Teenage parenting is widely constructed in prevailing research and public discourse as a social problem, with poor outcomes for parent and child. Teenage parents are regarded as a drain on state funds, too young to parent well, and at high risk of social exclusion, both educationally and economically. This thesis proposes that teenage motherhood is a turning point in a young woman’s life and identity, which can be an opportunity, rather than a problem, if there is adequate support for the mother and her child. It considers the role of a New Zealand School for Teenage Parents in providing this support. Using qualitative narrative methodology, ten young women, six family members and nine other members of the School community were interviewed about their experiences of its culture and practices. Six of the young women were also interviewed to gather their life stories. Informed by the narrative understanding that we story our identities from the narrative possibilities available to us within the varied discursive contexts of our lives, this thesis draws on these life stories to explore how the young women storied the fashioning of their own identities as young women, as learners and as young parents. It presents their stories of childhood and family life, teenage-hood and schooling, pregnancy and parenthood, their experiences at the School for Teenage Parents, and their lives since leaving the School, in order to consider the role of the School in supporting the positive refashioning of their identities. This thesis draws on social constructionist and narrative theories to interpret the storied contexts of the young women’s lives, and the role these often constraining and difficult contexts played in the fashioning of their multiple identities. Māori culturally responsive pedagogical theories are also drawn on to interpret the culture of the School for Teenage Parents, and its attempts to provide a supportive and affirming family or whānau environment for its students, in order to offer them more positive narrative possibilities of self and identity as young women, as learners and as young parents.

This study is concerned with how educational legislation shapes and uses freedom for the purpose of governing the parent. The key question guiding the study was: How does the Act constitute the ‘parent’ as a subject position responsible for schooling the child? Central to the work is an examination of the School Education Act 1999 (the Act) using Foucault’s thinking on governmentality. This is prefaced by historical accounts that bring together freedom and childhood as contrived styles of conduct that provide the governmental logic behind the Act. The study reveals how the Act shapes and uses the truth of freedom/childhood to construct the responsible parent as a style of conduct pegged to a neo-liberal political rationality of government. It is this political rationality that provides the node or point of encounter between the technologies of power and the self within the Act which forms the ‘responsible’ identity of the parent as an active self-governing entrepreneur made more visible by the political construction of ‘others.’ This is a legal-political subjectivity centred on the truth of freedom/childhood and a neo-liberal rationality of government that believes that any change to our current ethical way of being in relation to educating the child would ruin the very freedoms upon which our civilised lifestyle depends. In essence, the Act relies on the production of ‘others’ as the poor, Aboriginal and radical who must be regulated and made autonomous to constitute the ‘parent’ as an active consumer whose autonomous educational choices are an expression of responsibility in relation to schooling the child

This study was undertaken to determine the extent of aggressive behaviour exhibited by secondary school learners. Many factors were considered when investigating the problem of aggressive behaviour. The problem was traced from the theorists' perspectives and factors related to the family, school and community. An extensive literature review showed that the above factors contribute to aggressive behaviour among adolescents. In order to support or reject the findings of the literature study, quantitative (questionnaire) research and qualitative research (interviews) were conducted. The results of the quantitative research concerning learners' aggressive behaviour in secondary schools were analysed and interpreted while at the same time a deeper understanding of aggressive behaviour was revealed through qualitative research. The results of the empirical research indicated that the more negative the family climate, school climate, community climate or influence of friends are, or the more negative the emotional self-concept of the adolescent is, the more aggressive the adolescent is, and vice versa. Based on these findings recommendations for the implementation of prevention programmes were made. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Socio-Education)

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This paper deals with the impact of prematurely canceled foster care on a deve-lopment of a child. It gives an overview of the system of care of endangered children in the Czech Republic. It also presents the current legislation which is the basis of the surrogate family care in the Czech Republic. In 2013, an amendment of the Social and Legal Protection of Children law came into force, which the legislators built up on the experi-ence with professional foster care in Slovakia. Its goal is to reduce the number of chil-dren in children's institutions. The paper further includes a thorough analysis of develo-pmental needs of a child. Foster parents have to accept the fact, that they decided to take in a child with an unfulfilled attachment bond. Premature cancellation of foster care can bear witness to the fact that a foster family cannot create an attachment bond to the child and does not provide a sufficient amount of support for its development. The pa-per takes into consideration the dangers the juveniles are challenged with as a result of an unsuccessful foster care. Based on the interviews with many directors of children's homes in the South Bohemian region, negative impact of the canceled foster care on children has been noted. New questions suitable for further research in this region have emerged out of the interviews. Host care is one of the possibilities to provide children with a family educational model in children's home. The directors agree that it is the first-rate personality of a foster parent that is crucial for a first-rate foster care, i.e. a foster parent who can open her- or himself to the child and grant him or her his or her own family affectionate environment. The problem of unsuccessful foster care can be minimized only by genuine acceptance of a child and unconditional love for him or her.

