For students studying under the ICSE Board the mention of ICSE exams can cause considerable anxiety. With competition levels soaring, ICSE exams are usually the ‘make or break time' in a student's life. In order to score well in the ICSE exams students should concentrate on obtaining a thorough understanding of concepts follow it up with repeated and robust revision sessions.
In order to write quality answers and score well in the ICSE exams, students should incorporate the following points in their studies.
• Say no to cramming! Students often consider mindless cramming as a sure-shot and easy way to obtain great marks in ICSE exams. Some students cram out of habit and some out of necessity ("there is too little time left and so much to cover, where is the time to spend on understanding concepts!"). Whatever the reason, students should try to stay away from cramming and focus on building conceptual understanding. It is very important for students preparing for the ICSE exam to understand that cramming might prove very effective and sometimes yield instant results in the form of good marks, but in the long run it is an absolute waste, as you are sure to forget all that you crammed. Cramming or relying only on rote memory results only in the short-term retention of concepts and is in fact highly detrimental for subjects such as Science and Maths, where building progressively on conceptual understanding is the only key to better marks.
• Revising is must! It goes without saying that revising is one of the most essential ingredients for performing well in the ICSE exams. Students can reinforce learning by using a variety of revision aids available in a lot of websites. These revision aids will not only make learning effective but will also make scoring great marks in the ICSE exams easy. Students can start their revision sessions using chapter-wise tests along with comprehensive model tests available on these websites. Students can also revise using interactive curriculum-based puzzles that will add the much required zing into their revision schedules. For those last moment revision sessions before the final ICSE exams, students can refer to crisp,easily downloadable, chapter-wise revision notes available on these websites.
• Do not let stress get to you! A little bit of exam-related anxiety can often give the much required push to the student to prepare and perform well at in the final ICSE exams. However, prolonged and high-levels of anxiety can lead to overpowering stress and a poor performance at the final exams. While preparing for the final ICSE exam, students should try to stay calm and study with a single-minded focus towards performing well in the exams. Students should learn and revise as much they can before their final papers and perform some simple stress-busting activities to keep their anxiety levels under control.
• Do not use any unfair means! Students should not indulge in cheating or any unfair means to perform well in the ICSE exams. Students may occasionally tend to get easily lured by these short-cut methods of scoring good marks. Although it may seem like an easy way to score good marks in the examinations, but if any student is caught using unfair means, needless to say, very strict action is taken against the student. In extreme cases, it could even result in cancellation of the entire answer sheet.
So the next time you prepare for your ICSE exams, do keep in mind these easy-to-follow pointers to get better results.
Senin, 10 Mei 2010
Things to know about Quran Learning
Well you cannot just become a Muslim by saying that you are. You have to understand what you believe in. Same is the case with Islam. To understand Islam you need to read and understand the concepts of Quran.
In fact you do not qualify as Muslim if you haven't read Quran at least once in your life. Well there are again two school of thoughts on that, one that says that you can only go for recitation and fulfill the basic requirement and other is that there is no point of just reciting the Quran in Arabic until or unless one fully understands it.
In Islam your every action is judged by the thought which backs it. So you don't have worry about it you are just reciting the Quran or actually understanding the each and every word of it along with its concept.
Let's just analyze the both cases; if you are just reciting Quran then you need to know that reading Arabic is not that simple either especially when it comes to Quran. The language itself is one of the most complicated grammars in the all the languages further a minor phonetic difference in delivery an Arabic word totally changes its meanings.
Whether, if you are just reciting Quran you do need proper guidance in how to utter each word in Arabic. The proper guidance also assures that each Ayat (verse/sentence) is recited in the correct manner. A proper trained tutor guides you in how to read Quran in the right way describing where pauses have to make during the recitation.
Now looking at the second scenario where you want to know and understand each and ever word of Quran. Again having someone able to translate Arabic for you would not be enough. Researchers and scholars have actually spent years on research to understand the concept and meanings of each Ayat (verse) of Quran.
From there the concept Tafseer has been developed. Tafseer means explanation of every concept behind every saying and verse of Quran. In fact every Ayat (verse) of Quran has history and a reason attached to it. Learning Tafseer of Quran explains in detail that history and reason of the specific verse or Ayat.
You would find lots of Tafseer versions consisting of many volumes written by many authentic and great Islamic scholars. Again these Tafseer volumes are very much in detail and studying these is categorized as very advanced step in leaning or teaching of Quran.
Quran gives you the complete solution to spend a balanced and fair life. You can only follow what Quran describes as balanced life if you can get a basic understanding of it. That is exactly why every Muslim is required to read the Quran at least once in his or her life to qualify as Muslim. Reading over means that understanding or Quran. And that is exactly why every Muslim child is asked to learn Quran in childhood so that they could grasp the concept of living a balanced peaceful life.
The new age has solved lots of problems for you, now you can learn Quran Online too. This revolutionized step has made easy accessibility to right professional services that are required for teaching and learning of Quran.
In fact you do not qualify as Muslim if you haven't read Quran at least once in your life. Well there are again two school of thoughts on that, one that says that you can only go for recitation and fulfill the basic requirement and other is that there is no point of just reciting the Quran in Arabic until or unless one fully understands it.
In Islam your every action is judged by the thought which backs it. So you don't have worry about it you are just reciting the Quran or actually understanding the each and every word of it along with its concept.
Let's just analyze the both cases; if you are just reciting Quran then you need to know that reading Arabic is not that simple either especially when it comes to Quran. The language itself is one of the most complicated grammars in the all the languages further a minor phonetic difference in delivery an Arabic word totally changes its meanings.
Whether, if you are just reciting Quran you do need proper guidance in how to utter each word in Arabic. The proper guidance also assures that each Ayat (verse/sentence) is recited in the correct manner. A proper trained tutor guides you in how to read Quran in the right way describing where pauses have to make during the recitation.
