What leadership means to me

What leadership means to me 1. Introduction Although leadership is recognised as being an important construct, it is not a concept that holds one single definition. What leadership actually is, or how to define it correctly is still regarded as a mystery by many. Leadership is something that may differ depending on the people involved, the situation at hand, and the goals being pursued, and is therefore open to subjective interpretation. Stogdill (1974: 259) concluded that there are ‘almost as many definitions of leadership as there are persons who have attempted to define the concept. It could be argued that everyone has their own understanding of what constitutes leadership, based on personal and learning experiences, and situations and people, which is exactly why it is difficult to capture in a succinct definition. Grint (2004) narrows down the key reasons as to why it is so difficult to find a single and agreed understanding of leadership: process problems, position problems, philosophy problems, and purity problems . These problems refer to whether leadership is derived from traits or a social process, whether a leader is automatically in charge with formally allocated authority, and the questions as to whether a leader has intentional influence on the behaviour of followers, and is leadership embodied in individuals or groups and is it a purely human phenomenon. This essay seeks to explore what leadership means to me, drawing on personal experience of leadership as a social phenomenon, and discussing my views from the perspective of both a leader and follower. In order to make sense of my understanding of leadership, a critical review and commentary on leadership theory is included in the discussion. 2. Personal Experience of Leadership Within the Workplace For the past five years I have had a part time job at Marks and Spencer, and thus come across many types of leaders and managers. The question often asked is whether a manager can automatically be assumed to also be a leader? Zalenznik (1977) was one of the first to contrast leadership and management as he argued that a leader uses creativity and intuition, whereas a manager solves problems using rationality and control. Since then, many academics have agreed and argued that ‘good management brings about a degree of order and consistency to organisational processes and goals, whilst leadership is required for dynamic change (Kotter 1990: 104 cited in Bolden 2004: 6). In an organisation such as Marks and Spencer then, it is essential that they have both good management, who offer stability, consistency, order and efficiency, and good leaders who produce important change by keeping employees focused and motivated to achieve the vision communicated. In my workplace, I would say we have good ‘managers based on the above assumptions, however, I would not say that every manager is also a good leader. For this reason I agree with Kotter and Zalenznik, leadership and management differ from one another substantially. In the workplace context I am a follower, and so from this perspective I have seen what I would consider to be good leadership, and poor leadership styles. The authors who have focused on followers suggest that they are active participants in the leadership relationship (Boccialetti, 1995; Chaleff, 1995; Kelley, 1992; Shamir, Pillai, Bligh, Uhl-Bien, 2007). The socially constructed view sees leadership as being ‘in the eye of the beholder where it is the followers who have to agree on what constitutes leadership, and who they are prepared to follow. If the followers, and in my personal situation fellow employees, do not respect the leader, it is unlikely they will follow at all. Unless followers recognise and orient to particular behaviours, which they regard to be ‘leadership, then the person trying to lead is not a leader whatever their intentions. There is therefore no way for an individual to lead unless people are prepared to follow. There have been many instances at work when one particular manager has tried to lead change in the store, however because she is not well respected, and in my opinion does not come across as being a natural leader, often her vision gets ignored until another manager provides instructions for staff about the same vision. This manager is viewed by employees as having the role of simply instilling discipline, completing administrative tasks, and organising the shop floor, rather than communicating visions for change. Furthermore, although I believe that the roles of managers and leaders are very different, in my job there are no visible ‘leaders who are not managers in my store. The management team automatically take on the role of leadership, regardless of whether they are a good leader or not. As it is therefore management who attempt to provide the visions and plans for change, and employe es like myself have no responsibility or say in the directions they wish to take. Uhl-Bien and Pillai (2007) argue that followers who perceive the leader as responsible for making decisions are less likely to take an active role in the decision making process, and so, they give up autonomy. Many of my fellow employees, who often do not enjoy the job, also expect the leader, in this instance our manager, to motivate them rather than motivating themselves. The managers recognise this and often offer incentives, such as a bottle of wine, if we achieve certain targets. This could therefore be considered to be transactional leadership. A typical way of describing leadership styles within the organisation is applying McGregors (1969) theory X and theory Y. McGregor assumes that an organisation and its leaders can have differing opinions on the motivation and abilities of their employees. My line manager presumes that her staff dislikes working and takes a negative view of human nature, believing we will avoid doing work if possible. This is evident, as she will often split employees up on the shop floor to prevent them from ‘chatting, and she constantly checks up on her staff to ensure they are doing what she has asked them to do. Her actions and leadership style concur with what McGregor describes as theory X leaders. My manager believes that coercion and control is necessary to ensure that people work, and she never gives employees like myself any extra responsibilities. This style is also referred to as the autocratic style. Although my manager is assumed to be the leader at work, I would argue that she is not a good leader, and there have been times when I have had better guidance from a fellow colleague. My manager has a coercive style according to Golemans six leadership styles. She expects immediate compliance, often provides negative and corrective feedback and controls tightly. This style does not motivate employees to see her visions or follow her lead, instead it has often turned employees against her and people have refused to do certain tasks because of her leadership style. 