Network Hardening Essay Example for Free

Network Hardening Essay Network Hardening Network Layout 4 : VPN (Remote Access Domain) – Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) with VPN software and Secure Socket Layer/VPN (SSL/VPN) tunnels A Virtual Private Network or VPN enables a computer or network-enabled device to send and receive data through shared or public networks as if it were directly connected to the private network, while it’s benefiting from the functionality, security and management policies of the private network. It was created to establish a virtual pint-to-point connection through the using of dedicated connections, virtual tunneling protocols or traffic encryptions. Three Strategies for hardening the network environment 1 Firewall Friendly VPN The increase demands of e-business come with a compelling requirement for data security. Virtual Private Network with IP Security Architecture (IPsec VPN) meets this requirement by providing end-to end encryption and authentication at the IPlayer and protecting confidential data that flows over possibly untrustworthy networks. IPsec has the advantage of a wide scope of coverage and agile granularity of protection; however, incompatibilities exist between IPsec VPN and the Network Address Translation (NAT) that firewalls use. 2 Security policy enforcement: Means of enforcement of security policy should be a primary consideration throughout the research, test and implementation phases of any security technology. Careful research, review of manufacturer’s documentation, questions presented to vendors and manufacturers, and testing of the technology can serve to meet this criteria. Without a method of enforcement, effectiveness of security policy is questionable at best. While audit trails, hardware analysis and security logs should be reviewed regularly; it is a time-intensive process and this alone alerts the administrator to violations and security threats after they have occurred. Without a means of  enforcement, the administrator is risking the security of the VPN by relying upon the remote VPN users to voluntarily comply with policy. As the secure network perimeter is being extended to encompass the VPN client, security policy must be enforced in ‘real-time’ to protect the integrity of both the VPN client and t he network. Having addressed security policy issues that require the VPN client to have antivirus software installed and using the latest update; policy also requires a properly configured personal firewall to be running on the client PC or Laptop, and requires a time limit on inactive VPN sessions. How is this to be made obligatory, and remove the responsibility from the VPN user to voluntarily comply with policy? The answer is as stated above – by defining the need and carefully researching solutions available to fulfill this need. The VPN Concentrator, a managed antivirus package, will fulfill the dictated requirements. 3 Web content filtering: Filtering incoming and outgoing traffic, using signatures, reputation ratings and other heuristics. Whitelist allowed types of web content, preferably blocking all executable content by default and use a process to enable individual selected access if a business justification exists. †¢ Preferably disallow ActiveX, Java, Flash Player, HTML inline frames and JavaScript except for whitelisted web sites. †¢ Preferably use a solution that can similarly inspect SSL traffic for malicious content, especially SSL communications with unfamiliar web sites. †¢ Preferably use technology that automatically opens downloaded files in a sandbox to detect anomalous behavior such as network traffic or changes to the file system or registry. †¢ Preferably, since this approach is more proactive and thorough than blacklisting a tiny percentage of malicious domains. †¢ An example implementation is available at http://whitetrash.sourceforge.net Reference www.computer.howstuffworks.com/vpn.htm www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_private_network www.iprodeveloper.com www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs www.cisco.com/web/about/security/intelligence/firewall-best-practices.html

Study on the human kidney and kidney stones

Study on the human kidney and kidney stones There are normally two kidneys in humans. The kidneys are small organs which can be found behind the abdominal cavity in a space called the retroperitoneum. They are approximately at the vertebral level of T12 to L3. The kidney participates in whole-body homeostasis, excretion and releases important hormones. Small, solid masses called kidney stones may form when salts or minerals, which are normally found in urine, become solid crystals inside the kidney. These crystals are normally too small to be become aware of, and pass harmlessly out of the body. However, they can build up inside your kidney and form much larger kidney stones. If a stone becomes large enough, it may begin to move out of the kidney and progress through the ureter (a