Now looking at the second scenario where you want to know and understand each and ever word of Quran. Again having someone able to translate Arabic for you would not be enough. Researchers and scholars have actually spent years on research to understand the concept and meanings of each Ayat (verse) of Quran.
From there the concept Tafseer has been developed. Tafseer means explanation of every concept behind every saying and verse of Quran. In fact every Ayat (verse) of Quran has history and a reason attached to it. Learning Tafseer of Quran explains in detail that history and reason of the specific verse or Ayat.
You would find lots of Tafseer versions consisting of many volumes written by many authentic and great Islamic scholars. Again these Tafseer volumes are very much in detail and studying these is categorized as very advanced step in leaning or teaching of Quran.
Quran gives you the complete solution to spend a balanced and fair life. You can only follow what Quran describes as balanced life if you can get a basic understanding of it. That is exactly why every Muslim is required to read the Quran at least once in his or her life to qualify as Muslim. Reading over means that understanding or Quran. And that is exactly why every Muslim child is asked to learn Quran in childhood so that they could grasp the concept of living a balanced peaceful life.
The new age has solved lots of problems for you, now you can learn Quran Online too. This revolutionized step has made easy accessibility to right professional services that are required for teaching and learning of Quran.
Home Page > Education > Childhood Education > SMILE and SPEAK CLEARLY: The College Interview SMILE and SPEAK CLEARLY
We knew it was him. Our little interviewee. We could tell by the determined gait, the furrowed brow, and the tiny junior high school tie on 275 pounds of high school linebacker. The Admissions Mavens love interviewing for their alma maters because meeting kids on the cusp of a huge milestone in their lives is truly exhilarating and keeps us young! Did you go on an interview as part of your college application process? If you applied to public universities, you probably didn't. If you applied to some private colleges, the chances are good that you interviewed at a few schools. Wanna know how the Admissions Mavens feel about the college interview? We like it. It doesn't really have too much weight in the application process for the most part, but we like it. Why? It's good practice for job interviews -- it's a life skill. You will only get better with practice, and in most cases, the college interview is low-stakes. Below are some helpful hints about the college interview. If you get nothing else from the information, please remember to SMILE and ENUNCIATE and SMILE again.
The best college interviews are easy, engaging, and natural conversations where you can express your personality, intellectual curiosity and interests. Most interviewers just want to get to know you beyond the four corners of your application. They want to know if you would make a good roommate or pleasant company in the dining halls. They want to know if you would make an active and positive contribution to the college community. Just be the most confident and most mature version of your authentic self, and you'll have a successful interview.
1. Do all colleges require an interview?
Not all colleges make the interview part of the admissions process. Large public universities such as the Cal State and the University of California schools do not require interviews.
Private universities with large and active alumni communities such as Dartmouth, Harvard and Tufts make the interview an important part of the application process. Once a student has submitted her application to these schools, an alum in her area will contact the student to set up an interview. For such schools, the interview is officially "optional". However, if an alumni interview is offered to you, it is a very good idea to accept the interview.
Small and very innovative schools such as Hampshire College also strongly recommend interviews for applicants, in part to ensure that the student is well suited to their unique perspectives and programs. Like many small schools, Hampshire College offers both on-campus and off-campus interviews. Students who cannot visit the college for an on-campus interview should request an off-campus interview from the admissions office. Other examples of liberal arts colleges that recommend interviews are Smith, Occidental, and Mt. Holyoke.
Pitzer College offers a very unusual alternative to the traditional interview by allowing students to upload a video interview of themselves answering Pitzer's questions via a service called MYCOLLEGEi.com. If a school to which you are applying uses the MYCOLLEGEi.com service, it will be noted in the school's Supplement section in the Common Application.
The bottom line is that colleges handle the interview process in many different ways. It is important for you to familiarize yourself with the individual policies of the schools on your college list.
2. How does an interview affect my chances of admission?
In general, a good interview is a helpful addition to your application to some degree. A positive interview is most helpful to those students who are on the cusp of admission. A great interview, however, will not override a poor performance in your classes. A poor interview performance will not destroy your chances of admission and cancel out 3-4 years of your hard work in high school. Keep in mind that the interview is as much about the college's marketing and recruiting efforts as it is a means of getting to know you.
3. Who will be interviewing me?
If you are interviewing on-campus, you will mostly likely be interviewed by an admissions officer. You may even be interviewed by a student employee of the admissions office. If you are interviewing off-campus and in your local area, you will most likely be interviewed by an alum who lives in your area.
4. Where will the interview take place?
For off-campus interviews, the location is highly variable. Some alums will ask the student to come to his/her workplace. Others like to meet students in public locations such as public libraries or a local coffee shop. Some alumnae/i will try to schedule the interview at the student's school.
5. How long will the interview take?
This varies from interviewer to interviewer. S/he will let you know how long it will be. Most interviews do not exceed one hour.
6. How do I set up the interview?
For some schools, you must request an interview. For others, a school representative will contact you. You should check the specifics of the process on each school's website. Please remember that the interview starts with the first point of contact with the interviewer. That could be in-person or by email or telephone. Be polite and try to accommodate the interviewer's schedule, if possible. Proofread your e-mails and use regular English – not text messaging abbreviations.
7. "Why us?"
You will be asked why you chose to apply to that particular school. Interviewers like to know that you have a genuine interest in the college that they represent because for the most part – they love their school! Many alumnae/i take it very personally if a student does not have at least a general familiarity with their beloved alma mater. You can exhibit your courtesy and interest by doing your research and asking specific and relevant questions.
