The overall aim of this case study is to find the conditions for pupils in the nine-year compulsory school with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) who are instructed in the ordinary classroom. The study explores what kind of support the schools offer these pupils. The study also examines the views of the teachers´, special educators´, principals´ and municipal representatives on what kind of support these pupils need and ought to be offered.The methods used were qualitative interviews and a questionnaire study.The theoretical basis of the study is the three different perspectives of special pedagogy. These perspectives represent three different views on the disorders of pupils.The overall result shows that the municipality offers little support for schools. The study shows that there is little collaboration between schools and ASD-specific support outside school. This study indicates that there is a lack of knowledge about ASD to meet the needs of these students. The conclusion is that schools need substantial knowledge about ASD to work in an including way with these students in a successful way. The study raises a question about the municipal system of allocation of resources.

Several statistical studies show that women in developed countries, taken to be facing equal opportunities, are more environmentally benevolent in transport choice than men, as well as shape more environmentally benign (i.e. smaller) mobilities. Some researchers contend that a greater inclusion of women is needed in matters furthering sustainable development within the transport sector, because they believe women to be intrinsically more environmentally conscious. However, few qualitative studies explore the actual reasons behind women's more environmentally sustainable behavior in the transport sector. This qualitative study, conducted in Uppsala, aims to uncover the situation in present-day Sweden, a country renowned for its high level of sustainability and gender equality initiatives. Fourteen in-depth interviews were carried out (allowing for greater insight into the factors informing individuals' transport choices and mobility patterns) with a sample of individuals pertaining to two demographically different neighborhoods (providing an observation of the influence that other demographic and socio-economic factors might have). While the results show certain gendered undertones in the organization of the interviewed individuals' lifestyles, the reasons behind making certain transport choices and shaping one's mobility are reported by the study's subjects to be the same for both men and women. The primary factors guiding the interviewees' choices are predominantly linked to convenience, saving money, and saving time. Although the interviewees speak of facing equal opportunities, however, these appear to be to an extent still influenced by gender, mainly in the meaning ascribed to automobility and an unequal division of labor.

The strategic location, economic and political stabilities, regional and international developments and a relatively cheaper cost of living collectively contribute to the development and growth of education in Malaysia, in line with the vision of becoming a regional hub of education excellence. To attract more foreign students, Private Higher Education Institutions (PHEIs) were encouraged to provide world-class qualifications and holistic education through collaborations with foreign academic partners. However, the education industry was ill equipped to meet the issues that emerged with the influx of foreign students and the underlying advantages were not sufficient to ensure sustainable and continuous recruitment of foreign students. Raising the standards of the infrastructure alone is not enough; there is a need to look at the existing Policies, which form the backbone of a successful education export industry. This Study investigates the impact of Education and Immigration Policies on the recruitment of foreign students to PHEIs in Malaysia using the Cheng and Cheung Policy Analysis Framework and the qualitative and quantitative research paradigms. It concludes that the Policy Analysis Framework is suitable in the current context and that generally the findings suggest that Education and Immigration Policies impact the recruitment of foreign students to PHEIs in Malaysia. Specifically, Education Policies, in relation to the administration of the Institutions, such as marketing strategies, and the teaching of the Compulsory Subjects, affect recruitment of foreign students. As for Immigration Policies, the carrying of Student Passports is inconvenient and the alternative of the International Student Card is timely and necessary and the Immigration Procedures should be more student-friendly. The policy to allow foreign students to work may not increase the number of foreign students, as the current conditions are too restrictive. To overcome the current shortcomings in the policies concerned, there is a need for the review of these policies by looking at their formulation, implementation and impact. Any attempts to re-draw the policies must be supported with substantive research and participation from PHEIs. Policies are only successful if the objectives are formulated and implemented correctly and stakeholders’ participation is incorporated from the very beginning.

© Cranfield University 2013. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the copyright owner. / Network relationships play a significant role in the provision of servitized offerings. To date, little empirical research has been conducted to investigate the link between servitization and inter-organisational relationships. The objective of this doctoral thesis is to explore the implications of servitization on a manufacturer’s network. Particular emphasis is placed on the impact on the network structure and relationship attributes. An exploratory in-depth case study was conducted within the truck manufacturing industry using a multi-organisational perspective. An abductive research approach was adopted which was underlined by pragmatism. As part of this approach, 43 interviews were conducted in a total of 11 companies. The findings of the study suggest that managers need to be aware of the different customer needs, related offerings and resultant implications on the network structure and relationships. To this end, the findings show that as the offerings move towards advanced servitized offerings the network becomes more complex in terms of its structure and relationships. The research contributes to the literature by providing a more nuanced description of what actually occurs in a network when a manufacturer provides servitized offerings in conjunction with other product-based offerings. In particular, it identifies the relationship attributes that need to be managed in order to drive the right behaviour for the provision of each of these offerings. Moreover, it is the first known study to uncover triadic as well as tetradic network structures in a servitization context. Equally important, it provides a framework that captures the interplay between the different offerings and the resultant network structure and relationship attributes. In all of these capacities, this research is one of the first known studies to uncover some of the complexities surrounding the way in which inter-organisational relationships are enacted in a servitization context.

This study used an interpretive and critical case study methodology to explore the delivery of environmental education (EE) to an elementary school during a residential outdoor education centre (OEC) experience in Haliburton, ON. The Ontario Ministry of Education has chosen to infuse EE into all aspects of the education system. An important aspect of EE is experiential learning in natural settings. Many students attend OECs, which are often situated in natural settings. A mixed methods design used focus group interviews, peripheral membership observation and grounded theory to collect and analyse the data. The study found that while EE is being delivered to some degree, its success is potentially limited at the OEC staff level, teacher level and school system level. These limitations are mostly derived from the OEC staffs' and teachers' limited knowledge of EE, and the lack of integration of EE delivered at the OEC into the school context.

