Monday, January 27, 2020

Personal Reflections On Stereotyping Of Ethnic Minorities Social Work Essay

Personal Reflections On Stereotyping Of Ethnic Minorities Social Work Essay   Ã‚  Through the process of  reviewing my journal entries, I was overwhelmed by incidents I went through. I realized some unfortunate and unintentional racism and microaggressions in my journals.   I noticed that resulted in producing weak and imperfect assumptions.   According to Sue and Sue, Microaggressions are brief, everyday exchanges that send denigrating messages to a target group like people of color, women and gays (2007. Chap5).   It was obvious I did things according to my own culture and somehow disregarding others cultures unintentionally.   Added to this, I found out that I was immature and unfair to make conclusions without further scrutiny. Scrutinizing all these non-stopping cultural thoughts, I started to think if I am culturally knowledgeable enough to be a counselor who got the necessary skills and means to work effectively with clients from multicultural backgrounds. Trough my previous journal review, I began to think about the reason why I struggle to bring up these multicultural calamities. Being hesitant on how I am going to provide therapy despite existing diversity issues. Despite all the readings, guest speakers and activities conducted in class, I find I still have some prejudice and assumptions in my subconscious mind such as homosexuality, which is challenging according to my religious beliefs as a Muslim. As a professional therapist, it will be helpful to get rid of these feelings and always stay away from being prejudiced against persons practicing different habits and beliefs. Sue and Sue said that the belief in the inferiority of others as well as the belief that one has the power to oblige certain standards upon others of another culture is also witnessed (SS 4). The ethnocentric monoculturalism mindset that Sue and Sue discussed in chapter four both shocks and amazes me.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Reading my journal entries helped me to reconsider the decisions and stereotypes I made about other ethnic minorities and especially homosexual communities. As a result of the journal reading, what are the measures that would help to avoid these stereotypes, perceptions, and beliefs do we hold about culturally diverse groups and may help us to maintain an effective relationship?   (SS 2)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As far as my feelings are concerned, I was very frustrated and feel guilty and ashamed of being careless about a variety of multicultural minorities. Besides, it is not fair not to scrutinize these cultural calamities and not to withdraw from others and their situations and circumstances. This curiosity developed in me a sense of appreciation to tolerate these differences and willingness to find out more about my biases willing to work hard in order to be more aware of my weaknesses and change them. Feelings of shame and pride are mixed in the individual and a sense of conflict develops  Ã‚   (SS 10)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Identity was given a generous part in my previous journal entries as I dedicated more space and time for better understanding of myself. More than that, the conversation I had with my colleagues, guest speakers, and class instructor as well as through readings, helped me to define my identity within my family and other groups in which I have belonged, especially the Muslim communities. This considerable wind of change actually taught me to not take cultural issues for granted anymore, to spend more time and effort figuring out who I am. However, it is still hard to devote completely to accept given cultural differences and to solve identity issues. But, it was comforting that Slavic people had been referred to as such a strong religious affiliations and characterized as a cornerstone of their identity (MGG 52, pg. 713. In dealing with multiracial backgrounds and issues, it is awkward to ask coworkers or individuals from different counties quest ions like Where are you from? or What are you? because asking questions about ethnicity generates a sense of being offended and differentiated, and it is sometimes perceived as rude, insensitive, ambiguous and misconstrued. However, the idea is certainly not to make the person feel questioned or offended or attacked when asked about their ethnicity (SS 18). Maria Roots Bill of Rights (SS 18) is a great inspiration to me since it gave me a much greater understanding of what we ask multiracial people to do when we ask about their heritage and expect it to fit within the monoracial classification system. Conceptualizing identities and giving them more focus is a good idea (SS 18; Torres, Jones, Renn). It is crucial for more understanding of the topic of identity development.   