8. Other potential questions that the interviewer may ask include:
a. What good books have you read lately?
b. What plans do you have for the summer?
c. What majors interest you?
d. What did you like best/least about high school?
e. What classes did you like the best/least?
f. What are your passions?
g. How would your friends describe you?
h. What are your strengths/weaknesses?
i. What are some significant experiences in your life that have affected your educational journey?
j. What extracurricular activity was your favorite?
k. What have been the biggest disappointments in your high school career?
l. What are your hobbies and outside interests?
m. What is your opinion regarding a particular current event?
Please note that these are all open ended questions that require elaboration and explanation. Don't just list your favorite classes or hobbies. Be prepared to say WHY they are your favorite classes or hobbies.
What if you are asked a question that you can't answer? It is important to keep in mind that sometimes interviewers ask questions not just for your answer but also to see how you act under pressure when you don't know what to say. If you don't know how to respond to a question, just stay calm and be honest. One great way to respond would be to say, "I don't have enough information to give you an informed opinion. Can you point me to some resources where I can find out more information about this?"
9. "Do you have any questions for me?"
This is a very common question that interviewers ask. Have some questions in mind that you can ask the interviewer. You always ask the interviewer about his/her undergraduate experience.
10. Is there something that you would like to convey to the interviewer that might not have been included in your application?
This could include some awards or honors or sports victories that you have achieved after you submitted your application. This could be some activity or cause that you care deeply about. Be sure to let your interviewer know so that he/she can include it in his/her report to the school.
11. The little things that mean a lot:
a. If you are on time, you're late. Be 5 minutes early. Bring a book and read it while you wait.
b. Don't bring your parents to the interview.
c. Dress neatly and modestly. Dress in a clean cut way so that YOU, not your outfit, stand out.
d. Every interview should begin and end with: EYE CONTACT, FIRM HANDSHAKE, SMILE, SAY THANK YOU.
e. A handwritten thank you note is the best way to convey your gratitude and your interest.
A good interview can be a helpful addition to your application. A bad interview is not the end of the world or the death of your chances of admission. Like many of the skills that you will gain during your college admissions journey, good interviewing is an important life skill, and you will get better with practice and time. GOOD LUCK!
System Administrator – A Great Career Option
As use of computers are growing in our everyday life, so are growing career opportunities in this field. Network Administration and System Administration are two most important branches of careers in IT. They are not any less important than software and e-commerce careers but amounts to be more promising career options, with ever growing opportunities.
There are many good colleges and institutes provide training in Network and System Administration. Generally all these courses should include approx 500 hours practical training exposure, with hands on experience on hardware and software installations, basic maintenance, and troubleshooting issues.
These students also help students prepare for MCSA/MCSE Certification. These certificates are proof of your excellence in installation and maintenance of secure network computer systems and user groups on Windows platforms.
Interested candidates may also opt for CISCO – CCNA certification wherein they will learn installation and configuration of Cisco switches and routers in multi-protocol inter-networks using LAN and WAN interfaces.
The candidates are trained in practical environment to plan, implement, administer, support and secure networked computer systems and ensure trouble free operations for their users.
There are many fields of operation for Network Administrator program graduates. They can develop their skills and build career any of the following streams
- Computer Repair Technician
- Computer Network Administrator
- PC Field Technician
- Computer Network Support
- Network Installation Specialist
- Network Administrator
- Network Designer
- LAN Technician
- LAN Administrator
- Network Support Technician
- System Administrator
These LAN Administration Training institutes not only train individuals in this skill but also provide them placement assistant. These Network Support Technician Development colleges and institutes coordinate with industries and regional businesses for their requirement of Network Operator and LAN Technician.
These colleges and institutes not only provide training for System and Network Administration but also help you get these courses financed through government and private sponsorships. For example in Canada candidates may benefit from HRDC sponsorship for individuals receiving EI or OW, and for participants receiving WSIB & ODSP. Some institutes also provide installment payment options, Bursaries, Scholarships, Loans, Lines of Credit etc to support your Network Administrator Training Program.
If you do not know where you can find information about the good Network Administrator or System Administrator courses in your area, you can use internet for your help. You can find list of many reputed colleges and institutes in any specified area, with their contact details. You can visit their websites, and learn about their courses and fee structure. Also you should read testimonials and know their financial adds if any they are providing.
It is also useful to talk to the existing and ex students of these institutes before joining them. You can talk to their faculties and supervisors who are going to conduct these training programs for you. Also learn about the timings. If you are already working somewhere and want to improve your skills through part-time or week-end courses, you can check if they are running such courses, too.
There are many good colleges and institutes provide training in Network and System Administration. Generally all these courses should include approx 500 hours practical training exposure, with hands on experience on hardware and software installations, basic maintenance, and troubleshooting issues.
These students also help students prepare for MCSA/MCSE Certification. These certificates are proof of your excellence in installation and maintenance of secure network computer systems and user groups on Windows platforms.
Interested candidates may also opt for CISCO – CCNA certification wherein they will learn installation and configuration of Cisco switches and routers in multi-protocol inter-networks using LAN and WAN interfaces.
The candidates are trained in practical environment to plan, implement, administer, support and secure networked computer systems and ensure trouble free operations for their users.
There are many fields of operation for Network Administrator program graduates. They can develop their skills and build career any of the following streams
- Computer Repair Technician
- Computer Network Administrator
- PC Field Technician
- Computer Network Support
- Network Installation Specialist
- Network Administrator
- Network Designer
- LAN Technician
- LAN Administrator
- Network Support Technician
- System Administrator
These LAN Administration Training institutes not only train individuals in this skill but also provide them placement assistant. These Network Support Technician Development colleges and institutes coordinate with industries and regional businesses for their requirement of Network Operator and LAN Technician.
These colleges and institutes not only provide training for System and Network Administration but also help you get these courses financed through government and private sponsorships. For example in Canada candidates may benefit from HRDC sponsorship for individuals receiving EI or OW, and for participants receiving WSIB & ODSP. Some institutes also provide installment payment options, Bursaries, Scholarships, Loans, Lines of Credit etc to support your Network Administrator Training Program.