3. Myself as a Leader Badminton Coach and Captain From a young age I have been told that I am a natural leader, possibly because I am bossy and like to get things done! Ever since I remember I have had certain personality traits, which I consider to be those of leaders: I am confident, ambitious, dominant, and so naturally take the lead in most situations. Based on what I have learnt from leaders I have come across, when leading my badminton team I keep in mind what styles I believe will be most successful. I consider myself to be a transformational leader (Bass and Avolio 1994) when in the role of badminton captain. As a leader I believe it is important for me to have a clear vision, and most importantly, be able to communicate it effectively to the whole team. Unlike the traditional transactional theory of leadership, which emphasizes corrective action, centralised control and rewards only when performance expectations are met, transformational leaders trust their subordinates and it is a more developmental and constructive form of leadership. In a sports team context it is also important for me to articulate our teams goals, which should be realistic and achievable. For example, before entering a tournament I will state where I expect us to finish, and that the vision is to win a gold medal. In order to achieve this goal I also have to motivate the team, and make sure they put the team and tournament at the top of their priority list, above any other self-interests at that time. Addi tionally I have to get the team members to understand how their style of play affects others, therefore encouraging them to view their game from others perspectives. And finally I have to develop the team in many ways, both physically to prepare them for a big tournament, and mentally so they reach their highest levels of ability. It could therefore be argued, that as a leader I follow what Bass and Avolio (1990) call the ‘four Is: Idealised Influence, Inspirational Motivation, Intellectual Stimulation, and Individualised Consideration. As a person I have previously been told that I am very charismatic. I think this also shows in my leadership style and I think I am also a charismatic leader. Northouse (2004) described the major characteristics as: dominant personally with the desire to influence others, strong role model behaviour and competence, articulation of ideological goals with moral overtones, and high expectation of followers and confidence that they will meet these expectations. Although I believe I have the personality traits required to become a leader, I am aware that there have been occasions when my leadership styles have been unsuccessful, as I have become impatient or intolerant of the followers. From these experiences I believe I have learnt a lot and therefore also see the importance of situational leadership and having the ability to alter the leadership styles I adopt. 4. Could Parents be considered to be Leaders? When considering leaders and leadership, and what it means to me, I thought about what my first experience of leadership ever was. Although leadership in an organisation is the key focus of the module and course, it cannot go ignored that my parents were the first influential leaders in my life. My parents have been very influential leaders in my life. As managing directors of their own company, they have always played the role of managers, however in our home their leadership style varied to that of in their work place, and to the styles of each other. My parents have ‘led me in the right direction. Unlike the traditional theories of leadership such as The Great Man Theory I would argue that my mum is the strongest leader in our home. It has been argued that women are more likely to use transformational leadership (Rosener 1990), and as the follower, this is the style I find motivational, inspirational and therefore successful. She uses more interactive leadership styles in co mparison to my dad as she encourages participation, power and information sharing and enhanced self worth. Although the leadership styles of parents are arguably very different to those of leaders within an organisation, my parents and their styles have had a massive influence on my understanding of leadership and on my whole life! They have led me to where I am today. I have been extremely lucky to be able to experience their leadership styles whilst running their company, therefore within an organisation. In this situation they both use different methods of leading than they do at home, thus supporting Hersey and Blanchards (1969) theory that leaders could adapt their styles to suit the situation. Situational or contingent leadership models recognise this, and support the argument that what constitutes effective leadership will be influenced by the situational factors such as the people involved, the task to be carried out, and the organisational culture. It is therefore essential that leaders employ a variety of approaches across a range of situations. 5. Conclusion From taking the time to consider what leadership means to me, it has only become more apparent about how complex the concept of leadership actually is. I believe ‘leadership is different to different people. Whom I consider to be an effective leader, others may not, and what I consider to be traits that create a successful leader, others may not. Leadership to me is something that comes naturally, however in different situations, there needs to be different forms of leadership in order for your followers to ‘follow. Although there have been many studies on leadership, and many theories produced, I agree with Burns statement that ‘leadership is one of the most observed and least understood phenomena on earth. (Burns, 1978: 3) 5.1 My theoretical understanding of leadership I have found it difficult to truly understand and specify my theoretical stance of leadership. Generally speaking, it is assumed that a person either believes that leadership is a consequence of a set of traits or characteristics possessed by leaders, or that leadership is a social process that emerges and is learned throughout life and from group relationships. I, on the other hand, believe there is truth in both approaches. I would argue that some people are simply born leaders due to their dispositions and personalities, however they also need to learn and understand how to use these traits to become a successful leader, hence leadership capability must also be partly learned. I have this opinion because of my experiences. I often become the leader in group task situations, at university for example, and although I know it often comes naturally to me, I have had to learn how to use my leadership trait effectively in order to succeed and lead the followers. I agree with Gallies sta tement that ‘Leadership appears to be, like power, an essentially contested concept (Gallie 1995 cited in Grint 2004: 1). Furthermore, I have the same opinion of the situational leadership approach due to personal experiences with leaders, and as a leader myself. Zaccaro (2007), Sternberg (2007), and Vroom and Jago (2007) argue that neither trait nor situational attributes alone are sufficient to explain leader behaviour and effectiveness. It is the interaction between traits and situations that counts.

