Thesis advisor: David Karp / This project focuses on a case study of a woman with the rare autoimmune disease Scleroderma. It is supplemented with data from in-person interviews and online support groups. The study explores the way a chronic illness (particularly, Scleroderma) impacts elements of identity. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2013. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Sociology Honors Program. / Discipline: Sociology.

Thesis advisor: Lillie R. Albert / Mathematics education is constantly at the forefront of public and academic debates during this era of increased accountability. Questions concerning teacher preparation and teaching practices that connect to pupil learning are central to these discussions. However, very few studies have examined relationships among these factors and most are confined to a short time period; thus, this dissertation studies such relationships over a two-year period. Informed by a sociocultural perspective, this study examines how preservice elementary teachers' past K-12 schooling and teacher education experiences influences their attitudes and perceptions about mathematics education over time. It also explores how teaching practices are shaped by these experiences, and are ultimately linked to pupil learning. A mixed-method design of survey and qualitative case-study research methods was employed to collect and analyze data over a two-year period. During the first year of this study, pre- and post-surveys using Likert-scale items were administered to all preservice teachers (n=75) enrolled in an elementary mathematics methods course. For a two-year period, the experiences of two participants were explored through longitudinal interviews, observations, and an examination of artifacts (i.e., teacher lesson plans, assessments, and pupil work) to develop in-depth case studies. Findings indicate that prior schooling experiences influenced teachers' initial attitudes and perceptions about mathematics. Nevertheless, over a short period, positive changes in teachers' attitudes and confidence to teach mathematics suggest that experiences in the mathematics methods course were conducive to building on teachers' prior knowledge. Survey and case-study findings also indicate that preservice teachers planned to teach mathematics with a reformed approach, which emphasizes a conceptual understanding of mathematic. However, it was challenging for case-study participants to implement a reformed approach as first-year teachers, especially if they had limited teaching models to reinforce this method. Findings also suggest that school context, classroom management, and mathematical content knowledge all influence teaching practices and pupil learning opportunities. Implications for teacher education, school reform, and future research are discussed. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2009. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction.

Thesis advisor: Ana Martínez-Alemán / Research has demonstrated that attending a selective college increases the probability of graduating and accessing certain economic and social opportunities, but few community college transfer students obtain such an opportunity. In an effort to seriously consider how to increase access to this underserved population, it is important to examine the bridges by which academically-qualified community college transfer students access selective institutions. This multi-case study looks at why and how three private selective institutions in Massachusetts currently recruit community college students. The four main themes identified as to why these institutions recruit community college students were: strategic enrollment practices, diversity, institutional enrichment, and community engagement. The two themes identified for how institutions recruit community college students were: information sharing and infrastructure support. Several challenges facing both the selective colleges, and the community college transfer students were also identified and explored. The major finding of the study was that the unique position occupied by each institution within the hierarchy of the higher education system influences the rationale as well as the methods by which it approaches and considers the transfer of community college students. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2009. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Administration.

Thesis advisor: David Scanlon / Classroom accommodations are a primary means of providing an appropriate education for students with disabilities. While there is value in student involvement in the accommodations process, the process continues to be teacher-driven, so we need to teach students to be strategic in selecting and utilizing their own accommodations. This problem holds true across disabilities, and students with visual impairments are no exception. The Student Self-Accommodation Strategy (SSA) was developed to support students with high-incidence disabilities in strategically selecting and utilizing their own accommodations. This study investigated SSA learning and performance for students with visual impairments and how learning the SSA impacted their classroom accommodation practices. The learning experiences of four students with visual impairments were compared using comparative case studies (Cresswell, Plano Clark, Gutmann, & Hanson, 2003) within a sequential explanatory design (Hanson, Creswell, Plano Clark, Petska, & Creswell, 2008). Mixed methods data were collected before, during, and after strategy instruction pertaining to accommodations knowledge and practices, strategy learning and performance, metacognition and self-regulated learning, and student perceptions of the SSA. Cross-case analysis revealed key findings regarding strategy instruction, strategy learning and performance, and metacognition and self-regulated learning. These key findings have implications for educating students with visual impairments and future research on the SSA. Ultimately, this study indicates that the SSA is a valuable tool for strategically selecting and utilizing accommodations; however, characteristics of individual students and their learning environments have a considerable impact on the development of strategic thinking. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2019. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction.