If you do not know where you can find information about the good Network Administrator or System Administrator courses in your area, you can use internet for your help. You can find list of many reputed colleges and institutes in any specified area, with their contact details. You can visit their websites, and learn about their courses and fee structure. Also you should read testimonials and know their financial adds if any they are providing.
It is also useful to talk to the existing and ex students of these institutes before joining them. You can talk to their faculties and supervisors who are going to conduct these training programs for you. Also learn about the timings. If you are already working somewhere and want to improve your skills through part-time or week-end courses, you can check if they are running such courses, too.
How to Make a Windows Xp Boot Disk
When you press the power button on your computer and it just sit
there with none of those clicking and beeping sounds along with
the monitor still having that blank screen,you know that you're
going to have a bad day.
A computer that fails to boot can be one of the most pain
staking things that can happen to a pc user.And in most cases,
the user don't have a clue as to what procedures they can take
to get the PC up and running again.
When you do experience pc bootup failure, always start your
troubleshooting by checking the obvious.It the cord plugged into
the wall outlet and is the other end securely plugged in the
rear of the system unit.
In many cases the cause is a corrupted startup file which
prevent the computer from going through the bootup from start to
finish.In this case, an easy way to start your PC is to have an
emergency boot disk handy.
A Boot Disk contain copies of critical files needed for startup
that you should have made earlier.To use the floppy disk, all
you need do is to place it in the floppy drive and reboot the
computer.
As the computer start the boot process, Windows will use the
good files to get itself going.The Windows XP boot disk will
enable you to resolve a corrupt Ntbootdd.sys driver, missing or
corrupt Ntdr or Ntdetect.com files.
These files are used by Windows XP and are crucial to its
startup and configuration.The boot disk have also repair a
damaged MBR or Master Boot Record.
The MBR is a small program executed when the PC boots and
resides on the first sector of the hard driveIt looks up the
partition on the hard drive.You can create a MBR with the FDISK
/MBR coomand
A damaged boot sector can also be corrected with the boot
disk.Your Windows XP boot disk will be a life saver when you
have pc bootup failure and you need that file for your next
interview.
A sector is the smallest unit that can be accessed on a
disk.When a disk is low level formatted, it will be divided
tracks and sectors
When making a boot disk make a mental note of the files being
copied.This will give you added knowledge when you will need to
help in making their boot disk.To make a boot disk, perform the
following.
Place a blank formatted floppy disk in your floppy drive and go
to My Computer in Windows XP.Click the hard drive icon and on
the toolbar, click Tools, Folder Options, and then click the
View Tab.
And scroll down and check "Show hidden files and folders" and
just below uncheck "Hide protected operating system files
(recommended). Now we're getting a little slower.
Take note of this process and as you become more familiar with
this task, you'll be able to make a boot disk for others in no
time and help them save on down time.
After unchecking "Hide protected operating system files, click
OK.Some grayed out files will now be visible in the drive
window.These files are protected system files.
Now you're ready to select the boot, the NTDETECT, and the ntldr
files.Now right-click, click Send To, and select Floppy ( A:
).When you have copied all files to the floppy, you now have a
Windows XP boot disk.
You should make two or more boot disks and place them in a safe
place away from any type of magnetic or static charges.Before
putting them away don't forget to label your life saving floppy
disks.
Should you be unfortunate enough to have to put one of your boot
floppies to use, remember to replace the startup files on the
hard drive with the ones on the floppy.
If you overlook this critical step, you'll have the same boot
up problem every time.Take your time as you copy the files and
be sure not to reverse the copy procedure.
This is why its important to make two or more boot disks. This
way should you have an accident with one disk, so what, you paid
attention here and made several copies.
You've done it.You're now armed with a repair tool should your
XP computer fail to boot.All Windows 98, 2000, and Me users also
have the resources to create a book disk.
Read more: http://www.articlesbase.com/software-articles/how-to-make-a-windows-xp-boot-disk-87173.html#ixzz0nXZCBZMq
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution
there with none of those clicking and beeping sounds along with
the monitor still having that blank screen,you know that you're
going to have a bad day.
A computer that fails to boot can be one of the most pain
staking things that can happen to a pc user.And in most cases,
the user don't have a clue as to what procedures they can take
to get the PC up and running again.
When you do experience pc bootup failure, always start your
troubleshooting by checking the obvious.It the cord plugged into
the wall outlet and is the other end securely plugged in the
rear of the system unit.
In many cases the cause is a corrupted startup file which
prevent the computer from going through the bootup from start to
finish.In this case, an easy way to start your PC is to have an
emergency boot disk handy.
A Boot Disk contain copies of critical files needed for startup
that you should have made earlier.To use the floppy disk, all
you need do is to place it in the floppy drive and reboot the
computer.
As the computer start the boot process, Windows will use the
good files to get itself going.The Windows XP boot disk will
enable you to resolve a corrupt Ntbootdd.sys driver, missing or
corrupt Ntdr or Ntdetect.com files.
These files are used by Windows XP and are crucial to its
startup and configuration.The boot disk have also repair a
damaged MBR or Master Boot Record.
The MBR is a small program executed when the PC boots and
resides on the first sector of the hard driveIt looks up the
partition on the hard drive.You can create a MBR with the FDISK
/MBR coomand
A damaged boot sector can also be corrected with the boot
disk.Your Windows XP boot disk will be a life saver when you
have pc bootup failure and you need that file for your next
interview.
A sector is the smallest unit that can be accessed on a
disk.When a disk is low level formatted, it will be divided
tracks and sectors
When making a boot disk make a mental note of the files being
copied.This will give you added knowledge when you will need to
help in making their boot disk.To make a boot disk, perform the
following.
