Based on the importance of environmental ethics in both causing and solving many of the environmental problems, the present study aimed to (1) Examine moral reasoning patterns (i.e. ecocentric, anthropocentric, non-environmental) of pre-service science teachers toward local and non-local environmental problems, (2) Investigate the effects of gender and grade level on moral reasoning patterns, and (3) Explain the factors that may have led to the observed differences in participants&rsquo / moral reasoning patterns. Throughout 2008-2009 Fall and Spring semesters, environmental cases regarding local and non-local environmental problems were distributed to a convenience sample of 120 pre-service science teachers who were enrolled in Middle East Technical University and moral decision-making interviews (MDMIs) were carried out with a sub-sample of 16 pre-service science teachers. In accordance with the purpose of the study, descriptive statistics, paired-samples t-tests, and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) tests as well as qualitative analysis of the interviews were utilized. Analyses demonstrated that participants of the study mostly exhibited ecocentric moral reasoning for both local and non-local environmental problems, and their ecocentric and anthropocentric concerns showed statistically significant difference with regard to problems&rsquo / locality. Moreover, while gender did not have a statistically significant effect on participants&rsquo / moral reasoning patterns, grade level did have a statistically significant effect. Finally, analysis of the interviews revealed sixteen factors effective in participants&rsquo / environmental concerns and their moral reasoning regarding environmental issues.

This work contains reasearch of the procedures and strategies used for mathematical problems of motion by high school students, as well as analysis of student´s problem solving. This part if followed by a compilation of problems in order to practice solving of the motion problems. This compilation is divided into several parts, while each of the parts focuses on different types of problems.

This diploma thesis brings information about the perception of the teaching profession by secondary school students, their parents, and teachers of a selected primary school. The aim of the work is to find out with the help of questionnaires, how pupils and their parents subjectively see and perceive teachers and how the teachers who teach pupils themselves see their profession as a teacher. In the theoretical part, I deal with the historical development of education and the teaching profession in our territory. I also deal with the characteristics of the teaching profession by clarifying the very concept, personality traits, and typology of the teacher's personality. This section also includes chapters on the competence of the teacher, his authority and motivation to choose the teaching profession. In the last part, I deal with the current form of the teaching profession in primary school, the requirements for the profession, and including selected problems of our education. In the practical part, I used a questionnaire survey to evaluate the data obtained by individual respondents among students, parents, and teachers and then I analyzed the data of individual groups of respondents and drew a conclusion. Keywords profession, teacher, elementary school, parents, education, teacher's personality,...

The relevance of the study of the peculiarities of teaching Chinese students English in Russia, in particular in UrFU, is determined by the fact that the number of students from China is increasing annually. It turned out that Chinese students have a low level of English language proficiency and a problem of "language barrier". In this regard, the problem of quality training of foreign citizens in Russian universities is attracting more and more attention. This thesis contains an overview of the national-psychological, ethno-cultural and linguistic features of Chinese students, as well as peculiarities and differences in the educational systems of China and Russia, which involve some specificity in determining the content and technology in teaching. The approaches, principles and methods of teaching English, contributing to the effective formation of foreign language abilities of Chinese culture are also described. It also gives practical recommendations for teaching English language to Chinese students. The difficulties of adaptation to the educational system of Russia, the attitude of Chinese students to the process of learning English, as well as related academic problems in the study of the language require the teacher to organize a smooth transition from one educational system to another, while maintaining student’s motivation for learning, diligence, responsibility and importance of education. The obvious difference in educational systems, approaches and teaching methods determines the specifics of working with Chinese students. The scientific novelty lies in the fact that selected relevant for the study pedagogical approaches (activity-oriented, personality-oriented and communicative-ethnographic), as well as didactic (connection between the theory and practice of teaching, the principle of visibility of teaching foreign languages) and methodic principles of teaching