Higher Education (HE) institutions are constantly facing change. Accountability; the metaphor of student as consumer; a focus on management and leadership; and changing global economic conditions all affect the way institutions function. Recently, there has also been an increase in focus on accreditation procedures and organizational change. Although it can be difficult to measure the impact of quality assurance, this research focuses on exploring change and an accreditation procedure conducted by the Japan University Accreditation Association at a Japanese private university. Higher education institutions are social constructions and largely exist in the mind and as such, during change, some faculty members share values, rules of behaviour, and norms that become stabilized in institutional structures. This is due to the establishment of a common understanding. Conversely, there can be differences between groups in the institution. Thus, research needs to be conducted on how people make sense of change and their institution; the way information is processed and disseminated. By utilizing Ericson’s (2001) conceptual framework of four ideal types of meaning, and using Weick’s (2005) concept of sensemaking as a lens to examine the change, this research explores how faculty members make sense of change and accreditation and asks how far does this instance correspond to or otherwise illuminate Ericson’s (2001) conceptual framework for understanding change? This research contributes to our understanding of change, higher education institutions in Japan and accreditation, acknowledging the importance of effective management and leadership in HE institutions.

This research investigates the dynamic interplay of contractual and relational governance mechanisms in long-term supply arrangements. The thesis contributes to an emerging debate that examines the combination of contractual and relational governance in inter-organisational exchanges. Contractual and relational governance mechanisms have been positioned as precluding mechanisms, which may result in destructive effects if combined for governing inter-organisational relationships. Previous research studies have increasingly acknowledged that the use of contractual mechanisms does not exclude the use of relational mechanisms and vice-versa. However, the recent literature offers limited insights into the dynamic interaction of both inter-organisational governance mechanisms and their impact on overall performance. The analysis in this research utilises a conceptual framework and a number of theoretical lenses through which the dynamic interplay of contractual and relational governance mechanisms is explained. Based on empirical case analysis of six public-private supply arrangements across three sectors: healthcare, waste management and emergency services, the research explores the dynamic interplay of both governance mechanisms and their impact on overall performance. Retrospective case study data was collected deploying semi-structured interviews and the critical incident technique was used to investigate the governance interplay over time. The contribution to knowledge is a conceptual framework that refines contractual and relational governance components in supply relationships over time. The findings indicate the importance of the interplay between inter-personal and inter-organisational trust in combination with complex contracts and intermediate contractual agreements. From this the conclusion is drawn that organisations entering into long-term supply relationships need to deploy both contractual and relational governance mechanisms in combination in order to achieve better overall performance.

