Premature failure or abandonment of water or sanitation interventions in developing communities is a common phenomenon and one which is preventing potential benefits from being fully realised. While the causes of project failure are complex and varied, the literature addressing project failure implicates poor planning in many unsustained small-scale projects. In particular, a number of authors criticise planning that fails to include consideration of key sustainability areas. This thesis explores the relationship between planning for rural water and sanitation development projects and their sustainability using both ??depth?? of information gathered through a case study in rural Philippines and ??breadth?? of information gathered from key informants representing a range of regions and organisational types. Key informant interviews show the case study findings to be generally transferable between regions. Both methods illustrate the need for interpersonal relationships of trust and unity, commitment and integrity in project personnel, significant time spent in data-gathering and consensus development, creative modes of communication, ongoing contact and detailed long-term financial planning. A critical evaluation of 17 prominent, existing planning frameworks for rural water supply and sanitation projects is presented with respect to key attributes of good planning practice as identified during the case study and interviews. The evaluation reveals both strengths and inadequacies in current planning frameworks, illuminating possible causes of persistent poor planning. Finally, methods are identified by which planning processes can be improved so as to reduce the incidence of early water and sanitation project failure. An existing decision framework, the Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA) Sustainability Framework, was trialled during the Philippines Case Study. The new Planning Framework for Rural Water and Sanitation was developed as a result of the trial, the case study and the interviews. The new framework employs the primary sustainability criteria in the decision process in the form of constraints developed using participatory processes, thereby defining a safe space within which the beneficiaries may have freedom and confidence to select their desired technical solutions. Other key elements of good planning practice are incorporated, including those typically omitted by existing frameworks in the rural water and sanitation development sector.

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No description available.

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No description available.

Premature failure or abandonment of water or sanitation interventions in developing communities is a common phenomenon and one which is preventing potential benefits from being fully realised. While the causes of project failure are complex and varied, the literature addressing project failure implicates poor planning in many unsustained small-scale projects. In particular, a number of authors criticise planning that fails to include consideration of key sustainability areas. This thesis explores the relationship between planning for rural water and sanitation development projects and their sustainability using both ??depth?? of information gathered through a case study in rural Philippines and ??breadth?? of information gathered from key informants representing a range of regions and organisational types. Key informant interviews show the case study findings to be generally transferable between regions. Both methods illustrate the need for interpersonal relationships of trust and unity, commitment and integrity in project personnel, significant time spent in data-gathering and consensus development, creative modes of communication, ongoing contact and detailed long-term financial planning. A critical evaluation of 17 prominent, existing planning frameworks for rural water supply and sanitation projects is presented with respect to key attributes of good planning practice as identified during the case study and interviews. The evaluation reveals both strengths and inadequacies in current planning frameworks, illuminating possible causes of persistent poor planning. Finally, methods are identified by which planning processes can be improved so as to reduce the incidence of early water and sanitation project failure. An existing decision framework, the Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA) Sustainability Framework, was trialled during the Philippines Case Study. The new Planning Framework for Rural Water and Sanitation was developed as a result of the trial, the case study and the interviews. The new framework employs the primary sustainability criteria in the decision process in the form of constraints developed using participatory processes, thereby defining a safe space within which the beneficiaries may have freedom and confidence to select their desired technical solutions. Other key elements of good planning practice are incorporated, including those typically omitted by existing frameworks in the rural water and sanitation development sector.

The research for this thesis was born of a desire to understand how a student's cultural background might influence the outcomes of science education. Of particular interest to me was the apparent paucity of academic achievement by many indigenous students as they study science through Western style schools and curricula, resulting in what I have termed 'educational alienation', which is evidenced by poor grades and slow rates of progression through the curriculum, and by some students displaying a high degree of antagonism toward the education system. 1 have sought to understand the causes of educational alienation by means of an interpretive inquiry based on a Grounded Theory methodology, using an Integrative Research Review as the primary means of data collection, supplemented by personal experience, data analysis and interview methods.The outcomes of the Grounded Research have caused me to re-think my understanding of culture and my tacit acceptance of conceptual change theory. Three distinct themes emerged as being significant to learning: Language Use, Traditional Beliefs and Life-world Knowledge. I have presented evidence suggesting that Language Use, Traditional Beliefs and Life-world Knowledge are largely subsumed within one's worldview, and that the term 'culture' lacks the specificity needed to explore the notion of educational alienation. I suggest that worldview is not only cultural, but is a dynamic belief system of the individual that is shaped by cultural forces and personal reflection, resulting in a reorganisation of knowledge throughout one's life. I propose that a constructivist view of learning and knowing presents us with a plausible explanation of worldview development and educational alienation, and I conclude with suggestions for further research and pedagogy that might develop the discourse and consequently improve the outcomes of science ++ / education for indigenous, non-Western students.

Thesis (M.A.)--Kutztown University, 1989. / Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 45-06, page: 2923. Abstract precedes title page. Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaf 140).

Thesis (M. Ed.(Educational psychology))-University of Pretoria, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 92-98) Available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Tufts University, 2005. / Chair: Lisa Lynch. Submitted to the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Includes bibliographical references. Access restricted to members of the Tufts University community. Also available via the World Wide Web;