Saturday, May 23, 2020

Strategies for Hiring a Teacher

Because teachers can make or break a school, the process used to hire them is critical to a schools overall success. A building principal typically plays some sort of role in the hiring of a new teacher. Some principals are a part of a committee that interviews and decides who to hire, while others interview potential candidates individually. In either case, its important that the necessary steps are taken to hire the right person for the job. Hiring a new teacher is a process and should not be rushed. There are important steps that should be taken when looking for a new teacher. Here are a few of them.   Understand Your Needs Every school has their own needs when it comes to hiring a new teacher and its important that the person or people in charge of hiring understand exactly what those are. Examples of specific needs might include certification, flexibility, personality, experience, curriculum, and, most importantly, the individual philosophy of the school or district. Understanding these needs before you begin the interview process allows those in charge to have a better idea of what you are looking for. This can help create a list of interview questions catered to these needs.   Post an Ad It is important that you get as many candidates as possible. The larger the pool, the more likely it will be that you will have at least one candidate that meets all of your needs. Post ads on your school website, in each of the local newspapers, and in any educational publications in your state. Be as detailed as possible in your advertisements. Be sure to give a contact, a deadline for submission, and a list of qualifications.   Sort Through Resumes Once your deadline has passed, quickly scan each resume for key words, skills, and types of experiences that fit your needs. Try to get as much information about each individual candidate from their resume before you begin the interview process. If you are comfortable with doing so, pre-rank each candidate based on the information in their resume before interviewing. Interview Qualified Candidates Invite your top candidates to come in for interviews. How you conduct these is up to you; some people are comfortable doing a non-scripted interview, while others prefer a specific script to guide the interview process. Try to get a feel for your candidates personality, experience, and what sort of teacher they will be. Do not rush through your interviews. Start with small talk. Take the time to get to know them. Encourage them to ask questions. Be open and honest with each candidate. Ask tough questions if necessary. Take Comprehensive Notes Start taking notes on each candidate as you go through resumes. Add to those notes during the interview itself. Jot down anything that is relevant to the list of needs that you created before beginning the process. Later on, you will add to your notes when you check each candidate’s references. Taking great notes on each candidate is essential for  hiring the right person and its especially important if you have a long list of candidates to interview over the course of several days and even weeks. It may be hard to remember everything about the first few candidates if you do not take comprehensive notes. Narrow the Field After you have completed all the initial interviews, you will need to review all notes and narrow down the list of candidates to your top 3-4. You will want to invite these top candidates back for a second interview. Re-Interview With Assistance In the second interview, consider bringing in another employee such as the  district’s superintendent or even a committee made up of several stakeholders. Instead of giving your co-workers too much background before the interview, its best to allow them to formulate their own opinions about each candidate. This will ensure that each candidate will be evaluated without your personal bias influencing the other interviewers decision. After all the top candidates have been interviewed, you can discuss each candidate with the other persons who interviewed, seeking their input and perspective. Put Them on the Spot If possible, ask the candidates to prepare a short, ten-minute lesson to teach to a group of students. If it is during the summer and students are not available, you can have them give their lesson the group of stakeholders in the second interview round. This will allow you to see a brief snapshot of how they handle themselves in the classroom and perhaps provide you with a better feel for what kind of teacher they are. Call All References Checking references can be another valuable tool in evaluating a candidate. This is especially effective for teachers with experience. Contacting their former principal(s) can provide you with important information that you may not be able to get from an interview.   Rank the Candidates and Make an Offer You should have plenty of information after following all the previous steps to make someone a job offer. Rank each candidate according to which one you believe best fits your school’s needs. Review each resume and all of your notes, taking the other interviewee’s thoughts into consideration as well. Call your first choice and offer them a job. Do not call any other candidates until they accept the job and sign a contract. This way, if your first choice does not accept the offer, you will be able to move to the next candidate on the list. After you have hired a new teacher, be professional and call each candidate, letting them know that the position has been filled.

