Marketing budget Essay Example

Marketing budget Essay A marketing budget is a quantifiable target which is set by a firm and which relates to its marketing activities. It may involve a target level of sales for a particular product (a sales budget) or set out the amount a firm intends to spend to achieve its marketing objectives (an expenditure budget). The sales budgets may include targets for the absolute level of sales a firm would like to achieve, or for a desired level of market share; they may also include targets for particular regions or for particular types of customers or distribution channels. Marketing expenditure budgets, by comparison, set out the desired amount of spending on activities such as advertising, sales promotions, paying the sales force, direct mailings and market research.The size of the sales budgets is likely to depend on:* The level of sales a product has achieved in the past; a firm may extrapolate a future sales target based on past trends* The expenditure budget; a firm may set a higher sales target if i t is also intending to spend more on its marketing activities* Market conditions; actions by competitors and the state of the economy, may affect the firms expected level of sales* Objectives and strategy; the target level of sales for a niche product is obviously likely to be lower than it is for a mass market product.The size of the marketing expenditure budget will depend on* The firms overall financial position. The amount of money allocated to a particular function such as marketing will inevitably depend on what it has available to spend in total. In a successful year it is easier to have a bigger budget than in an unsuccessful year. On this basis the marketing budget is likely to be lower when sales are lower and bigger when they are higher. This is often what actually happens within organisations although in many ways this is not a particularly sensible way to budget. In unsuccessful years the budget should arguably be higher (not lower) in order to improve the firms sales, assuming of course that the firm can raise the funds needed to finance this. Unfortunately, though, the size of the budget does not just depend on what the firm would like it to be it must depend on what the firm actually has available or what funds it can raise; as a result the budget may be lower at precisely the time when managers would like to increase it* The firms marketing objectives and strategy. The amount of money allocated for marketing activities should clearly depend on what the firm is trying to achieve and the returns it expects to gain from its plans. When first launching a product, for example, the promotional budget is likely to be higher than it is for a more established product. Similarly when first entering a new segment, spending on market research may be higher than in a normal year.* The amount the firm expects to receive back is also of critical importance: a firm is likely to be prepared to spend more marketing a project with a high rate of return than on one which has a low expected rate of return* Competitors. A firms budget is very likely to be affected by the amount its competitors are spending. If its competitors increase their spending on product development or promotion, for example, a firm may feel it necessary to increase its own expenditure to maintain its competitive position.Of course just because a firm has a large marketing budget does not mean that its marketing is necessarily more effective; the effectiveness of marketing activities will depend in part on the funds available but it will also depend on whether the right activities have been chosen in the first place and how effectively they are being implemented.Setting the marketing budgetThe marketing budget should be set in consultation with those who will be responsible for undertaking the activities it involves. The amount of money to be spent on marketing overall, for example, should be agreed with the marketing manager. Given that the marketing manager is the pe rson who will be held accountable if the budget is not hit he or she would obviously be involved in deciding what the figure should be.By involving the people who will actually have to achieve these financial targets the firm is more likely to gain their commitment. If instead people are simply told that they have to achieve certain targets without any prior discussion they are unlikely to feel much ownership of the budgets and as a result are unlikely to be committed to them. They may resent the fact they have not been involved in the process of setting the targets and consequently they may not be motivated to achieve them.Furthermore the process of discussing the targets may well highlight important issues which the superiors need to be aware of; the people who implement the policies are the ones who are most likely to know what is and what is not feasible and it therefore makes sense to make use of their expertise.However, it is important not to get involved with prolonged negoti ations over the size of a budget if this delays decision making for too long. The process of budget setting can at times be quite slow and it is important to make sure it does not prevent managers from getting on with the job in hand.Also superiors must be aware that subordinates may well try to set targets which suit themselves rather than the organisation. It is perfectly natural, for example, for people to exaggerate the likely costs of a project to make sure that they will be able to stay within their expenditure budgets. Similarly employees may set relatively low sales targets to make sure they are easy to hit.It is also important for managers to consider the size of the marketing budget in the context of the overall spending and income of the firm. Resources diverted towards marketing are clearly not available for use elsewhere and so there is an opportunity cost which should be taken into account. As well as the overall size of the budget managers must also consider the timin g of the payments and earnings inA sales forecast may be produced in a number of ways in relation to the firms overall cashflow position. A major marketing campaign, for example, may involve very heavy expenditure and managers must ensure this does not lead to liquidity problems.Sales forecastingA key element of a marketing plan is the sales forecast. This sets out targets for overall sales and for particular products and services. A sales forecast acts as a goal against which a firm can measure its progress. It also drives many other decisions within the firm. For example* The production schedule will have to be closely linked to the sales forecasts to ensure the firm has the appropriate mix and number of products at the right time* The sales