Fast Food Essay

College students do not have much time to make their own meals on a regular basis because they are busy with work and school. In lieu of home cooked meals, fast food is the number one choice that comes to mind. Fast food is quick, taste pretty delicious, and is inexpensive for the average college student. In many cases, there is a wider variety of fast food places in radius of the school campus to choose from. Even college students can always find what they are searching for in reasonable situations. When there is not enough time to go to the supermarket and buy the essential groceries needed to make a home cooked meal, there is always the quickest solution of going to a fast food place. Here, an employee will make what is desired with little to no wait. Any college student can run in, order what they want, and be back out with their food in hand and still be able to do everything on their agenda without being rushed. Drive through is also always available to those who do not want to enter the facility and for those who own a vehicle. What is even better about fast food is the fact that many places allow to put in a future order. Then there would be no wait for the food that was ordered. No one wants to eat food that does not appeal to their taste buds. Not even the college students whose diet consists of junk food. Students want something that taste delicious when they are eating it. Luckily, there is almost every kind of fast food joint that will appeal to one person or another. Fast food tastes extremely good because it is food that is not usually eaten on a day to day schedule. The taste of fast food will make any student fulfilled with it’s appetizing selections. Money, no matter what day and age, will always be a concern and with the option of buying fast food, it does not have to be a worry. Fast food is not at all expensive to the everyday college student. For seven dollars, a student can have a sandwich, a side, and unlimited fountain drinks. Many facilities have a â€Å"value† or â€Å"dollar† menu where food can be bought for even cheaper than what is seen on the regular, full-priced menu. If seven dollars were to be an issue, a student could get two hamburgers and a small drink for three dollars plus tax. They would still get unlimited refills plus an extra three dollars and change in their pocket. With the money left over, they could go the next day and buy the same thing as the day prior.  Whether it is french fries or a side salad, fast food places give the average student such a wide variety to choose from.

Montessori method of education Essay

Dr. Maria Montessori is the founder of the Montessori method of education. She started her first classroom â€Å"Casa dei Bambini† or Children’s House in 1907. Montessori method of education stresses the importance of respecting children – â€Å"Help me to help myself†. Montessori education celebrates its 100th year in 2007. The goals of a Montessori education were to develop sensory training, language acquisition, arithmetic, physical education, practical life skills and abstract thought through the teaching of the whole child and the integration of the family into the early education system. Montessori began her educational experiences by working with special needs children. At the time of Montessori, special needs children were thought of as a â€Å"lost cause†. They could not learn how to become members of society because intelligence was fixed. She strongly opposed to the perceptions on cognitive abilities of these children at the time, and believed that they could learn how to become members of society through special teaching techniques that utilized sensory education and hands-on experience. Her aim was to teach children academics through practical life experiences and to â€Å"†¦to develop the whole personality of the child through motor, sensory, and intellectual activity† (Hainstock, 1997, 35). Montessori – The Montessori classroom is a meticulously prepared environment designed specifically to meet the needs of the child both physically and emotionally. One aspect of the prepared environment includes the Practical Life activities. Many Practical Life activities are tasks the child sees routinely performed in the home. They each serve a meaningful purpose as the child masters each piece of work such as tying shoes, pouring water, sweeping, or sewing and cooking. Through Practical Life activities, a child will also develop and refine social skills. These skills developed through Practical Life build self-esteem, determination and independence. The student learns to take care of him and the surrounding environment. Maria Montessori explains in, The Discovery of the Child, â€Å"Through practical life exercises of this sort the children develop a true  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœsocial feeling,’ for they are working in the environment of the community in which they live† (5, pg. 97). Additionally, fine motor skills are improved through use of the Practical Life materials. Through repeated tasks which enable a child to refine concentration, coordination, independence, and order, a child’s sense of self-worth grows. The Practical Life skills are an essential component in the Montessori classroom. Not only do they provide a link between home and school for the new Montessori student, but they provide a foundation for life-long love of While appearing quite simple and repetitive, Practical Life activities are highly purposeful. A child engaged in such activities demonstrates high levels of concentration, sense of order, and refinement of fine motor skills. Also, they show a sense of independence through caring for oneself and the environment. Furthermore, they show respect for classmates and teachers and develop a sense of pride. Not only are these skills and qualities necessary to progress in the Montessori classroom, but they are also needed as an individual develops into adulthood. Practical Life activities can be divided into six main categories. First, are Preliminary Exercises which assist in creating routine and order in the environment and are prerequisites for other activities. How to a roll a mat, carry a chair, or how to open and close a door are examples of Preliminary Exercises. Practical life exercises also include Fundamental Skills such as pouring, spooning, or tonging. As with all lessons in the Montessori classroom, these activities follow a sequential order and ideally, each lesson builds upon the last. Another category is Care of Self. Activities such as washing hands, buttoning, or tying