Monday, May 11, 2020

Essay on Massachusetts Health Reform - 1386 Words

Massachusetts Health Reform In 2006 the state of Massachusetts wanted to help its millions of citizens who were uninsured. The state legislators as well as the governor put into place a plan to help citizens get insurance. A law was passed to reform insurance in Massachusetts, which was known as Chapter 58 of the Acts of 2006 of the Massachusetts General Court; its long form title is An Act Providing Access to Affordable, Quality, Accountable Health Care. The newly enacted law decreed that almost all of Massachusetts’ residents obtain a minimum level of insurance coverage. It also gave free health care insurance for Massachusetts residents that earned less than 150 percent of the federal poverty level. It also decreed that all†¦show more content†¦The rising costs of unpaid emergency room expenditures were an issue that had to be addressed by state authorities. EMTALA required that all persons be treated, however, it did not include any legislation to reimburse payment that left hospital left wi th unpaid bills and growing expenses. The state of Massachusetts had a tax set up to help pay for the expenses of the uninsured emergency room visits. The tax was known as Uncompensated Care Pool, and nicknamed free care pool. It also covered uninsured hospital admissions and community health centers. The free pool care was always underfunded and was raised annually. An MIT professor determined that the amount of money in the free pool care would be enough to fund reform legislation without needing to raise any more taxes or have additional funding. Another issue was the fact the large employers that received self-insurance were progressively giving up health insurance as an employee benefit. They also mandated that only full-time employees would be eligible for the insurance benefit. These issues among others are why advocacy groups and state legislators felt very strongly that some kind of health insurance reform was necessary. The actual statute consisted of key provisions, one o f which was the employer Fair Share Contribution and Free Rider Surcharge. Another was a requirement that each individual must have proof of coverageShow MoreRelatedPositive And Negative Effects Of The Massachusetts Health Care Insurance Reform Act2274 Words   |  10 Pagesto improve overall healthcare, the state of Massachusetts implemented the Health Care Insurance Reform Act. This paper looks at the positive and negative effects of the Massachusetts Health Care Insurance Reform Act (MHRA). Using a literature review of public health studies ranging from 2009-2012, I argue that there are both positive and negative effects of the Massachusetts Health Care Insurance Reform. While the Massachusetts Reform increased health insurance coverage for all citizens and decreasedRead MoreThe Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA)1660 Words   |  7 PagesProtection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) is one of the most substantial reforms in Medicare since 1965. This is now consid ered the law of the land according to Douglas Holtz-Eaton. The PPACA portrays a â€Å"coverage first† strategy. â€Å"Sadly, a review a of the state’s experience bodes poorly for the future of national reform.† (Point/Counterpoint 177) There are two major driving factors in which could propose a threat for this reform. The first factor is it costs too much. Many decades ago, healthcareRead MoreThe Effects Of Universal Health Insurance Mandate On The Massachusetts Labor Market1372 Words   |  6 Pagesthe universal health insurance mandate in the Massachusetts labor market. Using a difference-in-differences (DID) model, this study focuses on the co-evolution of insurance coverage and labor markets. One found that under the recent legislation, workers from firms of varying sizes demonstrate different patterns with regards to obtaining insurance coverage. While employer-sponsored health insurance is designed to be the primary source of coverage for Massachusetts residents under reform, two legal loopholesRead MoreThe Massachusetts Of Massachusetts893 Words   |  4 PagesThe Massachusetts Experiment Massachusetts has undergone many changes in their health care system since enacting a universal health care law in 1988. The effects of the Massachusetts health care laws are a good indicator of what people should expect from the enactment of the ACA. The multiple health care reforms in Massachusetts were in an attempt to increase health care coverage while still maintaining financial stability. Background Massachusetts began its health care reform in 1988. Under theRead MoreThe Massachusetts Health Care System1563 Words   |  7 Pagesfocuses on analyzing the Massachusetts health care system. Specifically it addresses how the 2006 health care reform law sought to increase health insurance coverage for the uninsured, underinsured, children, young adults, and low income residents. Its desire was for universal coverage for all its residents, and that it would be both reasonably priced and of value. The Law addressed need to decrease the barriers to health care, such as racial disparities, and overall health care costs while increasingRead MoreThe Massachusetts Health Mandate And The Role Of Health1878 Words   |  8 Pages THE MASSACHUSETTS HEALTH MANDATE AND THE ROLE OF HEALTH INSURANCE INTRODUCTION In 2006, the state of Massachusetts set out to close the gap in the number of uninsured citizens within its borders. The number of uninsured non-elderly adults in the state was nearly 17% (Chandra, 2011a). 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The law mandated that nearly every resident of Massachusetts obtain a minimum level of insurance coverage, provided free health care insurance for residents earning less than 150% of the federal poverty level and mandated employers with more than 10 full-time employees to provide healthcare insurance. The law was amended significantly in 2008 and twice in 2010 to make it consistentRead MoreEssay about The Impact of The Affordable Care Act1660 Words   |  7 Pagesalways had a realization that there was a problem with obtaining affordable health insurance. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) also known as Obamacare, was signed into law in March 2010. This law enables people who were unable to afford healthcare the ability to obtain a healthcare plan at an affordable rate. In 2009 a survey was taken as to the amount of people in the United States that carried health insurance. In table one below you can see over 50 million people in the UnitedRead MoreImproving Access Of Healthcare1156 Words   |  5 PagesIn the United States, health insurance expansion and market reforms have focused on increasing the access of healthcare. For instance the passing of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) of 2010 focuses on the expansion of affordable quality health care to millions of uninsured. The act requires that all Americans purchase a private health care plan or enroll in a government funded insurance program. The often repeated argument in favor of expanding health care coverage is that