Place a blank formatted floppy disk in your floppy drive and go
to My Computer in Windows XP.Click the hard drive icon and on
the toolbar, click Tools, Folder Options, and then click the
View Tab.
And scroll down and check "Show hidden files and folders" and
just below uncheck "Hide protected operating system files
(recommended). Now we're getting a little slower.
Take note of this process and as you become more familiar with
this task, you'll be able to make a boot disk for others in no
time and help them save on down time.
After unchecking "Hide protected operating system files, click
OK.Some grayed out files will now be visible in the drive
window.These files are protected system files.
Now you're ready to select the boot, the NTDETECT, and the ntldr
files.Now right-click, click Send To, and select Floppy ( A:
).When you have copied all files to the floppy, you now have a
Windows XP boot disk.
You should make two or more boot disks and place them in a safe
place away from any type of magnetic or static charges.Before
putting them away don't forget to label your life saving floppy
disks.
Should you be unfortunate enough to have to put one of your boot
floppies to use, remember to replace the startup files on the
hard drive with the ones on the floppy.
If you overlook this critical step, you'll have the same boot
up problem every time.Take your time as you copy the files and
be sure not to reverse the copy procedure.
This is why its important to make two or more boot disks. This
way should you have an accident with one disk, so what, you paid
attention here and made several copies.
You've done it.You're now armed with a repair tool should your
XP computer fail to boot.All Windows 98, 2000, and Me users also
have the resources to create a book disk.
Read more: http://www.articlesbase.com/software-articles/how-to-make-a-windows-xp-boot-disk-87173.html#ixzz0nXZCBZMq
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution
Some Myths for Career Planning
Picking a right occupation is essential for building the bright future. Many of us have a myth that they know how to select the right career. But after some years, we feel that we have taken the wrong decision. In my opinion, Career Planning is a lifelong process including selection of a career, getting a job in the esteemed organization, possibly changing the career and afterwards eventually retiring. But we make wrong decisions due to some myths.
- Many of us think that career planning is so simple. But they forget that it is a multi-process task. So we should our career as per our interests and requirements. We should not take it so lightly because it is our future.
- A career counselor may help you in selecting your career. But you should pick a career matching with your educational qualifications. He/she may give you a Career Guidance that these are the some careers and after that, you have to make your decision more wisely.
- Many people think that we can earn more when we choose our hobby as career. But this is a myth only. There are many successful people that have earned with their hobby. We can take an example of Sachin tendulkar, Ramesh Krishnan etc.
- Earning a lot of salary may important for everyone. But in my opinion, job satisfaction is also important. I normally work for enjoyment because If we do our work with full dedication, we will definitely get success in our lives.
- Last but not least. Many of us stuck on one career whether we get a decent job in that field or not. But as per my personal experience, we should also try to make our career in other fields too. In other words, we can say that Career Planning is important for everyone.
The Importance of Computer Technology in Setting Up a Project Management System
In the world of globalization, Information system is such where data are collected, classified and put into process interpreting the result thereon in order to provide an integrated series of information for further communicating and analyzing. In a progressively more spirited worldwide atmosphere, Information System plays the role as ‘enabler and facilitator’, which endows with tactical values to the officialdom and considerable step up to the excellence of administration. ‘An Information System is a particular type of work system that uses information technology to detain, put on the air, store, retrieve, manipulate or display information, thereby partisan one or more other work structure’. In totting up to taking sides assessment making, co-ordination and control, information systems may also help managers and workers investigate problems, envisage complex subjects and generate new merchandise or services.
The criteria of operational systems and the idata management systems that support analytically pass through at least four phases: a) Introducing the system of manipulating the need to promulgate on going operational Management system b) development of the process of acquiring and configuring/installing the necessary hardware, software and other resources c) implementation, the process of making new system operational in the organisation, and d) Operation and maintenance, the process concerned with the operation of the system, correcting any problems that may arise and ensuring that the system is delivering the anticipating benefits. The management of these processes can be achieved and controlled using a series of techniques and management tools which, collectively, tend to be known as Structured Management System. Two important methodologies: PRINCE (Projects IN a Controlled Environment), and SSADM (Structured Systems Analysis and Design Methodology),structured by the Central Computing and Telecommunications Agency (CCTA), are used widely in the UK public sector and in some Developing Countries, like Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal etc. Prior to comment on the application of these methods in the Developing Countries, it would be pertinent to describe brief outlines of these methodologies.
It is a significant fact that PRINCE is a project management method; not system development, which covers the organisation, management and control of projects. Since its introduction in 1989, PRINCE has become widely used in both the public and private sectors and is now the UK’s de facto standard for project management. Although PRINCE was originally developed for the needs of IT projects, the method has also been used on many non-IT projects. PRINCE requires a dedicated team to be established to manage and carry out each project. It therefore aims to provide a supporting framework between the current state of affairs and the planned future state. PRINCE focuses attention on end-products rather than activities, ensuring that the organisation actually gets what it wants out of the project. Quality is seen as a necessary and integral part of the project and the focus on end-products enables the criteria by which quality is to be judged to be specified at the outset of the project. It requires the development of a viable “business case” for the project at its outset and that the business case needs to be periodically reviewed.
In PRINCE a project is regarded as having the following characteristics:
defined and unique set of technical products to meet the business needs
corresponding set of activities to construct those products
certain amount of resources
finite lifespan
organisational structure with defined responsibilities
In such Management Structured System, an approach to planning based on products rather than activities and the use of this approach for the benefits. It also emphasises that projects needs to define the ‘ shape’ or manageable phases of a project to promote sound business control. Stages are characterised by the production of specific products. The PRINCE model for projects is based on two main principles:
The project is a joint responsibility between users, the developers and the organisation for whose benefit the end-product is being developed
In order for projects to succeed, a special structure is demanded to manage the project throughout its life - from conception through build to handover. This structure is distinct from normal line management.
