Research in patient education suggests that tailored educational materials can improve patient's understanding of a treatment plan and help to achieve patient engagement and compliance. The goal of the HealthDoc Project has been the creation of automated Natural Language Generation systems for producing educational materials that are tailored to an individual patient's medical condition and personal situation. The project has so far focused on developing computational linguistic tools needed to author tailorable content from which customized versions could be generated. Also the HealthDoc model of document generation assumes the existence of previously authored textual material. Therefore, a new approach is needed to construct these materials and ensure that the relevant medical knowledge will be captured and delivered to the patient by providing a means to assist the health care professionals in directly authoring the required domain knowledge. <br /><br />We have used constructivist educational theory and knowledge-level modelling to define a new approach incorporating Patient-centric and Behaviour-modifying Educational Model (PBEM) and a knowledge-acquisition framework. Unlike traditional approaches, in which all patients are treated alike in terms of the medical information provided, our new model takes into account characteristics of individual patients. This facilitates the patient's assimilation of relevant information pertaining to her behaviour and health. As the information provided must address the various concerns of different stakeholders, and different patients have different concerns and concern intensities, a knowledge-acquisition framework was developed to provide a structure for patient knowledge acquisition. This framework includes the following components: a Strategic Model, a Concerns Model, and an Interrogation-based knowledge-acquisition Tool. The tool is intended to be used directly by health care professionals and to assist them in formulating, structuring, representing, and articulating their domain knowledge. This research work explores a new field, knowledge-level modelling, for generating patient-tailored educational materials and provides guidelines to implementing such a knowledge-acquisition tool.

Teisinio švietimo reikšmė pabrėžiama įvairiuose dokumentuose, edukacinėje literatūroje. Tai “procesas, per kurį asmenims sudaromos galimybės įgyti žinių ir gebėjimų, padedančių tinkamai naudotis savo teisėmis ir laisvėmis teisinėje sistemoje, ginti savo teises ir vykdyti pareigas”. Visuomenės teisinio švietimo problemą bandoma spręsti įvairiais būdais ir metodais. Europos Komisija aktyviai prisideda prie jaunimo teisinio švietimo, organizuodama įvairią veiklą (paskelbtas komunikatas dėl Europos Sąjungos vaiko teisių strategijos kūrimo, organizuojami konkursai ir pan.) visose Europos Sąjungos valstybėse. Lietuvos Respublikos Vyriausybė, Teisingumo ministerija ir kitos institucijos yra įsipareigojusios gerinti visuomenės teisinį švietimą, nuolat priimdamos ir patvirtindamos įvairias visuomenės teisinio švietimo programas, kurių vienas iš tikslų yra kiekvienam moksleiviui suteikti “esminių teisinių žinių apie šeimą, darbo santykius ir santykius su valdžios institucijomis” [8]. Kaip nurodoma 2009 m. Nevyriausybinių organizacijų plėtros koncepcijos projekte, „siekiant įveikti mažėjantį visuomenės pilietinį aktyvumą, bei augantį nusivylimą dėl galimybės daryti įtaką valstybės institucijų priimamiems sprendimams, <....> teisinis švietimas ir pilietinis ugdymas privalo apimti visas galimas formas ir būdus“ [10]. Mokiniai, neįgiję teisinių žinių, ateityje sunkiau prisitaikys prie nuolat kintančių ar naujų socialinių normų bei nesugebės jomis naudotis ginant savo teises ir laisves... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The significance of legal education is emphasized in various documents and educational literature. It is a "process in which individuals are provided with opportunities to acquire knowledge and skills, helping them to exercise their rights and freedoms in the legal system to defend their rights and accept responsibilities. Public legal education attempts to address the problem in different ways and methods. The European Commission in actively involved in legal education of young people by organizing various activities (the Communication on a Europe Union strategy on the Rights of the Child, organized competitions and so on) across the European Union. The Government of the Republic of Lithuania, Ministry of Justice and other authorities are committed to improve public legal education, constantly adopting and approving a variety of public legal education programs, one of the goals is to give each student a "substantial legal knowledge of family, labor relations and relations with the authorities" [8]. As stated in the 2009 Non-governmental organizations in the development of the concept of the project, "in order to cope with declining civic society, and growing frustration on the possibility to influence decisions taken by public authorities, <...> legal education and civic education must cover all possible forms and methods" [10]. Students, who have not acquired legal knowledge in the future will find it more difficult to adapt to constantly changing and new social norms and... [to full text]

