No description available.

No description available.

Within the field of International Political Economy (IPE), and across the social sciences more broadly, analysis of restructuring and guides to its management have tended to use the master concept of globalisation as 'common sense' knowledge about social change. As a result, a discourse surrounding restructuring has emerged which presents a cause-effect and uni-linear model. Thus, restructuring processes within statesocieties and firms are viewed as responses to the imperatives of global change. Building on insights from contemporary IPE approaches, which highlight the historical and institutional contingency of these processes, the central purpose of this thesis is to reconsider global change as contested within and across societies. This is pursued through a consideration of the restructuring of productive and working practices as they are negotiated and contested in the key social terrain of states and firms. The inquiry proceeds through three stages. First, the use of globalisation as a master concept for framing knowledge of social change generally, and of changes in working practices particularly, is outlined. Second, through a focus on the debates surrounding the restructuring of work in Britain and Germany, it is argued that interpretations and experiences of restructuring are socially rooted and, therefore, distinctive. It is demonstrated that state-societies do not simply absorb global imperatives; that firms, as social arenas, do not respond to intensified competition in an unproblematic way; and that social groups actively experience and participate in the restructuring of embedded practices. Finally, it is suggested that perceived technological or economic pressures to restructure working practices take on distinctive meanings for particular societies, raising specific conflicts, and reflecting discrete social understandings. From this perspective, globalisation and social restructuring cannot be meaningfully understood as a single, universal or convergent process. Rather, globalisation and restructuring take on distinctive meanings as they are understood and experienced within specific social contexts.

The research on homework since the 19th century in the United Kingdom (UK) shows that there are considerable issues to be addressed in this area. Governments have discussed it and the media have reported on it and it is still a contentious issue for schools and homes alike. This study shows that there has been very little change in the issues surrounding homework for over a hundred years and that no political party in office will take a stand on it. Even though schools would like to see a change in policy it is not on the government agenda. The study worked with six secondary schools in one town over a fixed time period to collect information to discuss some of those questions being asked around the issues related to homework. The literature review looked at documents dating back to 1880 when similar questions were being asked about the relevance of "keeping in" and in 1881 "home lessons" was a newspaper article. A teacher training manual in 1885 contained a chapter on home lessons and those advantages and disadvantages described in the book are very similar to the advantages and disadvantages described in 2004. Hansard recorded discussions in parliament from 1884 about the overpressure put on pupils. Home conditions and the support given by parents in completing homework have been discussed both in the media and in parliament. Comparisons are made between homework in the UK and other similar countries using internationally collected data. The mixed method research included questioning students, families, teachers and governors. Interviews were conducted with senior teachers at the schools, with responsibility for implementing the homework policy. School documents were scrutinised including the home-school agreement, homework policies and homework guidelines for students, families and teachers. The findings of this study showed that there are differences between the main stakeholders, students, families, teachers and governors, in the knowledge, views and opinions of homework. Students, families, teachers and governors differed in their opinions, with many students and families, although seeing some benefits, opposing the setting of homework due to the impact on family time and the stress caused by it. While teachers and governors supported the setting of homework and the important contribution it made in school. There are differences between different types of schools and those with lower and higher ability students and the influence that homework has on the stress levels of those students in higher performing schools. Homework is seen as a marketing tool for some schools to use in selling themselves on the competing educational market place. The findings of this study continue to ask the questions related to homework and in particular What is the purpose of homework?, What type of homework is seen as most effective in supporting students' learning in the various areas of the curriculum?, Does the home environment always support students completing homework and what kind of resources do students need to complete homework and do they have access to these resources at home? and What political, economic, social and educational factors (Hallam, 2004) are important in understanding the context in which homework policies and practices are developed?