By Using these principles, the model defines three levels of activity:
Overall project management and major decision making
Day-to-day management
Production of end-products
These three levels of activity are assigned respectively to the Project Board, to the Project and Stage Managers, and to the Technical Teams. The latest version of the method, PRINCE 2, is a process-based approach for project management providing an easily tailored, and scaleable method for the management of all types of projects. Each process is defined with its key inputs and outputs together with the specific objectives to be achieved and activities to be carried out. In the following diagram, the process-based approach is shown:
Structured Management Process Model
Such Standard Method provides benefits to the organisation, as well as the managers and directors of the project, through the controllable use of resources and the ability to manage business and project risk more effectively. PRINCE enables projects to have:
a controlled and organised start, middle and end;
regular reviews of progress against plan and against Business Case;
flexible decision points;
automatic management control of any deviations from the plan;
the involvement of management and stakeholders at the right time and place during the project;
good communication channels between the project, project management, and the rest of the organisation.
There is no denying the fact that SSADM is a highly structured and rigorous method of systems development ,was originally developed by Learmonth and Burchett Management System (LBMS) following an investigation by the CCTA into adopting a standard Information System (IS) development method for use in UK government projects. It was launched in 1981 and by 1983 became mandatory for all the government IS developments. This gave SSADM a large toehold in the IS structured methods market.
It is a prerequisite for SSADM that user commitment and involvement are agreed right from the start. It provides a top-down approach, where a high level picture is drawn up and subsequently refined into lower levels of detail. One extremely important concept in SSADM is the distinction between logical and physical views of system components.
The following purpose are generally fulfilled by such important methods.
Provide a sound platform for communications between analysts, designers and users;
Reduce errors and gaps in the specification produced
Improve the quality of software documentation and the productivity of analysts;
Reduce potential risks by presenting analysts with a structural framework for the use of techniques, and a standard for documentation end-products;
Provide techniques for checking completeness and accuracy;
Improve the maintainability of the new systems;
Reuse staff and skills on other projects;
Protect investment in analysis and design, and to allow freedom in implementation techniques.
SSADM consists of three main components:
The structure or framework of an SSADM project
A set of standard analysis and design techniques
The products of each technique
The structure of SSADM might appear a little complex at first, but will make more sense as we began to look at the method in more detail. Following diagram illustrates the breakdown of the life cycle into a hierarchy of modules, stages, steps and tasks.Each module represents a SSADM phase, and is made up of one or two stages. Where a module contains two stages, one will be an analysis or design and the other will be a project decision stage. Each stages is made up of between two to seven steps, which provide the framework for applying and controlling the development techniques. The tasks to be carried out within each step define how the techniques should be used, and specify the required standard of the products output from the step. Following diagram shows the breakdown of SSADM's modules and stages.The major analysis techniques mainly used are as follows:
Business Activity Modelling (BAM) - explicitly describes what goes on that part of the business under investigation. The activities are defined from purely a business rather than on IS perspective. Recommended approach to be used in the construction of a BAM may be Soft System Methodology (SSM), Functional Decomposition or Resource Flow Diagrams.
Logical Data Modelling (LDM), representing system data, is applied throughout the life cycle to provide the foundation of the new system;
Work Practice Model (WPM) maps business activities onto the organisation structure defining user roles to the underlying business activities.
The key important thing is the end-product. Each step has number of tasks associated with it, most of which lead to the creation or enhancement of standard SSADM products. At the end of an SSADM project the new system will be described by the sum of these products. Products can be divided into three basic groups: Processing, Data and System-User (or Human-Computer) Interface.
By way of substantiating the Information System in developing countries is a complicated virtual process, specially in the public sector. With the growing needs in the information age, and by the pressure from the international donors , big and ambitious projects has been undertaken by the public sector in developing countries . But due to the lack of standard procedures and methodologies for IS development caused many projects to combat problems in the implementation stage. Many projects failed to attain their business needs, as they were too large and highly ambitious. Basic reasons for the project failure in the developing countries can be characterised as the following:
Solving wrong problem;
Technology led, not business;
Lack of major stakeholder involvement;
Experts lead, rather than facilitate;
Lack of commitment and hidden agenda;
Benefits not identified and quantified at outset.
Nowadays, the developing countries are applying both PRINCE AND SSADM methodologies, the project management development techniques, specially designed for IT projects, that are funded by the UK Department for International development (DFID).
4.2 In Bangladesh , private sectors are advancing with IS development , but it is not the identical situation in the public sector. The reasons behind this may be the poor salary structure in the public service, which never give confidence to the prospective talents and system designers to join the public services. Most of the IT projects are donor funded; domestically financed IT projects rarely experience success like the donor projects.
4.3 However, RIBEC (Reforms in Budgeting and Expenditure Control) project, funded by DFID, has been considered as the most successful project in Bangladesh.
At the early stage of RIBEC project (Phase 2), it was observed that, the project was design to develop and modernise the budgeting and accounting system of the government of Bangladesh. The experts mainly dominated that phase, including lots of things to cover. There was lack of stakeholders' involvement; problems were not recognised at the initial stage. Only a range of high-grade staff in the relevant field was given a general IT training. There was no follow up; no visible product was seen. Benefits were not identified. No system was developed to automate the budgeting and accounting system. So this phase 2 had experienced a massive failure. Having awful experience, the following phase (2A and 2B), a downsized project with specific output targets came up with analysing user requirements. This phase focused on sustainability and proved successful with sustainable solutions especially in the software development for budgeting and accounting Substantive training had been offered to the users of the systems. Stakeholders have been involved in the software development process and the local vendors who will be easily available in the future, developed the systems. Following PRINCE and SSADM as methods for project management and system development, RIBEC project is now considered as a model for other projects which implies the potential scope for applying these methodologies.Financial Management Project for HMG Nepal has been designed to establish a reliable database to ensure user friendly and reliable financial information and to computerise budgetary system. CCTA guidelines for IS strategy including PRINCE and SSADM were followed in developing the system. In Pakistan, Lahore WASA project experienced badly as the original proposal was too big and not phased project; no analysis of business needs, solution was technology led, benefits were not identified at outset, high risk strategy, questionable long-term sustainability, lack of training facilities and computing skill within organisation etc. So, 2 years’ costs and effort were wasted.