Very Large Organization (VLO) is an organization that produces hardware and software, which together form products. VLO granted access to data pertaining to seven different products and their development projects. One particular product is of interest to VLO since it was not as successful as the other products. The focus of this thesis is to study the problematic product and compare it to the other six products in order to draw some conclusions regarding the problematic product. The goal of this study is to indicate areas of improvement, which can help VLO improve future products. This thesis explores and answers the following research questions focused around the problematic product. Was the product indeed a failure? If so, what caused the product to fail? What indications that the product would fail were evident during the product’s development? What could VLO have done in order to prevent the product from becoming a failure? What can VLO learn from the failure? Are there data from the non-problematic products that indicate what VLO excels at? This thesis analyzes the data from all seven products and their projects in order to answer the research questions. Analyzing the non-problematic products is important in order to draw comparisons to the problematic product. As a result of this research, this thesis uncovers a variety of issues with the problematic product and identifies six areas for possible improvement. These six areas are: hardware research and development, decoupling of software from hardware, requirements management, maximal use of resources, developer order and priority of vital features, and schedule alignment. This thesis concludes that even though none of these six problematic areas can be pinpointed as the singular root cause of the problematic product’s failure, addressing these problems will improve the likelihood of product success.

Despite calls for concerted, two-way engagement and for the development of reciprocal partnerships between institutions of higher education (IHE's) and their communities, IHE's continue to implement a disparate menu of activities that prove largely ineffective at addressing society's most challenging social and environmental problems. A relatively new conception of engagement lays out a framework by which IHE's engage with communities in democratic ways. Democratic engagement values inclusive, reciprocal problem-oriented work that brings together university and community stakeholders as co-generators of knowledge and solutions. The resulting democratically engaged partnerships position diverse members to take on roles as collaborators and problem solvers. They are mutually transformed through the processes of reciprocation, power diffusion, and knowledge generation. <br>How these democratically oriented roles and processes emerge and come to be enacted is unknown. Neither the literature on democratic engagement nor that on community-university partnerships addresses this gap. This dissertation study purposefully selected a case of community-university partnership that has a high degree of democratic engagement. Through interviews, observation, and document review, qualitative evidence was collected of the ways in which the roles and processes of democratically engaged partnerships emerged and were enacted. Atlas.ti 6.2 was used to code and retrieve themes related to democratic and technocratic engagement, stakeholder roles and processes, and the emergence and application of roles and processes. <br>Understanding how democratically oriented roles and processes emerge and are adopted is critical to building democratically engaged partnerships that support systems of democratic engagement. If we do not know how to be democratic within our partnerships, and if we cannot teach others, we will not be able to answer the calls for more purposeful, reciprocal engagement with our communities. / School of Education / Interdisciplinary Doctoral Program for Education Leaders (IDPEL) / EdD / Dissertation

plan A / Pacific Islands Studies

This study examines the changing context and implications for evaluation practice of social program and service delivery devolved to small nonprofit and grassroots organizations. The setting is explored through a critical reflection-on-practice of over twenty years experience conducting evaluation. Using a multiple case study approach, the dissertation examines nine broad themes through two broad composite scenarios and twenty-five detailed vignettes that portray the challenges of working as a consultant with and for small nonprofit and grassroots organizations as they grapple with growing demands for accountability through evaluation. The multiple case study analysis is complemented by an analysis of case studies in two broad areas of literature; one on the impacts of devolution in the nonprofit sector, and the other examining recent trends in evaluation conducted in challenging settings, including community-based and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The five broad themes addressed through the case studies and literature on devolution are: 1) accountability, 2) capacity, 3) mandate drift, 4) competition, and 5) complexity. The four broad themes addressed through case studies and literature on evaluation are: 1) theory-based evaluation, 2) inclusiveness (participatory approaches), 3) the changing and multiple roles of evaluators, and 4) the use of dialogue, deliberative and democratic approaches in evaluation practice. The study contends that the ‘rough ground’ of nonprofit settings provides a useful lens for understanding broader challenges and trends in evaluation practice; that evaluators provide more than just technical skills and knowledge, but undertake important roles in linking communities, mediating among stakeholders, fostering dialogue and deliberation about programming, and mitigating some of the more egregious impacts of devolution experienced by nonprofit and grassroots organizations. By acknowledging and supporting the development of such roles and responsibilities, the profession and evaluators working in these settings can provide meaningful contributions to public discourse about the nature of accountability, the broad context of social programming, the complex capacity challenges being faced by nonprofit organizations, and the role of evaluation in exacerbating or potentially mitigating such effects.

This study explored how kindergarten teachers think and behave in the promotion of creativity in young children, particularly in relation to music. It centred on three case studies of Hong Kong kindergarten teachers (nursery, lower and upper class) who were recognized in their school communities as demonstrating exemplary music pedagogy. Using the paradigm of social constructivism, relationships were investigated among creative person, process, product and environment in the promotion of musical creativity in early childhood. Multi-faceted descriptions of the kindergarten contexts included video-taped transcriptions of children's musical creative processes during free play, the teachers' scaffolding of their learning, stimulated recall with teachers, researcher-collected field notes, anecdotal records and photographs of the classroom context. Each of these data sources were documented in narrative form in a series of vignettes, and analysis of musical outcomes centred on instrumental play, background music, movement, singing and imaginative play. Recommendations drawn from the study include several principles for the promotion of musical creativity in young children, such as making room for play within the curriculum, providing environments rich in resources, scaffolding young children's musical creativity, advocating for creative music in the kindergarten curriculum, and providing excellent role models for young children.