Bibliography: p. 124-127. / This study investigates the conceptions of 'school' and 'learning' held by twenty grade 7 students between the ages of 12 and 15. While the subjects' participating in the research were selected from two Cape Town metropolitan schools in close proximity, the schools were situated within vastly different socio-economic and cultural environments. The study aimed to explore what factors impact on the development of students' conceptions. The conceptions were analysed against an international body of literature in an attempt to discern whether a particularly South African notion of the phenomenon existed.

Bibliography: leaves 67-71. / This study, conducted at Poor Man's Friend Secondary School (fictitious name), describes the use of Time Tabled School time. In fact, it quantifies the Time spent on Instruction and relates it to Learner Engagement-rates. Cumulatively, these variables impact on Learner Outcomes.

As Albania is accelerating its preparations towards the European Union candidate status, numerous areas of public policy and practices undergo intensive development processes. Regional development policy is a very new area of public policy in Albania, and needs research and development. This study focuses on the process of sustainable development in Albania, by analyzing and comparing the regional development of regions of Tirana, Shkodra and Kukes. The methodology used consists of a literature/desk review; analytical and comparative approach; qualitative interviews; quantitative data collection; analysis. The research is organized in five chapters. First chapter provides an overview of the study framework. The second outlines the theory and scientific framework for sustainable and regional development in relation with geography. The third chapter presents the picture of the regional development in Albania, analyzing the disparities and regional development in the light of EU requirements and NUTS division. Chapter 4 continues by analyzing and comparing the regional development of the regions: Tirana – driver for change, Shkodra – the North in Development and Kukes – the “shrinking” region. Chapter 5 presents the conclusions and recommendations. This research comes to the conclusions that if growth in Albania is to be increased and sustained, a regional development policy needs to be established.

Abstract Where and how people live in later life is of vital importance to their wellbeing. Yet there has been very little critical attention in gerontology to the growth of large residential complexes being built by developers on urban fringes across Australia. There is no coherent policy relating to older people’s accommodation, and a general absence in understanding the capacity of these purpose built environments to meet the needs of older people. Further, there is a lack of research that represents the intricate interplay of factors that informs the provision of residential complexes. This research aims to address the critical need to understand the reality of older people’s lives within these spaces of ageing. It seeks to do this by exploring the experiences and meaning older people resident in these complexes attach to these spaces, as well as investigating the views and knowledge of those responsible for their design and production. A spatial framework, directly informed by Henri Lefebvre’s theory of social space, provides a holistic means to integrate both the structural and humanistic dimensions of space. This framework guided an exploration of the working knowledge of the professionals involved in the production of residential complexes, as well as how older people use, and create meaning in this living environment. The qualitative research design facilitated the analysis of interviews with professionals and older people, as well as documents and working papers in order to gain a rich understanding of the different dimensions that make up the production of, and life within, residential complexes. The research identified a broad range of implications in relation to the policy and practice of building residential complexes for older people. Of particular note is that the working knowledge of those responsible for the provision of residential complexes is underpinned by a stereotypical approach to ageing which affects their attitudes and assumptions. This is part of a complex array of factors including ageism, the dominance of business acumen, and humanism all resulting in a cultural acceptance of older people’s accommodation as separate. These findings prompt consideration of who is planning for whom, and who benefits? Findings suggest that for older people residential complexes are an ambiguous place, characterised by tensions. For some residents, the space provides both security and community, enabling them to engage with occupations and relationships. However, for others, the space is limiting, compromising their ability to retain meaning in their lives. In this way, residential complexes are both an enabling and a constraining environment. These findings highlight the inherent difficulty of providing one dominant model for a population with a broad range of needs, experiences and expectations. Whatever their age older people continue to produce space, and this is not only about keeping the past alive, but keeping in touch with the whole of their lives. This entails continuing to form relationships and connecting to the environment, whether that is a garden, the bush or inner city life; and through the signification of objects as both an expression of connection, loss and absence. To reinforce the heterogeneity of older people, place and space for some was not important. This research has important implications for developing policy on ageing and planning the built environment, as well for the application of the theory of social space. Of note is the power and pervasiveness of ageism within professions responsible for the conception and production of residential complexes, and the strength of the dissonance between accommodation, support and care for older people. Important insights were gained about older people’s use and meaning of their space, notably the need to recognise micro agency and occupation throughout the life course. This thesis draws attention to the complexity of place and space in regard to older people and their living environments and challenges research that adopts a more singular approach. Finally, use of Lefebvre’s work to drive the approach adopted in this study is a major strength. In particular, the operationalisation of Lefebvre’s triad of social space in a social context provides a theoretical contribution to social theory, one to be taken up by gerontology and social science.