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Acct451 Week 3 Free Essays

Companies Should not be Held Liable for Losses Sustained in a Successful Attack Made on Their AIS by Outside Sources. ACCT451 2013 I argue against the statement† Companies should not be held liable for losses sustained in a successful attack made on their AIS by outside sources. † There are several reasons for my contention. We will write a custom essay sample on Acct451 Week 3 or any similar topic only for you Order Now The Accounting Information Systems has been used by businesses to improve their recording, processing, and reporting of accounting information. At the same time it is the responsibility of the companies to adequately protect their information systems from outside sources. Since, the company benefits and consequently profits from the use of accounting information system, it should bear the losses that arise from attacks on the accounting information system. The argument in favor of the contention is that the accounting information system not only processes financial transactions to provide internal reports to managers but also does external reporting to outside parties such as stockowners, government and lenders. Since, it is essential that the accounting information system should be accessed by outsiders the system is particularly vulnerable to outside attacks (1). Still the onus of the security of its accounting information system clearly lies with the company and not with anyone else. It is a part of the business risk of a company. Consider the following example, a company maintains five distribution centers throughout the country. Each of these distribution centers may be attacked by robbers and looted. Who bears the loss? It is part of the business risk. The company cannot refuse to bear the losses. Similarly, if a company truck carrying goods to or from the company premises is attacked by robbers and is plundered, the company is responsible for the loss. It is another matter that the company may take out an insurance and the insurance company makes good the losses. However, the fact remains that the company pays premium for insurance and had there been no insurance, the company would have been forced to pay for the losses (2). The current accounting information systems bring tremendous benefits to companies. These generate several types of useful reports for the company, the company does not have to employ clerks to manually process accounting data, with a touch of a button information is generated, there are tremendous savings in costs, there is automatic payment and generation of important accounting documents, and there is efficiency in processing information. These benefits reduce costs for the companies and improve efficiency but come at a cost. One of the elements of the cost is that the accounting information system may be attacked from outside sources. Since the company enjoys these benefits, it must suffer the costs ( loss because of outside attack). A firm whose warehouses get destroyed by hurricanes do not absolve themselves of their losses because the hurricane is an outside source. Similarly, during war the premises of a firm may get bombed or hit by a missile, yet the company has to bear the loss (3). If an accounting information system is hit by outside sources there is a danger of fraud, virus attacks, or hackers. These risks have to be borne by the business as a part of its normal business risks. Further it is the responsibility of the company to maintain the highest level of security for its accounting information system. The physical security should be fool proof, authentication system should be the most advanced, virus protection should be the latest, and backup should be done at a safe place outside the premises. Such measures are required to ensure that attacks on the accounting information system like identity theft and loss of irreplaceable data do not take place. There are some institutions that are particularly vulnerable to outside attacks. For instance, the banks are vulnerable to outside attacks where the attackers seek to pilfer money using confidential information. In such cases, higher levels of authentication, and information security should be used. The fact that banks and financial institutions provide accounting information system based services, is a source of profits, these institutions are responsible for losses sustained by them (4). One of the most important features of most accounting information systems is the controls over the system and the security measures that the company implements If the company is not held responsible for the losses sustained by it because of outside attacks the company will avoid its responsibility for controls and security. It is also important that the quality of software used, the backup of data, and the people who are authorized to access the accounting information system are checked and tested. If the company is not held responsible for losses because of outside attacks the company will become lax in its essential functions related to the accounting information system. References: (1)Accounting Information Systems, Ulric J. Gelinas, Richard B. Dull E8 Cengage Learning, 2009 (2)Accounting Information Systems James A. Hall E6, Cengage Learning, 2008 (3)Accounting Information Systems Marshall B. Romney, Paul John Steinbart E10, Prentice Hall, 2005 (4)Information System Management, Ankita Bansal, Gyan Publishing House, 2002 How to cite Acct451 Week 3, Papers