shoelaces assist the child to become physically independent. Care of Environment is another category involving activities such as sweeping, watering, cleaning, etc. Control of Movement is an area of Practical Life which encompasses lessons such as walking the Line and the Silence Game. Additionally, social Grace and Courtesy lessons are introduced to the child. These may include lessons on how to say please and thank you, interrupting someone, or introducing friends and acquaintances. Montessori stressed the relationship of these exercises to the general happiness and well being of the child. â€Å"A child who becomes a master of his acts through long and repeated exercises [of  practical life], and who has been encouraged by the pleasant and interesting activities in which he has been engaged, is a child filled with health and joy and remarkable for his calmness and discipline† (The Discovery the Child, 5, pg. 93). Varying types of presentations can be used by the teacher to introduce Practical Life activities. First is a collective introduction given the children at once. This could include proper table manners, how to interrupt someone, how to speak with an inside voice, or how to turn the page of a book. Another method is a group presentation given to a small gathering of children. The last method of introduction is Individual, given only to one child at a time. Montessori believed the prepared environment is directly correlated to the child’s development. The classroom is a specifically designed area arranged solely for the children. There should be a variety of movement and activity and all work operates together through the disciplines. Montessori also believed in the importance of aesthetically pleasing classrooms. Children respond well to beauty, order, and quality in their environment. Through the Practical Life activities in the Montessori classroom, a child not only learns concentration, coordination, independence and order, but also how to interact with others and gain an understanding and appreciation of the environment. The child begins to build himself from within while learning to treat him and others with respect and dignity. These understandings ultimately prepare the child for entry into society and a lifetime of self-respect and self-worthiness. Practical Life activities in the Montessori classroom ultimately provide the foundation for success in all areas of life. Movement – Montessori said- â€Å"one of the greatest mistakes of our day is to think of movement by itself, as something apart from the higher functions†(The absorbent mind, pg 151) – it is not equally clear as to how scientists and teachers have failed to note the supreme importance of activity in the  building up of the man to man be! It was during the time of Dr Maria Montessori who felt it was time to emphasize more on â€Å"movement† in educational theory – Mental development must be connected with movement. Like man’s nervous system is divided into three parts- Brain Sense organs- collect impression and pass them to the brain Muscles – the nerves transmits nervous energy to the muscles and this energy controls the movements of the muscles. Movement is the final result to which the working of all these delicate mechanisms leads up and it is because of movement that personality can express itself(The absorbent mind, pg 148)! The great philosophers must use speech or writing to convey his ideas and this involves muscular movement. What would be the value of his thoughts if he gave them no expression? This he can only do by making use of his muscles. Psychologists regard the muscles as a part of the central nervous system (works as a whole to put man in relation with his surroundings) and this whole apparatus of Brain ,Senses and Muscles is called – the system of relationship- it puts man in touch with his world (living or non living and with other people) and without its help a man could have no contact with his surroundings or his fellows. The vegetative systems only help their owner to grow and exist. It is the system of relationship which puts him into contact with the world! There is nothing in the world which plays no part in the universal economy, and if we are endowed with spiritual riches, with aesthetic feelings and a refined conscience, it is not for ourselves, but so that these gifts shall be used for the benefit of all, and take their place in the universal economy of spiritual life. Nature has given us many abilities and these must be developed and used. We know that for the enjoyment of good health, heart, lungs and stomache must all work together. We must apply the same rule to the system of relationship, the central nervous system†¦..if we have a brain, sense organs and muscles, all these must cooperate. The system must exert itself in all its parts, none of them being neglected for example we want to excel in brain power but to succeed in this we must include the other sides too. To perfect any giv en activity â€Å"movement† will be needed as the last stage of the cycle. In other words a higher spirituality can be reached only through action and this is the point  of view from which movement has to be judged. one of the greatest mistakes of our day is to think of movement by itself, as something apart from the higher functions, we think of our muscles as organs to be used only for health purposes. We â€Å"take exercise† or do â€Å"gymnastics† to keep ourselves fit, to make us breathe or to eat or sleep better. It is an error which has been taken over by the schools .It is just as though a great prince were being made the servant of the shepherd. The prince – the muscular system –is only being used to help the vegetative life. Such assumptions will lead to enquiry†¦there comes about a separation between the life of movement and the life of thought. Since the child has a body and mind both, games must be included in the curriculum so as to avoid neglecting any part of nature’s provision. To keep thinking abou t the mind on one hand and the body on other hand is to break the continuity that should reign between them. This keeps action away from thought. The true purpose of movement is to serve the ends of existence – that is the development of the mind(The absorbent mind, pg 151). All movement has most intricate and delicate machinery, but in man none of it is established at birth. It has to be formed and perfected by the child’s activity in the world. Movement and activity are natural functions of childhood and learning comes through them .Activity becomes increasingly important to development. It is the