The aim of this thesis is to examine the evolving relationship between food and tourism through the twentieth century. Devon, a county in the South West of England, and a popular tourist destination is used as the geographical focus of the case study. Previous studies have tended to focus on particular locations at a fixed point in time, not over the timescale of a century. The research presents a social and economic history of food in the context of tourism. It incorporates many food related interests reflecting the topical and evolving, embracing leisure, pleasure and social history, Burnett (2004). Food is presented from the perspectives of production and consumption, not only its commercial provision in the hospitality industry, but also that emanating from the domestic, home, and farmstead. The significance of food and tourism is emphasised by Hall and Sharples (2003), and Croce and Perri (2010) in the development of Food tourism (and Wine tourism), reflecting increasingly specialised and niche interests. However, this thesis aims to show how food and tourism encompasses, food, culture, and history, and plays an important role in the economic development of the county. The thesis presents multiple data sources, primary and secondary, questionnaires and in-depth interviews. It utilises these in conjunction with numerous historical records and archival materials to investigate evolving trends and patterns in the food and tourism evolution. A case study demonstrates ways in which food is an experience, attraction, and motivation to visit a destination, and shows how tourism’s relationship with food has evolved throughout the twentieth century.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Special Education, Counseling and Student Affairs / Doris W. Carroll / On-campus college students are enrolling in online courses at a greater rate than ever before for a variety of reasons, from needing a more flexible schedule for work to keeping their degree progress on track when on-campus sections fill before they can enroll to utilizing a modern modality for coursework. In order for online courses to help students successfully meet learning outcomes, the courses need to be well-designed for all students, including on-campus students who may be more comfortable in on-campus classrooms and less skilled in how to learn and engage academically in online courses. The purpose of this case study was to explore the experiences of multiple participants who all participated in an online communications course, either as students earning on-campus degrees at the same institution, as teaching assistants, or as the faculty member at a mid-sized land grant institution in the midwestern United States. The participants were selected with both criterion- and purposeful-based sampling. The participants’ experiences were viewed using the theoretical framework of symbolic interactionism. Individuals’ worlds are made of objects that may be physical, social, or abstract. The objects in this study are the elements within an online communications course; the participants shared about the elements that they perceived as most engaging. The data collected from this study is useful in building more engagement into courses that have high on-campus student enrollments, which the literature indicates will continue to grow. Participants specifically shared the importance of course organization, strategic course relationships, and relevancy of content in creating the necessary engagement that helps students learn to not just endure but to embrace the subjects they are studying online.

O objeto de estudo desta dissertação é o estudo de edificações de uso misto dentro de contexto urbano. Serão estudados obras referenciais já concluídas para que se possam avaliar as relações e o desempenho deste tipo de edificação em seu contexto A partir de quatro casos de diferentes características, escala, volumetria, contexto e uso distintos, serão aprofundadas as analises. Apoiados por de métodos de representação gráfica serão analisadas: a relação das edificações com seu contexto urbano, a relação de seus espaços com a escala humana, a composição volumétrica da edificação, a forma como foi implantada, as articulações produzidas , a relação dos perímetros com os espaços de domínio público entre outros aspectos de relevância para a pesquisa. Com isso, busca-se analisar as potencialidades e funcionamento das edificações de uso misto. / The purpose of this dissertation is the study of mixed-use buildings within urban contexts. Through the selection and analysis of reference works already built, it was possible to value the relationships and performance of this type of building in its respective context. These analyzes were focused on four cases of different characteristics, scales, volumetrics, contexts and uses. Supported by graphic representation methods, the following criteria were approached: the relationship of buildings with their urban context, the relation of their spaces to the human scale, the criteria of volumetric composition, the way they were inserted on site, the articulations produced, the relation between their perimeters and the spaces of public domain, as well as other aspects that were relevant to the research. Therefore, it was intended to analyze the potentialities and the functioning of the so defined mixed-use buildings.

This thesis is concerned with public procurement system in Ukraine. The aim of this thesis is to analyze the system with a focus on the risks, which are facing foreign applicants in public procurement. The paper presents the various elements of the procurement system: Creating and implementation of public procurement policy, regulation of public procurement; authorization and approval of procurement; realization of public procurement; feedback. In the thesis, a case study with the company Kvazar Plus has been realized. This company has great experience with the Ukrainian procurement. The results of the case study have been compared with the analysis of the World Bank. Case study confirmed some of the problems of the procurement system: Poor communication of the Ministry of Economy as the responsible body, hasty selection procedures due to the late receipt of funds into the budget, frequent delays of payments to candidates, lenghty provision of necessary documents, bank guarantee, previously often needed, strong competitive manufacturers with lower quality but cheaper goods and often disadvantageous contract terms for applicants. Other challenges for the candidate are: frequent change of legislation, public procurement duty of state enterprises, lobbying of the Ukrainian competition, pre-selected winner of some contracts and corrupt customs administration, which complicates and delays the delivery of goods to Ukraine.