No abstract available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1997.

This dissertation explores the real world problem of rural youth out-migration and finds that the central problem is one of persistent class difference in this rural Oregon town. The research that informs this dissertation was conducted in a rural community of approximately 2300 residents in Eastern Oregon, here called Talltown. Data was collected through participant observation, photovoice (n = 8) and semi- structured interview (n = 63) among adolescents, emerging adults, and adults, specifically those working with local youth. The dissertation explores the ways in which Talltown youth encounter, internalize, and strategically enact dominant and counter norms of the local and larger fields. The primary finding of this dissertation is that as rural communities vie for position in the era of global neoliberalism, they discursively impose a similar competitive logic upon their youth, which reinforces the myth of meritocracy yet supports persistent class difference. Using the themes of "going somewhere" and "getting stuck," this dissertation aims to make visible, and thus challenge the hierarchical system with which class and other forms of socially constructed difference persist. / Graduation date: 2012

This thesis is an investigation into the socio-economic effects of English literacy among the Chinese of Singapore between 1945 and 2000. Through the use of oral history, statistical evidence, and existing secondary literature on the conditions of everyday life in Singapore, it explores how English literacy as a life chance has played a key role in shaping the class structures that exist among the Chinese in Singapore today. Adopting a 'perspective from below', this study provides a historical account that surveys the experiences of everyday life in Singapore through the stories of everyday life. It seeks to present an account that more accurately reflects the nation's nuanced past through defining eras in Singapore's post-war history 'Singapore Stories' in the plural, as opposed to the singular. Viewing the impact of English literacy through the prism of Max Weber's concept of life chances allows an examination of the opportunities in the lives of the interviewees cited within by distinguishing between negotiated and corralled life chances. The overarching argument made by this study is that in the later stages of Singapore's postwar history and development, English literacy was a critical factor that allowed individuals to negotiate key opportunities in life, thus increasing the likelihood of socioeconomic mobility. For those without English literacy, the range of possibilities in life became increasingly restricted, corralling individuals into a less affluent economic state. While acknowledging the significance of structural forces, and in particular the shaping influence of industrialisation, economic policy, and social engineering, this study also demonstrates how regarding the Singapore Chinese as possessing a variety of distinguishing social and economic characteristics, all of which serve to segment the community as an ethnic group, adds a new and critical dimension to our academic understanding of the nation's social past and present. By locating areas of resistance and the development of life strategies by an individual or household, this thesis illustrates how language, literacy, and class operated within the reality of undefined and multilayered historical spaces among the Chinese of Singapore.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität, Kassel, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--East Tennessee State University, 2005. / "May 2005." Title taken from PDF title screen (viewed September 11, 2007). Includes bibliographical references (p. 131-138) and appendices.

Based on the author's thesis (doctoral--Oxford). / Includes bibliographical references (p. 184-221) and index.

Thesis (M.A.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 1997. / Bibliography: leaves [188]-209.

Überarb. Diss. Univ. Edinburgh, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references and index.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Rijuksuniversiteit te Utrecht, 1982. / Summary in Dutch. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A. History)--University of Waikato, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 127-141). Also available via the World Wide Web.