Problem Based Learning PBL

Problem Based Learning PBL Introduction Problem-based learning (PBL) is a pedagogical tool in which students engage in a problem without introductory knowledge; they work to solve the problem by using existing knowledge and applying it to the situation in order to reach a solution (Wirkala Kuhn, 2011). The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics describes technology as an essential element in teaching and learning mathematics (NCTM, 2000). The use of computers influences the mathematics that is taught and enhances students learning (2000). When implemented effectively, technology can be a tremendous tool for learning. Computers can be usedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦as an environment for exploring mathematical concepts through interaction (Huetinck Munshin, 2008, p. 87). In this study, students will explore mathematical concepts using computers via a problem-based learning approach. Specifically, this research study will investigate how computer-assisted PBL effects student interest and achievement in a high school mathematics co urse. Much research has been done to investigate PBL in medicine and science. There has been more research in mathematics education that investigates the effects of PBL on achievement than of PBL and interest. I would like to examine both of these factors. The question of interest is as follows: How do using computers to teach problem-based learning (PBL) in high school mathematics classrooms increase student interest and achievement in mathematics? Following the introduction, in section 2, relevant literature about PBL will be discussed. In section 3, the statistical methods will be stated. In section 4, the analysis of the data will be presented. In section 5, my conclusion and discussion will be given. Literature Review PBL in Medicine Various researchers in the medical field have studied problem-based learning for quite some time. In the 1980s and 1990s, PBL was used in medical schools and began to be accepted by schools in North America and Europe (Savery, 2006). Researchers have studied how PBL effects achievement and/or knowledge. One group of researchers studied academic achievement of students in two medical schools (Verhoeven, Verwijnen, Scherpbier, Holdrinet, Oeseburg, Bulte, Van Der Vleuten, 1998). One school had a PBL instructional design and the other used a non-PBL instructional design. Test results showed no significant differences on total test scores. After the test was split into three categories, a few, non-systematic differences were found (p. 310). Hmelo (1999) studied how PBL in medical education can affect cognitive skill. The study found that the PBL students increased the accuracy of their hypotheses more than the nonPBL students (p. 197). The conclusion of the findings show that using a PBL approach in medical education does make a difference in what students learn. Another study examined students performances on Step 1 and Step 2 of the United States Medical Licensing Examination(USMLE) following the implementation of a problem-based learning curriculum (Blake, Hosokawa, Riley, 2000, p. 66). This study analyzed scores and found that students in the PBL classes scored higher on USMLE Step 1 than did students in the traditional classes. For the USMLE Step 2, the average test score for students in the PBL classes were above the national mean. In contrast, score were below the national mean for classes in the traditional curriculum (p. 66). Based on the data, the study concluded that the use of a PBL curriculum as a major educational method during the first two years of medical school does not compromise performance on standardized tests (p. 69). Other researchers found that in a PBL program; there were significant knowledge gain (Schwartz, Donnelly, Sloan, Young, 1994, p. 148). Knowledge gain was measured by giving students a pre and posttest. Students were administered an NBME surgery shelf examination on the first day of the clerkship (pretest) and a different one of the last day (posttest) (p. 148). Another study compared clinical performances in a medical clerkship of students who were enrolled in a class that used a PBL approach versus students who were enrolled in a class that used a traditional style approach (Richards, Ober, Cariaga-Lo, Camp, Philp, McFarlane, Rupps, Zaccaro, 1996). The PBL participants consisted of 88 third year internal medicine students. The lecture-based learning (LBL) participants consisted of 364 students in the same program. The researchers compared examination scores between the two groups. The results reveal that the students who had completed two years in the PBL curriculum had a higher medicine clerkship rating (p. 189). Thus, this study determined that a PBL curriculum may enhanceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦clinical perfo rmances (p. 187). A similar study was performed in a postgraduate medical education program in The Netherlands. The study aimed to examine the effectiveness of problem-based learning in comparison with lecture-based learning (Smits, de Buisonje, Verbeek, Dijk, Metz, Cate, 2003, p. 280). Knowledge, in terms of achievement, was measured by tests. They found that under PBL instruction, performance increased more. In the conclusion, the