and Swade 22). The next progression of computers came in 1896, when the U.S. Census Bureau could not keep up with the reading and organizing of their surveys. Herman Hollerith invented the electric tabulating system, which could read the data in coded punched cards (Palfreman and Swade 24). During, the 1930, there were two main sub-divisions in the computer world, the calculator industry and the office machine industry.

The Issue of Non-Human Intelligence :: Biology Essays Research Papers

The Question of Non-Human Intelligence Human beings have long assumed that they were at the pinnacle of the evolutionary pyramid thanks mainly to their more complex brain. They believe that this advanced brain makes them not just more intelligent but categorically different from all other organisms. Recent advances in the fields of neurobiology and anatomy have begun to chisel away at this most scared of human assumptions and demonstrate that human brains, and the intelligence associated with them, are not categorically different than other animals. Instead the research indicates that intelligence is on a continuum from "lower" animals to "higher" ones. These findings led to new fields of research which sought to gain a better understanding of intelligence and its evolution by comparing the behaviors and the brains of various organisms. Despite existing for many years and being supported by researchers in fields as varied as biology and linguistics there have been nearly as many steps backward as there have been forward. The central dilemma in studying intelligence is to come up with a universally acceptable definition of intelligence. Many researchers define intelligence as the ability to use language and create tools to manipulate the environment. While this definition may seem fairly logical, especially because humans seem to be the axiomatic example for this definition, many researchers argues that its anthropocentric nature is too limiting. By placing parameters on intelligence which only humans meet, and lower primates fit to varying degrees, it is inherently impossible to find "intelligence" in any other species. A second problem with this humanist definition of intelligence is that it is based largely on human introspection and the knowledge that we are conscious, rational, linguistic animals(1). Kenneth Marable argues "if the same criterion that are used to rule out non-human intelligence were applied to humans without the benefit of introspection, we would doubt even our own intelligence"(1 ). One of the first goals of inter-species intelligence studies was to create a quantitative scale to measure the intelligence of animals. Since the administration of IQ test to many different species seemed illogical, researchers turned to using scales which compared the size of an animal's brain to the size of its body; this value was known as the Encephalization Quotient. The Encephalization Quotient (EQ) "allows researchers to ask the question: 'Is the brain of a given species bigger or smaller than would be expected, compared with that of other animals its size?

Scheduling Manufacturing Operations

ABSTRACT Without true finite capacity scheduling, any implementation for manufacturing execution, whether it is ERP, SCM, or MES, cannot realize the goal of enterprise efficiency and agility. All aspects of OM for manufacturing execution fall behind the lead of FCS, which is the bridge between planning and execution. Real tangible return on assets rests with FCS. INTRODUCTION Integrating a diverse collection of resources to accomplish a goal is an issue that has faced humankind since the first city arose and food and services needed to be provided to the populace.The modern challenge for operations management (OM) is the speed and volume that data is presented to OM systems. This explosion of data holds the promise of efficiency and agility unrealized in the past, but it forces the attention of analysts and engineers to convert the flood of data into a useable form to move from planning to action. All the systems such as MES, SCM, and ERP are information hungry beasts that must be fe d with the right information at the right time to direct enterprise resources. OM requires a well-coordinated dispatch of its resources to realize efficiency and agility.This paper addresses the need to look at OM from an information-centric perspective as a necessary complement to emerging process-centric views. This discussion moves to the execution systems, also treated from an information-centric perspective, and concludes with a discussion as to why finite capacity scheduling (FCS) is the key to OM for manufacturing execution. WHEN DATA BECOMES INFORMATION Despite the advances in information technology, notably object-oriented software, systems continue to be defined by functional decomposition.Functional decomposition creates complex definitions with fragile coupling and cohesion that are on one side of a great chasm from the reality of the methods that are used to build modern information systems. Information itself is an under designed component of modern systems. Informatio n is a series of objects made from atoms of data. Data becomes information only through context and inferences derived from context. A good example is the use of spreadsheets to attempt to understand data rather than the use of application software designed to with the operational context in mind. Figure 1: Hierarchy of Data Fusion