The purpose of this research was to investigate to what extent did the Edison Community College students enrolled in telecourse English Composition classes differ with respect to learning styles, completion rates, performance, motivation for selecting a particular mode of instruction, and selected demographics as compared to ECC students enrolled in traditional English Composition classes. A second dimension of this investigation was to identify the achievement/differences among the community college students that could be attributed to the independent variables (learning styles, reason for choice of mode of delivery, experience with college and distance learning, course load, and student demographics) in the study. A total of 179 students enrolled at Edison Community College between January 5, 2001 and May 1, 2001 responded to the Grasha-Riechman Student Learning Style Survey and an accompanying demographic survey that was administered to five distance learning and five face-to-face sections of English Composition I and II. The learning style survey elicited responses that reduced a student score in each of the six learning styles (dependent, independent, participant, avoidant, competitive, and collaborative). The demographic survey identified students' experience in distance learning, reasons for selection of modality of instruction, current coarse load, and personal demographics. Additional academic data were harvested from the Edison Community College institutional database including the final grade earned in the course. Analyses of these data produced a demographic profile of the academically successful telecourse student and the academically successful traditional student. Conclusions of the study follow: 1. Students with high collaborative learning style scores most often enrolled in traditional classes. 2. Students with high participant learning style scores were likely to have higher grades in English Composition and students with high avoidant learning style scores were likely to earn lower grades. 3. High collaborative learning style scores were significantly correlated to continuance in English Composition courses. 4. The factor of choice in selection of the mode of instruction did not affect withdrawal in English Composition. 5. Age range and motivation for selecting the course modality were the only characteristics that distinguished academically. successful distance learners from academically successful traditional students.

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There is a steadily increasing demand for the use of jack-up units in deeper water and harsher environments. Confidence in their use in these environments requires jack-up analysis techniques to reflect accurately the physical processes occurring. This thesis is concerned with the models appropriate for the dynamic assessment of jack-ups, an important issue in long-term reliability considerations. The motivation is to achieve a balanced approach in considering the non-linearities in the structure, foundations and wave loading. A work hardening plasticity model is outlined for the combined vertical, moment and horizontal loading of spudcan footings on dense sand. Empirical expressions for the yield surface in combined load space and a flow rule for prediction of footing displacements during yield are given. Theoretical lower bound bearing capacity factors for conical footings in sand have been derived and are used in a strain-hardening law to define the variation in size of the yield surface with the plastic component of vertical penetration. The complete incremental numerical model has been implemented into a plane frame analysis program named JAKUP. The spectral content of wave loading is considered using NewWave theory, and the importance of random wave histories shown by constraining the deterministic NewWave into a completely random surface elevation. Using this technique, a method for determining short-term extreme response statistics for a sea-state is demonstrated. A numerical experiment on an example jack-up and central North Sea location is shown to emphasise the difference in long-term extreme response according to various footing assumptions. The role of sea-state severity in the variation of short-term extreme response statistics is also highlighted. Finally, probabilistic methods are used to develop further understanding of the response behaviour of jack-ups. A sensitivity study of influential variables (with probabilistic formulations as opposed to deterministic values) has been conducted using the response surface methodology.

Jack-up units have considerable economic significance because they are used to carry out a large proportion of the world's oil and gas exploration in water depths less than 90.0m. Due to the increase in use of jack-ups in harsher environments, analysis techniques assuming quasi-static and linear structural behaviour have had to be reassessed. This thesis is concerned with non-linear dynamic analysis methods appropriate for a jack-up assessment. Jack-up modelling requires realistic representation of the structure, the foundations and the environmental loading, together with the implementation of appropriate dynamic analysis algorithms. Techniques for each of these aspects of jack-up analysis are reviewed and the implementation of several of the methods in an advanced plane frame analysis program called JAKUP is described. Geometric non-linearity in the structure and work hardening plasticity at the foundations are accounted for in the program. Test cases are presented to verify the implementation of the methods and then some illustrative plane frame quasi-static and dynamic analyses are described. These simple models highlight the importance of accounting for dynamic motions in a jack-up analysis. For the quasi-static analyses, the assumption of pinned footing behaviour is seen to always result in the most conservative displacement and moment predictions. However, the analyses show that this is not always the case when dynamic amplification is accounted for.

