This study investigated the effect of one semester of ESOL education on preservice teachers by examining their perceived knowledge and skill in working with English Language Learner (ELL) students, their attitude toward having ELL students in their mainstream classrooms, and what classroom methods they perceive as effective in their ESOL preservice education courses. Data for this study were collected from pre- and post-course attitudinal surveys during one semester of course work, from participants at two specific points in their educational experience; participants in the (1) introductory and (2) final TESOL course. There were 293 participants who took the pre-, and 273 who took the post-course survey, from a total of 513 preservice teachers. This represents approximately a 57% participation rate on the pre- and 53% on the post-course survey. Little is known about the effect that ESOL preservice education has on preservice teachers' attitudes toward ELL students, and no studies known to the investigator have examined the methods of an ESOL preservice program to see preservice teachers' perceptions of the effect of these methods. The effect of the following independent variables were used: (a) course (initial and final ESOL course), and (b) time (pre- and post-course). A new survey instrument was developed that identified the following factors which were used as dependent variables: (a) perception of ESOL knowledge and skill (PEKS), (b) attitude toward inclusion (ATI), and (c) perceived effectiveness of instructional methods (PEIM). Significant differences were found regarding: (1) PEKS by course and time, and (2) PEIM by course. No differences were found for the variable ATI.

Ecotourism has been promoted globally as a model for sustainable development because it simultaneously benefits the environment and the residents of the given destination. However, many conservationists have questioned the long term sustainability of ecotourism as it is difficult to mitigate the impact of even low levels of tourism on a particular ecosystem. Further, social scientists including anthropologists have similarly questioned whether most residents of a particular destination actually benefit significantly from the alternative tourism economy. The Globalization Research Center in cooperation with the Monteverde Institue in the Monte Verde Zone, Costa Rica, is undertaking a longitudinal study -- dubbed the Triangulation Study -- to understand the effects that development through ecotourism has on human and natural systems. In order to collect preliminary data, the Globalization Research Center funded the Development Survey which was designed to collect demographic data from a representative stratified random sample of household from nine communities in the Monte Verde Zone. Basic descriptive information was also collected for all of the businesses in the area that would agree to participate. The data collected showed that there is a significant difference in the extent that the nine communities in the Monte Verde Zone are involved in and perhaps benefiting from ecotourism despite the fact that their opinions about ecotourism are mostly positive. The communities located on the main road to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve have demographic statistics that are significantly different from communities that are off the main road, and all communities are significantly different from the Monteverde community. Further, the ecotouristic businesses are located in these road proximate communities. Like the ecotourism literature predicted, the majority of the businesses are small and locally owned. Further study that carefully looks at the differences between those communities closest to the road and those furthest away is recommended. Perhaps a repetition of the Development Survey after a period of time would help elucidate changes in the Zone.

The purpose of this research study was to analyze school psychologists' perspectives on 27 parent involvement and empowerment activities focused upon improving students' school success. A sample of 36 school psychologists from high and low minority schools in a large urban school district rated the degree to which they believed the activities should be offered to parents and the extent to which they were feasible to implement over the next five years. The activities rated highest for offer and feasibility by psychologists at both high and low minority schools were related to information dissemination and one-to-one meetings. The activities rated lowest for offer and feasibility by psychologists at both high and low minority schools were related to systems change and time-intensive programming. Psychologists' mean ratings for offer were generally higher than their mean ratings for feasibility of implementation. However, the mean ratings for offer and feasibility at high minority schools tended not to be different from those ratings at low minority schools. Time was rated as the biggest barrier to implementation at both high and low minority schools, with current work responsibilities a close second. It is suggested that moving away from the traditional role of assessment and placement and towards prevention and intervention might reduce, if not eliminate, the time and current work responsibilities barriers and allow more school psychologists to implement home-school collaboration.