researchers state that this study shows evidence that the problem-based program has some small extra value for the participants in improving their performance (p. 285). Although there is a limited amount of research on the impacts of PBL on interest, there have been a few researchers to study this situation. Biley (1999) studied PBL in a nursing program. The study found that there were both advantages and disadvantages of using PBL in instruction. A disadvantage the study found is that tension occurred during the process of changing from more traditional forms of education to PBL (p. 587). The findings also showed benefits of PBL which coincide with previous studies; the benefits include the recognition of increased self-motivation, team work, and a more accurate theoretical representation in the classroom (p. 588). Smits, et. al (2003) studied students satisfaction in addition to knowledge. Satisfaction was measured by a rating. Researchers found that the problem-based group was significantly less satisfied than the lecture-based group (p. 284). Another study found dissimilar data relating to interest and enjoyment. Sobral (1995) found that PBL stu dents had a higher level of enjoyment and reported that they enjoyed their learning experience and would be more likely to look for studies in the same field (99). The researchers concluded that the PBL approach can improve the quality of the learning environment in both cognitive and emotional ways (p. 93). PBL in Science Education Researchers in science education have also studied the impacts of problem-based learning on achievement. One study (Gà ¼rses, Aà §Ãƒâ€žÃ‚ ±kyÄ ±ldÄ ±z, DoÄÅ ¸ar, Sà ¶zbilir, 2007) examined the impact of PBL in a physical chemistry laboratory class. Researchers looked at students attitudes towards a chemistry laboratory course, scientific process skills of students, and their academic achievement in relation to PBL (p. 99). They found that after students were exposed to PBL, their test scores were considerably higher. A similar study was done in a chemistry class. Tarhan and Acar (2007) examined how effective PBL is in increasing student achievement. Results from the post-testà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦showed that PBL is effective on students achievement (Tarhan, Acar, 2007, p. 351). One group of researchers investigated the effects of PBL for female students enrolled in a STEM program (Lou, Diez, Tseng, 2011). They found that students tended to gain more solid science and mathematics knowledge through STEM learning in PBL (Lou, Diez, Tseng, 2011, p. 195). Another study investigated PBL in science by conducting research using an experimental (PBL group) and control group (textbook group) (Inel Balim, 2010). Researchers examined how PBL affected academic achievement; they found a significant difference between the groups. Specifically, researchers concluded the problem-based learning method in scienceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦teaching is more effective in enhancing students academic achievement than simply using the scienceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦curriculum (Inel Balim, 2010, p. 16). Similarly, Sungur, Tekkaya, and Geban (2006) conducted a study to examine the effect of PBL on academic achievement and performance in a biology class. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups: the control or experimental group. Students were given a pre- and post-test that measured academic achievement and performance. Researchers concluded that PBl instruction caused a si gnificantly better acquisition of scientific conceptions than the traditional instruction (Sungur, Tekkaya, Geban, 2006, p. 158). AkinoÄÅ ¸lue and TandoÄÅ ¸an (2007) investigated PBL in science education. They gathered research to determine how PBL effects achievement, attitude, and concept learning. Researchers concluded that the implementation of problem-based active learning model had positively affected students academic achievementà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ [in] the science course (AkinoÄÅ ¸lue TandoÄÅ ¸an, 2007, p. 71). Chang (2001) conducted research in several 10th grade science classes to study how problem-based computer-assisted instruction (PBCAI) impacts science achievement (p. 147). The researcher compared the PBCAI to a direct-interactive teaching method (DITM) (p. 147). He determined that more students in the PBCAI group had higher scores than the DITM group in terms of achievement. Chang concluded, the PBCAI was more effective in promoting students achieve ment than was the DITM (p. 147). Liu, Hsieh, Cho, and Schallert (2006) studied self-efficacy, attitudes, and achievement in a computer-enhanced PBL class. This study is similar to the research of the present study. The participants of interest in this study were middle school students. Researchers collected data from 549 sixth graders from two middle schools. Data was collected from a pretest/posttest, questionnaire, and interviews. Data indicated an increase in students science achievement and self-efficacy for learning science after their engagement in a computer-enhanced PBL environment (Liu, Hsieh, Cho, Schallert, 2006, p. 225). Researchers in science education have also studied the impacts of problem-based