Personally, I still need to fully recognize and improve my own understanding of myself, my background, and my culture. Added to this the feeling of guilt was also common in my journal entries, and Sue and Sue stated that without such an awareness and understanding, we may unintentionally discriminate among multicultural groups. When this happens, we may become guilty of cultural oppression and be a threat to multicultural minorities (SS 10) I did feel guilty about many things, but it is very significant to be aware of this problem now in order to avoid it in future confrontations. Personal Reflections on My Experiences This class was an important step in my journey in life; it helped me to recognize many unintentional biases and stereotypes.   It was a positive influence on me by improving my competencies, increasing my vigilance and cultural sensitivity. Yet, there is still a threat of underpathologizing a clients symptoms without taking into consideration cultural backgrounds. More than that, the understanding of a clients cultural context, having knowledge of culture-bound syndromes and being aware of cultural relativism, are challenging because, being oversensitive to these factors, the therapists pathology might be influenced negatively. As a result, this process ends up underpathologizing disorders (SS 4)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is fundamental to put up with and value the difference of other cultures, and this class helped me also to think about it seriously as I believe during this short semester I achieved a level of cultural sensitivity and awareness by discussing the IDI Profile which presented information about how to make sense and how to react and treat these cultural similarities and dissimilarities.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Emotions such as anger, sadness, and defensiveness took a part of the discussion about experiences of race, culture, gender, and other socio demographic variables (MGG 1). These feelings can either improve or reduce the understanding of the notion of multicultural calamities. That is why I believe this class was very important to take. As a professional, working with a multicultural population, I am sure that I need to know that I am different and how to deal with it in an appropriate way. Moreover, in my little work experience, I worked with many different people who are from diverse cultures and that led to some challenging times to understand each other in the beginning in terms of language, eye contact, and sometimes body language. I have discovered that by making statements of similarity, I have the possibility to share our differences that can influence my professional and personal life. Discussing the language difficulty openly with a client may be a beneficial tactic in the future.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      Working with older adults was a good point that Sue and Sue covered in their book. They are aware that it is important to critically evaluate our own attitudes about old adults and their daily attitudes and concerns. Sue and Sue stated some legal and ethical issues that should be in mind while dealing or working with older adults (e.g., competency issues). Older adults need care and respect in terms of their mental status, and as a counselor, I have to know how to deal with those people in professional way.    The disabled population is another community that I learned to be aware of how to work with. Three models of disability affecting individuals were presented in the Sue and Sue book. First, the moral model is a defect considered a sort of sin or moral lapse. Second, the medical model is represented as a defect or loss of function that resides in the individual. Finally, the minority model is seen as an external problem involving an environment that fails to provide a shelter for individuals with disabilities. (SS 26) I learned that I have to treat people regardless of disability status with the same expectations and gather information about my clients disability. Those people gave me strength.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It was also interesting to be aware of social class issues, and this class was beneficial in helping us as future professionals to figure it out. As discussed in chapter 12 in Sue and Sue, Multicultural counseling and therapy must be about social justice, providing equal access and opportunity to all groups; being inclusive; removing individual and systemic barriers to fair mental health treatment, and insuring that counseling/therapy services are directed at the micro, meso, and macro levels of our society (SS 12.)   I learned that as counselors, we need to be hard working and supportive for immigrants and offer needed services for minorities and provide for local, state, and federal immigration laws. It is a big challenge to be able to work within different cultures setting, but keeping up will help people face all the barriers coming in the future.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Within my family, I feel powerless. I still have some issues that cannot be discussed with them, and most of these are cultural issues that I cannot change immediately always lead to conflict. The issues range from the handling of emotions, such as being able to express anger or shame about specific things, or being able to talk loudly about making my own decisions such as my relationship with the person who I choose to live who is from another culture.   