tube that carries urine from the kidney to the bladder). A kidney stone can become stuck at various parts of the ureter or kidney causing pain, infection and occasionally kidney damage. These kidney stones can be in many different shapes and sizes. The peak age for kidney stones is between 20 years old and 50 years old. The risk of having kidney stones in males is three to four times larger than in females. Other diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis, chronic diarrhoea, or kidney cysts might increase the risk of having kidney stones as well. If the patient has previously had a kidney stone then he/she will have a 50 percent chance of developing another one within five years. A family history of kidney stones also increases the risk of developing kidney stones (cvstine stones). Kidney stones form when there is a decrease in urine volume and/or an excess of stone-forming substances in the urine. The most common type of kidney stones present contains calcium in combination with either oxalate or phosphate. Other chemical complexes that can form kidney stones in the urinary tract include uric acid and the amino acid cystine. Dehydration from reduced fluid intake, excessive sweating, or strenuous exercise without adequate fluid replacement may lead to the formation of kidney stones. Obstruction to the flow of urine can also lead to kidney stone formation. Kidney stones can also result from infection in the urinary tract; these are known as struvite or infection stones. Ingesting too much sugar, salts, and/or protein may lead to the formation of kidney stones as well. This is due to protein containing amino acids (which includes cystine); fructose is a sugar which some individuals metabolize into oxalate. Many different medical conditions may also lead to the fo rmation of kidney stones. These medical conditions include gout (which results in an increased amount of uric acid in the urine and can lead to the formation of uric acid stones.), Hypercalciuria (too much calcium is absorbed from food and excreted into the urine, where it may form calcium phosphate or calcium oxalate stones.), hyperparathyroidism, cystinuria and hyperoxaluria. Medication may also lead to kidney stone formation. These medications include some diuretics, some chemotherapy medicines for cancer and some medication used to treat HIV and AIDS. The presence of kidney stones may cause the patient to have symptoms of sudden pains in their abdomen, lower back, or/and groin area. Renal colic may occur in severe cases, which is accompanied by nausea and vomiting. Kidney stones also cause blood to be present in urine; this is caused by the kidney stone rubbing with the wall of the ureter. Sometimes symptoms such as frequent urination, difficulty in urinating, and testicular pain may also occur. Fevers and chills may occur as well when the patient has kidney stones as well as an infection in the urinary tract. The diagnosis of kidney stones is suspected by the typical pattern of symptoms when other possible causes of the abdominal or side pains are excluded. Imaging tests are usually done to confirm the diagnosis. There are 2 methods that can be used to detect kidney stones, the helical CT scan (which detects any obstruction in the urinary tract without any contrast material) and the intravenous pyelogram (IVP: an X-ray of the abdomen along with the administration of contrast dye into the bloodstream). Helical CT scans have been shown to be a significantly more effective diagnostic tool than the IVP in the diagnosis of kidney or urinary tract stones. In pregnant women or those who should avoid radiation exposure, an ultrasound examination may be done to help establish the diagnosis. There are many methods of removing a kidney stone. Most kidney stones eventually pass through the urinary tract on their own within 48 hours, with ample fluid intake. Pain medications are used for symptom relief. For kidney stones that do not pass on their own, a procedure called extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy is often used. In this procedure, shock waves are used to break up a large stone into smaller pieces that can then pass through the urinary system. Surgical techniques have also been developed to remove kidney stones when other treatment methods are not successful or helpful. This may be done through a small incision in the skin (percutaneous nephrolithotomy) or through an instrument known as an ureteroscope, which is passed through the urethra and bladder up into the ureter. Rather than having to undergo treatment, it is best to avoid the formation of kidney stones in the first place when possible. It can be especially helpful to drink more water, since low fluid intake and dehydration are the major risk factors for kidney stone formation. Depending on the cause of the kidney stones and an individuals medical history, dietary and lifestyle changes and/or medications are sometimes recommended to decrease the likelihood of developing further kidney stones.

