This thesis explores the desirability of Australia???s State museums to be inclusive of diverse cultures. In keeping with a cultural studies approach, and a commitment to social action, emphasis is placed upon enhancing the ability of State museums to fulfil obligations and expectations imposed upon them as modern collecting institutions in a culturally diverse nation. By relating the desirability and ability of State museums to attaining social justice in a multicultural Australia through broadening the concept of Australia???s heritage, the thesis is firmly situated within post-colonial discourse. The thesis analyses State multicultural, heritage, and museum legislation, in New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland, with regard to State museums as agents of cultural policy. Results from a survey, Greeks and Museums, conducted amongst Australia???s Greeks in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, reveal an anomaly between their museum-going habits and the perception of those habits as expressed by government policies promoting the inclusion of Australians of a non-English speaking background in the nation???s cultural programmes. In exploring the issue of inclusiveness, the thesis highlights the need for cultural institutions to shift the emphasis away from audience development, towards greater audience participation. The thesis outlines an initiative-derived Queensland Model for establishing an inclusive relationship between museums and communities, resulting in permanent, affordable, and authoritative collections, while simultaneously improving the museums??? international reputation and networking capabilities. By using the example of one of the nation???s non-indigenous communities, and drawing upon material obtained through the survey, and a catalogue containing photographs and lists of Greek textile collections found in the Powerhouse Museum (MAAS), Sydney, the National Gallery of Victoria and the Immigration Museum, Melbourne, the Queensland Art Gallery and the Queensland Museum, Brisbane, as well as collections owned by private individuals, the thesis focuses on the role played by museums in constructing social cohesion and inclusiveness.

The literacy experiences of a small group of culturally-diverse children were examined in this study. The experiences, too, were diverse – and influential. The children, five girls aged four – five years, attended the same Preschool, in an inner suburb of a large city in Australia. Data were gathered at home, during the last two months of the preschool year and, for three of the children, during writing sessions in the first six months of Year One. Vygotskian ideas on meaning-making were integrated with other perspectives on development, literacy learning and teaching from a sociocultural, theoretical framework. The purpose was to identify dimensions of children’s literacy experiences and provide insight into ways in which children negotiate culture, literacy, and schooling, challenge current perspectives, contribute to research knowledge and determine how teachers might take account of cultural diversity in classrooms to better support children in literacy learning. A grounded theory method was employed using multiple data collection tools and techniques in both home and school contexts. Data were coded using a process of constant comparison to identify features, characteristics and dimensions of children’s literacy experiences. Independent inter-rater agreement on the coding of features at home, Preschool and school was 98.4%. Findings included a variety of values, beliefs and perspectives amongst parents and between teachers in relation to literacy learning, roles and relationships, and home-school connections. Children’s literacy experiences at home differed in terms of nature, frequency and resources and experiences in each of the settings were very different. A major finding was that children acted as agents of their own learning: mixing, transferring, trying out, adapting, and experimenting to determine appropriate practices and make decisions including when to exercise choice to enact agency. These assimilation and accommodation adaptations were identified as akin to code-switching, labelled as culture-switching, and identified as areas requiring further research.

<p>This thesis examines how cultural diversity within an organization might influence managers‟ information-handling process. The models used are; Geert Hofstede‟s five dimensions of national culture, to represent the cultural diversity; and Henry Mintzberg‟s definition of the manager‟s informational roles, to represent the managers‟ information-handling.To show this empirically, a case study of a half-Swedish, half-Vietnamese-owned retail company, UMA Ltd Co, was conducted. This company is situated in Vietnam and employs a range of different nationalities. Interviews were conducted with seven of UMA‟s managers to gain an understanding of their opinions concerning their informational roles, as well as to identify issues and benefits within the company caused by the cultural diversity.The results of the interviews revealed some relevant cultural issues and benefits of working in a culturally diverse company. It was evident through the analysis, in which the cultural dimensions were applied onto the informational roles, that there are a number of problems at UMA in need of repair. For instance, differences in employees‟ perception of the power distance dimension seem to affect how information is spread and gained. This is also caused by the unclear organizational structure of the company, where employees, instead of realizing who they are obliged to answer to, rather follow their culturally given hierarchical system. Further issues caused by the cultural diversity at UMA are presented in the conclusion of this thesis.</p>