InferencesFigure 1 shows the hierarchy of inferences through a process called data fusion. Data fusion simulates the cognitive processes used by humans to continuously integrate data from their senses to make inferences about the external world. Information systems collect data though sensors and other assets, and in the hierarchy of data processing, multiple data sources are combined to approximate or estimate the condition of some aspect of the enterprise operation. This is the first translation of data to a level of inference. Parametric data is processed to begin specific identification of a situation.As more parametric data are collected, different a spects of the situation come together to allow a contextual analysis of an increasingly complex set of conditions. Once integrated, the situation can be compared to the goals or desired state of the system. Parallel to the types of data processing are the types of inference. With raw data an inference can be made of the general condition. While this level of inference rarely points to a specific correction action, it does begin to isolate what subsystems require attention. The next level of inference will reveal a specific characteristic behavior of the system.With more integrated data, the identity of an operational system or process is revealed. The next inference is the behavior of a process, which then leads to an assessment of a situation. At the highest levels of inference, the performance is assessed to determine the deviation from the performance goals, acceptable risks, or desired state. Data fusion is not a new concept, having its origins in simple scouting, but has come i nto its own since WWII. The use of data fusion systems as an information springboard for systems design places execution aspects of OM firmly into a modern framework of information systems engineering.WHAT WAS OLD IS NEW AGAIN As mentioned in the introduction, operations management has been, and remains, one of the greatest organizational challenges throughout history. OM arises from the need to coordinate diverse resources to meet the needs of a complex system. The concept of the plan-execute-control model, a â€Å"discovery† made by analysts in the late 1990’s, appears in the historical records of systems management, one of the earliest mentions circa 4th century BC in China. One of the more versatile models in modern systems management appeared in 1977 as a result of a joint effort between Dr J.S. Lawson of the Naval Electronic Systems Command and Dr. Paul Moore of the Naval Postgraduate School. Figure 2 shows the Lawson-Moore model, adapted by the author for genera l resource management. SENSE is the collection of raw data or other collateral information about the observed environment. PROCESS takes the data through the inference hierarchy, integrating data within the context of the tasks required of the managed resources. The situation as best can be determined with the resources is then compared to the DESIRED STATE.The DESIRED STATE is the result of planning, which drives the allocation of resources to tasks. The plan exists in generalities, except for enterprises where goals are achieved with simple tasks assigned to few or uncomplicated resources. DECIDE is the point where the comparison of the situation to the goals will dictate what corrective actions are needed to bring the performance of the enterprise in line with the plan. ACT is the direct management of resources to alter enterprise performance to close the gap between the current state and the DESIRED STATE.The Lawson-Moore model is a closed-loop execution model, continuously inte grating data, making inferences about the environment, and managing resources to meet goals of the plan. The Lawson-Moore model does not address planning, but it does unite planning and execution. To develop an execution system, it is important to understand the distinction between planning and execution. Figure 2: Lawson-Moore Model (aka Lawson Model) PLANNING AND EXECUTION Planning and execution are related, but not one and the same.Planning does not occur during execution; the plan should be formulated to allow for variations and alternate execution strategies. Business (or manufacturing or service) processes are set in place, serving as doctrine that unites actions within the enterprise. Processes should be compiled for all resource management, and serve as a set of procedures designed to achieve the best results from a united enterprise, while allowing for inspired actions and initiatives. The enterprise doctrine exists so that laborious planning for each individual operation n eed not repeated with every new plan.The more complex or unstable composition of enterprise resource, the greater the need for standardized procedures. This becomes the foundation of repeatable performance, reducing human variations to the least contributor of performance variations. Planning cannot deviate greatly from doctrine, and execution will fail without doctrine. It is possible that execution will look so different from the plan that the uninitiated will see no similarity, but if the goals of the plan are achieved, then the execution is successful.The next section will unite the inference model with the Lawson-Moore model to develop an information-centric execution model. DATA FUSION AS OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM Figure 3 shows the execution system that arises from merging inference and the Lawson-Moore