[Truncated abstract] The demand for offshore wind turbines is increasing in densely populated areas, such as Europe. These constructions are typically founded on a gravity foundation or a large 'mono pile'. Gravity foundations can only be used at locations where strong soils exist and water depths are limited. Costs associated with a 'mono pile' type foundation contribute to a very large percentage of the total investment costs. This research, therefore, focuses upon a different foundation for offshore wind turbines, namely suction caissons beneath a tripod. This foundation can be used in all kinds of soil types and is cheaper than the 'mono pile' foundation, both in the amount of steel used and installation costs. Cheaper foundations can contribute to a more competitive price for offshore wind energy in comparison with other energy resources. To date, there have been relatively few studies to investigate the behaviour of this type of foundation during the installation process and during operational and ultimate loading for seabed conditions comprising dense sand. Two types of investigations were performed during this research to determine the behaviour of suction caissons beneath a tripod. Firstly, an existing computer program was extended to predict the typical loading conditions for a tripod foundation. Secondly, centrifuge tests on small scale suction caissons were performed to investigate the behaviour during the installation and loading phases. The computer program developed helped to quantify the likely ranges of environmental loading on an offshore wind turbine. For a typical 3 MW wind turbine of 90 m height, the vertical load is low at around 7 MN. During storm conditions the horizontal hydrodynamic load can be in the order of 4 MN. During normal working conditions the horizontal aerodynamic loads can reach 0.4 MN, but can increase to 1.2 MN when the pitch system malfunctions and gusts reach 30 m/s. This aerodynamic load will result in a very large contribution to the overturning moment, due to the high action point of this load. When the wind turbine is placed on top of a tripod, these large moments are counteracted by a push-pull system. ... The development of differential pressure was found to depend on the soil permeability, the extraction speed and a consolidation effect. During cyclic loading no obvious signs of a decrease in resistance were observed. During very fast cyclic loading differential pressures developed, which could increase the drained frictional resistance by approximately 40%. All centrifuge tests results were used to develop methods to predict or back calculate the installation process of suction caissons in sand and layered soil, and the behaviour during tensile and cyclic loading. These methods all use the cone resistance as the main input parameter and predict the force (or required suction) as a function of time, for a given rate of pumping or uplift displacement, in addition to the variation of suction with penetration (or force with uplift displacement). These new methods provide a useful tool in designing a reliable foundation for offshore wind turbines consisting of a tripod arrangement of suction caissons embedded in dense sand.

Submitted to the Faculty of Education in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in the Department of Curriculum & Instructional Studies at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2013. / This study is aimed at understanding the efficacy of the implementation of the national curriculum innovations called “Foundations for Learning Campaign” in schools under uThungulu District, within the province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Furthermore, it included assessing the level of preparedness of educators in their teaching of basic skills in the classroom and identifying the gaps in the dissemination and implementation of curriculum innovations. The view upheld within this study was that ‘the use of alternative strategies to implement national curriculum innovations in schools is of no use if the school practitioners are sidelined in the development, planning and organisation processes of the innovation.” The study targeted foundation and intermediate phase teachers from grades one to six teaching numeracy/literacy and languages/mathematics, from whom a sample of 120 teachers was purposefully selected as they were the initial focus of the Foundations for Learning Campaign. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were employed in the collection of data. The findings revealed that majority of the educators were not adequately equipped with skills and expertise to implement the Foundations for Learning Campaign effectively and efficiently in the classroom. Inadequate preparation was due to the following reasons: lack of sufficient time allocated for training, inappropriate and irrelevant training and inadequately trained facilitators. In addition, there is a lack of professional development programmes and school-based activities to enhance the teaching and learning of basic skills. Inadequate supervision, monitoring and support from both the staff management team and subject advisors/specialists predominantly prevailed during the implementation of the Foundations for Learning Campaign. Furthermore, the model used to cascade the national curriculum innovation to schools identified within the study was inadequate for the efficacious implementation of the Foundations for Learning Campaign. The study recommends that: teacher orientation, training and support processes should be refined; a high teacher-pupil ratio needs to be phased out and discouraged; a variety of quality Learner Teacher Support Material should be readily available and easily accessible to educators in the classroom to enhance the teaching and learning of languages and mathematics; on-going supervision, monitoring and support from the staff management team and subject advisors/specialists are necessary with regards to curriculum implementation; and finally professional development programmes and school based activities currently in place need to be evaluated and reviewed.

