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The importance of designing and delivering comprehensive induction programmes for newly qualified school teachers (e.g. Draper and O’Brien, 2006) is widely accepted. In China, ongoing curriculum reform and teacher professionalization require such programmes to address issues such as teacher turnover, teacher performance and student learning outcomes.This thesis reports on the findings of a PhD project exploring induction of newly qualified teachers in Yinchuan city, China. The project centred on a qualitative case study involving new teachers, mentoring teachers, school principals and local education officials. Against a background review of the relevant induction policies and provision, topic-focussed interviews were conducted in 2009-10 on two separate occasions in their first year of teaching with 23 new secondary school teachers from different subject departments across 7 schools of various type, and with 6 local education officials, and 17 school principals and mentoring teachers. Drawing on an autobiographical approach, personal accounts from the participating teachers were subject to narrative analysis to explore the extent to which teachers’ perspectives changed during the first year of teaching. The conditions under which perspectives were more likely to change were also considered and three main themes emerged: job motivation, self-image and subjective educational theory. Within each of these themes, sub-themes with respect to the relational context in which teachers’ worked were identified as contributing to developing teachers’ professional identity. By using a voice-centred relational analytical method to allow flexibility in taking advantage of different types of narrative analysis methods, the data revealed interesting issues concerning new teachers’ expectations and perceptions of the teaching profession and the induction programme offered. The narratives were further explored based on the theoretical considerations of teacher’s professional identity, early professional learning (McNally, 2004) and various factors influencing teachers’ professional identity (Day and Gu, 2007). This study aims to deepen and further the emerging studies on teacher induction in China which mainly focused on large-size cities such as Shanghai and Beijing, and to identify some of the key characteristics of induction programmes by locating the study in the unique context and essential conditions of Yinchuan city, a medium-size city in China. It also attempts to benefit from a narrative approach and innovative analytical methods which give voice to the participants which hopefully would contribute to a more humanistic approach in looking at the phenomenon of new teacher induction in China.

This dissertation explores Goodbye, Columbus and Five Short Stories (1959), the Ghost Writer (1979), the Counterlife (1986), the Facts (1988), Operation Shylock (1993), Sabbath's Theater (1995),and the Human Stain (2000), arguing that Roth relishes the telling of the story and the search for self within that telling. with attention to narrative technique and its relation to issues surrounding reality and identity, Roth's narratives stress unreliability, causing Roth to create characters searching for a more complex interpretation of self. Chapter I examines Roth’s negotiation of dual identities as Neil Klugman in Goodbye, Columbus feels alienated and displaced from Christianized America. the search for identity and the merging of American Christianity and Judaism remain a focus in Chapter II, which explores the implications of how, in the Ghost Writer, a young Nathan Zuckerman visits his mentor E.I. Lonoff to find him living in what he believes to be a non-Jewish environment—the American wilderness. Chapter II also examines the difficulties of cultural assimilation in "Eli, the Fanatic," in which Eli must shed outward appearances of Judaism to fit into the mostly Protestant community of Woodenton. Relative to the negotiation of multiple identities, Chapter III considers Sabbath’s attempt, in Sabbath’s Theater, to reconcile his spiritual and physical self when seeking to avoid his inevitable death. Exploring a further dimension of the search for self, Chapter IV traces the legacy of stereotyped notions of identity, considering ways in which Roth subverts stereotypes in the Human Stain. the search for identity and its particular truths remains a focus of Chapter V, which explores Roth's creation of an unstable reality through the Counterlife, the Facts, Operation Shylock, and the Human Stain, suggesting that the literary imagination matters more than truth in fiction. in its attention to Roth's focus on identity, race, and narrative technique, this dissertation contributes to the evolution of criticism addressing the social significance of the major works of Philip Roth.

My artwork combines the power of narrative with the sculptural form, and I encourage the viewer to interact with my work. I use the magnetic, hypnotic effect that stories can have over us. My narratives are designed to draw the reader into a willing suspension of disbelief. It is often whimsical because childlike things give people certain permissions of joy and abandon. I use anthropomorphism to invite the viewer to handle my pieces in order to create an intimacy between the viewer and the artwork.

This thesis illustrates the production of the narrative short film Neil and the Nun. The various chapters included in this written work delineate the development, preproduction, production, and post-productions stages of this thesis film. In supplement to these four larger chapters, the script, shot list, budget, and script breakdown are included. Neil and the Nun, written, directed, produced, and edited by me, articulates life through the perceptions of a child. The story centers on the volatile relationship of two fourth graders and their teacher, a possibly closeted lesbian nun. Because they are children, they have different notions than adults of priority, relevance, and the meaning of life's events. The intention of this film is to authentically delve into this child worldview, revealing their shift towards wisdom and compassion. The film took twelve shooting days and involved five primary locations. My larger goal was to create a film that exemplifies my capacity as a filmmaker, thus, steering me towards the next step of my career.

This thesis book details the conception and production of The Taxidermist, a narrative short film shot on 16mm color film. It tells the story of a loving father and his daughter who live in an isolated rural area. The over protective taxidermist tries to protect his daughter from all the ills of the world, but this also keeps her from experiencing the wider world. All aspects of the production from writing through post-production are covered within the thesis. In particular the challenges and advantages of location shooting are covered. Postproduction issues in the digital age are also covered in some detail.

This thesis documents the production of a seventeen-minute narrative film production, Submit. It includes chapters outlining the development, pre-production, production and post-production stages. In addition, the script, shot lists, equipment request form, budget, and camera reports are included. Written, produced, and directed by the author, Submit is the story about a man's desire to right his life by winning back a former love. The story involves deceit and plays with notions of identity and place. The film was shot in seven days throughout the City of New Orleans. The goal of this project was to create a short piece that in turn would be employed to garner further resources to shoot a feature length film.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.