By taking into consideration the UK approach of project management, Lahore WASA claim to be successor and benefits are realised especially in the billing from bimonthly billing to daily billing and reduction in bill production cycle. The main project management approach in the new proposal includes: redefinition of purpose, identify business benefits, prioritise outputs, involvement of stakeholders, DIFID played the role as the facilitator not doer, ownership of solution by stakeholders, use of local consultant etc, phased development, distributed system.
In view of the above it is evident that ‘Information technology and Information systems for what they really are - powerful and valuable tools, but not magic. When applied thoughtfully, these tools can bring important benefits for individuals, organisations, and customers. When misapplied, they can waste tremendous amounts of time, effort, and money’.The USA, a Progressed and well structured country that is economically and technologically advanced, designed PRINCE AND SSADM, to meet their own requirements. It cannot be expected that these structured methodologies would equally suit the resource scarce developing countries. But the above discussions surmise that there is potential scope and rationale for applying PRINCE AND SSADM that would facilitate the developing countries for better project management and system development. But again, these methodologies need not be considered as the “ final conclusive critics”, rather these structural criteria should be used thoughtfully, tailored to manage projects efficiently and to develop effective information systems to cope with the challenge of change Management virtually.
The criteria of operational systems and the idata management systems that support analytically pass through at least four phases: a) Introducing the system of manipulating the need to promulgate on going operational Management system b) development of the process of acquiring and configuring/installing the necessary hardware, software and other resources c) implementation, the process of making new system operational in the organisation, and d) Operation and maintenance, the process concerned with the operation of the system, correcting any problems that may arise and ensuring that the system is delivering the anticipating benefits. The management of these processes can be achieved and controlled using a series of techniques and management tools which, collectively, tend to be known as Structured Management System. Two important methodologies: PRINCE (Projects IN a Controlled Environment), and SSADM (Structured Systems Analysis and Design Methodology),structured by the Central Computing and Telecommunications Agency (CCTA), are used widely in the UK public sector and in some Developing Countries, like Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal etc. Prior to comment on the application of these methods in the Developing Countries, it would be pertinent to describe brief outlines of these methodologies.
It is a significant fact that PRINCE is a project management method; not system development, which covers the organisation, management and control of projects. Since its introduction in 1989, PRINCE has become widely used in both the public and private sectors and is now the UK’s de facto standard for project management. Although PRINCE was originally developed for the needs of IT projects, the method has also been used on many non-IT projects. PRINCE requires a dedicated team to be established to manage and carry out each project. It therefore aims to provide a supporting framework between the current state of affairs and the planned future state. PRINCE focuses attention on end-products rather than activities, ensuring that the organisation actually gets what it wants out of the project. Quality is seen as a necessary and integral part of the project and the focus on end-products enables the criteria by which quality is to be judged to be specified at the outset of the project. It requires the development of a viable “business case” for the project at its outset and that the business case needs to be periodically reviewed.
In PRINCE a project is regarded as having the following characteristics:
defined and unique set of technical products to meet the business needs
corresponding set of activities to construct those products
certain amount of resources
finite lifespan
organisational structure with defined responsibilities
In such Management Structured System, an approach to planning based on products rather than activities and the use of this approach for the benefits. It also emphasises that projects needs to define the ‘ shape’ or manageable phases of a project to promote sound business control. Stages are characterised by the production of specific products. The PRINCE model for projects is based on two main principles:
The project is a joint responsibility between users, the developers and the organisation for whose benefit the end-product is being developed
In order for projects to succeed, a special structure is demanded to manage the project throughout its life - from conception through build to handover. This structure is distinct from normal line management.
By Using these principles, the model defines three levels of activity:
Overall project management and major decision making
Day-to-day management
Production of end-products
These three levels of activity are assigned respectively to the Project Board, to the Project and Stage Managers, and to the Technical Teams. The latest version of the method, PRINCE 2, is a process-based approach for project management providing an easily tailored, and scaleable method for the management of all types of projects. Each process is defined with its key inputs and outputs together with the specific objectives to be achieved and activities to be carried out. In the following diagram, the process-based approach is shown:
Structured Management Process Model
Such Standard Method provides benefits to the organisation, as well as the managers and directors of the project, through the controllable use of resources and the ability to manage business and project risk more effectively. PRINCE enables projects to have:
a controlled and organised start, middle and end;
regular reviews of progress against plan and against Business Case;
flexible decision points;
automatic management control of any deviations from the plan;
the involvement of management and stakeholders at the right time and place during the project;
good communication channels between the project, project management, and the rest of the organisation.
There is no denying the fact that SSADM is a highly structured and rigorous method of systems development ,was originally developed by Learmonth and Burchett Management System (LBMS) following an investigation by the CCTA into adopting a standard Information System (IS) development method for use in UK government projects. It was launched in 1981 and by 1983 became mandatory for all the government IS developments. This gave SSADM a large toehold in the IS structured methods market.
It is a prerequisite for SSADM that user commitment and involvement are agreed right from the start. It provides a top-down approach, where a high level picture is drawn up and subsequently refined into lower levels of detail. One extremely important concept in SSADM is the distinction between logical and physical views of system components.
The following purpose are generally fulfilled by such important methods.
