Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA(DVS) / This study is an assessment of participatory monitoring and evaluation in NGOs: a case study of SOS Children’s Village,Cape town, South Africa. The aim of the study is to examine the process of application of PM&E framework in the SOS Children’s Village Project, with a view to ascertaining its impact on the project and to provide suggestions and recommendations to SOS and NGOs in South Africa. There were four primary objectives of this study:to provide a theoretical and conceptual framework, through the discussion and/or analysis of applicable PM&E theories and concepts; to provide an overview of organizational structure of the project implementation team of SOS; to identify the different stakeholders involved in the monitoring and evaluation process; to empirically assess the process of PM&E in the SOS Project. The theoretical and conceptual framework of participatory development approach and the child rights based approach is used in this study. Both quantitative and qualitative methods of research are used throughout the study and measurement of key variables are made. While the systematic random sampling technique is utilised to collect data for the quantitative research, purposive sampling was used to select respondents for semi-structured interviews in the qualitative research. The study identified that the monitoring and evaluation process in SOS Children’s Village, Cape Town, South Africa is participatory in which the relevant stakeholders, especially the beneficiaries i.e. children participate in the monitoring and evaluation process. However, the study recommended that there should be an updated training and seminar for the staff to empower them to enhance their understanding of participatory monitoring and evaluation

Human papilloma virus (HPV) is the most common viral infection of the reproductive tract and a well-established cause of cervical, anal, and oropharyngeal cancers in both women and men worldwide. Despite data that supports HPV vaccine as an effective measure to prevent such cancers, vaccine uptake has not been optimal in many countries. In the United States (US) for example, rates have stagnated over the past few years and only one-third of adolescents are fully immunized, in contrast to other adolescent vaccines such as Tdap and meningococcal that have double the rates of uptake. Current approaches to HPV vaccine education and delivery have not been successful at improving immunization rates. In this article we propose the implementation of a child rights, social justice, and health equity-based approach to HPV vaccine policy. This approach would promote youth’s participation in medical decision-making and advance policies that allow for independent consent to HPV vaccination. We postulate that by empowering youth to be involved in issues pertaining to their health and well-being, they will be more likely to explore and discuss information about HPV with others, and be able to make informed decisions related to HPV vaccine.

Studiens syfte är att undersöka hur barnrättsperspektivet utifrån Barnkonventionen uppfattas i förskolan. Frågeställningarna bygger på Barnkonventionens fyra huvudartiklar. Hur uppfattar för-skollärarna att alla barn har samma rättigheter och lika värde? Hur uppfattar förskollärarna att barnets bästa ska komma i främsta rummet vid alla beslut som rör barn? Hur uppfattar förskollärarna barnets rätt att utvecklas? Hur uppfattar förskollärarna barnets rätt att komma till tals? Studien är en kvalitativ studie med en hermeneutisk ansats. Fokusgrupper har använts för att samla in empirin. Studiens resultat visar att förskolan i hög grad beaktade barnrättsperspektivet men att förskollärarna inte hade så hög kännedom om att barnrättsperspektivet hör hemma i Barnkonventionen. Skol-lagen och den reviderade läroplanen för förskolan hade implementerats på förskolorna och det framkom tydligt att förskollärarna kunde sin läroplan. Förskollärarna använde sig av medvetna strategier för att följa värdegrunden i förskolan. Det framkom att förskolan arbetade medvetet för att värna om barnens rättigheter och lika värde samt för att skapa möjligheter för varje barn att få komma till tals. Förskolans pedagoger arbetade med att lyssna på barnen och försökte ge dem in-flytande i verksamheten. Förskollärarna beskrev att det var en svår balansgång att tillgodose varje barns behov samtidigt som de i sin pedagogroll behövde ha hela barngruppen i åtanke. Studien visar att det relationella samspelet mellan barn-barn och mellan barn-vuxen är viktigt för att främja barnets utveckling. Förskollärarna i studien var väl medvetna om att deras förhållningssätt påverkade barnen och att det flexibla arbetssättet på förskolan är betydelsefullt för att möta barnen där de är samt fånga deras motivation. / The purpose of the study is to investigate how the Child Rights Perspective from the Children’s Convention is perceived in the pre-school. The research questions are built upon the four main articles of the Children’s Convention. How does the pre-school teachers perceive that every child’s same rights and equal value should be brought out? How does the pre-school teachers perceive that every decision concerning a child should be taken with the child’s best interest in mind? How does the pre-school teachers perceive every child’s right to develop? How does the pre-school teachers perceive every child’s right to be heard? The study is a qualitative study with a hermeneutic approach. The empirical data collection was performed in focus groups. The results show that the pre-school to a large extent takes the Child Rights Perspective into consideration. However, the pre-school teachers did in many cases not know that the Child Rights Perspective belongs in the Children’s Convention. The education act and the modified pre-school program had been implemented in all pre-schools in focus of the study and it was clear that the pre-school teachers knew the pre-school program well. The pre-school teachers used strategies to follow the basic values in the pre-school. The pre-schools further proved to work with the inten-tion to protect every child’s equal rights and same value as well as to give every child opportunities to be heard. Pedagogues of the pre-school worked with listening to the children and tried to give them influence in the pre-school operations. The pre-school teachers described that meeting the individual needs of every child in combination with having the entire children group in mind is hard to balance. The study further shows that the relational connections between the children and between the children and the adults are both important to nourish the development of the individual child. The pre-school teachers was well aware of that their approach affects the children and that the flexible way to operate in the pre-school is meaningful in terms of meeting the children where they are and to capture their motivation.