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the health education for clients diagnosed with diabetes mellitus by nurses working in the diabetes clinic of the specific hospital. The quantitative descriptive cross sectional design used two questionnaires to collect data from all 20 nurses working in the diabetes clinic and from a convenient sample of 132 clients diagnosed with diabetes mellitus, making use of the health services at the diabetes clinic of the hospital. Data was analysed by a computer program, statistical package for social science (SPSS). Measures were taken to ensure acceptable ethical practice, validity and reliability of the study. Findings revealed the absence of official documents to guide the health education and other factors, such as not knowing the learning needs of the clients, not utilising teaching methods optimally. Recommendations address the development of standard procedures, lesson plans, recording of health education sessions and education skills development for the nurses. / Health Studies / M. A. (Nursing Science)

Recent nursing literature has repeatedly proclaimed the need for creativity in nursing. The complexity of contemporary nursing practice as a result of the explosion of knowledge and technology, changing human values and diverse health care systems, requires an innovative and creative nurse who can adapt to change and provide holistic, individualised, context-specific patient care. Higher levels of cognitive thought, creative thinking and problem-solving skills have been stressed as desirable qualities of student nurses. It is suggested in the literature that the evolution of innovative strategies and the ways to implement them into nursing curricula be explored in order to assist and encourage students to develop these higher cognitive skills. From an analytical study of the literature which was undertaken with the aim of exploring the nature of creativity and the processes involved in creative thinking and learning, and of identifying innovative strategies particularly relevant to the teaching of nursing, it became apparent that the most significant determinants in teaching for creativity, are the learning enviromnent, the educator-student relationship, and the provision of a variety of teaching strategies, which are student-centred with a problem-solving focus. It was established that stimulation of both the left and right hemispheres of the brain is essential for the development of creative thinking skills. Based on the insights and knowledge gained in the study, a nursing education model for the fostering of creativity was developed. This model encompasses a wide variety of didactic considerations and is designed to stimulate whole brain learning. It is hoped that its use will be of value in the production of innovative and courageous nurse practitioners who will be better equipped to cope with the changes and challenges of their working environment and be able to provide context-specific nursing care. / Health Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Nursing Science)

Recent nursing literature has repeatedly proclaimed the need for creativity in nursing. The complexity of contemporary nursing practice as a result of the explosion of knowledge and technology, changing human values and diverse health care systems, requires an innovative and creative nurse who can adapt to change and provide holistic, individualised, context-specific patient care. Higher levels of cognitive thought, creative thinking and problem-solving skills have been stressed as desirable qualities of student nurses. It is suggested in the literature that the evolution of innovative strategies and the ways to implement them into nursing curricula be explored in order to assist and encourage students to develop these higher cognitive skills. From an analytical study of the literature which was undertaken with the aim of exploring the nature of creativity and the processes involved in creative thinking and learning, and of identifying innovative strategies particularly relevant to the teaching of nursing, it became apparent that the most significant determinants in teaching for creativity, are the learning enviromnent, the educator-student relationship, and the provision of a variety of teaching strategies, which are student-centred with a problem-solving focus. It was established that stimulation of both the left and right hemispheres of the brain is essential for the development of creative thinking skills. Based on the insights and knowledge gained in the study, a nursing education model for the fostering of creativity was developed. This model encompasses a wide variety of didactic considerations and is designed to stimulate whole brain learning. It is hoped that its use will be of value in the production of innovative and courageous nurse practitioners who will be better equipped to cope with the changes and challenges of their working environment and be able to provide context-specific nursing care. / Health Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Nursing Science)