This thesis examines how cultural diversity within an organization might influence managers‟ information-handling process. The models used are; Geert Hofstede‟s five dimensions of national culture, to represent the cultural diversity; and Henry Mintzberg‟s definition of the manager‟s informational roles, to represent the managers‟ information-handling.To show this empirically, a case study of a half-Swedish, half-Vietnamese-owned retail company, UMA Ltd Co, was conducted. This company is situated in Vietnam and employs a range of different nationalities. Interviews were conducted with seven of UMA‟s managers to gain an understanding of their opinions concerning their informational roles, as well as to identify issues and benefits within the company caused by the cultural diversity.The results of the interviews revealed some relevant cultural issues and benefits of working in a culturally diverse company. It was evident through the analysis, in which the cultural dimensions were applied onto the informational roles, that there are a number of problems at UMA in need of repair. For instance, differences in employees‟ perception of the power distance dimension seem to affect how information is spread and gained. This is also caused by the unclear organizational structure of the company, where employees, instead of realizing who they are obliged to answer to, rather follow their culturally given hierarchical system. Further issues caused by the cultural diversity at UMA are presented in the conclusion of this thesis.

In this essay I present the process, learnings and final results of my master project. The project focuses on the education Swedish for immigrants, SFI, and how design can play a role in improving the education to better meet the needs of the learners and become more of a step towards inclusion.  I identify two learner groups; the experienced and the novice learner, with different needs and prerequisites. During the project I develop a focus towards the novice learner and the problem I call the vicious circle. By this term I refer to that too big gaps between the learners former knowledge/experiences and the education results in lost motivation and self-esteem and many learners giving up or getting stuck in the education.  Throughout the project I use an iterative process, in three loops, where I involve the stakeholders in the development of my ideas through interviews, observations and colaborative workshops.  My final proposal is a the learning service “Matprat”, which invites the learners as co-creators of the education and puts their experiences and knowledge in the centre of learning.

Döden angår oss alla och vår kulturella bakgrund har stor betydelse för hur vi möter den. Palliativ vård fokuserar på att ge stöd och lindring till döende patienter för att öka deras livskvalitet. Av Sveriges invånare har var sjätte utländsk bakgrund och detta ställer andra och delvis nya krav på sjukvården. Syftet med studien var att belysa faktorer som påverkar sjuksköterskans palliativa omvårdnad till patienter från andra kulturer. Studien är en litteraturöversikt där tolv artiklar analyserats utifrån syftet. I resultatet finns många olika faktorer som påverkar sjuksköterskans omvårdnadsarbete av palliativa patienter i en mångkulturell vårdsituation. Resultatet delades upp i tre huvudkategorier: kulturell kommunikation, kulturell medvetenhet/kunskap och kulturella skillnader/behov. För att kunna ge patienter med annan kulturell bakgrund en palliativ omvårdnad med hög kvalitet behövs medvetenhet och kunskap hos sjuksköterskan om deras specifika behov. Utvidgad utbildning och diskussion behövs i ämnet och svenska empiriska studier som belyser dessa patienter och anhörigas behov. Det är nödvändigt att både den specialiserade palliativa vården och övrig vård tar del i både forskning och utbildning, eftersom palliativa patienter från andra kulturer finns inom de flesta specialiteter.