movement that starts the intellect working†¦ Till now all educators have thought of movement and the muscular system as aids to respiration, or to circulation, or as a means of building up physical strengthen our new conception the view is taken that movement has great importance in mental development itself, provided that the action which occurs is connected with the mental activity going on. Both mental and spiritual growth are fostered by this, without which neither maximum progress nor maximum health (speaking of the mind) can exist. A child is a discoverer. He is an amorphous splendid being in search of his own form. For example in the development of speech, we see a growing power of understanding go side by side with an extended use of those muscles by which he forms sounds and words. Observations made on children – the world overconfirms that the child uses his movements to extend his understanding. Movement helps in development of mind and this finds renewed expression in further movement and activity(The absorbent mind, pg 154). The child gains experience through exercises and movement. He coordinates his own movement  and records the emotions he experiences in coming into contact with the external world. The importance of physical activity or movement in a psychic development should be emphasized. The child has an internal power to bring about cordinations, which he creates himself, and once these have begun to exist he goes on perfecting them by practice. He himself is clearly one of the principal creative factors in thei r production. The movements the child acquires are not chosen haphazardly but are fixed. In the sense that each proceeds out of a particular period of development. When the child begins to move, his mind being able to absorb, has already taken in his surroundings. He Is directed by a mysterious power, great and wonderful that he incarnates little by little. In this way, he becomes a man. He does it with his hands, by experience, first in play then through work. The hands are the instruments of man’s intelligence. He constructs his mind step by step till it becomes possessed of memory, the power to understand and the ability to think. â€Å"The child’s mind can acquire culture at a much earlier age than is generally supposed, but his way of taking in knowledge is by certain kinds of activity which involves movement†¦.†(Montessori notes) It is very interesting to study the mechanical development of movement, not only because of its intricacy but because each of the phases it passes through is clearly visible. Man’s foot can be studied from three points of view: the psysiological, the biological and the anatomical and all of them are most interesting. The hand is in direct connection with the man’s soul, but also with different ways of life that men have adopted on the earth in different places and at different times. The skills of man’s hand are bound up with the development of his mind, and in the light of history we see it connected with the development of civilization. The hands of man express his thought and from the time of his first appearance upon the earth traces of his handiwork also appear in the records of history. Hence, the development of manual skill keeps pace with mental development. We are told that St. Francis of Assisi – perhaps the simplest and purest of human souls used to say – â€Å"Look at these great hills! They are the walls of our temple and the aspiration of our hearts!†(The absorbent mind, pg 163) The truth is that when a free spirit exists, it has to materialize itself in some form of work and for this hands are needed. (The absorbent mind, pg 163) The hand are connected with mental life, allows the mind to reveal itself and enables the  whole being to enter into special relationship with its environment. His hands under the guidance of his intellect transform this environment and thus enable him to fulfill his mission in the world. The education of the movements is very complex, as it must correspond to all coordinated movements which the child has to establish in his physiological organism. The child if left without guidance is disorderly in his movements and these disorderly movements are the special characteristics of the little child. The child is seeking the exercises in these movements which will organize and coordinate the movements that are useful to a man. The child follows direction/instructions and if his movements are made a little definite then the child grows quiet and contended and becomes an active worker, a being calm and full of joy. This education of movements is one of the principal factors in producing t hat outward appearance of â€Å"discipline† to be found in the â€Å"children’s house†.(Montessori notes) Importance of movement:- Movement leads to: Muscle development, both fine and gross – need freedom for movement to take place Stimulates the mind Stimulates the senses Develops concentration Develops independence Develops confidence (through agility/balance and co-ordination) Develops discipline and will Develops language Leads to normalization Results in a healthy body and mind Emotional and intellectual development through movement:- Emotions are the affecting mental stages, organized by external ideas of situations and always act while accompanied by bodily and mental excitement. However, when we talk about emotional development in children, we find that children show a wide range of emotional reactions. Sometimes they are excited and exuberant and at other times they are depressed and sullen and some other time they are just angry, throwing tantrums. We find various shades of emotions in them even at an early age. The word emotion originates  from the Latin word â€Å" Emovere† which means to be excited. So, an emotion implies that state of mind which excites a person when man is influenced by emotion he gets excited and his natural state of equilibrium is lost. Pattern of emotional development – if we have to understand the emotions of a child of school age, it is essential to take into consideration his emotional development during the early years. Sometimes, newly born infants behave as though they are violently aroused. If such vigorous behavior means the intensity of his feelings, then we must conclude that emotional experiences can be as intense during this early period as at any later stage of growth. Again we see that a new born child is relatively unresponsive to many stimuli which are likely to arouse him in later stages. Children are capable of rich and varied emotional experiences in the course of their development