forecast will also influence the cash flow forecast; only by knowing what sales are expected to occur can the finance department estimate cash inflows. Having compared the expected inflows with expected cash outflows the finance function can t hen decide if particular steps need to be taken such as arranging overdraft or loan facilities* Human resource decisions will also depend on the expected level of sales. Decisions about staffing levels and the allocation of staff to particular duties will inevitably be determined by the expected sales levels. Strong sales growth may require more recruitment, for example.Producing a sales forecast* It may be based on backdata (i.e. data from the past). The firm may look at sales levels in previous years, identify an underlying trend and extrapolate from this. A holiday company experiencing a fall in the number of enquiries in a particular month compared to past years may change its sales forecast downwards. This technique is useful, provided the trends identified in the past continue into the future. If, in fact, there has been a major shift in buying patterns (egg the timing of buying has changed) extrapolation could be misleading.* The firm may use market research to try to identif y likely future trends. The value of this research depends on whether it is primary or secondary and the quality of the information. If a small sample is used, for example, the forecast is less likely to be accurate than if a larger sample had been used.* It may be based on the firms best guess. Managers could use their own experience or hire industry experts for their opinion of what is most likely to happen. This approach to forecasting is common if the rate of change in the market is great or if the firm is facing a new scenario and does not have past data to build on.The method of forecasting used by a firm will depend on the nature of the product and the market situation. When the National Lottery was launched in the UK, for example, Camelot (the organiser of the lottery) could have forecast sales by looking at existing national lottery systems in other countries and adjusting these data to take account of the differences in culture and the precise nature of the system in the U K. Camelot might also have used secondary research to identify gambling trends within the UK and primary research to identify customers likely reaction to the lottery scheme. However, although the company probably used very sophisticated research techniques it is likely there was also an element of hunch in there too. After all, it was a completely new product within the UK and so there were no past data within this country to build on. Obviously once the lottery had been up and running for a few months the organisers were able to make better predictions of expected weekly sales because they were accumulating backdata and gaining a better insight into the market.Test marketingTo help predict its future sales a firm may decide to try out a product or service in a test market. A test market is a representative selection of consumers which the firm uses to try out a new product. Having seen the results in the test market the firm can estimate how the product might sell elsewhere and pr oduct a sales forecast. By using a test market the firm can see customers reactions before committing to a full-scale launch. If necessary, changes can still be made before the product is widely available. Many film companies, for example, show their films to a test audience before they go on general release to assess the publics reaction.The disadvantage of using test marketing is that competitors have an opportunity to see what you are planning to launch. This gives them time to develop a similar product and race you to launch first on a wide scale.A test market may also give misleading results. This might be because the test market chosen is not representative or because competitors actions lead to misleading results. For example, rivals might increase their promotional activities in the test market to reduce a firms sales and lead it to believe that the new product will not do well.Why might forecasts be wrong?Forecasts can only be predictions of the future. They may well be wro ng because:* Customer-buying behaviour changes suddenly, e.g. customers suddenly decide a product is unsafe or unfashionable* The original market research was poor. This may be because the sample was too small or was unrepresentative. Alternatively it may be because the results were wrongly interpreted; this could be because the firm was in a rush to launch the product. In some cases the research may actually have been ignored managers may have been certain that they knew best and gone ahead with the decision regardless of the findings of market research* The experts were wrong; even the best-informed people can misread a situation and make mistakes just look at the predictions of so-called experts before any horse race or football match or look at the many different and often conflicting forecasts of growth in the economy that are often published in the papers.Inevitably a firms external and internal conditions are likely to change and this can make it extremely difficult to esti mate future sales. However, this does not necessarily make forecasting a useless management tool. The simple process of forecasting makes managers think ahead and plan for different scenarios. This may help to ensure they are much better prepared for change than if they did not forecast at all.Also even though a forecast may not be exactly accurate it may give an indication of the direction in which sales are moving and some sense of the magnitude of future sales which can help a firms planning. Ultimately it may not matter much whether sales are 2,000,002 units or 2,000,020 units but it makes a big difference whether they are 2m or 4m in terms of staffing, finance and production levels i.e. provided the forecast is approximately right it can still be very useful even if it is not exactly correct.It is also important to remember that sales forecasts can be updated. A firm does not have to make a forecast and leave it there. As conditions change and new information feeds in, the mana gers can update the forecast and adjust accordingly.The reliability of forecastsForecasts are most likely to be correct when* A trend has been extrapolated and the market conditions have continued as before* A test market is used and is truly representative of the target population* The forecast is made by experts (such as your own salesforces) and they have good insight into the market and future trends.* The firm is forecasting for the near future. It is usually easier to estimate what sales will be next week compared to estimating sales in five years time