In New Zealand the development and promotion of sporting events is becoming increasingly popular, due in part to the role of sport in building the nation's identity, the economic benefits, and a growing awareness of the importance of health and fitness within the community. Given this increased popularity it is important that the impacts of these events upon the local 'host' communities be understood. Social impacts have been given more and more attention in recent years by event researchers, due to the recognition that the long term sustainability of such events can only be achieved with the approval and participation of residents. This research addresses these issues in the context of Taupo, New Zealand using the case of Ironman New Zealand.This thesis adopts a mixed method approach using interviews (n=7), participant observation, and a web-survey (n=111). The findings confirm that it is vital to investigate and understand impacts of events on host communities. The findings are also consistent with theories identified in the literature in terms of the nature of social impacts on host communities. The overall results indicate that residents are aware of both the positive and negative impacts of Ironman New Zealand. Respondents highlight positive impacts such as economic benefits, exposure of Taupo, community togetherness, and the encouragement of sports, yet they also recognize negative impacts such as inconvenience from traffic congestion, and road closures. Accordingly, the community was grouped into three distinct clusters with positive, negative and ambivalent perceptions, and were labelled 'Lovers', 'Pessimists' and 'Realists'. The findings further suggest that the use of web-surveying for community research is still in its infancy and needs further development enabling it to be used as an effective tool. Finally it is proposed that small to medium scale sporting event hosted in regional communities may contribute to a sense of community and to the creation of social capital. Further research is needed to confirm this proposition.

Mobile banking is an application of mobile computing which provides customers with the support needed to be able to bank anywhere, anytime using a mobile handheld device and a mobile service such as text messaging (SMS). Mobile banking removes space and time limitations from banking activities such as checking account balances, or transferring money from one account to another. In recent research and studies it was found that while mobile banking and more specifically SMS-based mobile banking applications have become popular in some countries and regions, they were still not widely used. This study identifies and investigates the factors which influence customers’ decision to use a specific form of mobile banking, and specifically focuses on the evaluation of SMS-based mobile banking in the context of New Zealand. The research model includes the basic concepts of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), as well as some constructs derived through a focus group discussion. The model is tested to determine its predictive power with respect to individual’s behaviour when considering the use of SMS-based mobile banking. A survey questionnaire was developed and employed to collect data from 250 AUT university students in New Zealand. The results of the data analysis contributes to the body of knowledge in the area by demonstrating that context specific factors such as service quality and service awareness are influencing user perceptions about the usefulness of SMS mobile banking which in turn affect intention to use and adoption. Secondly, the study demonstrates, on the example of SMS-based mobile banking, how a hybrid approach involving qualitative data collection and a subsequent quantitative survey can help investigate how user perceptions about usefulness and ease of use are formed. Although the study has its limitations, the implications of the results allow providing practical recommendations to the banking industry, and directions for further work.

Emergency on-call duties have been highlighted as a key stress factor in newly qualified physiotherapists whose job performance may be affected. The concept of stress relating to on-call work, the general lack of interest or confidence in the respiratory on-call field, and subsequent difficulties with recruitment and retention, pose a difficult problem for managers of services responsible for the maintenance of a competent workforce and a high standard of service provision. Differences in novice and expert physiotherapists’ patient management and clinical reasoning strategies have been previously examined in orthopaedic, neurology, domiciliary and cardiorespiratory fields. However, no such investigations have been undertaken in the field of emergency on-call. The purpose of this study was to determine if differences existed between novice and expert physiotherapists who had by definition differing levels of context-related experience within the emergency on-call environment. This study also aimed to consider what factors may influence their physiotherapy intervention for an acute cardiorespiratory patient. A purpose-designed vignette-based postal questionnaire was administered to 26 emergency on-call providers in New Zealand. The questionnaire sought demographic data, investigated participants’ attitudes towards emergency on-call service provision and presented a vignette-based clinical scenario which asked questions throughout an evolving clinical case scenario. Analysis was performed using the computer software package for social sciences, SPSS for Windows (version 14), results were analysed using descriptive statistics, and significance testing was performed using non-parametric methods. A good response rate was achieved (78.8%; n = 56). Statistically significant differences between novices and experts were determined in scores for confidence, stress, and support required, also in the factors affecting stress levels. Novices are less confident (p = < .0001), more stressed (p = < .001) and require more support than experts (p = < .001). Factors which influenced both novice, and to a lesser extent, expert stress levels when working as emergency on-call physiotherapists, were established. A relationship was determined between confidence and level of support required (r = -.65; p = < .001); confidence and amount of stress felt (r = -.58; p = < .001); and support required and stress felt (r = .47; p = < .001). Some differences were demonstrated between novice and expert physiotherapists in their answers to a clinical case scenario. Although these were not statistically significant, a trend was noted which may reflect the different clinical reasoning strategies of these physiotherapists. There is a need for novices to gain the type of experience which includes independent problem solving and guided reflection; the use of vignette-based case studies may be one method which could be further exploited. The profession is responsible for the provision of better ways to meet the needs of our future emergency on-call workforce. If this is not achieved, other professional groups will be required to fill the gaps and physiotherapy; particularly cardiorespiratory physiotherapy will lose out.