till they are adults. Children from birth to 2 years go through a variety of emotions and goes through many emotional experiences that may influence his attitude towards life. Studies show that at birth there are general excitements mostly concerning his hunger and comforts, after 2-3 months the child shows definite signs of distress along with delight. By 6 months with his exposure of different kinds of stimuli the child starts showing other shades of emotions like distress or discomforts develops into fear, disgust and anger. With the satisfaction of his needs he feels delighted and by the time child completes one year this delight differentiates itself from affection. the child recognizes emotions in others and responds to it clearly. But his emotions are not so strong as regard to joy and happiness when he turns one as they are at the age of 2.Therefore we conclude that by the end of 2nd year the child has already developed various emotions and feelings. Factors affecting emotional development – There are many factors that affect the emotional development among children, the major ones are – Fatigue – tired and exhausted child Ill health Order of birth Intelligence Environment Parental attitudes The child’s emotions are still pure of contrasts. He loves because he takes in, because nature orders him to do so. And what he takes and absorbs to make it a part of his own life, so as to create his own being(The secret of childhood, pg 80). The child follows the grownups and the words of a grownup are supernatural stimuli. The child is enchanted and fascinated by his actions and words. What the grown up tells him remains engraved in his mind like words incised by a chisel on a stone. The adult should count and measure all his words before the child, for the child is hungry to take from him, he is an accumulator of love. The developing child not only acquires the faculties of man: strength, intelligence, language, but at the same time, he adapts the being he is constructing to the conditions of the world about him. The child has a different relation to his environment from ours. The things he sees are not just remembered; they form part of his soul. He incarnates in himself all in the world about him that his eyes see and his ears hear. In us the same things produce no change but a child is transformed by them. This vital kind of memory which absorbs is called â€Å" Mneme†. In this process of absorption, learning,acquiring,adapting the child is constructing not only physically but emotionally or psychic as well. The moment the child understands his environment he learns to work and adapt to it and then further wants to master in it which leads to modifications accordingly. In this complete process the following emotions are built; Self esteem Confidence Feeling of capability Sense of achievement Thus, children enjoy process not purpose! The distinct difference between man and animal – Montessori tends to adopt a different standpoint from many modern psychologists. Most of the psychologists place great emphasis upon the â€Å"inherited tendencies to behavior† which man has in common with animals. They maintain that everything we do is based on the instinctive urges of human act.Thus; the love of knowledge is but the sublimated instinct of curiosity. For Montessori, she believes that man differs from animal creation not only in degree but also in kind. She states that the most significant thing about  the child development is not instinctive tendencies that are in common with animals, but the capacity to reason which distinguishes us from them. Here, she is not trying to deny or belittle the significances of their findings, but she is saying that these elementary psychic forces are only a part of the question and a lesser part, her conviction is – â€Å"Animals have merely to awaken their instincts towards their specified behavior and their psychic life is limited to this. But in man there is other fact –the creation of human intelligence (Montessori, notes). Unlike man, one can predict the behavior of animals, whereas for man, what he will do in the future, no one can tell. â€Å"For man there is no limit†(Montessori notes). Man is a rational animal to be most â€Å"like to God† whose image we are made. Man alone possesses â€Å"that capable and god-like reason which enables us to do what no animals has ever achieved –i.e. to rise to a consciousness of our being i.e. self consciousness, to the knowledge that â€Å"I am I†. It is with this gift of reason or intellect as foundation that we are able to build our individual characters. How soon does a child begin to reason? According to Montessori, it begins as early as a baby where the child starts from nothing. Its reason revolves round his internal working like a little bud, developing and assuming concrete form from the images it absorbs from the environment. According to Montessori at her lecture in 1944, it was stated that the first year of a child’s life is the period where greatest psychic activity can develop by the human being. This is evident because we know that the brain is one thing that is active during the first y ear. That the reason why the head of a one year old has doubled in size since its born. At the third year, its brain is already half that of the adult- at four years eight –tenths of its ultimate size. Montessori further elaborated that it is during the first period that the human being grows principally in intelligence: the rest of its growth during this period, being subordinate to this developing psychic life. The three characteristics we can observe about a child during this period are – The child creates his own mind –Since intelligence is what distinguishes man from all other animals, the first characteristic is the creation of intelligence. As said before he first constructs himself by absorbing everything from the environment by his unconscious mind. With these multitudinous impressions, the child continues  to build his conscious intelligence. Montessori said ; to build up this conscious intelligence, the work of the hand plays an important and essential pa rt. The intelligence builds its own instrument –Second fact is while constructing his own intelligence he also begins to construct his own bodily instruments of expression. The child’s power of movement will develop in subordination to this superior aim i.e. of psychic development. Its activity will not be confined within the narrow limits of instinctive behavior, but will function as an instrument of a free moral agent. His eternal destiny is placed within his own hands. Marvelous