Sociology of Sexual Differences A Critique of The Feminization of Love Essay Example

Sociology of Sexual Differences A Critique of The Feminization of Love Essay Example Sociology of Sexual Differences A Critique of The Feminization of Love Paper Sociology of Sexual Differences A Critique of The Feminization of Love Paper Essay Topic: Literature We identify love with emotional expression and discussion of felling. The feminization of love by Francesca M. Cancian, focus is on one kind of love: long-term heterosexual love in contemporary United States. Cancians thesis is that there is a feminized and incomplete perspective on love predominates in the United States. There are two guidelines, which Cancian suggests for developing a useful definition of enduring love. The first guideline for a definition of enduring love comes from the prototypes of enduring love the relations between committed lovers, husband and wife, parent and child. Historical provided a second guideline for defining enduring love, specifically between a woman and a man. This historical analysis implies that affection, material help, and routine cooperation all are parts of enduring love. Cancian working definition of enduring love between adults is a relationship wherein a small number of people are affectionate and committed to each other, (define their collective well being as a major goal, and feel obligated to provide core and practical assistance for each other). The second guideline is a narrower feminized definition of love that dominates both contemporary scholarship and public opinion, such as talking about feelings. For Example, Abraham Maslow defines love as a feeling of tenderness and affection with great enjoyment, happiness, satisfaction, elation and even ecstasy. Feminist scholars are dividing on the question of love and gender. Scholars have used Nancy Chodorows theory to develop the idea that love and attachment are fundamental parts of womens personalities but not of mens. A feminized conception of love can be supported by other theories as well, but the strongest support is form the feminized perspective comes from such psychological theories as Chodorows. Feminist historians have developed an incisive critique of the feminized perspective on love. Their argument, in simple form begins with the observation that in the colonial era the family household was the arena for economic production, affection, and social welfare. As the daily activities of men and women grew further apart, a new worldview emerged that exaggerated the differences between the personal, loving, feminine sphere of the home and the impersonal, powerful, masculine sphere of the workplace. Work became identified with men do for money while love became identified with womens activities at home. Women are only moderately superior to men at love: they have more close relationships and care more about them, and they seem to be more skilled at love, especially when it involves expressing feeling and being venerable. Men tend to have a distinctive style of love that focuses on practical help, shared physical activities, spending time together and sex. Here are some negative consequences of the feminization of love: the feminized perspective leads to political and moral problems; it works against some of the key values and goals of feminists and humanists by contributing to the devaluation and exploitation of women; it states that mens dependency on women remains covert and repressed while womens dependency on men is overt and exaggerated; the feminized perspective on love reinforces this power differential by leading to the belief that women need love more than men; the feminized perspective love is that it legitimates impersonal, exploitive relation in the workplace and the community; feminization of love intensifies the conflicts over intimacy between women and men in close relationship, finally the feminized perspective on love, childcare is a subtle communication of activities, not work. In conclusion the material in this article supports the course thesis that gender is socially constructed. The concept of the sociological imagination supports practically everything in this article. First it talks about history of the past and how things are starting to change. Secondly, the article shows how society plays a role. Finally, the article talks about individuals (men and women) but it does not really explain how they feel. Cancians article is very wordy, boring and it jumps around quite a lot. The article made me think of topics I have never really thought about. The author certainly accomplished what she set out to do.