learning on student interest in and attitude of science. Gà ¼rses, Aà §Ãƒâ€žÃ‚ ±kyÄ ±ldÄ ±z, DoÄÅ ¸ar, and Sà ¶zbilir (2007) collected data from a physical chemistry lab regarding students attitudes towards the class through a PBL treatment. They found students attitudes towardsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the course were not changed significantly after PBL treatment (p. 109). Liu, Hsieh, Cho, and Schallert (2006) found an increase in science achievement in a computer-enhanced PBL class. They also collected data about students attitudes towards science. Based on their findings, they found no significant change. Besides studying achievement in a PBL class, Tarhan and Acar (2007), also conducted student interviews and found that students enrolled in the PBL class were more motivated (p. 351). Motivation relates to attitude in and interest of science. Another study, by Ferreira and Trudel (2012), inves tigated how a PBL curriculum in science impacts student attitudes toward science. Participants answered survey questions, wrote in student journals, and took an assessment. Data was gathered from these instruments in addition to teacher observations (Ferreira Trudel, 2012). Researchers found that there was a significant increase in student attitudes towards science (Ferreira Trudel, 2012, p. 23). Lou, Diez, and Tsend (2011), who studied the effects of PBL for female students enrolled in a STEM program collected data related to student attitudes (Lou, Diez, Tseng, 2011). Researchers found that the participants from the PBL curriculum attitude towards STEM improved. AkinoÄÅ ¸lue and TandoÄÅ ¸an (2007) investigated the effects of PBL in science education. They collected data to determine how PBL effects students attitude towards science. Researchers concluded that the implementation of problem-based active learning model had positively affected studentsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦attit udes towards the science course (AkinoÄÅ ¸lue TandoÄÅ ¸an, 2007, p. 71). Nancy Cerezo (2004) examined PBL in middle school math and science classes. The study investigated students perceptions of PBL in regards to its effectiveness and students interest in the content. Results from the study indicated that students perceived problem-based learning encouraged their interest and provided a more in-depth understanding of the concepts. Students indicated that problem-based learning helped them learn more about a topic and created a feeling of excitement about coming to class. (Cerezo, 2004, p. 9) This study related to the present study since it investigated PBL in mathematics and how students interest in mathematics changes. All research pointed to increased achievement or improved knowledge when a PBL curriculum was implemented in a science classroom. Gà ¼rses, Aà §Ãƒâ€žÃ‚ ±kyÄ ±ldÄ ±z, DoÄÅ ¸ar, and Sà ¶zbilir; Liu, Hsieh, Cho, and Schallert; provided conclusions that were contradictory to the findings of Tarhan and Acar; AkinoÄÅ ¸lue and TandoÄÅ ¸an; Lou, Diez, and Tseng; Ferreira and Trudel; and Cerezo in regards to interest in the subject or motivation. Specifically, the latter being the researchers who saw a significant difference in interest towards the subject. That is, that they found that there is a relationship between PBL and increased interest in a subject. PBL in Mathematics Education In mathematics education, PBL is relatively new, but many researchers have found that it is effective in increasing achievement. One team of researchers found no statistically significant data in favor of PBL (Tarmizi, Tarmizi, Lojinin, Mokhtar, 2010). Researchers conducted a study to investigate the effects of PBL on mathematical performance, measure of instructional efficiency, and perceived advantages or disadvantages of the approach (Tarmizi, Tarmizi, Lojinin, Mokhtar, 2010, p. 4683). They used a quasi-experimental design and gathered data via a posttest. Each variable of interest of the study was measured using a specific tool. First, scores from tests measured mathematics performance(p. 4685). Next, researchers collected data for mental effort via a nine-point symmetrical category scale (p. 4685). Efficiency index is a term which shows the relationship between learning and test (mental) effort and performance (p. 4685). Researchers used a mathematical formula to calculate dat a for this variable. Last, affective attributes were measured using Likert-style questions. Researchers found that the average scores for the overall achievement for the PBL group were greater than the control group. After researchers statistical analyzed the data, they determined that the mean difference was not statistically significant (p. 2685). Another group of researchers, Clarke, Breed, and Fraser (2004), studied participants at three high schools in California. Researchers investigated how a problem-based mathematics curriculum, the Interactive Mathematics Program (IMP) were related to student achievement (p. 8). Researchers also collected data to measure achievement or mathematical performance. They compared PBL/IMP students to their peers in conventional classes. This data came in the form of test scores from the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). Findings show that IMP students averaged higher SAT scores than