Call number: LD2668 .T4 1963 M33

How do young people in Estonia experience the political, politics and citizenship? How are these civic experiences connected to young peoples’ experiences with the media? Anne Kaun’s thesis Civic Experiences and Public Connection presents a theoretical and empirical investigation of how civic experiences, particularly public connection, emerge in the context of contemporary Estonia. Employing open-ended online diaries and in-depth interviews, she aims to develop an in-depth understanding of how young people experience democracy today, and how they express themselves as citizens; expression not only through the physical performance of citizenship, but also through orientation, interest in, and reflection about issues that are of common concern or should be seen as such. The empirical investigation of public connection as critical media connection, playful public connection and historical public connection, is based on narrative analysis and embedded in a theoretical exploration of key concepts in the context of civic culture studies, namely the political, politics and citizenship. Combining Chantal Mouffe’s conflict theory with Paul Ricoeur’s narrative identity, Kaun aims to shed light on contemporary democracy from the citizens’ perspective. The author proposes a holistic approach to both civic experiences and the role that media might play in relation to them. Following a non-media- centric approach, she shows that media, despite their ubiquity, are an important but not exclusive source of the civic experiences of young adults in Estonia.

Our educational system has long claimed that preparing students to be active citizens is one of its main goals. With high-stakes testing pressures, schools with high minority enrollment have been found to cut back social studies programs and/or implement a drill and practice fragmented teaching style. (Center on Education Policy, 2007; McNeil and Valenzuela, 2000). This research project seeks to understand how civic engagement opportunities were provided for, the impact of these opportunities on students and community members in Corpus Christi, Texas, during the last 15 years, and the ways in which these opportunities may serve to maximize civic engagement for today’s Latino/a student. Using oral histories and archival data as a means to uncover the history of civic-minded organizations in Corpus Christi, Texas, on high school youth and their community, this research project will investigate the founding of the organizations, the people involved in them, and the impact of these organizations as it is perceived by alumni and those with direct experience of the organizations. While a study of this type may not be highly generalizable, it will provide new insights into promising civic education and engagement for previously marginalized groups of students. The findings of this research should add to the educational and social science literature by providing a nuanced understanding of how civic engagement opportunities may be tailored to fit into the learning environment of the high school civics classroom and beyond. / text

"Employers, Unite!" argues that the anti-union campaign of Progressive-Era organized employers molded in crucial ways the shape of labor relations in the United States, and that to understand the development of ideas about work, business, and labor unions, we need to understand how these employers gained and wielded political and societal power.The study concentrates on the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), which spearheaded what it termed the "open-shop'' campaign. Focusing attention on the unions' demand for the closed or union shop, the NAM shifted the debate over labor relations from workplace conditions to the legitimacy of unions as representatives of workers, identifying not employers but union leaders as the source of injustices.At the heart of the study is an analysis of over 100 active members of the NAM, organized through a relational database constructed with the help of recently digitized materials like local histories and biographical compendia. Besides basic information like company size or demographics, the database maps information about NAM members' social and political contacts. Substantial archival materials further ground the study's analysis of the NAM's structure and influence.Research on the membership has allowed me to uncover information that focusing on the leadership would not have revealed. For example, I have found that a high percentage of active NAM members were party activists and officials, mostly in the Republican party; their positions in the party hierarchy gave them influence over political nominations and Congressional committee appointments. Active NAM members also regularly had personal contacts to politicians ranging from governors to Senators; these contacts further bolstered the Association's power, enabling it to torpedo much of labor's legislative project.The study also compares the NAM to other business organizations, especially the National Civic Federation (NCF). The NCF promoted cooperation with moderate unions, a position which the NAM frequently and vehemently criticized. Rhetorical differences, however, masked an underlying agreement among businessmen regarding the undesirability of unions. The rhetorical disjuncture between the organizations served to constrain debate on labor relations: the NAM's stridency made the NCF appear genuinely progressive and thereby undercut other, more far-reaching critiques of existing workplace relations.

In an increasingly complex world, there is a need for youth to address scientific issues both locally and globally. While interest and proficiency in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) decline, diverse methods to successfully engage, educate, and empower youth based on informal, learner-centric approaches are being tested. The factors potentially contributing to the success of a technology-supported civic engagement program were documented for 20 after school programs using qualitative methods. Using content analysis, the data was coded and tabulated and key variables were constructed. Univariate regression analysis revealed that four out of seventeen potential predictor variables proved to have a significant relationship with program success. The final multivariate regression model for predicting program success included youth-drivenness and total events (R-squared =0.58, p-value=0.0006), suggesting that encouraging participant ownership of the learning process is important to community and environmental problem awareness and the pursuit of solutions through STEM skills.