adaptive powers of the child –The third characteristic of this period, are the marvelous adaptive power possessed by the child. Montessori illustrated this point by comparing man to animals. Example – if a cat is born in France, England or India, it would meow just the same way wherever it grows up. However for a child he will speak French in France, English in England and Hindi or any other dialect in India. This is because of its â€Å"inner construction†. Movement and mental assimilation leads to integration of personality – The child constructs himself through movement .The value of movement goes deeper that just helping in acquisition of knowledge. It involves the development of child’s personality -in 1st year baby establishes his physical his physical development through movement. He learns to use his limbs and whole body to carry out movements such as crawling, standing and walking and sometimes running. In the next few years he refines his gross motor skills through movement. He continues to develop his fine motor skills through activities that involve movements. As the child interacts with his environment, he absorbs the environment into his psychic life. Through repeated use of materials in the environment he learns to compare, discriminate, differentiate and judge the qualities of the materials. As the child gains experience through exercises and movements, he co-ordinates his own movement and records the emotions he experienced in coming into contact with the external world. He learns self help skills, taking and sharing. This is the social and emotional development of the child. It is also not sufficient to allow children to learn without giving him the opportunity to work or explore with the materials. When children work with the materials, it involves creative movement. When teaching children, it is not sufficient for them to hear the things which we wish him to learn. â€Å"We must give no more to eye & ear than we give to the hand†(Montessori notes) For example, in teaching children ,the idea of dimension, it is no good to show them a diagram of objects of various sizes, instead we need to provide children with concrete materials such as the knobbed cylinder, pink tower, brown stairs, long rods and knobbles cylinders. They must be given the opportunity to explore and experiment with the materials. This is so with all Montessori materials whether it is the four operations in arithmetic, parts of speech or learning of lands and water. It always involves movement. The child as an individual presents two aspects –the center and the periphery. The center is seen as the innermost citadel of the personality from which action proceeds .At this center the child increases his mental powers by seeking out sensation and movement which takes place at the second part of his personality i.e at the periphery. The periphery is that part of the child’s personality which comes in contact with the external world .It involves the senses, movements and the outward manifestations of his choice. Through continuous interaction of the center and the periphery, the mind of the child develops and expands. The directress should be concerned with the periphery as it is that part of the child that is accessible to her. The other methods of teaching aims at getting to the center directly. The teacher’s business is to feed the periphery. The teacher prepares the environment that meets the child’s inner needs and in his exploration of the materials, he abstracts ideas from them. As both center and periphery interacts, the child builds his mind. The objects in the environment cannot be chosen at random. Each material possesses an idea or concept to be realized, not to be announced by the teacher. At the child explore with the materials, this concept/idea become presented. In practice, we often find that even if the directress has prepared the  environment and presented the materials to the children, there do not seem to be a click of the center and the periphery. The child does not seem to be interested and his act seems to be in a disorderly manner. According to Montessori, the answer to this missing link is the â€Å"Point of Contact†. To explain this, Montessori used the example of teaching the appreciation of music. If the teacher tries to play music morning till night and children are allowed to move about to move about anyhow and anywhere in a disorderly manner, there is a lack of contact. To resolve this problem, the muscles, which move, should move in response to the musical rhythm thus establishing a psychic bridge between the soul of the child and the external reality of music. The moment the child understands that there exists the connection (i.e between the music and his movement), then the point of contact is established. So if the music changes its rhythm, then the child becomes aware of it and changes his movement accordingly, and he is on the road to perfect himself. This reality may be either material or spiritual; but movement must always accompany the child at any rate. Let’s look at an example to understand how the point of contact helps development. In their presenting of the sensorial materials, children were given new sounds, new shapes etc.The main purpose of it is not just bring new sounds, new shapes but to bring order into this new impression. The difficulty or the error that the child is to discover and understand must be isolated in a single piece of material. For example the long rods will present to the child only a variation in length and not in colour and design. Such isolation will help child focus on the problem more readily. It is through this method, that it leads the child to be interested in dimension, and develop him to observe them in the world around. Montessori calls her material â€Å"keys to the Universe† –it is important to constantly remember that it is through this point of contact limited and exactly but real work, helps the child to summon the mind to wonder at large in fantasy to something real which opens up a new pathway. With younger children, however, it was observed that the exercises in practical life will play an important part, but always the point of contact will be established through movement. An example was to get up from a chair and carry it from one place to another without any sound. The children would  be presented this concept of self perfection and would seek to do the same as it corresponds to his soul. Again, we see the truth of Montessori’s maxim that â€Å"education begins through movement†.

Cbt The Correlation Between Feelings, Behaviour And...