The purpose of this study is to investigate how a child's rights of speech are taken into account in child welfare investigations. A child's speech or words are not always taken seriously or as important as it should be in the child’s context. This problem has been a major topic of concern both at the national and the international level. Children want their speech of rights to be respected. It is their fundamental right that every human must guarantee to protect these rights to make a better world for future generations. Therefore in order to deeply examine the research topic, the authors used different theoretical approaches like power theory, communication theory and freedom of action. Furthermore the authors gathered more information using semi structure interviews with social workers who work with child welfare investigations. From the interview discussions, the researchers looked for recurrent themes and came with some findings that children are able to express their opinions in child welfare investigations. Children’s visibility and participation in child welfare investigations have improved since BBIC (the child’s needs at the center) has been involved in child welfare investigations. Children´s words or opinions were also ignored. More so, the actual level of how a child´s contribution directly influenced the decision making process was very unclear. The study further shows that social workers are using various communication methods and techniques to adress children's wishes and opinions to provide the best acceptable services. A well-established feedback session is made available in order to gather the children’s opinions and improve on the services.

The evolution of the Child rights protection policy in Lithuania is analyzed in the first part of the Master’s Thesis. Lithuania, by joining the Convention of UN and by ratifying it, recognized that the protection of Child rights and interests is the main mission for the State and society. Lithuania has made enough political tools which provide the guaranty to protect the children’s rights in his social environment. The main laws protecting the child rights have been adopted and all the institutions which seek for a real and complete assistance to the child, living in the family at social risk, observe it. It is necessary to coordinate the cooperation of the institutions of Child rights protection by using the method of team work The second part of the Master’s Thesis presents the analysis on the interinstitutional cooperation by ensuring the child rights protection in the families at social risk. The purpose of this investigation was to involve the specialists providing the assistance for children living in the families at social risk. 34 specialists working in different fields have participated in this investigation: 11 social workers of neighborhoods, 8 social pedagogues working in the comprehensive schools, 8 medical workers working in the schools and medical stations of neighborhoods, 2 Child rights protection service officers and 2 officers of police commissariat. 777 problems of school age children living in the families at social risk have been revealed during the... [to full text]

Society’s attitudes towards children have undergone major changes throughout this century. For a long time it was clear that children are vulnerable and need special protection from parents and society. Only recently children were recognised as legal subjects and bearers of rights. The wast number of various international documents is the evidence of the changing attitude towards children and childhood policy as well as the atitudetowards child as an individual, having fundamental rihgts and beeing a citizen. Achieving an effective spread, conception and prevalence of the child rights in pre-school institution it is important to warrant strong leading skills and the most important requirements to leaders and pedagogues. Recently the role of the leader of the pre-school institution in the process of society democratization has not lost it meaning, but developed into a new level. Currently the leader is not only a studious minister but also a political undertaker of the institution and a guarantor of the successful activity of his team. The success and effectiveness of the institution activity depends on proper management:planning, organizing, management and control. Pre-school institution management is a particular type of professional activity the aim of which are optimal results achieved rationally using material, humane, financial resourses, applying various principles and functions. Pre-scool institution leader must be a good strategist:foresee the vision and mission of... [to full text]