The fast pace of development in the Mobile Data Services area means innovators have to remain vigilant to stay in the market. There is not time to undertake the usual market development cycles. As a consequence, researchers are looking at various ways to predict the adoption rate of a new product and ways to better forecast adoption in different niche contexts. Rogers’ (2003) provides a review of historical trends in innovation and diffusion studies, and the foundational (1962) model he developed. In the context of the most recent literature, it is found that Rogers’ generic model still works well, but variations built on his model need to be considered. In particular, the ‘Chasm’ model, developed by Moore (1999), adapts Rogers’s model to cope well with the 21st century business environment. Gilbert (2005) has taken the work of both Rogers and Moore and applied the learning to research into adoption rates and characteristics in cross-cultural situations. In New Zealand the past consumer behaviour when new mobile services have been introduced has shown a number of characteristics and specific problems. Vodafone New Zealand provides mobile services only and they now claim 54% market share (Vodafone 2005`). An early success was to significantly lower the cost of sending text messages (SMS), followed by promotion of that service to the teenage market sector. In contrast to the popularity of SMS, introduction of the WAP mobile Internet protocol was not successful in New Zealand, as was the case elsewhere. The failure is commonly attributed to a lack of services being offered to use the technology. Near the end of 2004 Telecom New Zealand launched a new product, branded ‘T3G’. Vodafone New Zealand released ‘Vodafone 3G’ during the middle of 2005. The technologies behind these products is generally called ‘3G Mobile’, or Third Generation Mobile technology. Operators in Singapore also have 3G networks, commissioned during 2004. Authors such as Salz et el (2004) find evidence to suggest that US network operators need to speed up the adoption of this technology to meet predicted demand. There are unique factors likely to affect in the New Zealand market. The OECD has repeatedly found evidence that broadband Internet adoption in New Zealand is lower than other countries. Introduction of 3G technology provides another way to access broadband Internet. The OECD indicates that pricing is one of the barriers to broadband adoption. Telephone companies will have to consider pricing 3G to appeal as an option to having a fixed Internet option. The key question to be addressed in this research is: Do the adoption intensions of New Zealanders match those of Malaysia and Singapore for expected data services use? A related question is: What other factors effect New Zealand's current relatively slow rate of adoption? Product positioning of mobile data products is going to become more critical, given that some telephone operators are ‘expecting to get 25% of revenues from mobile data within five years’ (Molony, 2001). This Thesis will provide information to assist Mobile Service Providers to predict adoption rates of new services. It will also provide a comparative reference for researchers in other countries to replicate the study, and contribute to an exciting body of international literature. The New Zealand market is characterised by high cost of broadband Internet in general (OECD, TUANZ, and others), proprietary knowledge capture, and regulation, but these issues do not stop research into the intensions of potential adopters. This thesis will fill part of that research void, by comparing emergent demand for mobile data with existing models, which have previously been used, to predict future demand. New Zealand has a reputation as an earlier adopter of new technologies (Min Economic Dev & others). This thesis will contribute evidence to indicate how New Zealanders plan to adopt mobile data services, and how intensions of adoption compare with parallel studies in Singapore, and other countries.