Evaluating Compensation Strategy and Incentive Plans

Evaluating Compensation Strategy and Incentive Plans 1.1.0 Introduction It has become more and more important, especially in the current conditions following the credit crunch for organisation to monitor and control labour costs, whilst striving for increased productivity, better quality and good customer service. For this reason; there has been need to review strategies, if not bring in new strategies towards employee compensation and incentive schemes. In this competitive environment, companies are looking to recruit and retain high performing and highly committed employees and taking note that this comes at a cost, but a cost justifiable enough to ensure competitive advantage and success of the organisation. Michael H. Schuster, P.H.D on Aligning Compensation Strategy notes that Companies are examining the method and basis for compensating employees, there has been a growth in the number of companies seeking to develop high performance, high committed work systems, based upon expanded roles for employees, require that employees accept more responsibility and accountability. Therefore employee compensation is an important element to the financial success of the organisation. A strong emphasis is placed on the fact that compensation and reward schemes should transparently reflect the financial potential of the company and align it to the organisation strategy and objectives. In the past, wages and salaries usually grew only by a consistent and constant spinal point. More recently, there has been a growth where the labour market has become more and more aggressive and has brought about the notion that compensation and incentive packages must be competitive enough to attract and retain well skilled workers. 2.1.0 Compensation Strategy As all strategies for any organisation, the ultimate goal and objective is to maximise the wealth for shareholders. The compensation strategy should take into consideration that; They should clearly implement a value based company management system. The long term appreciation and capital value of the company Market conditions and orientation of engaging qualified and skilled workers And important aspect is the cost of the strategy to the organisation. Compensation is one of the main concerns to secure the high performance of the organisation. There is no understatement in saying that organisations perform because of the work being carried out and accomplished by the people it employees, and therefore they make the difference. In saying this, it is important to note that protecting human capital is crucial, and this is done through motivation, recognition, an appropriate reward and compensation scheme. An obvious and important element to consider in the strategy is the possible analysis of the cost of executive and employee compensation will cost the organisation. This will be concentrated on the opportunity cost to the company of the stock and performance based parts. The cost in this case to the company would therefore be the foregone resources on the compensation agreement. It is said that money is a powerful source of motivation. But its also said that salary increase can only motivate until the next pay increase is due. An element of any organisations compensation strategy is to always reflect the strategic business objectives. The objectives and goals should be clearly defined, making them achievable through the compensation structure. As stated earlier and reemphasised now, the compensation plan should be integrated with the performance objectives of the organisation and with the employees individuals goals. 2.1.1 Core Elements of Compensation Strategy An intensive analysis needs to be carried out on the organisation framework, this will be able to establish and reflect the demands of the future business development and which framework conditions will be required to structure an effective compensation strategy. It is even more important to define the management and operative levels taking into account value orientation. As well as the objectives that have been set out for each employee and how their performance is evaluated. Therefore clear roles and responsibilities need to be defined and a strong communication system to be put in place to ensure that all employees are aware and know how their performance is reflected into the incentive scheme. Other elements to consider are should be; Generic They should be a buy in into the incentive plan by the employees. It should be designed in such a way that employees at all levels are participative and have the same gaol and direction. Be of significant and Perceived Value to the employee. Employees should be able to easily recognise the potential reward related to performance. Related to Individual Performance As stated by Bob Normand Institute of Smart Business Management. A factor in the determination of how much an individual employee receives should be their performance rating as determined by their formal job review and appraisal. Employee Loyalty A good incentive plan should be able to retain employees and gain their loyalty. Therefore, an incentive plan should foster employee tenure and performance. There are two main streams of rewards being monetary and non monetary. The monetary being the preferred, and is usually a Pay-For-Performance scheme. Types of performance based pay are; Stock based This will include stock options and grants, equity shares. Cash Compensation These are usually bonuses and are related to the achievement of performance objectives and goals that were set out. Cash incentive is the most common and preferred form of an incentive scheme. An effective compensation strategy if implemented successfully can fulfil other