did pupils of conventional classes (p. 14). PBL was studied in ano ther area of mathematics, Statistics (Tarmizi Bayat, 2011). Researchers compared data between a PBL group and a conventional group. Two posttests were administered and the scores were analyzed. They concluded that there was a significant difference between the mean performance of the PBL group and that of the conventional group indicating PBL efficacy (p. 344). Bostic and Jacobbe (2010) studied PBL in a fifth grade mathematics classroom. Researchers collected data by administering a pre-test, posttest, and student interviews. Data from the pre-test and posttest showed statistically significant growth in students ability to solve problems correctly (Bostic Jacobbe, 2010). Similarly, there has been some research to investigate the relationship between PBL and interest in mathematics. An indication that students are interested in mathematics is the students level of engagement. Tarmizi, Tarmizi, Lojinin, and Mokhtar (2010) also studied the effect of PBL and student engagement. Student engagement was measured by an open-ended survey. The mean average rubric engagement score was a 2.08, which indicated that the PBL group had benefited from the learning experiences with a proficient level (Tarmizi et al., 2010, p. 4687). Another research team studied the relationship of PBL in mathematics and student perceptions of mathematics (Clarke, Breed, Fraser, 2004). A problem-based mathematics curriculum, the Interactive Mathematics Program (IMP), was implemented in three California high schools (p. 7). Researchers collected data from two questionnaires. The Mathematics Belief questionnaire examined student perceptions of their mathematical competence, and student beliefs about mathematical activity and the origins of mathematical ideas (p. 9). The Mathematics World questionnaire required students to identify the extent to which specific everyday activities were mathematical (p. 9). In comparison to traditional Algebra classes, researchers found that IMP students help a significantly more positive attitude towards mathematics (p. 14). The IMP participants also felt more mathematically able than their peers (p. 14). Use of computers in mathematics In mathematics, using computers and other related technologies to enhance instruction can greatly affect student achievement. Computers can be usedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦as an environment for exploring mathematical concepts through interaction (Huetinck Munshin, 2008, p. 87). When students are actively interacting with new ideas, their level of engagement and knowledge increases. Computers enable students to quickly explore many varied examples to generalize about the underlying characteristics of mathematical entities (p. 89). If students can make more generalizations, they will be more likely to be able to apply the concepts later. One group of researchers investigated how implementing a dynamical geometric software such as Geometers Sketchpad (GSP) affects mathematics teaching (Nordin, Zaharia, Mohamed, Embi, 2010). They found that this exploratory learning method and the discussions involved in understanding the mathematical concepts adopted from the gsp digital module can help boost hi gher order thinking skills (Nordin, Zaharia, Mohamed, Embi, 2010, p. 116). OCallaghan (1998) found that a computer program implemented in Algebra had greater achievement than their peers did in traditional algebra classes. Palmiter (1991) conducted research with university students and compared achievement between students enrolled in a class taught using a computer algebra system and students enrolled in a class taught using paper-and-pencil computations (1991). The researcher found that students enrolled in the class that was taught with the computer system had higher test scores for both the conceptual and computational exam (1991). Ragasa (2008) investigated the effects of computer-assisted instruction on achievement of college students in a statistics course. The researcher found that the mean score of the posttest of the achievement test for the computer-assisted group was significantly higher than that of the control group (Ragasa, 2008). In mathematics, the use of computers to aid instruction can improve students attitude and interest in mathematics. Ragasa (2008) also studied students attitudes in response to computer-assisted instruction. The researcher was unable to conclude that there was a significant effect on student attitude. OCallaghan (1998) studied the effects of Computer-Intensive Algebra (CIA) and traditional algebra curricula on students understanding of the function concept (p. 21). Among other findings, OCallaghan discovered that the CIA students attitudes were significantly different higher (1998). Another study examined college students attitudes towards using computers as an instructional aid in an Algebra class (Ganguli, 1992). The researcher determined that the attitudes of the students in the computer group were significantly increased. I hypothesize that in high school mathematics, problem-based learning, through the use of computers, will increase student interest and achievement. Previous studies have demonstrated similar findings. In the following section, methods will be discussed.