I learned also that sometimes, even the married couples of similar backgrounds; they may still face some intercultural concerns. However, relationships from multi cultural backgrounds reach to the edge of success and go beyond given culture differences.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As far as my IDI-personal plan is concerned, I mentioned that culture is about the rules of how to function within cultural context. Within the process of understanding these cultural differences and rules, I was somehow sensitive to those rules, but it is an important factor that participated to ameliorate my cultural awareness. I think I need to learn more effectively about my own culture including history and rules of myself and my family. The encapsulated Marginality part in my IDI- personal plan signified that I am trying to figure out how to correlate my intercultural beliefs with my identity and how to make such transition. This condition transition between culture and identity is referred to as Adaptation and Integration. To demonstrate this transition, I am saying to myself, Who I am? compared to What is my true culture? like my Berber origins compared to other cultures in my country. Another brief statement in my IDI-personal plan stated that I avoid learning about other cultures and ignore their history.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The profile also shows that I may have a commitment to the idea that people from other cultures are like us, or those people should share the same set of universal values I have. I may also have difficulties in identifying important cultural differences that influence intercultural relations, and I need to resolve these issues before I can exercise my greatest potential of intercultural competence (Bennett Bennett, 2002).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In my professional part of my IDI-Personal plan, I mentioned that I have to be able to experience the existence of other cultures and I should be sensitive and aware in order to be effective with my clients.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     It terms of working with people of color, it is useful to discuss the reaction of the client to a professional who is from a different ethnic background (e.g. Sometimes clients feel uncomfortable working with a counselor of a different race) and be aware of mistrust and work to earn a clients trust (SS 14).  Ã‚   It is very significant to comprehend the dissimilarities, assist the clients to be relaxed in working with me as a professional, and be trusted and well-liked. Assessment of the Effectiveness to date of The IDI-based Personal Development Plan    My IDI Individual Profile helped me reflect on my experiences around cultural differences and similarities. As I reviewed my IDI profile results, I considered past situations in which I attempted to make sense of cultural differences and similarities; this can assist me discover statements that may have guided my actions in these situations. Moreover, I need to focus on a situation I am presently facing.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The IDI-based personal plan helped me to learn more about my own culture. I was surprised when I read the outcomes of my IDI result, especially in terms of being aware of my biases that I was thinking were strengths.   In my developmental task, I stated that I have to recognize cultural differences that are escaping my notice. I have to learn more about my own culture especially its heritage. I will explore my own culture by gathering necessary information. The IDI gave me the chance to be more conscious of who I am and where I came from. Steps to continue developing my sensitivity to difference and cultural competence   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I need to continue developing my sensitivity to difference and cultural competence and be able to work successfully with clients from diverse ethnics and cultural backgrounds. I need to continue developing awareness by recognizing the value of population diversity.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is correct that one cannot discover everything about other cultures. However, I need to get awareness about other groups. I also need to separate my religious insights and respect others religion beliefs. I need to recognize and be mindful of who I am and where I came from. I need to be aware of my privilege as an educated person in my family. Finally, in order to continue developing my own sensitivity to difference and cultural competences, I have to recognize how my culture is viewed by others. I need to attend workshops and seminars about other cultures. I need to learn about others culture by watching documentaries and movies as much as possible. Visiting other countries and participating in its cultural events and festivals, and sharing experiences with other people will be a very effective plan.