Using a phenomenological approach, this study examined the lived experiences of students and instructors in relation to culturally diverse classrooms in an urban Canadian post-secondary institution, and what meanings they ascribed to those experiences. Data were collected through individual interviews with nine students and seven instructors, who had experienced the phenomenon. Findings revealed that first, all participants, students and instructors, were keenly aware of differences in how they personally differed and how they observed differences in those around them. Second, participants’ social location impacted how they experienced differences. Third, in their fears and hopes, participants expressed a range of emotional responses to differences. Both students and instructors seemed to have similar hopes and fears. Emotional responses were dependent upon the nature of the critical events pertaining to difference which, in turn, prompted participants to adopt strategies to deal with these events. Fourth, the discussion about cultural diversity exposed a paradox and irony between what participants said and what they actually experienced. Although participants enthusiastically attested to the richness of diversity, when looking beneath the façade, a dystopian utopia emerged where participants were “surrounded by all these contradictions.” Participants experienced a form of every day culture shock every time they entered a university classroom, and they uniformly talked about valuing difference, but practice often demonstrated the opposite. This became evident when participants talked about the pressure to fit in and about wanting to belong. Fifth, most participants evidenced varying levels of ambiguity about their personal and public identity, demonstrated in seemingly self-deprecating language. Sixth, although the traditional academic system illustrated evidence of nontraditional methods, at times the impression of openness seemed paradoxical. The distinctive nature of this study revealed that when using Freire’s critical pedagogy and Mezirow’s transformative learning as theoretical frameworks, results showed a continuum on the spectrum of power sharing with some instructors still seeing themselves as vessel fillers, to instructors on the other side of the spectrum, willing to reevaluate traditional models. Such a study is important because cross-cultural competency and sensitivity, as Street (1984) says, are essential components in today’s culturally diverse work, academic, and social environment.

This thesis explores the desirability of Australia???s State museums to be inclusive of diverse cultures. In keeping with a cultural studies approach, and a commitment to social action, emphasis is placed upon enhancing the ability of State museums to fulfil obligations and expectations imposed upon them as modern collecting institutions in a culturally diverse nation. By relating the desirability and ability of State museums to attaining social justice in a multicultural Australia through broadening the concept of Australia???s heritage, the thesis is firmly situated within post-colonial discourse. The thesis analyses State multicultural, heritage, and museum legislation, in New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland, with regard to State museums as agents of cultural policy. Results from a survey, Greeks and Museums, conducted amongst Australia???s Greeks in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, reveal an anomaly between their museum-going habits and the perception of those habits as expressed by government policies promoting the inclusion of Australians of a non-English speaking background in the nation???s cultural programmes. In exploring the issue of inclusiveness, the thesis highlights the need for cultural institutions to shift the emphasis away from audience development, towards greater audience participation. The thesis outlines an initiative-derived Queensland Model for establishing an inclusive relationship between museums and communities, resulting in permanent, affordable, and authoritative collections, while simultaneously improving the museums??? international reputation and networking capabilities. By using the example of one of the nation???s non-indigenous communities, and drawing upon material obtained through the survey, and a catalogue containing photographs and lists of Greek textile collections found in the Powerhouse Museum (MAAS), Sydney, the National Gallery of Victoria and the Immigration Museum, Melbourne, the Queensland Art Gallery and the Queensland Museum, Brisbane, as well as collections owned by private individuals, the thesis focuses on the role played by museums in constructing social cohesion and inclusiveness.

Dissertation (MHSc--Health Science) -- Auckland University of Technology, 2003. / Also held in print (94 leaves, 30 cm.) in North Shore Campus Theses Collection (T 616.8914 PAT)

abstract: Public discourse conveys and constructs sophisticated, nuanced and often conflicting notions of place, identity, culture, and religion. Comprehending the significance of place-based discourse is essential to understanding many of the contemporary difficulties facing Native American peoples. This is particularly true of the Western Apache people who constitute their places via discursive engagement. This project examines the Western Apache in their fight to save Dzil nchaa si an (Mount Graham) from a multi-telescope observatory upon its summit. Using discourse and text analysis to examine the public rhetoric, I suggest that the Western Apache understand the mountain as a participatory partner in community viability and Apache identity. I also suggest that the discourse surrounding the Mt. Graham controversy provides a mechanism to understand how Apache discourse links past and present practices and identity as seen through four emerging thematic elements: ethics, relatedness, knowledge, and religious verbiage. Understanding how discourse reveals cultural norms and practices and sustains cultural integrity is important as communicative disjunctures impact the effective responses of Native American and other diverse groups. These issues are framed within the national debate regarding cultural significance and bear directly upon the success of other preservation efforts. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Anthropology 2012