objectives. This has been summarised in the table below; Objective Result Alignment to the strategy of business units. Strong market position. Strengthens the performance and is result oriented. Competitive Advantage Enable organisation change and flexibility to adapt to changed business situation. Success and forward moving organisation. Promotes motivation and loyalty Retaining of highly skilled employees. Controversy Over incentive schemes 1Over the past years, and more recently the past 2 years, where the economy experienced a depression and a down turn in the market for most industries, there have been continued sensitive arguments over corporate executives compensation and how they align to the firms performance. Holmstrom 1979,  [2]  looked at the contribution that made clear the trade off between risk and incentives in the moral hazard problem. This study was partly based on his unpublished dissertation. The media, public, politicians have raised concerns over the current executives compensation packages that seem to drive employees towards taking short term risks, without taking into consideration the long term repercussions and effects on their organisation. As a result of this, there have been regulations being put on the table that look at restricted stock pay options and maximum level cash incentive, or other types of compensation that will focus more on long term performance. This will push executives to always base their investment and finance decisions with the shareholders best interest at hand. There will have to be a strong correlation between long term incentive compensation and the future firm performance. With the emphasis on transparency, CEOs pay is usually publicized in the press in papers and magazines such as Fortune Magazine that has an annual ranking of the highest paid CEOs. It has been observed that the firms that pay their CEOs the highest are organisations that tend to be the ones experiencing high returns, and high operating performance in comparison to others. 4.1.0 Performance Measurement and Incentive Schemes Leonard, 1990 and Hayes and Schaejar 2000, looked at the studies that focussed on the relationship between pay and the future accountancy performance of the organisation. There has been an assumption that in efficient markets, executives and investors will capitalise the present value of future firm performance increase into the stock price. The question is always 2 how do you align strategic performance measures and results to compensation and incentive plans?. The first question to ask when designing a bonus plan that replicates the incentive of an owner is how to measure business performance. The right measure of corporate performance will have strong ties to the amount of additional wealth that a company produces for its shareholders and by extension for society at large. It will guide people to make the decisions that will generate the added value necessary to fund their bonus, to re w a rd the shareholders and to reinvest in business growth. They are several models that organisations can use to measure the performance and determine the level of incentive to be paid out to executives and employees. Strategic Performance Measurement (SPM) System This measurement translates the business strategies and objectives into deliverable results. The advantage of this model is that it combines the financial, strategic and operating measures and compares it against how well an organisation meets its objectives, goals and the targets. Economic Value Added (EVA) / Value Based Management This model emphasises on performance measurement and the cost of capital and measures the value created for shareholders. The main advantage of this measure is that its focus is on wealth creation. Balanced Scorecard System Its core element is its emphasis on the key business drivers such as customer and employee satisfaction, operational excellence and new product development. 4 As strongly supported by Stern and Co. Economic Value Added offers more to an organisation as it focuses on measuring value created for shareholders, which is the essence and objective of any organisation; to create wealth for its shareholders. This measure is also focuses more towards the capital markets and assists in developing organisation strategies at all levels of the organisation. 5 Other advantages of EVA as a measurement tool are; It creates measurable objectives and goals for employees and are specific It can easily align the operations and business units with the overall corporate strategy. EVA can link individual performance and compensation plans to business strategies. 5.1.0 Relationship between Stock Price Performance and Incentive Schemes The hypothesis by a paper written by M. Cooper, H. Gulen and P. Ray Performance for Pay? looked at the relationship between CEO incentive compensation and future stock price performance. They summarised that The efficient market hypothesis suggested that markets capitalise incentive pay grants into the stock price at the announcement day, resulting in no relation between incentive pay and future stock price performance. On the other hand, the optimal incentives hypothesis suggests that whilst compensation and incentive schemes can be aligned to managerial interests with shareholders value wealth creation and maximisation, investors may not necessarily react to the information. This could be as a result of not understanding the incentive strategy, and not having the right measurement model to gauge it against. Therefore investors are not able to observe or attain the value it may have to the organisation future stock price performance.  [6]  7A positive relation may be evaluated between the incentive pay and the future stock price performance. 