Šiandieninė žiniasklaidos (spaudos, radijo, televizijos, interneto) formų gausa aktualizuoja žiniasklaidos vaidmens ir įtakos tyrimus. Vis didesnį poreikį ir reikšmingumą Lietuvoje įgauna moterų, šeimos reprezentacijos Lietuvos žiniasklaidoje tyrimai, kurių objektu tampa suaugusiųjų įvaizdžio reprezentacija žiniasklaidoje, lyties tapatumo, šeimos modelių, socialinės elgsenos aktualizacija ir pateikiamo įvaizdžio įtaka vaikų suvokimui apie kasdienybėje vykstančius reiškinius. Užsienio autorių atlikti vaiko įvaizdžio naudojimo, šeimos reprezentacijos, į vaikus orientuotose reklamose, tyrimai apima stereotipinio mergaičių vaizdavimo problematiką TV reklamoje, semiotinę šeimos vaizdinio vaikams skirtoje reklamoje analizę. Tuo tarpu Lietuvoje panašaus pobūdžio tyrimai, nagrinėjantys vaiko įvaizdžio reprezentaciją TV reklamoje, nėra atliekami. Siekiant atskleisti TV reklamoje pateikiamo vaiko įvaizdžio teorines interpretacijas ir vertinimo tendencijas vaiko teisių apsaugos kontekste, buvo apibendrintos reklamos sampratos bei pobūdžio teorinės prielaidos, išryškintos vaiko teisių ir teisėtų interesų apsaugos TV reklamoje galimybės, atlikta TV reklaminių klipų turinio analizė, leidusi suformuluoti šias išvadas: Lietuvoje sukurta vaiko teisių ir teisėtų interesų apsaugos žiniasklaidoje teisinė bazė yra pakankamai išsami bei atitinka tarptautinių teisės normų reikalavimus, tačiau vis dar skiriamas nepakankamas dėmesys vaiko įvaizdžio reprezentavimui reklamoje, kuomet žiniasklaidos... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The variety of contemporary mass-media forms (press, radio, TV, internet etc.) actualizes media’s role and its influence researches. Such approaches as women, family representations within Lithuanian media researches take the main place and meaning that mostly focus on: a) adults’ self-image construction in the media; b) gender identity; c) family models; d) actualization of social behaviour; e) the influence of a given image for the children’s ability to recognize daily routine events. Many researches have been done on using child’s image within TV commercials and the main issues about using typical girlish view and semiotic family’s image, which is dedicated to children, analysis were set. Meanwhile such type of researches that analyzes children’s representations on TV commercials are not systematically organized yet in Lithuania. Thus, trying to reveal some theoretical interpretations and evaluating tendencies of children’s image usage on TV commercials in the context of their rights protection, the conceptions and manners of TV commercial were generalized. Also some possibilities of child’s rights and his/her legal interests’ protection on TV commercial were highlighted as well. Finally, the content analysis of some TV commercials’ clips has helped to make such conclusions as: a) even though the legal base of child rights and his/her interests’ protection within mass-media in Lithuania functions quite well, there is a lack of attention to a child’s image representations... [to full text]

Bakalauro darbe analizuojamas socialinis darbas su socialinės rizikos šeimomis, siekiant užtikrinti vaiko teises jose. Supažindinama su vaiko teisėmis šeimoje, socialinio darbo su rizikos šeimomis organizavimu ir vykdymu. / This bachelor thesis analyzes the social work with social risk families to ensure children's rights in it. Introducing children's rights within the family, social work with families at risk organization and execution.