Bullwhip Effect in Supply Chain

Supply Chain Class Module 2, Lesson 3 Question #1 Develop a small group consensus on the impact (increases, decreases, no effect) of the Bullwhip Effect on two of the following six supply chain performance measures: manufacturing cost, inventory cost, replenishment lead time, transportation cost, shipping and receiving cost, level of product availability profitability. One of the two measures that your team chooses must be inventory cost. For inventory costs, be certain to be specific about the kinds of inventory costs impacted (in-storage cycle stock carrying costs, ordering costs, stockout costs, or safety stock carrying costs).Clearly explain your group’s reasoning or rationale for the impact you have agreed to; that is carefully explain why the bullwhip effect either increases, decreases of has no effect on the given performance measure. In each of your explanations, drill down into the factors that drive each measure, explaining how those factors are affected by the Bullw hip effect. MANUFACTURING COSTS It is the consensus of Team 10 that the bullwhip effect increases costs associated with the manufacturing of products.We know that the bullwhip effect results in an amplification of the variation of product and material demand as one travels upstream in the supply chain from consumer to material suppliers. In most cases the manufacturer of products will be removed from the actual consumer by multiple layers in the supply chain. The variation in demand (variation in orders) that the manufacturer will experience will be significantly greater than the variation in demand from the actual consumers. There are several costs incurred in the manufacturing of products. Among these costs are direct material costs, direct labor costs and overhead costs.The increased variability in quantity of products demanded from the manufacturer has an impact on each of these items. For most manufactured products, the cost of materials is a significant portion of the cost of the end item. As the demand for products varies from the manufacturer, these swings in demand are amplified and passed on to the material suppliers and various other sub-suppliers. During periods of high demand, the manufacturer is more likely to be forced to pay the material suppliers and sub-suppliers additional fees to expedite shipments.During periods of low demand, the manufacturer is more likely to find itself with a huge stock of unused material on hand. These variations also make it more difficult to negotiate competitive prices with the suppliers, further adding to the cost of the bullwhip effect. In an effort to protect against some of this variation, manufacturers will often stockpile materials, adding further warehousing and capital costs. Labor costs are another key component of the total cost of most products, including products which may be manufactured offshore in low-wage countries.In periods of extremely high demand, manufacturers are faced with an option of either hiring more employees or working their existing employee’s longer hours and paying overtime. Most companies are extremely reluctant to hire additional workers, particularly if they have reason to believe that the spike in demand will only be temporary. As a result, companies will typically choose to work longer hours and pay overtime wages to their employees. Paying overtime is costly, not only from a wage standpoint but also from an effectiveness standpoint.Employees are not robots, and diminishing marginal return should be expected when working employees longer hours. As hours go up, productivity typically declines at a rate that increases as the severity of the work schedule increases. The result is an increasing cost per unit of the products produced. Likewise, when product demand is extremely low, employees are not able to be utilized as effectively and labor cost per unit also increases. Further, there are the overhead costs which are affected by the variation in deman d amplified by the bullwhip effect.When manufacturers create facilities and purchase processing equipment, they often â€Å"size† their operations based upon what they believe will be the highest levels of demand for their products. When demand for products varies greatly, the frequent result is that the processes, equipment and facilities are excessively large (and costly) compared to what the â€Å"legitimate† demand might actually require. This results not only in excessive costs to set up these operations, but it also can create a scenario where it becomes difficult to operate these facilities efficiently when the production requirements are lower.Another element for consideration is the â€Å"cost of quality. † Manufacturing operations thrive on consistency. When manufacturers have to contend with wildly-varying production schedules, there is an increase in the â€Å"state of flux† in the operations. This can take the form of delayed maintenance on m achines, fatigued workers, using alternate suppliers for materials, etc. All of these elements that are exacerbated by large swings in production schedule can contribute to higher scrap rates, manufacturing errors, equipment downtime and, potentially, product defects that reach the consumer.INVENTORY COSTS Demand variability amplification can have a significant impact on increasing inventory costs. Business Dictionary. com defines inventory costs as the cost of holding goods in stock. Expressed usually as a percentage of the inventory value, it