English (the principle of modeling the situation of intercultural communication, the principle of rational use of the second foreign language (Russian), etc.) contribute to the effective formation of communicative skills of students from China. The practical significance of the study is a set of exercises for classroom work of foreign students on the formation of foreign language communicative competence. The developed set of exercises can be taken as a basis for the creation of teaching AIDS. In addition, the practical significance of the study is associated with the possibility of applying its results in the process of teaching English as a foreign language to students from China. / Актуальность изучения особенностей китайских студентов, обучающихся в России, в частности в УрФУ, обусловлена тем, что численность студентов из Китая, получающих образование по программам бакалавриата и магистратуры, ежегодно увеличивается. Анализируя работу с китайскими студентами направления «Лингвистика» и их результаты, преподаватели отмечают низкий уровень владения английским языком и ярко выраженную проблему «языкового барьера». В связи с этим проблема качественного обучения иностранных граждан в отечественных вузах привлекает все большее внимание. Цель исследования – выявление и теоретическое обоснование особенностей обучения английскому языку китайских студентов направления «Лингвистика» и опытно-экспериментальная проверка эффективности педагогических условий формирования у них коммуникативных иноязычных умений. В работе рассматриваются национально-психологические, этнокультурные и лингвометодические особенности студентов из КНР, а также особенности и различия в образовательных системах Китая и России, которые предполагают некоторую специфику в определении содержания и технологий в обучении. В связи с этим, описаны подходы, принципы и методы обучения английскому языку, способствующие эффективному формированию иноязычных способностей представителей китайской культуры. Выявленные трудности адаптации к образовательной системе России, отношение китайских студентов к процессу обучения английскому языку, а также сопутствующие академические проблемы в изучении языка-специальности требуют организации преподавателем плавного перехода от одной образовательной системы к другой, сохраняя мотивацию к обучению и заложенное конфуцианскими традициями усердие, ответственность и важность образования. Научная новизна состоит в том, что проанализированные и выделенные актуальные для исследования педагогические подходы (деятельностно-ориентированный, личностно-ориентированный и коммуникативно-этнографический), а также дидактические (связь теории и практики обучения, принцип наглядности обучения иностранным языкам) и частнометодические принципы обучения английскому языку как иностранному (принцип моделирования ситуации межкультурного общения, принцип рационального использования второго иностранного языка (русского) и др.) способствуют эффективному формированию коммуникативных умений студентов из КНР. Практическая значимость исследования заключается в разработке комплекса упражнений для самостоятельной и аудиторной работы иностранных студентов по формированию иноязычной коммуникативной компетенции. Разработанный комплекс упражнений может быть взят за основу создания учебно-методического пособия. Помимо этого, практическая значимость исследования связана с возможностью применения его результатов в процессе преподавания английского языка как иностранного студентам из КНР, в разработке методических рекомендаций для преподавателей, обучающих английскому языку студентов из Китая.

More than 16 years post-apartheid, South Africa is still regarded as the most unequal society in the world. The government is facing various obstacles and challenges in improving the standard of living and quality of life for all its citizens, for example in facilitating the access to clean drinking water and sanitation, building houses and providing basic education. In addition, the country is facing the world’s largest HIV/AIDS epidemic with a national prevalence rate of 18.1 %, equalling approximately 5.7 million people who are currently infected. (Pressly, 2009; UNAIDS, 2008c) Against this background, the aim of this thesis was to study the Madwaleni community, situated in a deeply rural area of the former apartheid homeland Transkei. Applying the Community Oriented Primary Care approach, a strategy of ‘community assessment and diagnosis’ was used to obtain a holistic community profile and to determine the perceptions of its community members regarding their health and social problems and needs, intending to make recommendations to health care providers working at Madwaleni Hospital regarding future health education and disease prevention programmes. (Brown and Fee, 2002) This research used a cross-sectional design. In a preliminary survey, qualitative data was collected in short interviews with health care providers working at Madwaleni Hospital (N=46). The information served as a basis to develop and design parts of the Madwaleni community survey questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of 36 questions, complying with the aim and objectives of this thesis. It was used for the structured interviews with the main study population, all of whom were members of the Madwaleni community (N=200), whereas half of the