Study Schedule for a Test Six Days Away

Study Schedule for a Test Six Days Away Your test is coming up in six days, and thankfully, youre ahead of the game because for you, cramming for a test is a huge no-no.  By giving yourself six days to prepare, youve done yourself a big favor. Not only have you reduced the amount of study time needed per session, but you have also given yourself enough time to be perfectly prepped for your test. Great news, huh? Heres a study schedule to help you prepare for a test thats six days away. Have less time? Check out the study schedules below for fewer days. Study Schedule Day 1: Ask and Read In School: Ask your teacher what type of test it will be. Multiple choice? Essay? Thatll make a difference in how you prepare.Ask your teacher for a review sheet if he/she hasnt already given you one. (i.e. test content)Get a study partner set up for the night before the test if possible – even via phone/facebook/Skype.Take home your review sheet and textbook. At Home: Eat some brain food.Read your review sheet, so you know whats going to be on the test.Reread the chapters in the textbook that will be on the test.Thats it for day one! Study Schedule Day 2: Organize and Make Flashcards: In School: Pay attention in class – your teacher may be going over things that will be on the test!Take home your handouts, assignments, and former quizzes along with your textbook and review sheet. At Home: Organize your notes. Rewrite or type them up so theyre legible. Organize your handouts according to dates. Make note of anything youre missing. (Wheres the vocab quiz from chapter 2?)Go through your review sheet, finding the answers for every question on there from your notes, handouts, textbook, etc.Make flashcards with a question/term/vocab word on the front of the card, and the answer on the back. When youre finished, put your flashcards in your backpack so you can study throughout the day tomorrow.Stay focused! Study Schedule Day 3: Memorize In School: Throughout the day, pull your flashcards out and ask yourself questions (when youre waiting for class to start, at lunch, during study hall, etc.)Clarify anything you didnt totally understand with your teacher. Ask for missing items (that vocab quiz from chapter 2).Ask if there will be a review before the test later this week. At Home: Set a timer for 45 minutes, and memorize everything on the review sheet that you dont already know using mnemonic devices like acronyms or singing a song. Stop after 45 minutes and move on to other homework. You have three more days to study for this bad boy!Put your flashcards in your backpack for more review tomorrow. Study Schedule Day 4: Memorize Some More In School: Again, pull your flashcards out and ask yourself questions throughout the day. At Home: Set a timer for 45 minutes again. Go back through your flashcards and review sheet, memorizing anything you dont have down pat. Stop after 45 minutes. Youre done for the day!Put your flashcards in your backpack for review again tomorrow. Study Schedule Day 5: Finalizing memory In School: Throughout the day, pull your flashcards out and ask yourself questions again.Confirm study date with a friend for tomorrow evening. At Home: Set your timer for 45 minutes and run through your flashcards and review sheet. Take a 5-minute break. Repeat the process until your content knowledge is better than your teachers. Study Schedule Day 6: Review and Quiz In School: If your teacher is having an exam review today, pay close attention and write down anything you havent learned yet. If the teacher mentions it today – its on the test, guaranteed! At Home: Ten-twenty minutes before your study partner (or mom) shows up to quiz you for the exam, review your flashcards. Make sure you have everything down pat.Quiz. When your study partner arrives, take turns asking possible exam questions to each other. Make sure each of you has a turn asking and answering because youll learn the material best by doing both. Stop once youve been through the questions a few times and get a good nights sleep.

Leonardo Da Vinci Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Leonardo Da Vinci - Research Paper Example Verrocchio was the name of his teacher who trained Da Vinci in a Florentine studio until he began his art career. Leonardo was 14 years during his apprenticeship. He spent the following years in mastering what the world would later love and remember him. It is significant to mention that the establishment of Leonardo Da Vinci personal workshop at 20 years was commendable1. During his career, Leonardo Da Vinci experienced both pleasant moments in which many people admired him. However, throughout his art existence, Da Vinci equally experienced low moments in which his works were criticized2. For instance, Leonardo Da Vinci was lucky to get numerous rich clients because of the perfection of his works. Leonardo died, 67, as a vegetarian after a life of painting using most inspirations from his life. Leonardo Da Vinci’s highlight was when Lorenzo de Medici, an Italian rich man asked him to design a silver piece of art. The silver lyre which he initiated made him get more orders fr om this rich Italian man. Leonardo’s life focused on respect for nature because of his continuous habit to free birds in to their natural homes. Finally, Leonardo Da Vinci’s life had most celebrations because up to date people still have T-shirts and other sales materials, which have his paintings. Most Famous Paintings Evidently, â€Å"Vitruvian Man, The Last Supper and Mona Lisa â€Å"are the most popular paintings of Da Vinci. In particular, The Last Supper (painted on a rectory wall) began to deteriorate following its creation because Da Vinci did not use the tempera on panel technique. 3The creation of the Last Supper was instantly when Jesus indicated that a disciple would be disloyal to Him. It is unfortunate that a majority of Leonardo Da Vinci works do not survive because of his deep sense of adventure with new technologies. However, even if the painting flaked, there was a recent remodeling of the same in order for people to enjoy viewing it. Moreover, The Mona Lisa is called half a smile because of Leonardo Da Vinci’s unique use of lightning in most of his paintings. In addition, Leonardo kept on postponing the completion of some of his pieces. Therefore, the available work could be perfect if he had more focus. It is also imperative to mention that his early work was called â€Å"The Baptism of Christ†, which he created with Verrocchio. All Leonardo Da Vinci’s renowned paintings display diverse aspects of movement unlike the remaining painters. Characteristics of Leonardo Da Vinci’s Art It is noteworthy to mention that Da Vinci’s works borrow a great deal of the human anatomy. Originally, The Mona Lisa was meant to be a private piece which took two years for the completion of its creation. This Mona Lisa painting is set on a significant light, which enables people to notice the uniqueness of the painting. The most obvious special characteristic about The Mona Lisa is Leonardo’s use of the sm oke technique. Further, this smoke technique makes it hard for anyone to notice the difference between darkness and lightness in the picture. The liquid paint, which Leonardo uses, depicts his understanding of the world to be always in movement4. Additionally, the painting of Mona Lisa is unique because of the unique half smile presented by Leonardo. The face of the woman in the painting is straight to the viewer. However, the rest of her body faces the direct opposite from