Farmland, Indiana, located approximately twenty (20) miles east of Muncie, has been successfully engaged in a revitalization effort since the early 1990s. Although several significant historic buildings have been adaptively reused, others, including the Opera House, are only partially occupied. The continuation of future redevelopment efforts rests on whether these buildings can be preserved and adaptively reused in a manner that supports the revitalization goals the town has established and in which they are committed.The structure was constructed in 1889 and owned by P.M. Bly. Bly and John H. Thornburg, owned a drugstore together in the north retail space on the first floor and the south retail space was rented out to other businesses. Presently the first floor of the Opera House, which was constructed in 1889, is occupied by a Pizza King, which has been there for since the early 1990s. The second floor, which was originally used as an opera house, has been sitting vacant for over twenty years.This creative project documents the current condition of the building and proposes two options of adaptive reuse for the building owner to consider. The format and content of this project was modeled after adaptive reuse studies by two Indianapolis, Indiana architecture firms. Also, a synopsis of several interviews the author had with professionals who deal with the adaptive reuse of historic buildings is included. Architects, contractors, historic preservationists, and a market analyst were among those interviewed and their views afford the reader an insight into current attitudes among professionals involved in historic preservation and adaptive reuse.The project portion of this proposal includes: a brief history of the building; a conditions assessment through photographs and written text; existing floor plans and elevations; a synopsis of the American Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility evaluation; and preservation and adaptive reuse recommendations. In addition, two schemes, or concepts, of adaptive reuse are included, with each containing: floor plans and elevations; a preliminary cost estimate and pro forma; and a summary of historic tax credits and grant programs that are applicable. Furthermore, the option which is most desirable for the historic context of the building and the future economic development of Farmland has been developed through design with an interior design package, which includes a furniture plan, furniture options, and a color scheme.This project is primarily an academic exercise intended to help the author learn the process of preparing a comprehensive adaptive reuse proposal. However, this project was also chosen with the hopes of inspiring the current building owner to develop the property by providing a substantial amount of objective and professional quality information and documentation. Thus, the format developed is that which a professional design firm would use, as opposed to an academic format. Through dissemination of this project to local leaders of preservation and redevelopment efforts, it is also hoped that it will aid in garnering public support to preserve and reuse. / Department of Architecture

This dissertation examines the interaction between leisured movement and space in Rome from 100 BC – AD 150, primarily drawing upon archaeological evidence from Rome, central Italy and the Bay of Naples. This thesis argues that leisured movement was significant and that an examination of the relationship between leisured movement and space provides new insights into Roman architecture, gardens, attitudes to design and space. Chapter one reviews the theoretical models associated with the study of movement and space in various disciplines and utilitizes these approaches to formulate the theoretical basis for this thesis. Previous scholarship on movement and space in the Roman world is also reviewed to demonstrate the need for further study. Chapter two focuses on ancient literature and epigraphy to examine leisured movement in ancient Rome and the spaces identified as locations for leisured movement. In chapter three the Severan marble plan and the archaeological evidence for the monumental porticos and temple-porticos in Rome, the public and urban context for leisured walking, are analyzed. An examination of the relationship between leisured movement and space in high-status Roman villas and residences is undertaken in chapter four. Walking, driving, riding and boating and their spatial context played an important role in these high-status residences. Finally, chapter five examines the relationship between leisured movement and space in Pompeian houses, in order to understand how leisured movement functioned in such houses and to demonstrate that leisured movement also had a role in the lives of those below the top of Roman society. This thesis demonstrates that movement was a prominent leisure activity and that it was a complex way through which the Romans negotiated Greek culture. It also establishes that Rome’s public porticos and portico-temples, which housed leisured movement, were original contributions to the architectural canon. Movement and space were interconnected phenomena that interacted upon each other; the design of private and public gardens and porticos often created an ordered approach to movement and space. In sum, leisured movement is a productive lens through which we can study Rome, her cultural and leisure activities, approach to design and conception of space.

The research studies school heads’ perception of the implementation of the new Moral and Civic Education (MCE) curriculum in Hong Kong primary schools. The MCE curriculum is positioned as a key task in curriculum reform since 2001. The present study recognises school leadership role in steering curriculum delivery in which school heads’ perception is one of the determinants in shaping curriculum execution. Qualitative approach is adopted to uncover the factors affecting the perception of school heads and subsequent implementation strategies. Purposive sampling of six primary school heads is identified for interview to collect data. Content analysis is employed to make inferences from the data reviewing how school heads’ personal belief and values orientation affect the delivery of the curriculum. The MCE curriculum, resting on virtue ethics projecting desirable values to be promoted, is appealing to the school heads. The MCE curriculum designed as values education, resonates Chinese culture emphasizing cultivation of virtue through education while at the same time addressing the societal expectation of the call for promoting national identity with the return of Hong Kong to China in 1997. Given the social and political context of Hong Kong, positive attitude is exhibited by all the sample school heads but they respond differently to the curricular role, reflecting a wide spectrum of understanding of the curriculum and pedagogical competency. The research findings propose the importance of a heightened awareness of school heads’ cognition of the curriculum but their attitude towards the curriculum is deterministic how the curriculum is implemented. The attitude taken hinges on the values and belief of school heads vis a vis organisation values of the school. A model portraying school heads’ awareness, attitude and action for curriculum implementation is recommended to further study school leadership with implications for theory building and practice.

This study empirically tested the responses of sixty-one Boys’ Club members to a questionnaire which contained the Nye-Short delinquency scale. Frequency of self-reported delinquent behavior was compared for the youngsters both before and after having joined the Boys’ Club. It was found that the various aspects of Club membership and participation had minimal effect upon the members’ delinquent behavior.

Media is belittling millennials for the current overall decrease in civic engagement. They are criticized for their apparent lack of responsibility, political knowledge and reluctance to get involved in current affairs, and social media and the Internet have been regarded as contributing to this civic decline. Millennials choose more liquid forms of organizing, as they have uprooted from pre-established and stable collective identities. There is a change in generations and their activities, and millennials’ use of social media for both political and civic engagement is a growing research field now. Hence this thesis aims to determine how civic engagement has been redefined by new media and generational shifts. The Internet has been proven to entice citizens to thoroughly engage in politics, providing a framework for broad social participation, which is inherently democratic, becoming a potent tool for civic and political participation, a crucial motivation for the core constituency of movements. According to the theoretical and empirical material, with the emergence of new media, new concepts, such as online activism, have been materialized or old ones, such as simple protests, have simply shifted and adapted to current times. There is not a discontinuity but rather a redefinition of civic engagement. The findings of the current study are significant in this sense, as they support the theoretical concept of the reinvigoration of civic life through generational shifts and the rise of new media.