8Needless to say, based on studies carried out in the past and present on the relationship between Stock Price Performance and Incentive Schemes, there is not much direct evidence that shows that incentive plans do lead to a companys improvement in future stock price performance. One of the challenges of stock returns are they having shareholders expectations imbedded in them. Other challenges are that economic theory would not be able to predict that increase in incentives would lead to increase in profitability. 9 A much earlier study by Masson 1971 linking financial incentive to future performance of the organisation, his findings were that firms and organisation that had attractive financial incentives showed a better stock market performance during the post-war period. Conclusion Due to the increased competition of business, it has subsequently increased the competition for employing skilled workers, and retaining them. A compensation strategy creates and brings about a unified culture, and offers corporation and advances the implementation of the business strategy. This will essentially promote performance and employees will be result oriented. Incentive plans should be reviewed annually to analyse if they are actually effective and increasing the performance of the organisation and meeting the strategic objectives. This involves looking at any accomplishments and the desired outcome. Despite the soaring pay, many experts argue that the system is working better than ever. They see the bull market and healthy corporate sector as proof positive that companies get what they pay for. (Business Week April 21, 1997, p.p 60) Performance based pay is the best incentive strategy for any organisation as it maximises on the strategic plan, as the compensation strategy requires that the plan is set on organisation goals and objectives. This has a major influence on the employees. Pay for performance has been cited to be a more motivating factor, both short term and long term incentives.  [10]  A study carried out established that employees showed a more positive work attitude with a pay for performance incentive. Other benefits of a pay for performance incentive scheme is the pay receives special treatment in some contexts. This is under the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). Essentially, at the end of it all, the compensation strategy and incentive plans main purpose is to: Attract and retain employees. Motivate and establish loyalty towards the company. Making sure the cost of the strategy is line. Encourage peak performance.

Paul’s Case: A Study in Temperament by Willa Cather Essay examples --

A Symbolic Perception Imagine being entrapped in a life that you did not feel you belonged in. That is the story of Paul in â€Å"Paul’s Case,† written by Willa Cather. He lived in a suburban home where everyone seemed the same and there was a feeling of despair. Paul, who was a young man, felt that his father, teachers and classmates misunderstood him and therefore were unworthy of his company. In the story there are many symbolic elements. Flowers, for instance, symbolize Paul’s personality and life. The parallel between the boy and the flowers is made by the author many times throughout the short story. In the beginning of the story Paul has a meeting with the teachers of his school because he was misbehaving. For the meeting Paul shows up wearing â€Å"clothes [that] were a trifle outgrown . . . [with] a red carnation in his buttonhole† (49). This shows his total disrespect for authority because he is going to get disciplined; and the teachers thought this â€Å"was not properly significant of the contrite spirit befitting a boy under the ban of suspension† (49).† The flower he wore shows that he does not care about school or his teachers: his teachers felt â€Å"that his whole attitude was symbolized by his shrug and his flippantly red carnation flower† (50). The principal also noted his conceit as he left the meeting and bowed which was described to be â€Å"a repetition of the scandalous red carnation† (51). It is almost as if the flower is his strength and reminds him of his ne...

These three poems are all based upon time, they all show time passing :: English Literature

These three poems are all based upon time, they all show time passing and how it effects human life and nature. to his coy These three poems are all based upon time, they all show time passing and how it effects human life and nature. ‘to his coy mistress’ shows time passing as the poet tries to say that time doesn’t last forever , and that you should make the most if youth, because one day it will all be over and you will be getting old. ‘to the virgins make much of time’ also shows a very similar approach of how you should make the most.’Ozymandias’ shows time passing by saying that structures will out do people and that nothing can prevent time stopping, eventually it will catch up on us all. The poem to his coy mistress’ is a poem of great passion to ask the woman if she will date him and also go to bed with him. It is a poem of originality and the language used in the poem is very soft texture and content. The poem is split up into three sections one part is ‘if’, the second part is ‘but, and the last part is therefore. All theses show a different view of how he is persuading her to do all these things. The rhythm and rhyme of the poem to reinforce the arguments a used by rhyming couplets, which create a light hearted approach on the poem. The first two lines of the poem relate to the subject of time by saying, that if there was enough time and if life was longer then we could see much more things and, do more things with each other, it also uses the word crime which I used to show that it is no crime for us to do things together. The third and fourth lines show the man and the woman and how they could live their lives without rushing, because life would be longer than before. On lines 5-7 the poet compares the woman to the Ganges and himself to the Humber is used as a tone of mockery and is meant to be a joke. Line 10 shows the ‘flood’ which is a biblical reference showing that he will love her even before this point. On line 23-25 it shows how she will get old very quick and that you should make the most of your life, because one day it will be forgotten and your beauty will have faded. On lines 28-29 there are stops before the end, this is the poet