Duckworth and Freedman (2012) suggest that CBT is a treatment that investigates the correlation between feelings, behaviour and thoughts of individuals. For Mind (2012) CBT is a talking therapy that combines cognitive therapy and behaviour therapy. It seems therefore that CBT targets how individuals’ thoughts, attitudes (cognitive processes), beliefs and the impact all these have on the manner individuals behave and deal with emotional problems. CBT is based on individually guided self-help principles and can also be computerised. CBT as a therapy has its advantages and disadvantages for individual users. Wright (2004) maintains that one advantage of CBT is the evidence-based techniques employed by mental health services. There is evidence to suggest that CBT as a non-pharmacological intervention (psychological) can be as effective as pharmacotherapy (medication) in the treatment of mental health patients and may be useful in cases where medication alone has not worked. There is no shortage of support for this position by Hall and Iqbal (2010), Sudak (2011) and Barlow (2014). CBT within a group setting permits patients to be more open since the approach employed by the therapist is that of respect and collaboration, (Bieling et al, 2009, p.321. The approaches by other therapists tend to be not only confrontational but also aggressive in attempting to deal with the patients’ denials. This is further evident with the highly structured formats of computer programmes, groupsShow MoreRelatedAn Outline of Performance Anxiety in Female Athletes871 Words   |  4 PagesRoger Friesen February 21, 2012 Introduction Have you ever felt an overwhelming feeling of fear or nervousness, prior to competing in an important event? Did it affect your ability to perform? If so, you may be familiar with performance anxiety. An athlete suffering from performance anxiety often will perceive competitive situations as threatening, which can result in feelings of apprehension, fearfulness and tension (Patel, Omar, Terry, 2010). Interestingly, studies have foundRead MoreObsessive Compulsive Disorder ( Ocd )2838 Words   |  12 Pagestherapy [CBT] perspective is investigated and the strengths and weaknesses are identified and evaluated. CBT is a major paradigm used for patients with OCD. Different behavioural and cognitive techniques of CBT that are used in conjunction to tackle the obsessive-compulsive symptoms will be discussed. Overview Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder characterised by the occurrence of obsessions, compulsions or presentations of both. Obsessions include recurring thoughts, urges orRead MoreMental Heath And Substance Use Assessment2205 Words   |  9 Pagesmaintains that clinicians ought to assess individual’s physical health issues in addition to mental heath and substance use assessment. Nash (2014) argues that physical health problems for dual diagnosis clients would appear greater in comparison to individuals with a mental illness alone or those with substance use problems. Patel et al (2013) points out that the lack of integrated assessment from other service providers such as Mental Health and drug and alcohol services are due to the absence of collaborativeRead MoreDiagnosis Of A Major Depressive Disorder2122 Words   |  9 Pagesfollows on from her verbal and DASS score reports, which reported a moderate level of depression. She has corresponded with numbers— 1) depressed mood most of the day, 2) diminished interest or pleasure, 4) insomnia 6) fatigue or loss of energy 7) feelings of worthlessness or inappropriate guilt, of criterion A of the DSM5 diagnosis of major depressive disorder. Vanessa further corresponds with criterion B; where her symptoms have been causing distress and social impairment in occupation, C; whereRead MoreCbt Essay5238 Words   |  21 PagesA Case Study Focusing on a Patient with Generalised Anxiety Disorder. This essay will provide an understanding of the principles of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy and its application to a case study of someone who has mild to moderate health problems. It aims to critically evaluate the principles and philosophy that underpin cognitive behaviour theory, whist demonstrating an understanding of fundamental cognitive behavioural strategies, and finally to critically appraise the evidence base ofRead MoreA Research Study On Psychological Research2167 Words   |  9 Pages(naturally occurring) Case studies- are a process or record of research using other methods such as interviewing or observations. They may also contain secondary data of a target individual or group over a period of time. Correlation research- this research is normally quantitative data gathering and determining a relationship between variables. In psychology this is normally based on the effects of an Independent variable (IV) has on a Dependant Variable (DV). These research methods will only be used ifRead MoreAddiction Psychology4561 Words   |  19 Pages | |Strengths |Limitations | |Explains why some individuals are more resistant to treatment and more likely|Caine et al (2007) found that mice engineered to lack the brain receptor (D1), | |to relapse. |did not develop a taste for cocaineRead MoreDepression And Its Effects On America1751 Words   |  8 Pagestowards family and friends in general. Treatment Plan As Tom s therapist I believe Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) would be the best treatment plan for him to get most effective results. There is also the option of prescribed medication however, people like to avoid them due to their side effects. According to Beck (1979) cognitive behavioural therapy maps out the individual s view of the world, making it quite effective in understanding the mental status of the patient. Although these symptomsRead MoreGroup Cohesion8510 Words   |  35 PagesARTICLE IN PRESS Behaviour Research and Therapy 45 (2007) 687–698 www.elsevier.com/locate/brat Group cohesion in cognitive-behavioral group therapy for social phobia Marlene Taube-Schiffa, Michael K. Suvakb, Martin M. Antonyc,d,e,ÃÆ', Peter J. Bielinge,f, Randi E. McCabed,e a Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care Department, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada b Department of Psychology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA c Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, 350Read MoreEssay about Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD)1072 Words   |  5 Pagesamong young people in the UK were around 4%. (National Statistics, 2002) ‘Social phobia is characterised by intense and persistent fear of social situations in which scrutiny and embarrassment could occur’. (Orsillo Hammond 2001, p.159) The individual with social phobia often feels they are being looked at, studied and critically analysed. Social anxiety is unlike other phobias in that it has the constant likelihood of being verified as being true. (Beck 2005, p.151) Self-focussed attention