includes capital, warehousing, depreciation, insurance, taxation, obsolescence, and shrinkage costs. Typically, the inventory costs increase due to excessive or obsolete inventory as a result of poor demand forecasting. This situation is clearly defined in an article about Cisco’s need to write-off $2. billion in inventory in 2001. However, one must dive deeper into specific inventory performance measures to better understand the effec ts of the bullwhip effect on inventory costs. Safety Stock Safety stock can be defined as inventory held as buffer against mismatch between forecasted and actual consumption or demand, between expected and actual delivery time, and unforeseen emergencies. From a positive standpoint, safety stock can help to potentially reduce stock out situations however is also contributes to the bullwhip effect.Specifically with demand forecast updating using exponential smoothing, ordering of safety stock will create larger swings for suppliers and even move for orders placed to the manufacturer (Lee, p 95). Furthermore, poorly ordered safety stock that becomes excess or obsolete can lead to increased expense or in a worst-case scenario, written-off or scrapped completely. Stockout Cost Stockout cost, also called shortage cost, is defined as the economic consequences of not being able to meet an internal or external demand from the current inventory. Such costs consist of internal costs (delays, labor time wastage, lost production, etc. and external costs (loss of profit from lost sales, and loss of future profit due to loss of goodwill). One cause of stockout cost can be attributed to poorly updated demand forecast where the appropriate amount of inventory was not planned for the current demand. This is in contrast to the safety stock example which leads to an increase in inventory and excess or obsolete material. Another cause is rationing and shortage gaming where the demand for the product exceeded the supply (Lee, p97). The stockout cost is the expense of the lost sales or the potential of losing the customer loyalty completely to a fierce competitor.Module 2, Lesson 3 Question #2 At the end of the article â€Å"Bullwhip Effect in Supply Chains† by Lee, et. al. , is Table 1. In this table Lee presents a number of initiatives, such as vendor-managed inventory, for counteracting the four causes of the Bullwhip Effect. Select one or more of the initiatives and deve lop a small group consensus on a list of the top five impediments to the initiatives that you have selected; five impediments in total, not five impediments for each initiative that you select. Select two impediments and for each impediment please explicitly explain why the impediment is difficult to overcome.Finally in your group’s opinion, which of your impediments is typically the most difficult to overcome? Please explain why. BULLWHIP EFFECT COUNTERMEASURES; EDI, VMI, ECHELON-BASED INVENTORY SYSTEMS There is a range of initiatives to mitigate the effects of the â€Å"bullwhip effect,† or amplified distortions in replenishing orders. Through EDI and vendor –managed inventory (VMI), distortions may be reduced through transparent sharing of real time demand information through the entire supply chain. Demand distortion begins with faulty assumptions underlying future demand projections.One counter-measure for this challenge is real time exchange of information and increased transparency at point of sale. Many retailers use data generated at point of sale to automatically adjust their inventories and trigger reorder as inventories are depleted. Simultaneous transmission of this data to the supplier would facilitate a clearer view of consumption and retail inventory. Point of sale EDI shared across the supply chain from the manufacturer to retail outlet, would smooth the orders and prevent demand distortion that occurs with regression driven forecasts.Increased control of the total inventory can be achieved with echelon inventory management, through cooperative information sharing and a jointly agreed upon single point of inventory control. One model for this is vendor-managed inventory (VMI) which is a continuous replenishment of inventory based upon a push from the supply to the retail outlet based on EDI signals at point of sale and inventory depletion. ECHELON-BASED INVENTORY SYSTEMS Echelon-based inventory systems allow transparency o f the inventory flow of the down-stream levels in the supply chain by the upstream levels.This acts to reduce the bullwhip effect by preventing exaggeration of demand fluctuations by multiple levels in the chain. This is a useful policy, but it can be difficult to implement. First, one must consider the integrity of the source of the information. If an upstream member of the chain intends to rely on reports generated by the downstream member, trust must be a mutual component of the relationship. The downstream company may feel that it doesn’t want to share the information about their own inventory and/or demand, especially if it engages (or has any intention of engaging) in a practice of shortage gaming.Some elements of the shared data can be filtered, if this is found to be helpful to the downstream member. If the downstream member engages in price hedging or shortage gaming, the increased transparency to the upstream member would inhibit or completely prevent the downstream company from harnessing the perceived buffer that the practice enables. Some elements of the shared data can be filtered, if mutually agreeable