L'étude porte sur le fondement du lien de filiation et l'équilibrage de ses composantes multiples, dont la vérité génétique et la vérité socio-affective.<p>Elle analyse la place croissante de l'autonomie de la volonté dans la conception de l'enfant, la création, le maintien et les effets du lien, ainsi que la prise en considération marquée de la parenté d'intention, détachée de la réalité génétique.<p>Cet examen est fait tant pour la procréation dite naturelle que pour la procréation médicalement assistée, avec, en particulier, une étude de la réception par le droit du désir d'enfant chez les personnes célibataires ou en couple homosexuel.<p>La parenté est également étudiée au plan de son évolution vers une reconnaissance de l'autonomie de la fonction parentale sous la forme de la parentalité, détachée de la filiation.<p>Le rôle du droit et la transformation de sa fonction sont analysés en parallèle.<p>Enfin, les conclusions développées au sujet de l'engagement parental volontaire sont confrontées aux principes généraux de dignité humaine et d'intérêt supérieur de l'enfant, ainsi qu'aux droits au respect de la vie familiale et à la connaissance des origines.<p> / Doctorat en droit / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Avec toutes les technologies disponibles afin de pallier à l’infertilité de nos jours, il peut sembler qu’avoir un enfant est chose simple. Toutefois, les discours de quinze québécoises rencontrées, qui ont vécu ou vivent toujours de l’infertilité, démontrent que le parcours en procréation médicalement assistée est semé d’embûches. Comme le dit Félicia, une femme rencontrée: «l’infertilité ça l’affecte plein, plein de sphères de la vie». L’un des objectifs de ce travail est d’ailleurs de questionner le choix de ces femmes d’aller en clinique de fertilité lorsque des difficultés à procréer ont été rencontrées et de soulever les impacts de ce choix. Cette recherche démontrera que les québécoises et les choix qu’elles prennent dans le domaine reproducteur sont profondément influencés par les pressions sociales et le mode de pensée propre à leur société. / With the technologies available in order to mitigate infertility, it would seem that having a child would be easy. However, the dialogue of fifteen Quebecers that are dealing with or have dealt with infertility illustrates that the process of medically assisted procreation has its pitfalls. As explained by Felicia, "Infertility affects many, many spheres of life". One objective of this work is to question the choice of women who go to fertility clinics when difficulties to procreate arise and to outline the impacts of their choice. This research will demonstrate that Quebecers and the choices they make in the reproductive field are profoundly influenced by social pressures and the way of thinking of their society.

This thesis examines the effects of the change from strict scrutiny to the undue burden standard in Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992). A history of abortion in the United States and the various ways in which government regulates it is explored. Particular attention is focused on the role of the federal judiciary in abortion regulation. Theories of judicial decision making are discussed as means to understand the outcome of cases. Several models are tested to determine which, if any, model explains judicial decision making. The effect of the change in standard, as well as an alternate precedent, are examined.

This research is set within the context of the Kenyan Public Universities, where with the changing student population dynamics, students are increasingly choosing to combine parenting with studies. Many of these student parents both male and female have had to negotiate the academic requirements as well as the burden of parenthood. Such a study is important at this time of privatization and liberalization of higher education in order to open up public discourse on the provision of higher education and the effect on the socio-economic status of the students. Using qualitative research analysis based on socio-educational, socio cultural as well as socio-economic status (SES), a study was designed and conducted with the question posed: What are the socio-educational approaches of public universities with respect to student parents. Eighteen (18) interviews of ten (10) university officials and eight (8) student parents formed the research sample. Qualitative research questions were prepared in an in-depth interview guide and a focus group questioning route. Data revealed that there are students both male and female who are actively parenting in the public university and that they face role conflict and financial challenges which impacts on retention and completion rates of students in the public university. The research argues that there is need to create awareness of socioeconomic status (SES) in the university approach to inclusiveness of all students as well as student parents. Recommendations based on this study should be helpful as guidelines for a model on guidance for student parents as well as documentation of a clear policy on approaches or support for student parenthood in the public university. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Socio-Education)

Vatican II provided the Catholic Church with an opportunity for deep reflection and to align its theological teachings with modern times. This reflection resulted in a resurgence of the importance of Christian marriage and family living. Beyond Vatican II, the Christian family has been described as a ‘domestic’ church. This description defines the family founded on marriage as a cornerstone for the church and society. The Church has realised that if she has to succeed in her mission of evangelisation, she needs to strengthen the families founded on the sacrament of marriage and also to take care of broken families. The theme of a ‘domestic church’ was further explored and discussed in the 1994 Special Synod for the Bishops of Africa. This synod strongly used the image of the family as an effective tool for evangelisation in Africa. The rationale for this emphasis was that the institution of the family founded on marriage is held in high esteem in Africa and it is one of the most important custodians of cultural values. This institution, the bishops argued, can now be used as a custodian for Christian values. Hence, the family founded on marriage will become a school where these values are cherished and taught to offspring. The family founded on marriage is celebrated across the global cultural spectrum. It is through the family that the age old wisdom of ancestors is propagated. This ensures the survival and the development of the different communities. Communities develop because they are built upon strong ethical, religious and cultural values which are safeguarded by the institution of the family founded on marriage. The Catholic Church teaches that marriage is the custodian of life. Marriage is about life. Hence, the respect of human life is safeguarded by the family. The collapse of such a pivotal institution has serious implications for the community. The institution of the family founded on marriage is presented in this thesis as a turn around strategy to the challenge of moral permissiveness in our country. It is a commonly accepted theory that development can only take place where there is stability. The lack of infrastructural development in most African countries is due to lack of political stability. Instability often results in chaos and anarchy. Marriage promises stability which is rooted in the self giving of the couples. Such an environment becomes conducive for human life to be propagated, nurtured and developed. It further creates a sense of being loved and belonging to the child. These qualities are essential for proper and integral human development. Furthermore, marriage ties together the goals of parenting, namely, procreation and parenthood and they are inseparable. They prepare children for social integration.The purpose of this research is to demonstrate how the institution of the family founded on marriage can help us develop a coherent moral vision in South Africa. This turn around strategy is proposed by systematically analysing the causes and consequences of family breakdown. The thesis establishes that the institution of the family founded on marriage is undergoing a crisis. This crisis manifests itself through single-parenthood, high rate of divorce, fatherlessness, etc. The consequences of this crisis are not favourable for individuals and the society. / Philosophy and Systematic Theology / D. Th. (Theological ethics)