Submitted in fulfillment for the requirements of M Technology : Nursing, Department of Nursing, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2015. / Background All nursing students need to undergo clinical training for them to be competent practitioners when they qualify. According to the South African Nursing Council (SANC) training facilities are accredited only if the clinical training component is effective. Therefore, it is important that students are accompanied in order for them to grow professionally and have values as future health care professionals. In nursing education, a student throughout the nursing training course receives instruction both theoretically and clinically in the subjects prescribed in the curriculum by the SANC. Clinical instruction is effected through clinical teaching and learning, which is a requirement by the nursing regulatory body, the SANC. For an undergraduate programme a student has to spend a minimum of 1000 hours per year in clinical placement to meet programme outcomes. It is the responsibility of all nursing schools, colleges and universities to ensure that each student meets these requirements. For this to be effective it has to be facilitated by lecturers and clinical instructors, through teaching and learning strategies to enable students to perform the clinical skill with knowledge and eventual competence. Therefore, clinical instructors are there to ensure that the students are competent in all skills, such as cognitive, affective as well as psychomotor skills. This will be beneficial to the programme in reduction of rates of failure and dropout and again by producing competent practitioners. A positive relationship and collaboration between the clinical training institutions and clinical placement facilities is vital for student achievement, especially because the clinical instructors assist students in correlating theory and practice. This study sought to assess the clinical training component of an undergraduate programme at this UoT in KwaZulu Natal. Findings may inform an improved clinical instruction programme as no such study had been undertaken. Methods A qualitative and quantitative design was used to explore feelings, perceptions as well as experiences of staff and student nurses with regard to clinical training component. Stratified random sampling was used to select student nurses according to levels of training and questionnaires were used to collect data. All permanently employed staff who had been working over six months were selected since they were directly or indirectly involved in the clinical facilitation. A focus group interview was conducted for the clinical instructors and questionnaires were used for the lecturers to collect data. Themes and sub-themes emerged and on analysis they were compared to the findings from the quantitative survey. Results and discussion The results revealed that collaboration of clinical placement facilities and training institutions is important for student’s support since all parties are able to communicate freely and students benefit. Students stated that they did not get enough support since the clinical facilitators were short staffed and they were also allocated to facilities that were far from the campus. The respondents cited problems during clinical accompaniments as there were very high expectations by staff members in the placement areas regarding student support. Lecturers were also expected to involve themselves in clinical accompaniment to bridge theory-practice gap. The employment of mentors will assist in student support as the mentors will be at placement areas and the staff and students easily contact them. Conclusion From the interviews the researcher managed to come up with important aspects that should be included in an accompaniment tool when developed, which should be user friendly to both lecturers and clinical facilitators. It will thus assist students with critical skills including critical thinking when performing any patient related nursing skill. It was recommended that the UoT management support staff by attending to their concerns including finding more clinical placement facilities close to the campus.

1 ABSTRACT The thesis discusses possibilities of application of the concept of lifelong education in Basic Art Schools. The goal of the thesis is to propose a basic model of adult education which could be applied in Basic Art Schools. It focuses on the analysis of the literature on lifelong learning, lifewide learning, further education, and also on the analysis of strategic documents of the European Union and the Czech Republic in the field of lifelong learning and further education. Based on the analyses of the documents and external environment, a model of adult education in Basic Art Schools is proposed, the applicability of which is verified by a research investigation. A survey research examines the existence of education of diverse target groups of adults (both laymen and experts) in Basic Art Schools in Prague, the ratio of adult to younger students and the employed methods of their education. Structured interviews among five headteachers of Basic Art Schools in Prague clarify specific details of the process of educating adults in Basic Art Schools and provide more observations on the topic. The thesis contributes to the advancement of the concept of lifelong learning in the sphere of Basic Art Schools. Also, it brings forward possibilities of use of vacancies in Basic Art Schools for adult...

THE ABSTRACT This diploma thesis aims to analyse the use of music therapy techniques as means to reduce the manifestations of attention deficit disorders. Furthermore, it deals with the application of said supportive measures in the framework of bullying prevention and its pathological effects. It also focuses on ways music therapy can be instrumental in a pupil's personal and social growth. In the theoretical part, the Framework Educational Programme for Elementary Education is introduced as one of the key changes in primary education in the framework of curricular reform. The chapter also addresses the topic of inclusive education, supportive measures and key competencies. Later on, music therapy is the subject of interest. Its methods, specializations and possibilities of use are listed. The chapter Specific learning and behavioural disorders introduces specific disorders, concentrating in detail on dyslexia, mutism, ADHD and ADD. I point out the use of music therapy as a re-educational tool, as well. I lay out a range of music therapy games which are tried out in the research part of the thesis. The research part deals with the application of music therapy activities within school lessons. These activities are assorted into thematic units, each of them customised to cater to the needs of pupils with...

