Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 158-162). Also available in print.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

Abstract: In this study, I examine the risk of first contraception among Ethiopian women. I use the 2005 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey and apply Continuous-Time Event-History Analysis to follow women from age ten to the time of first use or at the interview, whichever comes first.   The multivariate analyses by controlling all variables show that risks for first contraception are higher at higher parities, at younger and older ages, for Orthodox religion followers, the Tigrie ethnic group, women who completed primary education, in the Benishangul-Gumuz and Gambela regions and in urban areas and for younger cohorts.

The problem with which this investigation was concerned was to determine whether or not age difference was related to aggressiveness scores of first-born children.

The typical educational stressors experienced by college students, in conjunction with developmental stressors such as separation from parents, individuation, and perceived social support, can interact to impact adaptation significantly. First generation college students (students who are the first in their family to attend college) can experience stressors beyond the typical educational stressors experienced by later generation college students, including lack of support from family and peers as well as financial difficulties that can interact to impact the pursuit of an education beyond the undergraduate level. The present study examined factors that may be especially influential in the pursuit of a higher education for first generation college students. Results indicated that aspects of family enmeshment were related to academic motivation for first generation students, but not for later generation students. Exploratory analysis showed that family and finances were mentioned more often among first generation students when compared to later generation students as stressors that strongly influence the desire to continue beyond the undergraduate level.

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand teachers' experiences related to the implementation of Reading First in the classroom and more specifically, how Reading First has impacted curriculum, instruction, assessment, student achievement, and professional development. The participants for this study were five certified, kindergarten and first grade public school teachers. In depth interviews were conducted with each participant regarding her experiences with the implementation of Reading First. Once collected, the data was then analyzed according to a method advanced by Moustakas (1994) and reported. Findings and recommendations included, but were not limited to the following: 1. There are advantages and disadvantages for both students and teachers. The biggest disadvantage for teachers was the lack of flexibility and instructional decision-making imposed by Reading First. 2. Most of the teachers felt there needed to be more of a focus on comprehension, not just phoneme segmentation and oral reading fluency. 3. Some teachers felt that Reading First hurts some of the kids, especially the lowest kids and the above level kids. 4. All participants in this study reported collaboration with other teachers, interventionists, and reading coaches regarding curriculum, instruction, assessment and student achievement. 5. All of the teachers stated that they have received professional training as a result of Reading First which in turn has helped them to become more effective teachers. The researcher believes that the administrators of Reading First need to be more flexible and receptive to the input of those, namely teachers, who implement the directives. There needs to be a course of action allowing for a review to be done and modifications to be made to ensure that the premise of Reading First is upheld.

This study tests the hypothesis that Khoe speaking herders from northern Botswana brought pottery to the southern tip of Africa. Stylistically in terms of lip types, rim orientations, vessel size, shape and decoration no homogeneity was noted between and within samples from several sites in Southern Africa thus refuting the idea that these vessels were made by the same population. Noted was the fact that during the LSA the technology behind the manufacturing pots and probably the idea of using these pots was the same but each group decorated their variously shaped pots according to their own choices influenced probably by their cultural beliefs. This study argues for a need to shift the mindset that for every new tradition in the southern African archaeological record appearing it has to involve massive movement of people introducing it. Therefore this study brings forth the idea that pottery probably reached the tip of Africa by diffusion.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Epidemiology & Biostatistics. Johannesburg, February 2015 / Background Anaemia in pregnancy is a major public health and economic problem worldwide, that contributes to both maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality. Clinical manifestations of anaemia in pregnancy include fetal growth restriction, preterm delivery, low birth weight, impaired lactation, poor maternal/infant behavioural interactions and post partum depression. Objective The aim of the study was to calculate the prevalence of anaemia in early pregnancy in a cohort of ‘low risk’ women participating in a large international multicentre prospective study (n = 5 609), to identify the modifiable risk factors for anaemia in pregnancy in this cohort, and to compare the birth outcomes between pregnancies with and without anaemia in early gestation. Methods The study is an analysis of data that were collected prospectively during the Screening for Pregnancy Endpoints (SCOPE) study. Anaemia was defined according to the World Health Organization’s definition of anaemia in pregnancy (haemoglobin < 11g/dL). Binary logistic regression with adjustment for potential confounders (country, maternal age, having a marital partner, ethnic origin, years of schooling, and having paid work) was the main method of analysis. Results The hallmark findings were the low prevalence of anaemia (2.2%), that having no marital partner was an independent risk factor for having anaemia (OR 1.34, 95% CI 1.01-1.78), and that there was no statistically significant effect of anaemia on adverse pregnancy outcomes (small for gestational age, pre-tem birth, mode of delivery, low birth weight, APGAR score < 7 at one and five minutes). Adverse pregnancy outcomes were however more common in those with anaemia than in those without. Conclusion The absence of a marital partner is an important non-modifiable factor that should be added to the conceptual framework of anaemia’s determinants. Although not statistically significant, clinically, a trend towards a higher risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes was observed in women that were anaemic in early pregnancy.