main study population were men and half were women, then again, half were unaware of their HIV status and half were HIV+ and had joined the Madwaleni HIV/AIDS programme. Key findings 1) Madwaleni community profile and characteristics Thoughtful sexual behaviour: Particularly interesting in light of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, more than 90 % of the sexually active community members were monogamous at the time of the survey. While only 36.4 % of the men and women unaware of their HIV status used condoms, 76.5 % of the HIV+ community members claimed to do so, indicating that the Madwaleni HIV wellness programme and especially its counselling and health education components are adequate and valuable in serving their purpose. High rates of illiteracy and insufficient education: Only 56.5 % of the interviewed community members were ‘functionally literate’ at the time of the survey. Of those, only 8 % had received a matriculation and not one of the community members had received any higher degree. In addition, 19.5 % of the sampled men and women were not able to read at all. High rates of unemployment, poverty and dependency on welfare grants: Only 20 % of the Madwaleni community members were employed at the time of the survey. Taking the daily income per capita as a reference, one third of the community members suffered from ‘moderate poverty’, defined as an income of 1 to 2 US $ per day, while the other two thirds suffered from ‘extreme poverty’, defined as an income of less than 1 US $ per day, although more than 90 % of the corresponding households received at least one type of welfare grant already. Large household sizes and predominance of traditional dwellings: In the Madwaleni community, an average of eight people lived together per household at the time of the survey, whereas 95 % of the community members lived in traditional dwellings, constructed from freely occurring natural resources. In need of safe drinking water, sanitary systems and access to electricity: More than 80 % of the Madwaleni community members obtained their drinking water from rivers or stagnant dams, while only 6.5 % used rain water and 9.5 % had access to piped water. In addition, almost 70 % of the community members had no access to any sanitary systems, using nearby bushes instead. Furthermore, more than 90 % had no access to electricity. The majority used paraffin for cooking, candles for lighting and wood for heating their homes. Small-scale cultivation to provide an extra source of food: In the Madwaleni area, 90 % of the families owned a small garden patch attached to their houses, used for small-scale cultivation. In addition, almost 90 % owned livestock, mainly poultry, cattle and goats. Crops and animals were used to provide an extra source of food; however, not one of the households could solely live on subsistence farming. Difficulties in accessing health care facilities: On average, each of the community members needed three-quarters of an hour to access their closest clinic and almost one and a half hours to reach Madwaleni Hospital, with 40 % and 60 % respectively depending on public taxi transport to get there. No substantial improvement of the living circumstances since apartheid: Comparing the Madwaleni community characteristics with corresponding data from apartheid-times, no substantial improvement of the living circumstances and conditions could be noticed, proving that governmental and non-governmental actions, programmes and services have not yet reached all remote communities. Similar community characteristics in the neighbouring communities: Comparing these characteristics with corresponding features of communities in the immediate or surrounding areas, namely Cwebe, Ntubeni, Mboya, Shixini and Zithulele, various similarities could be detected, indicating that the living circumstances and conditions might be generalisable to a certain degree, at least to deeply rural communities in the former Transkei area. More disadvantaged than the general South African population: The Madwaleni community differed significantly from the general South African population in 75 % of the compared characteristics. For example, amongst the community members the illiteracy rate (21.7 % vs. 13.6 %, p = 0.002) and unemployment rate (80.5 % vs. 25.5 %, p < 0.001) were significantly higher. In addition, the ‘poverty headcount ratio of 2 US $ per day’ showed that significantly more people were suffering from poverty in the Madwaleni area (92.2 % vs. 34 %, p < 0.001). The Madwaleni community members were less likely to have access to clean drinking water, along with significantly higher proportions of them using river water as their main source of drinking water (75.5 % vs. 5.1 %, p < 0.001). Also, they were less likely to have access to any sanitation or toilet facilities (31.3 % vs. 91.8 %, p < 0.001) or to electricity (8.5 % vs. 80.2 %, p < 0.001). 