Psychological factors of tennis :: essays research papers

TASK ONE PART A FEEDBACK AND MOTIVATION OFFERED TO THE PLAYERS BY THE COACH TO IMPROVE SKILLS, COURT PLAY AND MENTAL ATTITUDE Stuartholme A Grade Tennis Team Dennis Sheard, (the coach of the A team) was mainly focusing this particular training session on footwork and communication as he felt that the team lacked both these factors during their previous Saturday match. The following are a few quotes from Dennis  "Awesome footwork Alex, could you feel the difference between that ball and the last?" Dennis indicates when the players use the correct technique and then compares it to a previous shot where they do not. This is enabling them to get used to using internal feedback independently and how they should be executing the shot.  "Correct technique, but you didn’t squeeze the grip again. The raquet shouldn’t wobble as you hit it." Dennis recognises the problem, explains it and then evaluates it for the player, making it clear what they did wrong and how they can improve it.  "If you’re partner gets a hard ball to reach I want to be able to hear you encouraging her to get it to it, I want to hear lots of "Go, go go’s!!"" Dennis stresses the importance of communication and encouragement in doubles. This communication increases motivation and a goal to reach for the players.  "I don’t want to see any slumped shoulders or negative expressions when you miss a ball, that’s the time you need to be even more confident and focused on getting the next point." Dennis reminds the girls constantly on staying positive and not losing their patience during their games as this can make them become over or under aroused. Psychological Stuartholme D6 Tennis Team The D6 coach Kate, was fairly quiet during their coaching session and when she did offer advice she would sometimes put it with a shot that didn’t necessarily match the comment, confusing the girls. This is a lower ranked team and the girls are still at quite a cognitive stage of developing their tennis skills, this means it is vital that they receive a lot of feedback and encouragement to persist with the sport. By not offering this Kate may be hindering their development. She did however put forward the following points to the girls.  "Good shot"  "Move your feet"  "Keep your eye on the ball"  "Swing slower" Although Kate is offering advice to her players in order for them to improve their skills she needs to be more specific so they can understand their mistakes and correct them.

Customized Learning Theory Essay

Educational techniques have been around for many centuries. Through the centuries, teaching techniques have not changed. However, many methods have emerged which has been defined as educational theory. Students have many different learning styles that help them learn. Teachers must learn how to teach to include each of the learning styles so each student learns what they need to know. Teaching students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can be very difficult to teach. These students need to be active in what they are doing and what they are learning. Using the kinesthetic learning style will help tremendously when teaching a child with ADHD. Learning disabilities are problems that affect the brain’s ability to receive, process, analyze, or store information. These problems can make it difficult for a student to learn as quickly as someone who is not affected by learning disabilities. Certain kinds of learning disabilities can interfere with a person’s ability to concentrate or focus and can cause someone’s mind to wander too much. Other learning disabilities can make it difficult for a student to read, write, spell, or solve math problems. Research is being conducted daily to be able to determine which learning theories work for which student. Some students learn better by listening, some by doing and some by hearing. Although, teaching can be dated back to the bible, Proverbs 4:2 states â€Å"I give you sound learning, so do not forsake my teaching† (Holy Bible, NIV). Romans 12:7 states that â€Å"if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach† (Holy Bible, NIV). No matter what a teacher teaches, as long as each student gets what they deserve out of the teaching is the only thing that matters. Learning Theory and its Importance Every teacher has his or her own learning theory. Not every theory is the same. One of the best known learning theories in use today is the Piaget’s theory (Slavin, 2012). Piaget believed that there were four factors that lead to a child’s development. Children use aids and begin to understand how things work which helps the child learn how to do things for themselves. Another factor is that children learn from socializing with other children their age. This gives the child an opportunity to view other children’s behaviors and learn from each behavior. The child will then be able to develop their own patterns and personality. From there, the child can make their own decisions and find out what works best for them. Culture plays a big part in ways that affect