This study centres on the psychological effects new digital media, like the internet and cellphones, have on adolescents. Although the internet has enormous benefits, it also poses a host of risks that can make adolescents vulnerable to victimisation and/or developing associated psychosocial problems. Characterisations of adolescents’ social relationships in the internet medium, as well as the investigation of the continuity between digital media literacy and online social behaviours, carry high relevance for developmental psychology. It is during the adolescent period that peer interactions arguably hold the greatest importance for individuals’ social and behavioural functioning. Using a logic model for evaluation, the researcher conducted an exploratory research study on digital media use among adolescent learners aged 13 to 15 years to determine whether schools could guide them to think critically for themselves about the entire realm of these new media. The data were gathered from school principals, teachers, parents and learners from three secondary schools in Gauteng Province, which were purposely selected to represent different socio-economic circumstances. A total of 230 people (n=230) participated in the research. Mixed research methods were employed in this study. The quantitative research methods supported the qualitative research methods. The literature review suggested that current media literacy education, which forms part of the Life Orientation curriculum, does not enable learners to think critically or make informed choices about their behaviour in the digital world – because it incorporates neither ethics nor responsibility. One of the main aims of the study therefore was to investigate the importance of expanding existing media literacy education, namely by incorporating two additional learning categories in the curriculum: Digital Safety and Security, and Digital Citizenship. These additional learning categories were introduced in the form of lessons by the teachers participating in the study. A think aloud strategy was used whereby learners verbalise what they were doing and learning while engaging in the digital media literacy lesson activities. The learners’ verbalisations were used to ascertain what learning was occurring in the classroom. The experimental group demonstrated an increase in critical thinking from pre- to post-evaluation. This research therefore proposes that the signature element of intervention strategies for inappropriate online behaviour be to create a “culture of critical thinking”. This implies greatly reducing the risks cyberspace pose, and at the same time enhancing adolescents’ abilities to use it in ways that create and deepen healthy relationships – in the digital as well as the real world. / Psychology / D. Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)

This study centres on the psychological effects new digital media, like the internet and cellphones, have on adolescents. Although the internet has enormous benefits, it also poses a host of risks that can make adolescents vulnerable to victimisation and/or developing associated psychosocial problems. Characterisations of adolescents’ social relationships in the internet medium, as well as the investigation of the continuity between digital media literacy and online social behaviours, carry high relevance for developmental psychology. It is during the adolescent period that peer interactions arguably hold the greatest importance for individuals’ social and behavioural functioning. Using a logic model for evaluation, the researcher conducted an exploratory research study on digital media use among adolescent learners aged 13 to 15 years to determine whether schools could guide them to think critically for themselves about the entire realm of these new media. The data were gathered from school principals, teachers, parents and learners from three secondary schools in Gauteng Province, which were purposely selected to represent different socio-economic circumstances. A total of 230 people (n=230) participated in the research. Mixed research methods were employed in this study. The quantitative research methods supported the qualitative research methods. The literature review suggested that current media literacy education, which forms part of the Life Orientation curriculum, does not enable learners to think critically or make informed choices about their behaviour in the digital world – because it incorporates neither ethics nor responsibility. One of the main aims of the study therefore was to investigate the importance of expanding existing media literacy education, namely by incorporating two additional learning categories in the curriculum: Digital Safety and Security, and Digital Citizenship. These additional learning categories were introduced in the form of lessons by the teachers participating in the study. A think aloud strategy was used whereby learners verbalise what they were doing and learning while engaging in the digital media literacy lesson activities. The learners’ verbalisations were used to ascertain what learning was occurring in the classroom. The experimental group demonstrated an increase in critical thinking from pre- to post-evaluation. This research therefore proposes that the signature element of intervention strategies for inappropriate online behaviour be to create a “culture of critical thinking”. This implies greatly reducing the risks cyberspace pose, and at the same time enhancing adolescents’ abilities to use it in ways that create and deepen healthy relationships – in the digital as well as the real world. / Psychology / D. Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)