Three generations of registered nurses make up the current nursing workforce: Baby boomers, Gen X, and Gen Y. Each generation brings its own values, behaviors, and beliefs to the workplace. The generational diversity among nurses needs to be assessed along with other factors, such as social values of the elderly, anxiety toward aging, and practice settings, to examine how each factor impacts registered nurses' attitudes toward caring for the elderly. An exploration of these factors is significant to nurse leaders, since nurses have been known to display negative attitudes toward the elderly. The theoretical foundation for this study was based upon Rosenberg's three-component view of attitudes. The bias scores from Palmore's Facts on Aging Quiz (FAQ I) was used to indirectly measure the dependent variable, registered nurses' attitudes toward caring for the elderly. The independent variables were anxiety toward aging, social values of the elderly, generations, and practice settings. Kafer's Aging Opinion Survey was used to measure anxiety toward aging, and social values of the elderly. Practice settings and generations were identified by a demographic profile. The survey data were collected from 265 registered nurses. An Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to compare mean attitude scores between each generation and practice setting. Pearson's correlation coefficient examined the relationship between nurses' attitudes toward caring for the elderly, social value of the age, and anxiety toward aging. A multiple linear regression analyzed each independent variables prediction of nurses' attitude scores. Findings indicated a statistically significant association between the dependent and independent variables. Findings suggest the need to evaluate these variables prior to job placement to ensure quality healthcare provision to the elderly. Such action positively impact social change because nursing practices may be inspired to develop programs that encourage more favorable attitudes toward the elderly.

The properties of natural soil are inherently variable and influence design decisions in geotechnical engineering. Apart from the inherent variability of the soil, the variability may arise due to measurement of soil properties in the field or laboratory tests and model errors. These wide ranges of variability in soil are expressed in terms of mean, variance and autocorrelation function using probability/reliability based models. The most common term used in reliability based design is the reliability index, which is a probabilistic measure of assurance of performance of structure. The main objective of the reliability based design is to quantify probability of failure/reliability of a geotechnical system considering variability in the design parameters and associated safety. In foundation design, reliability based design is useful compared to deterministic factor of safety approach. Several design codes of practice recommend the use of limit state design concept based on probabilistic models, and suggest that, development of reliability based design methodologies for practical use are of immense value. The objective of the present study is to propose reliability based design methodologies for pile foundations under static and seismic loads. The work presented in this dissertation is subdivided into two parts, namely design of pile foundations under static vertical and lateral loading; and design of piles under seismic loading, embedded in non-liquefiable and liquefiable soil. The significance of consideration of variability in soil parameters in the design of pile foundation is highlighted. A brief review of literature is presented in Chapter 2 on current pile design methods under vertical, lateral and seismic loads. It also identifies the scope of the work. Chapter 3 discusses the methods of analysis which are subsequently used for the present study. Chapter 4 presents the reliability based design methodology for vertically and laterally loaded piles based on cone penetration test data for cohesive soil. CPT data from Konaseema area in India is used for analysis. Ultimate limit sate and serviceability limit state are considered for reliability based design using CPT data and load displacement curves. Chapter 5 presents the load resistance factor design (LRFD) of vertically and laterally loaded piles based on load test data. Reliability based code calibrated partial factors are determined considering bias in failure criteria, model bias and variability in load and resistance. Chapter 6 illustrates a comprehensive study on the effect of soil spatial variability on response of vertically and laterally loaded pile foundations in undrained clay. Two-dimensional finite difference program, FLAC2D (Itasca 2005) is used to model the soil and pile. The response of pile foundations due to the effect of variance and spatial correlation of undrained shear strength is studied using Monte Carlo simulation. The influence of spatial variability on the propagation and formation of failure near the pile foundation is also examined. Chapter 7 describes reliability based design methodology of piles in non-liquefiable soil. The seismic load on pile foundation is determined from code specified elastic design response spectrum using pseudo-static approach. Variability in seismic load and soil undrained shear strength are incorporated. The effects of soil relative densities, pile diameters, earthquake predominant frequencies and peak acceleration values on the two plausible failure mechanisms; bending and buckling are examined in Chapter 8. The two-dimensional finite difference analysis is used for dynamic analysis. A probabilistic approach is proposed to identify governing failure modes of piles in liquefiable soil in Chapter 9. The variability in the soil parameters namely SPT-N value, friction angle, shear modulus, bulk modulus, permeability and shear strain at 50% of modulus ratio is considered. Monte Carlo simulation is used to determine the probability of failure. A well documented case of the failed pile of Showa Bridge in 1964 Niigata earthquake is considered as case example. Based on the studies reported in this dissertation, it can be concluded that the reliability based design of pile foundations considering variability and spatial correlation of soil enables a rational choice of design loads. The variability in the seismic design load and soil shear strength can quantify the risk involved for pile design in a rational basis. The identification of depth of liquefiable soil layer is found to be most important to identify failure mechanisms of piles in liquefiable soil. Considerations of soil type, earthquake intensity, predominant frequency of earthquake, pile material, variability of soil are also significant.