Sunday, January 19, 2020

The Toulmin Model Applied to a Scene from Saladin the Champion (the crusaders) :: essays research papers

The Toulmin Model Applied to a Scene from Saladin the Champion (the crusaders) Saladin: Ahmad Mazhar King Richard : Hamdy Gaithe Virgenia: Lila Fawzi King Feleebe: Omar Alharerri Saladin the champion (the crusaders) talks about the crusades to gain Jerusalem back from the Moslem army that was lead by the great sultan Saladin. At the beginning of the movie the Moslems hear about the misfortunate Moslems that are treated badly in Jerusalem, consequently, Saladin takes over Jerusalem in a battle with the Christian leader Rhene who was in charge of these actions of killing the Moslems. Rhene’s widow goes to Europe seeking help from all the Christian kings, claiming that Moslems kicked the Christians out of Jerusalem and killed there women and children. The European kings prepare a crusade, lead by Richard the lion heart, king of England. Most of the kings didn’t think only of having revenge for their fellow Christians. But they think of keeping the treasures of the orient from being lost to Saladin. The crusaders won many battles on their way to Jerusalem, killing many Moslems, by the use of an invincible towers that resists flamed arrows. Consequen tly, the Moslem leader Saladin t! hinks of a way to trick the enemy army, by leading them to a trap. The Moslem leader succeeds in his mission, winning the battle and killing many of the Christian’s army. The scene begins as the Richard watches the dead bodies of his army at night, then he enters the tent where the meeting among the kings, and then tries to oppose the decision of having a truce with Saladin. The Christian kings are gathered in a tent where they are discussing their status after the last battle, which they were defeated. Richard asks the European kings in their meeting the importance of having a truce with the Muslims. Saying that Saladin is not an easy enemy to defeat, and that we underestimated his cleverness in the issues of war. A French Nobel knight says â€Å"we still have time to teach Saladin a lesson†. Richard mumbles saying â€Å"too many dead Christian bodies every where I look†. The king of France, (king Feelebe), says â€Å"that a t ruce is just wasting time, so we have to continue moving towards Jerusalem†. The Nobel French knight says â€Å"our forces are winning and we should continue moving towards Jerusalem, Richard says in sorrow, that time belongs to the tortured people who values life because they face death every day not like the kings. The Toulmin Model Applied to a Scene from Saladin the Champion (the crusaders) :: essays research papers The Toulmin Model Applied to a Scene from Saladin the Champion (the crusaders) Saladin: Ahmad Mazhar King Richard : Hamdy Gaithe Virgenia: Lila Fawzi King Feleebe: Omar Alharerri Saladin the champion (the crusaders) talks about the crusades to gain Jerusalem back from the Moslem army that was lead by the great sultan Saladin. At the beginning of the movie the Moslems hear about the misfortunate Moslems that are treated badly in Jerusalem, consequently, Saladin takes over Jerusalem in a battle with the Christian leader Rhene who was in charge of these actions of killing the Moslems. Rhene’s widow goes to Europe seeking help from all the Christian kings, claiming that Moslems kicked the Christians out of Jerusalem and killed there women and children. The European kings prepare a crusade, lead by Richard the lion heart, king of England. Most of the kings didn’t think only of having revenge for their fellow Christians. But they think of keeping the treasures of the orient from being lost to Saladin. The crusaders won many battles on their way to Jerusalem, killing many Moslems, by the use of an invincible towers that resists flamed arrows. Consequen tly, the Moslem leader Saladin t! hinks of a way to trick the enemy army, by leading them to a trap. The Moslem leader succeeds in his mission, winning the battle and killing many of the Christian’s army. The scene begins as the Richard watches the dead bodies of his army at night, then he enters the tent where the meeting among the kings, and then tries to oppose the decision of having a truce with Saladin. The Christian kings are gathered in a tent where they are discussing their status after the last battle, which they were defeated. Richard asks the European kings in their meeting the importance of having a truce with the Muslims. Saying that Saladin is not an easy enemy to defeat, and that we underestimated his cleverness in the issues of war. A French Nobel knight says â€Å"we still have time to teach Saladin a lesson†. Richard mumbles saying â€Å"too many dead Christian bodies every where I look†. The king of France, (king Feelebe), says â€Å"that a t ruce is just wasting time, so we have to continue moving towards Jerusalem†. The Nobel French knight says â€Å"our forces are winning and we should continue moving towards Jerusalem, Richard says in sorrow, that time belongs to the tortured people who values life because they face death every day not like the kings.

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Coupon Accounting Abuse Essay