English Cathedrals have an established and valued place in their respective locations. Their central role is to provide “the seat of the bishop and a centre of worship and mission”. The contention is that whilst there may be clarity about mission in terms of worship, education and interpretation of the building, there is less clarity about where the energy should be focused in terms of a wider missional role. Recent reports have sought to measure the social and economic impact a cathedral has in terms of its local environs and its reach in terms of social and spiritual capital. The cultural context suggests a rapidly changing religious landscape where the movement, in a consumer society, is away from obligation and traditional forms of religiosity towards a more open understanding of spirituality with freedom to explore, to sample and to choose what to consume. This research approaches mission from a spiritual perspective. It creates also an outer/inner approach from which to establish its empirical work. As such it is concerned with the construction of theory; it follows an inductive approach, though is openly disposed to an inductive-deductive interaction where appropriate. It provides an in-depth methodology based on a case study scenario utilising the qualitative techniques of focus groups and semi-structured interviews through which to collect the data. There are four data-sets each presenting an outer/inner perspective. Of unique interest was the appearance of a sizeable Occupy camp, occupying the site outside the case study cathedral for fourteen weeks raising fundamental questions about economic and social inequality at a time when austerity measures were beginning to take effect. This critical incident drew the cathedral into a more public engagement with the big questions that impact upon our daily lives. A key finding from the empirical work in the case study is that alongside its ecclesial focus the perceived core priority must be its mission to the city through its invitation and welcome but also through its outreach. I use social capital theory to engage with aspects of ‘bonding’ and ‘bridging’. Beyond the functionalist approaches, cultural and symbolic capital enables a more reflexive understanding of institution and cathedral habitus. This moves the analysis from the horizontal to the vertical axis by which ‘linkages’ are made with mechanisms of power and issues of justice and care. This facilitates further dialogue with global flows and their impact on daily life which integrates with the critical incident that was Occupy. Further analytical methods were incorporated to engage with these macro themes. The theological investigation emanates from within three spiritualities, ‘ecclesial’, ‘mystical’ and ‘prophetic’. It seeks to focus on the spirituality of the community, the community’s engagement with the consumer-led ‘spiritual turn’ and its bridging/linking role in the wider community. As a theological device I use a typology taken from the reading of the psalms to convey orientation, disorientation and new orientation. It coheres in particular with themes of disenchantment and the search for deeper meaning. This thesis contributes to the field of knowledge and the corpus of literature by proposing a model of cathedral mission that draws upon its spiritual and social capital to engage within the liminal spaces of emergent spiritualities, and the contested spaces of disorientation and disenchantment recasting fresh theological moorings to engage meaningfully with issues of justice and care. The outcome is reflective, dynamic and strategic, “creating new understandings of existing issues” and interacting with “disparate concepts in new ways”.

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The purpose of this study was to document the literacy practices of three 5-7 year old boys who were in the formative stage of formal schooling. The study took place in the British Virgin Islands, a group of 60 or so islands, cays, and islets located in the Caribbean. I examined these boys’ literacy practices in three contexts — home, community and school. Through observations, interviews and samplings of conversations at home, I found that school literacy dominated all three contexts and was used similarly in all three contexts. Additionally, parents were consciously reinforcing school literacy in the home. The three boys were reading, writing, speaking and listening at their expected grade level and appeared to be steadily progressing. Religion appeared to play an important role in supporting the children’s literacy development, consistent with the country’s Christian heritage. As previous research in other contexts (e.g., Marsh, 2003) has shown, home and community literacy practices remain largely unrecognized and untapped at school. / Education, Faculty of / Language and Literacy Education (LLED), Department of / Graduate

This topic deals with unfair labour practice relating to promotion and will focus mainly on the public education sector. The Labour Relations Act of 1956 and 1995, with respect to the concept of unfair labour practice, will be analysed. It is through this discussion that one appreciates how the concept of unfair labour practices has evolved in South African law. An attempt is made to define promotion and in this regard reference is made to cases decided upon by the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) or the Labour Court (LC). Furthermore, promotion is defined within the context of public education and applicable legislation. Due regard must be to the employment relationship between the employer and the employee as well as compare the current employee’s job with the job applied to. Unfair conduct by the employer will be discussed within the context of promotion. The prerogative of the employer will be discussed with reference to case law and that discussion will include an analysis of various principles with regard to procedural and substantive fairness. Various remedies provided for in dispute resolution mechanism in line with the provisions of the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 and relevant case laws will also be discussed. The last chapter deals with how to strike a balance between employee rights (that is educators) and the rights of learners, in the context of promotion disputes. In this regard reference to case laws will be made. In general the topic will deal with unfair labour practice, definition of promotion including promotion of educators, unfair conduct of the employer, onus of proof, remedies and striking the balance between the rights of the learners and educators.

Thesis advisor: Raquel Muñiz / Research has shown that collective efficacy, school-based leadership, and social and emotional (SEL) competencies positively contribute to student success. In the context of education, collective efficacy refers to whether teachers believe in the ability and capacity of their colleagues to support the achievement of all students. Limited research has examined the bridge between leadership practices and the primary sources of collective efficacy: mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, verbal/social persuasion, and affective states. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to identify leadership practices and determine how they shaped the sources of collective efficacy. Findings indicated that leadership practices – meeting time, professional development, positive praise, coaching, feedback, and sharing expertise – modeled the SEL competencies of social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. Implications of these findings further establish the sources of collective efficacy as influential factors that shape adult interactions, actions, reflections, and ultimately, student achievement. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2020. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

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