learning theories. Vygotsky thought of the practice of education as a source rather than a result of the development of cognitive and learning skills. Many people before Vygotsky believed that people possessed the essential learning ability; however, it just needed to be coaxed out. Adolescence is one of the most trying times for a new Christian. According to Hosseini, Elias, Krauss, & Aishah (2010), adolescence is a point in time when an individual makes a choice in their future education, any major life roles, any relationships, and where a child establishes toward long-term goal to work toward to. This proves that it is imperative of having Christian principles of morality integrated into the school systems. Description of an Effective Teacher and Learning Environment Being an effective teacher takes a lot of determination, understanding and commitment and also considered to be an intentional teacher. When a teacher focuses too much of his or her instruction on one area, other instructional areas could drop. Slavin (2012) states that teaching involves planning and preparation, and the components which make a good teacher are decision making, reflection, application of education research and self-knowledge and self-regulation. Teachers need to be highly qualified according to federal law. The problem was that a negative impact of the requirement of having highly qualified teacher on recruitment and retention of personnel in rural areas was feared. Leading educators in education and special education have argued that the requirement may worsen the already significant critical shortages and attrition rate in rural special education. Another problem that was brought up was the cost to have highly qualified teachers and no extra compensation. Administrators fear that they might not be able to recruit special education teachers who meet the highly qualified standard. This legislation has made an impact on the rural areas of public and private schools. If the standards are set high, then individuals who would want to be teachers would see education as â€Å"not as attractive as other career options† (Courtade et. al. , 2010, p. 10). Everybody knows that there are no two children who learn at the same pace but only an effective teacher would understand this. An effective teacher would use different learning styles to help educate each child. Direct instruction and setting objectives are important in the classroom. Being able to translate directive instructions clearly and concisely is imperative. An effective teacher wants to make sure the student can understand what is being taught which makes the difference between good and great learning. Being able to effectively deliver educational material would allow the students to become confident with his or her ability to learn what is being taught. According to Slavin (2012), poor delivery of lesson plans can have a negative impact on a student’s mental set. When a teacher has a good lesson delivery, it allows the students to become more confident; however, it is necessary that the lesson delivery be given using various delivery methods. During classroom instructions, a student does not only need ample time to learn new material, the student needs to review old material that was already taught. Having the time to review and learn new material shows the students how the old and new material goes together and instills the importance of all the material. Homework is a part of a lesson plan that is extremely important. Homework was once thought to be essential to learning and should be mandatory. It was once thought that homework was important and can further a student’s education more than a student who did not complete the homework assignments. This was contradicted when research was conducted when students were allowed to choose whether or not they wanted to do homework. Results showed that the group who did not do the homework outperformed the students who did the mandatory homework (Gutarts & Baines (2010). Technology has become a big part in education. Technology has taken over the ranks for textbooks, emails, information, and paper. Several counties in Virginia have been using iPads and laptops instead of textbooks (Reid, 2011). Digital technology holds enormous potential for transforming instruction (Reid, 2011). The introduction of new technology into the classroom is an important component to help foster a learning environment that will encourage problem-solving and critical thinking (Reid, 2011). However, if a teacher chooses to use any form of technology in the classroom, the teacher needs to be well educated with technology. Some people would think that if a teacher was illiterate when it comes to computers, then why teach with them or use computers in a classroom. A teacher may not need to know the â€Å"ins and outs† of technology but he or she must know what websites are trusted, how to â€Å"surf† the internet, send out emails, set up blackboards, and use whiteboards (which can display what is on the computer onto the wall or blackboard). Technology has been very helpful when it comes to distance learning. Distance learning has helped many adults go back to college to get a degree when his or her life does not allow them to go to an actual classroom. Individuals with reading disabilities tend to become overwhelmed with reading and other activities during school. A child who cannot read well and is in middle school will not be able to take proper notes because he or she does not know how to write well either. In one study, a teacher used an iPad as a tool to help a fifth grade struggling reader with ADHD. The use of the iPad helped the student focus attention, and the iPad also helped the student become more metacognitive in