Reserach paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Reserach paper - Essay Example President Bush takes over leadership from bill Clinton. Economic wise, taxation is the major player in the field. Principles related to the handling and imposing of tax vary between the two presidents. This is exhibited when the change in taxation is implemented by Bush. He introduces lower taxation rates contrary to the bill that had higher taxation system. America prepares to make control over the world as they aspire to be the best in war technology. The establishment of research in the sector of biological toxins as weapons targeting specific people is established. The control of these toxins is also put in check in order to avoid attacks from within. This is father enhanced by restricting the ownership of some transport vessels. These are done through fast legislations. This document relies on research findings and analysis of the changes during 2000-2001 in the US. There are changes that were realised during this period. Among which, the legislations that were directed towards ensuring safety of the Americans after the attack in Yemen. These included restrictions and developments in research sectors. Some changes involved the attack on the terror groups. This was targeted at eliminating the Taliban and al-Qaeda who were the arch enemies of the states. This was the time when elections held, and to some extent, it disputed within states. Bush emerged the winner as Clinton left office. The economy is said to have had a surplus budget then. This was due to the high taxation rate that was imposed by bills administration. Bush, however, lowered the rates after taking over the office. In this same period, the genetic code was cracked. This gave a lime light to a discovery of drugs to treat ailments related to genetic composition of the humans. The other changes that were realised in this period were the development of legislation that restricted ownership of defined commodities. This was as a result of an attack on the naval ship. Measures were