2) Weightiest health and social problems as experienced by the Madwaleni community In the Madwaleni area, the three health problems with the highest impact on the community were TB, HIV/AIDS and hypertension. On the basis of the applied 3-to-0-point rating matrix, they were rated by more than 95 % of the community members as being relevant problems, with mean values of 2.33, 2.30 and 2.14 respectively. Interestingly, women rated HIV/AIDS higher than men. Musculoskeletal problems and headache were additional health problems with relevant impact on the Madwaleni community, rated by more than 90 %, with mean values above 1.80. While pain and discomfort experienced by PLWHA have been recognised and researched before, there are no corresponding studies on rural communities and further research is necessary to identify the contributing factors. Additional relevant health problems: Interestingly, six health problems were rated higher by HIV untested than by HIV+ community members, namely bilharzia/ schistosomiasis, epilepsy, Herpes Zoster, HIV/AIDS, lung infections and stroke. Since the HIV+ men and women were educated about and screened for all of those diseases within the Madwaleni HIV/AIDS programme, this might explain the deviating rating patterns between the different sub-samples. Moreover, these results demonstrate that health education and disease prevention programmes are able to reduce the perceived burden of health problems and might therefore serve as a substantial argument in their favour. Interestingly, for the Madwaleni community, social matters had a higher impact on their lives than health problems, whereas the three social problems with the highest impact on the community were alcohol abuse, dependency on social grants and smoking. They were rated by more than 98 % of the community members as being relevant problems, with mean values of 2.75, 2.73 and 2.72 respectively. In accordance with these findings, employment & lack of work opportunities, education & illiteracy, food supply and poverty were additional social problems with relevant impact in the Madwaleni area, rated by more than 90 %, with mean values above 2.00. 3) Recommendations for future health education and disease prevention programmes At the time of the survey, the three most relevant health education and disease prevention topics for the Madwaleni community were HIV/AIDS, TB and healthy nutrition. They were rated by more than 95 % of the community members as being relevant health education problems, with mean values of 2.65, 2.51 and 2.36 respectively. In addition, STIs, alcohol & drug-related problems, water & sanitation and body & muscle pain were rated as the subsequent issues of relevance, with mean values above 2.00, supporting the identified community characteristics as well as the listing of the weightiest health and social problems. In addition, valuable new insight could be gained. For instance, HIV untested men rated the topic HIV/AIDS lower than all other community members, which is particularly interesting since men only constitute a minority of 20 % of the people testing for HIV in the Madwaleni area. Besides, topics not previously considered, such as injury prevention and basic first aid, were in-fact relevant for more than 85 % of the community members and require further attention. Furthermore, deviating rating patterns between men and women and the corresponding need for gender-specific educational workshops became evident, for example, for men about prostate & testicular cancer check-up or erectile dysfunction and for women about breast & cervical cancer check-up & papsmears or nutrition & growth. In addition, HIV+ community members rated depression & stress and psychiatric diseases higher than HIV untested men and women, with further studies required to identify the underlying reasons for these deviating rating patterns. Taking all findings from this Madwaleni community survey into consideration, health care providers working at the hospital and its peripheral clinics should first and foremost concentrate their efforts on maintaining the existing programmes, particularly, the Madwaleni HIV/ARV programme and the workshops on hypertension and diabetes mellitus. In addition, if qualified and motivated personnel can be recruited and the necessary funding can be raised, future health education and disease prevention programmes should focus on TB, alcohol & substance abuse-related problems as well as water & sanitation.

The diploma work 'Financial education as prevention against over-indebtedness of Czech households' deals with the issue of constantly rising over-indebtedness. In the Czech Republic the number of people who find themselves in financial shortcoming due to over- indebtedness has recently raised. When we compare the Czech Republic with the advanced countries in the European Union, we find out the over-indebtedness is not so high. What is, however, alarming is its dynamics in the recent years. These figures are confirmed with statistic data. The phenomenon of consumer loans started to develop in the late 1990's when the first negative consequences, i.e. social and psychological impact, and distraints, which had not been known so far, appeared for the first time. Mortgages are seen as relatively healthy form of debt because their reimbursement is not as problematic as it is with the consumer loans. Investment into living is considered as long-lasting. There are several possibilities how to cope with debts. One possibility and prevention is financial education the application of which is in the centre of this work, i.e. financial education as the tool for orientation in market environment, part of social work and especially as the prevention itself. The essential part is educational activities and...