reading. Using the iPad showed an increase of one year’s growth in a six week period using pre- and post-assessments (McClanahan, Williams, Kennedy, & Tate, 2012). The student also gained in confidence and sense of being in control of his learning. While generalizations to other struggling readers with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder cannot be made, the success this student experienced suggests that the use of this device is worth serious consideration and research in similar contexts (McClanahan, et. al. , 2012). Learning Characteristics: Modalities and Ability Grouping Learning modalities are important when it comes to learning and teaching. The three different types of modalities include, visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. According to Anderson (n. d. ), learning modalities are the sensory channels or pathways through which individuals give, receive, and store information. Perception, memory, and sensation include the notion of modality. Approximately 25-30% of students are visual learners (Anderson, n. d. ). Visual learners are those who learn by seeing (Anderson, n. d. ). Approximately 25-30% of students are auditory learners (Anderson, n. d. ). Auditory learners are those who must hear what he or she hears to really understand it. Approximately 15% of students are tactile or kinesthetic learners (Anderson, n. . ). Tactile or kinesthetic learners need to feel and touch and get a better understanding if movement is involved. However, students can have mixed modalities which include visual and auditory, visual and kinesthetic, and auditory and kinesthetic. There are about 25-30% of students who have mixed modalities (Anderson, n. d. ). Learning modalities are important but it is not the only thing that helps the students. Teachers need to be prepared in their subject and need to be knowledgeable in the area they are teaching. Just because a teacher is knowledgeable, does not make them an intentional teacher and does not make them knowledgeable in writing lesson plans. If a teacher does not know how to deliver the knowledge to the students, the students are not going to learn as much as they should. When a teacher makes a lesson plan, it helps the teacher to be prepared and helps the teacher know how to convey much needed knowledge to the students. The concept of ability grouping goes along with learning modalities. Ability grouping allows students to group together based on their ability to learn. Ability grouping allows students of higher level to be grouped with high achieving students. Ability grouping also allows students of lower level to be grouped with lower achieving students. This type of grouping makes the assumption that the teacher will be able to teach the students based on the same level. This causes a problem because it can cause the lower level students to fall further being the higher level students because they are not taught the same things and the same ways. Personal Reflection When conducting the Learning Styles Profile on myself, it made me aware of my learning styles which is that I am a more of a visual learner than anything but I feel that I am more of a kinesthetic learner so I would classify myself as having mixed modalities. Just watching something being done would not keep my attention but if I watched something being done while I was doing it, then I would have a better understanding. I would use this as part of my theory because an effective teacher has to have something for everyone. An effective teacher would have instructions for the auditory, visual and kinesthetic students so that each student can learn his or her own way. When conducting the Philosophical Methodology of Learning Profile, it showed that I scored highest and I have strong feeling in progressivist, and traditionalist methodology. My lowest score was actually a negative score and that was in socialist methodology. Inasmuch as I am an extreme progressivist, not all of it is true. I believe that everything has to have a point and to be proven but that does not mean that I deny the existence of God. I really believe that in the progressive mode the teacher becomes the facilitator or the director of learning, while the student becomes the center of focus as an individual. I believe that school revolves around the children. I believe that if a teacher looks at a class as a whole and not individuals, the individuals who need help will not get it. A child with special needs â€Å"slips through the cracks† all the time, and in my opinion, that is not acceptable. The supervisor of learning can direct the learning from different perspectives ultimately considering the needs of the individual. An experience centered approach stems from this philosophical methodology using projects, cooperative group activities, and critical thinking and problem solving, decision-making skills. Getting children to work together as well as separately will help the children get ideas off of other students. This way, the student will know if they need extra help in a certain area and can ask for help when needed. Conclusion Each child learns differently. Each teacher has to have his or her own theory on what would work in his or her classroom. Schools are for learning† and â€Å"teaching promotes learning, but learning also takes place through experience and individual study† (Van Brummelen, 2009, p. 13). A teacher must â€Å"trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding† (Proverbs 3:5). Inasmuch as educational theories have been around for centuries, times change, the way that teachers educate students will change, and the way children learn will change. Teachers must adapt to the â€Å"New Age† which includes many forms of technology and new learning theories.