The effects of the public sector reform impacted on all aspects of public services including the performance of the economy. Central to this argument was the re-organization of the operations of the public service from the traditional administration system to the new public management (NPM). Education, a critical service in any economy was not spared. Literatures around the application of NPM (a derivative of market principles and practices) to education (which was value based) suggested that NPM was dangerous for education and could deplete the value system of education and replace that with a focus on accounting for money by individuals who were self-interested and who would seek to maximize their benefit with guile. Arguments against NPM suggested that the human factor was neglected and that education had led to chaos among professionals, stakeholders and students. However, those who argued for the introduction of NPM suggested that it had made the provision of education more efficient, effective and relevant to the needs to the clients. It held those working in the education sector accountable for the resources used and made the system more responsive to the needs of the clients of education. Education in the Cook Islands experienced many changes since western type education was introduced by the Missionaries in the late 1800s. Cook Islands people have always regarded education as a right and also believed their participation in education would improve their lives as well as positively contribute to economic growth. As the public sector reform was a global phenomenon, the currents of NPM also converged on the Cook Islands and affected the delivery of education. Those changes revolutionalized education in ways that was not commonplace in the Cook Islands. However, professionals and stakeholders within education made the most of the system and diverged some of the practices to suit the need, the environment and the culture of the Cook Islands people. Change also refocused education from teachers teaching to student learning reinforcing the dedication of many teachers and education administrators to ensure NPM served the best interest of their clients; the students, despite the workload placed on them. The challenge in this thesis was to understand how the NPM system affected education and how the Cook Islands education professionals worked within the system in their favour. The stories of teachers and Ministry of Education professionals demonstrated that there was no resistance to the application of NPM system in the Cook Islands. In fact, the system was embraced by the education sector suggesting it was a positive change from their previous system of traditional administration. Much of their system was inherited from New Zealand where the environment, layers of bureaucracy and economic status of the country was different. Instead, it appeared the Cook Islands took much of what others deemed as dangerous for education and turned it into a positive opportunity for the Cook Islands education. This thesis presents the story of the revolution in the Cook Island education system.

To be successful, in the competitive, global business environment, firms must have a sound understanding of all their operations and the factors which impact upon them, combined with a performance management system which allows them to assess their progress towards achieving the organisation's objective. The thesis examines 3 propositions : that managers are unaware of the need to link performance measures to strategic goals and that, as a consequence, performance measures do not change to reflect a change in strategic direction; that the link between the performance measurement system and organizational goals is weak because the organization's structure inhibits a coordinated approach towards achieving strategic objectives through the use of performance measures; and, that the dynamic environment in which firms operate serves to disassociate strategic objectives from the performance management system, and the lack of managerial attention to the link between the two will result, over time, in a set of performance measures which provide insufficient, late or wrong information. The research indicated that awareness of the need to link performance measures with strategy rose with managerial responsibility; that the wider the scope of the performance measurement system, the better it would be at accommodating and monitoring changes in strategic direction; that, where the performance management system covered a broad range of activities it could be better used by managers to coordinate and integrate those activities; that managers' perceptions of the reliability, validity and timeliness of the information provided by their performance management system were positively related to the level of ownership of the system; and, in a dynamic business environment, the more comprehensive the information provided by the performance management system, the less likely the organisation would respond inappropriately to external factors. Additional research needs to be done on ways to make performance management systems more reactive to management's needs / Master of Commerce (Hons)

With environmental concern growing in both affluent and developing countries, roof top ventilators, a form of natural ventilation requiring only wind energy to ensure quality air circulation and comfort is becoming a considered choice of many households and industries. Unfortunately, however, many of these ventilators have evolved through trial and error and the flow physics associated with these ventilators is barely understood. The present experimental project was, therefore, undertaken as part of UNSW- Industry collaboration program funded under an Australian Research Council Grant to explore whether the aerodynamics forces acting on these ventilators during their operation could be obtained. A commercial roof top ventilator supplied by industry was, therefore, tested in an open jet wind tunnel of the University of New South Wales and the results are presented in this thesis. A novel feature of this project is the examination of the suitability of ???the three dimensional wake traverse??? technique to the wake of rotating ventilator. This technique has so far been applied with limited success to the wake of lifting bodies of fixed wing configuration only. In the absence of adequate data in the literature on rotating ventilator, the aerodynamics force components obtained by this technique have been compared against force balance measurements. The results show that the wake traverse technique is capable of determining lift and total drag forces associated with the ventilator flow during its operation from the pressure and velocity information gathered downstream of a ventilator in its wake. Generally, from these data, the technique also allows isolation of the profile and induced components of the drag force. However, from the induced drag value, while it is possible to determine the lift force, it is however, found that a more accurate value of lift force can be evaluated using axial vorticity formulation. The availability of the above technique which does not require measurements on the test specimen itself, will aid in providing a cost efficient investigation of the aerodynamic forces and consequently the performance of a roof top ventilator.