Esta dissertação teve como objetivos conhecer a opinião de crianças angolanas a respeito de suas escolas, investigar como é a escola dos seus sonhos e averiguar como os direitos da criança estão sendo acolhidos nessas instituições. Para tanto foi realizado um estudo que englobou o sistema de ensino público primário do país, representado por 15 escolas localizadas em cinco províncias angolanas. As crianças participaram de entrevistas em grupo e o método utilizado foi a inserção ecológica. A análise dos dados foi realizada com base na Teoria Bioecológica do Desenvolvimento Humano e os resultados indicaram que as interações de crianças, professores, diretores e escolas são caracterizadas por desequilíbrio de poder e autoritarismo e, por isso, carecem de reciprocidade. A escola dos sonhos das crianças é um local com condições mínimas de infraestrutura, no qual se sentem acolhidas e respeitadas. A promoção e o respeito aos direitos da criança ainda são incipientes em Angola de maneira geral e nas escolas em particular. / This dissertation aimed to know the opinion of Angolan children with respect to their schools, investigate how the school of their dreams is and to verify how children’s rights are received in those institutions. This study encompassed Angola’s public primary education system, represented by 15 schools located in five Angolan provinces. The children participated in group interviews and the method used during data collection was the ecological engagement. Data analysis was done through the Bioecological Theory of Human Development and the results indicate that the interaction among children, teachers, directors and schools are characterized by the imbalance of power and authoritarianism, reason why the relationship lacks reciprocity. Children’s dream school is a place with minimal infrastructure where they feel welcomed and respected. In general, the promotion and respect to children’s rights are still incipient in Angola, especially in schools.

Magister Artium (Social Work) - MA(SW) / The social welfare policy context changed dramatically from apartheid to post-apartheid in the South African transition to democracy. The new social developmental approach towards professional social work service delivery did not decrease the demand for foster care and thus the need for alternative child care placements continue to rise. Many children are still removed from their primary caregivers at a very young age and stay in foster care until they become adults. The goal of this research study was to explore , understand and describe the perceptions and experiences of adults regarding their lived experiences as foster children through the lens of Life Course Theory. Key objectives were to explore, understand and describe the foster care and childhood perceptions and experiences of participants through their journeys and transitions into adulthood; to explore, understand and describe how professional social work services are delivered in the field of foster care in the Overstrand Service Delivery Area and with these reflections, provide recommendations for improvements in foster care support services. In conducting this study, a qualitative single case design was implemented with the aim to contextualise the topic from a local, regional and social work perspective. A purposive sample of nine adult participants (four adult women and five adult men between the ages 25 and 35), across racial groups, i.e. young adults who entered alternative foster care as children, were used for the study. Data was collected in selected sub-areas of the Overstrand Municipal area, with a specific focus on the increasing foster care caseloads of registered non-profit child protection organisations (NPOs), particularly their satellite offices of Hermanus, Kleinmond, Gansbaai and the Stanford areas which form part of the Overberg region in the Western Cape. Data collection techniques consisted of document studies and semi-structured interviews, using a life-history approach for each individual partcipant. Data analysis was guided by the eight-step thematic analytical framework provided by Tesch. Findings concluded that social workers with the necessary resources generally need to respond in more appropriate ways to adequately prepare youth for the period of ‘transitioning’ out of foster care into independence and adulthood. The study documented evidence of how clients view the foster-care supervision services that were rendered. The study should thus guide and allow practitioner social workers to seriously review current social policies and practices regarding foster care. During the life course of ‘identity seeking’ individuals the struggles and challenges as told by the adult participants in this contextual study became better known and understood. As a practitioner and social work researcher, the researcher was also able to identify with the current practice dilemmas faced by designated child protection NPO organisations working under many constraints rendering foster-care services at local community and family level on behalf of the state. The research study should alert policy makers (including academic training instutitions), at local state and organizational levels, as well as individual social work professionals, of their constitutional, citizenship and ethical obligations to take cognisance, and great care of the significance of case file records that become historical evidence of the work and services rendered by professionals. The researcher is registered with the South African Council of Social Service Professions and is bound by the social work code of ethics which include research practice. Ethics considerations that were key to this study, e.g. obtaining informed consent, protecting the anonymity of the individual participants and participating organizations, and to ensure that both records and documents, and their identity and status are kept confidential.