Evolution in Skyscraper’s Design Essay Example for Free

Evolution in Skyscraper’s Design Essay The term skyscraper in early times was commonly used in marine services to describe the high erected mast of a ship. This term was coined later to refer to storey buildings. Previously the term referred to very tall buildings of ten to twenty storeys but in the recent past the term now includes high-rises of forty to fifty storeys or even more. However, for a building to be termed as a skyscraper, it should be distinct from other surrounding buildings in its striking feature of high elevation and markedly affecting the normal view of skyline when looked across through its high rise due to its obstruction (Moudry, 2005 pp. 16-18). Evolution of skyscrapers Evolution of skyscrapers can be traced back to early Babylonian civilization with the Tower of Babel erected in the Babylon which was the first city to be established after great flood as it is given in the Biblical narrative, historical context and other extracanonical sources. Down the line, there has been erection of some tall buildings in different cities of the world but have not been such remarkable as those from the beginning of nineteenth century. Prior to this time, relatively tall buildings used to exist that basically employed use of masonry as the oldest material. The 19th Century structural system technological developments have been hallmark to the emergence of super tall buildings in the world. These new advancements from masonry which were the oldest material all through steel work era to use of composite construction have seen the erection of super tall buildings such as the Petronas Towers and the Jin Mao building that we see today. The City Hall in Philadelphia is the tallest masonry building in the world. It is 167 M (548 ft). It was completed in 1901 using masonry bricks and stones. But this technique could not easily allow construction of super tall buildings seen in today’s world because stone and bricks heavy weights were the limiting factor. The first skyscraper was steel- framed ten storeys known as Your Home Insurance Building in Chicago built by Illiam Le Barion Jenney, an engineering officer in 1885. Your Home Insurance Building was among the first buildings to use metal for support. After some sixteen years later, the first concrete 15 storey skyscraper known as Ingalls Building in Cincinnati, Ohio was erected by Elzner, O. A. It had integration of twisted steel bars with concrete as frame with slabs and concrete exterior walls (Haverstock et al, 2000 pp. 105-108). This was a remarkable stride in the realm of construction by 20th Century. However, more improvement in concrete technology has continued to be realized. The innovations of lightweight concrete material enable construction of tall buildings. The One Shell Plaza built in Texas in early 1970s which has 52 stories is a good example of tallest lightweight structure in the world. It can be observed that from early skyscrapers constructors, the technological evolutions were partly necessitated by the dictates of human needs such as residential and office apartment’s architectural arrangements so as to meet people needs wholesomely (Wright, 2007 pp. 77-80). Structural developments have even made it easier to meet these increasingly new demands by innovation of framed tabular structural systems. This has facilitated construction of many stories building. This is because they give three-dimensional robust framework that is able to resist mechanical stresses and compressions. Presently, skyscrapers constructions make use of steel; reinforced concrete, granite and glass. Many of skyscrapers in ancient times were found in parts o f Chicago, New York and London towards close to 19th Century. Today, skyscrapers are not limited to these regions alone, but are found even in Asian continent. In the New York City, at the beginning of 20th Century it was the center of the Beaux Arts architectural movement that made it so progressive having been graced with great architects that enabled it to be land of outstanding skyscrapers in the world. It is generally observed that skyscrapers since the past were associated with elements of nation’s power and economic status. This is because the nature of super tall building built largely depends on the financial capabilities, technological advancements and man power which reflects nation’s supremacy and hence its pride. In about last two decades skyscraper designs are taking latest architectural designs that include former designs but with characteristic features of the geographic elements of where these structures built such as cultural designs like Arabic arts as exhibited in Burj Dubai skyscraper which is yet to be completed. It is evident that, apart from innovations in structural system, geographical changes also markedly did affect the evolution of skyscraper designing especially in twentieth century. Early architects of skyscrapers as it can be seen in World Trade Center, as an example, assumed geometrical shapes like that of a box.

The Grade Inflation Epidemic Essay -- Argumentative Persuasive Topics

The Grade Inflation Epidemic      Ã‚  Ã‚   It's June, and another graduating class is hoping, among other things, to achieve high grades. Of course, "high" is a subjective target. Originally a "C" meant average; today however, the expectations and pressures to give and receive "A's" and "B's" takes its toll on teachers and students alike. This nullifies the value of the traditional grading scale and creates a host of entirely new problems. The widespread occurrence of grade inflation seriously affects the credibility of secondary and post-secondary education in America.    The definition of an acceptable grade has changed significantly over the years. Grade inflation seemed to begin in earnest in the late 1960s after the bombing of Cambodia. Male college students who failed their classes would lose their deferments for the draft. Some professors gave higher grades so their students wouldn't have to go to war. The cause of the problem wasn't the compassionate professors, but the national policy of linking the deferments to academic success (Hambert).    Unfortunately, along with the astounding cost of college education, comes a pressure for students to compete for scholarship dollars. Faced with losing the means of paying for their schooling, students will go to just about any length to assure good grades. Often clear ethics and morals take a back seat when it comes to doing whatever it takes to pass a course with a good grade. Any teacher with a heart would reconsider a poor grade that would cost a student the funding to complete their education. While some students might earn terrible grades in History, they may make terrific doctors someday. It seems absurd for a grade to have the power to sabot... ...set up to serve - the student.    Works Cited    Dwyer, Victor. "Are We Cheating Our Kids?" Mc'Clean's Magazine 14 Mar. 1994: 44-54 Franey, Lynn. "Inflation Pumping Up Students GPA's." Spokesman Review 20 May 2001: A4+. Hambert, Craid. "Desperately Seeking Summa." Harvard Magazine May 1993: 36-40 Mattern, Elizabeth. "Officials Debate Grade Inflation." Daily Camera 25 May 2001 http://www.thedailycamera.com/buffzone/news/131grad.html Moore, Patrick. "Grade Inflation at Public Universities: Who Profits, Who Pays?" UALR I. May 2001. http://www.ualr.edu/~epmoore/inflation.html II. Pitsch, Mark. "States Seek Goals 2000 Aid for Existing Efforts." Education Week Vol. XIV (1994): 17+. Srinivasan, Kalpana. "Forum to Address Grade Inflation." Yale 25May 2001 http://www.yale.edu/ydn/paper/3.27/3.27.95storyno.FE.html