The incentive, opportunity, and rationalization to commit fraud have plagued business organizations for many years. There are numerous ways that managers and employees can commit fraud. This makes it a necessity for businesses to have quality internal controls that help prevent fraudulent activity. However, even with the best set of controls businesses are still susceptible of fraud. This paper will concentrate on the case study concerning coupon accounting abuse and will answer questions pertaining to company controls, ways to prevent coupon abuse, parties who may be harmed, and the type of fraud presented in the case. Coupon Accounting Abuse Question 1: Discuss whether the situation described can happen to a company with a good control environment. It is imperative for a company to have good accounting internal controls. A company that has a good control environment will help deter fraud, but these controls can only provide a company with reasonable assurance. In this situation the brand manager is committing the fraud. This would make it very hard even for a company with good controls to detect fraud. In what is known as management override, managers can simply circumvent a company’s internal controls. Question 2: Describe any steps a company could take to prevent such abuse. There are many steps that a company can take to prevent fraud abuse. A company should implement a strong code of ethics policy. Every manager and employee should be trained and very aware of the policy. This will help in maintaining the integrity of the workforce. There should be a strong screening process that includes background checks to help ensure the company is hiring honest employees. There should also be a segregation of duties. In this case the brand manager has complete control over estimating the coupon liability. This estimate should be approved by another manager at the company. The company should inform independent and internal auditors of the significance that coupons can have on the company’s financial statements. A risk management group should be established whose task is to facilitate and co-ordinate the overall risk management process. Depending on the size and nature of the organization, the risk management group may be in the form of a committee who meet from time to time (CIMA, 2009). Question 3: List those parties who might be harmed by this situation. Fraud is often mistakenly considered a victimless crime. However, fraud can have considerable social and psychological effects on individuals, businesses and society (CIMA, 2009). In this situation the brand manager is harming multiple parties. When the manager replaces the 4% estimated redemption rate with 2% he is increasing revenue making the company look more profitable than it really was. This is misleading to managers and shareholders who are reading the financial statements. It could be detrimental to the business if managers think a brand is doing better than it really is. The shareholder will also be impacted in the coming year because of the added liability expenses. The brand manager is putting himself at risk to be harmed because if he is caught his job will be terminated and he will be prosecuted. Question 4: Do you consider this example to be management fraud or employee fraud? I consider this to be management fraud. Management fraud often involves senior or high level management’s intentional misrepresentation of financial statements, theft or improper use of accompany resources. Employee fraud involves a non-senior employee theft or improper use of company resources (Gottlieb, 2011). The fraud that was committed was by the brand manager who developed a myopic view and knew that he would be managing another brand in the next year. This situation is becoming increasingly common in the workplace. In order to combat fraud and white collar crime in businesses, a concerted effort must be exerted by the management of the business, the external auditors, and by all employees of the business. Everyone must realize that fraud is not a victimless crime. The cost of fraud and theft are shared by all through higher costs and lower corporate profits. Through adequate internal controls by management, better working environments for employees, more stringent requirements for external auditors, and codes of ethics for employees, everyone can start to combat frauds and defalcations within corporate America (Farrell, Franco, 1999).

Friday, January 3, 2020

Students With Disabilities And Their Education - 1305 Words

Years of research have been done to help our understanding of how to effectively include students with disabilities in general education classes. There are a lot of concerns of whether or not full inclusion is appropriate for all students, how you address certain concerns, how to communicate and involve parents and a lot of other things. Everyone has their own personal views and why they feel the way they do. The controversy will always remain on the topic of students with disabilities and their education. I am slowly starting to form an opinion on whether or not students with severe disabilities should be allowed access to the regular education curriculum. I am sure that over time my opinion will slightly change, but as of now I†¦show more content†¦Administrative support is a great thing to have behind special education because they can make sure that the opportunity is provided to facilitate achievement for students with special needs to meet the same goals as a general student. The purpose is to provide and maintain an environment that is most conductive to the learning of both general and special education students. With administrative support, it is easier to incorporate special help and anything else needed for special education students in a regular education settings. Another aspect that helps administration can help with is the budget that special education can receive. Special equipment and technology is needed for some students, which costs money. Collaboration is a huge part of having special education and general education kids together. Collaboration between general education teachers and special education teachers helps to ensure that every student is getting an education, with specialized instruction, but in a general education. There are many ways to help this happen. Teachers can always co-teach, or have shared classroom management. If it is needed, the special education student can take the student to an alternative setting. One o f the most important things is that both teachers have a consultation of work to discuss instructional strategies. These collaboration techniques are why we can integrate special education students in the general education classroom with their