Abstract Where and how people live in later life is of vital importance to their wellbeing. Yet there has been very little critical attention in gerontology to the growth of large residential complexes being built by developers on urban fringes across Australia. There is no coherent policy relating to older people’s accommodation, and a general absence in understanding the capacity of these purpose built environments to meet the needs of older people. Further, there is a lack of research that represents the intricate interplay of factors that informs the provision of residential complexes. This research aims to address the critical need to understand the reality of older people’s lives within these spaces of ageing. It seeks to do this by exploring the experiences and meaning older people resident in these complexes attach to these spaces, as well as investigating the views and knowledge of those responsible for their design and production. A spatial framework, directly informed by Henri Lefebvre’s theory of social space, provides a holistic means to integrate both the structural and humanistic dimensions of space. This framework guided an exploration of the working knowledge of the professionals involved in the production of residential complexes, as well as how older people use, and create meaning in this living environment. The qualitative research design facilitated the analysis of interviews with professionals and older people, as well as documents and working papers in order to gain a rich understanding of the different dimensions that make up the production of, and life within, residential complexes. The research identified a broad range of implications in relation to the policy and practice of building residential complexes for older people. Of particular note is that the working knowledge of those responsible for the provision of residential complexes is underpinned by a stereotypical approach to ageing which affects their attitudes and assumptions. This is part of a complex array of factors including ageism, the dominance of business acumen, and humanism all resulting in a cultural acceptance of older people’s accommodation as separate. These findings prompt consideration of who is planning for whom, and who benefits? Findings suggest that for older people residential complexes are an ambiguous place, characterised by tensions. For some residents, the space provides both security and community, enabling them to engage with occupations and relationships. However, for others, the space is limiting, compromising their ability to retain meaning in their lives. In this way, residential complexes are both an enabling and a constraining environment. These findings highlight the inherent difficulty of providing one dominant model for a population with a broad range of needs, experiences and expectations. Whatever their age older people continue to produce space, and this is not only about keeping the past alive, but keeping in touch with the whole of their lives. This entails continuing to form relationships and connecting to the environment, whether that is a garden, the bush or inner city life; and through the signification of objects as both an expression of connection, loss and absence. To reinforce the heterogeneity of older people, place and space for some was not important. This research has important implications for developing policy on ageing and planning the built environment, as well for the application of the theory of social space. Of note is the power and pervasiveness of ageism within professions responsible for the conception and production of residential complexes, and the strength of the dissonance between accommodation, support and care for older people. Important insights were gained about older people’s use and meaning of their space, notably the need to recognise micro agency and occupation throughout the life course. This thesis draws attention to the complexity of place and space in regard to older people and their living environments and challenges research that adopts a more singular approach. Finally, use of Lefebvre’s work to drive the approach adopted in this study is a major strength. In particular, the operationalisation of Lefebvre’s triad of social space in a social context provides a theoretical contribution to social theory, one to be taken up by gerontology and social science.

City officials are in the position to adopt and implement policies within their jurisdiction that can have lasting impacts for businesses, people, and the environment. Sustainability research has highlighted the need to protect the environment by adopting policies which support the three E's of sustainable development (environment, equity, and economy). Stepping aside from the traditional mechanisms for building a successful city focused on economy first can be challenging for policy makers. The problem city officials face is that changes towards environmental protectionism have long been considered harder on city economy than traditional development focused on economic prosperity. Additionally, sustainability planning is thought to mitigate potential negative impacts that planning for environmental protectionism and social equity may have on economic prosperity. To examine this problem faced by city officials, ordinal regression analyses was used to analyze (1) the possible effects of environmental protectionism and social equity on a city's economic prosperity, and (2) whether sustainability planning has a moderating affect between environmental protectionism, social equity, and economic prosperity. This analysis demonstrates that environmental protectionism and social equity are not associated with a decline in economic prosperity. Sustainability planning was directly associated with increased economic prosperity but did not moderate the relationship between environmental protectionism and economic prosperity.

This thesis applies the econometric projection approach to forecast the numbers of general practitioners (GPs) in Saskatchewan for the next 15 years at both provincial and the Regional Health Authorities (RHAs) levels. The projection results will provide the estimated level of GPs up to 2021 for policy makers to adjust their decision on health professionals planning.<p> Three hypothesized scenarios, which include the changes in population proportion, average income for GPs and a combination of both, are used for projections based on the regression results. The projections suggest a 4.34% expected annual increase of GPs if the proportions of children and seniors increase or decrease according to prediction for the next 15 years for Saskatchewan. At the RHAs level, 4.5% to 10.7% expected annual rate of increase for numbers of GPs is projected for the northern RHAs and Saskatoon RHA, while the expected increase for other urban RHAs will experience less than 1.5% increases.<p> The predicted changes in average income for GPs show insignificant effect for the expected changes in numbers of GPs. However, the second and third scenarios are not extended to the RHAs level due to lack of information, which requires additional data for both Saskatchewan physicians and population for further projection analysis.

This thesis applies the econometric projection approach to forecast the numbers of general practitioners (GPs) in Saskatchewan for the next 15 years at both provincial and the Regional Health Authorities (RHAs) levels. The projection results will provide the estimated level of GPs up to 2021 for policy makers to adjust their decision on health professionals planning.<p> Three hypothesized scenarios, which include the changes in population proportion, average income for GPs and a combination of both, are used for projections based on the regression results. The projections suggest a 4.34% expected annual increase of GPs if the proportions of children and seniors increase or decrease according to prediction for the next 15 years for Saskatchewan. At the RHAs level, 4.5% to 10.7% expected annual rate of increase for numbers of GPs is projected for the northern RHAs and Saskatoon RHA, while the expected increase for other urban RHAs will experience less than 1.5% increases.<p> The predicted changes in average income for GPs show insignificant effect for the expected changes in numbers of GPs. However, the second and third scenarios are not extended to the RHAs level due to lack of information, which requires additional data for both Saskatchewan physicians and population for further projection analysis.

No description available.

Sustainable transport planning is a complex issue and has become a great challenge for today’s decision makers. One of the biggest concerns is how sustainable mobility can be reached; where social and economic interests can work together with environmental interests. By looking into a special case of transport planning in Åriket, Uppsala this paper analyses the decision making process as well as the response from other stakeholders presented as contesting story lines. The results show there are weaknesses in the planning process, where too few alternatives have been looked at and the methods used has not been able to handle the complex issues of sustainable development in an adequate way. From the contested story lines the different opinions in the question has been identified as either being a part of the old conventional transport paradigm or a part of the new sustainable mobility paradigm, which can be used as a guideline for the decision makers in what way to go for reaching sustainable mobility.