to all members of the supply chain. Through non-disclosure agreements and data parsing, streams of proprietary data can be â€Å"cleansed† to be less sensitive.Connectivity of various operating systems is another hurdle. Many suppliers and retailers will not allow â€Å"direct feed† of data into their core operating systems, requiring a data merge in a safe environment that then can share data between the operating systems of the companies exchanging data. The work of scrubbing data and developing the necessary connectivity also requires IT resources. One must also consider the utility of information that is constantly changing. The value of inventory data to the upstream member could be limited as it changes continuously and obsolesces almost as soon as it’s generated.The upstream member must always be willing to loose ly interpret the inventory and demand data since an unusually large order, or an unusual decline in orders, could occur at any time. Also, downstream members’ transparency leads the upstream member to increase the frequency with which they update their demand forecasting. Frequently updating these forecasts is itself a bullwhip effect-exacerbating practice, so the upstream member would need to exercise discretion in its policies on how it reacts to the information that it receives from downstream.Implementation of these initiatives requires addressing and overcoming certain impediments:   Trust between supply chain partners or perceived competitive risk Data integrity challenges with changing/obsolete data Reduced downstream gaming ability (shortage and price hedge forward buying) Information technology resources to facilitate connectivity Increased frequency of upstream re-forecast due to downstream transparency The two most difficult impediments are the first two; trust a mongst supply chain partners, and the challenges of sharing meaningful data.Trust – Perceived Competitive Risk The challenge with establishing trust amongst supply chain partners is one of competitive risk. The real time data on point of sale, inventories held, or pricing activities engaged are all considered proprietary. The sharing of that data requires trust through the entire supply chain, and a willingness to incur significant legal, technological, and analytical resources to develop and deliver data that is accurate and meaningful.Lack of transparency and trust on the part of down stream members is the primary driver of the shortage and price gaming, to build inventories and prevent stock-outs or hedge for future price increases. In order to share transparent information through the supply chain, legal and technological hurdles must be addressed to reduce competitive risk, and allow necessary trust through protective agreements (NDA) and safe systems connectivity. Throu gh non-disclosure agreements and data parsing streams of proprietary data can be â€Å"cleansed† to be less sensitive and reduced competitive risk. ) Data Integrity – Changing and Obsolete Information The real time exchange of information supports accurate forecasts and timely order replenishment only if that data is meaningful. Data is meaningful if it clearly conveys the supply/demand picture. Upstream suppliers must be able to see the sale/demand data and existing inventory data in real time in order to push order replenishment. If downstream members obscure the inventories to retain shortage gaming power, this will impact the accuracy of the inventory replenishment trigger to the upstream supplier.Connected systems are susceptible to cross-system failures. Errant data in one system pollutes the forecast assumptions of the connected systems. Cadence of exchange, or timing of the data flows is a factor in relevance. If sales or order cancellations have changed invent ories significantly since the last update, the information exchanged can be obsolete. The â€Å"bullwhip effect† is culmination of iterative forecast variations, and self-protecting defensive actions on the part of supply chain members to hedge uncertainty. With increased trust and transparency, the forecast variations and uncertainty can be reduced.With collaboration through the entire supply chain, trust can be built, real time, meaningful data exchanged, and the cost of surplus inventories taken out of the chain. ——————————————– [ 1 ]. Comments on Information Distortion in a Supply Chain: The Bullwhip Effect† by Lee, H. L. Padmanabhan, V. and Whang, S. , p 1888 [ 2 ]. http://www. businessdictionary. com/definition/safety-stock. html#ixzz286djGuPB). [ 3 ]. http://www. businessdictionary. com/definition/stockout-costs. html#ixzz286iDNySD

Understanding Couples Hiv Testing And Counselling Essay