Provide a sound platform for communications between analysts, designers and users;
Reduce errors and gaps in the specification produced
Improve the quality of software documentation and the productivity of analysts;
Reduce potential risks by presenting analysts with a structural framework for the use of techniques, and a standard for documentation end-products;
Provide techniques for checking completeness and accuracy;
Improve the maintainability of the new systems;
Reuse staff and skills on other projects;
Protect investment in analysis and design, and to allow freedom in implementation techniques.
SSADM consists of three main components:
The structure or framework of an SSADM project
A set of standard analysis and design techniques
The products of each technique
The structure of SSADM might appear a little complex at first, but will make more sense as we began to look at the method in more detail. Following diagram illustrates the breakdown of the life cycle into a hierarchy of modules, stages, steps and tasks.Each module represents a SSADM phase, and is made up of one or two stages. Where a module contains two stages, one will be an analysis or design and the other will be a project decision stage. Each stages is made up of between two to seven steps, which provide the framework for applying and controlling the development techniques. The tasks to be carried out within each step define how the techniques should be used, and specify the required standard of the products output from the step. Following diagram shows the breakdown of SSADM's modules and stages.The major analysis techniques mainly used are as follows:
Business Activity Modelling (BAM) - explicitly describes what goes on that part of the business under investigation. The activities are defined from purely a business rather than on IS perspective. Recommended approach to be used in the construction of a BAM may be Soft System Methodology (SSM), Functional Decomposition or Resource Flow Diagrams.
Logical Data Modelling (LDM), representing system data, is applied throughout the life cycle to provide the foundation of the new system;
Work Practice Model (WPM) maps business activities onto the organisation structure defining user roles to the underlying business activities.
The key important thing is the end-product. Each step has number of tasks associated with it, most of which lead to the creation or enhancement of standard SSADM products. At the end of an SSADM project the new system will be described by the sum of these products. Products can be divided into three basic groups: Processing, Data and System-User (or Human-Computer) Interface.
By way of substantiating the Information System in developing countries is a complicated virtual process, specially in the public sector. With the growing needs in the information age, and by the pressure from the international donors , big and ambitious projects has been undertaken by the public sector in developing countries . But due to the lack of standard procedures and methodologies for IS development caused many projects to combat problems in the implementation stage. Many projects failed to attain their business needs, as they were too large and highly ambitious. Basic reasons for the project failure in the developing countries can be characterised as the following:
Solving wrong problem;
Technology led, not business;
Lack of major stakeholder involvement;
Experts lead, rather than facilitate;
Lack of commitment and hidden agenda;
Benefits not identified and quantified at outset.
Nowadays, the developing countries are applying both PRINCE AND SSADM methodologies, the project management development techniques, specially designed for IT projects, that are funded by the UK Department for International development (DFID).
4.2 In Bangladesh , private sectors are advancing with IS development , but it is not the identical situation in the public sector. The reasons behind this may be the poor salary structure in the public service, which never give confidence to the prospective talents and system designers to join the public services. Most of the IT projects are donor funded; domestically financed IT projects rarely experience success like the donor projects.
4.3 However, RIBEC (Reforms in Budgeting and Expenditure Control) project, funded by DFID, has been considered as the most successful project in Bangladesh.
At the early stage of RIBEC project (Phase 2), it was observed that, the project was design to develop and modernise the budgeting and accounting system of the government of Bangladesh. The experts mainly dominated that phase, including lots of things to cover. There was lack of stakeholders' involvement; problems were not recognised at the initial stage. Only a range of high-grade staff in the relevant field was given a general IT training. There was no follow up; no visible product was seen. Benefits were not identified. No system was developed to automate the budgeting and accounting system. So this phase 2 had experienced a massive failure. Having awful experience, the following phase (2A and 2B), a downsized project with specific output targets came up with analysing user requirements. This phase focused on sustainability and proved successful with sustainable solutions especially in the software development for budgeting and accounting Substantive training had been offered to the users of the systems. Stakeholders have been involved in the software development process and the local vendors who will be easily available in the future, developed the systems. Following PRINCE and SSADM as methods for project management and system development, RIBEC project is now considered as a model for other projects which implies the potential scope for applying these methodologies.Financial Management Project for HMG Nepal has been designed to establish a reliable database to ensure user friendly and reliable financial information and to computerise budgetary system. CCTA guidelines for IS strategy including PRINCE and SSADM were followed in developing the system. In Pakistan, Lahore WASA project experienced badly as the original proposal was too big and not phased project; no analysis of business needs, solution was technology led, benefits were not identified at outset, high risk strategy, questionable long-term sustainability, lack of training facilities and computing skill within organisation etc. So, 2 years’ costs and effort were wasted.
By taking into consideration the UK approach of project management, Lahore WASA claim to be successor and benefits are realised especially in the billing from bimonthly billing to daily billing and reduction in bill production cycle. The main project management approach in the new proposal includes: redefinition of purpose, identify business benefits, prioritise outputs, involvement of stakeholders, DIFID played the role as the facilitator not doer, ownership of solution by stakeholders, use of local consultant etc, phased development, distributed system.
In view of the above it is evident that ‘Information technology and Information systems for what they really are - powerful and valuable tools, but not magic. When applied thoughtfully, these tools can bring important benefits for individuals, organisations, and customers. When misapplied, they can waste tremendous amounts of time, effort, and money’.The USA, a Progressed and well structured country that is economically and technologically advanced, designed PRINCE AND SSADM, to meet their own requirements. It cannot be expected that these structured methodologies would equally suit the resource scarce developing countries. But the above discussions surmise that there is potential scope and rationale for applying PRINCE AND SSADM that would facilitate the developing countries for better project management and system development. But again, these methodologies need not be considered as the “ final conclusive critics”, rather these structural criteria should be used thoughtfully, tailored to manage projects efficiently and to develop effective information systems to cope with the challenge of change Management virtually.
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