model. For main components exist in this system: information collection, execution environment, human-machine interface (HMI), and evaluation. Information collection includ es sensors and all other information gathering, and is a critical component to the resources managed by the OM system.The HMI is the primary means by which operators interact with the OM system. Evaluation is the component that applies performance measurements and other measures of effectiveness to determine the degree to which the execution system is meeting the goals of the plan. The execution system performs the data fusion, situation definition, and resource management. Figure 3: Data Fusion as Execution Environment Data flows from sensors contained in resources through data filtering to begin building inferences. Filtered data enters three levels of information processing.Level 1 processing aligns data in time, insures consistent units of measure, and accounts for any other physical aspects of the data. Data from different sources are aligned or correlated in order to develop meaningful inferences (e. g the color of the box has little to do with its volume, but its height, leng th, and width has a direct bearing on computing volume). The final function of Level 1 is identifying the situation for further processing in Levels 2 and 3. Level 2 assesses the situation within the context of the fusion process in use and available information from Level 1.Level 2 may require algorithms to augment sparse or missing data. Level 3 evaluates the situation and may direct actions to modify the use of resources to minimize deviations from plan goals. The communications between the three processing levels is continuous, forming an information loop within the execution environment to adapt to changes in the external environment. Short term and long term (historical) databases form the decision support system for the OM system. Corrective action can be automatic or require operator intervention as dictated by operation procedures.THE COMMON DENOMINATOR The integrated systems view for the enterprise is emerging as analysts focus on process-centric models and away from produ ct- and information-centric models. Evidence is the REPAC model from AMR, shown in Figure 4. Recognizing the shortcomings of the functions intense MES and SCOR models, AMR developed a model that is focused on the business processes while supporting component assembly. Comparing that process-centric model with the information-centric model, common elements emerge.The main theme in REPAC COORDINATE is the need to schedule detailed activities from PLAN, utilizing feedbacks from EXECUTE and ANALYZE. These are the same themes addressed by the Lawson-Moore model. In both models, the key element is the ability to manage resources at the individual operations to achieve the goals set by the plan. This level of resource management is achieved by dynamic capacitated scheduling, supported by the real-time data from the environment and comparisons to the desired state established by the plan. Figure 4: AMR REPAC Model FCS: THE KEY TO OPERATIONS MANAGEMENTWhether OM is approached from a process- or information-centric model, finite capacity scheduling drives how resources are deployed to perform the tasks required to achieve the goals of the plan. The sequence of operations, the materials and labor required for operations, and the output of the operations all require supporting resources to act in sync with the business of implementing the plan. Finite capacity scheduling with the ability to account for multiple resource constraints and complex scheduling goals will be scalable to schedule both the lowest level of operation and the supporting resources.Planning is at best an approximation of the resource needs because planning cannot develop a precise quantification of labor, material, or time to meet the goals. Execution cannot begin until the set of actions, well matched to the available resources, is developed to load the operations and develop a timeline for the actions. Execution cannot continue unless the scheduling component can receive the feedback from the resourc es and develop alternative sets of actions that will best meet the goals of the plan.Only true finite capacity scheduling, design for real-time use, can integrate the planning and execution together to meet the enterprise objectives. CONCLUSION For manufacturing OM to achieve the goals of efficiency and agility, all aspect of planning, execution, and control are necessary to create an effective system. The bridge from the plan to the actions of the organization is dynamic resource management. For an organization with any degree of complexity, procedures need to be in place to establish the general guidelines of operations. In this imperfect world, the plan and procedures must be flexible enough to adapt.The control side provides data and accepts corrective action, but a dynamic element must exist in the OM system that allows for accepting a situation assessment and rapid response to degrading performance. The planning side requires feedback from the OM layer to create future plans. The baseline provided by planning drives the selection of enterprise operations, but the synchronization of these operations, and the alternative actions needed when the exceptions arise, comes from the power of true finite capacity scheduling. FCS is the means by which OM for manufacturing execution becomes a reality.