Literature Review 1. Overview Couples HIV Testing and Counselling HIV Testing and Counselling HIV antibody tests were first issued by the World Health Organization in 1992 (WHO, 1997), since then with frequent update of recommendations, HIV testing and counselling continue to be the gateway to HIV prevention, essential treatments and cares (Fonner et al., 2012, WHO, 2012b). However, globally not more than half (49%-58%) of people living with HIV knew their serostatus (WHO, 2015b). To address this gap, a new global 90-90-90 target calls to reach at least 90% of people living with the virus to know their HIV status by the year 2020 (UNAIDS, 2014). To achieve the goal, both client and provider initiated service deliveries are implemented in various countries to increase access for HIV testing and counselling. Despite these efforts, the uptake of HIV testing and counselling vary across countries and different population groups (WHO, 2014). Overall in high HIV prevalence settings, HIV test uptake by men is very low as compared to women. The variability could be due to the fact that in most countries, HIV testing and counselling services are conducted at reproductive health or antenatal care clinics (WHO, 2015a). Couples HIV Testing and Counselling In the last couple of decades, President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) support for African countries has been tremendous to increase different models of outreach to prevent HIV infection. Couples based HIV preventionShow MoreRelatedDefining Couples Hiv Testing And Counselling2239 Words   |  9 Pages1. Overview Couples HIV Testing and Counselling HIV Testing and Counselling HIV antibody tests were first issued by the World Health Organization in 1992 (WHO, 1997), since then with frequent update of recommendation, and advancement in innovation (Rotheram-Borus et al., 2000) HIV testing and counselling continue to be the gateway to HIV prevention, essential treatment and care (Fonner et al., 2012, WHO, 2012b). Knowing one’s HIV status used to be considered as a death sentence. However, after havingRead MoreThe Drug And Drug Administration1354 Words   |  6 Pages PrEP treatment is taken in the form of a pill, called Truvada. Truvada is a combination of two HIV medications (tenofovir and emtricitabine). Truvadais a fairly new drug. It was approved for human use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and allowed clinical practice guidelines for usage in the America by the U.S. Public Health Service and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in May 2014. 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Emotional - Poor self-esteem, self-inflicted injury, eating disorders, sleeping disorders, depression and anxiety, feelings and shame and guilt. 4. Long term - Development effects, disability, alcohol/drug abuse. They are at the risk of being abusive and violent behaviour. 5. Fatal - Homicide, suicide, infanticide and HIV/AIDS. RISK FACTORS FOR ABUSE a. History of child abuse b. Substance abuse c.Read MoreAnglo American Dissatation11587 Words   |  47 Pagesthen looked over each other’s sections in order to make sure all relevant information was included, to check for grammar and spelling mistakes and to make sure enough references had been used. This was important to ensure all members had a good understanding of each section. Anglo American’s website and annual reports were the main source of information for the company study. The issues surrounding Anglo American during the past year allowed for many relevant news articles to be widely available for

Drug Abuse A Growing Epidemic World Wide - 2212 Words

The history of the drug Methamphetamine (MA) abuse is a growing epidemic world wide. The 2009 World Drug report suggests that up to 51 million individuals have used methamphetamine at least once in the past 12 months. Dependence is a serious worldwide public health problem associated with major medical, psychiatric, cognitive, socioeconomic and legal consequences (Petit et al., 2012). This is can be easily made with ingredients that are easily obtained. Methamphetamine was developed in Japan in 1919. The crystalline powder was soluble in water, making it a perfect candidate for injection. Methamphetamine went into wide use during World War II, when both sides used it to keep troops awake. High doses were given to Kamikaze pilots before their suicide missions. After the war, methamphetamine abuse by injection reached epidemic proportions when supplies stored for military use became available to the Japanese public. In the 1950’s, methamphetamine under the name Methedrine was prescribed as a diet aid an to fight depression. Easily available, it was used as a nonmedical stimulant by college students, truck drivers and athletes and abuse of the drug spread. It is still legally produced in the U.S., sold under the name Desoxyn. This pattern changed in the 1960’s with the increased availability of injectable methamphetamine, worsening the abuse. Then, in 1970, the US government made it illegal for most uses. The Controlled Substances Act severely restricted the legalShow MoreRelatedA Brief Note On Blind And Drug Addiction Essay987 Words   |  4 PagesBlind to Drug Addiction The world has an epidemic going on, and it’s only getting worse. We are robbing of our loved ones daily. Being robbed of family members, and friends. This includes mothers, fathers, wife’s, husbands, siblings, aunts, uncles, and even grandparents. Drug abuse does not discriminate from one person to the next. 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The main types of abuse on women are domestic and sexual harassment (Nosheen, 2011). Follow this paper carefully while it takes you on an expedition ofRead MoreHistory Of Opioids And Statistics : What Drugs Are Considered Opioids?2948 Words   |  12 Pages12 Outline Thesis Statement History of Opioids Statistics What drugs are considered Opioids? What Oxycodone Is History of Oxycodone Americas usage with Opioids Estimated number of individuals in the U.S. who are addicted What Addiction Characteristics to Opioids Pain Killers and Pain Management Cancer Patients Chronic Pain Patients Treatment plan for Pain Changes and plans for Addiction Physical Therapy Support Groups Individual Support from Friends and Family Conclusion Donovan Greenfield